Fun in Saratoga

NYRA announces price increases for Saratoga admission and reserved seating - Applications now available

If you have been waiting for NYRA to finally mail out the reserved seating applications for the 2014 Saratoga Race Course meet, you have to wait no longer and can even access the applications on line.  That's the good news, the bad news is that there are price increases all around, from the admission to preferred parking to the price of the seats themselves.  I guess we all knew this was coming.

New York Times article on opposition to gambling in Saratoga

This article was in Monday's edition and can be linked here.

The article has an interesting map of Saratoga Springs highlighting all the key landmarks that have relevance in the gambling debate. 

And I learned a new word in the article:  busker - a person who entertains people for money in public places (as by singing or dancing), usually while asking for money.

Saratoga Snippets

These "snippets" posts are hard for me to write b/c they often take 2+ hours to create and edit.  With a three-month old at home I'm lucky I have time to shower.  Well I'll try writing this over a few days and see if I can fit it in here and there.

• Margarita and I were out Greenwich way a while back and we stopped in to the Ice Cream Man for a sandwich.  The staff there tells me to look for the new Saratoga South Broadway location to open in May or June of next year. 

 

• While heading out Rt 29, we noticed that the former Mango 29 Deli, near Schuylerville, is now "Joe's Deli".
• CORRECTED:  I haven't had a chance to go into the new TC Paris Sweet Mimi's Bakery in the former Beverly's location.  That place sat empty for almost two years, so it's good to see it filled.  TC Paris is on Henry Street where Inferno Pizza used to be - I would like to check that out to.  Thank you Alexandra for alerting me to my error.
• Speaking of closed Saratoga eateries, I miss the Saratoga Diner and Restaurant.  All those empty restaurants on South Broadway and nobody wants to open a good diner.
• Purdy's has been the big dog of Saratoga liquor stores, but now that they expanded into the neighboring former Hallmark store, it's even a bigger dog.  Look out little dogs.
• Friday, November 29th is the last day to receive your early registrant discount and save $5 for this year's First Night Saratoga 5k Run. So don't wait another day - register today at www.saratoga-arts.org/firstnight/5krun to be a part of a great Saratoga tradition!
• If you thought this year's July 19th track opening was early, you were right.  But if they open on their usual opening Friday, the 2014 opening date will be an even earlier July 18th.  Let's hope NYRA has since squashed any dumb ideas to open earlier. 
• I sure miss Andrew McGuire, the former Saratogian Sports reporter.  Our hometown daily's thoroughbred horse racing coverage has plummeted since he left.  AP Wire stories just don't do it for me.
• Continuing on that subject, I wrote a long posting about how the Saratogian's Breeder's Cup coverage showed how some of their weekend sports deadlines were around 7pm.  Trouble is, I was never able to finish it and it quickly became old news.  Nonetheless I put a lot of work into it and again it pinpointed just how early the Saratogian's weekend publishing deadlines are, so I'll link it on a back page here if you care to read it in it's incomplete form.
• Hate to pile on our hometown daily, but they got scooped on their own story about paywalls going up on their web site.  Both Saratoga Wire and All Over Albany were days ahead of the Saratogian's announcement of it.  There never seems to be a sense of pride, ownership, or timeliness of news items at the Saratogian - items they should own and/or be the best at. You'd think they'd at least want to be first to report important news items about their own publication.
• I see Gaffney's new addition came out looking nice.  I don't get downtown as often as I used to - and I get to downtown bars even less these days - so some of these snippets are reporting months' old news.  Gaffneys will be holding a South American wine pairing on December 7th.  Click here for more info.

• Not too far away from Gaffneys, I see there is a new cigar shop on Putnam Street on the other side of Izumi Restaurant.  Check out Adirondack cigar shoppe's web site for info.
• Sometime when I wasn't looking, 13 Caroline became the Caroline Street Pub.  Heck for all I know that's been the case for years.
• Also when I wasn't looking, the Crown Grill became "The Crown Grill at the Circus Cafe".  Back in April, when the Crown Grill first opened, owner Colin McLean told the Saratogian "The Crown Grill will be upscale-casual and will offer guests a separate and distinct dining experience from Circus Café,".  I guess that "separate and distinct" part is out the window.
• Also when I wasn't looking, someone plowed down the old house and motel cottages on Ballston Ave near those white condos abutting the Saratoga Spa Park.  I wonder what the plans for that now open lot are.

