Fairway Wines and Spirits Opens and it’s….convenient, I guess
Look, I love Fairway. I confess that, since its April opening, I’ve been a regular, hooked as I am on Tom Cat pumpernickel and plush Prestige de Bourgogne cheese. Here I am at the butcher’s counter, being unpleasant and controlling about my meat order; there I am in the English import section, furtively loading my cart with Flakes and Aeros. Frankly, I haven’t had it so good since I had the time to schlep to the Fairway’s Harlem branch.
So it was with some excitement that I swung into Fairway Wines and Spirits. Would it, I damply dreamed, offer well-priced analogs to all of Fairway Market’s niche eats? Would I be swigging $25 Planeta Nero D’Avola or—oh, don’t tease—bottles of Emidio Pepe Trebbiano D’Abruzzo at $50 per.
Alas, no.
It’s hard to say what sector of the market Fairway Wines is aiming for, unless it is merely trying to tap the random crowds passing by. This store is not wino-centric, and doesn’t offer, say, the potable analog to Fairway Market’s cultish La Quercia lardo. The wines at Fairway are just the usual sort of things that you’ll find at any Box-O-Bev-Max.
More painfully, Fairway Wines and Spirits doesn’t even feel like it’s offering a bargain. While Stew Leonard’s makes no pretense of oenophilia (and offers a boozy version of the backyard foods in its grocery aisles), Stew’s has the indisputable attraction of, at least, being cheap. That sunny Martin Codax Albarino that costs$12.99 at Fairway Wines goes for $11.99 at Stews, which really adds up if you buy cases (and, look, I don’t judge.) That $18.99 bottle of Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio (that Fairway touts as a “Vin Value”) is also offered a buck cheaper at Stews—though, sadly, you might have to dodge a man in a cow suit to get it home.
Which is sooo disappointing. Why couldn’t Armonk’s Wine Geeks open in my backyard, too? I tell you, I’d be sacking that $10 table like a parched Visigoth on a spree.
Farmers’ Markets Are Open!
Memorial Day is the official start of summer, and that means that your farmers’ markets are open. Here’s the what and where of Westchester’s farmers’ markets—look for special offers and vendor info at the Community Markets Site.
Croton-on-Hudson
1:30pm-6:30pm, Wednesdays
Municipal Lot at Municipal Place and Riverside Avenue
You’ll find: Seasonal produce, organic breads, pastries, pies, granola and cookies, handmade chutney, grass-fed beef, sausages, jams, biscotti, old-fashioned barrel pickles, baked goods, apple and cranberry sauces, organic, locally roasted nuts, trail mix and nut butters, maple syrup and honey, orchard fruit, local wines, organic produce, and more.
Mount Kisco
8:30am-1pm, Saturdays
351 Main Street
You’ll find: Seasonal produce, organic breads, pastries, pies, granola and cookies, handmade chutney and simmer sauces, grass-fed beef, chicken, lamb, pork, rabbit, duck, eggs, fiery hot sauces, jams, biscotti, old-fashioned barrel pickles, baked goods, apple and cranberry sauces, organic, locally roasted nuts, trail mix and nut butters, maple syrup and honey, orchard fruit, local wines, organic produce, and more.
Larchmont
8:30am-2pm, Saturdays
Metro-North Lot off Chatsworth
You’ll find: Seasonal and organic produce, organic breads, gourmet pastries, pies, granola and cookies, grass-fed beef, pork, beef, rabbit, duck, eggs, jams, biscotti, old fashioned barrel pickles, baked goods, apple and cranberry sauces, organic, locally roasted nuts, trail mix and nut butter, maple syrup and honey, orchard fruit, local wines, organic breads.
Ossining
8:30am-1pm, Saturdays
Main and Spring Streets
You’ll find: Local wine, chutney, artisanal and organic breads, pastries, baked goods, orchard fruit, berries, farmstead cheese, goat cheese, milk, yogurt, free-range pork, poultry, rabbit, sausage, eggs, vegetables, quiche, soups, salsa, soup, fish, shellfish, cut flowers, organic produce, organic, locally roasted nuts, and more.
Pelham
9am-1pm, Sundays
Harmon Avenue off Fifth Avenue
You’ll find: Berries, orchard fruit, vegetables, chutney, certified organic and artisinal bread, pastries, honey, cut flowers, herbs, plants, wine, baked goods, organic, locally roasted nuts and nut butters, farmstead cheeses*, yogurt, and more.
Pleasantville
8:30am-1pm, Saturdays
Memorial Plaza off Manville Road
You’ll find: Grass-fed beef, orchard fruit, berries, vegetables, mushrooms, certified organic produce, Farm-fresh eggs and free-roaming chicken, handmade quiche, organic bread, baked goods, wine, artisanal cheeses, pork, pickles, fish, shellfish, handmade pasta, sauces, rabbit, sausage, salsa, milk, organic, locally roasted nuts and nut butters, handmade pesto, and more.
Rye
8:30am-1pm, Sundays
Theodore Fremd Avenue behind Purchase Street Stores
You’ll find: Wine, artisanal bread, pastries, chutney, sauces, soups, pickles, baked goods, eggs, milk, poultry, grass-fed beef, honey, maple products, sausage, olive oil, quiche orchard fruit, vegetables, plants, vegetables, salsa, soup organic, locally roasted nuts, farmstead cheeses, yogurt.
Tarrytown
8:30am-1pm, Saturdays
Patriot’s Park on Route 9
You’ll find: Old-fashioned barrel pickles, wine, artisanal bread, pastries, cheese, pork, poultry, rabbit sausage, plants, sausage, organic produce, berries, orchard fruit, honey, maple products, grass-fed beef, eggs, salsa, olive oil, chutney, sauces, quiches, soups, baked goods, and more.
Roll into Summer at Day Boat Café
Look for a pound and a quarter of lobster chunks tossed in lemon juice, chives, and house-made mayonnaise, all piled into a top-split hot dog bun that’s been grilled in a pan until golden brown and deliciously buttery. All that’s missing from this clam-shack dinner are green-head flies and sand in your suit.
The Radisson is Burning
Even though Michael Proietti rose to fame on Next Food Network Star, this sparkly bowl of New Rochelle deliciousness has other talents besides cheffing. Check out Proietti as the “Divine” (actor) Queen of Westchester. I’m thinking, finally, this boy has upgraded from that tacky network to the greatest food television show ever. Check out Proietti playing a mean, column-style handball—and, P.S., my sofa needed professional cleaning after I saw Baron Ambrosia in cutoffs and dress shoes.
