This time of year, it’s always a challenge to eat right, but Veggie Go-Go has you covered. Owners, Lynn and Gregg Miller’s restaurant, located on Route 9 in Wappingers, offers you a fast food option that is both nutritious and delicious. Inspired by other healthy quick-serve concepts that they saw while traveling, the couple decided to fill a void that was currently missing from the Hudson Valley food scene. Featuring a mostly vegetarian, menu the food is all natural with m

There’s a new restaurant in town. Papa Bear's Kitchen is the latest addition to the Den of Marbletown Steiff Teddy Bear Museum and Gift Shop Steve Ferri and his wife have been running for five years. It’s a full-service cafe in the historic Victorian farmhouse off Route 209, just outside of Kingston. The Den of Marbletown began operating as a combined Teddy Bear Museum and bed-and-breakfast in 2014. Over the years, it has evolved into a community hub for school field trips,

If you are looking for a great breakfast or lunch that is truly farm to table, Cafe Mio is the place. Most visits I am sharing the dining room with the local farmers who supply them with their ingredients. The restaurant is not big, only about 15 tables or so and the “bar” where you are practically sitting in the kitchen, is my favorite place to sit. From my bar stool I have a great view of the big baskets of local produce which not only look pretty but taste amazing too.

Peter Newman never really thought he’d be running Poughkeepsie’s iconic hot dog business, Noshi’s Coney Island. When asked by Hudson Valley EATS how he got into the hot dog business, he said “it was a quick surprise. It was for sale and I just happened to pop in, had lunch with my wife, sat here, made my observations.” “It’s small, it’s quaint, it’s me, it’s personalized.” Like many restaurateurs, his introduction to the business was as a dishwasher when he was 15. He’s got a

I have grown to appreciate and love dining out by myself. One random half day of work came along and I knew exactly where I was headed for lunch. The Table is a new American restaurant that has high end cuisine. It’s located in the Mid Hudson Valley region, right in the heart of the Village of Montgomery, within walking distance of the other eateries, park, and shops. They feature brunch, lunch and dinner, as well as a showcase full of handmade pastries and chocolates. They e

Pies. Isn’t that the first thing that comes to mind when you’re a globe-trotting executive looking for a new career? Pies. It was one of the first things that came to Christopher Knable’s mind when he was far from home. In fact, he started baking pies overseas when he got homesick. He got such satisfaction from baking pies and such a good reception for them that he decided to start his own bakery when he came back state-side. That morphed into Pieconic, his bakery and Main St

There’s always something pleasurable about watching someone really good at something doing that thing. Butcher, author and instructor Thomas Schneller is one of those people, and you’ll have the chance to watch him in action at the 4th annual Snout to Tail Event at Kesicke Farms in Red Hook. It’s a 2-Saturday event, March 17th and 24th from 9-3, put on by, and to benefit Slow Food Hudson Valley. The first Saturday, you’ll have a chance to watch Tom break down, or butcher a pi

The Apple Pie Bakery Café was always one my favorites at the Culinary Institute of America or CIA as it’s affectionately known in these parts. I wasn’t the only one, and recently they decided to close for a few months to renovate the space. Luckily, during that time, croissants, bread and pastries were still available to take out, so life could go on. Now, there’s a whole separate area for take-out, with grab-and-go sandwiches, perfect pastries, breads and more. It’s probably

Poll any weekender turned local about what they miss from the big city and the answers will be pretty similar. Walking instead of driving. Easy access to cultural events. Ethnic food. When I heard there was a new noodle place—Yum Yum Noodle Bar in Red Hook, I jumped at the chance to check it out. It’s the latest in a mini-chain that started in 2010 in Woodstock, added a Kingston location and jumped across the river to land on the corner of Routes 9 and 199 in Red Hook. The me

The True Meaning of Comfort Food Some foods are comfort foods for different reasons. The Latin dish of roast pork, rice and beans is one, and when you get it from JJ's2Go in the Poughkeepsie Plaza, sometimes it truly is food that comforts. Tucked away in a corner of the mall, you’ll find Josephine Quiles ready to dish up breakfast or lunch. JJ's2Go has a simple menu, roast pork, pork chops or chicken stew with rice, a daily special, a few varieties of empanadas and fried plan

Everyone should have a place like Jeanie Beans in their neighborhood. A casual place where you can always grab some lunch to go, or catch up with friends at one of the charming mismatched tables. The food is always good and the welcome is warm. They’ve aimed and succeeded in making it a spot for locals. Michael Korda said in his book about the area, Country Matters, that the best place to run into a missing-in-action contractor was the local Dunkin Donuts, but these days I’d

NEW YORK-PRESBYTERIAN HUDSON VALLEY HOSPITAL WEAVES TOGETHER COOKING, WELLNESS AND EDUCATION I think it would be great fun to chop onions with my cardiologist, or sauté vegetables next to my gastroenterologist! This is now possible with new “Physician in the Kitchen” classes that are featured among a variety of classes at NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital’s Chef Peter X. Kelly Teaching Kitchen. Through NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital’s Harvest for Health

Have you been looking for an unpretentious place with really good food and good people? Then you need to head over to County Fare in Wappingers Falls. --a gastropub with a bar and grill feel and a menu focused on great ingredients with options for all. It’s been almost a year now since, owners Adam Lauricella, his wife Keely and Branden McAlpine opened up County Fare in the space previously occupied by the Quiet Man Pub. The menu has plenty to choose from including their cust

You would have to be living under a rock for the last 10 years if you have not heard of the farm-to-table movement, but John Lekic, owner of Le Express Bistro & Bar, is taking this concept to a whole new level. Lekic’s menu at Le Express has always been centered around a vast majority of the ingredients being sourced from local farms and food producers, but Lekic is looking at the bigger picture and he is on a mission to help put the Hudson Valley on the map for food, wine a