319 Main Street
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Phone: 845 849 0340
If Jacob Frydman, the real estate developer cum restaurateur, and man behind Poughkeepsie's recently opened Bull and Buddha, was trying to make a splash, I think it worked. I haven't heard this much buzz about Main Street Poughkeepsie since they ripped out the Main Mall in 2001. Maybe since they put the mall in! How much buzz? How about five hundred Facebook friends before they opened the doors. I am, among other things, jealous.
The widely anticipated opening finally occurred last week, and my Wednesday night dining crew visited for dinner with a reservation for nine. The headcount also speaks to everyone's curiosity about the new place, as the last time we had nine for dinner was when my Wednesday morning text to the boys mistakenly suggested I was buying.
We started at the bar, which is a must see. Striking is not hyperbole. Sitting on the back bar is a seven foot high, four thousand pound carved Buddha from Thailand, looking out over the eighty seat lounge area. The bar top itself is made of Turkish onyx, a translucent stone which is back lit to produce an amber phosphorescent glow underneath your drink. Quite spectacular. As luck would have it Mr Frydman was sitting at the bar when I arrived. The bartender introduced us, and Jacob quickly offered a tour of the restaurant, showing off the space like a proud parent. He has very good reason to be proud. I can say without hesitation that – at least in my lifetime - Poughkeepsie ain't seen nothin like this. I suspect that the lounge by itself would become a destination. The restaurant's plans also include a late night “club” space on the second floor.
Immediately behind the first floor lounge is a sushi bar, chefs standing at attention. A glass refrigerated case displays the night's offerings. I stopped and asked what's for dinner, and the chefs recommended the big eye tuna as the evening's specialty. I did ask if they had any blue fin tuna. (Trick question – the correct answer is No, we do not serve endangered fish. I received the correct answer.) We enjoyed two platters of sushi that night, a combo platter of California roll, big eye and ahi tuna, salmon, yellowtail and sole was sent out to the bar, and another combo plate of sashimi (sans rice) was ordered for dinner. All received great reviews. I can see Bull and Buddha's sushi bar becoming a big draw for the downtown lunch crowd. I will be among them. Most sushi or sashimi offerings are listed at $5 to $6 with combo platters listed from $20 to $29..
We worked our way into the dining room, finished with thematic murals and visual flourishes that suggested a very serious interior design budget. At 6:30 the dining room was starting to fill with Poughkeepsie's “foodie” crowd, all looking for a first peek at the place. It felt very much like the first week of previews at a new Broadway production, and it was very much a production. I should note that since it was only the first week of operation, a real restaurant reviewer would (or should) never formally critique a restaurant. No specials were offered the night we visited. The kitchen is usually given a few weeks to perfect the regular menu before complicating things with nightly specials. Typically reviewers give a new venue a few months to “work out the kinks.” Happily I work under no such restrictions. Honestly, we didn't see many "kinks".
The wine list seems to still be a work in progress, presented in a loose leaf folder of plastic page protectors. There are two “categories' of wines. One section is the “budget” section offering any bottle for $18. The second section lists an eclectic mix of a few dozen higher end wines, with no particular concentration of theme or region. A Ribera del Duero Pesquera Tinto at $60 would go nicely with a steak. The wine markups struck me as reasonable. The Pesquera, a popular Spanish tempranillo, sells for $30 retail, so a $60 listing is better than I would expect in a restaurant of this caliber. Most mark-ups were in the same two to one range. A Drouhin Pinot ($80) or a Stags Leap Winery Cab ($85) were also listed.
The appetizer menu included a dish I had not seen in years – char sui bao, or steamed pork buns. In a former life I used to eat in China Town almost every night after work – which was four o'clock in the morning. We frequented a basement restaurant called Sun Hop Kee on Mott Street. It was one of the few restaurants still open at that hour, and they catered to other restaurant workers looking for whatever you call a meal at 4 AM. Char sui bao is a perfect dish for that meal. The “bun” or “breakfast” part of the dish is the steamed bun, the flour made with wheat flour and sugar, not quite a cake but a slightly sweetened roll. The “pork” or “dinner” part of the dish is a spicy diced pork butt blended with barbecue sauce and onions. All of your major food groups in one delicious treat. I'm sure they have never heard of it in China, but they have it here at Bull and Buddha for $5. I think I paid $3 in Chinatown in 1971.
The steakhouse part of the menu starts with a nod to Peter Luger's with a thick double cut bacon appetizer ($7), served on romaine with dried tomato and spicy Japanese mayo. My table mate offered a bite, which I certainly would not have done if I had this dish in front of me. Quite the spicy tasty twist on a classic. I tried the peanut crusted shrimp skewer ($7), four medium size shrimp grilled in a spicy nut dusting. I really enjoyed the rib steak, a generous good quality cut, grilled to a perfect pink medium rare, as ordered, and served with Chinese long beans – a type of green bean. The beans were pickled, and then roasted, and quite delicious. I hope they are available as a side dish in the future. The wasabi pea encrusted salmon ($18) was also a hit, living up to the hype from the bartender. I was told that wild salmon is a goal for future service but the current night's offering was farm raised. A companion's grilled filet mignon also was well prepared, and garnered a good review.
Bull and Buddha's widely anticipated arrival seems to be living up to the buzz. To accommodate the crowd the restaurant offers off street parking with an entrance off of Mill Street (west bound arterial Rte 44/55). Hired security will patrol the parking lot at night. The new owners have made a huge bet that the community will support their brave new venture. I believe the restaurant's Pan-Asian twist, reasonable prices, and upscale, attractive setting will become a destination for area diners. It is a welcome addition to the Poughkeepsie dining scene.
Update: We revisited Bull and Buddha for dinner at the sushi bar. That post can be read here.
Update: We revisited Bull and Buddha for dinner at the sushi bar. That post can be read here.
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