Category Archives: dining

Got to Be Applebee’s

Posted on May 18, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

I don’t usually talk about chain restaurants or stores here, but in this case I don’t mind mentioning Applebee’s, because they’ve given themselves a local flair. Recently they shut down for a couple of days to redecorate and said it would be with local memorabilia. We decided to check it out.

Steven said I must mention the history of the gift card we intended to use. The card was a Christmas present from my sister Diane and her family. Diane had brought it to my parents’ house at New Year’s, thinking we would be there. We were not. The card languished in Rome for three months till Mom finally stuck it in the mail. When Steven contacted Diane via Facebook to thank her, she replied she did not know why she had not mailed it herself.

Oh dear, that was not nearly as amusing a story as it seemed when we were talking about it. I may cut that out when I edit this and Steven can just get mad at me for not mentioning the gift card.

Applebee’s was doing quite a brisk business for a Wednesday night. We were there prior to six, so I could not take advantage of the Ladies’ Night specials (and no cracks from the Peanut Gallery about me not being a lady!). I expressed regret that my favorite tall tables in the bar area were taken, but the hostess fixed us up with a tall half-booth. It was a table for four, which worked out well, because I soon moved from the padded bench to the chair beside Steven. As I explained to the waitress, it was easier on my back and got me a little closer to my man. Steven pointed out that it also gave me a good view of the flat-screen TV directly across from us. There are actually a good number of flat-screen TVs to be seen. I didn’t test the theory, but I daresay wherever you sit you can see one. Sports were on, which is a good thing to watch with no sound. (Boy, that’s a long paragraph, but I can’t figure out where to break it into two. And I call myself a writer.)

The pictures and murals on the wall seem to be all from local high schools. I saw mostly sports teams with a few proms and one school play (I think it was a play; why else would they be dressed Shakespeareanly?). I wish I had walked around and really made note of what I saw, but I did not want to disturb the other diners.

At one point a young girl approached me and handed me my cell phone, which had inexplicably fallen off my purse. I thanked her very much. I thought I would mention it, because I appreciate nice little girls who notice lost property and take the trouble to return it.

It was quite a tasty meal with the usual good service we enjoy at Applebee’s. All restaurants in a chain are not equal. I will say that the Herkimer branch of Applebee’s is a very good representative of the brand.

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Deep Fried Fun

Posted on May 8, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

I often spend Sundays cooking something fabulous for dinner. I like to cook with wine, and the therapeutic benefit of chopping vegetables is not to be denied. This past Sunday, however, I was otherwise occupied.

I believe I mentioned being in Harvey at Ilion Little Theatre and that we had a matinee on Sunday. It went very well. We had a perfectly delightful audience who rewarded our efforts with copious laughter.

I suppose the operative thing to have done would have been to throw something in the crock pot that morning. Anyone who thinks I did that is crediting me with a great deal more foresight and ambition than I actually possess. I did have a misbegotten adventure with peanut butter cookies (and wrote a blog post about it), but my culinary activities went no further.

So Steven and I were starving as we left the theatre. Sending out for food was in order. What to get was the question.

First we had to find a place that was open. I had noticed one local place abruptly went out of business, and we knew another had suffered a fire. Some places are closed on Sundays (and it’s funny how sometimes you don’t notice that till after you’ve perused the menu and decided what you want).

We finally settled on Yetty’s in Herkimer, NY (thought I ought to mention NY, don’t know that I had to). Yetty’s has excellent pizza, pasta and other dinner choices, but I was into appetizers. I love to make a meal of appetizers.

Appetizers are problematic, though, vis a vis my weight loss goals, because so many of the choices are deep fried. I might add that deep fried is one of my favorite flavors. I feel very virtuous for avoiding deep fried foods most of the time. I’ve even been doing really well this past week and was down a couple of pounds. With that positive reinforcement I wanted to be, you know, reinforced, and not fall off the diet wagon at the slightest bump in the road. On the other hand, I felt we deserved a reward for a play well done (as I mentioned earlier, Sunday’s audience especially loved us).

