ALMOST THERE

It looks like it'll be just a few more days...literally...we plan on opening our doors on Tuesday, November 3rd. Odd day of the week to open, right? Friday or Saturday would make more sense, but in fact, we've been waiting so long for this day, and we have so many people who really want to see the building ablaze with lights, flavorful scents permeating the Restaurant, and good conversation emanating from the gathering rooms, that we decided to open early in the week.

The good news is that we will open the ENTIRE building, from guest suites, to Restaurant, to Bar, to the Rathskeller Pub (a.k.a. The Rat). No Phase 2, no more waiting.

Let us know if you'd like to drop by and share in

this "soft" opening. You can reach us at 908.996.3200. Our website should be up by next Tuesday to match the brick-and-mortar opening with a virtual opening:

www.thenationalhotelnj.com. Visit it on Tuesday...

MUSICIANS IN THE HOUSE

Another day, another story. But this one is not a story about being brought down by the day's workload or about having a bad day at work. It's a typical day at The National Hotel. Often, it starts after we wind down for dinner.

I had just finished putting my girls to bed a little bit ago, and as I went through my emails, pending files, and numerous lists of "things-to-do," I came across an email that made me realize that I had to stop and blog.

It was a long Monday. Really. Pete worked tirelessly to get the building looking its best today.

We ripped up the carpeting on the stairs and put down new carpeting--check out the pumpkin pine floors and the beautiful new carpeting we put down, matching the building's overall theme--

finished some last-minute touches, had the rooms cleaned (again),

and so on and so on...

Then I got an email from a musician who is interested in showcasing his work on our premises--thanks to the email he received from a friend who had stopped by The National Hotel over the weekend, and to whom I had had the pleasure of showing the property. She said to me that she would spread the word and keep our name out in the artist community in case anyone was interested in performing here, but the truth is, that so many people are well-intentioned, but short on time (come on now, you know you've run out of time at least once to respond to an email or a request for information in a timely manner...), and I only met her and her companion on this one occasion, that I am just floored, just absolutely amazed at how many genuine, wonderful, and helpful people I've met since Pete and I purchased The National Hotel. I keep using the word "amazing," but truly, I'm running out of adjectives to describe the awe I feel each night I put my head down on my pillow.

Thank you to my old friends, and thank you to all my new friends. You are AMAZING!

If you happen to know anyone who is interested in performing here, or are yourself an artist, please comment here so that I may reach out to you in the near future. Thanks in advance!

PULLING IT ALL TOGETHER

Another week and each day I say to myself: "I need to share this or that on our blog." There's always one thing that stands out each day, from an issue that we are struggling with --and often, its very simple solution--to major challenges that require brainstorming and strategic approaches. Thank goodness for our friends, our Frenchtown neighbors, and our families, who always turn up at all the right moments with words of encouragement, sage advice, and plain old sweat equity. The Rat is just about ready!

I had the most amazing day yesterday, being visited by a new friend who found me after reading about us after reading a press story about the removal of the wooden boards off the front of the building at the beginning of our journey with The National Hotel. She made the time to travel to Frenchtown to meet us!!!

She brought her daughter and as we gave her a tour of The National Hotel, she said that following this blog had given her a glimpse of how we were bringing back the beauty of this historic building, and that seeing it in person gave her confirmation of what she already envisioned.

We're meeting such incredible people, who make the time out of their busy lives to just stop in to say, "Keep up the good work...you're almost there!" and "Terrific. We can't wait for you to open. Glad you're taking the time to do it right." Wow.

It's so easy to stay focused on the little things, the little problems and issues that one grapples with daily, but to hear people whom you've never met before say things like that, just pulls you right out of the micro and into the larger picture, the fact that this old historic building really means something to so many people. It holds memories, it holds tangible moments in time that people treasure.

And what about our friendly business neighbors? They have far exceeded anything I could have imagined. They stop by and encourage us nearly every day. Without exception, every single business owner who has seen us and had the opportunity to speak with us, has welcomed us, has given us words of encouragement, sage advice, and a warmth that is inexplicable. Just last week, the owner of Designs for Tranquility, Russel, came in to bring over some customers and friends of his, so that they could meet us and join our email list to get news of when we'll open. How very kind of him. Can you imagine? He left his shop around the corner, just to walk over his clients and friends to our establishment? Unbelievable!!! Wait until you meet his beautiful wife, Jill--beautiful from the inside out!

Pete and I can only hope to be able to provide our friends, neighbors, and out-of-town guests, with as much warmth, comfort and hospitality as they have experienced, and more. Every time a new person stops by, far from being an interruption from the daily grind, we find it absolutely exhilarating to be able to have an opportunity to chat, to share, to show them around the building. We feel incredibly connected. We feel incredibly blessed.

Do let us know if you'd like to come and see our beautiful building by posting a comment--or just stop by when you're in Frenchtown.

RENOVATIONS

It's been days since I've had a chance to send an update on our progress with the renovations being made to The National Hotel. The transformation has been immense. Little by little, every day there is yet another area that has become a shining visible example of the sweat equity being put into this project.

