There’s no cell service in Bovina, a small town in Upstate New York’s Delaware County. The area, tucked behind the Catskill Mountains, is a postcard picture of rolling hills, cows, and the occasional self-serve farmstand—an idyllic, bucolic scene as far as the eye can see.

“Bovina still only has something like 600 people,” Elizabeth Stark of Bovina Farm & Fermentory says. “When we serve fresh homemade butter and other dairy products, we always tell diners that there are actually more cows than people here!”

Bovina Farm & Fermentory looks like it’s been around since the town’s 1820s establishment, but actually, it was built in 2020. Stark and her husband, Jacob Sackett, are the owners, but they wear many hats, including chef, server, gardener, sheepherder, brewer, and builder. The two built the house themselves with the help of some family and the guidance of local barn builders. The result is a thoughtfully weathered structure that fits into the scene seamlessly.

Inside Bovina Farm & Fermentory.

Photo: Christian Harder

“We filled it with a bunch of antiques,” Stark says. “Hopefully not too many antiques, but just enough to make it seem like it could actually be a historic structure. We were really inspired by old taverns.” Bovina Farm & Fermentory functions much like said taverns; the kind that Stark and Sackett encountered in the Czech countryside while studying abroad together in college. They host a weekly dinner-party style restaurant on Saturdays, serving large cast-iron pots filled with local, seasonal dishes (cooked by Sackett), accompanied by handwritten menus, and beer that is brewed on-site. In a town with more bovines than humans, they’ve found a way to foster community and engagement around the table. “Every Saturday, we see human faces and have a little party…” Stark says, “It feels kind of genius.”

This summer, they’re introducing accommodations above the restaurant. The rooms are simple, with Shaker-inspired furniture and hand-printed and stamped wall detailing. The addition felt natural. “A big percentage of people book a dinner and they ask if we have recommendations of places to stay,” Stark says, “To say, ‘you can stay here,’ it’s like a full package deal. It felt like the missing piece for the last four years.” There are two rooms above the restaurant, one with a kitchen, as well as a freestanding cottage down the hill for those seeking a little more solitude.

Yet Bovina Farm & Fermentory is one of a number of hospitality experiences that have put Bovina and neighboring Delaware County towns on the map—especially for those looking for an alternative to city life and weekend visitors motivated by culinary experiences and restaurants.