Ahead of the grand opening this fall of a new luxury hotel at the historic Natirar estate in Somerset County, the property’s acclaimed restaurant has relaunched.

Billed as a “true farm-to-table culinary destination,” Ninety Acres features a refreshed interior design, enhanced menu and new leadership.

Open Wednesday through Sunday for dinner and cocktails, the relaxed fine-dining experience features offerings made with produce sourced from the estate’s sustainable 12-acre farm.

Signature dishes include poached Maine lobster with squid ink gemelli pasta and a bouillabaisse parmesan sauce; duck breast with beets, golden snow peas and cherries; and grilled prime New York strip steak with parsley pistou, duck fat confit potatoes, walnut relish and pea stew emulsification.

Seasonal bisques – such as chilled baby carrot with preserved turnips, Asian pear and Vadouvan cashews – are also menu highlights.

Additionally, Ninety Acres in Peapack-Gladstone has a cooking school. The institution offers a lineup of programs, including an annual children’s summer camp program, chef collaborations, group experiences, and private and weekly public classes.

Meanwhile, at the Farm at Natirar, guests can participate in an array of engaging programming, like educational sessions on organic farming, seasonal walks, pick-your-own culinary experiences and personalized seasonal harvest workshops.

Meet the tastemakers

Since initially opening in 2009, Ninety Acres became one of the most sought-after and best-reviewed restaurants in New Jersey. Executive chef Peter Rudolph leads the newly reopened establishment. His background includes leading kitchens at the Ocean Restaurant in Kennebunkport, Maine, and Rosewood Sand Hill Hotel and Resort in Menlo Park, Calif. Rudolph also spent a decade with Ritz Carlton Hotels as a cook, sous chef and chef de cuisine.

In addition to Ninety Acres, Rudolph leads the resort’s other culinary programs, which includes a tavern, catering, banquets and in-room dining at the hotel.

Alexandra McMillen Cavallo joins Pendry Natirar as executive pastry chef. Her experience includes roles at The Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman and JW Marriott Orlando Bonnet Creek Resort and Spa. She has also been instrumental in shaping pastry programs at luxury hotels nationwide, including properties within the portfolio such as Montage Palmetto Bluff and Pendry Washington D.C. – The Wharf.

Ninety Acres underwent its refresh as part of a long-awaited project to restore and expand the Peapack-Gladstone estate that once belonged to the king of Morocco.

In a grand Tudor-style mansion adjacent to Ninety Acres, there is a luxury boutique hotel, fitness & wellness center, spa with salon, indoor pool, salt room and mud room, tavern, billiards room and great room. Outdoor amenities include a swimming pool and tennis courts.

Fit for a king

Reservations are now available for stays starting Oct. 1. The hotel offers 66 guestrooms, including 21 suites starting at $777 a night.

Additionally, Pendry Natirar has 24 contemporary residences that aim to offer “priceless country estate lifestyle in a pristine natural setting.” Pricing for the homes – which measure between 2,900 square feet to 4,000 square feet – starts in the low $3 million range. 

The mansion on the property was first built when Kate Macy Ladd, an heiress, and her husband, Walter Ladd, acquired more than 500 acres in Somerset County in 1905.

After both owners passed away, the mansion was used as a convalescence center for women until 1983, when the property was sold to King Hassan II of Morocco so he could be closer to Princeton University, where his sons attended. In 2003, following the king’s death, the property was sold for $22 million to Somerset County, which designated the majority of area as public parkland.

Ninety acres of the property, which included the estate, was then leased in a public-private partnership with the intent to be restored and expanded upon by Bob Wojtowicz, founder and owner of Natirar.

For the project, he teamed up with Pendry Hotel & Resorts, a contemporary luxury hospitality brand from Montage International. The company’s portfolio includes hotels and resorts in Hollywood, New York City, San Diego, Chicago, Park City, Newport Beach, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

Somerset County officials – which awarded the project a $26 million bond to fund eco-friendly upgrades – believe the property will be a “significant addition” to the area’s “wedding, health and wellness and farm-to-table tourism markets.”