The menu is all over the map, with ridiculous Wild n Crazy names to attract your attention. Can they really be good at so many things?

From Mexico you can have an “Authentic” ‘Botana Casa Mexican Sampler’ with chorizo queso stuffed mushrooms, potato taquitos and carne nachos. I’ve never seen a mushroom or a potato in any of my travels in Mexico, and nachos are an American invention. Not that there’s anything wrong with serving this, but it’s not “Authentic” Mexican. You can also get ‘Slammin Shrimp Chimmichanga’ (sic).

From the South they offer ‘Cajun Grilled Chicken & Lobster Claw’ and ‘Cajun Ahi Tuna “Rare”‘. It’s on the menu, not a special. Are they really getting tuna, fresh enough to serve rare, delivered every day? In Amsterdam?

They’re doing Japanese. ‘Hibatchi (sic) Steak & Lobster’.

From the Mediterranean they’ve got ‘Tuscan Chicken Cordon Bleu’, ‘Loaded Chicken Alfredo’ and ‘Classic Rustic Bruschetta’.

They’re a steak house. Burgers (‘Dirty Love Burger’, ‘Smash Burger Americano’ among others), steaks, prime rib (smoked), roast beef.

From China they offer ‘Chinese Seafood Rangoons’, ‘Crispy Singapore Sticky Wings’ and ‘Red Jade Almond Chicken’. Did a Chinaman ever actually eat anything like this?

They’ve got seafood. Lobster, ‘Bourbon Glazed Salmon’, ‘Shellfish Scampi ala Charlie’ and ‘Deadliest Catch King Crablegs’.

Vegetarian too. ‘Tres Tostada Grande’.

You can even mix and match your cuisines. ‘Mojito Chicken Oscar’ and ‘Daves Grilled Chicken and Four Cheese Penne’.

Plus, sandwiches, soups, pizza, chicken…

Is there anything they don’t do? Thank God there’s no curry. Oh! heaven help me! I may have just given them another idea!

The food seems to be competently prepared, but I wish they would figure out what they like, and what they want to do. And ditch the TV inspired ‘Deadliest’ entree names.

Prices are moderate to spendy (for the area). Sandwiches and burgers are $8 to $11. Entrees start at $11 for Chicken Tenders, with some of the beef and seafood going into the twenties. There’s a nice bar, and beer on tap.

They have a lock on the uber-pretty teen and twenty-something waitresses. If you want to have Ruby Tuesday’s without actually going there, this is your place.

Charlies Restaurant
4465 State Highway 30
Amsterdam, NY 12010
518-842-7399

www.charliesrestaurant30.com
bob@charliesrestaurant30.com

Map

While their food wasn’t always perfect, it was good diner food, and I could tell that they were there because they wanted to be. I hope they will take away fond memories of people’s pleasantly full bellies, as I will mine.

My first review

My second review

Upstreet Cafe has been around for about a year now and I’ve had a few occasions to visit since my first review. They seem to be sticking it out, and locals do know about this place.

I recently had a French Onion Soup (undercooked onions), and a Breakfast Pile (undercooked, oversalted potatoes). There, I’m done with that (but explanations to come).

The soup was good. I didn’t detect any bouillon flavor, but rather a nice broth. The soup was topped with bread and cheese, which had clearly been run under a broiler, nicely toasted. And it was good cheese. The onions were a bit too al dente, should have been in the saute pan a bit longer before being introduced to the broth, a bit more “melty”. All that being said, this was a great soup for a diner.

The Breakfast Pile is home fries, pork (choice of bacon or sausage), gravy and eggs, stacked bottom to top, in that order. Yes, the potatoes had too much texture, and to my taste were too salty, although others’ might differ. A common thing that’s done with potatoes is to par-cook a batch of them and hold them, tossing a serving onto the grill as needed (dear reader, this is not necessarily a bad thing with potatoes, which unlike some foods, can handle this rough treatment). If this is the method at Upstreet, they need a bit more pretreatment, and a quick bite of a piece prior to serving would help determine doneness. All this being said, they were not so disagreeable as to spoil my meal, which I enjoyed. I opted for the sausage patties which were good, not overcooked as is not uncommon. Furthermore, since I mentioned it in my first review of Upstreet, the portion sizing for the “Pile” was plenty to fill my belly.

