Stissing House reborn with tavern fare

PINE PLAINS — Under the loving care of a well-versed chef, the Stissing House, at 7801 South Main St. (Route 199), has been reinvented in Pine Plains, opening its doors to customers on Thursday, March 10.

Delighted by the success of their first night, new owner Clare de Boer said they’re operating the tavern (the main dining room) to start and limiting their capacity to keep business running smoothly in its initial operations.

Their first night drew a full house of customers who have been waiting patiently for the restaurant to reopen.

“It kept us on our toes,” de Boer said. “It was just enough and not too much.”

Reflecting on her origins as a chef and what’s inspired her love of cooking, de Boer calls herself “a serious eater” and said she loves to cook, though not in a particularly “chefy” way.

“I just like to cook and feed people,” she said. “I like the whole process from start to finish, including sitting down at the table and having a good time, people whose company I enjoy — the simple things.”

She ascribed the ingredients in her dishes and the experience of seeing people enjoy themselves and having the food be part of that picture as the two key factors that influence her cooking.

“Everything is sort of ingredients-led and inspired,” she said, “and so up here with all the bounty of the neighboring farms and the vegetable garden when the season gets going, the real inspiration comes from the land and the area and the produce, and when you’ve got good stuff, the hardest work is done.”

For more than five years, de Boer has been operating the restaurant, King, in Soho, NYC, serving mouth-watering French and Italian cuisine with her partners Jess Shadbolt and Annie Shi. As far as how this distinguished restaurateur found herself in Pine Plains, de Boer said she and her husband have a home in Dover Plains. In the almost-five years since they first moved  up here, they’ve fallen in love with Dutchess County.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, de Boer heard the Stissing House building was coming up for lease and decided to see it for herself. She found the building irresistible, calling it “a fantasy for a cook in the countryside.”

The former Stissing House closed in early 2021 after 15 years of business. Its formers owners — chef, restaurateurs and husband-and-wife-duo Patricia and Michel Jean — now operate the bistro Champetre just doors away, at 7801 South Main St.

De Boer said the historic building was bought by Ian Ross, her new landlord. She signed the lease for her restaurant this past December. She has tinkered with the kitchen and freshened up the walls, and has plans for the outdoor garden. Yet some elements from its past will be kept the same — especially the name.

“This place is a local institution and we very much feel we’re the next caretakers of the spot,” de Boer said. “It’s been here 250 years… There’s so much magic and so much charm here, and we want to lean into that and freshen the place up a bit and celebrate the local farms with the food that we’re cooking.”

From the front to the back of the house, there are currently 11 employees on staff and de Boer is looking to hire more and double her team.

The menu features American tavern fare cooked in a wood-fired stove, from a fireplace seafood chowder to steak with creamed kale and a wood-oven roasted chicken. Along with fresh appetizers, there are salads and vegetable dishes, courtesy of de Boer being a self-proclaimed “salad and vegetable fiend.” There’s also a robust bar menu with plenty of salty and briny snacks for customers to nibble while they nurse a few pints.

Stissing House’s hours of operation run from 5 to 10 p.m. on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays; from noon to 8 p.m. on Sundays; and closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

At the moment, the restaurant is taking reservations through the online reservation platform, Resy.

de Boer said there will be lots of room for walk-ins in the future, but she recommends reservations for the time being. Once all the staff is hired, the restaurant will open at full capacity; for now, they’ll be taking it step by step.

Asked how her Soho restaurant will fare while she’s operating her new restaurant in Pine Plains, de Boer said she’s got an extraordinary team holding down the fort, so King won’t need as much of her attention.

“We’re thrilled to be here,” de Boer said. “I think it’s such a wonderful area with incredible farms. It feels so lucky to be in this historic landmark building and getting to know the community of farmers and locals. It’s going to be a tough road ahead but we’re super excited and thrilled to be here.”

Under the tender care of seasoned chef Clare de Boer, the Stissing House was reborn last week in Pine Plains and opened its tavern doors for its first night of business on Thursday, March 10. Photo submitted

Photo submitted

Under the tender care of seasoned chef Clare de Boer, the Stissing House was reborn last week in Pine Plains and opened its tavern doors for its first night of business on Thursday, March 10. Photo submitted