When Jananne and Bill Valentin decided to ditch the corporate grind and head for the hills with their son Jackson, they weren’t certain what kind of business they wanted to run, but they knew where they wanted to be: in the Rondout Valley. “We’d been coming here for vacations and long weekends, and it’s so beautiful,” Jananne says. “Such gorgeous nature, yet full of culture and good restaurants.”
The Valentins originally thought about purchasing a laundromat, but the Stone House Tavern won their hearts. “We did some secret shopping to see what felt right,” Jananne says, “and every one of the staff here were the friendliest, nicest, most knowledgeable people. It put this particular restaurant on the top of our list. We’ve kept them, and we value them so much; we call them the best dang staff in Ulster County, because they are. We learn so much from them”
“We call our staff the best dang staff in
Ulster County, because they are. We learn
so much from them.” – Co-owner Jananne Valentin
A BELOVED COMMUNITY
The graceful, low-slung building and its history only added to the appeal. “This particular spot has been a working restaurant since the ’40s,” Bill says.”
We've had the opportunity to meet some of the former owners, including one of the earliest, and she's just a lovely person. There's such a wonderful feeling in the building, just this vibe of hospitality. People really love to be there, they feel like it's an extension of their home.” To learn what they’d need to know, the Valentins spent months working alongside Linda Bradford and Al Roberts, who’d established the Stone House Tavern there in 2019. Also part of the team are the regulars, who were thrilled to learn that the place they loved would keep its familiar vibe.
“It’s their restaurant,” Jananne says. “They’ve claimed it as their place. They keep coming back, and they bring their friends. We were really surprised at how welcoming everybody was. We were concerned that we're coming in as outsiders. But everyone wants us to do well, because they love the place so much.”
“People come here to meet friends; they come for big celebrations,” Jananne says. “We have regulars who come in two, three, four times a week, because they love being here, sitting at the bar with a sandwich and chatting with the bartender, or connecting to the other staff who’ve been here for years. People come in for good food, a hug, and some conversation.”
“People think a restaurant is all about the food—and it is—I mean, we do have great food,” Bill says. “But what we’re really doing is creating a beautiful community, and we’re so happy to be part of that.” “We were warned that we might get called ‘citiots,’” Bill says. “Hasn’t happened. If anything, people love to share stories about how their own grandparents came up from Brooklyn. People with skills come in, and if we have some little thing that needs fixing, lots of times they’ll just help us out on the spot. Plumbing, plowing, electric, landscaping—we get the best recommendations from our customers, and people will come back to eat because they like it here.”
MENU WITH A LOCAL GLOW-UP
While keeping beloved favorites on the menu by popular demand, the Valentins are refining and refreshing the menu a little. “We had to make a few executive decisions,” Jananne says. “We swapped out the french fries—they used to be frozen, now they’re made fresh.
"We swapped out the french fries—they used to be frozen, now they’re made fresh. Nobody’s complained about that." – Co-owner Jananne Valentin
“What we’re really doing is creating a beautiful community, and we’re so happy to be part of that.” – Co-owner Jananne Valentin
Nobody’s complained about that. And we hired the wife of one of our bartenders, Kelsey, an amazing pastry chef, so our desserts are now made fresh in-house too.”
“We have a new local fish supplier,” Bill says. “And we’ve been finding local sources for more of the produce and meats. Our meat supplier turned us on to kielbasa from another local guy who makes his own sausage. We’re excited to keep doing more of that.”
When they hired a new chef back in February, they sourced him locally too. “He grew up in the area; he’s an Eagle Scout who studied culinary arts at one of the local SUNY schools,” Jananne says of Chef Michael Chess. “He’s a great addition—he fit in from the start, and he’s young, so he’ll be learning and growing with us.”
THE SCENE
You’ll find a cheery fireplace inside and an outdoor seating area with Adirondack chairs around a fire pit. “We have very nice bathrooms outside, too,” Jananne says. “Not outhouses, real bathrooms with plumbing. The outdoor space is up a little hill from the restaurant, and we have guests ranging from infants to 90-year-olds, so people appreciate having restrooms right there.”
Open mic nights, karaoke, and live bands happen every week. “Bill’s a musician, so he gets to play at open mic. And hosting that puts us in touch with all sorts of local musicians—a lovely, vibrant group—so we have a lot who come and play on weekends too. We list the events on our website, and you can also sign up for a newsletter there that lets you know what’s happening here.”
The Valentins are having such fun that son Jackson has joined in. “He’s working here part-time, and he loves it,” Jananne says. “He’s a SUNY Ulster student now, and he’s changed his course of study to be ready for a management role if he decides to do that. We’re loving it; what parent wouldn’t?”
“There's such a wonderful feeling in the building, just this vibe of hospitality. People really love to be there, they feel like it's an extension of their home." – Co-owner Jananne Valentin
“We just want to keep making it better as we go along, fixing things up here and there, working with the incredibly rich resources of the community” Bill says. “We found a great local artist, Sara, who was willing to hang her work—her parents are regulars—and some of it’s selling, so we’ll be doing more of that.
“And one of our regulars, Marjorie, just came in for dinner. She turned 92, and came here to celebrate, so we did something special, because that is precious—it’s once in a lifetime, and we wanted her to feel cherished. Overall, we’re just so grateful to the people who’ve chosen this as their restaurant, and we’re always looking for ways to make everyone who walks in the door feel at home.”
Stone house tavern
4802 Route 209, Accord
845-626-1500, stonehousetavern.net
