Red Hat on the Hudson, Irvington

For my birthday, I wanted to go to Red Hat on Hudson. I noticed the signs for the bistro when we went to Chutney Masala, just across the street (kinda), and looked online and their menu appealed to me.

Some of the reviews were out of date, and one can only deduce that they were written when the bistro first opened up and was trying to get its footing. The husband was reluctant to go, thinking our enjoyment was not a sure thing; I, however, held out hope.

Location: Nice location, making use of a former industrial building. Beautiful view of the Hudson River. We opted to eat inside, as it was a warm evening. We sat upstairs at a table which overlooked the main floor. This gave my impression of THIS TABLE as a mezzanine seat in a theater. I had a great view of everything.

Nice Touch: We happened to be there on an evening when they had live jazz performers. There was a trio, a guitarist, a key boardist, and a bassist. Lovely touch for a birthday evening.

Service: Attentive and solicitious (but not overly so), and food was slow to arrive at the table. Granted, we've traveled abroad and have experienced the "snail like pace" of dinner at restaurants in Barcelona (wait from 1-2 hours before food ever arrives at the table), and though the food WAS slow to arrive, it wasn't a prolonged wait of 1-2 hours! We were hungry, damnit!

Dinner: Mind you, this is being pecked out nearly a month after the fact (I've been on vacation, real, mental, and otherwise), so forgive if I've overlooked a few items. I recall the husband having the soup of the day (perhaps a gazpacho), and I opted for a salad on the specials which was a Panzanilla of local grown tomatoes and goat cheese. He opted for a loin of pork w/swiss chard and I believe polenta which was supposed to contain some jalapeno (tho such a light hand you really could not detect), and I had the Spice Crusted Crescent Duck Breast (on the regular menus) which ame with sauteed Swiss chard, sauce poivrade and rhubarb-cherry chutney. And lastly dessert for my birthday consisted of the Coconut Milk Brioche Bread Pudding with cashew praline, mango sorbet.

Overall first impression: Enjoyable. Nice for a special occasion. Classy without being pretentious. Nice take on a French bistro. Good food, romantic vibe, nice location, great music, good service. I would like to go back and try a steak and frites, the backbone of bistro menus.

Complaint: I thought the pricing was higher than other eateries in the Westchester area. The food was great, though, I can't justify the high price for everything we had. Will this prohibit me from returning? Not likely; however, it will relegate its status (in MY mind, and for me personally) as a place to go for special occasions, and not for my semi-monthly dining out rotation of places I dine at habitually.

I look forward to returning there!

Haiku, White Plains

Just a quickie post devoted to my first visit to Haiku, located along Mamaroneck Avenue, in downtown White Plains.

Overall first impression: Great location. It's occupying the same space that Acapulco Mexican restaurant once did. Convenient location for plenty of foot traffic for the many folks who work for the state and county offices right here in White Plains.

Where we ate: Me and my lunch companion did not eat-in; we opted for take out. So we availed ourselves of the lounge area off to the right of the entryway. Everything is ultra modern and comfortable, and I can easily see being unable to get inside on a Friday or Saturday night. The bar area sports several big screen TVs, and in the lounge there's an LED type screen of bamboo which streams out the name of the bistro, in an artistic fashion. Comfortable seating in the lounge, to boot, too.

Service: The hostess was attentive and took our orders without hesitation.

Cost: Haiku offers several delicious lunch offerings which are pretty reasonable, ranging from $7.25 to $10.95. Chinese, Thai, and Malaysian food are all represented on the lunch special menu, and the lunch specials all include a choice of rice, and soup or salad. Affordable enough to become a regular haunt.

Eaten: My friend opted just for some shrimp shumai (which were delicious, but nothing "out-of-the-ordinary" as far as special. It was your basic shrimp shumai. I ordered up the Szechuan Crispy Shredded Dried Beef lunch special, which I got with brown rice, and wonton soup. The soup was good, if not basic, though the broth was not overly salted dishwater broth; it was light and pleasant with some greens I suspect were baby spinach in it, and two tasty wontons. The crispy shredded dried beef was just that. It was not dripping in sauce, but the strips of beef were fried to a crisp, tossed with some mildly sweet sauce and served w/a sprig of cilantro and some shredded mango. Both my friend and I agreed this was worth a return trip back just to get this dish again.

Portion size: As the Szechuan crispy shredded dried beef lunch special was $8.25, I found it to be a bargain. With the soup and the rice, it turned out to be quite filling, and I've saved half of it for lunch tomorrow. All I need is more soup, and I've got another full hot lunch!

Suggestion: Serve this dish with a small wedge of lime. While the dish wasn't overly sweet, the lime can really do wonders with perking up the mango shreds and bring a new layer to the dish. It'd be nice to have the option of lime.

I am already planning a return trip back there. What do I get? Do I get the tempura appetizer of battered shrimp and veggies with an order of miso soup? Or do I opt for the crispy calamari salad with a few pieces of sashimi or sushi to start (scanning menu... sea urchin! my favorite!)? Or do I go in another direction entirely and opt for the Malaysian style red curry with jumbo shrimp?

