Cantina reopening as banquet hall By RACHAEL HANLEY TIMES STAFF WRITER FRIDAY, JUNE 13, 2008 SACKETS HABOR ? Among the loyal followers of the Mexican restaurant Sackets Cantina, 212 W. Main St., was its one-time owner, Christopher M. Swartz.
So it was with some regret that Mr. Swartz, who manages the Cantina as chief operating officer of the eatery's parent company, Seaway Valley Capital Corp., decided to retire his favorite restaurant this year.
Instead, the once-seasonal location will reopen next week as a conference and banquet center named The 1812 Station House.
The venue will cater to weddings, wedding receptions, association meetings, corporate retreats and other private reservation events.
By shifting the focus of the facility, Mr. Swartz is hoping to transform 212 W. Main from a seasonal to a full-time business. The change, which he had considered for some time, finalized two weeks ago, he said.
Of all of the locations owned by North Country Hospitality, which merged with Seaway Valley in April, Sackets Cantina was the largest and most modern, said Mr. Swartz. The facility has 3,500 square feet of indoor space and a 1,000 square-foot-patio area outside.
In May, Seaway Valley announced that the former Habormaster restaurant, which also was in the running to become a conference and banquet facility, would reopen as a Hacketts store.
In the village, Seaway Valley also operates the Sackets Harbor Brewing Co. pub and Good Fellos Brick Oven Pizza and Wine Bar.
Sackets Cantina already was what Mr. Swartz described as an "open and free-flowing facility" with a large, sophisticated kitchen, outdoor patio and two bars. He said few changes had to be made to turn the space into a private reservation venue.
The new facility will be able to accommodate gatherings of up to 400 people. Mr. Swartz said there was no other facility in the village that could host more than 200 people at a time.
"We've been inundated with calls at all the restaurants, for parties and weddings that people couldn't facilitate for that size," said Mr. Swartz. "Having an outdoor facility there on the water, with the capacity it has, there's not a lot of places that have it."
Although Seaway Valley has not yet begun promoting The 1812 Station House, Mr. Swartz said the location had been "pretty well booked for the summer and into the fall."
"We expect that we would be busy, I would say, four times a week during the peak six-month season, the summer and fall," he said. "We expect to be booked two or three times a week during the slower six months."
The 1812 Station House will be staffed by six to 25 people, depending on the event, said Mr. Swartz.
For the people who will be disappointed by the loss of Sackets Cantina, Mr. Swartz said, the new facility might open its doors for community events every so often.
"We'll try to do special salsa and queso nights," he said.
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