Fun in Saratoga

Maestro's extends the popular $5.00 early special for four extra days

$5 Entree Extended for 4 more days!!!!! Sunday Nov. 29th thru Tuesday December 2nd

Maestro's "A Fine American Bistro"    $5 Dollar Five O'clock Entree    Dates are selling out!!!!!! Call Now!!!!! Reservations are Highly Suggested!!!   Your ENTIRE! party MUST be seated by 5pm!   $5 Five O'clock Entree The doors will open at 4:45 PM each night. Your entire party must be seated by 5 PM....NOT ONE MINUTE LATER!   You will then be treated to a menu featuring four entree selections for just $5 each.   The menu will change each week!   No coupons needed, no limit on the size of your group.....no other rules!   Just a great entree and our full level of hospitality for just $5    REMEMBER..... We have 40 seats...Reservations are highly suggested! Once they are full that days special is over! Nov 1st-7th Menu      Grilled Pork Flatiron Cheddar grits, blackened string beans, garlic jus   Baked Atlantic Haddock   Root vegetable risotto, wilted spinach   Spinach Gnocchi  Sundried tomato sausage, garlic cream, broccoli rabe   Grilled Chicken Risotto Tomato mushroom risotto, Grana Padano         Maestro's "A Fine American Bistro" 371 Broadway Saratoga Springs, New York 12866 518.580.0312

Putnam Market newsletter and fresh fish offerings

Putnam Market has a weekly newsletter (copied below) which, among other things, lists the fresh fish they will be getting each Friday.  If you make an email order by noon on Tuesday, you can pick up your fresh fish on Friday.  I've ordered their fish before and of course it is of high quality - I like the fact that I can get wild salmon from Putnam Market at least some of the time. You can sometimes get wild salmon from Price Chopper, but the labeling is sometimes vague and I am not confident that I'm getting accurate answers from the employees.  Putnam Market, as you will see below, gives you very specific information before you order.  Price Chopper/Golub is a good company and it's essentially local, being right down Route 50 in nearby Schenectady, but being a large chain they can't get everything right, which is why Putnam Market is worth a weekly visit. 

Gift Baskets

Sandwich  Menu

Catering Menu

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Contact Putnam Wine

			FOLEY FISH ORDER Arrives Friday, December 4, 2009     please place your order by noon on Tuesday

FRESH THIS WEEK please click here to e-mail us your order   The best seasonal prices this week:   Foley Farm-Raised Salmon   $11.99 lb   Grey Sole     $17.99 lb   Nantucket Scallops   $28.99 lb   Prince Edward Island Mussels $ 7.75 ea   (2 pound bag)    Having a party?  If your order meets the minimum, we can bring in for you any week: Fish/ 6 pounds: Sword, Yellowfin Tuna, Halibut, Sea Bass, Trout, Catfish, Sole... Clams & Oysters/ 50 count: Wellfleet or Littleneck Clams, Oysters from New England PEI Cultured Mussels/ 2 lb (serves 3-4)   I will e-mail you a confirmation that I have your order by the end of the day on Tuesday.    If you placed an order, and don't get acknowledgment from me, call!    -Cathy    You are invited to our Holiday Open House on Wednesday, December 9 from 5-8 pm.  We'll have lots to taste and sip, and special discounts across the stores.  Join us!

Seared Salmon with Bacon I found this Nigella Lawson recipe a few years ago.  I've cooked salmon many ways, but it is this recipe I come back to.  The smoky bacon complements the rich salmon perfectly.  Serves 2. Ingredients 2 slices bacon or pancetta, chopped fairly small 2 (6-oz) pieces center-cut salmon fillet     (about 1 inch thick) with skin Salad Mix 1 scallion, sliced thinly crosswise ½ lemon   Method of preparation Sprinkle a frying pan with a little oil, heat it and fry the bacon until crisp.  Remove to a paper towel.   Immediately put the salmon in the hot pan, sear on each side, then cook for a minute or two, depending on the thickness of the fillet, at a lower heat until cooked through.   Put together the salad mix in a bowl.   Plate the grilled salmon.  Squeeze some lemon juice into the frying pan and pour the juices over the waiting undressed salad.  Toss the salad, add the bacon bits and toss again.  Add to the plate with the salmon, and garnish with the scallion slices.

ORDERING SPECIFICS From Foley Fish We must buy a minimum of 6 pounds per type of fish, so we need orders for at least that much to bring it in.   Please order at least 1 pound per type.  Foley Fish freezes well.     We need your order by noon on Tuesday, 12/1, and it will be available for pick up after 10 am on Friday, 12/4.

PUTNAM MARKET the best food and wine store between manhattan & montreal

call: 518.587.3663 www.putnammarket.com

Scallions visit

I took my girlfriend to Scallions Restaurant last week, located at the corner of Lake and Henry Streets, and we had a real nice dinner there.  It was a Monday night and there was only one other table (with three customers) occupied when we got there at 7:45PM.  I realize Monday nights are often slow for restaurants, but I hate to see our local businesses obviously suffering from the economy. 

