Sciortino's

I like going places when they are new.  We pulled this move with Capital City Gastropub most recently.  Sciortino's opened in the Miss Albany Diner space this past Wednesday. 

Off the bat, I'll mention that I'm a fan of most things Baumgartner.  Yes, he's easy on the eyes, but the food at his restaurants is actually good.  Some of my favorite meals in Albany involve the fish and chips at Olde English (and the beer), the fish tacos at Bombers (made better by being post-Boilermaker 15k), and although I'm not a huge fan of the food at Wolff's, I love love love the space it's in (and the beer).  I like when his blog has pictures of dogs, which is most of the time.

Anyway, tonight was the perfect night to head to Sciortino's.  Because I'm approximately 75 years old (see, hobbies: knitting, baking, being obsessed with my pet), we went for the early bird.

You can read all about it here. And here, here, here.

We had a Peroni and a Brooklyn Brown Ale, then ordered entirely too much food.  It was on purpose, but it was still alarming.  One thing to note is that when on display, the square pieces of pizza are on an angle, and it makes them look shorter than they are.  Don't be fooled.  One slice is enough. 

BBQ Chicken pizza (one slice, cut up)

Sausage, peppers, and mushrooms (it's UNDERNEATH) 

White pizza with vegetables.

Chicken riggies

At one point this was a brownie sundae.  Totally unnecessary.  Really gooey and delicious.  

I really liked the pizza and I'd have all of them again.  The BBQ chicken might be my favorite. Service was really friendly, and Matt was hanging out at and behind the counter. It wasn't crowded, but if it had been, we'd just have a drink at Wolff's while waiting.  I had never tried chicken riggies but heard good things, and while it was good, it's not for me.  I'm a spice wimp and it was a little hot (which I expected).  I also thought it might be more baked like a ziti, but it wasn't.  Cash only, as per yuzh.

Sciortino's (pronounced like shore-tinos)
893 Broadway
Albany, NY

New Year's Eve @ New World Bistro Bar

I should probably tell you officially how much I enjoyed spending NYE @ NWBB.

NWBB is always a blast and it's always interesting.  When I heard they were doing a special NYE menu I knew it was way more up our alley than an open bar situation anywhere else.  Two drinks is enough for me; the food should be the star.  Luckily Steph and A shared our interest so we enjoyed good food and good company.  Look how cute our rolly menus are.

I began with the BLT salad with Bibb lettuce, rabbit bacon, and sundried tomato confit.  I really liked the gorgonzola ranch dressing and the polenta croutons, too.  If I assembled it myself,  of course I'd add more of the bunnybacon.  Everyone enjoyed theirs, but I think A's dish wins for prettiest.

Snapper cruda with a crunchy three-seed crust, Meyer lemon, Greek olive oil, and honey

Fried black-eyed peas and rice made for delightful Hoppin' John fritters for course two.

But I had the grape risotto and loooved it.  It, er, doesn't photograph well.

\ Oh hey, tamale and surf & turf.

Red and white tuna duo


For my entree I chose the Thai-style red snapper with spicy tamarind glaze. YUM!  I thought about the seitan because green tea soba noodles sounded fun, and it would be served in a kombucha squash. 

As ingredients dwindled throughout the night, the crispy rice paper lemon cloud napoleon went from lemony to Nutella-y.  Yes, yes, yes.   Also pictured above: ice cream sundaeeeeee.



Chevre cheesecake from Nettle Meadows Farm.  The little baby jar is adorable, and the "cake" was not really sweet at all--it was creamy and deliciousm no need for crazy sugar. 

The Italian Greyhound cocktail was a little too tart for me, even though I love grapefruit.  3/4 of us started with a special New Year's Eve cocktail that had cava and cognac.  We had more dishes, some of which just didn't photograph well.  Obviously we all had favorites, but no one was disappointed in any of the dishes.  The menu is full of whimsy and creativity, which is so important when dinner is the show.

