“This project is rooted in nostalgia—it’s an homage to my parents’ legacy and all the joy brought to hundreds of summer campers over the years,” says Samuel Shapiro, owner of the recently launched bar/cafe/market/communal mess hall Camp Kingston.
For 75 years, Shapiro’s family ran the coed Camp Sequoia in the Sullivan County town of Rock Hill. They sold the business when he was in middle school, but Shapiro held onto the dream of running his own camp one day. Rose-colored memories of summers spent in the sun surrounded by friends, engaged in all manner of activities from pinhole photography to roller hockey and jewelry making led him to conceive of Camp Kingston—a multifunctional community gathering place. “The direction I landed on seemed like the right fit and an incredible way for me to engage our amazing community. Each person who has worked on the space from the cabinets to the bar to the menu and the branding—it was a community project from the beginning the way we were able to make it happen.”
From vintage pinball and a pool table, which gets covered during the day to provide desk space for coworking, to the mercantile section with grab-and-go snacks and pantry items, espresso drinks, beer, and cocktails, there is something for everyone from 7:30am opening time to 10pm close. Across the parking lot from Keegan Ales on St. James Place, Camp Kingston occupies the ground floor of a recently renovated brick building. The spot comprises three distinct spaces—the mess hall, which includes the bar, mercantile, and seating areas; the studio space with a pool table and stools; and the canteen, which has arcade games, a couch, and tables.
Despite pressure to “define” the business, Shapiro is reluctant to box Camp in. “The community gets to decide what this space is in many ways,” he says, describing a vision that paints the spot as a friendly base camp as much as a summer camp. “You can have a snack and grab something from the mercantile while kids play games in the canteen. You can do an art project in studio space. You can gather, do work on your laptop, or come and read your book. At summer camp you have the opportunity to enjoy a wide variety of different interests to see what works for you and what doesn’t. There is space for everyone to be themselves.” As a queer business owner, it’s also important for Shapiro to create a space that is inclusive and welcoming to the LGBTQ community. “I want people to have the room to feel safe,” he says, “and space to snack, hang, and stay as long as they want.”
In the communal spirit, Shapiro describes the kitchen/bar team as a food collective. The made-to-order food menu was designed by Hudson Valley local and chef Lee Kalpakis. “She’s been developing the program with me from Day 1,” Shapiro says. “It is such a dream to work with her because she’s so talented.” The menu manages to be tasty, original, and well-executed while not taking itself too seriously.
It includes deli sandwiches, soups, salads, and options like loaded tater tots ($12), pizza bagels ($6), and grilled cheese ($6.50) made that, at a glance, seem to be childhood throwbacks. But peek behind the nostalgia, and you’ll find complex flavors that elevate old favorites. The tots, for example, come with chili crisp, curry powder, cilantro, pickled radish, toasted sesame seeds, and lime. The pizza bagels are made in-house with sungold tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, parmesan, and either basil pesto and anchovies or pepperoni. You can beef up your grilled cheese, made on levain from Kingston Bread + Bar, with options like thick-cut bacon and pistachio pesto or swap out for vegan cheese. Sides like tiger salad, chicken salad, and sesame noodles offer something quick and easy to eat in house or take away ($5-$10).
On the drinks front, things are run by bar manager Conor Kennedy, whom Shapiro scooped up following Dear Kingston’s sudden closure. “When I saw he put up a Gofundme for the staff, I said that’s my guy. I want to work with people that care about those around us.” Eli Hjerpe, of Wiena Cantina hot dog pop-up (a mainstay of the Tubby’s backyard this summer), is holding down the kitchen.
The mercantile section is mainly limited to perishables at this point, but in the future Shapiro plans to offer a selection of useful tools and gadgets for the great outdoors from bug spray to knives to a sleeve of Ritz crackers for the trail. “We’ll have everything from Band-Aids to candles, and from packs of M&Ms and Skittles all the way to fancy cheese and homemade dip.” Camp is working with Kingston Bread + Bar to offer pastries as well as bread for the sandwiches, croissants, and baguettes, and plans to also carry goodies from area bakers like Rising River Bakehouse and Little Rye Bakehouse. With both an onsite grocery and liquor license, you can drink cider beer and cider at Camp or pick up something for home.
In the future when regular operations are smoothed out, Shapiro looks forward to adding programming to the docket, because what’s camp without activities!? “Whether it’s herbal remedy classes or natural dying or bingo night, there are a bunch of ideas in discussion,” he says. “I maybe want to make Mondays into a bacchanal with cheese plates, wine, and jazz music playing. I definitely want to build a program around art, food, and local culture as well as bringing people from outside to help with education.” Camp will largely stay away from live music so as not to compete with other area venues like Tubby’s and Big Cat Studio.
Like a true camp counselor, Shapiro also longs for a camper van with 14 seats that he can fill up with eager adventurers for weekend hikes. “A lot of people didn’t grow up as mountain children. They could use that guidance, or they don’t have access to a car. There are so many ways we can engage the community.”
As with all aspects of the business, the priority for programming will be that people feel comfortable and taken care. “I feel so honored to have the team that we have and to have our community see what we tried to create and help us build it. We’ve had such a beautiful, overwhelming, and glorious welcome. It’s definitely brought me to tears multiple times how people came in to celebrate. The soft opening was just fucking dreamy.”