A basic test of elementary cooking skill is the chicken egg. I ordered my eggs sunny side up, pretty much the most difficult presentation. The eggs were perfect. They could not have been improved upon by a Cordon Bleu chef. They were tender, whites cooked through, with runny yolks. Perfect.

Upstreet Cafe will continue to be for me, an occasional lunch stop. I’m bumping them up a notch on my recommendations.

UpStreet Cafe
26 Main Street
Fultonville, NY 12072
518-853-4837

Map

There are couches and soft chairs to sit in, as well as a couple of tables in booth-type arrangement, and a small counter with stools. During my visit there was one fellow serving and cooking for the whole place. He still had time to chat with his customers and explain the menu to me.

I opted for the Polish Sampler which comes with Golumbki, Pierogi and rye bread. For a couple of extra bucks he added Kielbasa and Kapusta. I also had a cup of the house coffee. They don’t make their own golumbkis and pierogis, but all the food was good, in diner fashion. It wouldn’t win any epicurian awards, but you needn’t be embarrassed to bring your uncle for lunch. The coffee was far better than average for this type of a place. They apparently grind their own, and if you’re into it they have a variety of flavors as well. My cup was strong and tasty with only a slight off flavor, kind of burnt.

They offer some baked goods, a small section of dry staples and there’s a little deli section from which you can purchase cheeses, meats, pierogi and what-not. They’ll also make you a sandwich if you wish. There’s homemade soup on every day. It’s breakfast and lunch only as they close at 2PM. They’re closed on Tuesdays.

G.W.I.B. Coffee House
207 Church Street
Amsterdam, NY 12010
518-843-6700

sue@gwibch.com
www.gwibch.com

Map

This review will be short and quick.

For lunch I ordered a fish sandwich. Two small pieces of breaded, fried fish came on a better than average roll. The fish pieces were small, not covering the surface of the roll, and leaving me with some fishless bites. It also came with a slice of american cheese, the presliced kind. Get this; the edges of the cheese were dried out and curling up, like it’d been sitting on the counter or in the fridge, uncovered, for hours. I put the cheese aside.

Actually, where I put the cheese was on my water glass, ’cause I wasn’t going to drink more than my first foul sip. The water they served was regular Fonda water and if you’ve ever had the misfortune of drinking Fonda water you know it tastes like it comes from the river. Frankly I probably couldn’t have told the difference between river water and what was in my glass. I commented to my waitress about it and she said they know it’s bad and offered me bottled water.

Now this boggles my mind. What possesses a restaurant to serve water that they know tastes bad? And if they’re willing to serve it you’ve got to realize that they’re cooking with it too!

The bad sandwich might be a one-time mistake, but until I hear through the grapevine that they’ve installed a water filter, I recommend that you give Winner’s Circle a wide berth.

Winner’s Circle
3293 State Highway 5
Fonda, NY 12068
518-853-3094

Map

Upon entering, the first thing I noticed was the smell. Not nice. Old, rank, unclean. Like the uncared-for house, on the other side of town, that’s been for sale, empty and unsold, for the last five years.

We were served small bread rings, about two inches in diameter, seasoned with fennel or caraway seeds. They had a slightly stale taste to them like maybe the oil used was old, perhaps even a bit rancid. Or maybe they were two days old. This was accompanied by a plate of fresh veggies; sliced carrots, radishes, celery and scallions.

I ordered the Braciole from the “specials” list. This was a rolled pork, not stuffed, but rather with herbs in the interstitial space. It came with gnocchi in a light tomato based sauce. The pork was dryish, maybe over-cooked. The gnocchi were hard starch pellets.