Eating at Bars

In the past it was unlikely you'd find J and I at bars on Friday and Saturday nights, but I think we finally found our time/place/manner for watering hole attendance.  The ideal situation is as follows:

- 8pm
- Bar that has real food, not just mozzarella sticks, loaded potato skins, and chicken fingers.  (Delicious chicken wings are real food, FWIW.)  Also: non-fratty beers.
- 2-4 additional friends

Recently we had some good times at three establishments that meet the criteria.

City Beer Hall has a really nice environment, particularly in the winter.  It's lodgy and roomy, there's a fireplace.  One of their gimmicks is that with every drink ordered you get a ticket for a free little pizza.  The pizzas are, as I said, little (teeny) and thin, but they are food and they are free.  The beers on tap are actually interesting and include a bunch from NY (as they should).  Next time we go I want the Juicy Lucy, a New York grass-fed burger stuffed with gouda.  YUM.  J would probably choose the chicken & waffles.  I'll let you know how it goes.

On a weekday it was easy for 8 or so of us to comfortably hang out and talk.  Note: There is a mechanical bull, but I gathered that it's upstairs, which was closed off because of a private party.  Next time.

The Merry Monk was also comfortably quiet on a recent weekday--3/4 of us were on winter break, and it was nice to catch up without loud craziness going on.  A lot of good Belgian and Belgian-style beers were available, including all the Ommegangs.  Mussels and other yums await.  We liked the frites, but apparently they were frozen.  Shows how refined our taste is--give us hot fries and some tasty dipping sauce and we're psyched.  The only issues we had were that a few beers were out (which we weren't told until we ordered, after spending probably too much time figuring that part out) and our server didn't seem particularly knowledgeable about the beers.  Which is a problem if you're working at a place that prides itself on having all Belgian or Belgian-style beers.

The Olde English delighted us with fried wonders.  Battered sausage, fries, and fried cod were all delicious.  Don't go for the battered sausage alone, though; it's a salty situation, so a few bites are all you need.  The lamb sliders were pretty good, but there was too much bread for the meat, which was disappearing in the fluff.  I stuck to oatmeal stouts and was pleased in the beverage department.  Fun surprise: games, from Jenga to Scrabble and beyond.  A little sad: so damned loud. So very, very loud.  Obviously this varies from night to night (unless it's always loud, in which case, sorry I gave you hope of respite).

Where else should I go for these kinds of excursions?

Fewer Words Friday at Jack's

Jack's Oyster House recently invited Daniel B. and company for a special lunch highlighting some new menu items.  I agree with him wholeheartedly (including that I'd like to see the farm names highlighted on the menu), and here are the accompanying photos.  One dish, my favorite (the scallop in the pink peppercorn and orange sauce), was consumed too quickly for my photo--sorry.

This was a delicious salad.  I'd like it topped with blackened salmon for a nice lunch. The candied walnuts were really yummy.

I could do without this dish.  Mostly, to me, fried is fried is fried.  And it belongs in a bar.

I kind of liked the risotto but didn't love it.  I'm not a huge shrimp person, and the scallop paled in comparison to its unpictured cousin.

Osso bucco topped the lamb, and I didn't understand anything else on the plate--not that I'm unfamiliar with asparagus, I just didn't want to eat it.

This cheesecake was divine, and despite having eaten a million other things beforehand, I nearly finished it.  Light and fluffy and creamy, not too sweet.

Jack's Oyster House
42 State Street
Albany, NY

El Mariachi

Mmmm margaritas.  El Mariachi has come up several times when I've asked about fun drinks and patios, so when my parents were in town on a stunning 80ish degree day that turned into a high 60s/low 70s evening, we knew we had to sit outside.  I don't know about you, but I always find that with good service, adult beverages, and outdoor seating it's hard for me not to like something.

