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Sea Smoke Waterfront Grill, Troy, NY
Article by Ilona Weisman, Vice Chargée de Presse
Photos by William Harris, Bailli

Ask Maître Rôtisseur Jamie Ortiz why he named his stylish new restaurant Sea Smoke, and he’ll tell you he was transfixed by mists rising from the Hudson River at dawn. Once the head corporate chef with Mazzone Hospitality, Ortiz has since taken over all but the catering business from his former employer.  Ortiz’s latest project—Sea Smoke Waterfront Grill in Troy, New York—is ...

Siro’s Restaurantt, Saratoga Springs, NY
Article by Ilona Weisman, Vice Chargée de Presse
Photos by William Harris, Bailli

When Saratoga Racecourse opened in 1864 it was a scene of gentility. Women wore hats with ribbon streamers, dresses with pagoda sleeves, hoops and crinolines swayed beneath wide skirts. Menswear featured plaid trousers sometimes in garish colors owing to the invention of aniline dyes ten years before, and frock coats had given way to the new, less fitted sack jacket. Straw boaters and ...

Professionals Dinner at PDT Market, Saratoga Springs, NY
Article by Ilona Weisman, Chargée de Presse
Photos by William Harris, Bailli

PDT Market in Saratoga Springs is Disneyland for devotees of the culinary arts. No wonder then that on Sunday, June 25^th Albany Bailli William Harris gathered the chapter’s professional members at PDT to show his appreciation for their unique contributions to the bailliage.

From its gelato pod machine (read it and weep, Nespresso) to a machine that vends champagne splits (when fed ...

Ghosts and Gourmets at Beardslee Castle
Article by Ilona Weisman, Vice Chargée de Presse
Photos by William Harris, Bailli

Beardslee Castle in Little Falls, New York is the most haunted place in the state. Ever the intrepid band, the Albany Chaîne bussed 70 miles to the restaurant on May 21^st for dinner with a theme—Forage, Funghi & Fire—hosted by professional member and chef/owner Randall Brown.  Armed with a degree in Computer Science, Chef Brown marched off to join the fine dining ...

Albany Chaîne Dine-Around at Le Quai Bistrot Française
April 17, 2023
Article by Vice Chargée de Presse Ilona Weisman
Photos by Bailli William Harris

Hélas!  The lament echoes through the Albany Chaîne des Rôtisseurs. Where have all the traditional French restaurants gone?  No more Provence, no more L’Auberge. Closed are the Chez’s, both René and Nous.  But 10 miles north of Albany in the sleepy village of Waterford, New York, a jaunty newcomer serves up what Capital Region gastronomes have longed ...

Mondiale Dinner at the Scarlet Knife
March 26, 2023
Article by Ilona Weisman, Vice Chargée de Presse
Photos by William M. Harris, Bailli

When the Albany Chaîne met in March for the first Mondiale since Covid, the subject was Priorat—those berry-rich Spanish wines from the stony, terraced vineyards of Catalonia. The site was Scarlet Knife, an exciting new restaurant in Latham, New York, the magnum opus of brothers-in-law James Warren and Executive Chef Paul Dimm. With the debut of Scarlet Knife ...

March 5, 2023
“Gastronomic Mastery on Glass Lake”
Tighe’s Bistro Americain, Averill Park
Article by Ilona Weisman, Vice Chargée de Presse
Photos by Bailli William Harris

Once upon a time there was a chef and a bartender. For 11 years the chef demonstrated a passion for global flavors at his gastropub, New World Bistro, while the bartender was a popular fixture behind the New World bar. But the bartender loved French cuisine and dreamed of having his own restaurant. That long ...

January 31, 2023
“The Albany Chaîne Celebrates the Year of the Rabbit at Ala Shanghai”
Ala Shanghai, Latham, NY
Article by Ilona Weisman, Vice Chargée de Presse
Photos by Bailli William Harris and Vice Chargée de Médias Sociaux Christina Richards

For the year of the Water Rabbit, the Albany Chaîne embraced the spirit of red. There were red blouses and dresses, red shirts, even red wraps as members turned out in force for a Dine-Around on January 31^st to celebrate Chinese ...

January 15, 2023
“Albany Chaîne at the Wishing Well”
The Wishing Well Restaurant
Article by Ilona Weisman, Vice Chargée de Presse
Photos by Bailli William Harris, Chargée de Presse Ilona Weisman, Vice Chancelier-Argentier Holly Katz and Vice Chargée de Médias Sociaux Christina Richards

In civilizations long vanished it was thought that powerful spirits with miraculous powers dwelled deep in the waters of streams and wells. In Norse mythology the god Odin sacrificed his left eye to Mimir’s well in exchange for ...

November 6, 2022
“Albany ChaÎne to Farm-And Then-To Table”
The Dancing Ewe
Article by Ilona Weisman, Vice Chargée de Presse
Photos by Bailli William Harris, Chargée de Presse Ilona Weisman, Vice Chancelier-Argentier Holly Katz and Vice Chargée de Médias Sociaux Christina Richards

In gowns, tuxedoes and ribbons, the Albany ChaÎne disembarked their chartered bus, found themselves surrounded by farm fields and greeted by the sounds of baa-aaa-aa-aah.  It was November 6th, unusually mild and humid for the time of year in ...