Skaneateles — The Krebs restaurant, a Skaneateles landmark for more than 100 years but one that has been closed since 2010, will reopen its historic doors this fall with a renovated building, a new general manager and a new executive chef.
“We’re going to be restoring a historic restaurant and bringing it up to speed with the culinary world,” said incoming general manager Mike Tutor. “Here’s an opportunity for us to rebuild what was once a phenomenal internationally recognized restaurant.”
In addition to Tutor, Executive Chef Don Agate has recently signed on to be part of The Krebs makeover, and building owner Adam Weitsman and his architect Andrew Ramsgard have just finished demolishing the building’s old kitchen and will soon start to rebuild it.
The Krebs, however, is a historic building in the village, and the new team is making every effort to preserve its heritage.
History
The Krebs began in 1899 when Fred and Cora Krebs started offering room and board for $8 per day. Their 25-seat restaurant charged 50 cents for dinner. In 1946, the upstairs, where Mr. and Mrs. Krebs had their living quarters, was converted into a cocktail lounge and sitting rooms.
The restaurant was passed down through the Krebs family for several generations, and was owned for nearly 50 years by Larry Loveless and his wife, Jan.
The Loveless family ran the restaurant as a team until Jan’s death in July 2010. After operating the restaurant for so long together, Larry Loveless decided to retire rather than operate the business alone.
Weitsman, a scrap metal businessman who currently is building a multi-million dollar house on West Lake Road, purchased the restaurant in 2010 to save it from being closed. He is investing $4.1 million into the project to renovate the historic restaurant.
Weitsman said he bought the restaurant not to change its established history but to save its rich tradition for future generations of the Skaneateles community to enjoy. Every effort has been made, he said, to protect the restaurant’s history and heritage.
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