• What's going on with that building immediately adjacent to the Best Western on South Broadway?  It's seems like it's been half built - or half rehabbed - for 3 years now.  It looks terrible.  Did somebody run out of money?

• I don't want to put this last because I'd hate to end on a sad note.  I just wanted to say I knew Kyle York a little and I thought he was a very interesting, nice, and intelligent guy. I was very sad to hear about his untimely death. RIP Kyle. 
• Finally, did you catch this opinion piece in the Times Union this past weekend about Las Vegas style casino gambling in Saratoga Springs?  Interesting.  I have mixed feelings on the issue, but I think it's important to point out that someone voting "NO" for a constitutional amendment for Vegas-style casinos in the state, might not necessarily vote "NO" to Vegas-style casinos in their municipality once the electorate of the state has already approved the amendment.  In other words, some could have been against the amendment, but after it passed they might think that since it's going somewhere, it should go to Saratoga.   Just a thought.

Hey everybody have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!  I am a blessed person so I have a lot to be thankful for. 

Saratoga Snippets October 16, 2013

Well life, fatherhood, and a huge amount of back pain has gotten in the way of my blogging.  But that's OK, because I'm very happy being a Dad!  In the meantime, here's a few thoughts - most of which I've been meaning to write about for a few weeks now:

• It seems like quality sports writers from The Saratogian tend to leave our hometown daily soon enough.  That was the case with Nicole Russo, and is now the same thing with Andrew Champagne.   He not only put out good articles with commentary, but a lot of them.  His hard work paid off, and he is moving on to a Horse Racing TV network out in California.  Good luck Andrew!
• Sometime when I wasn't looking, The movie "Ass Backwards", which was partly filmed in Saratoga Springs and Albany, was released direct to video in September.  It reportedly will be released in theaters on November 8th.  If the facts that (1) the movie was filmed back in 2010, (2) had major financial difficulties and was shelved for a while along the way, and (3) went to video on demand before being released in theaters doesn't make you as uninspired as I am on this movie's prospects, perhaps the trailer below will seal the deal for you.  I always want anything associated with Saratoga to succeed, but this flick seems like a dog to me.  We'll know soon enough. In the meantime, you can watch the film on demand via Amazon.com.

 

• Speaking of movies filmed in Saratoga, how is it that I never heard of the movie "Aftermath" being filmed here in the Spa City?   Perhaps because it was filmed in 2006 and apparently has been mothballed until early this year, when it looks like it was shown at the Cinequest Film Festival.  The thriller, starring Anthony Michael Hall and Tony Danza, was also the last film for the late actor Chris Penn. Penn died in 2006, which is a clear indicator of how long this film has been languishing.  That's a heck of a delay, much worse than Ass Backwards.  Netflix lists the movie, but has a notation "DVD availability date unkown".  I guess there were scenes filmed at Clancy's Tavern on Caroline Street, but I don't know much else about the filming locations.  Please comment if you can add some knowledge on this.  You can watch the Trailer below:

 

