The Rhinecliff Hotel & Restaurant
4 Grinnell Street
Rhinecliff, NY, 12574
Reservations: 845 876 0590
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner – 7 Days
Brunch on Weekends, Late Bar Menu
Amazing what $5 mil will get you. If you have not had a chance to see the restored Rhinecliff Hotel, overlooking the Hudson River at the Rhinecliff Amtrak station, you really should do this. If you remember the ramshackle civil war era inn and gin mill that occupied the space, then you really must do this. We stopped in Monday night with some friends who were back in town visiting for the holiday. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
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| I love when the bottle is bigger than the bartender! |
I'm sure that summertime is the proper time to visit and take in the river views – a beautiful outdoor patio overlooks the water -but we found the interior bar and dining room to be attractive in their own right. I have heard of the bar and dining space described as a brasserie, but I'm not sure I agree with that. I kept thinking about Rick's Cafe in Casablanca. We arrived after sundown and the soft amber lighting and wooden blinds helped. Clusters of ceiling fans and numerous potted palms among the bentwood chairs and antique looking wooden tables added to the look, which is really quite attractive.
A smallish bar awaits just inside the entrance, and we stopped for a drink with my new favorite bartender, Am, short for Amnesty. She sold Mary on the house specialty, a spiced rum infused at the bar with cinnamon and all spice, blended with apple cider, and then heated with the steam wand from the espresso maker. It was served in a tall glass wrapped with a white linen napkin. It was the perfect cocktail for a crisp autumn evening, and I imagine that a little snow would make it even better. I enjoyed a glass of Pinot Grigio with a plate of house cut potato chips ($3.95), sliced razor thin on a mandolin, crisped in the frier, and served with pink peppercorn salt. Wonderful stuff, and technically a vegetable. Am walked us through some of the the other house cocktails made with local distilled spirits that she could make for us. The bottle in the picture is a bourbon infused with chamomile. Don't you just love talking with people who obviously enjoy their work? I look forward to visiting again and eating right there at the bar.
A smallish bar awaits just inside the entrance, and we stopped for a drink with my new favorite bartender, Am, short for Amnesty. She sold Mary on the house specialty, a spiced rum infused at the bar with cinnamon and all spice, blended with apple cider, and then heated with the steam wand from the espresso maker. It was served in a tall glass wrapped with a white linen napkin. It was the perfect cocktail for a crisp autumn evening, and I imagine that a little snow would make it even better. I enjoyed a glass of Pinot Grigio with a plate of house cut potato chips ($3.95), sliced razor thin on a mandolin, crisped in the frier, and served with pink peppercorn salt. Wonderful stuff, and technically a vegetable. Am walked us through some of the the other house cocktails made with local distilled spirits that she could make for us. The bottle in the picture is a bourbon infused with chamomile. Don't you just love talking with people who obviously enjoy their work? I look forward to visiting again and eating right there at the bar.
We had asked for a table and were guided to a round near the rear of the dining room, right next to the fireplace. I did have a little trouble finding a place for my 6'4” frame at the smallish table which to me also seemed a little shorter than standard. There were a half dozen of these same small tables in the back of the dining room that I will try to avoid on future visits.
The restaurant's CIA trained chef, Brian Kaywork, makes a concerted effort to source meats and produce locally, and we were informed that the menu had recently been changed to reflect the season. November menus bring out some of my all time favorites, and I was pleased to see a cassoulet was among the offerings. I knew what my entree was going to be. It had been almost a year since my last.
The server tried to steer us in another direction, offering a nightly special. In addition to cassoulet, November also brings the annual onslaught of the Beaujolais Nouveau's, and the kitchen had prepared a rabbit stew using said Beaujolais. I personally have never understood what all the Nouveau fuss is about – C'est Arrivé! - but perhaps potting a rabbit may qualify as its highest and best use. It would probably be better than anything I've come up with, especially drinking the stuff straight.
I would not be swayed. I asked if the kitchen would let me have a small bowl of rabbit stew as an app, but they wouldn't go along with that idea. I ordered the cassoulet, along with my Plan B - an order of frogs legs to start. Froggie was great. Actually both froggies were great, traditionally pan fried in clarified butter and lots of parsley. The cassoulet was not traditional, if there is such a thing. I suppose cassoulet is really nothing more than a bean stew with leftovers. Usually it is made with bits of pork shoulder and duck sausage and some duck confit, and whatever else was laying around in the farmer's pantry. This version had a hind quarter of duck, and some pork belly and mustard greens. The beans were topped with a crisp layer of corn bread topping instead of the bread crumbs that most recipes would suggest. Actually I shouldn't say topped. The dish was not served in the baking crock, but had been re-plated in a large bowl with a generous portion, and the corn bread topping was mixed in with the white bean casserole. The result was wonderful – the cornbread added a a crunchy texture and a decided sweetness to the dish. Purists might disagree, but hey, it's just leftover stew. This was a nice twist.
An order of savory chicken pot pie ($13.95) was topped with a puff pastry. The bird was raised at North Wind Farms in Tivoli. It was a good dish but not enough for a hungry diner unless you combine it with an app. A sliced sirloin steak ($19.95) was a more generous serving, prepared as requested and plated with house cut french fries. An order of roasted chicken breast ($18.95) was served with sauteed spinach, and a puree of butternut squash. A mushroom ragu ($16.95) was plated with a buckwheat polenta blended with cream and Vin Santo, a dessert wine from Chianti. Both drew rave reviews.
Over the last few years our Wednesday night dinner crew has visited the restaurant a number of times, and this summer it played to mixed reviews. The service can be problematic at times, especially during the tourist season, but I suppose that is when it's going to happen. We certainly had no complaints last night. If you have not driven down to the river and seen the renovation of the inn and restaurant, it is most certainly worth the trip. As long as you're there, stop in at the bar and say hello to Am. And try the chips.
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