Syracuse's finest restaurants

[sarashrugs]

Seems like in this NY forum all anyone mentions is NYC . Does anyone know of any great dining in other parts of New York State, especially the Syracuse area?

[GordonCooks]

Seems like in this NY forum all anyone mentions is NYC . Does anyone know of any great dining in other parts of New York State, especially the Syracuse area?

←

The Armory square has a few good places - now that I think about it - I haven't been to Syracuse in years - time for a road trip. I've been to Pastabilities, Lemon Grass, and a few others - can't give you any recent info though.

[lambretta76]

phaelon56?

What's good these days in the Salt City?

[plattetude]

I'm not Phaelon, but I've been to L'Adour a few times. Excellent bistro downstairs and more upscale French cuisine upstairs. Authentical French owners and operators.

Of course, there's always the Dinosaur, too.

Christopher

[phaelon56]

Area of the state outside NYC (e.g. the Capital District, Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, Finger Lakes etc.) do get discussed periodically but the volume of NYC related discussion pushes those threads off the active pages rapidly.

Syracuse has been discussed a few times in the hazy distant past but it's time for an update. Most of the old standbys are still there but we have some new additions and I've edited some of my comments on previous entries to this list:

Dinner:

UPSCALE

NEW Luna Park Grimaldi's - Tuscan Italian - one of only two places in Syracuse serving this cuisine style and it's very good. I've only been once and that was on their opening night but everything from the secondi of mezzaluna ravioli with handmade pasta to veal Osso Buco was on the money. I've heard many favorable reports in the several months since they've been open.

NEW La Cena - in Fayetteville about 15 minutes outside the city. Spanish, Mediterranean and Moroccan inspired menu. Strikingly beautiful decor, good service and (for this area) very inventive menu.

L'Adour - the only real French restaurant in town. Bistro menu downstairs (i.e. country French with entrées in the $16 - $22 range) and weekend nights upstairs is a tasting menu at about $60 - $80. Very good food with French owners and predominately French staff. They also have a fantastic breakfast that's very reasonably priced (about $10 per person with coffee)

bc - (lower case not a typo) opened last year by a local couple who worked FOH at Nobu and in the kitchen at Tribeca grill and Montrachet in NYC. Excellent food and service with relatively simple dishes and an emphasis on seafood. I had dinner there this week (smoked duck app, trout fillet with beurre blanc and wild rice entrée and peach Halette for dessert). Have now been three times and they've really hit their stride since opening last year - very good food and service.

Kettle Lakes Inn - down the road in Tully off Rte 81 (20 minute drive). Upscale contemporary with emphasis on seasonal local fresh produce. One of (possibly the only) local places to be involved in a CSA program.

Mirabeau Inn and Spa (in Skaneatles about 25 minutes outside the city) - highly rated - upscale big city style dining in a romantic country setting. Tasting menu's are at $55 and $80.

Phoebe's Garden Cafe - near SU but they might not be serving dinner on weekends during the summer. Tuscan inspired cuisine and very, very good but a somewhat causal atmopshere. They do have a less expensive "tavern menu" also.

CASUAL / ETHNIC

Eva's Polish restaurant - in Solvay. If you like Polish food it doesn't['t get any better unless you're cooking it at home and you're a better cook than Eva (and very few people are). They also have good European style (i.e. not sweet) desserts made in house. get the potato pancakes that have bacon and sauerkraut mixed into the batter and share some Bigosz (Hunter's Stew).

Alto Cinco - on Westcott Street. Mexican influenced tiny bistro but not a "Mexican restaurant" - great for weekend brunch and good for dinner - inexpensive but expect to wait for a table.

Dinosaur BBQ - blues/biker bar atmosphere with pretty BBQ, especially for the Northeast. Fun and moderately priced but swamped - expect to wait an hour or longer for a table but take-out is quick and efficient. I recommend the pulled pork and the Cajun style fried green tomatoes.

New Century Vietnamese - Kirkpatrick Street on the city's North side. As good or better than the best Vietnamese food I've had elsewhere in larger cities and they have the best cafe sua da (iced coffee with condensed milk) I've had anywhere.

Lemongrass Thai - in Armory Square - better atmosphere and easier access (i.e. less crowded) than Erewhan on Erie Blvd. but a trifle pricey for Thai food by Syracuse standards. int: thumb through the menu towards the back to find traditional and reasonably priced dishes - the "special" are pricey and all in the front section.

New and not open until around July 1st - Boom Boom Mexican and BBQ on Howlett Hill Road in Camillus - will offer decent chopped beef BBQ and what is likely to be by far the best Mexican food in this area.

