After much talk and delayed action, GritsGirl, Frito (our fearless chihuahua) and I finally found some time to embark on a very busy day of upstate NY culture. With zipcar firmly on the pavement, we headed north to Storm King to take in the vast expanse of the largest sculpture "garden" (500 acres), I've ever seen...
Then, we headed back across the Hudson to check out Dia: Beacon (a little underwhelming compared to Storm King, but a much better option in the case of rainy days).
After that, we were off to Pocantico Hills to meet our friends Juice (my co-conspirator for all things sushi - the guy introduced me to sawani at Yasuda - i must give him credit) and Nicole at Blue Hill at Stone Barns. GritsGirl and I had one of our first dates at Blue Hill in NYC and had a wonderful meal, so we were looking forward to the Barn experience. Needless to say, it didn't disappoint (except for the fact that the sommelier was not single and therefore Nicole could not set him up with her friend).
Not surprisingly, we opted for the Farmer's Feast, the longer of the two tasting menus, and we were off...
The details...
 |
| A little ambience... |
 |
| Amuse Bouche (#1) - V8, straight from their garden to a glass |
 |
| Amuse Bouche (#2) - Vegetables on a Fence (fresh from the garden fancy crudite without the onion dip) |
 |
| Amuse #3 - Zucchini with pancetta and sesame seedds |
 |
| Amuse #4 - Tomato Burgers (no meat, just tomato) - my favorite bouche! |
 |
| Cucumber Soup with Tomato Tarte |
 |
| Summer Salad with strawberries, beets, greenhouse greens |
 |
| Wild Striped Bass with pistou of summer vegetables |
 |
| This Morning's Farm Egg with pinenuts and peas |
 |
| Pastured Chicken with zucchini, chickpeas, and tarragon |
 |
| Stone Barns Berkshire Pig with eggplant puree |
 |
| Dessert #1 - strawberry shortcake with marscapone and meringue spears |
 |
| Dessert #2 - An apple berry crumble of sorts... |
Unfortunately, the Cheese Course was largely devoured while i spent some quality time with Frito during a thunderstorm.
Delicious! Return visit during farm operating hours is a must so we can hang out with the chickens and pick veggies in the garden!