  

We often share dishes, which allows us to enjoy both an appetizer and an entree, and sometimes even dessert, without getting too full.  We shared the pierogies appetizer, which was served with carmelized onions and sour cream.  Pierogies, which are potatoes and cheese (or sometimes sauerkraut) wrapped in dough and then fried, is a mainstay in many of the markets offering Polish cuisine in my hometown of Buffalo so I certainly enjoyed them.  We then had the pesto chicken entree, which included penne pasta, sundried tomatoes, and artichoke hearts in a creamy pesto sauce.  That also was very good and we appreciated the chef taking the time to divide them onto plates for us right in the kitchen.  He obviously didn't have too much to do back there considering how empty the place was, but it was still a nice touch.  They had an interesting dessert menu but we are trying to stay healthy so we passed.  Our walk through the gallery and gift shop was a nice ending to a good dinner and we plan on going back there for lunch or dinner soon. 

 

Saratoga Seen visited Bettie's Cakes on the grand opening

Christen Gowan from the Times Union had a Tony the Tiger kind of review  on Bettie's Cakes.  Her conclusion:  They're Grrrrreat!  Read Christen's entry on the T-U's Saratoga Seen here. 

The Union Grille web site

I haven't been able to get to the Union Grille yet, but I did peruse the restaurant's web site including its menu.  The prices, especially for breakfast, seem very reasonable and the lunch/dinner menu has a wide array of choices.  Chez Sophie fans should be forwarned that Union Grille is taking the former Chez Sophie place in the hotel, not its place in the local fine dining scene.  What I am saying is that the new restaurant has more basic and stick-to-your-ribs fare, such as "Woodstock" Pot Roast", "My Mother's" Meatloaf, Bangers and Mash, Mac and Cheese, Turkey Dinner, a nice selection of salads, burgers, and sandwiches, and a choice of appetizers that includes a plate for two that offers knockwurst, bratwurst, banger sausage, potato and cheese pierogies, sour cream and "Union Grille" mustard.  The menu also has a few Utica inspired offerings (the owner Brindisi family's hometown) including East Utica Greens and one of my favorites, Chicken Riggies. 

I've made it a point to defend the Brindisis from criticism on other blogs mainly because the criticism (insults) started to get unfair, and in fact really ugly.  I in turn took some criticism back from anonymous posters, but that goes with the territory.  I will point out here as I did elsewhere that the Brindisis are filling two restaurant locations in our city and employing many people at both of them.  This is important; no one wants to see the former Doc's, The Backstretch, and the many South Broadway locations empty as they are and we're not even into winter yet so the tougher times may be still ahead.  The Union Grille's menu, as well as a separate children's menu, may not satisfy Chez Sophie fans, but it does satisfy the needs of many hotel guests, including families with children, people that can't spend $35 for just an entree, and people on the go that need a quick meal.  There are plenty of great fine dining options in town, and the current local economy can only support so many of them.  From what I've heard and read Chez Sophie was a wonderful restaurant, but its departure means the other higher-end restaurants in town will gain some of that niche market share and the Hilton gains a restaurant which is probably more suited to the varied needs of hotel guests.  I want to give the Union Grille a try soon and once again I give the Brindisis credit for helping the local economy and successfully operating two restaurants here in Saratoga Springs.

Read the Saratogian article about Union Grille from October 2, 2009 here.

Colin Smith Friday night at The Irish Times

I am not familiar with Colin Smith but The IrishTimes has excellent musical acts so my bet is that you can't go wrong.  To read about my previous experience at The Irish Times, click here.  To read a Times Union review on The Irish Times, click here. 

Don't forget to check out

Colin Smith

Friday Night at The Irish Times!

With opening act

Matt O'Rourke

Book your Holiday Party Now!

Saratoga's BEST Happy Hour

1/2 off all Drinks and Appetizers

(at the bar)

Saratoga Restaurant week to be held December 5-10, 2009

This is the fifth annual restaurant week held by the Saratoga Convention and Tourism Bureau.  Dinners will be $18.19 and lunch will be $9.09.  For more information, including a list of participating restaurants, click here.

DZ Restaurants: Chianti, Forno Bistro, and Pasta Pane

As my regular readers know, I am on a number of Saratoga business and organization e-mailing lists.  As the economy continues to struggle these businesses, most notably the restaurants, seem more active in communicating with their customers via email.  They're also getting more active on the social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.  This strategy makes sense; it's virtually cost free to send emails and post on networking sites to advertise your offerings to customers who expressed a desire to be contacted that way.  Of course, if you're working in the old media, such as newspapers and other print, TV, and radio, this trend will continue to seriously harm those businesses.  It's harsh, but "move, adapt, or die" sure seems to apply here. Anyway, back to the specific subject of businesses sending emails, I received an email this week from DZ Restaurants announcing upcoming events and happenings.

