By Debbie Adams
The newest Our Daily Bread location— this one in Vinton— celebrated their grand opening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony with members of the Vinton Area Chamber of Commerce on January 19. Also in attendance were Vinton Mayor Brad Grose, Councilman Keith Liles, and several members of town staff.
Mayor Grose welcomed owners Abigail Lawton and Ruben Becerril to Vinton and promised to be a “good customer.” He thanked them for opening the Vinton location which “adds another option for recreation and restaurants InVinton.” He commented on the growing number of choices of restaurants in the downtown area.
Vinton Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Angie Chewning welcomed the restaurant owners and staff as well, commenting on the changing downtown Vinton landscape.
The restaurant is located in the Bush Building at 126 East Lee Avenue in Vinton.
Constructed in 1955, the building formerly housed Asia Gourmet and, before that, Barbecue Grill. At one time, CPA Joe Bush had his offices in the building. Bush was vice mayor of Vinton and a prominent local businessman who passed away suddenly at age 43, leading his friends and colleagues to rename the building in his honor. Our Daily Bread is leasing the property from attorney Bruce Mayer, who purchased the property in 2005.
Abigail Lawton is the owner/manager of the restaurant. She has held the same position at the Brambleton Our Daily Bread location since 2017. Her husband, Ruben Becerril, is co-owner and chef.
There have been some cosmetic renovations to the building— some new paint, a pastry area, and a café area with an espresso/latte machine. A dishwasher and oven have been installed.
Asked why she chose to grow her business in the midst of the pandemic, Lawton explained, “While expanding during the pandemic is not optimal, we have been considering a new location in Vinton for several years and when the opportunity became available, we decided that we would go ahead with the plans.
“We have always been interested in downtown Vinton,” Lawton said. “When the Bush Building came available, we knew it would be the perfect new location.”
According to its website, Our Daily Bread Bakery & Bistro was “established in 1980 and has steadily grown from a small bakery into a patisserie, bistro, and caterer.”
The menu at the Vinton location will closely resemble the one at the Brambleton Our Daily Bread. Breakfast features over a dozen different types of omelettes, along with pancakes, crepes, waffles, French toast, quesadillas, several varieties of eggs Benedict. Breakfast is served all day.
The lunch menu features hot and cold sandwiches, including the “Vinton Steak and Cheese,” salads, and “Chef Special Lunch Entrees” such as Caprese Balsamic Chicken, Pesto Salmon, the Pimento Cheeseburger, and Steak Diane.
Both dine-in and take-out are available.
“Breakfast and lunch menus will be very close to the Brambleton offerings,” said Lawton. “We will not be doing dinners at the Vinton location, but we are planning on doing ‘reheatable’ family dinners ‘to go’ that can be picked up before we close at 3 p.m.”
Quite a few Vintonites have been making the trek to the Brambleton location, especially for weekend brunches, and welcome the new restaurant to the downtown area.
Those who frequent the Brambleton location note the patio area, which is very popular during the warmer months.
“While there is a front patio on the Bush Building, it is a lot smaller than Brambleton,” Lawton said. “Currently, it only sits six people.”
The hours of operation at the Vinton Our Daily Bread will be Tuesday through Sunday (closed Monday) from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Vinton restaurant will be able to seat about 50 diners.
This will make four Our Daily Bread locations, including the original in Blacksburg which opened in 1980, the second in Roanoke County on Brambleton that opened in 2014, and the third in Salem that opened in 2015. Lawton does not own the Blacksburg or Salem locations. She is a 2013 graduate of Virginia Tech with a degree in Food Science and Technology.
The Vinton Our Daily Bread is located across Maple Street from Vinton Baptist and adjacent to Vinyard Station, with plenty of parking available.
Follow the restaurant on Instagram or Facebook @odbvinton or call 540-566-3000.
