Happy 2015! We're a bit late jumping on this bandwagon but looking over this past year's food shots made us drool all over again. We named Tara Kitchen's Lamb Tagine our favorite local food of 2014 on All Over Albany but couldn't resist reminiscing over these wonderful bites too:
Sweet Sue's Breakfast Pasta: As if breakfast pizza wasn't amazing enough, we've found a new brunch favorite in this wonderful carb-filled bowl of fresh pappardelle with smoky bacon, earthy portabella mushrooms, spinach, and tomatoes all topped with cheese and a perfectly poached egg. The moment that velvety egg yolk breaks and coats those beautiful strands of pasta is magical. Once you twirl a forkful into your mouth, you'll want to shovel the rest.
DeFazio's Linguini with Clam Sauce: 2014 was the year of tasty carbs. DeFazio's is well-known for its pizza, winning the 2014 All Over Albany Tournament of Pizza Championship. But it was the pasta that left a memorable impression. Made in-house and from scratch, this pasta doesn't get any fresher or better, except maybe with some tomato sauce and a few shakes of freshly-grated parmesan cheese.
Cider Belly Doughnuts: The classic cinnamon sugar doughnut topped FUSSYlittleBLOG's 2014 Tour de Donuts but it's the glazed ones that we can't get enough of. With rotating flavors like butter rum, apple cider glazed, and German chocolate among a slew of other unique flavors, you'll quickly find yourself filling up an order for a dozen or two. It's not easy picking a favorite but the coffee-flavored ones are stellar. The Stacks Caffeinator Belly was an extra special pick-me-up treat; made with Stacks espresso and glazed with coffee, it was the ultimate jolt of flavor.
Casa Dominica Cuban Sandwich: J's been obsessed with cubanos ever since watching Chef The Movie. Casa Dominica makes a mean pernil, translating to a juicy and flavorful Cuban sandwich. Yes it's a Dominican restaurant but the roast pork is key to this dish. One bite of this sandwich is an explosion of flavors. It's pork on pork action with shredded pernil and slices of salty ham; the combination of meat with melted swiss cheese, zip of mustard, and briny pickles blows any other ham and cheese sandwich out of the water. As an added bonus, you'll even find bits of crispy pork rind throughout each bite adding extra texture and flavor.
Council Rock Brewery Burger: More 607 than 518 but Council Rock Brewery in Cooperstown churns out good beer and good food. This hands down was the best burger of 2014: maple-glazed angus, topped with brie, pickled green tomatoes, on a pretzel bun. It's a lot of unorthodox ingredients but they all complement each other very well creating a satisfying salty and sweet flavor combo. Sadly it's not on the regular menu.
More Top Bites:
+ Top Bites of 2013
Everyone has a weakness. A certain place that, no matter what, they
can't think a bad thing about. I'm afraid the Council Rock Brewery in
Cooperstown is falling fast into that status to me. No matter how long
it's been, no matter what mood I'm in or even my opinions about how the
food and beer could be improved, I have never left there unhappy. I
think it says something that we have made the 1.5 hour trip multiple times
primarily to stop there.
There's a refreshing
honesty to the food and beer there. In an age where the push is to
culinary innovation and gastrology, it seems like simple done well
doesn't get the attention it deserves. Though the menu is pretty simple
it is also executed very well with large portion sizes and surprisingly
flavorful sides. You'll find standards like BBQ Pulled Pork simmered in their Brown Ale and Pastrami on marbled rye. But you'll also find some unique twists like Grilled Spicy Andouille Sausage with Gorgonzola Ranch Coleslaw.
Our favorite are the garlic pesto
fries. Small shoestring fries cooked crispy but not overdone, tossed in
an amazing pesto and sprinkled liberally with slices of garlic and served with chipotle aioli. As
much as we enjoy the rest, these fries are the reason we can't take a
daytrip to Cooperstown without stopping at Council Rock.
So
much for the food, but the reason you go to a brewery is for the beer,
right? Once more Council Rock's product stands proudly alongside any in
the area. I've found that a lot of larger microbreweries seem to stick
to an identity to the exclusion of producing a great drink: Shipyard uses a lot of English hops, Ommegang aggressively spices their drinks,
etc. Council Rock's identity, if it has one, tastes like balance. The
malt and hops are strong enough to be distinctive without drowning each
other out, resulting in a surprising complexity for such relatively
simple, honest brews. The Friends and Neighbors Pale Ale is my favorite of the
bunch, but even the ones I don't like are all an interesting take on
their style.
In spite of its small size and unassuming look, Council Rock is one of my favorite upstate spots for food and beer.
With old-timers' day and the induction ceremony coming up, if you're on
your way down to Cooperstown I would absolutely recommend a stop.
After all, baseball is much better with good food and beer.
