Everything I know about Troy, I learned from Mary Panza

A flower grows in South Troy

Ok, maybe that isn’t 100% true, but she really did get me started on my Troy education.  When I first moved to Albany almost 25 years ago, I received some advice from a childhood friend regarding Troy.  He said, and I quote, “Troy is the armpit of the Universe.” I was uncertain exactly what that meant, but seeing as how I didn’t have a car, Troy wasn’t an area that I planned to explore with any haste anyway.  No problem.

But, then I met Mary Panza, South Troy denizen extraordinaire, and began venturing across the river.  We generally ended up at her sister’s house, where we consumed fantastic quantities of eggplant and pasta, all bathed in the senior Mary Panza’s fabulous red sauce.  My personal opinion began to form about the collar city – Troy was ok with me.

Since that time, I’ve been pulled to Troy for their superior Farmer’s Market, beer and music venues, restaurants and unique shops.  I learned to never move a folding chair left in the street and to maintain a sense of the river’s location to navigate the grid of one-way streets.  I like Troy – there, I said it.

Last night I intensified my like of Troy to a level of affectionate love.  Granted, the company I was in was a definite factor, but the charm of Troy is strong and it has never looked better. Speaking of looking, our evening began at the beautiful and historic St. Agnes Cemetery in Menands. Photographer and TU blogger, Chuck Miller, had an event to celebrate the opening of his stellar photo exhibit.  The images he captures are primarily local and demonstrate a keen eye for both lighthearted humor and thoughtful observation.  Cool venue, great show, get there before it’s all gone.

Plenty for two – with leftovers for lunch!

Our next stop was DeFazio’s in Troy for some real pizza.  Everything about this joint charms me – the almost magical way the simple ingredients combine for a pizza that is the best I’ve ever had outside of NYC, the politeness of every person who helped to take care of us, the black and white tiled floor, and the red convertible the delivery guy drives.  Everything!  We went with an antipasto and a small pizza with olives and prosciutto.  The antipasto is substantial (served with crunchy garlic bread) and the small pizza was the perfect size for 2.  I think we may need to try the pasta next time because we witnessed a plate of it being served and were practically in need of restraints.  Have any of you ever had their pasta?

The pizza is all that.

We ended the evening with a visit to the Charles F. Lucas Confectionary around the corner from Monument Square, in downtown Troy.  I would feel guilty about not getting to this place sooner, but I believe last night was the first time I’ve been in Troy since this fantastic place opened.  I have to say, it isn’t as if I’ve been missed, because the joint was positively jumping!  The waves of guests entering and departing during our 90 minutes there, was impressive.  We had a tour of the space by the owner, Vic Christopher, and I can’t say enough about the vision he and his wife, Heather, made into a dreamy reality for us all to share.  Wow.  Our bellies were full of pizza and cappicola, but the beautiful glass of Cote du Rhone rose’ Vic brought my way was exactly the crowning touch to a memorable May evening.  I am incredibly enthusiastic about this project. the additional related grocery store business in the preliminary works and the new-to-me term “reclamation construction.”  Troy is a lucky city to have landed such super smart and cool entrepreneurs and I imagine myself finding my way to the Collar City with previously unimagined frequency.

Armpit of the universe?  Au contraire – more like the heart of the Capital District.  Let’s hope our next Albany mayor fosters the kind of growth Troy is now experiencing – and that Mary invites me over for eggplant really soon.

Getting ramped up

Although I generally avoid trends, thinking them to be too cliched for my attention, I have to confess to being susceptible to trends when it comes to food – specifically vegetables.  Over the years, I’ve bought in to fiddlehead ferns and garlic scapes and jicama with varying degrees of commitment.  This year, I jumped onto the ramps wagon, although I didn’t make it to Hudson’s Ramp Fest last week,  and I’m suggesting that you do the same while you can.  The season will be over really soon and you’ll be left wondering and waiting until 2014 for your own taste of these lovely spring onions.  You can try your hand at foraging, but I was able to “source” the ones below the other night at Capital City Gastropub.  Get ‘em while you can!

Ramps with olive oil and a sprinkling of Maldon sea salt

Putting my money where my mouth is

I spent a little time Sunday afternoon at an event at Mingle.  It was a fundraiser for Kathy Sheehan’s campaign for mayor and there were familiar faces present as well as some local food items from our DelSo peeps, All Good Bakers, The Cheese Traveler, Tilldale Farms and, of course, Mingle.

I have no personal aspirations to be mayor of the city of Albany (although Duchess of DelSo has a nice ring to it), but I think Kathy Sheehan has the right experience for the job.  I didn’t have a chance to talk directly with Kathy, but I’d like to believe that she is interested in making Albany a city where the residents come before partiers and suburbanites who make their money here but spend it elsewhere.  The focus needs to shift and I’m willing to take a chance on someone new after 20 years.  It’s time.

