Dining oldies -- but goodies! -- in and around Albany

Foodies of the 21st Century are notoriously fickle beings, most of them always on the lookout for the next great thing to ingest and to post on Instagram. Other folks, however, have a soft spot for tradition, happy to pay homage to those dining spots that continue to endure despite the vagaries of fads and the economy.

In the Greater Capital Region, perhaps the oldest European-settled part of New York State, long-running restaurants abound, from fine dining to hot dog shacks, seasonal venues, and many other levels in between.

Determining the oldest restaurant in the region depends upon definitions. For example, a case can be made that the “continuous operation award” has to go to The Whitehouse Restaurant in the Saratoga County village of Ballston Spa. It has been around since 1856, but it began as a hotel and took a while to become what today passes for a restaurant, so it gets an asterisk (*) since we’re not sure when it slung its first hash.

The oldest documented restaurant is the Orchard Tavern, a venerable purpose-built Albany pizza joint and bar founded in 1903. After that come a pair of spots founded in 1913 – the upscale Jack’s Oyster House, just down the State Street hill from the state Capitol building in Albany, and the uber-casual Manory’s in downtown Troy, the city’s oldest eatery.

As far as lineage goes for that trio, only Jack’s remains in the hands of its founding family, with third-generation proprietor Brad Rosenstein – grandson of the namesake founder – handling the reins of a spot long famous for hosting political horse trading and business deal-making meals. The other two both came under new ownership in 2018 -- The Orchard purchased by Chris Montefore (who recently opened a satellite venue in suburban Guilderland), and Manory’s by Anthony Marchese, son of former owners Lou and Jen Marchese, plus partners Brendan Jones, Jack Engster, and Connor McGrath.

And then there is New Way Lunch in Glens Falls that celebrated its 100th birthday last August, still dishing out its signature hot dogs as founder John Floro began doing when he arrived here from Greece. Another hot dog emporium, the similarly-named Newest Lunch in Schenectady, is a comparative toddler at age 98.

All that said, let’s take a tour of the Capital Region dining spots that have been in business for 50 years or more, with capsule descriptions of the 10 oldest (11, actually, since there’s a tie for the No.10 slot). Bear in mind that several restaurants are not doing business in their original locations, and several others have branched out into multiple venues.

(*) WHITEHOUSE RESTAURANT & BAR (1856)
Old Albany restaurants

Whitehouse Restaurant and Bar

95 Milton Ave., Ballston Spa

518-885-6797 | website

This venerable spot in the quaint Saratoga County village’s downtown is a touch shopworn, but with a lot of historic appeal, including local-topic paintings created a couple of generations ago by a visitor in exchange for lodging. A dark-but-inviting barroom separate from the dining area instantly evokes the ‘50s. The dining areas are very popular for the breakfast offerings, and the diner-style menu includes a rotating line of imaginative house-made soups of all sorts, plus house-made baked goods.

ORCHARD TAVERN (1903)
Old Albany restaurants

Orchard Tavern

68 North Manning Blvd., Albany

518-482-5677 | website

The license plate collection over the bar is a tipoff this is a homey, dress-down spot. It hasn’t changed much in the past few decades, still sporting green-and-white checked tablecloths, acoustic tile ceilings, and restaurant supply house chairs. But people don’t come here for ambiance. They come for the pizza (20 different toppings available), chili, French onion soup, burgers, and wings. Basic, tasty stuff that has met with public approval for a very long time, and it has stayed that way under recent new ownership.

JACK’S OYSTER HOUSE (1913)
Old Albany restaurants

Jack's Oyster House

42 State St., Albany

518-465-8854 | website

One of those rare places where the wait-staff is tuxedo-clad, an elegant touch that endures nicely. It has never closed its doors since onetime oyster shucker Jack Rosenstein founded the place several blocks from its current location the same year Richard Nixon, Jimmy Hoffa, and Mark Felt (“Deep Throat” of Watergate fame) were born. Although the vibe is upscale, the folksy greeting all patrons receive -- “Welcome home,” something the late Arnold Rosenstein, Jack’s son, dreamed up – helps avoid stuffiness. An expansion project several years ago was accomplished without disturbing the clubby Old New York atmosphere, all wood and leather banquettes, historic framed photos, and soft lighting. The menu is a classic, too, with several original 1913 recipes in use along with such old school offerings as steak Diane, calves liver and onions, and grilled Delmonico steaks. Wonderfully stocked bar presided over by well-trained mixologists.

