Whole Foods announced in its quarterly report today that it will be opening a store in Closter, NJ. That will be closer to many Rocklanders than the current Edgewater or White Plains locations. I have an e-mail in to spokesman Fred Shank to find out more details, like the exact address and when it will open.

Also, according to Whole Foods spokesman Fred Shank, the Yonkers store will be open in late 2009.

The location is in Ridge Hill, off Interstate 87. It is a new street and the address has not been issued yet. The store will be 63,000 square feet and will open in late 2009.

Citrus Grille on May 20th at 7pm. Chef-owner Steve Christianson will be serving 5 courses, paired with the wines of the Brancott Vineyards.

It’s $70 per person. Reservations necessary @ 845 352-5533.

There’s a wine dinner La Bocca at 7 p.m. May 21. For $100, you’ll get six courses paired with wines from the Pertinace Winery in Piedmont.

A reader wrote to ask for a romantic restaurant either in the Rivertowns or the Sound Shore or halfway between both. Buffet de la Gare in Hastings was similar to what the reader was looking for, but it wasn’t open late enough for this particular date. After the jump, my suggestions. And I’m looking for your thoughts, too…. Read more of this entry »

From a press release:

“Taste and Tour Yonkers”
Event to Benefit the Food Bank for Westchester

Yonkers, NY, May 13, 2008… 66main on the Yonkers waterfront (an area recently dubbed “SoYo”) will sponsor “Taste and Tour Yonkers” Tuesday, May 20 from 6:00 – 8:00 pm in the event space at 66main, capturing the culinary cachet of the area in an event to benefit the Food Bank for Westchester.  Read more of this entry »

I’ve got the goods on the new drink at BHSB: Lovage Martini. That’s lov-AGE to you, darlink.

Recipe after the jump.

From Lisa Schwartz’s newsletter:
Dan Leader, founder and baker, Bread Alone. After his classic bread book, Dan has come out with Local Breads, a compendium of some of Europe’s best artisinal breads. Also hot off the press is his new Panini book!

Dan is offering a very special day at Rainbeau Ridge on May 28 — sign up for any or all!  All proceeds will be donated to the South African Development Fund.

From a press release:

“Attendees at the Community Wine Tasting, Tuesday, May 13th from 7:30 – 9:00 PM, sponsored by Young Israel of New Rochelle (www.yinr.org), will learn more about the new vintages in Kosher wines while expanding their circle of friends within the Jewish community,” said Evan Jerome, the event planner.

From a press release:

New Rochelle, NY – (May 6, 2008) –  United Hebrew Geriatric Center (UHGC), a multi-service senior living campus in New Rochelle, NY, today announced that its Fifth Annual Chef’s Tasting will take place at Willow Towers, 355 Pelham Road, New Rochelle and will benefit the UGC Foundation of UHGC.

The Chef’s Tasting will take place on Thursday, May 29 from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. and will feature samplings from Westchester’s finest restaurants, including Anna Maria’s (Larchmont); Grill Point Kosher, Little Mexican Café, MacMenamin’s Grill, Mamma Francesca, Rangoli and The Sterling Inn (all of New Rochelle); Yvonne’s Southern Cuisine (Pelham); Zitoune (Mamaroneck); and Asian Temptation, Tango Grill, The Melting Pot and Mulino’s of Westchester (all of White Plains). Wine Bazaar of New Rochelle will sponsor a wine tasting.

Some conversation starters:

Dan Barber’s Op-Ed on small farms. (NY Times.)

Adam Platt on the Hudson Valley food with Italian influences at Olana in the city. (NY mag.)

A blog I just discovered over the weekend discusses Hudson Valley wines: The Wine Goddess.

(BTW, one of you sent me a link to your blog — I remember one post was about tipping in cash — and I accidentally deleted the e-mail. Please send again and I will add you to my blogroll.)

Other blogs on the blogroll include:

Westchester Magazine’s Eater

Hungry Travels

Cooking with Rinku

Explore and enjoy! And let me know if I’m missing any good local links.

My colleague Ernie Garcia thinks it’s a strange practice to drive from the burbs to Harlem for groceries, but we know better, don’t we?

Here’s the link: Fairway coming to Pelham Manor.

On Friday, May 16, a dozen chefs will offer samples at the Westchester Arts Council’s annual ArtsBash party.

Guests can tour the Arts Exchange building, visit artists’ studios, taste food, and see the exhibit, “Local Growing Conditions.”

