Historic Gelston House to Add New Gastro Pub, Additional Seating

The following press release was provided by Steven Gaynes: 

Iso Dedusaj, owner of the historic Gelston House Restaurant and Hotel, plans to add a new Gastro Pub to his already successful restaurant this fall.   Called the GH Gastro Pub, this new addition will specialize in healthy, eclectic dishes for high-end tastes at under $20 and serve lunch, dinner and after-theater meals.   

Dedusaj, a long-time restaurateur with New York experience, will begin serving some of the new GH Gastro Pub dishes this month in the dining room of the Gelston House while he expands an existing dining room and a private dining room off the bar area.  The new Gastro Pub will seat up to 150 customers. 

“Our new Gastro Pub, which will be open throughout the winter, will enhance our current menu offerings and our dining room patrons can order from our new pub menu as well,” Dedusaj said.  “We already have a consistently large lunch and dinner crowd for the Goodspeed Opera House across from the Gelston House, but after the Goodspeed closes on December 1st, our new Gastro Pub will augment our fine dining menu throughout the winter.”

Initial offerings to the pub menu will include Sweet Potato Encrusted Shrimp, Lager Braised Short Rib Shepherd’s Pie, Fire Grilled Heirloom Margarita Pizza and Char Grilled Steak and Quinoa and Crispy Halibut Tacos.   As Dedusaj receives feedback on his new offerings, he plans to add or change the menu to keep guests coming back.   

“We are contacting local and regional businesses to offer specials and promotions for business lunches or dinners.   And we’ll be alerting our regular customers  as the opening approaches this fall.  We are, of course, anxious to attract a broader and younger base of customers.             

Dedusaj is a expert chef in his own right and managed Café Un Deux Trois, a popular and very successful, fast-paced Manhattan restaurant, for 16 years before purchasing the historic Gelston House, in 2007 from the Goodspeed Opera Foundation.            

By leveraging his own expertise and that of his executive Chef, Alberto, and consistently introducing unusual menu items that bring a touch of his own Hungarian heritage, Dedusaj has maintained a strong reputation for the Gelston House as a premiere restaurant and destination in Connecticut’s River Valley.