Andy and I always are trying to find any excuse to get out and indulge in a tasting menu at one of our favorite restaurants.  When we saw Valentine’s Day falling on a Saturday, not only did we think it was the perfect excuse for a splurge night out, it also became the perfect weekend for a little trip out of Manhattan to hit up one of our all time favorite restaurants, Blue Hill at Stone Barns. Blue Hill at Stone Barns is truly a magical place.  Only a short trip from Manhattan (about 35 minutes by express train from Grand Central), it is located at 630 Bedford Road in Pocantico Hills.  You find yourself in the middle of a functional, four season farm, where most of the ingredients you taste originated.  Talk about a seasonal, market driven menu! Blue Hill at Stone Barns is on the old Rockefeller estate.  The restaurant is in a gorgeously renovated dairy barn and sits in the center of the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, “80 rolling acres of gardens, pastures and woods.”  On the Stone Barns Center website, it describes its mission- “to celebrate, teach and advance community-based food production and enjoyment, from farm to classroom to table.”  Our mission- to devour Dan Barber’s truly exceptional creations and to celebrate our passion for food and each other in a place where you truly feel like you’re a million miles away from the city.

The Blue Hill at Stone Barn’s menu is more like a list of seasonal ingredients.  The “multi-course farm feasts” are “inspired by the day’s harvest.”  We read what was in season… Maine sea scallops, Stone Barn Berkshire pigs, Red Russian kale, Brown African goose, Hudson Valley venison, Jerusalem artichokes… it goes on and on.  We have been to the restaurant on a number of occasions but we try to go in different seasons for totally different menus and experiences.  You have the option of a 5-course tasting for $95 or a Farmer’s Feast for $125.

We knew we were in for a treat with the 5-course V-Day tasting menu. We also opted for the wine pairings, and the wines were ideally matched with each course.  It would be impossible to properly describe each dish, each flavor, and each small touch that made the evening so memorable, so instead we will highlight our most memorable dishes below.  Although we are all in a recession conscious mindset, if you are splurging on a special occasion, we urge you to splurge here and make a weekend or at least an overnight trip out if.  We promise you won’t be disappointed. 

Our Favorites:

Amuse Bouche: They kicked off the meal with an unreal amuse bouche trio. First there was the fresh oyster with cranberries. Next, was the fried potato chip. They saved the best amuse bouche for last. The server came by with 2 tall shot glasses of hot artichoke soup and what looked like a medicine dropper. He asked that we each make a fist. He put a drop of some sort of blood red sauce on our fist and instructed us to lick the red sauce and then quickly follow it up with the artichoke shooter.  It was amazing.

Hudson Valley Foie Gras Course: First, we both opted for the Hudson Valley foie gras that was served with a sweet, nutty fig bread. We actually preferred it with the bread that was on the table.  We washed it down with a ’97 Riesling.  Decadent.

Poached Lobster Course: For the second course, we both went with the poached lobster served over a perfectly executed assortment of savory winter vegetables from the Blue Hill farm. They paired it with a great Chardonnay. We both agreed that this was the best course. 

Suckling Pig (Andy) / Loin of Lamb (me): Next, Andy had suckling pig and I went with the loin of lamb. Both were perfectly cooked and delicious. We don’t even remember the dessert (we’re not huge dessert people) but they were terrific and they even brought us the one dessert we didn’t order “courtesy of the chef.” They also gave us a mini-goodie bag to take home with us.

Where to Stay Near Blue Hill at Stone Barns:

We stayed at the Tarrytown House Estate. They had a great V-Day package that included a bottle of champagne in the room and a box of chocolate truffles. We thought it was going to be a bottle of Cava or an inexpensive Prosecco. We were surprised, however, when a bottle of 2005 Wolffer Estate Blanc de Blancs was delivered to our room. This wine sells for $35 on the Wolffer Estate website. We also got a complimentary breakfast buffet the next morning in the beautiful castle overlooking the grounds and the Hudson River. While this hotel is massive (more of a business conference center than a small, charming hotel), we enjoyed the amenities that included an indoor heated pool, jacuzzi and sauna. Before our dinner reservation at Blue Hill, we headed over to Cellar 49 in the lower level of the castle. They were nice enough to let us bring our own bottle of wine, a 1982 Chateau Lascombes, for a small corkage fee and they even provided a decanter. The wine was amazing. We took our wine with us and headed to the nearby game room for some games of pool and shuffleboard.

Another place that we would recommend staying is Castle on the Hudson. This historic hotel is perched high atop a bluff overlooking the river valley and is quite an impressive structure that replicates the architecture of medieval Europe with a massive stone facade and towers and turrets.  While the whole point is to have dinner at Blue Hill at Stone Barns, the Castle has an award-winning restaurant of its own, Equus, which is supposed to be excellent.  We had an amazing (and pricey) brunch there and really love the Castle on the Hudson.  If you’re going for an all out romantic splurge weekend away, this is your place.

How to Get Here:

Train: We take the train from Grand Central to Tarrytown and then take a taxi from the train station (they are there waiting).  If you’re staying overnight, your hotel will call a taxi for you to get there and the restaurant will call a taxi for you to get back to your hotel (check in with them before dessert). 

Driving: Check out the Blue Hill at Stone Barns website for directions.

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