As you probably guessed by the title, I said to hell with it. We decided on calimari, one of my favorites; chicken tenders, one of Steven’s favorites; and homemade chips, which Yetty’s does exceptionally well.

The delivery man was very nice, especially when Tabby ran out to greet him. He said she was probably smelling his dog. He told Tabby she couldn’t go with him, as it seemed for a moment she was inclined to do. She took this in good part and returned to the house when we called her. She almost immediately wanted to go out back. I think she wanted to bark about it to one of her friends across the back fence.

It was a very good meal for just about the amount of effort I wanted to put in. Yetty’s is located at 109 Mohawk St., Herkimer, NY. Hours are Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to midnight, Sunday noon to 11 p.m. Delivery is available every day from 11:30 a.m. to close. Phone number is 315-866-4201.

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Fish Fry Feast

Posted on March 21, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

I love fish fry. I love fish and I love fry. So I had been wanting to check out the Ilion Moose Lodge Fish Fry. Last Friday I got my chance.

The lodge is located on Barringer Road, Ilion, NY, near Barringer Road School. Having gotten directions from Jim Parker at the Ilion Farmer’s Market (see previous post), we found it with no problem.

We walked into the bar and were directed to the back room. This is a large, airy space that I think would be ideal for many functions. We easily found a table for two. We did not have to peruse the menu once we heard the specials. I decided to try the Haddock Reuben and Steven chose the Shrimp Basket. We like to order different things, so we can try each others. I got sweet potato fries (my favorite!) while Steven stuck with regular. I asked if I was allowed to go into the bar area and get a glass of wine. I was.

When I returned with my Chablis, Steven had obtained a cup of his beloved coffee. Our food, when it arrived, was delicious. As we were eating I heard another patron asking what a Haddock Reuben was.

“It’s yummy!” I called across the room. Just trying to be helpful.

I did not finish my yummy sandwich. They provided me with a take-out container, which I promptly left on the table. The waitress nicely brought it out to me before we drove away.

I do love a Friday fish fry. It sets me up for the weekend. I look forward to returning to the Ilion Moose Lodge, possibly next week. They told me they are also open Good Friday, so if I don’t make it then, I’ll have another chance.

Fish fry is served from 4 to 7 p.m. Fridays at the Ilion Moose Lodge on Barringer Road. I highly recommend it.

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Valentine Dinner

Posted on February 18, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

Valentine’s Day I did not run, because I had it in mind to cook my hubby an excellent dinner.

We had some pork chops and some cream of mushroom soup we wanted to use up (for some reason we had gotten a big can; we used half when I got a yen for tuna noodle casserole). A lady at work told me how her mom used to cook pork chops with cream of mushroom soup. She’d brown the chops, add the soup, then lower the heat, cover and cook for an hour and a half. I had two hours between when I get home and when Steven was expected. I was gold, as long as I didn’t go running.

I did, however, take my dog, Tabby, for a walk. Well, one must walk one’s dog, after all. And if I was not going to run, my legs at least needed a walk. Sometimes Tabby only wants to go for a short walk. Lately she’s been into medium walks, about 20 to 25 minutes. Tuesday we went for a 35 minute walk. What can I say, the pooch was into it. No matter, dinner would just still be cooking when Steven got home.

I started by sauteing yellow onion in olive oil. I thought caramelized onions would taste yummy in the recipe (plus, caramelized is a fun word to say, although a little difficult to spell). Naturally I crushed some garlic to add as well, carefully letting it breathe for 15 minutes to reach its full level of health benefits (I tend to use garlic on all possible occasions). This took a while. I kept a nervous eye on the clock, wondering how long Steven would mind waiting for his dinner when he finally got home.

At last the onions were soft and some of them were brown. I put in the pork chops. Those took longer to brown than I had expected, but I suppose I had an exaggerated notion. At the last minute I remembered some fresh mushrooms we had and tossed those in. Finally I added the soup, stirred well, covered the pan and lowered the heat. Nothing to do now but wait!

