image description — Tucker McNinch of McNinch Restaurant Group at the Drifters pub at Bousquet. The McNinches are taking over operations at the restaurant this winter.

Bousquet Mountain Drifters Restaurant Under New Local Ownership

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
05:26AM / Monday, December 08, 2025Print Story | Email Story

The look of the pub isn't changing but the McNinches are planning a redo of the menu.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The restaurant at Bousquet Mountain will reopen under new management.

The McNinch Restaurant Group will operate Drifters Bar & Restaurant, opening on Dec. 12.

McNinch Restaurant Group is operated by father and son duo John and Tucker McNinch. They currently own and operate Patrick's Pub and the 101 Restaurant and Bar in the Holiday Inn.

"I think we have a strong understanding of Bosquet's culture, the clientele there, who they're trying to reach, who are with the ski mountain itself as well as the general area," said Tucker McNinch. "It felt like a connection that was meant to happen."

The partnership happened quite fast. The group was reached out to in October by Bousquet and will open the restaurant this Friday.

Bousquet General Manager Kevin McMillan said they are excited to start working with them.

"John and Tucker have a really great reputation in town. They really understand Pittsfield and Pittsfield market, and we're a local ski area, and our goal is always to try and serve the Pittsfield community. And I just think this is just a perfect partnership between the two organizations," he said. "We're really excited to start working with them."

This is now the third restaurant the group has taken on, though John McNinch owned the Olde Heritage Tavern in Lenox for two decades. Tucker McNinch said they like the challenge and have great support behind them to make it easier.

"I like to say you should always challenge yourself, but, if you're not a little bit uncomfortable with the new challenge, then you're not doing it right, but I think we're well equipped to handle it," he said.

Chef Brian Drumm who's been helming Patrick's will be moving to Drifters; he also worked at Heritage and 51 Park. McNinch said the house manager, Colleen, has also been a huge help getting started.

"Having great people with good experience makes it a lot easier, even though it will definitely, no doubt, be a challenge," he said.

The McNinches don't currently have plans to expand more but are always open for an opportunity.

"I like to think of myself as an opportunist. More than anything. I'm not out there searching for the next opportunity, but I'm, you know, if something amazing presents itself, I'm always willing to look at it," Tucker said.

"So as of right now, I have nothing in the cards. But as opportunities arise, we look at them, but we definitely have our hands full for now."

No changes are planned for the restaurant itself and the menu will change but will keep the pub-style fare. McNinch said the group will be "doing it our own way" as the past kitchen staff left and a new staff is coming in.

While they try to keep their menus different at each restaurant, the McNinches will be bringing their famous wings but maybe with a little twist.

"We will have wings and nachos, which we're definitely known for," he said. "I don't think they'll be the exact same way we do them at Patrick's, or the exact same way we do them at 101, because every restaurant's a little different."

The collaboration is with Mill Town Capital, which owns Bousquet. The McNinch said he's excited to work at the mountain where grew up skiing and used to watch his father, John, race in the Alpine league.

"I would say it was definitely a plus. I mean, I'm excited to be working with Mill Town. I'm excited to be working with Bousquet. All these things are and the fact that I now get to work at a ski mountain when I haven't gotten to ski nearly as much as I wanted to," he said. "You know, as I've gotten older, I don't ski nearly at all anymore, so being at a ski mountain, I find it such a fun new place to be."

McMillan said the resort has been looking for awhile for a good partnership to connect with guests and bring in a local perspective.

"We knew that we wanted to have a partnership with a local F&B (food and beverage) firm in town to run the restaurant. What we've been doing is sort of specializing in areas that we're good at, identifying areas that we currently struggle at, and then trying to bring in some local expertise," he said. "And the McNinch Group fulfill that need perfectly."

McMillan said the McNinches are the perfect group as they know the community well and that it will be a great partnership.

"John and Tucker have a really great reputation in town. They really understand Pittsfield and Pittsfield market, and we're a local ski area, and our goal is always to try and serve the Pittsfield community," he said. "And I just think this is just a perfect partnership between the two organizations. We're really excited to start working with them."

The restaurant group currently looking for people to join the team at Drifters and is hiring for both front and back of house.

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Pittsfield Man Creates Device to Clear Lakes of Algae Blooms

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
08:07AM / Sunday, October 11, 2026

Marc Bellora holds a jar of lake water, left, to compare to water cleaned by his Aqua Clarifier Water System.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Marc Bellora has high hopes for a device he's created to treat lakes from harmful algae blooms.

His patented water clarifier can physically remove captured material rather than letting the nutrient-rich material settle back into the lake, which occurs when herbicides are used.

"It's a long-term lake management tool that can be used to reduce legacy nutrients in lakes and ponds over time," he explained. "We built the prototype, this is a prototype. It does approximately 65 to 70 gallons per minute. It's very environmentally friendly. Can be used with air only, or we can use a low-dose potable polyaluminum chloride (PACL) or chemical on board that can help improve results."

The water clarifier barge is based on well-proven technology for water treatment, he said. "It's a self-contained, portable, mobile unit that removes algae blooms, nitrogen, phosphorus, and the associated nitrogen and phosphorus within lakes."

Bellora founded Clear Waterways Group with business partner Mark Simon. They built a prototype mobile unit and are still working out the kinks. It's taken Bellora about five years to bring the project to fruition as he is also a full-time Realtor.

He says the repurposed barge they use has a device that uses air to filter the water to separate harmful bacteria or uses a chemical at low doses. They are testing both to see how well each does at cleaning the water.

"They would do the same thing here, except they would spray it, and it blocks all that stuff together," Bellora said of the use of herbicides. "But then it drops to the bottom. So now all the nutrients that are attached in that plot go to the bottom and contribute to the legacy nutrients only to fuel next year's bloom. Ours removes it."

He said just using air alone has removed 70 to 90 percent of harmful algae where he has been operating on the south end of Pontoosuc Lake.

"Essentially, we take in the bad stuff, we take in the lake water. We separate the good stuff from the bad stuff. Clean water goes back into the lake, and the bad stuff can either be composted, or it can be taken to the wastewater treatment plant, which is what we're doing here," he said.

Bellora explained that tiny air bubbles attach to particles in the water, making them buoyant so they rise and can be removed. The unit can operate with air alone, or with a low dose of potable polyaluminum chloride.

PACL helps through flocculation: it gathers small particles into larger clumps that are easier for air bubbles to capture. He said this can help remove dissolved nutrients that air alone may not capture as effectively.

Bellora said he was inspired to build something like this after noticing the lakes he enjoys being shut down because of algae blooms.

The city issued a health advisory for Pontoosuc in August, warning residents not to swim or come in contact with the lake water because of an algae bloom. The cyanobacteria can cause skin irritations, vomiting and diarrhea and nerve or liver problems.

Bellora previously worked for a company that used traditional dissolved air flotation (DAF) systems to treat water. In that role, he traveled around the country to work at paper mills and food-processing plants.

That experience gave him a practical understanding of DAF, and while flying between jobs, he would see green ponds and wonder whether the technology could be adapted to treat lakes.

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