Redding Residents Open Georgetown Owl Market & Saloon: Upscale Gastropub + Craft Cocktails
One of Georgetown Owl’s early signatures is this wild boar sloppy joe with frizzled onions and fried sage leaves, and a handful of hand cut fries.
Owls are, for the most part, a nocturnal species. For the owls that are, they’re probably not used to it being dark on a summer afternoon at 5 p.m.
In this case, the “owl” is an owl in namesake, Georgetown Owl Market & Saloon, which experienced a power outage courtesy of a freakishly fast moving, powerful rainstorm on a hot, muggy July day.
While brief, strong winds and some fallen branches resulted in a flickering of lights, “Oohhs and aahhs” in the dining room and at the bar, and ultimately, a more dimly lit restaurant than usual.
Lamb chop lollipops, pomegranate jus, pistachios
Roasted , stuffed medjool dates
For owners Kate Perry and Gerry Valenti, who opened Georgetown Owl in March of 2025, they rolled with nature’s punch smoothly, moving customers (and deadlifting tables and chairs) into the half of their space that still had electricity, and assuring confused walk-ins that they were still very much welcome.
Both, though, have backgrounds in hospitality, and quick thinking is something they’re not strangers to.
A heaping pile of poutine.
Sticky, sweet, crispy, tender pork belly bites w/jicama slaw.
Before Georgetown Owl, Perry owned Restaurant Bea in Seattle, and Valenti is one of the founding partners of Taconic Distillery in Stanfordville, New York. The pair met through Perry’s husband, Jeff, about seven years ago.
“My husband owns the building, so we obviously knew the tenants were leaving, and decided it was the right time to just go for it,” Perry says.
Perry, who’s the co-secretary of the Georgetown Village Restoration, and like her business partner-friend, a Redding resident, referenced all that’s happening in the area like having mainstays in Lombardi’s Trattoria and Wire Mill, having Milestone around the corner, the newer space (albeit in Ridgefield) for Black Cat Grille, and the newcomer with Uncorked opening a second location there.
Running the bar at Georgetown Owl is Cody Kopf (@k1cocktailz on Instagram). Expect to find fresh takes on classics, mocktails, and because of the Taconic Distillery connection, a damn fine Founders Manhattan using Taconic’s Rye, Antica Carpano Vermouth, and black walnut bitters, served up, as it should be.
Left - Summer Shade (a mocktail): blueberry-thyme, lemon, soda water
Top Right - Another mocktail in “Freshie” with fresh cucumber juice, jalapeno honey, soda water
Bottom Right - Cereal Killer: Four Roses infused in house with organic “Cinnamon Toast Crunch,” homemade orgeat, walnut bitters
“There’s a lot of good places here,” she says. “We just want to add to it.”
And what it is exactly is a split space. Once home to a bunch of concepts, including Washington Prime, Georgetown Owl’s market side is breakfast, lunch, and products from farms, small batch purveyors and the like, plus an onsite coffee shop in Quartertone Coffee Roasters.
A little peek inside the market where you can grab goods that include farm raised meat, a mix of local and small batch pantry items, gourmet sandwiches, coffee, and you’re welcome to stay a while and hang out.
“It’s Quatertone’s first brick-and-mortar location,” Perry says. “It’s owned by Bob and Will Ponturo and roasted right around the corner, in this building, behind that glass door right there. We had an interest when we opened in breakfast, lunch, and dinner, so it’s a marriage between the two spaces. The market is a lot of unique things that we like that you might not see everywhere.”
Valenti adds, “It’s a community space, and people like to hang out there. It used to be a place called the Olive Market. I loved it, and I love general stores and farmers markets, so we’re trying to pay tribute to that. The restaurant and the market coexist well together and we can cross utilize products between the two sides.”
On the flipside, aka, the saloon side, Valenti describes it as an upscale American gastropub, a menu that’s a collaboration between himself, Perry, and chef Glenn Czesnowski .
Crispy half chicken with a Peruvian twist
Don’t worry if you’re eating light. This gastropub has a few salads.
Batter dipped, then fried oysters w/sweet corn velouté, braised bacon lardons, horseradish aioli, pickled celery
One of the keys to the Owl Bar Burger is hyperlocal beef.
Like any restaurant of this very sort, there’s plenty of bites to begin with before you move onto something heartier. Duck fat patatas bravas, battered and fried oysters, roasted medjool dates filled with goat cheese and pinenut-walnut stuffing and a drizzle of honey, honey-garlic-jalapeño glazed pork belly, and poutine, using hand-cut fries, with braised, pulled beef cheek, mozzarella curds, and Taconic Distillery Bourbon gravy are some shareables, that’s if you’re planning to share, of course.
But what’s a gastropub without a fancier than average burger?
Amongst the short rib, bowl of Bolognese, and shrimp jambalaya lies the Owl Bar Burger with toppings of smoked gouda, caramelized onions, bacon, tomato jam, and just a little arugula. The beef they use, however, is hyperlocal.
“It’s American wagyu from right here in Redding from Amazing Graze,” Valenti says. “And we do a wild boar sloppy joe and we source that meat from Texas (Broken Arrow Ranch).”
Some desserts, like this tarte tatin, are made by Czesnowski.
Others in the market, and like this white chocolate coconut cake, are courtesy of local baker Siggy Scolnik. Catch him on The Gram @siggybakes.
Also at The Owl, they’re playing with international flavors in a pan roasted black cod with miso cabbage and mustard breadcrumbs, plus, in warmer months, Valenti mentioned a seared tuna dish (also using Asian influence) would make the menu, as would a ceviche. There’s even a seasonal crispy half chicken being served that, in the winter, was butter chicken, but as of press time, it’s a Peruvian style bird, that’s first sous vide, then marinated for 24 hours in black mint, yellow chili pepper, garlic, soy sauce, and red wine vinegar before hitting the oven, and presented before you with rice and black beans, and a spicy, garlicky homemade aji sauce.
“Places in Norwalk and Stamford do it, and I love it, so I said we have to do a Peruvian chicken,” Valenti says. “We’re planning to mix it up here. Like you know, Jeff Taibe (Bar Bushido). We’re big fans of his. We love him. He’s so talented and uses some complex techniques and ingredients. He’s way up there in terms of his level of cooking. We’re trying to be a level down, just so we’re a little different, but to appeal to everyone around here, too.”
19 Main Street, Georgetown
203.292.2695, georgetownowl.com
