Summer Dining Deals
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It’s too hot to cook indoors and area restaurants are offering some tempting specials that make it worth your while to eat out. Here’s a sampling of a few ways to economize and enjoy:
Eastchester Fish Gourmet on Post Road in Scarsdale is serving fresh seafood at attractive prices. On Monday nights, a 1 1/2 pound steamed Maine lobster with a baked potato and coleslaw is just $26.95. And on Thursday nights, all oysters, clams and shrimp cocktail are available for only $1 each. We recently enjoyed a dozen jumbo chilled shrimp for just $12. Also don't miss their summer special lobster cobb salad, that includes steamed lobster in the shell over greens, bacon tomatos and more.
At Harry’s of Hartsdale, a three-course prix fixe menu is available for $24 every Sunday through Tuesday. Start with a choice of escargot, the soup of the day or Caesar salad. For entrees, there’s wild Atlantic salmon in a ginger pecan crust, or cheese ravioli and for dessert they are serving cheesecake and chocolate ganache cake. On Wednesday nights, pay with cash and save 10% on the tab. With outdoor seating on the sidewalk, Harry’s is a great place to sit on a summer night.
Cool and tastefully decorated, Caffé Azzurri on Central Avenue has a great mid-week menu. From Sunday through Wednesday night they feature an extensive prix-fixe menu for just $25 per person. Salads, pasta, seafood, chicken or veal are all available and you can’t beat the elegant setting or the price. On Wednesday nights, drinks for ladies are half price at the bar and on Thursday and Friday nights Caffe Azzurri invites you to happy hour with half priced drinks and appetizers in the bar and lounge.
At the newly opened 808 Bistro at 808 Scarsdale Avenue, sit at the bar Sunday through Wednesday nights and enjoy appetizers, pastas and drinks, all at half price. Their cocktail list includes flavored martinis and mojitos that are even more tempting at half the price.
Farther afield is Cafe Mirage in Port Chester where you can sit outside and enjoy reasonably priced drinks, appetizers,and dinner. Try their pan-fried oysters, fish tacos, witih tilapia or tuna, duck quesadilla or soft shell crabs. We recently had dinner for four at just $25 a head.
Ebb Tide Seafood in Port Chester is closed! In previous years they served chowder, lobster, clams, shrimp or scallops at picnic tables out on the dock. We hope they will reopen soon.
Many more discounts are available at NYdineforless.com where you can purchase coupons for discounted meals at many of Westchester’s finest restaurants. Look for their ad at the top of the home page of Scarsdale10583 or click here to learn more.
An Artisinal Chocolatier In Scarsdale
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Scarsdale resident Margaret Smith, founder of artisanal chocolates company Odyssey Chocolates, recently returned from a week-long stay in France where she participated in a professional development program. The program brought artisanal chocolatiers from all over the world together with pre-eminent French chocolate producers and chefs. Ms. Smith toured two chocolate production plants and worked with pre-eminent pastry chefs specializing in chocolate confectionery. The program was designed to give participants exposure to the latest ideas and techniques in chocolate creation as well as contact with industry practitioners globally.
According to Ms. Smith, “The program was both educational and inspirational. Chefs Parc and Canet are masters at their craft who generously shared their knowledge and enthusiasm for this most wondrous of foods. I’m looking forward to bringing the latest in flavor and technique to our local Westchester chocolate connoisseurs and elevating the experience of chocolate for everyone who enjoys fine chocolate. “
The Chocolaterie Michel Cluizel in Normandy hosted the group for three days. The company, founded in 1948, specializes in producing chocolate harvested from select plantations in the finest cocoa-producing regions of the world. Like fine wine, cocoa is influenced by its climate and soil. The nuances of unique flavor from each region are prized in confectionery production. After touring the plant, Ms Smith and her fellow participants worked in the meticulously appointed Cluizel chocolate laboratory with chef Philippe Parc, MOF, creating bonbons with the newest flavor profiles and experimenting with chocolate showpiece techniques. Digging into the chocolate buffet at the end was the gustatory reward for their hard work. Each participant was awarded a diploma of participation for completing the program.
