A Family Biz: Sly Bandit Brewing Company with Full Service Restaurant Opens in Wilton

When a homebrewing hobby runs in the family, it’s only proper to open a brewery, isn’t it?

That’s at least what happened in the Guda Family, whose brewery, Sly Bandit, may have caught your eye while on Route 7 in Wilton near the Norwalk line.

The Gudas worked with a graphic artist to come up with their logo. “We’re all creative thinkers, but we aren’t artists,” Dave says. “The bandit is inspiration, but he doesn’t do any actual work here. There’s more cool stuff to come as we keep evolving.”

Owned by Dave, who’s retired from the information technology world, Wendy, a former New Cannan High School math teacher who still teaches at CT State Community College Norwalk, and their son, Mike, who left his job as a market research executive to brew beer full time.

And while Sly Bandit opened in July of 2024, brewing beer, at least in extremely small batches started when Mike went away to college at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

The Gudas three principles for Sly Bandit are:

Make good beer

Have a variety of styles available so people can find something they like

Make sure we’re rotating in new things

“He dabbled in making beer (in college), Dave says. “He graduated and got a job here, so he moved back, and then he and I got into homebrewing together as a hobby. A girl that he met in Ohio was set to come to visit and she really liked this one specific holiday ale made by Great Lakes Brewing, but it wasn’t distributed here, so he said, ‘Why don’t we tried to make it for her?’ The beer came out…drinkable. But it must have been good enough because they’re now married and she’s the mother of our grandchildren.”

Like any serious hobbyists would, Mike and Dave’s passion for beer only increased. They boiled mash on the stove, in the garage, and even had a mini brewery in their New Canaan basement. They’d not only brew for themselves, but for friends, family, and if there was a special family event or occasion, it was on them to provide the beer.

Next to the tasting room, you’ll find an “office” where Mike can work on experimental pilot batches.

“Mike brought up doing it commercially, and I considered it, but I told him he should get an education in commercial brewing first,” Dave says. “After he learned it academically, he got experience doing it in a commercial space.”

The biggest obstacle according to the Gudas was finding a space where they could brew onsite and also be able to have a food program. They would eventually come upon what was always a bank since 1976, but most recently a Wells Fargo downstairs and an acupuncture practice on the second level at 4 Danbury Road.

“It was a really big project to get it to be what it is now,” Dave says. “We’re still evolving and thinking about what’s the next thing. Decorations for sure.”

Lots of shareables are on Sly Bandit’s menu. A few of those are cheese filled pierogis topped with caramelized onions and bacon and Stick Ups—essentially pickle brined, hand breaded, then fried chicken nuggets—served plain or with homemade buffalo sauce, and you can use the skewers if you wish.

One recurring theme that’s sprinkled about the brewery is its mascot, The Bandit, and you’ll see the little guy in their logo, on the elevator door, on glassware and merch, and in the upstairs taproom. The Gudas wanted to play off the fact that the space had always been a bank, but they weren’t having much luck coming up with a name, nor did they particularly love the bank theme. One idea that they were into and kept going back to, was a fun, “mischievous” figure of a bandit, hence, Sly Bandit.

As for the beer, Mike’s ethos is a variety of styles that are constantly rotating and beers that most people associate with the seasons, e.g., you might not want a 14% ABV imperial stout in August.

Little added touch in Sly Bandit’s early fan favorite pulled pork sandwich? It’s the thin, grilled slice of sweet pineapple in there to cut through the fattiness of the pork and tangy, slightly smoky BBQ sauce.

“You notice we have 14 taps and we always want to have a selection for customers,” Mike explains. “So far, New England IPAs have been the strongest. The idea is to have breadth, so if you came in one day, then 15 or 30 days later, there’s probably something new on draft. I can make large batches downstairs and pilot batches one-seventh of what I do downstairs right next to the taproom. As we come up on St. Patrick’s Day, we’re going to do an Irish red, maybe a Mexican lager for Cinco de Mayo. Think darker in winter, fruity and lighter in the summer.”

Mike even mentioned that visitors have been clamoring for sours, so that’s in the back of his mind, and he’s planning on bringing back a few of Sly Bandits early greatest hits like a cold IPA and a pilsner.

To have alongside your pint or plural, pints, Sly Bandit has a pub friendly menu of appetizers, flatbreads, and sandwiches, executed in the kitchen by chef Michelle Christides. And it should be no surprise that beer shows up here and there, in beer cheese and beer mustard to dip your pretzel logs in, as an ingredient in broccoli-cheddar soup, and in their spicy chili. Fries are hand cut, blue cheese, BBQ, and most sauces are all homemade, and pulled pork is dry rubbed, then slow cooked before it’s flashed on a griddle for a little crispiness.

Salads are huge here, and very shareable, too, unless you’re like Elaine Benes and a BIG SALAD is all for you.

Pictured: Peachy G.O.A.T. - arugula mixed greens, goat cheese, toasted almond slivers, grilled peaches, ginger tamari dressing.

Six flatbreads, like this one with Mexican street corn, are another focal point of Sly Bandit’s menu.

Originally, The Gudas figured that the brewery would be open first, then the food program would come in a phase two, but they wanted to put as much energy into the kitchen as they do in the brewery downstairs.

“We try to be a little mischievous with the food, like we don’t have wings, we have buffalo stick ups, bite size pieces on skewers, but taste profile, it’s in the same space,” Dave says.

Wendy chimes in, “It’s scratch made breading and almost everything is made in-house.”

Mike picks up, “We want to be a little different and not be the same as what you can get down the street. I guarantee you won’t see a salmon sandwich anywhere around here. It’s like some of the beers; you might not see many black IPAs around either.”

“We’re trying to give it uniqueness,” Wendy says. “Or what do you say, Dave? The Sly Bandit spin.”

4 Danbury Road, Wilton
203.286.7969, slybanditbrewing.com