Food

Dave Portnoy of Barstool Sports gave DeFazio's in Troy an 8.2 for pizza and a 9.4 for this dessert. If you want one for the holidays, time is running out.

Almost a year to the day, a beloved restaurant in Saratoga County announced it would close its doors forever. Hildreth's Restaurant had been a staple in Mechanicville for nearly sixty years. We now know what will be taking over the old Hildreth's space.

By now, you would think that scammers tried everything to get your personal information or money. It never ceases to amaze me the lengths they go through to try and obtain this stuff. Now there is a bizarre scam circulating and targeting the restaurant industry.

There is a much-needed expansion coming to the Albany International Airport. The renderings are beautiful and they should break ground in late spring of next year with the expectation of being finished by the end of 2024. It will cost nearly $100 million.

Adam Savage, Director of Culinary for Spruce Hospitality, took the lead on designing the gingerbread house. He and his team have worked for months to plan and prepare for the display. Adam said, "The house is made of over 987 lbs of homemade gingerbread, 223 lbs of icing, and 152 lbs of assorted candy. The actual production and building of the display took well over 200 hours.” The candy for the display was sourced by The Candy Space, located in the French Mountain Common Outlets and a sister company of The Queensbury. The Queensbury Hotel also partnered with the Upstate Modern Railroaders of South Glens Falls, who provided train sets for the display. The Queensbury Hotel is located in the heart of downtown Glens Falls It was built in 1926, it is a Historic Hotel of America and is on the National Registry of Historic Places.

There has been a lot of construction being done on the New York State Thruway Rest Areas and finally, we are starting to see some of the rest stops being completed. Although another rest area is open, this is one of the smaller versions of what the other ones will look like. Junius Ponds rest area about 2 hours from Albany heading west joins the Indian Castle rest area just 90 minutes west of Albany. Junius Ponds features a Starbucks and a Shake Shack. Both boast a Starbucks drive-thru and a convenience store featuring a variety of New York state products.

It was announced back in April that a high-end steak house would be coming to the Capital Region. It is the first of its kind in the area. But then nothing else was known. Now there are signs that they are beginning construction.

Death Wish Coffee, with its production facility in Round Lake, New York has become a legit Capital Region and Upstate NY success story over the last seven + years. The brand is booming, they sell it in just about every store in the area, and across the nation...

It had been three years since the Canadian Pacific Holiday Train rolled through the Capital Region. It made three stops; Mechanicville, Saratoga Springs, and Fort Edward. The first was Mechanicville on a rainy Sunday night. This is where I enjoyed the festive holiday train. They are traveling across the country to 106 stops. At each stop, they play live music and collect donations for the local food banks. Country Artist Lindsay Ell was the musical entertainment and she was awesome. The Canadian Pacific Holiday Train also presented the Mechanicville Community Center with a check for $3500 to help restock the food bank. Even though the weather wasn't ideal, a couple of hundred families joined the fun.

A Hudson eatery has been nationally recognized for the 3rd time this year.

We didn't know we needed it, but this is the news we all wanted! And quite frankly, I'm not sure how we went this long without it: Stewart's Shops, beloved, revered, and originated from here in Upstate New York has entered the merchandise and fashion game by announcing a new online shop so you can represent Stewie's wherever you go...

It is the return of the Canadian Pacific Holiday Train! It has been three years since it traveled through the Capital Region making stops in certain towns and cities. It's back and there will be some country artists to help with the festivities.