Taste of UHart

co-owner of Rosedale Farms & Vineyards rosedale1920.com

Marshall Epstein can remember growing up on his family’s farm when it was just 40 acres. The farm had a hen house, a vegetable plot, and a dairy herd, and the family ran a milk route throughout the local area of Simsbury, Connecticut.

But when Epstein and his wife, Lynn, took over in 1983, they began to change the farm’s business model. Over the years, they have added another 70 acres and a winery. Today, the 102-year-old farm is known for high-quality produce such as sweet corn and heirloom tomatoes, and they offer everything from CSA subscriptions and farm-totable dinners, to corn mazes and spaces for weddings and corporate events.

Rosedale Farms & Vineyards

Reprinted with permission of The Valley Book. Photography: Walt Jedziniak

“We’re always trying to be very innovative,” Epstein says. “We were one of 12 wineries in Connecticut when we opened ours. Now there are 65. There’s so much competition that you always have to be moving forward.”

In addition to his farming duties, Epstein teaches at American International College, where he incorporates lessons he has learned on the farm into his classes. “There are a hundred restaurants but very few farms in our area,” Epstein says. “People don’t know where their food comes from, and our farm is a place where people can learn about that. We are a third-generation farm that has met all challenges successfully, and I’m looking forward to future generations upholding our tradition of serving the local community.”

People don’t know where their food comes from, and our farm is a place where people can learn about that.

Their stories started in campus apartment kitchens, in Student Television Network studios, and through UHart’s Business Plan competition. They started at different times in their lives, but these University of Hartford alumni have found their niche in the food and beverage industry. Whether it’s making the food or writing about it, these alumni are living out their passions.

SAMANTHA BELOTTE ’06

creator and founder of Love Bites thelovebitesway.com | Instagram @chefsam_lovebite

SAMANTHA BELOTTE ’06

When Samantha Belotte began her studies at the University of Hartford, she was lucky enough to get housing accommodations in the townhomes at the Hartford College for Women. The townhomes were equipped with full kitchens, and on weekends, Belotte took advantage of this luxury by cooking meals to share with friends.

A few years ago, when she was considering leaving her corporate marketing job, a friend suggested Belotte do something with her cooking talents. So, in early 2017, she launched Love Bites, a boutique catering business.

“When I was thinking of a business name, I thought of our relationship with food,” Belotte says. “No matter who you’re with, whether it’s family or friends, whether it’s a date night or girls’ night, it’s an exchange and an experience. You’re sharing that love.”

When I was thinking of a business name, I thought of our relationship with food.

A Haitian American who grew up in the melting pot of Brooklyn, Belotte, or “Chef Sam,” has added her own twist on the food she knew as a kid. She leveraged her childhood memories to create a Caribbean-inspired menu to share with her customers, which includes staples like seafood dishes and mac ’n cheese. The Barney School of Business graduate looks forward to one day owning a Caribbean-style tapas bar in Brooklyn. But for now, she will continue to grow her brand, Love Bites, one plate at a time.

“Many of my clients are repeat customers celebrating milestones like proposals, baby showers, and birthdays,” Belotte explains. “Knowing that they trust me to be part of those experiences is amazing.”

FRANK FINELLI ’15

founder of Doughwich cookiedoughwich.com

FRANK FINELLI ’15

I don’t call this a job because I don’t consider it work. This is my passion and what I love to do.

As a kid, Frank Finelli was always in the kitchen making different ice cream concoctions, from a Cool Ranch Dorito-flavored ice cream to a “doughwich,” best described as ice cream sandwiched between edible cookie dough. Thankfully, the Cool Ranch experiment didn’t last, but his ice cream sandwich did. And what was once being requested for family parties is now being sold in retail locations across the country.

Young FRANK FINELLI ’15

Today, Doughwich’s three flavors—Dough’Nilla, Dough’Coco, and Dough’Candy—can be found on the UHart campus and in 140 stores across Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and New Jersey. That number will increase as the product launches in Dallas, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.

The company uses high-quality ingredients to make its product, including a high-butterfat ice cream with a low overrun ratio that allows for less air. That means when a consumer bites into the bar, it doesn’t squish together— and that’s how Finelli came up with Doughwich’s tagline, “Take a bite of happiness.”

Finelli, who majored in Entrepreneurial Studies and was a two-time winner of UHart’s Business Plan Competition, says he gets much satisfaction in “making people happy. It puts a smile on my face. I don’t call this a job because I don’t consider it work. This is my passion and what I love to do.”

Doughwich Cookie Bars

SUZIE HUNTER ’14 & AMANDA ZWIRN ’14

creators of Nacho Scout Instagram @nachoscout

SUZIE HUNTER ’14 & AMANDA ZWIRN ’14

When Suzie Hunter and Amanda Zwirn were working in media shortly after graduating from UHart, they found themselves daydreaming about what they considered to be the perfect job: traveling to different ballparks and producing a video series about the food. Finally, Zwirn said, “Why don’t we just do it?”

And Nacho Scout was born. Hunter and Zwirn have taste-tested everything from toasted grasshoppers at T-Mobile Park in Seattle to cheese-infused hotdogs at a Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders game, filming their experiences and interviewing other sports fans. And they don’t cover just baseball. Nacho Scout produced a video about the tailgating community at Eagles games, and each year they create their own nacho dish based on that year’s Super Bowl matchup.

You don’t have to wait for your dream job. You can make it ‘‘happen on your terms.

SUZIE HUNTER ’14 & AMANDA ZWIRN ’14

“We try to break the internet with some creative, possibly gross-looking nachos,” Zwirn says.

The videos have not only provided a creative outlet for Hunter and Zwirn—who initially met and became friends through their involvement with UHart’s Student Television Network—but also landed them both great jobs. When the video series first launched, Hunter was a newspaper reporter who wanted to be on TV. Nacho Scout videos proved her ability, and she went on to spend three years with Connecticut’s ABC affiliate, WTNH. In February, Zwirn was offered the job of marketing manager for Dining Services at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, thanks to Nacho Scout videos she submitted regarding culture and food.

“The great thing about online content is that you don’t have to wait for your dream job,” Hunter says. “You can make it happen on your terms.”

Photography: Zack Rubin