Day 9
Gab
Tonight’s resting point is Saratoga Springs, New York home of “health, history and horses.” The racetrack is closed this time of year and we weren’t visiting the world famous Spa so our visit consisted of walks up and down historic Main Street, a stay at a Victorian Bed and Breakfast, good meals and friendly conversation with the locals. A thoroughly pleasant experience.
The Brunswick Bed and Breakfast is a quick 10 minute walk from the center of town, across the street from the Saratoga Springs Racetrack and a block away from the National Museum of Racing. We were greeted at the door by the owner Kirk and his toy poodle Java and given our choice of rooms for the evening. We chose a large bright room on the second floor, complete with private bath, cable TV and a wireless internet connection. Not too shabby!
The house itself is a lovely Victorian Gothic building built in 1886 with 10 guest rooms. It’s not as large as some of the other B&B’s that line Union Street. Everything about it is cozy and inviting – from the furnished porch to the sitting room with complimentary local papers and magazines to the guest kitchen, stocked with free popcorn, VHS movie selection and Saratoga Spring Water in the fridge. Kirk told us that the same people stay with him year after year, especially during the racing season, which is August plus the last week in July and first week in September. “It’s like a family.”
Kirk was on his way out for the night so he recommended his neighbor, the Springwater Bistro, as a place for dinner. Monday night is Tapas Night and Kirk assured us it was the place to be. Kirk then left to prepare for his own evening’s engagement, the Benefit for the Ballet, a gala event to raise money to keep the ballet at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center.
Our stomachs were growling, but we decided to take a quick walk around town before settling down for dinner at the Springwater. After a few strolls down the wide, tree-lined Broadway, we had a seat at the bar at the Saratoga Brew Pub. I think it was the NCAA women’s basketball tournament on TV that started the conversation, but before I knew it, we were chatting away with the bartender Vinnie and a regular customer named John. Michael was bemoaning the treatment first seeded Penn State had received; having to play lower ranked UConn in Connecticut. He found an ally in Vinnie, who had spent a few years as a Penn State student. Both John and Vinnie gave us props for our plans and were genuinely interested in where we’d been and where we were going. John, a traveling salesman, shared travel tips and we tipped him off to one of our new favorite websites www.gasbuddy.com. Vinnie was most impressed that not only had we both maintained our fantasy basketball teams, but both Mr. and Mrs. Seed capturing 2 of the first 4 places in our league. “Man!” Vinnie said, “I would totally go cross country for two years if I knew I could manage my fantasy leagues!” If we didn’t have dinner reservations, we could have stayed and talked for at least a few more hours, especially since the large wooden bar was very comfortable and pints of their microbrews were only $3.25.
The Saratoga Brew Pub is two stories tall. The oval shaped bar is the centerpiece. Wooden booths with tall backs (my favorite) outline the first floor. The second floor is a balconied seating area which encircles the bar, leaving it open in the middle. Our favorite offering was also Saratoga’s newest addition to the menu, the Chocolate Brown Stout. Smoother than their Mile and a Quarter Porter, the stout had just enough chocolate to make it distinct, not so much to make it sweet or syrupy. I’m not sure I could have drunk more than one a night. It did stop my hunger pangs until dinner.
We said our goodbyes and briskly walked back up Union Street, hoping to make it back to the Springwater Bistro in time for our 7:30 reservations. There was a lively crowd both in the bar and dining room when we arrived, feeling a little underdressed since several people had clearly attended the Benefit Gala earlier in the evening and were still sporting their evening dresses and dinner jackets. As Kirk had promised, it was the place to be. And although we are months away from the racing season, talk of horses, jockeys, stables and trainers filled the air.
Michael and I were escorted past the crowds and into the quieter, less lively, back room. Michael believes this was because we weren’t part of the local crowd. I prefer to think we arrived a little late and our original table was given away. Either way, we were seated at a nicely lit, not uncomfortable table.
Scrolling down the tapas menu for the evening was like viewing a wish list. I wanted everything. This is no exaggeration. Not limiting itself to traditional Mediterranean dishes, the menu offered tastes of designer pastas, thin and crispy pizzas, satays with peanut sauce and a decent selection of miniature salads, all at pretty affordable prices. Being tapas, one could easily regulate how much or how little one wanted to spend. Michael and I finally settled on white bean hummous with grilled flat bread, bacon wrapped bison mignons and veal enchiladas with green chili salsa verde and kept a menu at the table in case we wanted to add to that selection later.
The fresh rolls and lemon aioli that we were downing with rapid speed were savory, but after 15 minutes, we started to wonder where our hummous had gotten to. Was it so difficult to bring out a side of dip and some chips? The waiter apologized and said he was still waiting for the chef to complete it. ??? When the dish arrived a few minutes later, we felt a bit foolish. What we had ordered did not consist of chips and dip – it was a freshly prepared, hot from the oven, flatbread, spread with the white bean pate and drizzled with olive oil, black olives and mint leaves. It was delicious and worth the wait.
The rest of our order quickly appeared. Three 2-inch veal enchiladas were served in a pool of salsa verde, sprinkled with queso blanco. The bison mignon was about as big as a very large scallop. Portions were small but enough for both of us to get some good bites out of the dishes.
Springwater Bistro can be proud of their sauce chef. The salsa verde definitely had a bite, but wasn’t overpowering; a fine line to walk when dealing with hot peppers. The demi-glace that the bison mignon rested in was rich and subtle. Thank goodness we had a second basket of rolls. Once again, Michael and I were members of the clean plate club.
We had already decided against dessert since the couple next to us had been waiting for theirs for well over 30 minutes. The trio of crème brulees was tempting; the $8 price tag was a little steep.
We came to the conclusion that there may have been someone new in the kitchen last night since we noticed wait staff apologizing for longer than usual waits for dishes. Tapas are tricky, especially since most of them were made to order. One thing that did not suffer was the sauces. And the friendly atmosphere more than made up for the wait.