Page 36 - Valley Table - June-August 2024

BEACON
HOME TO WHAT ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST DUBS “ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL MAIN STREETS ACROSS AMERICA,” BEACON SCORES MAJOR POINTS IN THE LOOKS DEPARTMENT. BUT THE PICTURE-PERFECT LOCALE, WITH ITS RIVER VIEWS AND QUAINT STOREFRONTS, OFFERS SO MUCH MORE THAN A PRETTY FACE; IT ALSO HAPPENS TO BOAST SOME OF THE BEST EATS THE HUDSON VALLEY HAS TO OFFER, FROM AUTHENTIC NEPALESE DUMPLINGS TO ELEVATED COMFORT FOOD AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN.
BREAKFAST, LUNCH, AND DINNER
Start your epicurean excursion at Nilufer’s Home Kitchen, where chef-owner Nilufer Goodson has
dazzled patrons with her Turkish cuisine since launching her eponymous restaurant and bakery in February. Goodson—who, in the early aughts, became the first-ever female executive chef in her native Istanbul—serves up a multi-course Turkish breakfast, complete with menemen (a traditional, veggie-loaded egg dish) and spicy sausage. You’ll feel satisfied and full for several hours, no doubt, but when your belly begins rumbling for lunch, head on over to Cooper’s, which set up shop in the former Dogwood space earlier this year. In addition to elevated comfort foods like short-rib grilled cheese and ahi tuna-topped nachos, you’ll have your pick of six pinsas—a pizza-like Roman flatbread available in varieties like the Morty, which features (you guessed it!) mortadella, stracciatella cheese, and pistachios. Looking for even more variety? Check out Hudson Valley Food Hall. Currently home
to seven eateries—including newcomers Five Pennies Creamery and Moreish, which specializes in British staples like bangers and mash—the culinary playground offers plenty of options for all. Choices also abound at Melzingah Tap House, a foolproof dinner spot where outside-the-box starters like cantaloupe gazpacho give way to tasty mains like heritage pork chops with maple- pecan-and-carrot slaw or crispy-skin chicken breast and potato dumplings. Dumplings are also on the menu, albeit in a much more prominent way, at Momo Valley; the vegan-friendly Nepalese standout excels in its namesake momo dumplings among other savory Himalayan dishes such as phing sha, a beef stew.
DRINKS AND DESSERT
What’s a day of dining without a nightcap or a sweet treat to top it off? Adult-beverage seekers should fire up their Untappd apps at Hudson Valley Brewery or Pillow & Oats, which opened its doors to craft-beer lovers last May, or swing by the Vinyl Room for cheeky cocktails (like the bourbon- and rhubarb-spiked Mo’ Honey Mo’ Problems). Dessert fiends, meanwhile, will find their fix at Håkan Chocolatier, where Swedish pastry chef Håkan Mårtensson crafts gorgeous bonbons and candy bars including the ruby-hued Sunrise—flavored with mango and chili.
CHEF NILUFER GOODSON
HAS DAZZLED PATRONS WITH HER TURKISH CUISINE SINCE LAUNCHING HER EPONYMOUS RESTAURANT IN FEBRUARY.
34 TheValleyTable | June–August2024