And you may ask yourself…
…well, how did we get here?
Adventure Dinner is a collaborative event company that dreams up and hosts unique food and drink experiences in unexpected places around Vermont.
What started as a bi-annual event in 2015 became a full-fledged business in early 2020, just weeks before the pandemic hit. Despite that unfortunate timing, we took to heart a mission to create “safe joy” for our community through food, drink, and place.
Today we use our powers for good—searching out and spotlighting the best Vermont has to offer, building meaningful community events, and giving our passion to private celebrations.
WE’RE HIRING BAR + CULINARY TEAMMATES! CLICK BELOW TO FIND OUT MORE! 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽
Our Team
We love food, drink, and fun.
Sas Stewart
Founder
Sas Stewart is a serial entrepreneur passionate about creating spaces that foster joy, acceptance and celebration—a pursuit she has manifested over her 20 years in hospitality.
She was named Imbibe Magazine’s 75 inspiring people influencing the way you’ll drink in 2023, and her projects have been featured in Travel and Leisure, Martha Stewart Living, Food and Wine, Outside Magazine, Sift, Bloomberg, Better Homes and Gardens and other publications.
Prior to launching Adventure Dinner, Sas was the co-founder of the award-winning distillery Stonecutter Spirits and Highball Social (cocktail bar).
She is a graduate of the SBA Emerging Leaders program, and holds a B.A in English from the University of Michigan and a M.S. in Sustainable Planning and Development from Pratt Institute.
Lauren Hayes
Director of Operations
Before moving to Vermont in the summer of 2021, Lauren Hayes was the General Manager and Wine Director for the award winning restaurant Pammy’s in Cambridge, MA, earning numerous Best Restaurant accolades and a nod as a Top 50 Best New Restaurant in Bon Appetit. Her wine program featured small production, natural wines that could convert the most classic palettes to the additive-free cause.
While Lauren offers professional, detail-oriented hospitality, her approach is first and foremost one of spreading joy. She is excited to create memorable, magical experiences with Adventure Dinner and their many spectacular Vermont collaborators.
Lauren is a graduate of Massachusetts College of Art and Design and holds a BA with academic honors in Painting. She never did take the WSET Certification (you can ask her why) but has been an educator at the Commonwealth School of Wine and featured in wine columns in the Boston Globe, Improper Boston, Boston Magazine, Travel & Leisure, and Sevenfifty Daily.
James Kitchens
Executive Chef
James is a Filipino-American born in Hawaii who is overjoyed to have landed in the cool-climate mountains of Vermont. Before slowly making his way up north, Chef James honed his culinary skills in Atlanta, GA managing programs that ranged from upscale seafood establishments to guilty-pleasure dives.
He is excited to continue developing Adventure Dinner's Vermont-centric partnerships and work closely with the state's many excellent agricultural producers. James' approach to food is an unfussy one: work with high quality ingredients and let them shine.
eric hodet
CHEF
Eric Hodet is a born-and-raised Vermonter and lifelong chef, having entered the restaurant industry at age 13. After graduating from The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY and studying food, wine, and agriculture across Italy, Eric returned to Vermont to work in a wide range of culinary environments: from burgers and fries to barbecue, casual comforts to fine dining.
In 2022, Eric lead the team at Burlington's Cafe Mamajuana to recognition by the James Beard Foundation as a semifinalist for Best New Restaurant.
Through the challenges a life of foodservice work can bring, Eric continues to find joy in the endless creative opportunities that food can provide, paradoxically holding equal love for both whole animal utilization and thoughtfully prepared plant-based dishes.