KINGSTON A BEAR MARKET
Fine food and teddy bears galore at The Den of Marbletown
KINGSTON, N.Y. >> “For me,” said Steve Ferri, dressed in a rainbow, teddy-bear T-shirt, his round face lit with enthusiasm, “the Mama-Bear Lounge is what it’s all about.”
Ferri is talking about why he and his wife, Nan Bres, converted “The Den of Marbletown,” a Teddy bear museum and B&B off U.S. Route 209, to a Teddy bear museum and café.
“I love to cook and I love community,” said Ferri.
And he loves locals dropping in.
“It’s been a light-switch,” said Ferri, who opened the café about six months ago.
The big, white farmhouse sits back from the road off a sweeping driveway, with a wraparound porch set for homebrewed, bubble tea. There’s a wide, grassy front yard – the “teddy bear picnic area” – a bluestone patio and, across a gully, an old limestone-quarry pond.
Inside, visitors are greeted by Ferri; Bres is now a “silent partner.” Although Teddy bears rule the roost, each room of the renovated 1896 home has its own, unique function.
To the right is the café, with tables and chairs and a bar where Ferri whips up brewed tea drinks and serves gourmet luncheons. To the left is the Steiff stuffed animal gift shop, with creatures ranging from a huge $1,175 giraffe to a $15.95 teddy
key chain, plus baby toys and collectibles. Mostly, there are bears.
At first, the museum idea was just a joke. Grace Bres, Nan’s mother, loved to collect Steiff bears.
“We always said she should start a museum,” said Ferri, whose motherin-law was running out of storage space.
Gradually, said Ferri, the Steiff collectibles museum took shape.
It was Grace who first introduced Ferri to Steiff, a world-famous German company founded in 1880 by Margarette Steiff. A seamstress paralyzed by polio, she designed and made stuffed animals for a living. Her nephew, Richard Steiff, created the first five-jointed bear in 1902. According to company lore, it was the first Teddy bear.
Americans, however, beg to differ. According to the Theodore Roosevelt Association and the National Park Service, the first “Teddy’s bear,” named for President Roosevelt, also circa 1902, was created by Morris and Rose Michtom, Brooklyn candy shop owners and the founders of the Ideal Toy Company.
The Den of Marbletown museum features the distinctive Steiff bears, all from Grace Bres’ collection, and traces history through the antique toys.
For example, there’s the 1912 Mourning Bear, a black bear with red eyes created to commemorate the Titanic. And there’s the Paper Teddy, made with paper fur just after World War I, when all the mohair was going for blankets and children’s clothing.
Many of the stuffed animals are posed in dioramas, created by local artists.
Upstairs, collectibles include a room filled with Grace Bres’ Madam Alexander antique dolls and another room filled with Barbies.
After working up an appetite touring the museum (with the loquacious Ferri as Steiff uber-guide), visitors can sit in the upstairs party room for a gourmet lunch. Or parents with kids can enjoy their repast in the Mama Bear Lounge, where there’s plenty to keep children occupied, like the Kids Cub Cave, a playroom with a kid-sized house and giant stuffed animals.
The food at The Den is as lively as the environs. Ferri says he’s been cooking off and on for more than 30 years. Before moving to Marbletown, he worked as a chef in New York City and Santa Fe. He even featured as a guest chef on Fox and Friends, where he also had his primary career: TV news producer.
Ferri feels the “stars aligned” when he finally landed at The Den.
“I love cooking rustic Italian,” said Ferri. “I call the menu a combination of rustic Italian, bistro French and cozy American.”
Menu items feature house-roasted Italian roast beef with fresh rosemary and horseradish mayo; roasted veggies and goat cheese Panini; lentil salad; chickpea salad; and soups.
“I make a smoked turkey with Fuji apple, swiss, cheddar and honey mustard mayo – that’s popular,” said Ferri.
The Den of Marbletown, at 1 Basten Lane (off U.S. Route 209), Kingston, is open Wednesdays through Sundays, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.