Three basic principles guide Dan and Jennifer Drouin, the owners of the new Stockhouse Restaurant &
Sandbar Pub in Windham, who believe that great food, outstanding service and knowing the community are the building blocks for any successful eatery.
The Drouins, who live in Standish,
opened the Stockhouse Restaurant & Sandbar Pub at the intersection of River
Road and Roosevelt Trail earlier this month and it follows the success of their
Stockhouse
Restaurant & Sports Pub, a mainstay in Westbrook.
They say the most important thing to succeed in the restaurant business is a presence and investment in the community in which you are located.
“In order to be
successful in any small business you have to be present and invested in the
community or you will never truly enjoy success,” Dan Drouin said. “Take the
time to know the community, live there, be a patron of the local businesses
yourself, support other small businesses, support the schools, support the
things the community supports, this is what it takes to be successful.”
Employing a staff
of 35 at the Stockhouse Restaurant & Sandbar Pub in Windham, the Drouins
are still faced with all of the same challenges that existed prior to the
pandemic of delivering quality service and great tasting food to customers all
in the context of maintaining the safest possible environment for their staff
and visitors.
“We have to stay
up to date on the latest regulations and restrictions while continuing to offer
a little bit of relaxation and “normalcy” to our customers in a world that
doesn’t feel very normal right now, Jennifer Drouin said. “The absolutely most
significant aspect of our business is serving our customers and giving the
community a place to come enjoy a good meal and good company.”
The Drouins say
what distinguishes Stockhouse Restaurant & Sandbar Pub from other similar
businesses is the atmosphere and ambiance that instantly gives customers a
taste of the Lakes Region.
“We invite our
customers to relax and leave their worries at the door and “Meet us at the
Sandbar,” Dan Drouin said. “The best thing about being in the restaurant
business is the many customers that over the years have come to be like family.
We have been in business in our Westbrook location for 15 years this past July.
We have watched children grow up, go to college, and get married. We are so
excited to expand those relationships in the Windham community.”
Menu top sellers
at the Stockhouse Restaurant & Sandbar Pub include chicken wings; dirty,
garlic parmesan, or blueberry habanero; steak and cheese pizza; rodeo burgers;
Stockhouse burgers; homemade macaroni and cheese; sweet chili chicken pineapple
pizza; and chicken bacon ranch calzones. There are 24 different drafts on tap,
making the location the leader in Windham for draft beers and ciders.
“With a healthy
mix of old favorites and interesting newer brews, everyone is bound to find
something to their liking,” Jennifer Drouin said. “We also offer a full bar at
the Sandbar if beers are not your style.”
Families will
find Stockhouse Restaurant popular with those of all ages with something for
everyone at reasonable prices.
“We serve a large
portion of food at a fair price,” Dan Drouin said. “We strive to keep our
pricing affordable, offering dishes made from quality products, with a wide
variety of menu items to satisfy any appetite.”
The owners say
they are pleased to be part of the Windham community and the Lakes Region
family.
“We are off to a
great start and have met so many great residents of Windham and the surrounding
communities since we opened our doors. We are grateful for the opportunity to
do business here,” Dan Drouin said. “We cannot say enough about the warm
welcome that we have received from this community. So many wonderful
individuals and organizations have reached out to us in person or messaged our
Facebook page to thank us for investing in this community. It has been
wonderful to hear our customers say time and again during their visits that
they are so happy we chose to open our second Stockhouse location in Windham
and that they wish us success here, each one acknowledging the unique challenges
that we face opening a restaurant during a pandemic.”
Stockhouse
Restaurant & Sandbar Pub is at 4 Turning Leaf Drive in Windham. For more
details, call 207-893-8412 or visit them online at https://www.thestockhouserestaurant.com/ or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/stockhouserestaurantwindham <