El Mariachi had pretty good guacamole, and the salsa that comes with the complimentary chips had a nice kick.  I enjoyed the chicken mole (good, but needed to be hotter temperature wise), mom had fajitas, J had steak with onions and garlic, and dad got something with chicken that I don't remember.  But he liked it, and that was all that mattered, because we were celebrating his BIRTHDAY!!! Yay! He really didn't want a big to do for his 60th, so he and mom decided to come up to our house for Friday-Sunday, then leave after breakfast to see my sister in Boston until Tuesday.  Child touring, they call it.

When we walked in there was a line 3 parties deep to even check in with the hostess.   She was running back and forth to seat people, and with existing reservations going on I figured we'd have a huge wait.  Nope, we were seated on the patio right away (after waiting 10 minutes while she sat other people and ran around).

Service was great--our saintly waitress was patient with my chatty dad who doesn't like peppers or onions, unless they are well done, in which case onions are okay but not peppers.  He doesn't really like picking off a menu, he'd prefer someone tell him what to get.  And she did.  Thanks!  Also, she brought him a very heavy authentic-looking festive sombrero and flan with a candle in it.

You can get margaritas by the pitcher AND by the half pitcher, so if that second pitcher is just a little beyond reach? No worries, you're covered.

El Mariachi
289 Hamilton Street
Albany, NY

Pearl Street Diner

 

Pearl Street Diner, or PSD, is my favorite greasy spoon lunch place near the office.  There's really not much competition in the area--Greenhouse is a Chop't-type place with hard, cold seats and fake cubed turkey; Franklin's Tower is ok, but the menu is small, it's sometimes freezing in there, and I've never *loved* my order; Victory Cafe is good, but lunch will set you BACK!  [Obviously because I want the gigantic salad with a protein on it, $14.  The specials are good and more reasonable.]  Granted, I have some more exploration to do.  Particularly when it's above freezing, maybe sunny, and I can cross streets at intersections without hurdling over a pile of snow or more recently, an enormous slushy puddle.

So PSD it is.  Close, cheap, and usually pretty tasty.  For about $7 I can get a decent portion of chicken souvlaki in a pita with a Greek salad.  One out of four times the salad might be over-oily, but the service is friendly, it's a lot of food for a little price, and we've never waited long for a table.  Sub souvlaki for gyro and there are my orders.

Souvlaki!

The chicken salad club is double-decker and enormous.

Visitor S had chili and fries when he came with us to PSD.

Now, the name Diner is a misnomer.  It's not open 24-hours.  It does not serve breakfast all day.  If it did, I'd be there more often.  But it's inexpensive, the service is friendly, the wait is short (if it exists), the portions are great, and thus it has my weekday loyalty so far.


Pearl Street Diner (does not really have a web site...)
40 N. Pearl Street
Albany, NY

Miss Albany Diner

This little diner is TFC.  The food is good, the service is friendly, and there are interesting things on the walls.

Exhibit A:

Downstaters/DCers, please take the above as a lesson in NY geography.  I live nowhere near Buffalo.  It's 5 hours away according to this very official signage.  Hawaii seems too close...

And the food.  So here at the MAD they toast your cinnamon bun.  Even though I usually wouldn't order one of these delectable definitely-not-breakfast (DESSERT) items, I was intrigued by the toasting.

Let's get close.

That's the stuff.  This is basically criminal.  For real. I'm pretty sure slathering it with butter will get you LWOP.  A little crunch goes a long way, particular because it's caused by a crispy bread outer layer AND the crackling of the thin, sugary film. 

Corned beef hash, over easy eggs.  Classic us.  Delicious.

Cool huevos with chutney, some mint and mango.  I liked it more than J did, so we ended up switching about halfway.  His plate was definitely cooler.

I need to remember to ask for my toast dry.  I really don't need the butter--the rest of my choices do enough damage, and I prefer jam or preserves to butter anyway.  SO FORGETFUL.

PS, this joint closes at like 2:15pm or some crazy time like that.  You can get there for late breakfast, but not J&A-style 4pm winter weekend breakfast...we lazy.

Here's to continuing our tour of the Capital Region's best diner breakfasts.  Happy Monday everyone!


Miss Albany Diner
893 Broadway
Albany, NY 12207