What Moosewood Restaurant does

Moosewood Restaurant is a privately held vegetarian restaurant founded in 1973 by a collective of 18 Ithaca College students in Ithaca, New York, operating continuously for nearly 50 years as one of the most recognized names in American vegetarian gastronomy. The single-location restaurant, situated at 215 N Cayuga St in the Dewitt Building, serves globally-inspired vegetable-forward cuisine including fish and seafood across lunch (weekdays), dinner (nightly), and weekend brunch, with menu items priced in the $9-$34 range. Operating hours exclude Tuesday lunch, and the restaurant runs on standard POS (Upserve) and reservation (Resy) infrastructure with no proprietary technology platform.

The business monetizes through a diversified portfolio of revenue streams: in-restaurant dining, catering for events of 25 to 100+ guests with 72-hour advance pre-payment, ticketed special tasting events (wine dinners at $50-$85/person, cider pairings, chef collaborations), gift cards, and two adjacent retail extensions: the Moosewood Store (cookbooks, branded apparel, housewares via shop.moosewoodrestaurant.com) and Tiny Wines, a co-located wine boutique curated around women winemakers and Finger Lakes vintners. The cookbook catalog, with 5 million copies sold over nearly five decades, functions as both a direct revenue stream and a perpetual brand-awareness engine.

Customer segments are predominantly local Ithaca and Finger Lakes residents, food enthusiasts drawn by the brand's reputation, and event hosts/party planners seeking vegetarian-accommodating catering. The restaurant is operated by an independently owned team of approximately 36 employees under General Manager Aron Kelly, with no disclosed private equity, venture capital, or parent-company involvement. Strategic partnerships with Dirt Candy NYC (Michelin-starred chef Amanda Cohen), Black Diamond Cider, Ithaca Wine Ventures, and a network of local farms and Finger Lakes wineries anchor the brand's farm-to-table and culinary-collaboration positioning.

Name

Moosewood Restaurant

Website

https://moosewoodrestaurant.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Moosewood Restaurant is a 50-year-old, privately held vegetarian restaurant in Ithaca, NY, serving globally-inspired vegetable-forward cuisine alongside catering, ticketed tasting events, branded cookbooks (5 million sold), and a co-located wine boutique, primarily serving local diners, food tourists, and event hosts in the Finger Lakes region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Vegetarian Restaurant Services

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Caterers (722320)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

All-Day Dining Restaurants (THAFACAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Chef’s Table & Tasting Menu Restaurants (THAFACAG)

Keywords

• Vegetarian restaurant dining
• Farm-to-table cuisine
• Vegetarian cookbook publishing
• Event catering service
• Specialty wine retail

Headquarters

HQ city

Ithaca

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. In-restaurant dining: Revenue from lunch, dinner, and brunch service at the Ithaca location. Customers pay per order at point of sale. Menu spans small plates, mains, salads, desserts, and beverages. Operating hours: Lunch weekdays 11:30am–3pm, Dinner 5pm–9pm, Saturday & Sunday Brunch 11am–2:30pm. Closed Tuesday Lunch.
2. Cookbook and branded merchandise sales: The Moosewood Store sells world-famous branded cookbooks (nearly 50 years of publishing, 5 million copies sold) and branded apparel and housewares via shop.moosewoodrestaurant.com. One-time purchase transactions.
3. Gift cards: Gift cards sold through Upserve, providing prepaid card revenue that is redeemed upon future dining or retail purchases.
4. Catering: Catering orders for events from 25 to 100+ guests. Orders confirmed with pre-payment at least 72 hours in advance. Menu sourced seasonally from local Ithaca farms, featuring Finger Lakes wines and ciders, NYS craft beers, and NYS distilled spirits.
5. Special tasting events and ticketed dinners: Ticketed wine tasting events (e.g., WINE 101 at $50/person), cider pairing dinners ($65/ticket), and collaborative chef dinners generate per-person revenue. Events are booked via Resy.
6. Tiny Wines retail: A co-located wine store in the Dewitt Mall at the same address, curated with a focus on women winemakers, FLX (Finger Lakes) vintners, and oenologic wonders. Operated as a separate storefront open Mon–Fri 2pm–8pm, Sat–Sun 1pm–8pm.
7. Delivery and takeout: Delivery orders fulfilled via ithacatogo.com and pick-up orders via Upserve. Revenue recognized on order completion. Delivery area limited to Ithaca service zone.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Moosewood Restaurant operates a vegetarian and vegan restaurant in Ithaca, NY serving globally-inspired vegetable-forward cuisine (including fish and seafood) for lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch. The core dining operation is supported by an adjacent ecosystem of revenue extensions: a retail e-commerce store selling branded apparel, housewares, and the brand's nearly 50-year cookbook line (5 million copies sold); a boutique wine shop (Tiny Wines) co-located in the Dewitt Mall; full-service catering for 25-100+ guest events; and a recurring calendar of ticketed tasting events featuring Finger Lakes wines, ciders, and guest chef collaborations.

