DIXFIELD – Grilled portebella mushrooms, smoked turkey with cranberry mayonnaise, artichoke pizza, roasted shallot and ham quiche, and beet salad.

Then there’s wireless Internet access and two wide-screen televisions. Sounds like a menu and setting of an upscale restaurant or cafe. But it’s not.

It’s but a few of the offerings at Towle’s Corner Store on Route 2, opened this month by Chip Towle, a member of the Towle family who has run some kind of business in the downtown for nearly a century.

“We wanted to do some unusual stuff,” said Towle, who lived in Boston and worked as a director of information technology at Wheelock College for years before returning to his hometown last May.

And it isn’t every so-called convenience store that has a chef creating and cooking the daily offerings.

Scott Croteau, originally from Lewiston, now living in Phillips, is a former chef at the Kawanhee Inn in Weld and Cleonice Bistro in Ellsworth. He looks at his new position as a great lateral move and a chance to create something different every day.

A large stainless steel kitchen filled with an assortment of olive oils, herbs and spices is his artist studio where he has the freedom to create his own dishes. It also serves as the backdrop for a New York-style deli with traditional and unusual cold cuts and cheeses. Fresh made baked foods will also be available each day.

“Everything will be different. There will never be a set menu,” said Croteau. One of his specialties is Asian cuisine.

The day’s offerings are updated each morning on the store’s Web site, www.towlescornerstore.com.

“I knew what I wanted to do, but didn’t have the experience, or know-how to get there,” said Towle, who called on Croteau and others to help him.

Part of the 4,000-square-foot building carries the usual convenience items – milk, bread, beer. And within a couple of weeks, a four-lane, two-pump, canopied gas island will be completed. Employees will continue to pump gas for customers until 5 p.m. each day.

With the three-fold expansion of the former Corner Store, employment jumped from 11 full- and part-time people, to 17.

Towle isn’t done yet. Although he won’t reveal too much, he said plans include party platters of cheeses, meats and sandwiches, and a daily evening meal special.

The food is something East Dixfield resident Mickey Comeau believes is really needed in the area.

She moved here a couple of years ago and missed the variety of foods she was used to.

“I love this store. We needed something with a great assortment of coffees, sandwiches and other food,” she said as she bit into a smoked turkey and cranberry panini.

Her aunt and uncle, visiting from Portsmouth, N.H., agreed that the store was a great addition to the area.

“I’m spoiled by all the good restaurants in Portsmouth. I’ll come back again,” said Comeau’s aunt, Jean Currier.

Towle said he believes his philosophy is the future of for convenience stores.

“More technology available, upscale food and greater food choices,” he said.

The business is open 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 5 a.m. to midnight on Friday and Saturday; and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday.