Celebrate the Culinary Riches of the Hudson Valley
March's Hudson Valley Restaurant Week is a great excuse for a mid-week getaway! Enjoy extraordinary cuisine at very affordable prices. Many excellent Dutchess County restaurants will offer terrific deals on lunches and dinners from Monday - Thursday, March 9 – 21 only.
Some restaurants require reservations, so be sure to call ahead. Are you an American Express card member? If so, from January 2 through February 17 American Express card members are able to make reservations for the event prior to the general public!
Participating restaurants offer either a three-course lunch for $16.09 or a three-course dinner for $26.09. Some of these fine restaurants include Aroma Osteria (Wappingers Falls), Le Chambord (Hopewell Junction), Shadows on the Hudson (Poughkeepsie), Sabroso (Rhinebeck). There are 12 participating restaurants in Dutchess. The cuisines they represent include Mexican, Italian, American, French and even Thai. For a complete list of regional restaurants and more information visit
www.HudsonValleyRestaurantWeek.com
.
The Culinary Institute of America: Themed Meals and Fine Dining for Less
The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) is serving up the antidote to winter with their 2008 Dining Series. This popular series offers themed luncheon and dinner events to warm you throughout the winter months. The dining series event features a prixe-fixed menu that has been chosen carefully to maximize your dining experience.
The Culinary’s Winter Dining Series runs through the end of March 2008. However, with the great food and fun themed meals, these exclusive events draw a great many customers. It is necessary to book reservations for your favorite event so that you do not miss out on all the fun and superb food. Some of the enjoyable upcoming themes include Culinary Tour de France lunch, The Great Southwest, Champagne Immersion, Chocolate Lover’s Lunch, and many more. For a complete listing of the 2008 dining series visit
www.ciachef.edu/restaurants/events
.
Now you can also explore the taste of this premier cooking school for less. The CIA is offering three-course prix fixe menus from now through April. Dinners are offered at the low price of $32 and lunch at $22.
The CIA’s prix fixe menus are offered at all four of their award-winning, student staffed restaurants found throughout the Hyde Park campus. You must get out there during the week, however, because this deal is only good from Monday through Thursday. To make your reservations for these events call 845-471-6608 or
www.CIAchef.edu
.
Make Free Art Exhibits a Winter Pastime
A great way to keep you busy on the blistering cold winter days is to visit the many art exhibits in our area. The best part about this winter activity is that the exhibits are free and open to the public! Dutchess County institutions of higher learning such as Marist College, Vassar College, Bard College, and Dutchess Community College all offer a wide variety of art exhibits throughout these winter months - indoors!
The Saul Steinberg: Illumination exhibition is concluding its national tour at the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar College now through the end of February. At Bard's CCS Hessel Museum, you can view contemporary pieces from over 60 artists, curated by graduate students. Marist's Steel Plant Studios is exhibiting pieces from famous artist Carole Robb, and Dutchess Community College is presenting student art at the Mildred I. Washington Gallery. For more information on these exhibits call: Vassar College 845-437-5632, Marist College 845-575-3174, Bard College 845-758-7598 and Dutchess Community College 845-431-8000 ext. 3982. |
Show your Love with these Special Valentine’s Day Packages
Make this Valentine’s Day a memorable one for you and your loved one. Plan a romantic getaway with your sweetheart this year. Hotels in the area are offering some great deals to make that special day full of love and romance.
Some of the special offers include; comedy shows, dinner for two, room specials, heart shaped Jacuzzi’s, complimentary champagne and chocolate, dancing and much more. Some of the participating hotels include Best Western (Poughkeepsie), Holiday Inn Fishkill, and The Poughkeepsie Grand Hotel. For more information on the participating hotels and their package deals see our
Valentines Day Spotlight
.
Burgundian Treats in Millbrook
The best of Burgundy lifestyle (Pinot Noir, aged cheese, and freshly hearty bread) is now available in Millbrook! Get out and enjoy some great tasting food and wine on the 3rd Sunday of every month beginning at 3pm.
The Oak Summit Vineyard in Millbrook’s is offering superb wine, cheese and hearty bread at each event. The Vineyard’s bottled Pinot Noir is refined with an elegant finesse and has been chosen Best Pinot Noir in the Hudson Valley. Sprout Creek Farm Creamery in Poughkeepsie offers Toussaint cheese, made from their own herd of Guernsey and Jersey cows and aged 8 weeks. Mario’s Bakery in Hopewell Junction delivers their fresh cracked wheat bastone, which is a great compliment to the fine wine and cheese. Savor these great tastes of the Hudson River Valley. The cost is $25 per person by reservation only. Call 845/677-9522 for availability.
www.oaksummitvineyard.com
Dancing, Theatre, and Jazz at the Bardavon
Enjoy a number of great plays, music and dance at the historic Bardavon Opera 1869 House. Bring your children, friends or loved one for a truly memorable evening at one of these exceptional upcoming shows.
Poughkeepsie's Bardavon offers must-see artists throughout the winter months. On Sunday, February 10, bring your family to Addy: An American Girl Story. If you enjoy dance, see the masters at work when the Trinity Irish Dance Company frolics their way into the Opera House on Friday, February 15. Mid-winter blues? Try the Robert Cray Band on Saturday, February 23. Take pleasure in a little jazz with a special someone on Friday, March 7, when Chick Corea and Gary Burton join together for their 35th anniversary of their groundbreaking concert. Try a little southern fried rock with Dickey Betts and Great Southern on May 4. For more Bardavon events and ticket information visit
www.Bardavon.org
or call 845-473-4259, or any TicketMaster outlet.
Staatsburgh State Historic Site Open This Winter
Staatsburgh, a New York State Historic Site located in Mills-Norrie State Park, is an elegant example of the great estates built by America's financial and industrial leaders during the Gilded Age.
Regular tours of the mansion are offered this winter for the first time. Guided tours are offered on Saturdays and Sundays from11am-4pm. Tours are given every half hour, with the last one of the day at 3:30 pm. Tickets are $5, $4 senior citizens, students, and groups. Children 12 and under are admitted free.
A 25-room Greek Revival structure was built in 1832 by Morgan Lewis and his wife, Gertrude Livingston, and was inherited by Ruth Livingston Mills, wife of financier and philanthropist Ogden Mills. In 1895, Mr. and Mrs. Mills commissioned the prestigious architectural firm of McKim, Mead and White to enlarge their Staatsburg home. After completion in 1896, it was transformed into a Beaux-Arts mansion of 65 rooms and 14 bathrooms. In 1938, the house and 192 acres were given to the State of New York by their daughter, Gladys Mills Phipps. Call 845/889-8851 or
www.Staatsburgh.org
. |
