Farmhouse at the Top of the World, Lake George, NY

Dining Out in Lake George

The Farmhouse at the Top of the World

441 Lockhart Mountain Road

Lake George, NY 12845
Reservations: 518.668.3000

www.farmhousefood.com

Lunch & Dinner, Wednesday through Sunday

Open seasonally – May through October

Finding a great dining experience in Lake George has always presented a challenge. Like most Adirondack vacation communities, business owners have exactly nine weeks to make a living – from July 4^th through Labor Day weekend. The majority of businesses shutter soon after, with a few brave souls staying open hoping for enough lake ice for a Winter Carnival, but those are the exceptions. Restaurants face the unique problem of hiring and training a staff for the summer – both a kitchen crew that can prepare the menu, and a dining room staff that is up to the task of serving it. A lot of seasonal places deal with the reality of summer college student help and offer a menu that does not require seasoned restaurant professionals to prepare and serve. The overwhelming majority of restaurants in the Adirondacks go down this road. The Lake George dining experience was the Adirondack experience writ large, with a hundred places suddenly appearing each summer, only to disappear like hibernating bears come fall. Of this group I would classify very few as extraordinary, and most would not compare to their downstate competitors. The Inn at Erlowest is certainly one of the exceptions, but the experience there is a little too formal – and expensive - for our tastes. The Gristmill on Schroon in Warrensburg does a nice job with the short season, and will be the subject of a future post. After spending a day at the track last Wednesday, we stopped in at The Farmhouse at the Top of the World for dinner, and came away thinking that we had found our new favorite Lake George restaurant.

Tomatoes ~ A Love Story

Pattypan squash, beets, kale, basil, and Tomatoes!

Is there anything better from the garden than a summer tomato? During the rest of the year I think about them every time I am in the market, every time I eat a salad, every time I am served the cardboard tomatoes that we suffer through from October through July.  It is finally August, and August is for tomatoes.  

Tasting Notes ~ Cosimo's Trattoria, Poughkeepsie, NY

Cosimo's Trattoria
120 Delafield Street
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601


Phn: 845 485 7172
www.cosimospoughkeepsie.com
Lunch & Dinner, 7 Days


Every once in a while we don't feel like cooking but we also don't feel like a big meal out.  Last night was one of those nights and we stopped in at Cosimo's Trattoria, for what is becoming something of a weekly ritual - a quick dinner at the bar comprised of a salad, a pizza, and a glass (or two) of Pinot Grigio.  The restaurant is located just off of Route 9 across from Marist College, and as you might expect it draws on the campus crowd.  This can make for interesting conversation at the bar, which is where we usually end up eating.
The place does offer a full lunch / dinner menu of what they bill as "Tuscan" specialties - dishes like veal scallopine, or a rosemary scented ribeye steak, and a half dozen pasta choices including rigatoni alla buttera, and tortollini boscaiola. Rarely do we go down that path.  
We're there for the wood fired oven pizzas.  I would describe them as "thin crust" pizza but that does not adequately tell the story.  The crust is unique to Cosimo's; I have not tasted anything like it anywhere else.  It is indeed a thin crust, but it has a wonderful crunchy texture which I attributed to lots of corn meal being used on the counter while prepping the dough.  I tried that at home, with good but not comparable results.  I've since found out (with much groveling and an intervention from my friend and fellow baker, Bob) that their dough recipe includes semolina flour.  The result is a fascinating flatbread / pizza with a pasta like flavor and a crunchy exterior.  They pair this as a special with different toppings each day, in addition to the regular menu pizza offerings including a classic (and quite good) margherita, portobello mushroom, spinach and bacon, or quattro stagioni - topped with smoked ham, artichokes, mushrooms and a tomato basil sauce.  More often than not I pass on these too.  I'm there for one reason - the "scampi pizza", topped with fresh arugula, sundried tomatoes, a garlic pesto spread, whole sauteed shrimp, and shaved parmigiano cheese.  For $12.95.  It's fantastic.  This and a small Caesar salad and I try to convince myself this is a healthy dinner.  Mostly. 
Say Hi to Brad and JoJo, one of whom is usually holding court at the bar.  

If you do stop in please let our other readers know about your visit in the comments section.

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Hudson Valley Table Scraps

Table Scraps - Delafield's Restaurant

2 Delafield Street, Mount Carmel, City of Poughkeepsie.

Robert Nelson, the Executive Chef at Delafield's Restaurant has purchased the business with his wife, Dandelyon, who will assume front of the house responsibilities. Chef Nelson has run the kitchen at Delafield's since they opened last year. Prior to that he worked at the Locust Tree in New Paltz.

North Country Table Scraps

Table Scraps ~ The Owl at Twilight, Olmsteadville, NY

Rich and Joanne Dwyer, the owners of the Owl at Twilight, have announced that in the future the restaurant will be open seasonally, from May through September. The Dwyers will be spending their winters in Georgia, where Rich has accepted a position with the University of Georgia. They anticipate closing soon after Labor Day. Check for updates on their new Facebook page. 

The Local Restaurant and Bar ~ Rhinebeck, NY

The Local

38 West Market Street

Rhinebeck, NY 12572

Reservations: 845 876 2214
Closed Mondays

www.thelocalrestaurantandbar.com

As I sat at the bar waiting for my Wednesday night tablemates to arrive, I perused the menu looking for dinner candidates.  My eyes were immediately drawn to a menu listing for arugula salad, made with Surryano ham.  I recalled reading an article - in Garden and Gun magazine of all places - about this artisanal ham from Virginia.  I had made a mental note to order some.  It is a classic story of an "aha" moment in business - grandson realizes that granddad's process for curing Virgina style hams is basically the same process as curing prosciutto, and why can't we upscale this product?  Fast forward a few years and now Surryano hams - made with high fat, hormone free, heritage Berkshire pigs and aged under exacting conditions for up to eighteen months - command top dollar, and are front and center on the country's best menus, including The Local's.

Arugula salad "Wrap" with Surryano Cured Ham

That one entry that jumped off the page proved to be emblematic of Chef Wesley Dier's menu - billed as seasonal, local, sustainable, and eclectic American. It is indeed all of the above.  Everything about the place is red white and blue, including the wine list, which offers a wonderful collection of American offerings - with nary a bottle of Beaujolais to be found.  The menu reminds me of the regional American theme of the Culinary Institute's American Bounty restaurant.  Diners will not be surprised to find out that Chef Dier, who also ran the kitchen at the now shuttered 40 West next door,  is a CIA alumnus.