A tiny 28-seat BYOB restaurant with a focus on fresh, quality produce and meats opened in Lancaster back in 2011. Meet Ma(i)son. Since then, the Food Network’s Alton Brown has made a visit and the New York Times has included the restaurant in an article about the sustainable food model in Lancaster County. In the bottom half of a rowhome, Ma(i)son has blurred the lines of Italian and French cuisine with its core philosophy of making use of what is available.
1. The Scoop on the Owners—How They Met, Their Culinary History
Ma(i)son is backed by the husband and wife duo of Taylor Mason and Leeann Robustelli Mason, who met while both playing lacrosse at Mount St. Mary’s University in Maryland. Taylor grew up outside of Washington, D.C., while Leeann is originally from the West Chester/Downingtown area. Following college, Taylor studied at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone just north of San Francisco.
2. Why They Opened a Restaurant in Downtown Lancaster
After working just about every job in the wine industry, the couple wanted to make the move back to the East Coast and settled on Lancaster, where Leeann had some family. “We couldn’t open a small place like we have now, out in California,” Taylor said. “The costs are too high.” Taylor also spoke to the food resources in Lancaster County. He believes that the area’s food offerings are second to none, outside of the fertile Hudson Valley. “There was a good opportunity here to push our food philosophy,” Taylor said.
3. Local Food Is of Utmost Importance to Chef Taylor’s Concept
One of Ma(i)son’s backbone partnerships is with farmer Alex Wenger. “Nearly everything he grows, we collaborate on,” Taylor said. Wenger produces dozens of peppers from Italy, Spain and France that most Americans have never tasted. Take the Espelette pepper, for example. Mainly grown in the commune of Espelette in the southwest corner of France near the Spanish border, this pepper is not a commercial product in this country. Ma(i)son has pickled the Espelette for use during the winter months. Having this access, Ma(i)son separates itself from the norm and is able to do new things with its menu. “It’s fun to be able to think about next season,” Taylor said. He is in contact with Wenger on a regular basis.
4. No Paper Menus? No Problem! Ma(i)son Has a Large Blackboard for Constant Updates
On the left side of the blackboard menu, you will find all of the current first courses, which usually range from 10 to 12. There will be a few salads, some seafood options, a cheese preparation or two, maybe a bone marrow, plant-based dishes and a land-based protein. On the right side, you will find the entree list, which will max out at about four or six plates. Regular options include a poultry option, handmade pasta, seafood and a land-based protein or two. “We like to keep the menu lean,” Taylor said.
5. The Menu Is Always Changing, but Get an Idea of What Mason Does Best with These Winter Menu Teases
Although always changing, Taylor made mention of the following dishes from the past few weeks. For starters: hot and sweet brussels sprouts with housemade ricotta, Calabrian pepper jelly and grilled bread; crispy pork croquettes with fermented escarole, spring onion sauce and remoulade; and a house-cured fish plate that included house-smoked trout rillette, pickled vegetables and crackers. For entrees: wild mushroom gnocchi with housemade gnocchi with a ragout of autumn mushrooms, smoked bacon, shallot soffritto, thyme, black truffle and Parmigiano Reggiano; and wood-roasted lamb with roasted sunchokes, crispy potatoes, smoked cippolini onions, autumn greens, pickled garlic scape aioli and parsley gremolata.
6. The Menu Isn’t Exactly Seasonal—It’s Driven by Growing Season & What’s Fresh
The menu doesn’t exactly follow the usual four season schedule that we all know. “Our schedule is a bit more condensed,” Taylor said. “We don’t see peas, fava or asparagus until end of May.” During May to July, Ma(i)son sees its spring vegetables flourish and ripen. Summer vegetables are harvested later in the year, but some begin in July and August. The summer menu can stretch into late September. Working seasonal, Taylor said there is plenty to choose from right now. They preserve and pickle different crops and reinterpret fall and winter root produce.
7. Farm-to-Table Happens Even in Winter
“French and Italians have been eating well for hundreds of winters,” Taylor said. And they’re still here, he added. Winter menus are starch-heavy and include a lot of meat protein. From December to February, the menu is not changing as much as other times of year, but Ma(i)son keeps it fresh by changing proteins and incorporating pickled and preserved items.
8. It’s Received Serious Celebrity Chef Clout—Including from Alton Brown
“The funny thing is, I had just seen him down in Florida about six months before,” Taylor said. While staying at his aunt’s house in Florida during a vacation, one of her friends got invited to a taping of Cutthroat Kitchen. Taylor was familiar with the show and tagged along.
Fast-forward, back in Lancaster. On a regular night in December 2015, the dining room was in transition and a couple left the “chef’s table,” a high-top that overlooks the open kitchen. Brown ordered a few first courses while Taylor and his staff refrained from striking up any conversation.
In between the first courses and entrees, Taylor stopped by the table and struck up a dialogue. He figured Brown was in town to shoot an episode of his show but it wasn’t the case. Brown came to Lancaster because he had read about the product-oriented, small market atmosphere of the Lancaster food scene. At the end of his meal, he jumped into the kitchen to take a photo with the chefs.
Taylor said Brown was “super friendly” and he enjoyed his meal so much that he made mention of it on Facebook. Although Taylor wasn’t sure where Brown heard of his restaurant, there may have been a chance that he read about it in a New York Times piece from June 2015.
9. Being Highlighted in the New York Times is Great for a Lancaster, Pa., Business
Taylor said the restaurant gained a lot of traction from the New York Times article. “It’s the best advertising you can ever ask for,” Taylor said. A clip of the article hangs on Taylor’s bulletin board because he appreciates the “attention for hard work.” He also made repeated mention that it was a proud moment for Lancaster.
10. Using the Words “Farm-to-Table” May Be Cliche, but Local Food Is Always Better
“The whole ‘farm to table’ has become cliché,” Taylor said. His base operating philosophy is the longer produce can stay on the vine, the more of itself it is going to express. The most flavorful produce grows longer and travels closer.
“Any time we can get them from Lancaster, the better,” Taylor said. Before each season, he flip through seed catalogs with farmer Alex Wenger. “ It broadens our food opportunities and we have control over what’s grown,” Taylor said. “Ma(i)son is not just a business to support our family but also the farmers and purveyors.”
11. Since Ma(i)son Opened in 2011, the Lancaster Food Scene Has Developed a New Level of Consciousness
When he first arrived, he would drive to farms to introduce himself and his business. On his trips, he found a huge irony. “I would pass these mom-and-pop dinettes that weren’t getting any of their food from the farm right next to it,” Taylor said. “But there’s a new level of consciousness of quality and wanting to champion this small, funky community.” Lancaster has become an entrepreneurial community for people who don’t want to work for someone else. “The community supports the people that take these risks,” Taylor said. “They realize that they’re enriching the community.” Austin, Texas, and Brooklyn, New York, may have set the pace, but Lancaster has been extremely receptive and Taylor spoke of a certain synergy.
It seems that the Masons chose the right funky little community to grow and thrive a business.
Find Ma(i)son at 230 N. Prince St. in Lancaster; phone: (717) 293-5060.
UPDATE: After the conclusion of our interview with Taylor Mason, LancasterOnline reported that Mason has joined an investment team to buy a $2 million property located at 436 W. James St. in Lancaster, where he will open a restaurant called Luca on James, as well as an unnamed catering business.
- Photography: Ma(i)son
