For Josie Grant, the opening of Loomie’s Luncheonette on Main Street in Catskill last week marks a return to food service after a period she assumed had closed that chapter of her life. Grant is well known in the region for her earlier ventures—Moxie Cupcake in New Paltz, which developed a devoted following; Redstart Coffee, a Scandinavian-inflected café in Kingston; and Board, a short-lived but well-regarded cheese and charcuterie shop. After closing those businesses, she was convinced she was finished. “I vowed I’d never do it again,” she says.
Loomie’s grew instead out of a combination of circumstance and place. Grant, a Hudson Valley native, has lived and worked up and down the river—in Albany, New Paltz, Kingston, Saugerties, and Beacon—and moved to Catskill full time about a year and a half ago. Living on Main Street, she became embedded in the day-to-day life of the village and its business community. “I love this community so much,” she says. “It’s my favorite place I’ve lived.”
That attachment sharpened last year, when Grant was laid off from her job as a director of finance at a marketing firm. Around the same time, she began picking up barista shifts at local cafés and launched a sandwich pop-up out of EAT, a commissary kitchen in Catskill. The experience clarified a practical gap. “People would come in and say, ‘Where can I go for lunch?’” Grant recalls. “And the answer was often that there was a long wait.”
Catskill, she realized, didn’t lack restaurants so much as everyday options—places open early, places open midday, places where food could be ordered and eaten without much ceremony. When a storefront opened directly across the street from her apartment, she decided to commit. “Not a lot of things open up on Main Street,” she says. “I went all in.”
Loomie’s Luncheonette, at 466 Main Street, describes itself simply: comfort food, baked goods, and Catskill charm. The menu follows that logic. Breakfast is straightforward and priced accordingly—an egg and cheese on a hard roll is $6, with bacon or sausage available for $2 extra. The core of the menu is a lineup of what Grant calls “fat cat melts,” grilled-cheese-forward sandwiches served on rustic bread, with chips or an apple on the side.
The Classic—American cheese “like mom used to make”—comes in at $10. Other options add familiar variations: The Loomie pairs smoked trout, havarti, and dill on beer sourdough for $14; the Reuben stacks corned beef, Swiss, sauerkraut, and dressing on Swedish rye for $12; and the Figetaboutit combines provolone, prosciutto di Parma, and fig jam for $14. “That one captures the spirit of Loomie’s,” Grant says. “The flavor contrasts work beautifully.”
Fresh sandwiches round out the menu, including the Omnivore—naturally cured honey ham, Swiss, spinach, and whole-grain mustard on arborio bread—and the Herbivore, with housemade hummus, cucumber, pickled red onions, spinach, and vegan garlic aioli on seeded bread. Both are priced at $12. A PB&J on arborio bread is $8. Gluten-free sourdough is available for an additional $2.75.
Bread sourcing is local and intentional. Loomie’s uses bread from See & Be Kitchen in Cairo and Catskill Bread Company in Athens. The latter’s Swedish rye has been especially popular. “I couldn’t keep up with the Reubens last weekend,” Grant says.
Desserts reference Grant’s earlier career without reopening it entirely. She plans to offer limited runs of Moxie cupcakes—available until they sell out—alongside gluten-free options and pastries from other regional bakers, including Crisp Cannoli in East Greenbush, run by Grant’s brother, Jason Grant. “I don’t want to run a full bakery again,” she says. “But I do want to bring some of that back.”
The room, a former photography studio, reflects a blend of Grant’s past spaces: the playfulness of Moxie and the clean, modern lines of Redstart. Mid-century furnishings, large windows, and about 25 seats create a space designed for sitting rather than turning tables. “Comfortable was the goal,” Grant says. “Somewhere you could stay for a bit.”
That approach extends to pricing and service. Grant sees Loomie’s as a place meant to fit into daily routines—before work, during a lunch break, after sledding with kids. She has plans for online ordering and, eventually, small evening events, but the focus remains on daytime use. “If you’re in hospitality, you’re trying to take care of people,” she says. “That part hasn’t changed for me.”
The name Loomie’s comes from Grant’s black cat, Loomie, short for Dr. Loomis, a character fromJohn Carpenter’s slasher classic Halloween. It was suggested by her daughter while she was planning the original pop-up. “It stuck,” Grant says.
Loomies Luncheonette is located at 466 Main Street in Catskill and is open Thursday to Monday, 8am-2pm. There will be an opening reception for the cafe’s first art show, “Unseen Unfolding,” paintings by Eamon Martin, on Friday, February 6, from 6-9pm.