The Barry Callebaut production facility outside Paris welcomed the group for the second half of the program. Barry Callebaut is the world’s leading supplier of high-quality cocoa and chocolate products, with 40 facilities in 26 countries. The company is over 150 years old, the result of the 1996 merger of Cacao Barry, a French company, and Callebaut, a Belgian chocolate manufacturer. After creating bonbons, truffles, bars, and chocolate lollipops with chef Christophe Canet of Nice, the group toured the immense chocolate production plant, which is fully mechanized in all operations. The group also studied in the Barry Callebaut Laboratoire Or Noir. This facility is dedicated to the creation of one-of-a-kind chocolate formulas for artisanal chocolatiers wishing to devise a signature chocolate blend. The group explored the nuances of flavor in this lab and developed their own unique chocolate.
Odyssey Chocolates handcrafts a continually changing variety of seasonally flavored bonbons. Their current mix includes Raspberries and Cream, Strawberry Balsamic, Mint Milk Chocolate, Dulce de Leche, Orange, Hazelnut Milk Chocolate, Coffee, Cinnamon Honey, and The Odyssey, a sweet Middle Eastern spice. In addition they offer a new line of caramel ganaches, lemon milk chocolate, orange ginger milk chocolate, lime chili milk chocolate, and salted caramel dark chocolate. Special requests are gladly taken for large or custom orders.
Odyssey Chocolates can be found in fine food and gift shops in Westchester, including Auray Gourmet in Larchmont, Bedford Gourmet in Bedford, Black Cat Café in Irvington, La Dentelliere in Scarsdale, Ladle of Love in Mt Kisco, and Mint Premium Foods in Tarrytown. Odyssey Chocolates is also on the web at www.odysseychocolates.com or can be reached by calling (914) 723-5898.
808 Bistro Lights Up Scarsdale Avenue
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There’s new energy on Scarsdale Avenue and as soon as you see the neon lights and pressed tin ceiling at the 808 Bistro you start to feel the vibe. Located in the former home of Millenio, the site has been transformed in metallic and light. The layout includes a generous bar and an appealing list of locally named cocktails to enjoy.
Scarsdale now has its own drink– the Scarsdale Smash, a combination of vodka, triple sec, orange and cranberry juice with fresh lemon sour. There’s also the Route 22, which is muddled pineapple and cucumber with gin and club soda and the drink menu includes Mojitos and Margaritas in strawberry basil, ginger, pineapple, mango and raspberry. My pineapple Mojito was a satisfyingly sweet blend of fresh crushed pineapple and mint with rum and syrup.
The menu is an eclectic mix that defies categorization. Chef Salvatore Cucullo Jr. is the son of the owners of Fratelli’s in New Rochelle and there are some Italian offerings. However, he comes to 808 Bistro by way of an education at the Culinary Institute or America and work experience at the recently closed Café des Artistes in Manhattan and brings his versatile style to the table.
We started with Pan Seared Sea Scallops with asparagus, and goat cheese in a balsamic reduction. Yes it was rich – but delicious as well. On the lighter side, we ordered a Quinoa Salad (pronounced keen-wah) with orange, golden raisin, cucumbers and cilantro in a citrus vinaigrette. The salad was fresh, flavorful and unique and is also on the lunch menu. My companions had a healthy portion of a Buratta Mozzarella, sliced local vine tomatoes, basil and fire-roasted pepper salad and struggled to down it all. Also recommended from the choice of appetizers are the fresh oysters and the baked macaroni and cheese with lobster, shrimp and truffle oil.
For entrees, there are pastas, fish, poultry and meats. Among the chef’s favorites are NanasGnocchi, with tomato and basil, which is based on a family recipe. We tried the Chianti Stained Pappardelle with beef, pork and veal ragout. It was a hearty dish of homemade noodles with large chunks for meat in a tomato sauce and might have been more fitting for a cold night in February than a steamy evening in June. I had the linguine with shrimp, clams, scallops, calamari and mussels and we also had the pistachio crusted halibut. Both were well prepared, fresh and flavorful. From the meat selections were a marinated skirt steak, a Rib-eye Steak, Veal Capriccioso, several pork selections and chicken or veal any style. If you bring your family, you are sure to find something to please everyone.
