Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca (Tompkins County, NY)-
The Moosewood Restaurant, the legendary vegetarian restaurant that has been serving delicious meals in downtown Ithaca (the home of Cornell University) for 30 plus years, naturally came to mind when we were developing the farm to table directory of restaurants. A well-used cookbook from the 1970’s called “The Moosewood Cookbook,” by Mollie Katzen (Berkeley, California, Ten Speed Press, 1977) has a prominent place on my rack of cookbooks in the kitchen. This cookbook describes Moosewood’s “cooking style” as “an eclectic cuisine, with vegetarian, international emphases, using the freshest ingredients available.” A more recent Moosewood cookbook, entitled “Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special,” by the Moosewood Collective (New York, NY, Clarkson Potter Publishers, 1999) describes the Moosewood Restaurant’s approach to food in this way: “We serve generous portions at moderate prices and see ourselves as part of an important movement toward cultivating more healthful diets based on the creative use of the freshest high-quality ingredients and natural whole foods. So at Moosewood, the focus is on preserving the integrity of the basic ingredients and paying careful attention to all aspects of preparation.” Thus, it was a surprise in examining Moosewood’s website that local foods were not specifically emphasized.

A phone conversation with Jenny, one of Moosewood’s four menu planners (or executive chefs) resulted in the decision to include the restaurant in the farm to table directory. According to Jenny, Moosewood supports many local Ithaca businesses and farmers, including Finger Lakes Family Farms, Cayuga Pure Organics, and Denis Caso, a local ice cream maker. In the summer, the restaurant works with a supplier that provides regional access to local farmers, and obtains greens, tomatoes, squash and fruit all within 50 or 100 miles of Ithaca. In fact, Jenny explained that the restaurant has a commitment to local agriculture and helping local, smaller farmers is a priority. She also provided a thoughtful response to a query concerning Moosewood’s decision to market a frozen product line of organic foods that is sold nationwide. She understood the concern about the sustainability of distributing their products, produced in Brockton, Massachusetts, to such a wide market. By providing a line of frozen organic foods, Jenny suggested that Moosewood is creating an alternative to industrially-grown frozen foods. After 30 plus years, Moosewood has indeed become a brand name. Nonetheless, it is a brand name that deserves respect.

A friend and contributor to this website, Kiera Crowley, who calls Ithaca her hometown, has sent us a review of her most recent meal at the Moosewood Restaurant which we share. It is observed that Moosewood, known widely for the creativity of its vegetarian dishes, has expanded its menu to include fish (FB 6/29/10). Here’s Kiera’s review:

Set a block away from the bustling Ithaca Commons, but still in the heart of downtown, Moosewood is a landmark that has been well-loved by residents and visitors for more than 30 years. The interior is warmly decorated with saffron orange walls and paprika red accents, while the waiting area is embellished with a homey yet celebratory array of lit-up plants and trees. To the left is a bar where you can enjoy a glass of wine, a beer, a cocktail, or even a smoothie while you wait to be seated. To the right is the indoor seating area, followed by a set of stairs and a door that leads to an outdoor seating area, enclosed only by a low fence topped with potted flowers. This seating area is very pleasant because it gives you the benefit of enjoying the fresh air without being too close to the road. Every day, a new appetizer and entrée menu is put together by one of the four head chefs. This is done largely in order to incorporate the foods that are available locally, which can change weekly. The tossed salads, served with the entrees, are consistently local throughout the summer, which is surely why the greens, cucumbers, and cherry tomatoes are so fresh and flavorful. The wide variety of salad dressings add just enough flavor to add some spice, without overpowering the taste of the veggies. My dinner partners tried the feta garlic and house (creamy spinach-basil) dressings, and I went with the lemon tahini – my personal favorite. The entrée choices for the night all sounded irresistible: Jail Island salmon, corn and cheese burrito, lasagna with two sauces, Thai curry, and pasta Putanesca. Unfortunately for us, the pasta dish had been extremely popular and was all gone. I decided on the salmon instead – and wow, what a good choice that was! The sustainably farmed, oven-poached fillet was done to perfection – firm but moist and tender. The arugula-basil pesto topping had a delicate but flavorful taste, while the complimentary mashed potatoes were deliciously creamy, and the seasoned asparagus spears still had that crispness that comes from being cooked just enough. My dinner partner had the lasagna, layered with Italian cheeses, savory tomato-basil-wine sauce, and topped with a rich spinach béchamel sauce. Although we were too full for dessert, the variety of unique desserts sounded absolutely delectable. They included locally-made ice cream, maple rhubarb upside down cake, mango peach blackberry crumble, and the old standby, a fudge brownie. The prices for entrees range from $15 to $19, and for desserts from $3.50 to $5 – well worth it for a deliciously organic and largely local meal (KC 6/19/10). [Moosewood Restaurant, 215 North Cayuga Street, Ithaca, NY 607.273.9610, Lunch: Mon-Sat 11:30AM-3:00PM, Dinner: Sun-Thurs 5:30PM-8:30PM, Fri-Sat 5:30PM-9:00PM www.moosewoodcooks.com]

Wild Hive Café in Clinton Corners (Dutchess County, NY)-
A few minutes east of the Salt Point Turnpike exit of the Taconic State Parkway brings the traveler to what may be the planet’s best Grilled Cheese sandwich, and a remarkable alternative to Fast Food America.  The day’s lunch specials at this friendly café included an irresistible “Adult Grilled Cheese”: sautéed seasonal greens, onions, a local Hudson Red cheese that was soft, ripe and delectably melted on the finest and freshest onion rye.  The bread, made with flour milled from local Hudson Valley grains, would knock Jerry Seinfeld’s socks off.  He should leave all the Big Apple rye breads to the little old ladies on New York City’s upper west side, journey north to Clinton Corners, and stock up with the Wild Hive Café’s ryes, and be the better for it.  This café is a breath of fresh air, literally and metaphorically.  Unlike the fast food giants, here you truly know the source of your food.  The café’s breakfast and lunch menus include many tempting possibilities, with very reasonable pricing especially given the quality and freshness of the food, which also would leave Mr. Seinfeld sockless: an egg sandwich on a brioche bun for $4.00.  According to a note on the menu, the Café’s “own happy chickens lay these eggs, which we then scramble for you and add [local] Harpersfield’s hops tilsit cheese on a brioche bun [made with local grains].”  There’s a palpable feeling at The Wild Hive Café that the operators are helping to build a community and create local jobs in picturesque Clinton Corners.  Nonetheless, a mere traveler heading down to NYC on the Taconic State Parkway is made to feel welcome, and sweets [e.g., a chocolate oatmeal walnut bar and a raspberry Linzer cookie] for take away make for a nice reminder of the stop later in the day.  As I finished my sandwich and perfect cup of coffee (made from Dean’s Beans, organic and fair traded), a friendly woman was bringing into the café, a huge basket of just-picked strawberries, local and organic. There was joy in her eyes as she mentioned her pleasure in picking the ripe berries at the Thompson-Finch Farm in nearby Ancram (Columbia County) www.thompsonfinch.com .  It seems certain she would make wonderful use of them in pastries and dishes to be served at the Wild Hive Café in the weeks ahead (FB 6/2/10). [Wild Hive Cafe, 2411 Salt Point Turnpike, Clinton Corners, NY, 845.266.5863, Breakfast and Lunch: Weds-Sun 8:00AM-4:00PM (bakery/store to 5:00PM) www.wildhivefarm.com ]

Route7 Grill in Great Barrington, MA-
The Berkshire’s Route 7 Grill is not part of the urbane restaurant scene of downtown Great Barrington, with its shops, galleries and pedestrian traffic.  Instead, you have to hop in the car and drive 2 miles south on busy Route 7 to reach this restaurant Nirvana for BBQ meats.  But a trip from anywhere to this remodeled road house grill is justified to savor the pleasure of eating locally sourced meats, which have been tenderized by slow-smoked cooking.

A friendly bar area is separated from the casual dining room by a stone fireplace, with two hearths, made of a variety of grey-toned stone, which is sculptural in its beauty.  Mark Mendel, the local mason/artist, deserves a special mention:  www.montereymasonry.com.  Although I’ve been keeping a mostly vegetarian diet, I could not resist the Chef BBQ Tasting for one, which included a moist and tender ¼ chicken, Hereford beef brisket and pulled pork, with the grill’s tangy, sweet and sour BBQ sauce.  A side of sautéed spinach and sweet potato fries completed the satisfying meal.  My dining companion enjoyed the special of the day of sautéed chicken with local Zehr Farm shiittake mushrooms, capers, in a buttery wine sauce over pasta.  The house salad of Equinox Farm greens, Vermont cheddar, apples and smoke almonds was a perfect accompaniment to the excellent pasta dish. The day’s dessert specials were also appealing: a fruit crisp made with local Bartlett Orchard’s apples and a fudge-nut-cream brownie with local SoCo vanilla ice cream.  A glass of the lush and juicy Spanish tempranillo blend red Bodegas Lomablanca Gabarda was a natural pairing for the BBQ. When the craving for BBQ made with local, pasture raised meat overtakes you, Route 7 Grill is the destination.  The grill deserves special praise for its community involvement in sponsoring a pig roast (local and spit roasted) fundraiser for Project Sprout, a student led gardening project that supplements food served in Great Barrington’s Monument Mountain High School (FB 5/26/10). [Route7 Grill, 999 S Main Street, Great Barrington, MA, 413.528.3235, Lunch: Sat & Sun 11:30AM-3:00PM, Dinner: Mon-Thurs 5:00PM-9:00PM, Fri-Sat: 5:00PM-10:00PM www.route7grill.com]