Since the heat was lowered I felt safe in going upstairs to the computer room to make my blog post for the day. I still had not showered. Luckily my vision of the evening did not include greeting my husband at the door clean, nice smelling and in satin pajamas. My vision did include gracious table settings on the dining room table, which we hardly ever use. I was too tired.

In fact, I was too tired to do much else at all. By the time Steven got home I had put water on the stove to boil for the smashed potatoes. I asked him to cook the potatoes while I showered. He nicely did.

Dinner actually turned out pretty yummy. We consumed it, as usual, in the living room in front of the television (COPS followed by World’s Dumbest, if you wanted to know). So you might say I owe Steven a real romantic dinner, in which I cook all the courses and for which I set the dining room table. Don’t worry, though, I’ll be sure to blog about it when I do. A belated Happy Valentine’s Day, all.

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Fishy Friday

Posted on February 1, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

As we’ve been going to breakfast at the Elks Lodge on Sundays, we’ve noticed a sign for Fish Fry on Fridays. We love fish fry so decided to check it out.

Now last Friday, regular readers may recall, is the day I had my woozy experience after giving blood. I was feeling much better by the time I left work but still did not feel I should over-exert (like for example by cooking). Accordingly, when I got home I laid down on the couch and called my Mom to tell her about the whole sordid experience. It does not matter how old we get, some of us still like to talk to Mom when we are not feeling well.

I exerted myself to the extent of making coffee for when Steven got home. We had a cup together, which is our favorite way to drink coffee. I had not showered yet, because we had not made a definite plan to go out. I did not want to get dressed twice if I guessed wrong, and I was not into hanging out in my bathrobe till we decided.

We had a slight worry in that I could not remember if the sign said 4 to 7 or 4 to 8. We managed to leave the house by 6:20 so thought we’d be all right. Imagine our relief when we saw the sign said 5 to 9 (I think they changed it). They were doing a booming business. We had to wait while a gentleman cleaned off a table for two.

The menu offered several choices, not just fish. We both got fresh haddock baked with lemon pepper and white wine. We chose baked potato for our side. Steven got ranch dressing on his tossed salad while I asked for Italian. First I asked was it homemade Italian. I always feel a little bad asking; I can see a chef getting huffy and saying, “Of course it’s homemade!” But I like to be sure about these things. It was excellent Italian dressing.

The cooking is done by Dominick Scalise of Dominick’s Deli in Herkimer, NY (another place for Mohawk Valley Girl to check out). It was a delicious dinner. We will probably return to the Elks Lodge on Mary Street in Herkimer for future Friday night dining.

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Third Breakfast’s the Charm?

Posted on January 24, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

I threatened to write another blog post about the Lady Elks Sunday Breakfast if we went again, and naturally we went again.

Once again, the Lady Elks put on a breakfast on Sundays in January to support various projects for the year. Since I love community events and I love food, it is not surprising I would be there every week, schedule permitting, which it has so far.

I decided to mix things up a little: I got my eggs over medium instead of scrambled and said yes to pancakes. I also got whole wheat toast, bacon, baked beans and potatoes with onion, as I previously did. So Steven and I had identical breakfasts this week, aside from our juice (orange and tomato, respectively). Do I even have to mention we also had coffee? I thought not.

Once again Steven got his breakfast first. The ladies delivering the meals were not calling out the numbers this week, so I did not get the chance to laugh heartily as every number surrounding mine was called first. It wasn’t that long of a wait in any case.

I hadn’t had pancakes and eggs in a long time. It used to be a big favorite. Steven would even fix it for dinner sometimes. Too late I realized I should have asked them to bring me only one pancake. I felt bad to not eat everything I had asked for, but you can only stuff yourself so full.

“Are you not gong to finish that?” Steven asked.

“Do you want it?” Now I did not have to feel guilty. I only left some of the beans. I got up to search for some water to take ibuprofen, and when I got back to the table our plates were gone.

