When Dave and I were at the Westcott Street Cultural Fair in September, we noticed that a new Indian restaurant had opened up just around the corner from Westcott Street, Taste of India at 124 Dell Street, Syracuse. But it wasn’t until yesterday that we took the opportunity to try it out when driving through the neighborhood, hungry for lunch. (more…)
Syracuse suffered a terrible loss upon the sudden passing of Linda “Sparky” Mortimer, owner of Sparky Town cafe and restaurant. But her legacy lives on in the wonderful people who continue to serve some of the best food and coffee in town. (more…)
Last week Dave and I decided to try out Sitrus on the Hill, in the Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel, given that they were throwing a grand opening party that included free food and drinks. Described by the SU New Services as “the new beverage outlet of the hotel” (did they say beverage outlet?), it is, in fact, much more than something that spews beverages. It is a bar/restaurant that features a very pleasant, upscale atmosphere, friendly personnel, beverages of course and, believe it or not, really good food. (more…)
Like many diners recently, we don’t do a fine-dining splurge that often, but we made a visit to Gentile’s this week. It had been a long time since our last visit, and it was great to be back. The calamari appetizer was so good, it was almost enough to make me weep with joy. The menu does, in fact, say it’s the best in Syracuse. (more…)
Yes, this pepper does have an intriguing appearance, doesnt it? I didn't see this particular one at Chipotle.
Usually I’m too much of a snob to review chain restaurants, but this one is interesting. I had heard about their emphasis on fresh ingredients and positive reviews here and there. They are expanding so rapidly that there are two in the Syracuse area already. I tried out the one on Marshall St. on the SU hill, sporting my helpful two-fer coupon I’d received in the mail. (more…)
Some time ago, Dave and I took a fascinating tour of the Oneida Community Mansion House and there discovered a restaurant tucked into a wing of the building: Zabroso Restaurant & Lounge. Alas, it was closed that day and pressing our noses longingly against the glass didn’t get it to open. So we returned home, to spend many months saying, “You know, we have to get out to Zabroso.” (more…)
We’re in the middle of Syracuse Dining Week, when many restaurants offer discounts to entice diners to venture out in the February cold. It’s actually longer than a week this year (good call!). Earlier this week, we looked at the impressive list of offerings from a variety of restaurants, and L’Adour’s special menu looked the most interesting and exotic to us. The general Dining Week theme is to offer 3 courses for $25. (more…)
We do our best to find new places to eat, but Syracuse isn’t the biggest town, and our dining budget is not astronomical, so we often return to several old favorites. Of course, I suppose that’s obvious to any regular reader of this blog. But we do have a new favorite place we keep returning to again and again – Sakana Ya. (more…)
Anyone who reads this blog regularly will know that we love Gianni’s Pizza in our neighborhood. Time and time again, we enjoy their fare, and last night it was the Moshulu Park pizza – broccoli, ricotta, just so good.
My designer colleague Gertrud in Mannheim, Germany, also enjoys Gianni’s Pizza every week! (more…)
We like OIP’s char-grilled wings so much that we nearly always order them – the only variation tends to be when I’m feeling particularly gluttonous, and may order a pizza slice supplement for the wings. (more…)
Lonnie has already written here about how much we liked Gianni’s Pizza. Naturally, we had to go back. This time, while doing a bunch of holiday prep, we wanted to treat ourselves. I ordered their Moshulu Park Pizza, which is broccoli, garlic, and ricotta. (more…)
I love Indian cuisine. There aren’t a whole lot of choices in our area, but thanks to our friend Owen, we found out about the new Taj Mahal, and it’s near us, at 3138 Erie Blvd. in Dewitt. It’s in a building that used to be Quiznos, in a plaza that has the Guitar Center (it figures that Dave would notice that!). (more…)
Our neighbors, Pete and Barb M., just turned us on to NY Gianni’s Bronx Style Pizza – we’ll call it Gianni’s Pizza from here on in – and boy are we ever glad they did. Y’all will recall how miserably Cosmo’s failed the Lonnie’s-hot-fast-pizza test. So I figured, to be fair, I’d have to run Gianni’s through the same test. OMG! What a difference! (more…)
Michael Angelo’s recently opened on James St. in Eastwood between Sacred Melody Plaza and Wegman’s. This location has been the site of many restaurants, almost qualifying as a restaurant graveyard. I did my share of whining when the Melt Shop closed, whose service and simple fare I enjoyed and rooted for. But by now it’s almost morbidly fascinating to see every brave soul who tries their luck in this karma-challenged spot. I know none of you could have guessed it, but they offer Italian fare. (more…)
I have decided to nominate Jennifer of the Melt Shop as the Friendliest Person in Eastwood! She is absolutely wonderful!!!!!! Who’s with me? – Dave
You know how it is when you get stuck in a rut. At the moment when you’re the hungriest and most brain function has shut down, all you can think of is that one item that you know they’re serving over at your usual spot… whatever that is.
So it’s Friday evening and we’re hungry and we just want some fried haddock. Where to go? Well, we live in Eastwood and we’re fairly near to the Fish Cove in Shop City and I can’t for the life of me think of any other place in Eastwood that serves haddock (and I’m sure there are at least a half dozen). So Dave drives over there to pick up the fish and returns almost immediately. “The Fish Cove is gone. There’s just some pizza place there.”
This is what I get for sending a brilliant designer/musician on a fishy errand. He’s already got fried brains – how is he going to find fried fish?
I can’t believe that Fish Cove is gone. They always seemed to be doing such a booming business! But alas, these things happen. I accept his report as true (although it’s not). This is a good thing, because it forces my own fried brain to focus… focus… Where… is… the… fish?
Oh YEAH! The Melt Shop! Silly us! We can walk over there. It will take us maybe five or six minutes to stroll over on this glorious summer evening. And we’re so glad we do.
We’d been in the Melt Shop months before. Times are tough, we’re not eating out quite as often, we don’t usually look for sandwiches. We wondered how the place was doing.
Quite fine, as a matter of fact! The place is still immaculate, the walls are now even more covered than before with fascinating huge photos of iron works and aluminum smelters, men doing some of the most incredible, hot, dirty work. I mean, they’re pouring molten steel from buckets the size of my house!
There are black and white checked table cloths on every table and the counter has five people sitting at it. Lots of room to sit and relax in here. A TV is going (the only negative point in my book, but I guess people like it) and the service is extremely friendly and spot-on.
We order the beer battered haddock. I’m not interested in anything but the fish so I order the sandwich without the bread. Who needs it? (Dave, as it turns out, but he’s a guy…) I just want to dip that fish in the ample tartar sauce that’s served with it. Utter simplicity, nothing to get in the way of the crunch of the batter, the delicate warm juices from the fish, the perfectly tender yet ample white flesh of the fish, and just the right level of tang in that sauce.
I eat the thing with my fingers, it’s so crispy on the outside. I’ll confess, I’ve been known to surreptitiously lick the plate in high-end restaurants… when the sauce simply could not be washed down a drain, when nobody else was left in the room, when the lighting was low.
But not here. In this brightly-lit dining room, I stick my fingers right into the tartar sauce and lick them while taking more bites of the fish. Shameful!
Heavenly.
Check out the Melt Shop’s website. Nice photos, all the information you need right at your fingertips (it’s not overdesigned by some college kid who’s more impressed with his Flash skills than with your need to find the hours of the restaurant). It’s a reflection of what you find at this restaurant: down-home, bright, cheery and hey! it’s close to everything!
August is a tough month for restaurants. If you’re reading this, then do yourself a favor, this month. Pay them a visit. Then let us know what you ate there and how you liked it.
My garden progress:
