Fun in Saratoga

A little candy with your Saratoga medicine

I have some bad news for some of you.  Do yourself a favor and click on the Youtube link below, then keep reading.

The Travers is over, summer is ending, and your city taxes are due.  If you pay your Saratoga Springs city taxes in quarterly installments, don't forget to drop your third quarter payment off to city hall or get the envelope postmarked (not a meter mark) by September 1, 2010 to avoid late fees.  Click here  for the tax payment page on the Saratoga Springs city web site. If all that wasn't depressing enough, I'll hit you with a double whammy and tell you that Saratoga Springs school tax bills will be mailed out in the next week or so, and those will be due October 4th. Don't worry - be happy.

Tax payments may be mailed to the Commissioner of Finance, PO Box 328, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866-0328 or hand delivered to City Hall at 474 Broadway. The tax office is located on the first floor of City Hall, first door on the left when entering from Broadway. The office hours are Monday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Tuesday through Friday 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. All checks should be made payable to COMMISSIONER OF FINANCE.  In every life we have some trouble, but when you worry you make it double.  Don't worry - be happy.

Times Union reviews Sabina's

The Times Union reviewed  Sabina's Wood Fired Restaurant (formerly Bruno's) on Union Avenue across from the track for Sunday's edition.  My synopsis of it is that the reviewer (Cheryl Clark) wrote good things about the entrees but the service was disorganized to the point of being awful .  I believe the headline "Left in Limbo" should give you a pretty good idea about her experience.  For my entry on my visits to Sabina's last year, click here.  ADDED:  The T-U's Table Hopping blog has plenty of comments about the review and Sabina's.

 

Fox and Hound Bed and Breakfast for sale

(ADDED: To read my entry on the Batcheller Mansion being for sale - click here)

Man, the bed and breakfast business in Saratoga Springs must be difficult these days. No fewer than four east side B & Bs are currently listed for sale, with the latest one that I noticed being The Fox and Hound over on Lake Avenue at the corner of Marion Place near the Lake Avenue School. The asking price is just under $1.3 million - you can read the listing here.

 

I previously wrote about several other Saratoga B & Bs for sale, including:

• Union Gables at 55 Union Avenue.  The listing is here. 

 

• The Chestnut Tree Inn on Whitney Place.  The listing is here.

• Saratoga Sleigh Bed and Breakfast on Union across from the track.  The listing is here.

 

• The Westchester House on Lincoln at the Five Corners was listed last year, but is no longer listed. I don't know if it sold or the owner simply took it off the market.  If it was the latter, I wouldn't doubt if she'd be open to a reasonable offer. 

 

For what it's worth, The Chestnut Tree Inn and Saratoga Sleigh have "For Sale" signs out front, however neither Union Gables nor The Fox and Hound have signs.   I guess it's a balance between how bad do you want to sell and how bad will it look to your guests, actual and prospective, with a for sale sign out front.  With track season ending soon, I can't see the local business real estate market improving until perhaps next spring.  Let's hope things turn around sooner rather than later. 

Saratoga this and that....

....Because "Saratoga Thoughts" was already becoming boring.  OK, here are more musings and random observations from one blogger:

• I've never seen political activism in a horse's name before (with the possible exception of "Luv Guv"), but I saw one horse this past weekend running at the track named "We Want VLTs" and another named "Fight for VLTs".  Well, good for the owners for finding a way to lobby on the track.
• Why, why, why, oh why do I bet against Linda Rice on the turf???? Duh!  Four plus weeks into track season I finally learned, and Linda, if you're reading this, I swear if you enter a shetland pony on the grass on the Travers undercard I'll put $20 bucks across the board on the darn thing.
• If you're trying to eat halfway healthy but still want something filling, then the best casual food deal at the track is the chowder/half wrap combo at the chowder bar under Clubhouse Section K.  It will set you back a very reasonable $7.25, and with the fall-like weather we had on Sunday and Monday, that Manhattan version with the big clams hit the spot.

 
 

• Speaking of that fall-like weather, what a shame Sunday was such a monsoon.  Yuck, the track was depressing.  I wish for NYRA's sake, as well as the rest of our benefit, that August rain would limit itself to Tuesdays.  OK, Wednesday rain is fine also, but for God's sake not on the weekend.  Well at least NYRA timed the umbrella giveaway right.
• Another 30 credit hours and I think I'll finally understand some of those analyses on the Daily Racing Form. Sometimes the write-ups are so well written and clear, and sometimes they're just simply gobbleygook.
• I finally made it to Siro's in the Entourage era.  The heck with the Kevins, I was hoping I'd somehow, someway bump into Emmanuelle Chriqui.  Uhhh, I had to settle for Jack Knowlton and Commander Cody.  Oh well, at least I had an interesting conversation with Knowlton about (Who else?) Funny Cide, and the good Commander took a minute to pose with me for a picture.  Well, they certainly weren't Sloan, but they're both nice fellas anyway. Besides, what did I expect on a rainy Sunday evening?  Take care and have a great Travers - I'll probably post at least once more this week.

 
    

Great Nick Kling commentary in The Saratogian and Troy Record

You may have missed this strong commentary from Troy Record reporter Nick Kling which covers a wide range of subjects currently affecting NYRA and the horse racing industry in general.  The piece covers everything from the proposed VLTs at Aqueduct to the synthetic tracks in California, plus a whole lot in between.  My favorite comment: "NYRA officials have tried to soft-pedal the (attendance) losses by issuing cheery press releases which take the term ‘spin’ to previously uncharted levels. I haven’t met anyone yet who is buying into the frippery." 

Saratoga thoughts

Here's what I'm thinking:

• The new toteboard at Saratoga is terrific.  It's so easy to read with it's vividness and bright colors.  Heck I don't even need my glasses there, well not as much anyway.
• I realize he doesn't have that many mounts and doesn't race every day, but it's still wierd to see Calvin Borel with only 3 wins.  He will be in the Hall of Fame sooner rather than later. I love his charismatic personality too - we both blew stop signs on our bicycles a week or two ago and almost crashed into each other.  Just as I was about to get mad, despite our shared fault, I realized who it was and was immediately star struck and blurted out "Hey Calvin!"  He replied "Hey man how's it going?" and we both went on our merry ways.  That's my brush with greatness, at the intersection of Phila and Court streets.
• Speaking of running into celebrities, I presumed in my previous "Saratoga Thoughts" post that Kevin Dillon and Kevin Connolly, stars in the HBO hit series Entourage and partners in Siro's new ownership group, never made it here to Saratoga.  I was incorrect, and my friends did see the two actors at the Lincoln Street landmark the first Saturday of track season.  It was kind of funny because my friend saw them going through the dining area, which was populated with older folks, and it seemed to him that he was the only one that recognized them.  On a related note, I wrote about Siro's bands earlier this week and I mentioned Commander Cody, but I forgot to include a picture I had from his gig there last year, so I'll post it below. There, now your day is complete.

 

• I understand and support the thoroughbred racing industry's adaptations to modern economic times, and I commend NYRA for actively engaging new partnerships and alliances.  With all that being said, I still cringe everytime I hear "Dunkin Donut Mondays".
• I think it's so sad when I see people searching through the garbage looking for winning tickets at the track.  I'm not talking about a ticket that they accidentally discarded, mind you (believe you me* I've been there), but I'm talking about people just searching and hoping someone made a mistake and accidentally threw a winner out.  I just don't know what to think when I see that.
• Did you know the Daily Gazette has two blogs dedicated to Saratoga?  I didn't know that, even though they've apparently been going since last year.  You can link "The Wire" here, and "Around Saratoga" here.  The Gazette's staff obviously doesn't have the blogging experience as their competition at the T-U or even the Saratogian, and The Gazette blogs lack appeal, but perhaps they will learn and grow.  On a related note, I think The Gazette's Saratoga reporter Tatiana Zarnowski is a very good journalist and if there's one reason to read The Gazette it's because of her.
• Everytime I see those white dogs (are they huskies?) in the pickup truck I get a smile on my face. We saw them on Broadway last Saturday night. 
• My fiance and I went to the Philadelphia Orchestra at SPAC last night and we really enjoyed spreading our blanket out on the lawn and enjoying the great performance.  I like how they dumb it down for clods like me and played a few songs made popular by Gloria Estefan, Diana Ross, and George Thorogood.  OK, it was "Wicked Divas" night and there was no Thorogood, but even though it would have been totally misplaced, that would have been really cool.  My poor fiance, a cultured woman who's a romantic at heart and loves the opera and Broadway, was so captivated by the songs from Carmen, Phantom of the Opera, and Wicked.  Meanwhile I'm reaching into the cooler thinking "Me likes fried chicken".  She's a beautiful woman, and deserves so much better.  Have a great weekend everybody.

*RIP Billy Preston

Weekend in Saratoga

I found a blogger who wrote about his weekend in Saratoga Springs.  It is a good primer for things to do for those who have never been here before, so I am linking it here. 

Weekend in Saratoga.

Burn baby burn. More 70s and 80s has beens at Siro's

I almost never notice newspaper ads.  If I'm the typical reader, I don't know why any business would purchase a newspaper ad, because even if it said "Free money to you, Dan" I likely would not notice it.  With all that being said, a rarity occurred this past weekend when I caught an ad in the Saratogian for Siro's announcing that Saturday's and Sunday's musical acts. 

Even though none of the listed acts have had a hit since the Reagan administration, or in some cases even further back.   The Trammps, Maxine Nightingale, and Lisa Lisa (apparently sans The Cult Jam) all played at Siro's Saturday night. 

You know what?  I made a bit of a mocking comment that these acts were has beens, but truth be told, much like I like the cover bands and has beens playing at Vapor, I think it's pretty damn cool that some of these national acts are playing right here in Saratoga Springs within the shadow of the track.   Yea, Lisa Lisa's "Lost in Emotion" and "Head to Toe" was bubblegum pop, but those songs remind me of a great time in my life when I was a young New York State Trooper, was 20 pounds lighter, and had some game.  OK, I thought I had game, but I was definitely younger!  I think it's cool that I can take a short walk to hear songs of my yesteryear performed by the original artists. Oh God, I've become my parents. 

There have been a few other national acts at Siro's since track season opened, including the Jersey Boys, led by Four Seasons frontman Frankie Valli (photo below courtesy of the proprietor of unit 1).  I missed that one, but would have liked to hear Frankie Valli's famed falsetto voice hit some of those notes, of course assuming he still could hit them seeing that he's in his mid 70s. 

 

Apparently the British band Naked Eyes performed there July 31st - I have to assume that was the same Naked Eyes that covered Burt Bacharach's song "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me" as well as "Promises, Promises".  Some more upcoming nostalgic acts include Gary U.S. Bonds (mistakenly written as "Gary Bond" on Siro's web site as well as Saratoga.com) and The Commander Cody Band.  George Frayne, AKA Commander Cody, lives locally and has appeared at Siro's in past years.  Even though the Commander is the only original member and none of the original Lost Planet Airmen are still with him, it's still a great show. It's not just about seeing him perform the unparalleled "Hot Rod Lincoln" ("My Pappy said son you're going to drive me to drinkin' if you don't stop drivin' that hot rod Lincoln"), because the whole show rocks. Siro's also has some national bands covering the Beatles and other top performers, and some of this region's top cover bands, such as the New York Players and The Refrigerators, are playing there as well.   Siro's new ownership group did a good job on their new web site, and it looks very cutting edge. 

So in the remaining weeks of the track if you see some dude bopping his head at Siro's to Bonds' "This Little Girl" or jamming to Commander Cody's  "Hot Rod Lincoln", cut him some slack, he's just reliving his youth and celebrating the end of a five year winless drought at the track. 

Winner!

After five years of horse ownership, I finally made it to the winner's circle this past Sunday when my horse (I own 5% of him) Wishingonadream won the 10th race right here in Saratoga.  It was an incomparable thrill, made all the more sweet that I had to wait five years to get the win and he won by a nose (my friend said a nostril) and the photo finish review was agonizingly slow.  We brought so many people into the Winners Circle that the photo looked like the cover of Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.  I will get the photo soon, so for now I will simply post this picture of Wishing in the barn. Life is good!

Saratoga Farmers' Market news

Below is the latest newsletter from the Saratoga Farmers' Market:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Saratoga Springs Farmers' Market August 13, 2010                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Market News: The weather is suppose to be perfect Saturday--and the farmers' tables are bursting with product.  Its gonna be a great shopping day at the market......!! LOST AND FOUND ITEMS:  We are accumulating some important items at the lost and found.  Did you lose your credit card, , vw car keys, or a small electronic gadget that clips on?  Many other items too.   Come to the shed to claim. Live Music: And the shopping can't get any better than when GEO BEAT is playing!! Don't forget to tip the musicians......they play only for tips.  Thank you! Vendor Changes: Don't forget that New Minglewood as left for the season. Saratoga Apple has moved into their spot. DOGS at Saturday Markets: Bravo to all who heeded our advice to leave fido out of the crowded market last Saturday.  Keep up the good work!  (and we will see fido on happy Wednesdays!) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ AT THE MARKET SHED:  Use your EBT CARD or DEBIT/CREDIT CARDtobuy "market money" (tokens) when your cash runs out at the market!   Also, (insulated totes, canvas totes, farmers' market T shirts, market gift certificates),market merchandise lost and found and market information. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Taking Bids for Winter Market Site -- we are currently soliciting bids for our winter market site.  If you have a site you would like to rent to us for the winter market season (Nov-April) please email [email protected] for a copy of the bid form. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SPECIAL AUGUST RAFFLE TO BENEFIT OLD FRIENDS AT CABIN CREEK (THOROUGHBRED RETIREMENT FARM) in Greenfield Raffle entries are for: ONE NIGHT'S STAY AT SARATOGA'S ONLY CERTIFIED GREEN B&B The SARATOGA FARMSTEAD B&B Tickets are $1 each or $10 for 15 tickets--available at the shed. The winner will be announced August 28th at noon at the market shed--you do not have to be present to win.  Help give some of our great race horses the retirement they deserve and give yourself a chance for at a great night away from home! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ WE NEED YOUR VOTE:  Vote for Saratoga as America's favorite market!  Go to  www.farmland.org and vote for SARATOGA FARMERS' MARKET!!!!!  This nationawide contest is being sponsored by American Farm Land Trust who will give the winner a cash prize and local advertising--both of which we could use! We are still in 3rd place nationally and briefly held second.  Every vote counts!  Spread the word!  Email 8 of your friends and ask them to vote!! Interesting to  note that Rochester's market is winning in the large market category--Wouldn't it be cool if two NYS Farmers' Markets won nationally??   VOTE!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ weekly recipe ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It's Finally Tomato Season!!   The tomatoes weren't in any hurry this year to join in the summer fun.  But they are here now, plump, juicy red and delicious.  To celebrate their abundance at the market this week, chef, John Capelli, of The Olde Bryan Inn, was on hand dishing up a great version of a beloved Spanish cold summer soup, OBI Tomato Gazpacho!    Gazpacho originates from Andalusia region of Spain where field hands made it from the fresh vegetables around them and ate it to cool off on hot summer days.  There are many variations of this soup, but key to any great Gazpacho is fresh vegetables. This time of year the gardens are full of fresh ingredients, the mercury is high and the desire to have a refreshing meal just calls for Gazpacho to be on the menu.  There is no question this soup is nutritious, hearty and a thirst quencher all in one.  Chef John was kind enough to share his delicious recipe, made from all local ingredients, of course!   OBI Tomato Gazpacho   1 qt. Fresh tomato juice (take 6 large tomatoes, wash, blanch, peel and chop. Put through a food mill or sieve directly into a bowl. If needed add ice water to make 1 qt.) 1 bunch of cilantro 2 each, red, yellow, green sweet peppers 7 cucumbers (peeled and minced, removing seeds) 9 tomatoes chopped or processed 1/2 cup cumin 1/4 cup fresh lime juice 1/4 cup white vinegar 1/4 cup sugar 1-2 tbsp. Tabasco (to taste)   Combine the above and process or blend together.  Chill for at least 2 hours and serve.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Saratoga Farmers' Market is open for its outdoor season, May-Oct., Saturdays 9a-1p and Wednesdays 3-6pm at the High Rock Pavilions, High Rock Ave. in Saratoga Springs, NY. (go to our website for a map to this location and to our Thurs market in Clifton Park beginning in July.) For more info go to www.saratogafarmersmarket.org

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