Persistence pays, owner and chief chef Steve Schultz insists as he builds a former catering establishment into a full-fledged restaurant.
Schultz borrowed heavily to launch the Chalet on the Hudson, housed in the former Inn Credible Caterers in Cold Spring south of the Route 9D tunnel leading to Beacon. Motivating his decision to buy was the majestic view of the Hudson and Storm King Mountain.
Actually, the building was familiar to Schultz. It was his business home as a partner in Inn Credible Caterers.
Schultz”™s manager, Alison Bulin, has spent her business hours at the location for an even longer time, dating back to structural changes in progress during the building”™s transformation from Breakneck Lodge to the catering business.
Both Schultz and Bulin come from Austrian-German backgrounds, so the first menu items posted were German offerings. “It all started with spaetzle,” Schultz said.
With Garrison”™s Bavarian Inn and Fishkill”™s Karl Ehmer”™s now history, diners craving German cuisine can choose from among eight German specialties, including Schultz-style sauerbraten.
There are also a number of Italian selections and such basics as sirloin steak and lamb chops.
Adamant about serving fresh food, Schultz receives deliveries daily. He does not buy frozen meat or produce or freeze either.
“If I get advance notice, I”™ll prepare a special request,” he said. “I can always make extra portions and put it on our specials.”
Before transforming the catering establishment into a restaurant, the pair visited a variety of restaurants as observers.
“I gained 15 pounds,” said a trim Bulin, who apparently burned off the calories in her subsequent labors at the Chalet.
The Chalet debuted on Mother”™s Day. Its next major holiday is Thanksgiving. “I make a family stuffing recipe including cranberries, apples and walnuts,” Schultz said. He is also proud of his butternut squash soup seasoned with a touch of ginger.
The Chalet serves dinner Tuesdays through Saturdays and a lavish Sunday brunch buffet.
Schultz bakes his own rye and pumpernickel bread and also such intricate pastries as petit fours, fruit tarts, napoleons and specialty cakes.
A pianist provides background music for brunch and weekend dinners. The clientele Schultz set out to attract values conversation, “and that”™s why the piano is way off in the corner,” he explained.
“We are more interested in serving the local community than we are in building tourist trade,” Schultz said. “With prices reasonable, local people will come in all year. We are interested in repeat business.”
There is a service bar with several seats, but Schultz does not encourage “a bar crowd,” as he terms it. Dress for dining is casual, he added.
The Chalet continues to maintain a room for catered events.
Schultz located his office adjacent to the kitchen to keep an eye on that end of the business. Bulin”™s office is at the entrance, where she can greet guests in between performing her other duties. Throughout meals the two circulate to ensure all is well with customers.
A Middletown bachelor, Schultz attended the Culinary Institute of American in Hyde Park under a scholarship. He is a member of the Chaine des Rotisseurs and was executive chef at the Bear Mountain Inn in the l980s. “We would often serve 1,000 people a day, so I had to learn to cut quantities when I moved on,” he said. He has personally cooked for Helen Hayes, Lady Bird Johnson, Lawrence Rockefeller and Nash Castro.
Bulin, a single mom, commutes from Cornwall-on-Hudson. A graduate of New York City Technical College, she has worked at Windows on the World and Kaufman Astoria Movie Studio.
Challenging Careers focuses on the exciting and unusual business lives of Hudson Valley residents. Comments or suggestions may be e-mailed to Catherine Portman-Laux at cplaux@optonline.net.