DZ Restaurants in November  HAPPENINGS IN THE RESTAURANTS Chianti Promotions Forno Promotions Pristine Vodka World Premiere Communicate with us! PASTA PANE RUSTIC ITALIAN BISTRO  18 Park Avenue Clifton Park, NY 12065   Opening Early Winter 2010!    We're making progress!  More construction updates to follow! There is so much happening at DZ Restaurants this month!  To begin, we just launched our brand new websites this week!  Click on the links below and check out all the great features we've added to the sites.  Each restaurants' menu has phonetic pronunciations that help you pronounce our Italian menu.  Ever wondered which bottle of wine David would pair with each Chianti entree?  Check the site to see his wine recommendations for each dish on the menu!  Check the DZ Newsletter frequently - the chefs and managers will be posting tidbits about recipes, wines, trips and other fun things they're up to!   www.chiantiristorante.com www.fornobistro.com www.dzrestaurants.com   Chianti in November  Monday Night Food-ball at Chianti's Bar! Order a full entree off our main dinner menu between 8:00pm and 9:30pm on Monday night and enjoy half-priced beer and house wine until the end of the game!  Gather your friends and watch the game in style - phenomenal food and generous drink discounts at Chianti's bar!   Mastering the Art of Italian Cooking - Campania Region Spots are still available for the November 24th cooking class at Chianti!  Fabrizio will be demonstrating dishes from the Campania region of Italy.  This is a perfect way to spend time with friends before the rush of the holidays!  You may learn a tip or two before the big meal!  $45 per person.     Forno in November  The new dinner menu is here! Take a peek on the website to check out our new dinner menu.  Many old favorites remain, some much-requested past items have returned and a bunch of new items were added!  Stop in for dinner!   Pizza E Birra at the bar!  Sunday - Thursday at the bar - it's the best promotion in Saratoga Springs!  For just $8 enjoy a full-size hand tossed pizza and a draft beer!  Choose between a Margherita or Salsiccia pizza and a Peroni or Sam Adams Winter Lager.  We'll see you at the bar!   Hands-On Cooking Classes with Forno's Mamma Theresa! We are accepting reservations for our hands-on cooking series starting in December.  The hands-on course for adults will be held on December 5th and the hands-on course for kids will be held on December 19th.  Due to their interactive nature, class size is limited to 12 people - call today for reservations!  518.581.2401 - class payment required in advance - $25 per person for the kids class, $40 per person for the adult class.   Bambino Menu is brand new and offered 7 days a week! Come check out our new children's menu being offered 7 days a week - appetizers, entrees and desserts in kid size portions!  Choose a 3-course dinner with drink for $15 per kid - a healthy, homemade meal that you can be happy about.    Pristine Vodka World Premiere Local resident Alexander Bratslavsky has recently launched his own brand of premium vodka, Pristine.  To celebrate his accomplishment, Chianti will be the first restaurant to sell the vodka and promote it in Saratoga Springs.  Beginning Monday, November 23rd and running until Wednesday, November 25th, Chianti will offer $5 Pristine vodka martinis to give area residents the chance to experience the liquor first-hand.  Join us before Thanksgiving for the world premiere of Pristine vodka!  Communicate with DZ Restaurants!         Click on the links below and hear up-to-the-minute updates from the restaurants!   http://twitter.com/chiantisaratoga http://www.facebook.com/pages/Saratoga-Springs-NY/Chianti-Ristorante/49150787567 http://twitter.com/fornobistro http://www.facebook.com/pages/Saratoga-Springs-NY/Forno-Bistro/48959876386   As always, your comments and feedback is always appreciated.  We look forward to seeing you in the restaurants!

Bettie's Cakes opens!

Fresh and delicious cupcakes made and served by beautiful women - what more would you want from a business?  Well, you might want a great cup of coffee, free wi-fi, and a bright and retro atmosphere.  You get all that and more from Bettie's Cakes, which I stopped into Sunday afternoon during their first day of business.

  

 

I really enjoyed my visit there; the cupcakes are great and the coffee is bold without being too strong.  Are you reading this Starbucks?  The steady stream of curious and apparently hungry customers, the festive decorations and walls (with plenty of pink), and the jukebox playing everything from 50s rock-n-roll to Michael Jackson hits combined to make the place feel alive and fun.  As I mentioned in my previous post comparing this new "cupcakery cafe" to PJ's barbecue, this place is more than simply a place to purchase cupcakes and other sweet concoctions.  Just walking into Bettie's will likely put a smile on your face.  Located in the Downstreet Marketplace at 454 Broadway, you can also enter through the the rear entrance via the Mare courtyard off Maple Ave. Open 7 days a week from Noon-9PM - get there soon and get there often!  I know I will.

 

  

  

 
  

Click here for the recently posted Idiots being idiots blog thoughts on Betties' Cakes.

 

Virgil's House - buy one get one free

I receieved this email from Virgil's House, the very comfortable coffee house on Henry Street which doesn't allow laptops, cell phone usage, or other electronic annoyances.  They have art, puzzles, chess, checkers, books (!), and more. I am assuming if you print out this page, they will honor the offer printed below even though it was originally only sent to those on their mailing list. 

OUR DELICIOUS CHAI LATTE!

Buy one Get one Free

 

Print out this coupon, and bring it in to double your pleasure

 with the sweet and spicy
flavors that make our chai latte
so special here at ~

 

 

 

This offer expires November 20,2009