Product overview

Moosewood Restaurant operates as a unified hospitality business centered on its iconic vegetarian restaurant in Ithaca, NY, complemented by multiple retail and service extensions. The core offering is the restaurant itself, serving globally-inspired vegetable-forward cuisine including fish and seafood for nearly 50 years. Supporting products include the Moosewood Store (branded apparel and housewares), the Moosewood Cookbooks line (5 million copies sold), the catering service, and Tiny Wines (a boutique wine shop). These products collectively form a culinary lifestyle brand centered on plant-forward eating.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Moosewood Restaurant Dining Service A renowned vegetarian and vegan restaurant in Ithaca, NY, serving globally-inspired vegetable-forward cuisine (including fish and seafood) for lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch. Accommodates vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free dietary preferences with seasonally sourced ingredients from local Ithaca-area farms.
• Moosewood Cookbooks The Moosewood cookbook line, with 5 million copies sold across nearly 50 years, serving as a global guide to vegetable-forward eating that includes fish and seafood. Titles include The Moosewood Restaurant Table, Moosewood Restaurant Favorites, and The Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health, sold individually via shop.moosewoodrestaurant.com.
• Moosewood Store Branded Merchandise Online retail store at shop.moosewoodrestaurant.com selling Moosewood-branded apparel (t-shirts, kids hoodies, aprons), curated housewares, and the restaurant's cookbook line, shipped directly to consumers.
• Moosewood Catering Service Full-service off-premise catering for events of 25 to 100+ guests, offering vegetarian and vegan menus that accommodate most dietary restrictions. Pick-up and on-site event options available; quote-based pricing with 72-hour advance pre-payment required.
• Tiny Wines Retail Store A boutique wine retail store co-located with Moosewood Restaurant in the Dewitt Mall at 215 N Cayuga St, Ithaca, NY, curating a selection of women winemakers, Finger Lakes vintners, and specialty wine discoveries for walk-in retail purchase.
• Ticketed Tasting Events Recurring ticketed special events including wine tasting classes, cider pairing dinners, seasonal prix-fixe menus, and guest-chef collaboration dinners. Tickets are sold per person via Resy, with table buyouts available for private groups.

Quantifiable outcome

• 5 million cookbooks sold over nearly 50 years

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, minor and core.