“The lady said if you weren’t finished, it was my fault,” Steven told me.

I made like I was going to pound on the table and holler, just to be silly. I guess they just would have told me it was Steven’s fault, or maybe gotten a big Elk to throw me out.

We left the breakfast and headed to the grocery store, for once doing what the magazine articles advise you to do and not shop on an empty stomach. Just to prove my contrary nature, it was not a successful trip. If I don’t shop at least a little hungry, I don’t buy enough food. But that’s a subject for another post.

In the meantime, local readers have one more Sunday to enjoy breakfast with the Lady Elks: January 29, 8 to 11 am, on Mary Street in Herkimer, NY. Hope to see you there.

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Easy Saturday Supper

Posted on January 23, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

Saturday I had planned to sensibly heat up leftovers for dinner, but when Steven got home after a hard day’s work and I made a tentative suggestion to send out for food, there was no turning back.

As usual with us, we were not sure right off the bat what we were in the mood for. Steven grabbed the folder full of menus from local eateries (yes, we finally learned to keep them all in one place). I was positive I had recently found one from Salvatore’s (when I was looking for something else, of course) and added it to the pile. Naturally it was not there. Naturally as soon as I thought of it, THAT was where I wanted to order from. My subsequent search was fruitless.

Regular readers know I am not very computer adept. However, I knew I had liked Salvatore’s on Facebook, because they post their specials every day (usually I see them after I have eaten and say damn!). I got on the computer. A few judicious clicks and I was on their website, http://www.salvatores-herkimer.com/.

We looked at hot subs as it was a cold night, and settled on Stefano’s Chicken (not sure who Stefano is, but apparently he makes a mean sub): chicken tenders, tomato, lettuce, bacon, American cheese and Honey BBQ Sauce. Steven suggested a large antipasto salad, which also sounded good.

They told him 30 to 40 minutes, and it was not nearly that long. I thought I had shut the inner door (we have a kind of an entryway), but of course had not so Tabby came out to greet the delivery guy. He did not mind; he said it happens all the time. Well, she’s a little dog and all she did was put her paws up on his legs in case he wanted to pet her. Her paws weren’t even wet because she’d been indoors. So you see.

The food was delicious. We polished off the sub but have some leftover salad, which I will no doubt enjoy this afternoon. Now I feel we must go to Salvatore’s and dine in, so I can pick up another menu (you can’t count of me finding the same thing on the computer twice). They are located at 650 1/2 W. German St., Herkimer, NY. Phone number is 315-866-2600.

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Chinese Food NOW

Posted on January 17, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

Saturday Steven and I spent the morning cleaning the house with the intention of rewarding ourselves with lunch out.

I did munch a little cottage cheese for breakfast — I don’t do well on a completely empty stomach — and soon realized I should have eaten a little more heartily. I was STARVING. I know, people in this country throw that word “starving” around like we know what it means, when, of course, most of us have never experienced that level of poverty. What I meant was I was dreadfully, uncomfortably hungry and I wanted food NOW.

What I really could have used was one of those Mexican restaurants where they bring you chips and salsa right away. In Georgia there were several of those, handily located. In the North Country we had the awesome Hotel Grande. Perhaps there is such an establishment in Utica. I’ll have to check around.

Be that as it may, I suggested our best bet was a buffet. Less waiting. We decided on the Main Moon Buffet, 40 Central Plaza, Ilion, NY (do I really need to put NY? I don’t know how many out of state readers I have).

Buffet is my favorite way to eat Chinese food, because you can try a little of everything. There are many good things to try at Main Moon. Two plates full — OK, one plate really full and one partial — and I still have not tried everything. We both left the restaurant quite full. Note to self: try not to eat so damn much next time.

Main Moon Buffet is open Monday through Thursday from 11 am to 10:30 pm, Friday and Saturday 11 am to 11:30 pm, and Sunday noon to 10 pm. For more information call 315-895-7404 or 315-895-7405. Take out is also available. Hmm, might keep me from eating too damn much, but then how could I try everything? It’s not easy being me.

