Page 16 - The Valley Table - November/December 2020

Apropos Restaurant & Bar
900 Fort Hill Rd, Peekskill 914.739.3546; aproposrestaurant.com
One of the most anticipated openings for Westchester County in 2020, Apropos is now open at the new Abbey Inn & Spa in Peekskill. In the dining room of the restored, 118-year-old abbey, Executive Chef John Paidas has crafted a fine-dining menu that balances traditional Mediterranean flavors and techniques with contemporary sensibilities.
Starters include seasonal plates, like late-summer grilled peaches with chopped hazelnuts, fresh mint, and fluffy, super-smooth house-made ricotta. A handful of fresh pastas are typically on the menu, including esoteric shapes like twisted lorighittas with broccoli rabe, fennel sausage,
and crunchy breadcrumbs. Rounding out the options are octopus panzanella, a dry-aged burger with red onion marmalade and smoked mozzarella, and crispy local chicken with sweet-corn cream and pickled hot peppers (which is also gluten-free). The rib-eye steak, basted with anchovy-herb butter, has a beautiful, almost bark-like crust, served with cauliflower agrodolce.
For dessert, panna cotta is properly wobbly, topped with strawberries, fresh basil, and drizzle of the house’s best imported olive oil, while salted caramel gelato is served in a martini glass with a graham cookie.
The drink menu comprises wines, a selection of classic cocktails, bottled beer and cider, and a half-dozen New York State drafts. A $24 brunch menu, served Sundays
until 2 p.m., includes two farm-fresh eggs, seasonal fruit, molasses-cured bacon, and sheep-milk yogurt with house- made granola. —Dave Zucker Open Mon and Wed–Sun for dinner; Thurs–Sat for lunch; and Sun for brunch
OPENINGS
14 the valley table nov – dec 2020
photos by kevin hardman photography