History of the Dennis Inn
A postcard for the Windswept Restaurant in the 1950s.
The Dennis Inn has a rich history. The Inn was originally constructed as a gracious home by Willie Nickerson in the early 1920s. In the 1930s, Richard Aldrich, who founded the Cape Playhouse, rented the Dennis Inn as a summer home. In the 1940's the house was the family residence of the Hall Family, a family that has a storied Dennis lineage going back to the 1700's.
The original owner of The Dennis Inn was Howard Hall, who owned the property with his wife Genieve in the 1940s. In the 1950's Howard's children, Howard "Budge" Hall and Anne Hall Hatcher, operated the property as a restaurant called the Windswept.
The Windswept provided upstairs accommodations along with a classic Cape Cod fare restaurant and cocktail lounge.
According to Anne Hall Hatcher, Irving Berlin and his family spent an entire summer as guests at Windswept, while other regular guests included Shelly Winters, Billie Burke, Paulette Goddard, Don Ameche and Tallulah Bankhead. When Windswept was in it's heyday, local Cape Codders and Cape Playhouse stars mingled, danced and celebrated late into the summer evenings, according to Anne Hall.
In the 1960s and 1970s, The Dennis Inn had multiple incarnations, including The Dennis Inn Restaurant and La Coquille Restaurant. In the 1980s the Dennis Inn transitioned into more of an event venue, primarily focused on wedding related functions.
In the 2000s, The Dennis Inn was purchased by Treats Catering to create a dynamic business that combined a 25 year old Cape Cod catering business with one of the longest tenured function venues on Cape Cod. Today, the combination of these two businesses continues to provide a unique setting for whatever celebration you may have in mind!
Harold "Budge" Hall serving cocktails at Windswept in the 1950s.
An advertisement highlighting the Windswept's amenities.
A postcard for the La Coquille Restaurant and Metro Cafe from the 1970s.
Various signs, over the past 40 years, at the Inn's grand entrance lawn.