Breakfast:

The Eggplant - midscale, very neat and clean with great basic breakfasts and some specialty items. Have the grilled sticky bun. 'Nuff said. Coffee is fair.

Mother's Cupboard - the archetype of greasy spoons - get a frittata but remember that it takes two people to eat one. But their coffee sucks.

Lunch:

Pastabilities - great fresh salad items and incredibly good bread (their bakery is right across the street). The specialty is fresh pasta - stick to the basics like Alfredo, pink tomato sauce or the spicy red sauce. Good for dinner but stick to the pasta dishes - their strength.

Blue Tusk - sandwiches and beer

Clark's Ale House - English style ales from local brewer Middle Ages plus the best roast beef sandwich you will ever eat. Anywhere. I am not kidding.

Possibilities that I have not tried:

Appetito's for Italian at Clinton Square

Ambrosia for sushi and fusion - in Armory Square

Kyoko for sushi - in Fayetteville - have always heard very good things

Kabuki for sushi and Japanese - in Skaneatles - lovely little space and I hear it's good

Dante's in Armory Square for Mediterranean food - they also offer Italian but the chef is from Spain and is said to make a mean paella

TO AVOID

Delmonico's Steakhouse, Daniella's Steakhouse, most area Italian restaurants other than Nestico's and Antonio's, Chinese in general except for China Road and China City, the Craftsman Inn

IN DECLINE or OVERRATED

Saratoga Steaks (I can confirm this based on a recent visit), Scotch 'n Sirloin, Sherwood Inn in Skaneatles

[GordonCooks]

Here's some discussion

[sarashrugs]

Thank's for the information.Do you know or have you heard anything about the Arad Evans Inn?

[phaelon56]

Actually I have heard that Arad Evans isgood - it's in Fayetteville about 1/2 mile from La Cena. Forgot to mention it - somehow it's just no on my radar but I've never heard any negatives apart from a service related issue but that was from many years ago.

Add to the list of "don't bother" a new place called Amore - in Fayetteville very close ot the other places I mentioned. Okay service but the food I had was really mediocre.

Another place I forgot that is in the "definitely don't waste your money" category is Pascale's (downtown Syracuse). I had a decent meal there (a bit pricey for what I received) several years ago but they've declined and I'll politely suggest that not all the entrees are made to order in-house if you get my drift.

[cbionic]

This thread seems a bit outdated. Anyone have anything new to add for Syracuse?

[phaelon56]

I finally tried Dante in Armory Square - found it to be underwhelming and others have reported similar experiences.

L'Adour is said by some discerning friends to be a bit spotty these days - not as consistent in food in service and seems to fluctuate in consistency greatly depending on who is in the kitchen (this is all second hand info).

"bc" in Armory Square continues to yield consistently excellent feedback from a variety fo my friends as does la cena.

Kettle Lakes has closed but KL owner/chef Brian Shore has returned to the Arad Evans Inn in Fayetteville to head up their food operation and feedback is very good.

The dining room at the Genesee Grande Hotel and also "Redfield's at the Marx" (in the Marx hotel - both places are on East Genesee Street not far from downtown) seem to get favorable feeedback but I've only been to breakfast at Redfield's - haven't had dinner at either place.

A very small Thai/Laotian/Cambodian place opened downtown near Clinton Square this year. It targets the lunch crowd but does stya open until 8 PM or so for dinner. Not much for atmosphere or ambiance. I should have tried a Cambodian dish - I ordered a Thai entree and found it underwhelming.

I wish there was more to report but this is an area still in the midst of population decline, stagnant or negative economic growth and rising cost of living. An aging population with increasingly less discretionary income spells major growth opportunities for chain restaurants in the suburbs. Moe's, Bonefish Grill, Smokey Bones... places like this are popping up in the eastern and Northern suburbs but not worth discussing.

And we still lack a good "authentic" Mexican restaurant. Alto Cinco, which I highly recommend and enjoy, is more of a Mexican influenced contemporary bistro and less a Mexcian restaurant in the genre some might be searching for. El Rincon, a small but highly regarded palce in Sodus NY, has opened a larger outpost in downtown Canandaigua. All we got in Syracuse this year is El Canelo, a mediocre western NY state chain and also a new/larger location for Jalapeno's - an existing Mexican place that I find to be far from satisfactory.

On the beverage front I'm happy to report that Syracuse will finally get a cafe offering cutting edge espresso drinks (no - not the folks I work for at present!). Cafe Kubal is slated to open on outer James STreet near Thompson Road sometime around Thanksgivng.

[MelissaH]

I'll second Owen's recommendation of El Rincon. My husband and I ate at the original in Sodus a couple of weeks ago, and it was excellent. From Oswego, it was about 45 minutes down route 104. (YMMV. )

MelissaH