![Tom and Eliza Boyd had made their mark with Jimmy Joans on Wilderness Road. Picture by Jonathan Carroll Tom and Eliza Boyd had made their mark with Jimmy Joans on Wilderness Road. Picture by Jonathan Carroll](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/324VkdtvqnBSp7aYw6KyqmM/4f85c3f0-fe31-4294-8707-0dd76a1f71d5.jpg/r976_375_4723_3384_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
It's been 12 months since Mick and Kim Starkey partnered with Tom and Eliza Boyd to open Jimmy Joans restaurant on Wilderness Road in the Rothbury precinct of the Hunter Valley.
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And the verdict so far: it's been a winning team.
The Starkeys, who operate The Stag & Hunter hotel in Mayfield and Customs House hotel in Newcastle's East End, always intended on refurbishing the empty restaurant building on Wilderness Road that sits within their 20-acre homestead.
![Mick and Kim Starkey and Eliza and Thomas Boyd, partners in Jimmy Joans Restaurant on Wilderness Road, Rothbury. Picture by Jonathan Carroll Mick and Kim Starkey and Eliza and Thomas Boyd, partners in Jimmy Joans Restaurant on Wilderness Road, Rothbury. Picture by Jonathan Carroll](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/324VkdtvqnBSp7aYw6KyqmM/f2e6fc44-b18a-44a0-8886-4e7d26cfe881.jpg/r0_265_5184_3191_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The opportunity to take action came during the second pandemic lockdown, when they had 13 weeks to sit it out at home with both of their pubs closed.
"For 13 weeks we got up every morning and came down and demolished it, and just stripped it back to nothing except the kitchen, and started again," Kim Starkey said.
"We always wanted a space we could go to and have a drink after busy night at work and not have to book it. We wanted it for us," she said.
But, as is often the case for the hardworking publicans, it grew into more than that.
![Eliza Boyd runs the front of house at Jimmy Joans. Eliza Boyd runs the front of house at Jimmy Joans.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/324VkdtvqnBSp7aYw6KyqmM/099f40ec-5168-43ec-89fe-fb37ddc86e42.jpg/r0_265_5184_3456_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
"We actually put every thought into it," Kim Starkey said. " All the best of what we've had, every experience. How it looked, and what we wanted it to have. It's a bit of the Stag, a bit of Customs, a bit of the Royal Federal [which Kim's family, the Moyles, own in Branxton], a bit of everything."
The Starkeys had previously attempted to recruit chef Thomas Boyd to work for them at Customs House, but the timing wasn't right. And they knew Eliza's family from long-time friendships in Branxton.
So when Thomas Boyd called Mick Starkey to see if he could use the kitchen of the old Wilderness Road restaurant for his catering business, Mick said yes, and added, "Here's an idea for you, what about if I do this, and you do this," and put forth the offer of making them partners in the business that is now Jimmy Joans.
The partnership has thrived, as the establishment has quickly gained a strong local following, and now visitors who want to be in-the-know are finding it, too.
Besides good coffee and cake through the day, shared meals (like balsamic glazed lamb shoulder) and Sunday roasts have been a hit.
Experienced bartender Will Squires got the bar into good shape in the early months (he's since gone to work in London), and the smart, casual country decor immediately signals comfort.
There are 45 seats in the dining area, another 70 near the bar, and 50 outside, with portable picnic tables, umbrellas, fire pits and blankets for comfort.
We actually put every thought into it. All the best of what we've had, every experience. How it looked, and what we wanted it to have.
- Kim Starkey
The restaurant is open Thursday to Sunday, serving light breakfast from 8am, bar snacks from 11am, a feast menu for lunch and dinner, and an ala carte menu from 6pm.
When casual and local are two key parts of the equation, along with quality, some interesting things happen.
Local winemakers turn up for chatty lunches with bottles from their private collection. Visitors who realise the dilemma of finding a taxi after a long dinner, suddenly have a local offer them a free lift to their accommodation. Visitors inquiring at cellar doors about "where's a good place to get a bite to eat" keep hearing about Jimmy Joans.
And so a new history is in the making.