One thing I love about this area are the wine and food
pairing dinners served at local restaurants here in the Finger Lakes. These
dinners are reasonably priced and make a meal into a divine experience. Next
week on June 18th through the 24th many of the local restaurants are taking
part in a week long gastronomic extravaganza of flavors. The unique concept of this restaurant week is
that the restaurants participating are using all local ingredients to prepare their
artful cuisine. This project is sponsored by Finger Lakes Wine Country and is
the brainchild of Morgan McLaughlin, their Director.
On the Cayuga Lake Wine Trail, 3 restaurants and their chefs
are taking part in this most impressive culinary endeavor. Chef John McNabb, of
Knapp Winery and Vineyard restaurant is well known in the area for his luncheon
menu but also his absolutely heavenly, exemplary titled, wine and food pairing
dinners. Recently I have had the fortunate experience of dining at the
restaurant for lunch for their well-known chipotle crab cake salad. Chef John is such a sweetheart and made an
appearance at our table to let us try something very unique and different, organic
corn shoots from Thunder Mountain, a local producer that taste bread and butter
corn on the cob that he’ll be using in his salads.
Lindsay Freeman from Crystal Lake Café located at Americana
Winery is another great chef full of mesmerizing food creations. One thing is for sure you will never leave hungry.
I have experienced their brunch menu on occasion and love their veggie omelets
made to perfection. On their lunch menu they’re offering a gorgonzola salad filled
with dried cranberries, candied walnuts and crispy shallots. They also topped this salad with one of my
favorites, sweet potato fries. A salad after my own heart.
If you love wood-fired pizza then the perfect place for you
is the Copper Oven at Cayuga Ridge Estate Winery. The chef there is Mary Jane
Challen-Kircher daughter of the owners Tom & Susie Challen. That girl has a
definite flair for the ultimate pizza mixings. I love her Figgy Piggy Pizza
made with homemade crème fraiche, topped with prosciutto, onion scapes from her
garden, parmesan cheese and local fig balsamic vinegar. Presently she’s offering a new Pizza titled
The Fun Guy Pie topped with you guessed it, local Shitake mushrooms. Last year
she hosted her first specialty wine and food pairing dinner and hope it’s not
the last.
Make sure to visit these three restaurants and the culinary
expertise of these three chefs next week for an edible burst of flavors that
you will never forget. Luncheon menus start at $25.00 and dinners start at
$30.00 with a flight of paired wines for an extra $15.00. Bon Appétit
and see you along the trail.
For more info check out Finger Lakes Wine Country RestaurantWeek.
Participating Cayuga Lake Wine Trail Restaurant Menus either linked or below.
The Copper Oven at Cayuga Ridge Estate Vineyards
The Copper Oven Prix-Fixe Lunch
100% Local Restaurant Week 2012
Tomato Lovin’
Roasted tomato soup
with Waid’s honey, thyme from the garden & balsamic reduction
Cayuga Ridge Estate Chancellor, NV
~
The Courgette Pizza
Crème fraiche, grated
green & yellow summer squash, chopped fresh basil, Lively Run Chevre &
a pinch of Seneca salt
Cayuga Ridge Estate 2008 Non-Oaked Chardonnay
OR
The Sunny Side Up
Pizza
Crème fraiche,
Autumn’s Harvest smoked sweet sausage, cheddar cheese, green onion scapes, topped
with a farm fresh egg
Cayuga Ridge Estate 2008 Chardonnay Select
~
Pudding Chomeur
Rich butter cake
swimming in a bath of maple cream
Cayuga Ridge Estate 2007 Orange Muscat
Sources
Countryside Produce,
Waid’s Apiary, Hillcrest Dairy, Black Cat Ventures, Lively Run Dairy, Autumn’s
Harvest Farm, Carlton Horvath, Seneca Salt and the Challen Family Garden
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