Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1535121
18 Worcester Business Journal | May 5, 2025 | wbjournal.com I t was ursday, July 31, 2008. e sun was blazing over downtown Worcester. In an era marked by the uncertainty of a recession, husband and wife team, Sherri Sadowski and Alec Lopez, were determined to open the doors of Armsby Abbey, the farm-to-table and cra beer destination that helped spark the city's renaissance. In the years to follow, the full-service restaurant and renowned cra beer destination would go on to win more awards than any other establishment in the area, including a record 76 Best of Worcester Awards. Situated on the first floor of a five-story 1800s-era building with its glass storefront and ambient lighting, Armsby Abbey's dining room is an inviting space peppered with mahogany, high ceilings, and a brick backdrop. Sadowski remembers the smell of hops, empanadas, and mac & cheese waing through the room at 144 Main Street on opening night. e restaurant still didn't have a sign, but with many movers and shakers attending the grand opening, success seemed inevitable. Pioneering a locally sourced menu, cra beer, and hand-craed cocktails in Central Massachusetts, Armsby Abbey was ahead of its time. Offering a farm-to-table menu and a farm-to-glass cocktail program was ambitious," Sadowski said. "It meant driving to local farms five days a week to secure products, and building relationships with farmers, artisans, and cheesemakers." Since that day, Armsby Abbey has grown to 45 year-round employees, expanded the dining room, built a new kitchen, and added a function space accommodating 50 guests. e restaurant has invested deeply in the Worcester community supporting countless area fundraisers and initiatives with organizations such as No Kid Hungry, the CASA Project, Regional Environmental Council, and the UMass Cancer Walk to name but a few. Recognized by Wine Enthusiast as a Top-Five Beer Trailblazer in the U.S., Lopez spent years building relationships and courting the best brewers in the world. is networking approach, before the rise of social media, made Armsby Abbey a beachhead in the cra beer world. With his steadfast integrity, commitment to staff education, and uncompromising nature when it comes to quality, he was an ideal representative for brewers. "At the highest level, curating cra beer is less about trends and more about telling a story one pour at a time," Lopez stated. Having your name on Armsby Abbey's dra list is as prestigious an honor as any in Massachusetts, and a chief reason why Armsby Abbey was voted among the best cra beer bars in the world by Ratebeer.com, Crabeer.com, Beer Advocate, and Dra Magazine. Located in downtown Worcester, central to all the event centers and hotels, Armsby Abbey is an ideal place to meet up with friends, plan a date night, or host your next corporate or social event. If you can't make it out, menus have been adapted to include takeout, offsite catering requests, GrubHub and DoorDash delivery services. Armsby Abbey is open seven days a week serving lunch Monday through Friday beginning at 11 a.m., dinner daily at 4 p.m., and brunch every Saturday & Sunday beginning at 10 a.m. Come taste for yourself why Armsby Abbey was voted Best Gastropub in New England by Yankee Magazine. n Worcester's cra beer and farm-to-table destination still a favorite aer 17 years PHOTO / COURTESY ARMSBY ABBEY Street Address: 144 Main Street, Worcester, MA 01608 Phone Number: 508-795-1012 Website: armsbyabbey.com Product or Service Description: Full service restaurant Number of Employees: 45 Head of Company and Title: Alec Lopez & Sherri Sadowski, Founding Partners Year Founded: 2008 ABOVE: PHOTO / JOE SANTA MARIA; BELOW: PHOTO / BRIAN SAMUELS Alec Lopez and Sherri Sadowski at Tougas Farm S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G S E C T I O N | Business Profiles 2025