Oh hello Nick Kroll ...
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"A little bit of summer is what the whole year is all about," — John Mayer
I love Nick Kroll. Not just because he's super creative and funny and did a great job opening up conversations about the hardships of adolescence in his animated Netflix show "Big Mouth," (and also made me laugh in "Oh, Hello"), but because the Rye native (and prolific actor/comedian) often references his childhood growing up in Rye.
The fact that he was spotted in Peekskill recently — at the neighborhood fave Peekskill Coffee — at the same time I published a coffee story just made me happy. Coffee shops are the best. In rain, sleet, snow (all of which are coming, hate to tell you; read our Farmer's Almanac story here) and sunshine, they warm up you with either hot or cold drinks, camaraderie or solitude.
If you have a celeb sighting, reach out and let us know.
Loving summer
With summer waning, I'm all about outdoor dining. I love the patios at Laughing Horse Coffee in Harrison and Bobo's in Chappaqua where I can type away with an iced latte and enjoy the sunshine while I work. Waterfront, shaded terrace, sidewalk seating, twinkling lit tent? I'll take it. Having a birthday in summer (yes I just celebrated!) means I'm a warm weather gal so I'm frankly not looking forward to sweater weather, and that dreaded winter forecast referenced above.
Which is why, when I hear the weather report for the week, I plot out where I'm going to eat next.
There are SOO many new restaurants coming so I'm busy working on my usual "what's new" lists in Rockland and Westchester. If you have any leads, pass them on. Fall always feel like a "reset" so I'm excited to fill you in (shout out to The Pie Man in Valley Cottage, which opened Aug. 9 and Horseman's Bagels in Sleepy Hollow hoping to open by the end of this month).
I also had fun finding new food trucks — that's another category that continues to explode. It seems the minute I write about one, I hear of another. Case in point: The Bubbly Pony Mobile Bar, a Putnam County-based mobile bar which launched in February and serves proscecco, rosé, white wine, beer and specialty cocktails along with non-alcoholic options such as lemonade and sparkling water. And yes, they travel throughout the Hudson Valley. I also just discovered (after my deadline) XOLO, which debuted in July and provides plant-based Mexican food. Owner Carlos Alonso can usually be found at the Bronxville, Pelham, Chappaqua and Hastings farmers markets. The next one is Saturday in Bronxville or Sunday the 21st in Pelham.
Food fest time
Fall is also the 10-year anniversary of the Greenwich Wine & Food Festival which this year, for the first time, takes place (at least part of it) at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester where many acclaimed area chefs will be serving traditional NOLA eats. There will also be local craft brews, wine and iconic Bourbon Street cocktails as well as music from Dumpstaphunk, Big Head Todd and the Monsters and Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue. Legendary chef and restaurateur Dickie Brennan will serve as Master of Ceremonies. The event is Oct. 1 and tickets are on sale now.
Best Bites
Nutella croissant and latte at State of the Art in Harrison. This coffee shop, featuring pastries from Balthazar Bakery in the City, opened about eight months ago and so far, had escaped my radar screen. I'm astonished by the list of new coffee shops that have opened in the past two years. I also just found out about Matters Coffee in Croton-on-Hudson. That will be next on my list.
Tomahawk steak at Hudson Prime Steakhouse in Irvington. Aside from having delicious cuts of steak — Gino Uli buys prime cuts from the Hunts Point Meat Market in the Bronx, then dry-ages them in-house in 800°F infrared broiler — the restaurant has a sizeable outdoor patio complete with gorgeous sunset views. The restaurant also has a wine selection featuring 2,600 bottles from around the world.
Charcuterie platter (including white cheddar, shaved parmesan, burrata with sundried tomatoes and herb-infused olive oil, pistachios, thin mint chocolate pretzels, dried apricots, champagne grapes, calamata olives, gherkin pickles, prosciutto and peppered salami to name a few) from Mixed by Nic. In doing my charcuterie research, it only seemed fitting to eat one. It helped that during that time period our lohud_food Instagram page hit 35K. Knowing Nicolette Addorisio Fleming is big on creating words out of cheese, I asked her to do a board celebrating this milestone. You can see from the smile on my face that I enjoyed it. I also shared it with my office.
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Jeanne Muchnick covers food and dining. Click here for her most recent articles and follow her latest dining adventures on Instagram @lohud_food or via the lohudfood newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: I'm always in coffee shops: How did I miss Nick Kroll?
