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Hudson Valley Restaurant Week on now
Photo credit: Leslie Barbaro | Warm fennel shrimp is served with toasted seed and roasted fennel puree, campari and grapefruit glaze, pine nuts and lambs lettuce at Restaurant X and Bully Boy Bar, in Congers, one of four restaurants in the Xaviars Restaruant Group. (April 10, 2012)
By ravenous demand, the 6th annual Hudson Valley Restaurant Week is back, and for the first time, in the fall (it’s also held in March). From Nov. 5 through 18 there are bargains to be had at dozens of area restaurants, ranging from local bistros to fancy white tablecloth venues. Each participating restaurant will serve fixed-price menus for $20.95 at lunch and $29.95 at dinner (drinks, tax and gratuity not included).
With almost 60 restaurants participating, the question is – where to dine out? Here are 10 of our top picks for restaurants to try during Restaurant Week. Find the full list online (www.hudsonvalleyrestaurantweek.com), make a reservation at your choice, and enjoy your meal.
Note: Be sure to check details in advance, as some restaurants do not offer prix fixe meals on certain days.
Don’t be put off by the uncomely location in a mini-mall near the Tappan Zee Bridge. As you pass through the door of Alain’s French Bistro you are transported to a snug corner of what could be Paris or Lyon (9 Ingalls St., Nyack; 845-535-3315; www.alainsbistro.com).
Alain Eigenmann, the chef and owner, is a classicist at the stove, extolling the virtues of time-honored regional cooking. You will find on his menu an outstanding steak tartare, subtle duck liver pâté, rosemary-skewered shrimps and scallops with asparagus and grilled polenta, monkfish Provençale, duck a l’orange and a fine bouillabaisse. Whatever you taste in desserts, don’t miss the trio of multi-flavored crème brulées.
Restaurant Week specials, offered for lunch and dinner, exclude Fridays and Saturdays.
Awash in history and country charm, this stately inn and restaurant has been a regional favorite for decades (11 Kittle Rd., Chappaqua; 914-666-8044; www.kittlehouse.com). Housed in a 1790s farmhouse, the restaurant has a softly lit, semiformal dining room as well as a casual Tap Room, whose antique mahogany bar serves as a meeting post for local gentry. The amiable and skilled service staff does not miss a beat. This is superb food as high art, for example: Jumbo diver scallops with sunchoke confit and a black truffle emulsion, Hudson Valley fois gras with rhubarb compote and hazelnut brittle, and (hold your breath — this is from the menu) slow cooked Hudson Valley lamb duo braised shoulder, and roast loin, Moroccan spices, apricots, fingerling potatoes, turnips and lobster mushrooms.
Restaurant Week specials, offered for lunch and dinner, exclude Saturdays.
As you approach this turn-of-the-century Southern-style colonial manse, you might think you have reached Scarlett O’Hara’s Tara — and in a sense you have, as this dignified white-columned residence played a significant role in the film “Gone with the Wind.” The current owner hopes it will fare better than the movie version, this time as a luxury restaurant (25 Studio Hill Rd., Briarcliff Manor; 914-502-0080; haymounthouseny.com).
The chef, Scott Riesenberger, calls his food “farm to table,” but so does everybody else in his league. In this case, however, he follows through. Several examples of his handiwork from the ever-changing menu: big eye tuna tartare with smoked almonds, green apple and petite dill; wild branzino with sweet peas, horseradish, parsnips and vanilla; maple-glazed Berkshire pork belly with sunchokes, radish, and celery; and Hudson Valley duck breast along with baby fennel, pistachios, and carrot jus.
Restaurant Week specials, offered for dinner, exclude Fridays and Saturdays. The three-course meal is $29.95, $49.95 with a wine pairing.
Marcello's Ristorante of Suffern
It’s a bit of a hike for most valley residents, yet area celebrity Marcello Russodivito has been packing them in for more than 25 years with his good cheer and soulful renditions of Italian classics (21 Lafayette Ave., Suffern; 845-357-9108; www.marcellosgroup.com). Chef Marcello offers familiar tunes like linguine puttanesca, pappardelle with smoked prosciutto and zucchini, pork chops stuffed with Fontina cheese and prosciutto, and pasta puttanesca.