For dessert, we had an irresistible Chocolate Polenta Pudding and a Berry Napoleon that was apparently a favorite at Café Des Artistes. The Napoleon had fresh berries, and whipped cream sandwiched between layers of light pastry.
Though the restaurant has only been open for three weeks, service was efficient and the meal was well timed. Everyone on the staff was gracious and made us feel welcome. Prices for appetizers ranged from $12-$17, salads $7 - $14 and entrees $17 - $28. The lunch menu includes some of the appetizers and pastas discussed above as well as a selection of sandwiches and wraps reasonably priced at only $10.
There were so many appealing choices and limits to what we could consume, so we’ll go back to try it again. We recommend you try it too – before it gets too hard to get a table.
808 Bistro
808 Scarsdale Avenue
Scarsdale N.Y.
914-722-0808
www.the808bistro.com
Open for lunch and dinner seven days a week.
Immaculate Infatuation
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Andrew Steinthal a 1998 grad of SHS runs the PR Department of Warner Music's Independent Label Group by day and at night works on his website ImmaculateInfatuation.com, the #1 ranked NYC food website on Urbanspoon. The site features easy to relate to reviews and features for people who love to eat, but aren't super foodies. He launched the food site with Chris Stang who is the Director of Marketing at Atlantic Records and says that they are "music biz guys bringing the worlds of food and entertainment together."
Here is an interview with Andrew and some insider tips on where to eat:
What are a few of your favorite food-related memories of Scarsdale?
Candlelight is first and foremost. Without Candlelight, there's probably no Immaculate Infatuation. For my group of friends, that's where the obsession with food started. Every night out ended with a late night trip to The Light for wings and waffle fries. Aside from the C'Light, other local favorites include Italian Pavilion in White Plains aka The Pizza Nazi as we called it back in high school. Both their sicilian and salad slices are excellent and their pink Italian dressing is ridiculously good. Walter's Hot Dogs in Mamaroneck, obviously. Also, back in the day I was obsessed with City Limits. They had really good pickles and french fries.
Other than the Candlelight, where do you like to eat now in Scarsdale/Westchester?
Blue Hill at Stone Barnes has the highest rating on our site, that place is absolutely incredible. I've been meaning to try Batali's Tarry Lodge in Port Chester, but haven't gotten there yet. I've heard it's a bit underwhelming. Generally, I make my family come to Manhattan or Brooklyn when there's a meal related event going on.
What inspired you to start the site?
My friend Chris Stang and I had been conspiring to start something ever since we graduated college. Initially it was going to be our own record label, but with the business falling apart at the seams over the last decade, we knew that wasn't a good idea. We had multiple meetings and even came up with a name for our clothing line, but that just had too much overhead. Then we decided that since we were always the one's people were asking "Where should we go tonight?", that we'd start an email service that guaranteed a personal response to that question within 24 hours. Twitter took care of that idea. So, instead, we set out to answer the 'Where Should We Eat Tonight?' question and hit the internet in April 2009 with Immaculate Infatuation. We're trying to fill the role of that trusted friend you turn to when you need a solid restaurant suggestion. You won't find any pretentious foodie hobnob from us. If you want those kinds of shenanigans, hit up the "experts" at NY Mag, Time Out NY or the NY Times. This is easy to relate to, honest food reviews and features for people like us who love to eat, but aren't super "foodies" (we loathe that word).
Do you write the reviews yourself or do others contribute?
Chris and I do all the content ourselves. We've had a lot of people ask if they could contribute, which is great and actually quite flattering. Right now, we want to make sure we keep the voice of the site consistent so we can firmly establish our identity.
How many new entries are posted a week or a month?
We post a new review, feature or video every week day.
Please offer Scarsdalle10583 readers recommendations for your favorites restaurants and links to the reviews
So, one thing that sets us apart from other sites is how we break restaurants down into our "Perfect For" categories such as Girls Night Out, Date Night, Dinner With The Parents, Drunk Hook Ups and Celebrity Sightings. Here are some of our favorite spots broken down by category.