MANORY’S (1913)
Old Albany restaurants

Manory's

99 Congress St., Troy

518-272-2422 | website

The city’s oldest eatery has undergone a few minor updates since changing hands several years ago, but retains a comfy if shopworn vibe that continues to be appreciated by multiple generations -- students from nearby Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Russell Sage College flocking there just as much as a clientele ranging from retirees who have been visiting for decades to young parents with boisterous kids in tow. The main drawing cards are the big breakfasts, the quirky milkshakes (PB&J, caramel latte, Fruity Pebbles, brown sugar Pop Tart, etc.), tantalizingly greasy burgers … and an outward-facing ice cream window that doles out goodies to walk-up patrons.

PENNELL’S RESTAURANT (1922)
Old Albany restaurants

Pennell's Restaurant

284 Jefferson St., Saratoga Springs

518-583-2423 | website

This icon celebrates its age in numerous ways -- with a wall-hanging collection of old photos, framed newspaper clippings, and other esoterica; a mix of painted and finished wood surfaces in a crisply-decorated dining room, and a menu of Italian-American classics frequently employing a marinara recipe developed here in 1922. Overall, the menu leans toward seafood -- nearly all the appetizers and about half of the entrees -- and will be familiar to anyone who has ever visited an Italian restaurant.

RALPH’S TAVERN (1929)
Old Albany restaurants

Ralph's Tavern

1328 Central Ave., Albany

518-489-8290 | website

The nondescript exterior is a fooler. Inside, the long, narrow space is an Italian-American time capsule, with a color palette of red, green, and dark wood, a menu relying on familiar parms, seafood, pizzas (two dozen toppings), and the like. Cocktails are generous and priced below what one usually finds in the market ($8 for a generous Manhattan, for example). The place hasn’t changed much in its 90-year run – perhaps with the exception of adding the requisite chicken wings a dozen years ago -- and that is intentional. When Joseph Fagan bought the restaurant a little over a decade ago, he promised not to change a thing, saying, "You don't change something that works.” And, he hasn’t.

PANZA’S RESTAURANT (1930)
Old Albany restaurants

Panza's Restaurant

129 South Broadway,Saratoga Springs

518-584-6882 | website

A grandiose plan to raze the original restaurant on the shore of nearby Saratoga Lake to make room for a new restaurant, hotel, and docking facilities didn’t fare well with local planners, so the project has been delayed. With a building in need of major renovations, the Panza family went with Plan B, packing up and heading for the fringes of downtown Saratoga Springs last spring to lease and set up shop in a sprawling stone-clad building that had been vacant for a number of years after being home to such restaurants as Paradiso Ristorante and the Trade Winds. The menu is a paen to family, with Jillian, Michael, Ma Panza, Andrew, Alexander, and Aunt Celia incorporated into the names of many dishes. While reliably Italian-American, the menu includes a few other touches, such as a boursin-stuffed chicken breast, crispy Long Island duckling with a fig honey glaze, and steak au poivre.

SPERRY’S (1932)
Old Albany restaurants

Sperry's

30½ Caroline St., Saratoga Springs

518-584-9618 | website

Consistency must be in the DNA of this venerable establishment since it’s part of the charm no matter who has run the show over the years. That and the atmosphere created by the large-checked floor, leather banquettes, and dark wood wainscoting. Key staffers are highly trained. General manager Kareem NeJame, a native Central New Yorker, studied business management at Villanova University and culinary arts at the French Culinary Institute in New York City, and has stops at several Manhattan gems on his resume. Executive chef Scott Carlton, born on Long Island but raised Upstate, graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in 1997, has a resume that ranges from Cape Cod and Boston to such well-regarded local kitchens as 43 Phila, Glen Sanders Mansion, Provence, and Milano. His menu shows a deft balance of classic and modern offerings. Among the appetizers: lamb lollipops with a white bean salad and a rosemary-mint gastrique; meatballs stuffed with aged provolone and broccoli rabe, and wasabi shrimp with bacon, bok choy, and chili sauce. And, among the entrees: a braised lamb shank with Parmesan risotto, roasted cippolini, baby carrots, and a Chianti reduction; a 14-ounce prime New York strip with Bordelaise sauce, roasted fingerlings, and shiitake mushrooms, and a prosciutto wrapped cod loin with a soft herb polenta, roasted asparagus, and lemon caper butter.