Speaking of time, my neighbors and I finally found some to share.  Perhaps with a bottle of wine or two.  When it came time to adding a little food to the mix we were in complete accord that Sweet Basil was the answer.  It was my first time trying this fairly new spot and we ordered a mess of food.  It was pretty much all delicious – FRESH, tasty, and with a lovely creeper spiciness.  We ordered our food as take-out, but the Yelp reviews pretty consistently note that the service is gracious and the dining room pleasant.   I’ll definitely be putting this place into my rotation.  Trying something new, be it politics or dinner, can taste pretty damn good.

Siam Duck

Drunken Noodles

Larb Gai

Brunch and a bull ride

A couple of Sundays ago, I made it to the City Beer Hall for brunch.  I had no expectations going in other than to use my Living Social voucher and catch up with some friends.  I certainly did not expect the place to be so jammed with other wannabee brunch eaters and I most definitely did not expect to have a meal that was so completely satisfying.  Let me tell you everything…

Our group arrived piecemeal.  I was the first in and I got our name on the list for a table for 5 + a child.  The wait was approximately 25 minutes, a length of time which did not feel overly long.  Drinks were enjoyed by the bar and appetites were whetted by the passing plates of food.  When we sat down at one of the picnic style tables we were ready to sample a variety of the menu’s offerings. Here’s what we ended up with:

Gastro Salad – it may look a bit chaotic but it was really overwhelmingly delicious!

Challah bread French toast – yum!

Spinach & tomato omelete with home fries

Truffled mac n cheese

I failed to get photos of the Sliced Cajun Seasoned Hangar Steak  sandwich on grilled sourdough with stellar hand-cut fries and the adorably dubbed “Spit in the Eye,” but I assure you, they were pleasing to the eye and the belly.  Good stuff all around!  The only ever so slight misstep was the mac and cheese.  When it was initially delivered to our party the temperature was a bit lacking.  We brought the problem to a server’s attention (that’s what you do when there’s an issue with your food – you let them fix it) and it was returned to us a few minutes later piping hot and delicious.

At the risk of damning myself to an even longer wait next time I’m feeling brunch-ish, I’ll tell you this: from service to atmosphere to food and value, this place knocked it out of the park.  I’ll be back there in a couple of weeks (2/16) to photograph the Albany Boys and Girls’ Club Ride to Raise: Mechanical Bull Riding Competition.  Maybe I need to get there a little early to try the pulled pork sandwich.  Or the kale salad…

Soap scum and love for the Wine Bar!

image: Joe Keegan

Check out Joe Keegan’s blog over at the TU for some tips on cleaning glass shower doors and his impressions of the Wine Bar & Bistro on Lark.  I had a blast taking care of his party and was tickled to be included in his post.  I’ve been reading his blog, which deals with the painstaking, but not annoyingly so, restoration of the home he shares with his family, for a couple of years and I’m always happy when he posts a new entry.

PS.  I’m not the soap scum of which he speaks.

Gala is my 2nd favorite word for “party.”

A close second, I might add.  Just for the record, my most favorite is “fete,” but enough of language.  Here are the pictures which tell a thousand words!  Seeing as how everyone at the fete event looked like a million bucks, let me add a few additional words of the text variety:

• This was a really fun crowd with many familiar faces.  Not one person declined to pose for a picture and I didn’t hear a single complaint while I worked the crowd.
• The staff at the Hilton Crowne Plaza Albany Hotel were all professional and pleasant.
• It was fun shooting pictures of some of the same people from Thursday’s event.  It didn’t feel indulgent or redundant – the faces you see in both photo sets are the faces of the folks who make the restaurant industry happen.
• The Times Union merged my two galleries with another set of photos taken during Friday’s Grand Tasting event – you’ll know mine by the credit in the caption.
• Personal shout out to a former student and his lovely fiancee* ~ It made my night to see you!  And I told you that you weren’t a Republican – thanks for listening.

*two French words in one post – Mon dieu! That’s 3…

Wine and Dine for the Arts weekend begins…

These are the folks, along with the chefs, who make this happen. Bravo!

I’m never prouder to be even an infinitesimal part of the Capital Region dining scene than I am during this (4th) annual event.  Such a terrific group of generous and hardworking – and really fun, folks that we are all lucky to have in our community.  Speaking of scene – check out my SEEN gallery over at the Times Union.  If I caught a good shot of you and you’d like the jpeg, let me know.  I’m happy to send it your way.  Maybe I’ll see you Saturday at the Gala?