By Gretchen Webster

WESTPORT — The Porch at Christie’s is closing Saturday, moving some patrons to tears because it’s meant much more to them than its tasty treats, according to Andrea Pecoriello, who owns the business with her husband, Bill. 

But the future is bright, she said, not only for The Porch’s mission — to provide employment and training for people with disabilities — but also for the Sweet P Bakery, which supplies the goods for the Cross Highway business and other clients.

“We’re selling the business and there’s quite a bit of interest,” she said.

When the Pecoriellos announced the closure, “We got a flood of customers who came in crying. We also got a flood of people very interested in buying the business from us,” she said. “I’m praying that they hire all of my staff. We will sell them the baked goods from Sweet P wholesale so that they’ll still be available at The Porch.”

Will alcohol be added to the menu?

That, however, will depend on who ultimately purchases the business — which recently was granted the opportunity to sell alcohol in its AA residential zone location.

At this point, Pecoriello said she has no idea if new owners of The Porch would take advantage of a text amendment approved Nov. 18 by the Planning and Zoning Commission that would allow the sale of alcohol at the site, as well as the Old Mill Grocery & Deli, 222 Hillspoint Road, and the Country Store, 332 Wilton Road, also in residential zones. The amendment was approved primarily to support alcohol sales at Old Mill Grocery, where a months-long battle with neighbors over the issue has ensued. But the rules were revised to allow alcohol sales at the two other locations — pre-existing Sept. 1, 2024, as specified in the amendment — to make the rules “bulletproof” to future legal challenges, in the words of P&Z Chair Paul Lebowitz.

“The new tenant could apply for a liquor license,” Pecoriello said, but during their ownership of The Porch she and her husband never considered serving alcohol. “Not at all,” she said. “We never wanted to have alcohol served there.”

If liquor service is considered by new owners, it could face questions since the business at 161 Cross Highway is on a stretch of the road — from Bayberry Lane to North Avenue — repeatedly described by officials as one of the most dangerous in town because of the high number of traffic accidents. 

A multi-million-dollar project to address the issue, which includes new sidewalks, crosswalks and other safety measures, is currently underway.

A warm welcome that proved a winning recipe

When the Pecoriellos opened The Porch in 2020, they envisioned it as a retail home for Sweet P Bakery goods. In 2019, they opened the Norwalk-based nonprofit bakery, where they train and hire adults with disabilities.

The Porch became more of a success than they ever dreamed of, she said. “It just took on a whole life of its own,” she said, attributing the appeal to its “warm and homey” atmosphere.

But as time passed, running both The Porch and Sweet P became too much, she said. They also had also opened a café at the Westport Weston Family YMCA in March, which they closed over the summer because it was too small and too difficult to run along with The Porch and Sweet P. “Our whole mission was to grow the bakery,” she said. 

“It was 24/7 to run [the businesses] … We knew as soon as Sweet P Bakery could stand on its own,” it was time to move on from The Porch. 

The Pecoriellos in March opened a newly remodeled, larger space for Sweet P on Wilson Street in South Norwalk. With the new kitchen, Sweet P’s business is expanding, with its baked goods sold in several stores, online and available for special orders.

As the bakery business expanded, so did the Pecoriellos’ time commitment, leading to their decision to sell The Porch when their lease expires at the end of the year. “We’re not going away. We’re just refocusing our attention,” Andrea Pecoriello said.

At Sweet P Bakery on Monday morning, the bakers were busy preparing cookies, crumb cakes, scones and blueberry muffins. The bakery employs 11 adults with disabilities, said pastry chef Teri Cahn, who has a long resume in the field, including her own cookie-making business. She manages the bakery staff and production with the help of assistant pastry chef Renee Lalanne, who has worked in more restaurants, she said, than she can remember.

“This job is a dream come true … to work with people who have such natural kindness and joy. There’s no drama — just laughter and fun,” Lalanne said of the staff.

Cahn agreed. “It’s a feel-good place,” she said, as she took cookies out of the huge oven, and supervised and coached the packing of cookies for a corporate order. “They have created a beautiful environment,” she said of the Pecoriellos.

All of the staff at Sweet P have gone through a training program, including numerous baking classes. Since the bakery opened four years ago, Sweet P has graduated two classes of adults with disabilities who now are employed in the bakery. 

“It’s the most incredible group,” Cohn said of the staff. “They really care about each other …It’s such a beautiful atmosphere of kindness.”

Zach Bender, busy making blueberry muffins Monday morning, summed it up: “It’s a friendly atmosphere,” he said. “They are good people.”

Freelance writer Gretchen Webster, a Fairfield County journalist for many years, was editor of the Fairfield Minuteman and has taught journalism at New York and Southern Connecticut State universities.