Watertown's Country Mile Restaurant To Reinvent Itself

WATERTOWN, MA — Watertown's Country Mile restaurant isn't closing for good, despite a Facebook post that said it was planning to do just that. After some ups and downs at the restaurant, which included a temporary closure last month and several social media posts indicating trouble might be brewing, this week, two of the four owners are gone and the two remaining owners said they're planning to stay open - just with some changes.

Last week, a post on the restaurant's Facebook page announced it was set to close and two of the four owners, chef Matt Sargent and his wife Nancy Sargent announced they were leaving the business in the post. That post has since been deleted and the remaining owners Carol King and Steve Robinson say the restaurant is staying open, but shifting gears.

Lots of changes are on the way for Country Mile, including the name, which hasn't been worked out yet. King said the restaurant is working on hiring new staff and creating an entire new menu focused on Italian cuisine.

Country Mile made headlines as a "scrappy" new restaurant when it opened a year ago offering clean food and an ever-changing menu.

King said while the idea was a sharp one, it didn't bring in the numbers they hoped.

"The former plant based menu was great but not pulling in enough people to support the restaurant," she said.

The new Country Mile will include help from Jeffrey Cincotta who has another restaurant in Boston and experience as an executive chef working with Italian cuisine.

King didn't say why the two other owners left, but the restaurant hinted last month at the struggles it was facing in another (now deleted) Facebook post. That post mentioned "rampant staffing turnover and shortages, challenging cash flow, a distinct lack of sleep, and not nearly enough time to post cool food pics on Instagram."