• And continuing with movies, I am nothing less than thrilled about the new downtown theater.  Margarita and I are looking forward to walking downtown for some nice entertainment - and to have a clue what the Oscar-nominated movies are all about during the awards ceremony.  Of course, with a newborn baby in the house, I don't know how often we will get out, but it's exciting to know the movie theater is here.
• Shifting gears, it seems like the groundwork is being laid to develop the St. John Neumann residence next to St. Clements Church on Lake Avenue.  The parcel is apparently going to be split up so the vacant residence building is on its own parcel.   What else could that mean other than an effort to sell it? It's a picturesque site with many large beautiful trees giving nice shade and serenity to that area.  I hope any development there keeps those trees, the beauty of the building, and the residential nature of that neighborhood. I feel another condo development coming on.
• If you haven't been to Congress Plaza lately, the portion of the building slated for demolition is completely gone.  It really looks a lot different there.
• Speaking of Congress Plaza, I really appreciate the CVS plaza being open 24 hours.
• So when's Papa Johns opening?  Inquiring (and hungry) minds want to know. 
• I wonder how Jacobs and Anthony's is doing?  I was walking by there the other day and I want to go there in theory, but when I'm in the mood to go out to dinner it just doesn't excite me.  I was there for dinner once when it first opened and it was just OK.  The dining room is comfortable, but to me there are just better choices in that price point.
• I don't like the new Saratogian's print edition; the appearance has the appeal of USA Today.  It looks too much like the Times Union as well.  The extra-early deadline, imposed because the T-U is now printing the paper, is only going to make our hometown paper that much less relevant. On the plus side, the new web site looked sharp and clean at my first glance.
• Has Breuggers reopened yet? Will it ever reopen?
• Continuing on restaurants, I wonder which ones will close this winter.  There are usually at least a few that don't make it through the winter.
• I've been to Cookies & Milk a couple of times.  Really cool.  Go there.
• NYRA finally has what I call the floating horse numbers on the bottom of the screen for simulcasts. You know, those computer generated colored and numbered bubbles that show you where your horse is on the track. Other tracks have had them for years, but now NYRA tracks finally have them.  I can sleep well now.

OK folks, that's it for now. Enjoy the rest of the week.

Wonderful News!

Just over two weeks ago, Margarita gave birth to our beautiful daughter Antonella Eva.  Obviously, blogging comes way down the list after feeding her, diaper changes, reading to her and generally loving this precious gift that my wife and I have been waiting a long time for.  So hopefully in the coming weeks I will fire up the ol' blog and start posting again - after all I have so much to say - but for now, fatherhood comes first.  Take care folks - life is good!

 

 

 

Alpha Dogs: One Saratogian's view

I want every new business in Saratoga to succeed.  I go into Saratoga's new places with such high hopes and sometimes I'm encouraged, and sometimes I'm discouraged. 

With that in mind, I hate to say it, but I'm not exactly feeling it with Alpha Dogs, the new hot dog place in that tiny little cave at 6 Phila Street that formerly housed among other things a bank vault, a laundromat, and most recently, a store selling high-end backpacks.  My experience there wasn't awful, but if an entrepeneur is going to try to stake out a limited food niche then he/she better do it right and you better create future cravings so I keep coming back.  Alpha Dogs did neither.

Don't get me wrong, it wasn't an awful experience.  And they were only open about eight days when my wife Margarita decided she was in the mood for something quick for dinner, so maybe they will improve to the point that they do get it right and therefore create cravings in their customers.  Time will tell I guess.

Part of the problem is that there is a stellar local hot dog chain called Ted's Hot Dogs in my home town of Buffalo.   They broil their Sahlen's brand dogs over charcoal, and becuase Sahlens dogs are so delicious, they only need offer traditional toppings like relish, mustard, ketchup, sauerkraut, onions etc.  It's the hot dog that's the center of attention, not a bunch of exotic ingredients.  They handbread their onion rings and make real milk shakes.  Suffice to say Ted's sets the bar high for other hot dog stands; my mouth is watering just thinking about a Ted's charbroiled hot dog. 

 

Above:  A Ted's in suburban Buffalo.  Below:  Some of Ted's hot dogs

Saratoga's Alpha Dogs offers a lot of creative ingredients for their dogs, which are cooked on an electric skillet.  I had the “LA Street Dog,” a hot dog wrapped in bacon, deep-fried and topped with hot sauce, jalapenos and grilled onions, and Margarita got the “Tsunami Dog” with is a dog with teriyaki, grilled pineapple and green onions.  The fries we ordered were undercooked and there was a pool of grease on the bottom - a result of not draining the grease properly and failing to briefly place and shake the fries on a paper transfer plate prior to serving.  Like I said, I want it to succeed and they have been only open 8 days, but when a restaurant has a limited menu then they'd better get it right the first time or there may not be a second time.

The owners, Shelly and Mark Taber, are real nice and seem eager to please their customers.  Perhaps the late night bar crowd won't be as discriminating, and along the way they'll improve to the point where they have a following.  Or perhaps there is a niche to be filled for hot dogs with a lot of interesting ingredients.  Because the place is so small, there is no seating available there so you have to take your food somewhere else to consume. 