Amazingly, from ripping up the carpets, painting, refinishing the floors, adding furniture, accessories, etc., slowly but surely, Pete and I feel as though our vision is becoming a reality. And through what sometimes feel like small steps, when you take them all into account, you can truly see some tremendous improvements. Kristine Gryl Marinelli, as usual, flies in and magically moves one thing here, adds some festive accessory and/or decoration there, and voila: visible change and immediate improvement!

We are so grateful for all the help and support we continue to get...I recently received a beautiful card from someone who used to frequent The National Hotel:

Dear D'Costa's,

Yea, yea, yea! I can't tell you how happy I am that you are going to reopen one of my favorite restaurants resulting in super memories.

Yes, my husband and I had many a fine dinner but the best times were with two other gals. On a Sunday we would dutifully take a very strenuous hike and almost count all the calories we had lost. We would then immediately proceed to The National Hotel, sit at the bar, have a couple of Margarita's...Lots of laughs and good times.

Good luck and hope to see you soon.

We can only hope that we will be able to exceed her expectations...and we can't wait to meet her!

If anyone else would like to share any of their past memories of times spent at The National Hotel, do share your comments.

PUMPKIN PINE FLOORS...WHO KNEW?!

OK, so we suspected, but really didn't know...yes, there are beautiful pumpkin pine floors underneath The National Hotel lobby carpeting. We've had them removed this week--and the dining room area wall-to-wall carpeting too, in order to expose the gorgeous floors.

We hired a floor expert and are working daily to bring out the natural beauty of the floors. Pete got home at 11 p.m. last night, from working there, and the online work didn't stop at that hour! We both got up this morning early, looked at each other, and although tired, we knew we just have to keep going.

One thing in our lives is constant and keeps us grounded: our daughters. They are just delightful, always full of joy--sometimes mischief--but always respectful and caring of others. They have grown so much throughout this whole process; I cannot describe how independent and self-sufficient they are. Yet even with that said, when we sit down to have dinner together (Pete or I are always present during meal times), there's always a story, an event, a situation to handle...we are so fortunate to have these wonderful girls in our lives. Truly. We are blessed.

Once the floors are finished (sanded and coats of polyurethane added), I'll post those pictures too.

Question: Will anyone miss the cheetah pattern carpet that ran through the lobby? Let me know...we're about to scrap it...

MORE ON BEN COOMBS

I just finished working with one of the top photography studios in NYC to reproduce the photos that Nancy Blackwell was kind enough to lend us. Wouldn't you know it...there's a newspaper article from December 20, 1984 about a truck that ran into the front of the hotel and guess who's quoted? Yup, Ben Coombs.

He's quoted a couple of times--also as surviving the incident--but it does reference him as a resident of The National Hotel. OK, fact checking this whole story, we've got one item checked-off based on hard evidence from the Delaware Valley News article.

In fact, the day of the accident was the bartender's (Edward Prushinski, according to the newspaper) first day...and last day...he quit and never came back! Can you blame him?!

Here's some additional info on Ben's ashes: Apparently, the ashes were kept below eye-level. Often times the glass from the cabinet below the bar would break--get this: from the inside out--and it would be promptly replaced, only to continue to remain broken.

According to Nancy Blackwell, she reached a point where she just "left it broken."

I think we'll keep Ben's ashes "above" the cabinet and make sure he is visible to one and all--and one and all to him too. No more broken glass!

Do you think we're doing the right thing? Let us know, please.

WE FOUND BEN'S ASHES!!!

We had heard stories about the cremation of a former guest of The National Hotel, Ben H. Coombs (affectionately known as "Ben"), who left instructions in his will for his ashes to be sent to the building, because that was where he felt most at home. Well, in fact, we located his ashes. But that's not the whole story.

After we took possession of The National Hotel, we were told that Ben's ashes were behind the bar, and we looked for them in order to keep them safe from accidentally being discarded as we cleaned. We did NOT find them. In fact, for a while, Pete thought that one of us had inadvertently thrown them out; we both felt terrible about this. There was so much history right there.

Nevertheless, we cleared the entire bar area and continued on our cleaning schedule. Well wouldn't you know it...Pete arrived one morning to do a final inspection of the cleaning the night before, in order to finish up the bar, when right there, in one of the shelves beneath the area directly behind the bar, sat a green box with a gold seal and an envelope taped to the top from a crematorium.

There was Ben.

If the hairs on your arms are not standing up yet, I don't know what to say. Mine were...still are. We've placed Ben right next to the antique cash register, completely visible to all. He apparently lived in The National Hotel when it took in boarders, renting rooms, instead of being a "hotel" per se. He also spent every night at the bar, & after his death, other patrons would visit The National Hotel raising their glasses to Ben.

It looks to us as though Ben is a part of The National Hotel's colorful past and we want to make sure that we continue that tradition. Anyone up for raising their glass to celebrate with Ben?