Tarry Lodge hardly needs an introduction: The Italian-style lodge’s buttery-colored walls, globe lighting, and elaborate typeface are part of a place that’s practically an institution. Opened in Port Chester in 2008 by Mario Batali, Joe Bastianich, chef Andy Nusser, and general manager Nancy Selzer, Tarry Lodge delivers a high-end Italian trattoria experience (now also available in New Haven and Westport, Connecticut). Trained at the Culinary Institute of America, Nusser started cooking with Batali in 1995 in the tiny kitchen at Pó in Greenwich Village, Batali’s first restaurant. He helped Babbo earn the title of “Best New Restaurant” from the James Beard Foundation.
The sustainable, farm-to-table, classic-with-a-twist aesthetic is here in full force. We see it in the antipasti choices of fregula with quince, celery, and radishes as well as the scallops with oranges, fennel, and pistachios. The Tarry Greens salad from Amba Farms gleams with a white-bean vinaigrette. The black fettuccine with bay scallops gets cheeky guanciale, and a whole roasted chicken for two is trussed up with black truffles. Veal osso buco comes with kale barlotto, a pearl-barley risotto.
Sustainability is a big part of Tarry Lodge’s modern concept. As a Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group restaurant, Tarry Lodge practices green initiatives such as using responsibly sourced ingredients, composting, offering “Meatless Monday,” and adhering to a no-bottled-water policy. What’s also pretty sweet is the gelato in flavors of cinnamon, pistachio, and dulce de leche accompanying the apple crostada, chocolate cake with bitter oranges, and panettone pudding, respectively. And the wine list is dizzying and thoroughly Italian.
18 Mill St, Port Chester (914) 939-3111
www.tarrylodge.com
