New London
Confused? So were many other patrons of the popular eatery and watering hole known for its hearty pub fare and “Original Mustard Sauce” that has drawn fans from the Upper Valley since it opened on New London’s Main Street 42 years ago.
The mix-up began on Jan. 11, when Sarah Baas, a New Hampshire restaurateur who has operated Peter Christian’s for the past six years, posted on Facebook that her lease with her landlord was being “terminated” because the building in which the restaurant is located is undergoing renovation to become an inn. Peter Christian’s would reopen in the fall but “under new ownership,” she wrote.
Panic ensued.
Within minutes, comments started popping up on the page — some 285 in total — from people expressing shock and dismay over the news. “Nooooo!,” exclaimed one patron, “Growing up in New London, PC’s was almost a rite of passage.” “This breaks hearts all across New Hampshire and the USA,” cried another, an employee. “WT- is this world coming to?” demanded an irate customer.
The outpouring shouldn’t have been a surprise: For the restaurant’s regulars, Peter Christian’s is as cherished as a summer vacation on Lake Sunapee.
Opened in 1975, Peter Christian’s dark wood interior evokes a colonial New England tavern offering a convivial repast of “strong waters and victuals” for those making the carriage ride between Concord, N.H., and Burlington, Vt. But the ambiance of a bygone era belies a contemporary twist — there are no french fries or fried foods on the menu, while garnish on an Angus beef burger can include “brandied mushrooms” — with the de rigueur selection of 11 craft beers on tap.
Like Peter Christian’s signature dishes, Baas said, she had to start nearly from scratch to bring the restaurant back to life following its closure from bankruptcy.
“It took me a long time to build the business back up and get it to where I wanted it to be,” Bass said. “It had gone downhill and I had to build the clientele.”
When Baas leased the restaurant from its owners in 2010, Peter Christian’s had been closed for nine months. Doug Dow and a partner had bought the restaurant and 110-year old building in which it was located at 195 Main St. in a bank auction that year for $465,000. The property had fallen into bankruptcy after the previous owner had sustained injuries in a car accident that left him unable to manage his businesses.
Both Dow and Tom Chadwick, who later bought out the other partner, had grown up together in New London and were frequent customers at Peter Christian’s. Dow owns the restaurant CC Tomatoes in Concord. Chadwick, whose grandfather had founded New London’s Chadwick Funeral and Cremation Service (which is now operated by his aunt), is a partner in New London financial planning firm Chadwick & D’Amato.
Nonetheless, instead of running Peter Christian’s themselves, Dow and his former partner instead leased the name and operation to Baas, who previously had owned and operated the restaurant at Beaver Meadow Golf Course in Concord.
“I had done that for 10 years and was looking for a new challenge,” Baas said.
Peter Christian’s origins go back to 1973 in Hanover, when Murray and Karen Washburn opened a tavern in the space now occupied by Boloco and named it after one of their sons who was 2 years old at the time. The Washburns created specials such as “Peter’s Mother’s Favorite” (baked ham, roasted turkey, Vermont cheddar and tomatoes with PC’s mustard) and “Peter’s Father’s Favorite” (roast beef, spinach, tomatoes, red onion and horseradish cream sauce) that are still on the menu today.
The restaurant was such a success that the Washburns two years later opened a Peter Christian’s in New London and then another one in Keene in 1982. But the couple, who now run the Dogford Bed & Breakfast in Etna, had sold off the restaurants by 1996. The name of the Hanover restaurant was changed to Patrick Henry’s, but it later closed, leaving only the New London location continuing until it, too, closed early in 2010 after the owner’s accident.
“She’s done a superb job,” Washburn said of Baas’s management. “I feel right at home there. I couldn’t run it better myself.”
But the business relationship appeared to come to an unexpected end when Baas announced on Facebook in January that her lease on the restaurant was being “terminated” and it would reopen “under new ownership” after the building’s renovation project.
“Many of you have probably noticed the major construction going on around the building,” Baas wrote. “The landlords have decided to turn the building back into the original Edgewood Inn. In order for them to complete construction, they have terminated my lease and PC’s will be closing in March.
“When it reopens, it will be under new ownership. This breaks my heart especially for my amazing staff who have touched my life in more ways than anyone can imagine. … When we leave, we will leave with our heads held proudly high knowing that we all got to be a part of the PC’s legacy even if it was only for a short while,” Baas concluded.
Neither Baas nor Chadwick would discuss the lease termination, each saying it was a private legal matter. But on Tuesday Baas returned to Facebook to announce “great news” that she and the “amazing PC’s staff will be returning after the construction is complete.”
And importantly, she noted, the restaurant’s gift cards will be honored when Peter Christian’s reopens in six to eight months and the famous mustard is available for purchase online at gourmetgardenonline.com.
During the interim, Baas said, she will be focusing on her recently acquired Henniker, N.H., restaurant.
Meanwhile, Chadwick and Dow are in the process of renovating the restaurant’s upstairs apartment complex into a eight-room inn and “medical spa” to “include non-surgical cosmetic and (aesthetic) services to guests and the community,” according to the site plan filed with New London’s planning department.
Built in 1799 as a residence and then passing through several owners, the Edgewood Inn first opened in 1922 and was run and owned by a succession of different parties until 1975, when the property was acquired by the Washburns, who opened Peter Christian’s on the premises and converted the inn into apartments, according to town records.
Chadwick and Dow now want to restore the property back into the inn as it functioned during much of the 20th century — Chadwick and his wife, Paige Chadwick, a registered nurse who will manage the spa, will also reside in the “owner’s apartment” and “oversee hotel operations,” the site plan said — in addition to enlarging Peter Christian’s.
The property, in addition to being a business, has sentimental value for both Chadwick and Dow, Chadwick said in an email.
“My Grandmother’s (Virginia “Ginny” Chadwick) first job when she moved to New London was at the Edgewood Inn. Doug and I both grew up within short walking distance to PC’s, and ate there very frequently. … This project is very personal to both of us, and we are taking great satisfaction in the opportunity to improve the building, bring back the Hotel, and give PC’s a new kitchen and increased seating capacity for the future,” Chadwick wrote.
Baas acknowledged in an interview that “there has been some confusion” over the past couple months about the fate of Peter Christian’s, and expressed relief the situation is now settled. And, as part of inn restoration project, Peter Christian’s will be getting an “updated kitchen” and dining space will be expanded, too.
“PC’s is an iconic restaurant and it doesn’t surprise me the outpouring of comments that have been made. People were concerned it was closing for good,” she said. “But I’m happy to be returning to the terms of my lease. I’m happy with the outcome, and the town and staff are happy with the outcome.”
John Lippman can be reached at 603-727-3219 or jlippman@vnews.com.