My lady companion’s choice was veal in a cream sauce with mashed potatoes. The veal tasted slightly of flour, which suggests that it was dusted with flour but not really sauteed, before the sauce was introduced. The mashed potatoes were almost watery, and the butter used in them had an off flavor, like old refrigerator.

My biggest disappointment was the wine. I had brought my own bottle which they refused to allow me to serve. Now, at the risk of being pedantic, let me explain how this works. Commonly what’s done, when one wants to bring their own wine, is that the restaurant charges a corking fee. They provide the glasses, corkscrew and wait-service and you pay them for the privilege of bringing your own bottle. This is typically ten-or-so dollars. Although I explained to our waiter that I was willing to pay for this privilege, I was told that it was against their policy. When one wasn’t forthcoming we asked for a wine list. We weren’t offered an opportunity to order from it, and it was eventually removed, leaving us drinkless. As we left I asked to speak with the manager about this who explained that he has to pay two thousand dollars a year for his liquor license and wouldn’t allow me to bring my own wine. When I pointed out that I had been willing to pay for the privilege he claimed no knowledge of this practice. Very strange for a self-proclaimed high-scale restaurant. But, as a friend later pointed out to me, this is Montgomery County.

One high note was my martini which was good, served with a sliver of lemon peel rather than the traditional olive.

Prices are in the medium to highish range with entrees in the mid-teens to low twenties (the lobsters are in the thirties range). My Braciole was $14. Our total for 4 was about $85.

Valentino’s has been around for years and has a good reputation among people that have been here for a while. I can only suspect that there are new owners that are riding on that older reputation. Based on my visit I won’t recommend them.

Valentino’s Restaurant
119 Riverview Drive
Amsterdam, NY 12010
518-843-0592

www.valentinosamsterdam.com

Map

It was an early Saturday afternoon and the house was pretty empty, and as there were a few people around the bar, I chose to sit there. After looking through the menu I asked for recommendations. Hot roast beef sandwich and turkey club didn’t sound too exciting, but the calamari sounded worth exploring. The gal behind the bar said they cut it and bread it themselves. Definitely sounding interesting. Looking through the salads they all seemed heavy with meats and cheeses. I asked if they could do something simple like a spinach salad and she said no problem. I ordered a summer ale from tap.

Shortly thereafter I was told that they didn’t have spinach, but they did have “spring mix” which does have spinach in it. This seemed odd; if they can put spinach in their spring mix, why not a plain spinach salad? The answer is of course that they must get their greens predone, in a bag. I accepted the spring mix.

My salad arrived, but it wasn’t the simple green that I expected. It included mixed greens, black olives, marinated red peppers and artichoke hearts. I guess someone didn’t know how to make a simple salad and had to follow one of the known recipes. One disappointment, the artichoke hearts were not very good, very little flavor, and what there was, wasn’t very good. Time to change brands. The salad dressing was the house honey-mustard vinaigrette.

While I was waiting I got to meet the owner. Antonella Cassella says she’s grown up in this restaurant for the last 25 years. I’d guess that would make her less than 5 years old when she got into the business. We had a nice conversation and I learned that she took over about 3 years ago. I have to say that she is one of most food-passionate restaurateurs that I have met in this area.

The calamari was fantastic. The breading was light and not overpowering. The meat was soft, tender and tasty. If I have one criticism it would be that they were a bit over-salted. Although it came with a marinara sauce I found I really liked it with some of my salad’s vinaigrette.

The tables at Nicolino’s are dressed in white with cloth napkins. The menu has a wide variety of upscale Italian and French offerings. The bar staff was friendly and chatty and I had a pleasant visit. Their prices are on the spendy side. My salad, calamari and two beers was $20 prior to tip.