Chronic Brunch - Cafe Habana
Date Night - Apizz
Special Occasions - Eleven Madison Park
Girls Night Out - ABC Kitchen
Raucous Party Atmosphere - Marlow and Sons
Full On Pork Indulgence - Momofuku Ssam
Birthdays - Yerba Buena Perry
Quick Eats - Luke's Lobster
Outdoor/Patio Situation - Shake Shack
Dinner With The Parents - Mas (farmhouse)
Do you produce the site for the love of food or is it a revenue-producing biz as well?
While we started this site for fun, I'd be lying if i said the end goal wasn't to make money because it absolutely is. Right now, we're still building our brand. Seeing how people react to the site and how quickly we've grown gives us the confidence to keep going. If we keep building and expanding our reach, the sky is the limit.
What’s in the stars for immaculateinfatuation?
First up is a complete redesign of the site which is will be launching later this summer. The new site is more user friendly, and people will be able to better utilize search capabilities to find the perfect restaurant for any occasion. Need an Italian joint with some Action At The Bar near Madison Square Garden? Right now, you can't search for all those things. It's coming. That's the short term. Long term, we're starting a heavy focus on video content which we're keen on developing and we're also looking to get into events as well. Food and music go so well together, we think that's definitely an area we could get into.
How do you do your day job and manage the site as well?
We wake up early and stay up late working on Immaculate stuff, it's the only way to get it done. We both work in the music business - I do PR for Warner's Independent Label Group and Chris does marketing for Atlantic Records and both of our jobs are extremely demanding. The only way to get much done on our side project is to sacrifice your free time.
Zagats Picks for Westchester
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Zagat Survey has released its 2010/11 Westchester and Hudson Valley Restaurants Survey covering restaurants in southern New York plus nearby Connecticut and the Berkshires. The updated guide is based on the experiences of 4,502 avid local diners and covers 961 restaurants, including 70 important additions.
"Westchester and the Hudson Valley are home to an impressive crop of affordable restaurants," said Tim Zagat, CEO of Zagat Survey. "With Zagat content available in print and our suite of mobile applications, diners north of New York City can access our reliable restaurant reviews wherever they go.”
This year, Westchester welcomed a surge of ultracasual eateries specializing in affordable fare. In Hartsdale, Frankie & Fanucci’s presents thin-crust pizza, while a new location of well-known Connecticut pizzeria Frank Pepe opened in Yonkers. Diners hungry for comfort food were met with newcomers Rainwater Grill in Hastings-on-Hudson and Mamaroneck’s Roasted Peppers. Consumers interested in something different were greeted by Barnacle BBQ and Fish Shack, also in Mamaroneck, with live music on weekends and a rear deck overlooking Mamaroneck Harbor.
Worldly cuisines with down-to-earth prices popped up all over Westchester. These newcomers include Sleepy Hollow’s Tyrynda Thai (Thai), Hartsdale’s Masala Kraft Café (vegetarian Indian) and New Rochelle’s Don Coqui (Puerto Rican). Asian arrivals play it safe with moderately priced menus, such as those at Lucky Buddha in Thornwood, which provides everything from hibachi to Indonesian dishes, Mt. Kisco’s Neo World Bistro and Sushi Bar and Haiku in White Plains.
Some of Westchester’s top restaurants have changed their tune to attract bargain-hunting diners. Dan Barber’s Blue Hill at Stone Barns in Pocantico Hills added less costly options to its tasting-menu format, while Port Chester’s Tarry Lodge now offers lunch and brunch specials. In Yonkers, X2O Xaviars on the Hudson (Most Popular in this Survey) regularly hosts value-oriented events including an unlimited champagne brunch on Sundays.
The 2010/11 Westchester and Hudson Valley Restaurants guide sells for $14.95 and was edited by Bill Corsello, Michelle Golden, John Bruno Turiano, Judith Hausman, Julia Sexton, Lynn Hazlewood and Lorriane Gengo. For information on Zagat’s mobile products, visit http://www.zagat.com/mobile.
