Last Call At Stone Hearth

Peter Gremse’s first Westville restaurant burned down. His second burned through money.

Now he’s heading to California.

Gremse this week confirmed that, despite a sign in front announcing a temporary closing, his Stone Hearth Restaurant at Whalley and West Rock Avenues has closed for good.

The farm-to-table restaurant was reborn Westville Village’s first full-time upscale dinner spot. Gremse opened it in March 2013.

At the time Gremse also owned Delaney’s Restaurant and Tap Room, a beloved family dinner spot at Whalley and Central that also had two hopping bars, one for adults, one more aimed at college students.

Gremse said he always intended profits form Delaney’s to give him the four to five years needed to make Stone Hearth profitable. ​“I had Delaney’s. It was good,” he said.

He figured he could develop a separate market for Stone Hearth. The business model was the exact opposite of the Delaney’s model: ​“Farm to table. Small bar. Executive chef.” Versus a ​“family neighborhood restaurant, a little louder, a little crazier.”

A fire destroyed the Delaney’s building on Aug. 25, 2013, just months after Stone Hearth opened. Firefighters spent eight hours battling the blaze. Today the lot at the center of Westville’s commercial heart remains empty, filled only with the memories of Delaney’s many loyalists. (The lot’s owner did not return a call seeking comment.)

Gremse said he still tried to make Stone Hearth work out. Then on Oct. 26 he abruptly closed; a sign out front said the restaurant would reopen in early November.

It never did. Gremse said he’s been speaking with potential buyers for the business. ​“Most of them want to maintain what’s here. Most of them have other restaurants. They want to put their own flair to it.” He said she hopes to close the deal by the end of the year.

In the meantime, he’s moving to Carlsbad, California, to start over. His wife and 8‑year-old son are already there. His plan: To manage restaurants. That’s what he knows, he said.