Recommendations For Eating Out
The Hudson Valley is full of wonderful restaurants. Eating out occasionally is fun, especially a night out without the kids. My husband and I would try to go out to dinner, without the kids, once in a while when the kids were younger. Now that we are empty-nesters, we have the luxury of going out more often if we want to.
I wanted to share some of my favorite places to eat and let you know what I order when I go there. The rules I try to stick to with my diet are that it should be low-oil, vegan, and whole grain. There are very few places that have exactly what I want. More and more restaurants have vegetarian options that can easily be prepared vegan. Many places, however, use way to much oil. Few places serve whole grain options. Dessert options are bleak. Places may have sorbet but this is usually loaded with high-glycemic sweeteners like sugar. It is surprising how few places have fruit as an option of dessert. Even with all of this, though, I do go out to eat and have an enjoyable meal.
When we feel like having Mexican food, I like Avocados on Route 52. I always get guacamole with carrots sticks and celery sticks instead of fried tortilla chips. They have vegetarian black beans that are cooked wonderfully. They also have mushroom fajitas. Their tortillas are not whole grain and they use only white rice.
When we feel like having Italian food, I like Brothers Restaurant in Beacon and Poughquag. They have the best escarole and bean soup I have ever tasted. Usually I ask for a side salad without any dressing and a plate of broccoli rabe with garlic. I tell them to go very light on the oil. Sometimes I will ask for steamed broccoli and a serving of roasted potatoes. They leave the skin on the potatoes, season with rosemary, and use very little oil. They do not have whole grain pasta or bread.
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For Thai food, I love Golden Buddha in Fishkill. They have healthy spring rolls that are not fried. I sometimes get their noodle bowl with steamed tofu. The noodles are not whole grain. Sometimes I get their lemongrass soup with steamed tofu and a papaya salad. They have brown rice.
For Indian food, we go to Tanjore in Fishkill. I get the spring paneer dosa without the paneer. It is stuffed with cabbage and comes with a lentil soup and coconut chutney. Sometimes I get the mulligatawny soup with brown rice. The papads are made from lentils and are grilled, not fried, which is great. Sometimes I order the chickpea and potato patty appetizer without the yogurt. They also have brown rice. Although Indian naan bread is popular, it is made with all-purpose flour.
The Artist’s Palate in Poughkeepsie is more upscale. They always have some good vegan options. I went last week and had, among other things, a vegan dish that included roasted cauliflower with curried lentils and a carrot/potato sauce. It was delicious.
Recently, after a hike on Mt. Beacon, we went to a Middle Eastern restaurant in Beacon, called Ziatun. I had a fantastic vegan red lentil soup, a wonderful salad with lemon juice and falafel, and stuffed grape leaves. The food was cooked perfectly. The hummus was fresh. The pita and rice are not whole grain.
Sometimes my husband and I meet for lunch. Two of our favorite places are Ruby Tuesdays and Little Asia in Fishkill. At Ruby Tuesdays we both get the salad bar. Their salad bar has lots of great items. What I don’t put on my plate are the croutons, nuts, cheeses, meats, or prepared salads that contain either oil or mayo. They have hummus which I use for my dressing. At Little Asia I get the vegetarian sushi with brown rice and the ginger salad. Nature's Pantry on Route 52 in Fishkill and Mother Earth on Route 9 in Poughkeepsie both have excellent plant-based options for lunch. There are a lot of desserts, too. Vegan or not, desserts are always something to eat only rarely because they are usually high in calories.
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