To read the Saratogian's article about Alpha Dogs, click here.  The You Idiot blog also has a recent entry about Alpha Dogs.

Saratoga Snippets August 26, 2013

I haven't done one of these in a long while, so here we go:

• Did you catch Ramon Dominguez's tribute and award ceremony at the track today?  He is really a class act.  Read here to find more information about a fitting tribute to the great jockey who was forced into retirement due to an injury. 
• Well it's good to see great weather, a good crowd, and record handle for the Travers.  It was certainly an exciting race as well.  So much for the big three horses in that race, huh?  This should make the Breeders Cup all that more interesting.  Here's hoping NYRA has a strong final week to cap off a good season.
• I read a rumor on Twitter, and at this point that's all I could classify that as, a rumor.  The tweet said something about NYRA is considering going to 8 weeks next year.  I hope it was just simply BS, or a dumb joke.  If they do expand the season, we should all rebel and not show up until August 1st.  That had to be a joke.

Overheard between NYRA staff this morning ... 8 weeks of racing next year being considered. #thanksforthenametags

— Liz O'Connell (@nythoroughbred) August 25, 2013

 

• I'm not necessarily so offended, but does the Saratogian have any standards in their pink sheet advertising?   Is it worth the money are they getting for that strip club ad that's there everyday on the front page? It's just awkward.  
• Speaking of the Saratogian, did you see that it is now being printed by the Times Union and will go to press even hours earlier than it previously went?  Several employees who worked the press in Troy lost their jobs.  I hated the Saratogian's 10pm or so press time, but 8pm (or earlier?)  is ridiculous. There won't be a single sports score from night games.  I realize the directive, which also affects the Troy Record and other sister publications, came from well above, but that news was disconcerting. 
• I see Kings Tavern, across from the track next to where Sabinas used to be, opened back up this year.  It was closed last year and perhaps the year before.  I have to think that a bar steps from the two Union Avenue entrances would do a killing during track season.
• I am really enjoying reading the Saratoga Special - it's a newpaper that just puts me in a great mood.  I think I read on somewhere on its web site that they are going year-round next year.  Interesting.  Here is what I wrote about them a few weeks ago, in case you missed it.
• I tried ordering pizza from Marino's Sunday night, and was annoyed when I found out they were closed on Sundays.  I was surprised that was the case even during track season.  Despite my annoyance at Marino's unavailability, I have to respect a restaurant that is good enough to not have to eek every last dime out of track season, and had the confidence to take one day off a week, even in August.  We settled for a sweet crust pizza from D'Andreas, which I now realize only tastes good when you're drunk. 
• Congress Plaza to the north of Citizens Bank is kaput.  As part of the plan for a new hotel and retail, they demolished a large portion of the once forlorn strip mall.  I'm looking forward to seeing the new building start taking shape.
• I thought that Mini-Hulkster guy may have faded into oblivion, but this Times Union "Were You Seen" photo proved I was wrong. 
• The formerly Beverly's and Grey Gelding locations are empty for a second track season in a row. 
• Geez the street bands - and now magicians even - have proliferated in the past few years haven't they?  That's not a bad thing - it just adds to the allure of Saratoga in my book.
• And finally, are you catching Ron "Buzz" Brindle's weekly columns in Saratoga Wire?  If not, you should be.  Here is Ron's column from this past Friday.  

OK folks. That's it for now.  Have a great week!

Saratoga: Do you have tastebuds?

I can only assume that yes indeed, you do have tastebuds.  Well that's good because I have become a fan of Gatherer's Granola and want to tell you a little bit about it.  If you aren't familiar with that locally produced delicious food, then fork over the 6 bucks for a bag and become addicted like I did.  Gatherer's tagline is "granola for people with tastebuds" and it's a fitting one.  It's way above standard granolas - in a league of its own - and you will really enjoy it. You can get Gatherer's Granola at numerous stores both in and out of the Capital Region, and in Saratoga you can get it at Five Points, Four Seasons, Healthy Living Market, For Earth's Sake on West Avenue, as well as Price Chopper. 