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Breakfast with the Elks

Posted on January 10, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

I had been looking forward to breakfast at the Elks Lodge in Herkimer since I saw it in the paper over a week ago. Sunday morning we headed to Mary Street with good appetites.

For the month of January the Lady Elks are holding Sunday breakfasts to raise money for various service projects. You can’t go wrong: good breakfast, good cause. We’ve gone the last couple of years, when we see it in the paper and neither one of us has to work.

We walked in, and I paid our $16 ($8 for adults, $4 for children). We also got $5 of 50/50 tickets (10 for $5). I put $1 in the tip basket, but said I’d put in more if the service was good. I said it in an “I’m obviously kidding” voice, and the one of the ladies said $1 was fine.

At a table just inside the door, two ladies filled out our order tickets: mine was scrambled eggs, no pancakes, whole wheat toast, bacon, baked beans, potatoes with onions. Steven got the same, only he took the pancakes and had his eggs over medium. He even got the onions on his potatoes, which he had been undecided about when we left the house. I had never had baked beans for breakfast before the Elks. It’s yummy!

As soon as we sat down, man brought us coffee and a lady offered us tomato or orange juice (I got tomato; Steven got orange). The coffee man asked could he borrow our ketchup for another table and would we need it back. I said I might. I called to the lady at the other table she could just keep hold of it and I’d come get it when I needed it, but she said that was OK. She’d just make the man get it for her again.

We saw and exchanged greeting with a few people we knew — another reason I love these community breakfasts. I also enjoy watching interactions of the people working the breakfast with patrons they know.

“She’s a sweetheart. I hate to say it when she can hear me,” was my favorite overheard line.

When we left, Steven put $4 more in the tip basket. I had said we should put in $3 more, because $4 is typically what we tip a breakfast waitress or waiter, but I agreed with Steven that the extra dollar was appropriate.

The breakfasts are every Sunday in January. I told the ladies as we left we might be back next Sunday. They said they’d see us then.

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A Lovely Lunch

Posted on January 9, 2012 by mohawkvalleygirl

When I used to work retail hours, one of my most hated shifts was 1 to 9:30 p.m. See, I like to get up, go to work, then come home and enjoy myself and/or do something useful. Time before work is, to me, just more time to say, “Oh crap, I have to go to work.” I used to ease the pain sometimes by treating myself to lunch. I would often write a letter while I ate. So Saturday, when I had a letter to write, I thought I would treat myself to lunch and write it.

Steven was at work. I had a house to clean and a dog to walk. I had one errand to run and reason to move my truck out of the driveway. I got the dog walked. I stared at the dirty house. I remembered that I wanted to run to the bank and move my truck into the street. I thought about my earlier resolve to write a letter. Do you really need me to tell you the house is still dirty?

I ended up at Brian’s Roast Beef Deli, 122 N. Main St., Herkimer. When I sat down the waitress asked me if it was lunch for one or two.

“Just me today,” I said.

“But there’s usually two of you, right?”

“Yes, my hubby is usually with me, but he’s at work today.”

“See, I pay attention,” the waitress said. It was really pretty good of her, because it’s been a while since Steven and I ate there. Some of our local eateries have a very attentive wait staff.

I ordered garlic boneless chicken wings and a side of macaroni and cheese. Side, indeed! It was a great big bowl! Yummy! The wings came with celery and bleu cheese. It was a great lunch, and I brought home leftovers.

Of course I had brought my notebook (remember my resolve to write a letter?). It was open to the novel I’m working on. As I sat there I realized what should come next. In short, the letter is still not written but I got a whole page done on the novel. Woo hoo!

I did a couple of other things with my Saturday, one of which was a true Mohawk Valley Girl activity. But I enjoyed my lunch and thought I’d write about that. I was about to say “I thought I’d share,” but sorry, guys, those boneless wings and mac and cheese were mine!

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