I did it! I survived 7 days of Hudson Valley Restaurant Week meals...and I can still (barely) fit into my jeans! There were some new finds and some old favorites and a couple of spots that I must confess I only would go to for the HVRW bargain.
Without giving detailed reviews about each course at each place I figured the best thing would be to give a synopsis.
Red Hat Bistro in Irvington - Newly discovered by me...fun atmosphere, solid HVRW menu and a definite find because they have a rooftop bar in the summer and outdoor dining on the Hudson River. A great meetup spot!
Xaviars on the Hudson in Yonkers - I went twice in 2 weeks, the best red velvet mascarpone cake EVER! This was the best of the bunch for HVRW for food, selection, service and atmosphere. Highly recommended (see my March 24th post for more details on this spot).
Iron Horse Grill in Pleasantville- Possibly the best new find of the bunch! I made another reservation while I was still having dinner. This is an EXCELLENT restaurant with really creative food.
Equus at Castle on the Hudson in Tarrytown- Perfectly executed food, but not creative...you go here for the ambiance not really the food. The staff was overwhelmed, clearly a situation where they don't get this many covers on an average evening. I don't see myself going there until next March.
Zuppa in Yonkers - good food, slow service and in reality not worth the price that you would pay for the regular non restaurant week menu...for $28-$32 dollars an entree you can go down the block to X20 for a much better meal...however that being said, the live band in the lounge is a nice touch, and so are the pizzas and free valet parking!
Restaurant 42 at the Ritz Carlton White Plains - this was the biggest shocker of all. Last year the food was mediocre at best, it was as if Chef Gonclaves felt he was above the RW experience and the menu was an afterthought...well this year he redeemed himself in a big way. The Salmon Tartare was extremely fresh and perfectly seasoned, and the caldo verde soup was smooth and flavorful...the star (in my opinion) was the lamb belly, braised for at least 6 hours until melt in your mouth tender, surrounded by root vegetables of a perfect al dente texture and creamy polenta. The food was so good that I'm going to treat myself to their $42 four course market menu as soon as I recover from the food coma that I've been in for the past 2 weeks...NB, Tuesday night a bottle of wine is 1/2 price! Pictures of dishes at Restaurant 42 are featured in this post.
All in all a wonderful 2 weeks at some wonderful places.
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