Eathaca: Restaurants to Take the Rents To
By Jenn Li JGSM '10
Issue date: 5/1/09 Section: Features
As friends and family pour into Ithaca for graduation, it's time to put away the frozen burritos and packets of ramen. It's also time to remember that there are more options for dining out than CTB, Rulloff's or Apollo. Here is a guide on places to eat (on the parents' dime):
Moosewood Restaurant (215 N. Cayuga Street, Dewitt Building, Ithaca)
Housed in Dewitt Mall, a renovated historic brick school building near the Commons, Moosewood Restaurant is an Ithaca treasure. It is owned and operated by the 19 members of the Moosewood Collective, which is most famous for authoring eleven internationally acclaimed cookbooks. The restaurant has been using the freshest ingredients to make creative vegetarian meals since 1973. The wait for a table is usually long, unless you get there when it opens at 5:30. For those waiting for a table, the bar serves a well-concocted and innovative range of cocktails. All but one of the bartenders are friendly and accommodating. Each day's menu contains three vegetarian choices and one fish option. When visiting, be sure to save room for the alarmingly good desserts.
Hazelnut Kitchen (53 East Main Street, Trumansburg)
Located in the Village of Trumansburg, roughly 20 minutes away from Ithaca, Hazelnut Kitchen serves up delicious meals using ingredients local to the Finger Lakes region. The understated décor has a casual but chic quirkiness that made me miss large cities. The service was warm and attentive. And, the short ribs were so succulent the meat almost melted off the bone. The only detractor is that everything seemed to be slightly too salty. But the experience is well worth the (scenic) drive.
Willow (202 East Falls Street, Ithaca)
Just north of the Commons, Willow falls just short of greatness. It has a dignified interior and seems like the sort of place where aged professors dine. However, looking through the large windows, one might expect to see a lush field or a cliff falling away to rocky waters. Instead, one is disappointed to see the parking lot that Willow shares with Fall Creek Pictures. The meal itself followed a similar pattern. The extensive martini and mojito menu got the dinner off to a great start. The mussels came with a delightful mountain of watercress perched on top. The scallops on a bed of mashed potatoes were tender and delicious. However, this dining experience was marred by the untimely arrival of the check before the meal was finished. To compound matters, even though it was nowhere near closing time and there was no wait at the door, the waitress returned twice more to check on the bill while the diners were still eating. Unfortunately, this negative experience overshadowed the food.
Maxie's Supper Club and Oyster Bar (635 W. State Street, Ithaca)
From an imposing blue building on State Street, Maxie's brings a taste of N'Awlins to Ithaca with "soul-stirring" Cajun specials like jambalaya, gumbo, and blackened catfish creole. The shrimp & grits, a mouth-watering combination of shrimp with spicy Tasso sauce over yellow grits, is a favorite. It's a good place to take visitors from abroad who might not otherwise have a chance to try Cajun food. However, Maxie's Pimm's and Lemonade is a disappointment to anyone who's had a proper British-made Pimm's overflowing with strawberries, grapes, and orange slices.
Joe's Italian Restaurant (602 West Buffalo Street, Ithaca)
Authentic Italian restaurants tend to fall into two camps: Italian-American and Italian-Italian. To qualify as the former, the restaurant has to feel like someone might come in at any moment to announce that it's time to "hit the mattresses." To qualify as the latter, it usually helps to have a stuffed boar's head hanging over the diners. And the wine has to be cheaper than the water. Joe's successfully falls into the first category with its spare décor and somber bar staff. The food is rich and satisfying. The calamari was fresh and the accompanying tomato sauce was thick and hearty. The pan-seared scallops, while not specifically "Italian," were crisp on the outside but succulent on the inside.
Boatyard Grill (525 Taughannock Blvd, Ithaca)
Offering salads, sandwiches, seafood, and steaks, the Boatyard Grill serves a wide array of decent but uninspiring food. However, this is the place to go if you want to eat in the shadow of a canoe (hung on the wall) while enjoying a gorgeous lake view. Hugging the edge of Cayuga Lake, the Boatyard Grill offers comfortable outdoor seating that is undoubtedly well-sought-after real estate during the summer months. This, in combination with record-size bloody Mary's, may compensate for the unspectacular fare.
