Extra Sides: How a chef & customer became friends & business partners to open Embers 1871 in Peshtigo
PESHTIGO, Wis. (WFRV) – One of the first buildings constructed after The Peshtigo Fire has been known as the Embers 1871 supper club and fine dining since 2017.
The head chef and co-owner is Sherry Veriha, whose business partner is Kari Bunting, a former customer who has become a friend.
Extra Sides: The owner of Gib’s on the Lake also sells his Chef Weston line of spices
“I’ve been in the restaurant industry for 35 years,” Veriha told Local 5 News. “Kari is a lumber girl. A 5th-generation lumber baron. She got to know me and liked me and liked what I did. I asked her to be my business partner, and we’ve been partners ever since.”
Before it was Embers, the building at W3529 County Road B in Peshtigo sat empty for five years.
Before that, it was a well-known German restaurant. But Veriha said it was a family business, and they did not leave the recipes.
“Some people questioned why I didn’t stay with the German food. I love the small, medium, and large plates. Fine dining. So I’m trying to combine that with the supper club tradition.”
Veriha says sometimes folks will stop in to look at the banquet hall where they remember a special occasion.
“They just want to take a look around. They notice the new flooring. We have nice flooring now. Whereas they used to have white and turquoise tile flooring.”
She says the staff gets a kick out of people who are unfamiliar with the supper club experience popping in for a bite.
Extra Sides: Newly opened Cattails Supper Club features wheelchair accessible lounge
“They don’t know what an old-fashioned cocktail is. And we enjoy explaining it. We hand-muddle, so that makes it special.”
Embers 1871 is open Thursday through Monday, 4-8 p.m.
Upcoming special events include:
Friday, May 3, Medium Loriann, who is back from a residency in Las Vegas, “Brunched by an Angel. Advance tickets are available via the Embers 1871 Facebook page.
Mother’s Day Brunch, May 12, 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. Children 4 and under FREE.
Saturday, June 8, Lobster Boil, reservations and payment are required. Space is limited.
