HVRW Kick-off Party!
Hi, everyone! It’s Linda Lombroso, filling in for Liz Johnson, who’s off this week.
Last night was the kick-off press reception at Harvest-on-Hudson for Hudson Valley Restaurant Week, which is running from March 15 through 28, including weekends.
It was like a great, big cocktail party, attended by many of the chefs from the restaurants participating in this year’s two-week event (133 restaurants in seven counties, said Janet Crawshaw, publisher of The Valley Table and organizer of HVRW).
I started my evening with a strawberry fields cocktail. (Have you heard of that? It tasted like a delicious kicked-up glass of Kool-Aid.)
Crawshaw, who was mingling with the crowd, told me she’s proud of the wide range of restaurants participating this year — “upper echelon” places as well as “neighborhood hot spots.”
It was really packed in there, but I made a bee-line for Peter Kelly, who’s among the best-known chefs in the Hudson Valley. If you read this blog, you probably know that Kelly is behind Xaviars Restaurant Group, which owns Xaviars at Piermont, Restaurant X, Freelance Cafe and X2O.
Kelly was cheerful and gregarious as always.
What’s so great about Hudson Valley Restaurant Week?
“Maybe the Hudson Valley has arrived as a dining destination,’’ he said, citing the wide variety of cuisines available throughout our region.
Before I talked to some of the other chefs, I asked some party guests where they’d be making reservations for Restaurant Week.
David Hochberg of Katonah (below) says he never goes to the same restaurant twice. He’s looking for a place that has a great atmosphere and terrific food (aren’t we all?).
Steve Gold of New City (below), who was working behind the Murray’s Chicken booth cooking up strips of the company’s new chicken bacon, said he’s a big fan of Peter Kelly’s restaurants, but that this year he might try Marcello’s of Suffern.
OK, back to the chefs. It really was cool to see so much culinary star power in one room. They gathered for a few group shots. Here’s a photo of the Westchester chefs:
I also managed to grab a few of them for a chat, including Alain Bennouna (below), executive chef and owner of Zitoune in Mamaroneck.
It’s the first time that Zitoune, which serves Moroccan cuisine, is participating in Restaurant Week, said Bennouna.
“It’s very good exposure for us, and it’s good for the community to know about Moroccan food,’’ he added, noting that Zitoune is the only Moroccan restaurant in the region. The restaurant, also known for its vibrant decor, has belly-dancing on selected nights. It has been open for three and a half years.
Representing a newer place was “Chef Stephanie” (she prefers not to use her last name, so I didn’t press her) of Don Coqui. It’s a Puerto Rican restaurant in New Rochelle, in the same space previously occupied by McMenamin’s Grill (where Stephanie worked as a chef as well).
Stephanie (below), the restaurant’s executive chef, said Don Coqui specializes in “homey-style food served in an upscale atmosphere”). Most recipes come from owner Jimmy Rodriguez’s family, she added.
I also grabbed Vincent Barcelona, executive chef at Harvest-on-Hudson, which was responsible for all the food served last night (an amazing array…too bad I was busy taking notes and only tasted the desserts!).
Barcelona (below) praised the great sense of community among the chefs and restaurants participating in Restaurant Week. He said he pushed for Harvest-on-Hudson to host last night’s party and seemed really happy to be among the event’s advisors.
Although I didn’t get to meet Matt Hudson (below), owner and chief baker of The Hudson House in Nyack, I admired his ponytail from afar. So I snapped a shot of him as he was mingling with guests. Hope he didn’t mind!
So what else was going on there from 5 to 8 p.m.? Free-flowing drinks, endless food and some official speeches from organizers and advisors. Here are some shots of the food, all prepared by Harvest-on-Hudson.
I also turned around, during the official presentation, to snap this photo of the chefs all lined up and paying attention. Nice shot, right?
Anyway, when I left at 8 p.m., the party was still going strong and the food and drinks were still flowing. It was a great way to kick off an exciting two-week stretch in March!
Janet Crawshaw (pictured below with Peter Kelly) said she was happy to see so many food-lovers crammed into Harvest-on-Hudson last night, and eager to get the word out about Hudson Valley Restaurant Week. “What happens in this room will not stay in this room,” she said—which is a good thing!
So where are you planning on eating this year? Don’t wait too long to make your reservations.
Get all the info at HudsonValleyRestaurantWeek.com.
