Rubbin' Butts (Cobleskill, NY)

A Place By Any Other Name Would Be Less Smoky and Good

I won't get too much into my thoughts about this place, as it's a simple little barbecue joint with some picnic tables, a big smoky cookin' drum, and a pile of meat to serve up with tasty sides and a huge wad of napkins. I have said too much already.

Drive into Cobleskill, go to the east side of town across from the Price Chopper plaza, you will see a little stand at the end of a tiny little string of businesses. Go. Now.

I will say this: We were investigating the possibility of a return by the famous, and really frickin' old restaurant, the Bull's Head Inn, which is in historic downtown Cobleskill. It's still dead, which is pretty unfortunate, since it had been in operation as an inn and restaurant since the year 1800. Please, if anyone has information, let us know. That was a sad day when we found out they had ceased operations.

Cohen's Bakery Internet Cafe (Monticello, NY)

There are still internet cafes?

The Monticello Miracle Part 3

Back when the interwebs were just getting spun, there were these places where folks went to drink lattes, eat biscotti, and surf the burgeoning mega-thu-way of information. This bourgeois phenomenon and business plan has all but disappeared from the landscape. McDonald's, Jiffy Lube, taxis, porta-toilets, and even my great aunt's tea room offers wi-fi these days.

I will admit to scoffing a bit at the sight of an internet cafe on Main Street in a run-down upstate town. So often while traveling to small towns upstate, it seems entrepreneurs still employ this outdated idea of an arty coffee house with cushy chairs, twenty-somethings munching on scones, talking about indie-whatever, yet failing to provide a good cup of coffee or adequate food, and still charging some exorbitant fee for the internets.

That was all forgotten once I sat down to eat. The place is stocked by a Jewish Bakery (Cohen's) run by a couple that may be Arabic (please correct me if I am wrong!) and staffed in the kitchen by a confirmed Peruvian. Together it all works! The chef prepares a few fresh soups each day, which was appreciated in cold cold November when we first started eating here. The Jewish Bakery items are of fine quality, the bagels are top-notch, and the coffee, though a national brand (Seattle's Best), is brewed perfectly and kept fresh. Best coffee in town, indeed. The long list of Panini-style sandwiches includes the excellent Cuban, the California (chicken, avocado) and a Chicken Pesto. The sandwiches are huge, cost around 7 bucks, and include a side of slaw or mac salad. Service goes above and beyond for such a simple walk-up counter. After a few days of us eating breakfast and lunch there, the server took a liking to us and provided bagel chips for our soup and a big plate of cookies for dessert! I think she actually gives most people cookies with their meal, which is really endearing. We really love this place now, and whenever we're within 15 miles of downtown, I find a way to get in.




Where are the people, the frappuchinos, the future?

The Bakery / The Cafe (Newark, NY)

A bakery, a cafe, a scone in my belly.

Depending on which way you approach this brand-spanking new food joint, you could find yourself walking up to a bakery or a cafe, and you'd be in for a treat either way. For the first time in a long time, I have been to a place that has promised two things and completely succeeded. The baked goods are excellent, the coffee is fresh and varied, the cafe menu is simple and tasty, the service is friendly, and the prices are criminally low for the quality. I ordered the scone plate, which includes a freshly baked scone, a bowl of fresh fruit with a blob of homemade whipped cream, and a cup of yogurt with granola. The plate is well under $6. Some places charge that much for just the fruit! So many places serve scones and so many of those scones are muffin mix in a pile. These scones are worth making the drive for, from Rochester, Syracuse or Ithaca. Take that Ithaca Bakery. They also have sticky buns, freshly made every morning, as I was told by a big table of locals munching on the last of them. I have been told they are more of a brioche in composition. I am not really bake-smart, so I will just say it was good. The next morning I ordered the eggs, toast, homefries and sausage. Really damn good.

The building is just outside town on Main St. amid some of the very handsome homes in Newark, and seems like it's been a local favorite for years, even though it's only been there for about a month.

