Savory Tidbits: Restaurant News and Views for NYC, San Francisco, Chicago and LA

Ideas for the weekend or 4th of July

After a hot week in the city, nothing sounds better than getting out of town for a little nature.  When Jenny Silverman, writer and omnivore, told me about a hike she took with her mom through the Hudson Valley I was intrigued. On special assignment to Savory Tidbits, Jenny will be presenting a series of Hikes with Bite to tempt you to get outside while the weather cooperates.

Hikes with Bite
By Jennifer Silverman

There’s a particular type of New Yorker who likes the outdoors, but not the “outdoorsy” things that go along with it – specifically, the food.  Between cardboard-flavored power bars and the baffling gastronomical anomaly known as GORP, communing with nature can hardly seem worth it. 

As an alternative, try the Savory Hike; an ambulatory adventure with only three requirements:  1.)  the trail should go though some actual nature, but be accessible to public transportation, 2.)  there’s no special gear necessary – you don’t need anything more technical than sneakers, and, most importantly, 3.)  there’s easy access to some really great food. 

So grab a bottle of water (and a granola bar if you must), but save room for lunch – it’s going to be tasty.

For my inaugural Savory Hike, I thought I’d try the Old Croton Aqueduct Trail.  In 1842, New York City solved its water shortage problems by opening this aqueduct that moved water from upstate reservoirs into the city.  No longer operational, the aqueduct has been reinvented as a flat, public hiking trail that weaves through the woods, parks and backyards of Westchester County – from Van Courtland Park to the Croton Reservoir. 

I decided to walk an eight-mile stretch, from Yonkers to Irvington, and invited my mom, Marylin, along as rambling and culinary companion.

We took the 9:58 a.m. Metro North from Grand Central to Yonkers (arriving at 10:23), found the trailhead (a little tricky – probably the hardest part of the hike), and were on our way.  In Yonkers, the trail is narrow and overgrown with a slightly spooky vibe, in a Wizard of Oz flying-monkey forest way, but there are benefits:  we saw deer, bluebirds, cardinals (I think), the fabulously creepy ruins of the Aqueduct ventilation system (stone smokestack-looking things smack in the middle of the trail) and the decrepit Old Untermeyer Estate (it’s slightly hidden in the woods on your right with crumbing stone lions and horses standing guard).  As we continued to head north, the trail got wider and better maintained (mirroring the income level of the surrounding communities), and after about four miles and three hours we found ourselves happy and hungry on Main Street in Hastings-on-Hudson, ready for some classic hiking dining – gourmet French food.

Buffet de la Gare gets a slightly bad rap for being “fancy,” and it is, in a certain way, an old-fashion French restaurant where jackets are requested and checks are hefty.  But for lunch, when you stumble in wearing shorts and a t-shirt, the staff is nothing but welcoming and the prices completely manageable.

The building itself is a treat.  Over one hundred years old, our waitress told us the space had only ever been used as a restaurant, and while the original wood is gorgeous, the real architectural delight is in the back dining room, which is lined from floor to ceiling in intricate floral tin panels.  Add white tablecloths, lace curtains, a world of chintz, piped in Gallic music (like an awesome French version of “Que Sera Sera”) and local clientele (on the day we dined there was a high school French class in another dining room on a “cultural” class trip) and the whole place feels a little Mayberry meets Marseilles.  But the food is anything but provincial.

Chef Luc Dimnet (formerly of Brasserie) and his wife Nicole took over Buffet de la Gare in 2006 and most reviews have mentioned the improvement of the already well-regarded restaurant. 

Since my mom and I were faintly dehydrated from our walk, we started with a revitalizing half-bottle of Pouilly-Fuisse to accompany the ahi tuna tartare.  Served with julienned cucumber and coriander, the dish was bright, simple and a deliciously refreshing burst of protein after our morning exertions.  For main courses, we had salads; my mother went for one topped with roasted duck while I chose seared scallops.  Both had a similar base (fresh mesclun, haricots verts, sherry vinaigrette), but the proteins elevated the simple foundation.  Served with toasted hazelnuts and shaved apple, my mom’s duck was moist and flavorful, with a scrumptious crackle-y, salty skin.  My scallops were perfectly seared and meaty and worked really well with the slightly sweet sherry dressing.  To fortify ourselves for the rest of our hike, we shared a dessert of almond cake topped with rhubarb compote and yogurt that was absolutely fantastic.  The tart rhubarb and sour thick yogurt was a perfect compliment to the light, sugary cake; it was a lovely end to a first-rate meal.

For those who prefer to pass out in a butter-infused coma after a good French meal (particularly if you ate the vol-au-vent, which we did not but is supposedly amazing), a three minute walk from Buffet de la Gare takes you to the Hastings-on-Hudson train station and back to New York City.  We, however, continued on the trail about four miles more, through the towns of Dobbs Ferry and Ardsley-on-Hudson (both with Metro North stations), across the campus of Mercy College, past the octagonal delight of the Armour-Stiner home (an ornate eight-sided house that looks like it belongs on top a wedding cake) and finally into Irvington, where we stopped for some good coffee at the Rich Bean Bakery Café as we waited for the 5:16 p.m. train to take us back into the city.