• Dirt Candy NYC (Amanda Cohen)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 November 2023To celebrate Moosewood's 50th anniversary, Michelin-starred chef Amanda Cohen of Dirt Candy NYC prepared a special multi-course tasting menu at Moosewood in Ithaca on November 5, 2023. The event featured seasonal ingredients from local farms and optional Finger Lakes wine pairings. Amanda Cohen called Moosewood 'an inspiration' and her 'childhood hero.'
• Black Diamond Cider (Ian Merwin)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 September 2022Moosewood collaborated with Black Diamond Cider for a cider dinner on September 29, 2022. Ian Merwin, Pomologist at Cornell University and owner of Black Diamond Cider, co-hosted a 4-course vegetarian meal paired with 4–5 unique local ciders alongside Moosewood's General Manager Aron Kelly. Event priced at $65/ticket, sold via Resy.
• Ithaca Wine Ventures (Richy Petrina)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 April 2022Richy Petrina, winetrepeneur at Ithaca Wine Ventures, has served as the guide/host for multiple ticketed wine tasting events at Moosewood, including WINE 101! (April 8, 2022) and BUBBLES! An Effervescent Journey (April 1 and May 8, 2022). Petrina leads educational tastings of Finger Lakes wines and Champagnes. WINE 101 priced at $50/person ($780 for table of 12).
• Women winemakers (curated at Tiny Wines)coreOthersTiny Wines, Moosewood's co-located wine store, is curated with a focus on women winemakers as a core pillar of its product selection. This represents a deliberate sourcing and partnership philosophy.
• Finger Lakes (FLX) wineries and vintnerscoreOthersTiny Wines and Moosewood's beverage program feature Finger Lakes region wines prominently. Specific wineries mentioned include Dr. Konstantin Frank (Rkatsiteli), Hermann J. Wiemer (Dry Riesling), Osmote (Seneca Lake Chardonnay), Lakewood (Lemberger), Ravines (Pinot Noir), Billsboro Winery (Uva Bubbly), and BTF Wines (Cab Franc).
• Local Ithaca-area farmscoreOthersMoosewood sources seasonal menu ingredients from local Ithaca farms 'whenever possible,' per its catering page. This farm partnership supports the restaurant's local, seasonal, and farm-to-table positioning across its menus and special events.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Frasca Food and Wine: Boulder, CO restaurant combining regional Italian cuisine with a serious wine program. Comparable to Moosewood in farm-to-table sourcing, deep regional beverage curation, and ticketed tasting event programming.
• Dirt Candy: Michelin-starred vegetable-focused restaurant in NYC founded by Amanda Cohen. Most directly comparable to Moosewood in concept, scale of tasting menus, and cookbook-adjacent brand profile; the two have explicitly collaborated.
• Crossroads Kitchen: Plant-based fine-dining concept by Tal Ronnen in Los Angeles with a celebrity-leaning brand. Comparable in upscale plant-forward positioning and media-driven customer acquisition.
• Candle 79: Upscale vegetarian/vegan restaurant in NYC with a strong wine and sustainability program. Comparable to Moosewood's full-service, vegetable-forward format and beverage-led differentiation.
• Vedge: Vegetarian fine-dining restaurant in Philadelphia known for globally influenced vegetable cuisine and cookbook publishing. Closely comparable in vegetable-forward full-service positioning and author-driven brand.
• Green Zebra: Vegetarian small-plates restaurant in Chicago. Comparable to Moosewood in full-service vegetable-forward menu design, beverage curation, and ticketed tasting events.

Broad incumbents

• Planta: Multi-location plant-based restaurant brand in major US cities with full-service dining and cocktail programs. Comparable in upscale plant-forward positioning and event-driven revenue.
• Sweetgreen: National plant-forward fast-casual chain. Comparable in plant-centric brand identity and ingredient sourcing ethos, though distinct in service model (counter-service vs. Moosewood's full-service).
• Cafe Gratitude: Multi-location plant-based restaurant brand with a wider footprint and broader menu. Comparable in plant-forward philosophy and brand-led dining experience, but at greater scale than Moosewood.

Regional players

• The Farmhouse at Roger Williams: Farm-to-table New England restaurant emphasizing local sourcing and seasonal menus. Comparable to Moosewood's farm-to-table sourcing narrative and seasonal menu refresh cadence, though primarily serving a different regional market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/tinywinesofithaca
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/moosewood-restaurant

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Moosewood Restaurant