Mattapoisett Diner Honors Beloved Regular Following Her Passing

Anyone who has frequented a restaurant knows that there are charismatic regulars who stand out from the crowd.

Elaine Vandament from Mattapoisett could always be found at her favorite stool at Pandolfi’s Mattapoisett Diner, or helping clean a table, helping out, because she loved helping people. The owner, Brian Vose, knew she needed to be helpful more than he needed help, and he became part of the restaurant family.

“The restaurant gave our mother a purpose and a reason to get out of bed. She considered everyone there as a second family,” said her daughter, Veronica Brockwell. Brockwell and his brother Scott Vandament moderate the popular Facebook group “Mattapoisett Life,” and it seems the entire community is mourning the loss of Elaine after she unexpectedly passed away on January 3 at the age of 84.

Her family of diners will certainly miss her too.

“She loved Brian and she loved all the girls who work there,” said Brockwell. “When she was younger, she was very busy running her own business. When she retired, and then lost our father, something was missing, and the restaurant filled that space.”

Vandament was born in New Bedford and lived in Marion in her early years. She owned Elaine’s House of Designs for over 30 years, making specialty lamps and gifts sold around the world. After her husband Richard passed away, she spent the rest of her life living with Brockwell in their home, Cedar Rock Farm.

That led to her eventual meeting with Vose, who He expressed his feelings in a Facebook post earlier today, recalling his first encounter with Elaine when she bought the Mattapoisett Diner in 2019.

“I met the amazing woman I would later call my second mother,” he wrote. “Elaine would come over every day two or three times to be exact with her buddy, ‘Porgie.’ Not only was he my favorite food critic, but he was the best person you would ever meet. Every day, he would stick his head out and say, ‘Good morning, Mom, are you marked?’ and she said, ‘Hi, son,’ and the next thing I knew, I’d see her walking around, sanitizing tables. “

It will be revered with the addition of a new item. Originally a daily special, “Elaine’s (Mom) Special” will be added to the permanent menu, Vose said, honoring the woman who became his second mother.

“Elaine would come in and order the same scrambled egg with bites of bacon. Or a little blueberry pancake, sometimes a vegetable omelet,” Vose wrote. “But what she loved was her lunch. American chop suey or a turkey wrap. Elaine would love everyone who had to try the homemade whiskey sauce.”

The special menu item will feature a bacon scrambled egg with a small blueberry pancake and coffee, combining two of your favorite breakfasts. On the menu, Vose wrote “Forever in our hearts! We love and miss you” below the description of the food.

Additionally, the diner will also check out their favorite stool of the week as it will remain empty without their physical presence even though their spirit still fills the diner and the hearts of staff and customers alike.

“Elaine filled that void in my heart because she reminded me so much of my mom,” said Vose, who lost her own mother in 2009.

In a way, it was as if fate brought Vandament and Vose together; she, seeking a sense of purpose after the loss of her husband, and he, seeking a maternal strength in her life.

“I am so thankful to Brian and everyone at the restaurant for giving our mother a sense of purpose and a community that made her live longer and gave her a better quality of life,” said Brockwell.

Additionally, Veronica and her brother Scott will continue to use their Facebook group to share the kinds of good stories from the community that exemplify what their mother was all about and to help those in need.

Brockwell summed up his mother in one word: genuine. She said that anyone who lives their life that way will carry on in Elaine’s spirit.

“If you want to pay tribute to our mother, be good to each other,” he said.