 Like sliders? Next Saturday there’s a grand opening party for the new AJ’s Burgers & America’s Favorite Foods, a new restaurant on North Avenue in New Ro. Half the proceeds will benefit the New Rochelle Fund for Educational Excellence, which provides enrichment programs for the city’s public schools.

 The view from Elements, which opened recently on Mamaroneck Avenue. It might well be the only rooftop bar in the Lower Hudson Valley. Also, after the jump, new restaurants on Main Street and a visit to Peniche for the much-sought-after pata negra.

Newspaper in Education
Gift Certificate Sale
$50 Restaurant Gift Certificates for $40
(While Supplies last)
All proceeds benefit K-12 newspaper-based education programs in Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam Counties
Call Pat Graff (914) 694-5211 (M-F, 9 am- 5pm)
Visit LoHud.com/NIE to find out more ways to help Newspaper In Education.

Participating restaurants afer the jump.

On May 15, Via Quadronno will open for breakfast, lunch and dinner at the corner of Main Street and Renaissance Square.

After yesterday’s story about blogging grandmother Mariann Raftery, several of you were asking for her recipe for eggplant meatballs.

“Basically, to get my kids to eat more vegetables,” she e-mails later. “I make eggplant balls by peeling, cubing eggplant and boiling it, then squeeze out all the water, to make meatballs without the meat, and called them eggplant meatballs, because my kids thought they were meatballs at first. We fry or bake – frying is better – and serve with homemade spaghetti sauce for dipping. They never make it to the table.”

After the jump — the recipe.

From my colleague, Ernie Garcia:

PELHAM MANOR ‹ The specialty foods supermarket Fairway will open a branch at a Boston Post Road shopping in 2009. Howie Glickberg, owner of Fairway, said this morning that he expects to open in a 75,000-square-foot location formerly occupied by K-Mart in mid- to late-2009.

According to this story in the Pelham Weekly and this post on Chowhound, the grocery store Fairway will be opening a branch at Post Road Plaza in Pelham Manor. The store will be 75,000 square feet and open next year near the interesection of Pelham Parkway, Boston Post Road and the Hutch.
Reporter Ernie Garcia is working on a story for tomorrow’s paper. Would anyone like to comment — good or bad? Comment below or email Ernie at egarcia@lohud.com.

Kwan Thai
Wine tasting
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
6:30 pm
$45.00 + tax and tip

Press release after the jump.

From a press release:

What: A talk by Maryanne Hedrick, who created www.mypersonalfarmers.com,  a web market that gives people in the Lower Hudson Valley better access to locally produced foods.

We’ve asked readers to nominate their favorite home cooks. Here’s a link to the profile on our first, a blogging grandmother from Scarsdale.

If you have a favorite home cook, let me know about it in the comments field!

Michael Giannone opened Bella Ella’s Pizzeria in Croton Falls last week. He named it after him mom.

A Taste of Nyack will be held on June 10. Sample the food at more than a dozen restaurants and end the evening with dessert. Info to follow: Read more of this entry »

Here’s the latest, from Beth Weiss of Co Communications, who is handling the PR.  It’s a gourmet shop and a restaurant. More info after the jump.

As I announced a few weeks ago, Romolo’s celebrated its anniversary with a free buffet. Here are some snaps that owner Vinny Vasti’s dad sent me, after the jump.

This in from Judith Hausman:
Adair Vineyards (52 Allhusen Rd. New Paltz 845-255-1377 www.adairwine.com) produces all its wines from estate-grown and local grapes. Mark Stopkie acquired the winery in 1997 and tends ten acres of vines with the Shawangunk Mountains rising behind them. But the really intriguing products are Adair’s dessert wines, made with peaches and berries. The 2006 Kir Rouge mixes wine made from Dechaunac grapes and blackberry wine for a cocktail effect. The 2007 Peche, 100% peaches, is not cloying or syrupy; in fact, it’s almost refreshing and intensely peach. The 2007 Black Currant, made from 100% local black currants is easy to imagine mixed with champagne but also stands alone with tart integrity.

From the press release:

You simply don’t want to miss the 6th “John Carollo-Del Arte” Cooking Class and Fun Evening June 10 to sponsor the now infamous BREST BUDDIES” team to in the  2 day-24 mile  NYC “AVON WALK FOR BREAST CANCER”

More info after the jump.