By Jackie Caradonio | Photography by Matt Dutile
Cliché as it may sound, the New Yorker’s fantasy of escaping to the country persists for good reason: Several times throughout the year—when the first hint of spring allows for the long-awaited shedding of winter layers; when the long days of summer conjure nostalgia for fireflies and bonfires; when the early nips of autumn promise vibrant peeps of color on every tree—city folk are suddenly, almost collectively, overtaken by the urge for a simpler life.
The agrarian dream is hardly a trek away. Drive just a few dozen miles beyond the city and the scenery gradually changes from concrete jungle to pastoral paradise. Recent history has seen many urbanites flee to upstate New York—so much so that the vast region and its many hamlets have become synonymous with Brooklyn and Manhattan transplants. But even closer, and more importantly, still relatively untouched by outsiders, is the enclave of north-central New Jersey comprising Somerset and its neighboring counties.
Roughly an hour’s drive from the city, the region is perhaps the reason for the occasionally contested moniker The Garden State, brimming as it is with rolling hills, grazing pastures, and sloping countryside dotted with neat rows of crops. Farming is a generational industry here, and for more than a century, the agriculture industry has held strong: More than 400 farms still operate in Somerset County alone. And for nearly as long, the area has lured those who wish to be closer to that life. Thus, Gilded Age estates, riding stables, and luxury homes can often be found at the heart of those sprawling farmlands.
The Historic Natirar Estate
One such estate, known as Natirar (a reversal of the word Raritan, the river that runs through much of this part of New Jersey), was established in 1912 by Kate Macy Ladd, heiress to a Nantucket whaling, shipping, and oil fortune. Ladd was drawn to the healthful benefits that the country promised, and, along with her husband, acquired 16,000 acres across three counties, building a Tudor-style mansion at its center. Though she suffered from illness, she found gardening and farming, and the resultant bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables, to be a literal lifesaver, and she soon opened a convalescent home for other ailing women. Time marched on and the estate later passed through the hands of Morocco’s King Mohammed VI, who kept a stable of Arabian horses on property, though he had little interest in maintaining a farm. In 2024, the grand property rose again to its former glory—and its natural state—when it opened as Pendry Natirar, a luxury resort in New Jersey’s countryside. “This region, and this land in particular, has a long agricultural history,” says farm manager Melinda Paige Hopkins. “What we’re doing here is bringing that back to fruition.”
Pendry Natirar’s stately Tudor-style mansion sits at the center of the Natirar estate. Horse stables and a stretch of the Raritan River lie within the 500-acre property.
Farm manager Melinda Paige Hopkins has rehabilitated more than 10 acres of farmland, growing various herbs, vegetables, fruits, and flowers, and raising sheep, chickens, and other animals.
Scenes from Natirar: fresh honey and herbs, flowers, and produce from the greenhouse—all used at the Ninety Acres restaurant and in treatments at Spa Pendry.
The Farm at Pendry Natirar
Hopkins has spent the past four years returning Natirar’s farm to its original splendor, albeit on a smaller scale than in Ladd’s days: The estate still comprises an impressive 500 acres. Every corner of the resort bears the fruits of her unceasing labors, from the fresh eggs and honey at breakfast—the latter from an apiary that produces 700 pounds each year—to the indigenous pawpaw and other fruits muddled into cocktails and the botanicals used in treatments at Spa Pendry. The farm is more than a living pantry though; it’s also a place of education and entertainment for Pendry’s guests and residents, whether through grounding meditation classes, plant-identification walks, or cooking classes offered by the signature restaurant, Ninety Acres.
The back-to-nature experience is just the antidote city dwellers come for, Hopkins says: “It’s a comfort that automatically happens—it’s something that can’t be faked.” Pendry Natirar reinforces that connection by working with other nearby purveyors, from cheese farms to cattle ranches, and collaborating with beloved makers like Burnt Mills Cider.
Exploring Somerset County
More of that local charm can be found in Natirar’s surrounding villages, where a surprising abundance of good taste is hidden behind clapboard facades lining classic Americana main streets. The town of Chester, in particular, is a well of finds: antique shops like Grouse in Pearls, crammed with Hermès scarves, Roseville pottery, and other high-end vintage discoveries; curated galleries like Cole Select, where even the tiny powder room is filled with decorative objects and original art; and delicious spots to pop into, like NinaLou artisanal patisserie (for its fresh macarons and financiers) and Sally Lunn’s Tea Shoppe (offering upward of a dozen freshly baked pies by the slice daily).
Virtually anywhere else this close to Manhattan, you’d rightfully expect the curators of such creative endeavors to be city-slicking expats who fled for the country, but not here—these are sophisticated lifelong New Jerseyites who remain devoted to their home (and maybe don’t want the word about their little haven to get out too much). “This area is like the Cotswolds; it’s the best kept secret in the U.S,” says Gregory Cole, who, along with his partner, Michael Perris, owns Cole Select. The couple moved to Somerset County 25 years ago, drawn initially by the equestrian lifestyle and the sophisticated population. “There’s a strong sense of community here.” Even so, outsiders are welcomed with open arms. On any given weekend, a classic car show or the annual peach festival is apt to fill the Chester village square with locals and vacationers alike.
The sheep at Natirar’s farm; the Library at Pendry Natirar; wildflowers and a shearing demonstration at the farm; afternoon tea at Sally Lunn’s Tea Shoppe in Chester; the Great Room at Pendry Natirar.
Life at Pendry Residences Natirar
Still, it is the backdrop of natural beauty that brings people back again and again—and sometimes even convinces them to stay for good. Back at the Natirar estate, the Pendry Residences Natirar have lured homeowners from near and far with the promise of just enough full-time farm living. Harriett Druskin, who moved into an Estate Villa there in 2024, spends many afternoons snipping herbs, feeding animals, and wandering among the fragrant rows of flowers.
“In a way, it feels like it’s my own farm,” she says, adding that the arrival of city dwellers in search of that country ease only reinforces what she already knows. “Just seeing the animals and the plants, feeding the chickens, being in the middle of the farm—there’s an enjoyment in it. It makes me realize how lucky I am to live here.
Scenes from Chester, including NinaLou patisserie, Grouse in Pearls, Steam Soapery, and Cole Select.