Hudson Valley Restaurant Week: Get your seat at the table

The Hudson Valley, home of the legendary Culinary Institute of America (called the Harvard of cooking schools), is a prime destination for people who love good food. Those of us who are lucky enough to live here are able to enjoy the valley’s bounty year-round at its farm markets, artisanal shops, wineries, bistros and fine restaurants.

One special opportunity for residents and visitors alike is Hudson Valley Restaurant Week. This year, the event will take place November 4-17, 2013. Held twice a year, in spring and fall, the “week” actually runs for two weeks.

Some 180 restaurants over the seven counties in the Valley on both sides of the Hudson River will be participating, offering three-course price-fixed dinners for $29.95 and lunches for $20.95 (excluding beverage, tip and tax). It’s a great opportunity for both residents and visitors to try new restaurants or revisit favorites.

Here is the list of participating restaurants that can be sorted by town, county and type of cuisine. Many of them are conveniently reached from New York City via the Metro-North railroad.

The driving force and founder behind this event has been Janet Crawshaw, editor of the quarterly magazine, The Valley Table. In 1996, she and Jerry Novesky took an eight-month sabbatical, traveling 35,000 miles across the country seeking authentic American experiences. They discovered that local farms, bakeries, fish markets, wineries and breweries are key to understanding the country’s distinct regions and returned home with a mission to awaken the region’s food consciousness.

Restaurant weeks are an increasingly popular across the country because they fill empty restaurant seats during off-hours by offering great price incentives for diners. To find out whether a restaurant week will be taking place in your hometown, Google the “name of city” and “restaurant week”.

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A few tips to get the biggest bang for your buck during restaurant week:

• Because tables fill quickly, find out which restaurants are participating and make reservations early. You can often book reservations online through Open Table.

• Do some legwork before you make reservations. Using whatever restaurant rating system you prefer (e.g. Yelp, MenuPages, Chowhound Google or Zagat)—or relying on your own network of friends and family—check out the restaurant(s) you are considering to see if they suit your tastes.

• Read the fine print. The availability of the fixed price menus varies by restaurant and certain meals or days (e.g. Saturday nights) may be excluded.

• Extend your comfort zone by trying more than one restaurant. You may find a new-to-you type of cuisine to enjoy.

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For additional information, see: HudsonValleyRestaurantWeek.com

 

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Other posts on the Hudson Valley on More Time to Travel:

• Farm-to-Table Sunday Brunch at Blue Hill at Stone Barns
• The Diamond Mills Hotel & Tavern: A Room With A View

This post is part of a LinkUp at Marcia Maynes Inside Journeys.