Why do I only say a “cautious thumbs up”? Because I was there in the early/middle of the afternoon, sat at the bar and only had appetizers. However I wouldn’t hesitate to come back and try a sit-down dinner.

Nicolino’s
4515 State Highway 30
Amsterdam, NY 12010
518-842-4907

Map

Leave a comment or reply by clicking here.

Another apparent family affair, they are tucked into a small diner style place in the old section of Amsterdam. Like Upstreet Cafe, their kitchen work doesn’t show much evidence of professionalism, but who cares when the food is so good. When I arrived in the area the restaurant was easy to find, I just followed the aroma of barbecue smoke. Their cooker was going gangbusters at the north end of the building.

The menu consists of barbecued meats; beef, sausage and pork, and chili, plus a few odds and ends including home made potato salad, cole slaw and pies. They even say that the salads are made from local produce. The meats come either as a plate with salads, beans and bread, or as a sandwich.

I ordered the combination plate. They asked me if I wanted it mild, medium or hot. I asked for medium, but I have to say I’d be hard pressed to say that I detected any heat at all. If you like it hot you’d better order it hot. They had just run out of potato salad but offered to throw in a corn-on-the-cob instead (which isn’t even on the menu).

The meats were wonderful. Very smoky, yet moist but not wet, and I was extremely pleased that they were not drenched in the trite, wet sauce that is so common. The cole slaw was clearly home-made with a simple vinegar dressing; none of that goppy mayo dressing, very nice. The corn was good, very likely local, but just a tad over cooked for my palate. The bread is the soft, mushy variety, probably from Pepe’s.

Their hours are a bit complicated; Wednesdays lunch, Thursdays & Fridays lunch and supper, Saturdays supper, lunches being from 11:30 to 2PM and suppers being from 5 to 7PM, except Saturday 4 to 7PM. They’ve only been around since last October so they haven’t stood the test of time. I sure hope they can stick it out.

Texas Outlaw BAR-B-QUE will definitely get my repeat business.

Texas Outlaw BAR-B-QUE and Chili Parlor
2 Chuctanunda Road
Amsterdam, NY 12010
518-842-7723

Map (I prefer mapquest, but they can’t seem to tell the difference between street and road, so this link is to Yahoo maps. Yahoo is less precise; the restaurant is about mid-block, to the north of the cross hairs)

Leave a comment by clicking here.

I stopped by for an early dinner yesterday at around 4 PM. They were a little confused as to whether to give me the lunch or dinner menu, so I asked for both. The specials included a mixed seafood fry and a tomato-gorgonzola bisque.

I was already pretty sure, at least generally, what I was going to order, that being a hunk of beef. After all, this is basically a steak house. After looking over the menus I chose the Rib Eye Steak. I asked whether it would, to make sure that it didn’t, come smothered in a sauce. (Last year I ordered a beautiful porterhouse from a place in Lake George, asked for the sauce on the side, but neglected to say don’t smother it with cracked pepper.) She assured me it would come only with a pile of fried onions on it, which I could push aside. I also chose a baked potato. The waitress said that it came with bread and salad from their salad bar. The tomato-gorgonzola bisque sounded interesting so I took that as an appetizer. I also ordered a Bass ale which they have on tap, planning on ordering a glass of wine when the steak came. I ended up ordering the Woodbridge Cab which is a pretty standard low-end red wine in restaurants, but appeared to be the best they had by-the-glass.

Now we get to the problems and disappointments. First the problems. I went to build a small salad and found nothing that appeared appealing. The lettuce was wilting. Cucumber slices were erratically sliced, some an eighth of an inch thick and some as thick as an inch. They were all in a sorry state of repair, getting dried out and the thicker ones getting soggy in the middle. In other words rotting. Other veggies such as cauliflower and carrots were limp. Pickles were drying out. I managed to find a few pieces of lettuce and some whole small tomatoes that weren’t too bad. Nothing else looked edible.