 

I not only like the product, but I've become a fan of the company and Gatherer's Granola founder Sandro Gerbini.  He's simply a young and energetic capital region entrepeneur that didn't get the memo that you're not supposed to earn a degree from RPI and then go out on your own and make granola.  We need more of his type in this region. 

Gerbini has initiated a fundraising drive via Kickstarter.com so his company can launch its new gluten-free granolas.  If you look at this entertaining video above, which is just three minutes long, you can learn about this endeavor and perhaps donate a dollar to his campaign.  Just a dollar is good.   If you contribute at certain levels, he will give you Gatherer's Granola items ranging from articles of clothing to making your own custom granola using the ingredients you desire.  Cool stuff. So check the video out, and then link here to find out more.

Is Siro's ready for track season?

If you perused the Siro's web site and its related social media pages, it looks like they haven't planned well for this upcoming track season, at least for a web presence.   Siro's web site still lists the defunct NYC location as a link; the menu link, which is purportedly for the Saratoga location, appears to be the one from the shuttered Manhattan location.  I have to assume the Saratoga location will have a different menu than one from the failed NYC location.  The Facebook, Youtube, and Pinterest links on the bottom of the web page are dead, and the Twitter account has its last tweet from May.  Finally, as of this writing, the events page is completely empty.  I have to assume they have some bands booked, in fact I saw Garland Nelson posted on Facebook a day or two ago that he will be playing there in August.  Oh yea, as of Sunday they were posting on Craigs list looking for kitchen help. 

I'm sure they'll scramble and get it together, but this just seems like poor planning for what is supposed to be a top restaurant.  Siro's Trattoria at the Lodge opened yesterday (Tuesday 7/16), and while its web site is a bit rudimentary, it at least is not out of date with dead links. 

Good Lord! What has happened to Breakfast in Saratoga???

It's gone downhill, that's what happened.  Steeply.  All these new restaurants backed by (apparently) big money, and Compton's is still the best we've got for that first meal of the day.

UPDATE: Read Best Breakast in Saratoga here.

Back in 2009 I posted an entry listing some great breakfast places in Saratoga Springs.  Trouble is, today there are no great breakfast places in Saratoga Springs, at least if you want something a little unique and higher end. 

I will copy still-relevant excerpts from what I wrote in 2009 to give an idea of where you can still get a decent (but not great) restaurant in Saratoga Springs. 

2009 excerpts follow:

If you read some of the books on Saratoga history, breakfasts in Saratoga during its heyday in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were gluttonous feasts.  These weren't simply large breakfasts using today's standards, but huge buffets with steaks, fried chicken, ham and every other kind of meat you can imagine, plus of course all of the other accompaniments including "Saratoga melons", creamed potatoes, and corn bread.  I love food, but when I read what they had for breakfast back then I reach for the Tums.

The trouble with Saratoga breakfasts today is that they tend to be overlooked, and all the restaurant buzz seems to be about the dinners.  Well I say breakfast should regain its status as a great event in the Spa City!  Let's return to the gluttonous feasts as a cure for the hangover! 

Until that happens, here are my top picks for breakfast (by today's standards) in Saratoga Springs:

1. Compton's on Broadway near Church is an institution in town.  Both the menu and the, shall we say, ambience and comfort level, are very basic, but Compton's does basic right.   Compton's has trucker special type breakfasts that are hearty, cheap (around 6 bucks), and very good.  A typical breakfast at Compton's offers eggs, breakfast meat, spuds and toast - nothing fancy going on there.   

2.     Country Corner Cafe is on Church Street behind the post office.  They have some inspired choices and  I usually have good breakfasts there.

Some honorable mentions include the Bread Basket Bakery on Spring Street, which does not have full breakfasts but does have great baked goods and egg sandwiches, the Spring Street Deli which has the best egg sandwich in town, Ravenous, which has excellent crepes and the best pommes frites (french fries) in town, The Horseshoe Inn on Nelson,  and of course you can have breakfast at the track.

Well there are my thoughts on breakast in Saratoga, both in the past and the present.  Let me know what you think.  I hope you are winning at the track.  Lord knows I'm not.