Moosewood Restaurant (215 N. Cayuga Street, Dewitt Building, Ithaca)
Housed in Dewitt Mall, a renovated historic brick school building near the Commons, Moosewood Restaurant is an Ithaca treasure. It is owned and operated by the 19 members of the Moosewood Collective, which is most famous for authoring eleven internationally acclaimed cookbooks. The restaurant has been using the freshest ingredients to make creative vegetarian meals since 1973. The wait for a table is usually long, unless you get there when it opens at 5:30. For those waiting for a table, the bar serves a well-concocted and innovative range of cocktails. All but one of the bartenders are friendly and accommodating. Each day's menu contains three vegetarian choices and one fish option. When visiting, be sure to save room for the alarmingly good desserts.
Hazelnut Kitchen (53 East Main Street, Trumansburg)
Located in the Village of Trumansburg, roughly 20 minutes away from Ithaca, Hazelnut Kitchen serves up delicious meals using ingredients local to the Finger Lakes region. The understated décor has a casual but chic quirkiness that made me miss large cities. The service was warm and attentive. And, the short ribs were so succulent the meat almost melted off the bone. The only detractor is that everything seemed to be slightly too salty. But the experience is well worth the (scenic) drive.
Willow (202 East Falls Street, Ithaca)
Just north of the Commons, Willow falls just short of greatness. It has a dignified interior and seems like the sort of place where aged professors dine. However, looking through the large windows, one might expect to see a lush field or a cliff falling away to rocky waters. Instead, one is disappointed to see the parking lot that Willow shares with Fall Creek Pictures. The meal itself followed a similar pattern. The extensive martini and mojito menu got the dinner off to a great start. The mussels came with a delightful mountain of watercress perched on top. The scallops on a bed of mashed potatoes were tender and delicious. However, this dining experience was marred by the untimely arrival of the check before the meal was finished. To compound matters, even though it was nowhere near closing time and there was no wait at the door, the waitress returned twice more to check on the bill while the diners were still eating. Unfortunately, this negative experience overshadowed the food.
Maxie's Supper Club and Oyster Bar (635 W. State Street, Ithaca)
From an imposing blue building on State Street, Maxie's brings a taste of N'Awlins to Ithaca with "soul-stirring" Cajun specials like jambalaya, gumbo, and blackened catfish creole. The shrimp & grits, a mouth-watering combination of shrimp with spicy Tasso sauce over yellow grits, is a favorite. It's a good place to take visitors from abroad who might not otherwise have a chance to try Cajun food. However, Maxie's Pimm's and Lemonade is a disappointment to anyone who's had a proper British-made Pimm's overflowing with strawberries, grapes, and orange slices.
Joe's Italian Restaurant (602 West Buffalo Street, Ithaca)
Authentic Italian restaurants tend to fall into two camps: Italian-American and Italian-Italian. To qualify as the former, the restaurant has to feel like someone might come in at any moment to announce that it's time to "hit the mattresses." To qualify as the latter, it usually helps to have a stuffed boar's head hanging over the diners. And the wine has to be cheaper than the water. Joe's successfully falls into the first category with its spare décor and somber bar staff. The food is rich and satisfying. The calamari was fresh and the accompanying tomato sauce was thick and hearty. The pan-seared scallops, while not specifically "Italian," were crisp on the outside but succulent on the inside.
Boatyard Grill (525 Taughannock Blvd, Ithaca)
Offering salads, sandwiches, seafood, and steaks, the Boatyard Grill serves a wide array of decent but uninspiring food. However, this is the place to go if you want to eat in the shadow of a canoe (hung on the wall) while enjoying a gorgeous lake view. Hugging the edge of Cayuga Lake, the Boatyard Grill offers comfortable outdoor seating that is undoubtedly well-sought-after real estate during the summer months. This, in combination with record-size bloody Mary's, may compensate for the unspectacular fare.
Be the first to comment on this story