Another problem. The waitress had brought butter to the table. It came in the one-serving pat-sized little plastic tubs with a foil lid. Typically when you open one you see the squirt pattern from the factory where they filled the tubs. Since I was working on bread as well as, later, a baked potato, I had occasion to open several. In about half of them the butter had previously melted and pooled on one side of the little tub. Now, this didn’t necessarily mean that the butter was bad, but for an expensive restaurant it’s extremely poor form.

The bread was available at the salad bar, self serve. They had both a dark and light, plus one that appeared to be a mix of the both. The dark bread appeared to be the light bread with coloring, as opposed to dark meal. I opted for the light bread which was good for appetizer bread, flavorful, soft in the middle with a bit of a crust. They also had a big slab of cheese which looked very interesting, but turned out to be flavorless. I was hoping for a hard cheese like a parmesan or asiago. I think it was jack.

The soup was hearty and thick, but I’d be hard pressed to call it a bisque. The predominate ingredient was tomato, I think in the form of whatever marinara sauce they use, and there was no detectable cream. The gorgonzola (or at least some kind of cheese, hard to tell) was there, but totally overwhelmed by the spices in the marinara. I would have eased off on the spice/tomato component and added some cream.

One last disappointment; when my steak arrived, the promised fried onion pile wasn’t in evidence. Does this mean the cook forgot it, or the waitress doesn’t know her menu?

Now, with problems and disappointments out of the way, I have to say the steak was wonderful. I ordered it rare and indeed it was, and they still managed to get a good char on the outside. The baked potato was good; cooked through, moist, with a crispy edible skin. The beer and wine were fine.

The pricing is expensive, at least for the area. The steak and potato were $27 and the total with soup, beer, wine, tax and tip was $50.

So, while the main course was great, until they can fix their quality control issues, particularly with the salad bar, I can’t recommend Raindancer Restaurant. At the prices they charge, everything should be perfect.

Raindancer Restaurant
4582 State Highway 30
Amsterdam, NY
518-842-2606

Map

Leave a comment

I’ve been looking for a butcher for some time and never knew this place existed. I heard about it from a foodie friend of mine and have since gotten very good reports about both their meat and prepared foods. I have been told that they have the best hamburgers in the area.

As the name implies, they have meat and cheese. Plus deli goods such as olives, oils, bread, and a small refrigerator section with milk, eggs and what-not. They also offer in-house made salads, sandwiches, wraps and burgers. They roast their own beef and turkey in a rotisserie that sits behind the counter. Thursdays and Fridays you can get barbecue which they do right in front. There are a few small tables, but you shouldn’t count on being able to sit down with a large family.

While I was there a customer came in asking for a particular cut of meat. The butcher came out a couple of minutes later to show the lady the meat and consult with her as to whether it was OK. He described his work and offered explanations of the cut. You won’t get that at the supermarket.

I ordered a Grilled Hot Pastrami sandwich which I took and ate at home. It was quite good with ample meat which had definitely seen the grill. The swiss cheese was melted and the sandwich it’s self grilled. The mustard was subtle and the sandwich was somewhat dry; I was tempted to put some mayo or something on it. All-in-all I liked it.

Probably the most exciting thing for me was to find loaves of real bread. All the bread I’ve found around here, up to this point, has been mushy, no-crust, white bread. Here I found Italian bread that requires chewing! A beautiful dark brown crust that doesn’t dimple when you push it. And it tastes great. It comes in a bag labeled Perreca’s Bakery, apparently out of Schenectady. Another place I’ll get to check out someday.

The prepared food prices are moderate, my Pastrami was $5.29 without a side. The cut meats are a bit more expensive than at the supermarkets, but you’re not paying for fat, they’re well trimmed.

It was a pleasure to find this place. Town & Country is going to be added to my list of weekly shopping stops.

Town & County Meat & Cheese Market
4755 St. Hwy 30 North
Amsterdam, NY 12010
518-842-2705

Map