Now, if you really want to have a full day, the truly gourmet-minded travelers should finish the hike right: walk the trail just two miles more into Tarrytown, go down to the Metro North station, grab a cab and take your weary bones to dinner at the incomparable Blue Hill at Stone Barns, about five minutes away.  This requires both reservations and the forethought of stuffing a nice shirt or dress in your bag to change into before you walk in to the dining room.  If that seems like too much planning, walk the trail in reverse – starting the hike in Tarrytown (wander around the old Lyndhurst estate and the Stone Barns farm to work up an appetite first) and eat at the casual outdoor Blue Hill Café before heading south to Hastings-on-Hudson or Yonkers. 

For more information on the Old Croton Aqueduct Savory Hike:

Outside Magazine’s Urban Adventure: New York City by David Howard has very specific directions to the Yonkers trailhead and important markers on the trail.

A phone call to the Friends of the Old Croton Aqueduct, 914-693-4117, should answer any questions as well.  There’s also a map on their website that’s cute, although not so helpful. http://www.aqueduct.org/ (map)

A good article with trail highlights,  http://www.intrepidtraveler.com/travels/croton.html

Buffet de la Gare
155 Southside Avenue
Hastings-on-Hudson
(914) 478-1671
Lunch served Thursday and Friday, so plan accordingly.
Dinner: Tuesday – Saturday
Review: The New York Times

Rich Bean Bakery Café:
45 Main Street
Irvington, NY  10533
(914) 591-7406 

Blue Hill at Stone Barns
630 Bedford Rd.  
Pocantico Hills, New York
Phone: 914-366-9600

Mighty Fine Ribs

It's Sunday AM and Chris and I are getting ready to head back over to the The Big Apple BBQ Block Party but before we go, we felt it was our duty to report on some of our sampling from yesterday.

If you can make it to Madison Square Park today, even if it's only for an hour, do not miss Jake's Boss BBQ.
When it comes to ribs, I usually like mine smothered in red sauce because that's what I think of when I think of BBQ. When we got our order of Jake's Boss, I was a little sad to see that my ribs were naked but after the first bite, I couldn't have been happier. These ribs were so tender, juicy and had a really distinctive flavor. It was one of those experiences that if I tried to tell you about the fennel or the cumin or what I thought was in the spice mix, it wouldn't do the ribs justice. Run over to Madison and about 26th street with your $8 in hand and get an order of these ribs and see what I'm talking about.

Before you head to the park, check out our Pit Master Profiles. We spoke with the pit masters on Friday to get a preview of what they were going to cook this weekend.

Lastly, if you're looking for a great barbecue book to inspire you this summer check out Mike Mills' great new book:

Peace, Love, & Barbecue: Recipes, Secrets, Tall Tales, and Outright Lies from the Legends of Barbecue

In addition to great stories told by Mills and his daughter Amy Mills Tunnicliffe,  the book has recipes from many of the BBQ masters that are cooking at The Big Apple BBQ (Ed Mitchell, The Salt Lick, Southside, Ubon's, Big Bob Gibson...).

Black Napkin

A few weeks ago I ate dinner with some friends at The Grill on the Alley, in Beverly Hills, CA. After a drink at the bar (which is not optional, you will be made to wait at the bar even if you show up on time for your reservation), we were escorted to our table. When we were all seated, the hostess asked me and one of my friends if we would like a black napkin. I looked at my friend and back at the hostess and said, "black napkin?" as if I had mis-heard her. She said, very matter-of-factly, "Yes. A black napkin for your dress."
I finally got it. OH! A black napkin so the lint from the white napkin doesn't get all over my black dress - "No" I said, "Thank you, I'm ok." But then as soon as she left. I wanted the black napkin. I was curious about the black napkin. As she passed by our table, I leaned over and said, "You know, I will take a black napkin."

Out of all the restaurants I've been to lately (sometimes visiting 3 a day), I have never been offered a black napkin - until LA. I thought it was really strange, maybe just an LA phenomenon. But then it happened again in Chicago.

Chris and I were eating dinner at Blackbird restaurant. After being seated at our table, our hostess gracefully swooped up our white napkins and said, "I'll be back with black napkins for you."
I looked over at Chris smartly and said, "did you see what just happened?" He didn't. I gave him a knowing nod as if to say, just you wait. A moment later, our black napkins arrived. They were beautiful. Crisp, clean, black and very lint free.
The highlight of the evening wasn't the black napkins though, it was Mike Sheerin's cooking. Sheerin, formerly Wylie Dufresne's sous-chef at wd-50, and his team cooked a great meal for us that evening. The menu has some hints of wd-50 - like an octopus dish we were served. We saw some Blackbird signature dishes come out of the kitchen that were not meant for our table. We had a menu which really showed off what the restaurant can do.

So what about black napkins in NYC? The hunt for the black napkin has begun. Perhaps it already lives in restaurants here and I just need to wear my black dress to dinner more often. If you come accross a black napkin - let us know when and where!