Category: Peck’s Arcade

Donna’s Matters

~ Steve N. ~ Leave a comment

Donna’s is the new Italian-American addition to Vic Christopher and Heather LaVine’s growing empire.

Typically, the opening of an Italian-American restaurant would draw disinterested yawns. But Donna’s is not typical. Donna’s to my knowledge is the first time a talented, top local chef has headed the kitchen of an Italian-American joint. Chef Nick Ruscitto is the brain behind Peck’s Arcade, which is arguably one of the best restaurants in the Capital District. He’s left his post at Peck’s and moved about a mile southeast to head the kitchen at Donna’s. And it’s a big deal.

I’m not Italian, but my step-father (whom my mother married in 1976 when I was just 10) is a first generation Italian, a stowaway on a boat, arriving in America after the war. My wife is half Italian, her father a second generation Italian. My best friend during my pre-teen and teen years was Italian, his parents’ first generation Italian’s with a discernable accent. I’m no stranger to Italian home cooking or Italian-American culture. I take Italian food and culture seriously and consider myself an adopted Italian.

I have a love-hate relationship with Italian-American restaurants. They are bastions of comfort food, and I love comfort food. But they also mostly suck, and I don’t say that lightly. They’re all the same, and it’s not a good sameness. They serve a too thick, and too sweet, overcooked, Italian ‘gravy,’ that tastes more like burnt tomato paste than tomatoes. Giant, sprawling menus often topping more than four dozen dishes. Huge portions that make even the biggest eater blush. And creativity? There is none. The dishes haven’t changed in decades. Most IA restaurants have both feet firmly planted in 1970’s gastronomy when an iceberg lettuce based salad was considered haute cuisine. And don’t get me started on the crappy so-called “Italian” bread they all serve.

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Staycationaurant II – Man Plans and God Laughs

~ Steve N. ~ 1 Comment

In episode one of Staycationaurant, I vowed that while on vacation I would try as many restaurants as I could. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to go to nearly as many as I’d like. Things came up. I got busy. My wife had other plans. Life has a way of throwing curveballs, as we all know.

That’s not always bad though, because at the last minute, a Saturday afternoon freed up for me and I didn’t hesitate to take advantage. Pondering my options, and since the weather wasn’t too bad, I decided to head to downtown Troy and wander around the “New Brooklyn” as it’s been called.

I’m ashamed to admit I had never been to DeFazio’s Pizzeria. It’s generally considered one of the best, if not the best pizzeria in the Capital Region. It’s been on my list for a while though, and I decided it would be my first stop. The pizza of course was fantastic. I knew I’d be stopping at a couple of other places afterward, so I didn’t want to eat too much pizza. That was tough. The few slices I didn’t eat were staring at me, taunting me with their cheesy goodness, daring me to eat them. But I withstood the test, and only ate half the pizza. (DeFazio’s does not sell slices).

In addition to making a great pizza, DeFazio’s is so genuine and down to earth. If you’ve read any of my other posts you know I enjoy that. I also found it interesting that the red pepper they set on the table they get locally and it’s ground fresh there. The “shaky cheese” as I call it, is shredded next door at their grocery store and is far better than the green can stuff most places have.

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