Jill Rose
Chiboust Bistro & Bakery
(14 Main St, Tarrytown; 914-703-6550; chiboust.com)
Wispy crusted taro puff from Jing Fung dim sum house in Manhattan; two shucked bluepoint oysters with a splash of Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine Sur Lie; one Chesapeake Bay steamed blue crab with Old Bay Seasoning and a frosty mug of Sixpoint Righteous Ale; and a Belgian chocolate-almond croissant from Chiboust
“If I were on death row, I would request these dishes be brought by a chef with fine linen and crystal. But I’m not ready to throw in the whisk yet!”
Bobby Manzi
River City Grille
(6 S Broadway, Irvington; 914-591-2033; rivercitygrille.com)
Duck wonton soup (3), roast pork, and fried rice with chopped beef and peas from 69 Bayard Street in Chinatown
“I normally get these dishes as a midnight snack. Nothing else would be as perfect before I go.”
Craig Pellis
Silver Spoon Catering (200 E Main St, Mount Kisco 914-241-0955; silverspooncateringny.com)
Platter of gravlax and smoked sable from Mount Kisco Smokehouse; my grandmother’s matzo ball chicken soup; a pastrami-and-corned-beef sandwich from Riverdale Kosher Market; an apple cobbler with Longford’s Own vanilla ice cream
“Chefs may cook extravagant meals, but I prefer to eat comfort foods.”
Octavio Sandoval
F.A.B. French American
Bistro (222 E Main St, Mount Kisco 914-864-1661; fabbistro.com)
Cow tongue in a corn tortilla mixed with tomato, onion, and cilantro from Mango Café of Mount Kisco
Sandoval has been in love with these tacos since the first bite. “Believe it or not, I’ve had dreams about them.”
Billy Rattner
Sommelier for X2O Xaviars on the Hudson (71 Water Grant St, Yonkers 914-965-1111; xaviars.com)
Wellfleet oysters, chased with a Chablis Grand Cru from Christian Moreau; raw tuna pizza by Jean-Georges of Mercer Kitchen; a glass of Chambolle-Musigny; calotte de boeuf grillée from French Laundry; a glass of Côte-Rôtie from Étienne Guigal; the cheese cart from Maison Lameloise in Saône-et-Loire, France; my mother’s chocolate chip cookies
“The calotte de boeuf grillée is a spectacular Snake River Farms rib eye with bone marrow pudding, potato mille feuille, King trumpet mushrooms, Nantes carrots, broccolini, and sauce Bordelaise.”