Restaurant Week specials, offered for lunch and dinner, exclude Saturdays.
Another winning goal by the smooth skating Livanos family, this stylishly converted barn follows success stories like Manhattan’s Abboccato, Oceana and Molyvos, and White Plains’ City Limits Diner (430 Bedford Rd., Armonk; 914-730-0001; www.modernebarn.com). The oxymoronic menu -- described as “urban country chic” -- opens the door to just about anything the chef dreams up. All the same, the consistent quality of the food elevates this to a destination restaurant.
Restaurant Week specials, offered for lunch and dinner, exclude Fridays and Saturdays.
Every train depot should have an inviting and reliable place like this. Set in a historic home facing a pretty downtown park, Plates is bright and cheerful, all white with blue accents, and enlivened by vibrantly colored dining plates mounted overhead (121 Myrtle Blvd., Larchmont; 914-834-1244; www.platesonthepark.com).
The changing menu straddles the haute and homespun: squid stuffed with chorizo, peppers and couscous; sea scallops with vegetable risotto and crispy leeks; duck with wheat berries, rhubarb and miso-glazed Brussels sprouts. The burgers, made with local grass-fed beef, get raves.
Restaurant Week specials, offered for lunch and dinner, exclude Fridays and Saturdays.
Red Hat on the River has one of the more picturesque settings along the Hudson River -- facing the northern Palisades with views from Manhattan to the Tappan Zee Bridge and (1 Bridge St., Irvington; 914-591-5888; www.redhatbistro.com). The classic bistro fare -- with some contemporary twists -- is well-turned out, from moules frites, braised short ribs with turnip purée and seared sea scallops with a red wine and endive marmalade.
Restaurant Week specials, offered for lunch and dinner, exclude Fridays and Saturdays.
This is another gem in Peter Kelly’s quarry of Hudson Valley dining spots (117 N. Rte. 303, Congers; 845-268-6555; www.xaviars.com). Chef Kelly likes to look at familiar dishes, change the shirts and ties in colorful ways, and present something that is new but respectful of the original. Braised short ribs get a jolt from a glaze of star anise; shrimp receive a curious yet pleasing treatment with a glaze of Campari and grapefruit.
Restaurant Week specials will be offered for lunch and dinner.
The creation of star chef Mario Batali and his seemingly infallible team, this wildly popular spot, in a somewhat unpopular part of town, specializes in vibrant Tuscan cooking (18 Mill St., Port Chester; 914-939-3111; www.tarrylodge.com). The cheerful ground-level room with a wide, marble dining bar and a dozen tables is for antipasti (try the terrific cured meats) and inventive pizzas, with varieties including potatoes with Brussels sprouts and pancetta, and a clams-garlic-and-oregano pizza. Upstairs is neighborly and festive.
Restaurant Week specials, offered for lunch and dinner, exclude Fridays and Saturdays.
This savvy New American favorite in the center of postcard-perfect Rhinebeck is always mentioned when talk turns to the best restaurants in the Hudson Valley (6426 Montgomery St., Rhinebeck; 845-876-3330; www.terrapinrestaurant.com). The setting is awe-inspiring, set in a soaring 1820s Baptist church. The ecumenical menu starts off with tapas that are not really tapas but rather morsels of the chef’s fancy: brie and mango crostini, macadamia nut-coated tempura of calamari and duck confit sliders. Entrées run from Guinness-braised lamb shank to pork tenderloin with Thai orange-coconut curry and salmon with an apricot ancho-chili glaze.
Restaurant Week specials, offered for dinner, exclude Saturdays.
Photo: Warm fennel shrimp is served with toasted seed and roasted fennel puree, campari and grapefruit glaze, pine nuts and lambs lettuce at Restaurant X and Bully Boy Bar in Congers.
Tags: Westchester , Rockland , Hudson Valley , restaurants , events , Restaurant Week
