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May 12, 2008

Restaurant Teed Up | New COO plans eatery to help Mount Pleasant Country Club compete

By Matthew L. Brown

The new chief operating officer of Mount Pleasant Country Club in Boylston says the private club's members and the Worcester region are hungry for the type of destination restaurant he plans to develop there.

“The way we write the menus – whether it's fresh fish or an aged beef – is similar to what you see when you go out,” said Mitch Marron, who was named COO of the club in mid-April. “We want to create a restaurant, not a reason to use your minimum.”

Marron is a comedian. He still enjoys performing and says he can do more than 100 vocal impressions. But his showbiz ambitions for Mount Pleasant are dead serious.

    Dinner And A Show

Marron was hired as Mount Pleasant's general manager in January and came from Nashawtuc Country Club in Concord, where he held a similar position. Both are private, member-owned clubs. Private golf clubs in general have struggled with membership in recent years, and Marron said he and executive chef John Rovezzi think turning the club's dining facilities into “a hands-on, fabulous experience for the club and its members” could help increase membership. Marron wouldn't say what Mount Pleasant's present membership is.

Even public clubs that have dabbled in high-end restaurant offerings, like Cyprian Keyes, which is also in Boylston, haven't been able to sustain those operations long-term.

John Rovezzi came to Mount Pleasant in September. He is the brother of Chris Rovezzi the prominent area restaurateur who operates Rovezzi's restaurants in Worcester and Sturbridge. Marron said members should give the club consideration equal to successful, established Worcester eateries like 111 Chop House.

“I think they're hungry for it,” he said. “The course is one of the best courses in Central Massachusetts, and the clubhouse is very prominent in the private country club market in Worcester.”

The restaurant is divided into three rooms: an 80-seat dining room and a 75-seat dining room and adjoining ballroom that can seat 250 combined. The menu ranges from $9 and $10 burgers, sandwiches and salads to $35 Ribeye steaks and $28 Swordfish. The wine list begins with $28 bottles of Pinot Grigio and Cabernet Sauvignon and ends with a $195 bottle of Opus One from the Napa Valley. If he's successful, members and their guests will get a bit of full-on French restaurant service and a bit of a performance.

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