Result: I can't wait to go again, I'm checking off my take out menu of all the things I want to try next.

Thanks for a great lunch!

Chutney Masala, Irvington

Just a quickie post devoted to my first visit to Chutney Masala, which is along the waterfront in Irvington.

Overall first impression: Great location. Nice building. Great environ. Close to the water, but not RIGHT on the water (as my previously blogged about Xaviar's X2O is). But close enough to get that vibe. Down by the water, warehouses are being repurposed into retail spots and restaurants. I wish I could find a condo nearby to settle into. It's an ideal location for a walker (or in my case, a walker who wishes to walk more).

Note: We had difficulty finding the restaurant. So those intending on enjoying Chutney Masala who are not familiar with Irvington should make note that when you follow Main Street down to the crossroad of Astor, make a right on Astor (this apparently is West Main Street). Go up over an overpass, and follow down. The restaurant will be on your right after about 50 yards or so.

Where we ate: Main dining room downstairs. Very clean, very nicely decorated. Plenty of visual eye candy, pictures, good color on the walls, and comfortable seating; yet nothing was over the "over-the-top-typical-Hindustani-kitsch." Sure there were old timey photos dating back nearly a hundred years, of men in turbans in front of buildings or driving sporty coupes of the day. But lacking were the over-done paintings and prints of women in saris or representations of Hindu deities or religious sagas. The place was nearly sequin and spangle-free.

Service: Attentive without being obtrusive.

Cost: Roughly $17 per person for brunch. Affordable enough to become a regular haunt.

Eaten: The buffet featured the expected butter chicken and channa masala, and a lamb curry. But what we went there for was to experience the Chettinad style fish curry. We were happy that there was a red cabbage dish on the menu, a thuial, or some-such; a simple subzhi (veggie stir fry) with toasted split channa, coconut, and cabbage being the main features. I was very happy with this and the bread. The lamb curry was pleasant.

Note: For dishes which could have been a bit more "garam" or spicy-hot (the channa masala; and especially the Chettinad style fish curry) things fell a bit flat. Rather than opting for something closer to an authentic taste, the cook dumbed down the flavor for the American palate. This is unfortunate, but did not completely mar our experience. The naans were fluffy and pleasant, and the behl puri (an Indian chaat containing chopped tomato, onion, cilantro, chile, tamarind chutney and puffed rice crisps and sev crispies, was very fresh, very authentic, and very enjoyable.

We shared dessert of gujar halwah (carrot halwa) and gulab jamum (little fried dough balls made of milk powder, served in a sweet rosewater and cardamom syrup). Both were delicious.

Result: I would like to go back and try to order off the menu next time, and be able to request the spicing to be "authentic." I look forward to my next trip there!

Xaviar's X2O, Yonkers

Just a quickie post devoted to my first visit to Xaviar's X2O, which is along the Yonkers waterfront.

Overall first impression: Great location. Nice building. Great environ.

Where we ate: Main dining room. Reminded me of the grand dining rooms you see on cruise ships. To date, I've been on three cruises (all three, different lines) and this room reminded me of the dining experiences I've had on board. The dining room has great river views and the building is on a pier, jutting into the river.

Service: Exceptional. I wish I took down the names of who waited on us. They kept the mimosas flowing and took very good care of us.

Cost: $38 per person for brunch. Pricey? Yes. However, I've eaten brunch at the Bellagio and the Venetian in Las Vegas, and those were on par, price wise, and quality wise, with Xaviars X2O.

Eaten: The husband had a asparagus and shrimp tempura starter and the pork loin entree w/swiss chard and polenta. The polenta was supposed to have jalapeno in it, however, when we tasted it, it didn't even have a hint of chile pepper in it. I ordered up the seafood bisque (which was lovely), and the garganelli w/rock shrimp and broccoli rabe/rapini in a light tomato cream sauce. Lovely meal.

Portion Size: Healthy without being heavy-handed. Enough to eat until sated, but not so much to be wasteful.

Special Feature/Note: In addition to the bottomless mimosas and bread assortment (highly recommend the pumpkin bread!), is the fact that the waiters come around with "tasting" portions of about four or five other items being offered. The day we were there, the "tasters" were: mushroom ravioli, lamb chop, coconut shrimp. I don't remember what else was offered. It was all truly delicious.

We ordered desserts. The husband had the Belgian Chocolate Dome, and I opted for the Warm Chocolate Souffle Cake. Both were lovely, inundating us with chocolate in different forms.

What I was surprised by: Mr. Kelly, to my knowledge, is not Asian; however, the few Asian items we enjoyed (tempura, mushroom ravioli--really seemed more like mushroom gyoza, and coconut shrimp) seemed to be executed with good intent. I look forward to trying out more Asian items the next time I visit.

What I regret: That I did not try out one of Mr. Kelly's steaks (though I don't recall if there was one on the brunch menu). I look forward to coming back and trying out more of the menu options.

Result: Definitely will be back!