We ended up moving operations to Geneva the next week, and though there's a lot more going on down here, we really miss our morning breakfast at the Bakery/Cafe in Newark.

Sullivan’s Diner (Horseheads, NY)

“What’ll it be, Hon?”

The American diner. Who doesn’t love these 20th century icons?

On a very cold day in March after a morning of punching through hard-packed road fill (not finding much more than recent roadside trash), the PAF staff headed to Sullivan’s Diner on Old Ithaca Road in Horseheads. One is drawn not only to the diner’s classic narrow, streamlined appearance, but the delightful smell of grease and seared animal flesh as well. The tripadvisor.com listing describes “an Irish-named diner serving great Polish and American food in a real 1940 made-in-New Jersey diner with 35 seats and most of the original equipment.” While the exterior could use a little TLC, the interior’s generous amount of stainless steel, tile and other shiny materials is well kept.

Sullivan’s owner-chef-waitress-clerk greets customers as they enter the diner through a sliding pocket door. Yes, menus are provided, but she will likely take your order without turning away from her position at the grill. The diner has obviously built a loyal customer base, which is evident by the friendly banter and familiar report.

In several locations throughout the diner there are small signs marking the water level from Elmira’s 1972 flood, the worst in its recorded history. The PAF crew on this particular visit agreed that the restroom end of the diner – the furthest from the delightful aroma of the grill – did indeed smell as if were flooded 3 decades ago.

Abandoning much of my more than adequate bag lunch, I was lured in by the suggestion of chocolate cake and coffee. With an expectation of the kind of coffee that helps your spoon stand straight in the cup, I was pleasantly surprised by a quality cup of joe – served in the ubiquitous heavy, cream-colored ceramic mug (dinerware?). As for the chocolate cake, it was unmistakably a Sam’s Club Triple Chocolate Bundt Cake. Although not homemade, this is the stuff of chocoholic dreams and Sullivan’s offers up a four serving-sized slice.

To sum up the Sullivan experience: good eats at GREAT prices, all to be had in a wonderful venue. Somehow food is more satisfying when you feel you’ve gotten your money’s worth (or better). I whole-heartedly recommend this establishment as a worthy travel stop!

I appeal to others who have dined at Sullivan’s to further comment on the variety and quality of food . . . from pancakes to pierogi.

Peck's Market (Livingston Manor, NY)

Pipe and Smoking Jacket Not Required

There's not too much to say about Peck's Market in the misleadingly, snobbishly named town, Livingston Manor (formerly called Purvis, a much more apt name!), save for its excellent deli. The best thing, other than the fresh ingredients and lively staff, is that they tell you to go to the bakery aisle and pick out your own roll, which is great! I don't think I have ever been in command of my own roll choice, and as many sandwich connoisseurs know, it's all about the bread. The other thing worth mentioning is the sign for cultural food, which states boldly, "Ethnics." They're not too worried about semantics.

Livingston Manor is a fusion of typical beat-up Catskill town and an arty, fly-fishing retreat for City Folk. The school in the middle of the village is quite a centerpiece, with really beautiful architecture and carefully laid stonework walls and bridge over the creek that runs alongside the main street. Bonus review: The bookstore in town is one of the only independent new book sellers within 100 miles. If you are in town, you have to stop in.
the well-appointed school

The Glaciers Have Receded, the Floods Have Abated.

We can see the soil again, we can smell the earth, so now it's time to get out there and dig, and eat! It's time to knock the dust off of this moldy blog and share our gastroarchaeogical triumphs and failures with the world! In our first few weeks back in the field, we have already found some great new places, so check back often to read and revel in our repasts.

Oh my.

La Comida Gordo

Inspired by the Bandeja Tipica, Mike R. sent me a link to www.thisiswhyyourefat.com. I am ashamed to say I would eat a few of these gems, but for the most part, my soul died a little bit knowing there was someone salivating off-camera waiting to dig in.


The national dish of Quebec. No, seriously.

Bonus Link!!