Fauchère is not closing! Staff, guests and community jubilant!

To the Editor:
It is with great pleasure that we, as the Hotel Fauchère senior management team, along with our colleagues, announce that the Hotel Fauchère and restaurants will remain open on weekends during the winter months. The Pâtisserie Fauchère will remain open every day.

After hotel co-owner Dick Snyder's death in November, our future was uncertain. We needed breathing room to grieve our loss, evaluate the business situation and work with Dick's estate to figure out the path forward. We announced a three-month winter closure, much longer than usual.

While our longterm planning process is ongoing, in partnership with Dick's estate, but with a few operational changes and a more limited schedule, we have determined that we can weather the winter financially and remain open. This is great news for our staff, who faced unemployment, great news for Milford's retailers who rely the hotel to bring customers and, especially, great news for our guests.

Bar Louis is open every day until Sunday, Jan. 4. Then, from Friday, Jan. 9, it will be open every weekend all winter, from Friday afternoon through Sunday evening. The kitchen remains open until 10 p.m. on Friday/Saturday and 9 p.m. on Sunday.

The Delmonico Room will serve breakfast and brunch on Saturday and Sunday and open in the evenings, mid-week and weekends, for group dinners and special events.

Overnight guests will be accommodated on Friday and Saturday nights and, for special events and groups, during the week.

There will be no change in schedule at the Pâtisserie Fauchère; which remains open every day from 7 am to 5 p.m., serving the delicious pastries, desserts, sandwiches and soup for which it is so deservedly well-known.

This is a hopeful time of year, as well as one of reflection. As we all enjoy our holidays with our closest friends and family, we will also think of those we love who are no longer with us to celebrate. It will be especially poignant this year at the hotel, without Dick's cheerful and uplifting presence.

As painful as it is to lose someone we love, it also can draw closer those who cared for that person. That is what has happened in Milford, as well as among our staff and guests at the Hotel Fauchère. More than 200 attended an impromptu memorial gathering at the hotel a few days after Dick died. Planning is now underway for a celebration of Dick's life on Sunday, May 3, at his beautiful Foster Hill Farm.

When we sent the sad message announcing Dick's death and the winter closure, we received more than 200 emails, letters and cards from our guests, many with moving and thoughtful comments specifically directed to the hotel staff. Hundreds of other guests expressed their condolences to us personally.

We want everyone to know, from the bottom of our hearts, that the outpouring of support has meant so very much to us all, whether it is by email, a card, kind words or the gentle smiles and unspoken support we receive everyday. Thank you.

Beyond the expressions of condolence and sorrow, we have also felt the community's support of the business and for that, too, we thank you as well.

The decision to remain open during this most financially difficult time of year is one we do not take lightly. But we do so with the knowledge that we are fortunate to have a community rooting for our success, that wants to see the Hotel Fauchère thrive and expresses that support through patronage of our restaurants, the Pâtisserie and hotel. We need that support today more than ever.

After we announced the closure, we canceled room reservations for that period, so as of this writing we do not have any room reservations for January through March.

Xavier Morales our Maître d'Hotel, and his colleagues in guest services, will soon announce a special promotion to get those rooms filled on the weekends; it's a great time to plan a getaway.

We will also soon announce several reservation-only themed dinners organized by our Food, Beverage and Events Director, Hillary Needleman, and our Chef de Cuisine, David Pirozzi.

If you have been in the Pâtisserie in the past several weeks, you may have noticed many gift baskets and items created by Julia Kent, our pastry chef, and her team. This have been well-received, so that will be a part of the Pâtisserie business we hope to expand, along with a growing speciality cake business.

More immediately, we are open for Christmas Eve dinner (5 to 9 in Bar Louis and 6 to 9 in Delmonico Room) and we still have tables (and rooms) available for New Year's Eve in both restaurants (click to see menus).

By the way, it's not too late to finish your holiday shopping in downtown Milford. In addition to gift certificates from the Hotel Fauchère or Badea and Soul Day Spa at the Hotel Fauchère, there are also new stores that have opened just recently in Milford.

They include Sweet Sweet Wonderland, Since Yesterday, Van Gorder's Furniture, Zen for Wellness and Ghiggeri's Fine Olive Oils and Balsamics. Perfect for your last-minute holiday shopping... and a chance to welcome new merchants to the community.

And last but not least, a really great gift is A Taste of Pike County, a cookbook with local recipies (including from the Fauchère) which benefits Safe Haven of Pike County. The cookbook is available for $25 + tax from our front desk.

Please accept our very best wishes for the most joyous of holidays to you and your families and let's all pray for peace and prosperity in the New Year.

Thank you for believing in us.
Sean Strub, President

Sean Durden, Chief Operating Officer

Xavier Morales, Maître d'hôtel and HR Director

Hillary Needleman, Food, Beverage and Events Director

David Pirozzi, Chef de Cuisine
Julia Kent, Executive Pastry Chef

Richie Massaro, Executive Sous Chef