Red Devon in Bangall (Dutchess County, NY)-
Who knew there is a bit of California’s Napa Valley in New York’s Northern Dutchess County?  It takes some skillful map reading to find the Red Devon in Bangall, between Millbrook and Pine Plains, but the drive on pleasant country roads ends with a solar paneled, sprawling restaurant/cafe/market landscaped in late spring with beds of flowering red poppies.  The Red Devon’s handsome formal dining room, with salmon colored walls, a gray slate fireplace and photographs of local agricultural scenes is a refined dining environment.  The menu lists nearly 20 local farms from which the wide-ranging appetizers and entrees are sourced.  Local chicken, pork and lamb dishes were graced by seasonal ramps, kale, spinach, asparagus, and wild-foraged mushrooms all expertly prepared.  Especially delicious was a lamb ragout with feathery light gnocchi that was comfort food of the highest order.  The option of ordering a small plate of handmade tagliatelle, with seasonal vegetables of asparagus, wild foraged mushrooms and snap peas, made dining in this high end restaurant appealing to a diner on a budget.  A pork porterhouse chop, cooked medium-well as requested, nonetheless was succulent and well-seasoned.  A simple dessert of pistachio ice cream, made with cream from the local dairy, Hudson Valley Fresh, was a perfect combination of sweet and salty to end a memorable meal (FB 5/23/10). [Red Devon, 108 Hunns Lake Rd., Bangall, NY, 845.868.3175, Breakfast & Lunch (Cafe): Thurs-Sun, Mon 8:00AM-3:00PM; Dinner (Restaurant): Thur-Sat 6:00PM-9:30PM, Sun 5:00PM-8:00PM; Brunch (Restaurant): Sun 12:00PM-3:00PM www.reddevon.com]

Dish in Greenwich (Washington County, NY) has been open only a short while.  The walls are undecorated, except for a photograph of Marilyn Monroe left behind by the prior operators of a former restaurant known as Some Like It Hot, at the homey spot on the main street of this country town.  Big plans are in store to display the work of local artists.  Irregardless of the current lack of interior decor, Dish is well-worth a visit to savor great farm to table cooking in a pleasant atmosphere of good cheer and big windows overlooking this pleasant small town’s main drag.

Dinner is currently served only on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings, but the menu offers a nice range of choice.  Chicken a la Greenwich was a perfectly prepared chicken dish in a marsala cream sauce, pan seared with mushrooms, caramelized onion and served with brown rice.   A delicious dish of linguini  and meat sauce was a hearty plate of a rich tomato meat sauce made with local pastured ground beef , and served with parmesan and crotini.  The local pastured beef comes from Butler Farms, a few miles down the road in Schuylerville, New York.  A black bean tortilla melt is a tempting vegetarian option with black beans, brown rice and Vermont cheddar served on a whole grain tortilla with homemade salsa and yogurt.  Special mention must be made of the wonderful side dishes especially the sauteed spinach.  This simple dish prepared with roasted garlic and lemon is mouth watering and heaven on a plate.  The side salads of red and green leaf lettuce in a champagne vinaigrette could not be any fresher or tender.

The German apple cake, based on a recipe of chef Susan Garth’s grandmother, was a sweet and surprisingly light ending to a wonderful meal.  With entrees ranging in price from $9.00 to $15.00, we dined for two at a very reasonable price for a Saturday night’s dinner.  A friendly waiter explained that menu pricing has been set with the view to make farm to table dining affordable to locals and visitors.  Dish does not currently serve liquor, but cheerfully served up the bottle of wine we brought to add to the pleasure of the meal (FB 5/15/10).  [Dish, 93 Main Street, Greenwich, NY, 518.692.0200, Breakfast: Mon-Sat 7:30AM-11:00AM, Lunch: Mon-Sat 11:00AM-3:00PM, Dinner: Thurs-Sat 5:30PM-10:00PM]