THE WISHING WELL (1936)
Old Albany restaurants

The Wishing Well

745 Saratoga Road, Gansevoort

518-584-7640 | website

The restaurant opened in 1936, but the historic structure has been on the site since it was built in 1823 by Perry Stiles, one of the Town of Wilton’s founding families. Current proprietors Bob and Mary Alice Lee keep it seriously entrenched in the 1950s. Not stuck, mind you. Entrenched. In a good way. Comfy wood walls, a crackling fire in the hearth, a few tables to use for drinks or a bite, frequently enhanced by live piano music, friendly bartenders who can make old school cocktails with the best of them. The dining room gives the impression you’re seated in someone’s well-maintained home. The menu ranges from a three-course select-your-own prix fixe dinner for $35 to a “middle American” range of entrees that have endures over the generations – steaks, chops, salmon, chicken parm, and so forth.

SMITH’S RESTAURANT (1937)
Old Albany restaurants

Smith's Restaurant

171 Remsen St., Cohoes

518-237-9809 | website

This is one of the most politically historic venues in an area replete with them. In most instances, we’d be referring to patrons meeting for drinks, steaks, and deal making. Here, we’re talking about who founded it – “Big Mike” Smith, a local Democrat party boss who held court in the 1930s and ‘40s in what began in 1873 as a pool hall, became a silent movie theater, and then a tavern around the turn of the 20th Century. Its eye-catching 50-foot-long mahogany and walnut bar was obtained from another political stronghold, the notorious Tammany Hall political club in New York City. Smith’s has had a variety of owners since the 1960s, and we’re waiting to see what happens to the proprietorship since the latest owner, developer Joseph Hostig, died recently. Meanwhile, the operation perseveres with a menu that would do any old-fashioned steakhouse proud: Big Mike’s 14-ounce pork porterhouse, 18-ounce beef porterhouse, 16-ounce bone-in ribeye, shepherd’s pie, stuffed chicken or salmon, pierogis and kielbasa, and other hefty possibilities.

JACK’S DRIVE-IN (1937)
Old Albany restaurants

Jack's Drive In

24 Main Ave., Wynantskill

518-283-5110 | website

This roadside shack doesn’t serve haute cuisine, but it does dish out hot cuisine from March through November to locals who see its annual opening as a harbinger of spring. The Deeb family is the owner, a bunch of people who are whirling dervishes keeping pace with heavy demand from a menu of hot dogs with meat sauce, cheeseburgers, fries, sliders, milk shakes, and the like. Plenty of parking on the grounds located right on the Troy city line, with picnic tables for those who can’t wait till they get home to eat their bounty.

AND, some “younger” oldies but goodies:

HATTIE’S RESTAURANT (1938)

45 Phila St., Saratoga Springs

518-584-4790 | website

DUNCAN’S DAIRY BARN (1939)

890 Hoosick Road, Brunswick

518-279-9985 | website

MASSIE’S RESTAURANT (1939)

69 Main St., South Glens Falls

518-792-3383 | website

TURF TAVERN (1940)

40 Mohawk Ave., Scotia

518-393-3344 | website

VERDILE’S (1943)

572 2nd Ave., Troy

518-235-8879 | website

RED’S RESTAURANT (1944)

12005 Route 9W, West Coxsackie

518-731-8181 | website

NOTTY PINE RESTAURANT (1946)

2301 15th St., Troy

518-272-4557 | website

JACK’S DINER (1947)

547 Central Ave., Albany

518-482-9807 | website

WINSLOW’S (1948)

801 Saratoga Road, Gansevoort

518-584-2489 | website

THE CENTURY HOUSE (1949)

997 New Loudon Road (Route 9), Latham

518-785-0834 | website

TED’S FISH FRY (1949)

350 2nd Ave., Troy (and 5 other locations)

518-235-5552 | website

TOPS AMERICAN GRILL, BAKERY & BAR (1953)

351 Duanesburg Road, Rotterdam

518-55-9864 | website

GUS’S HOT DOGS (1954)

212 25th St., Watervliet,

518-273-8743 | website

TINNEY’S TAVERN (1954)

498 Lake Desolation Road, Middle Grove

518-450-1066 | website

JUMPIN’ JACK’S (1956)

5 Schonowee Ave., Scotia

518-393-6101 | website

VALENTE’S RESTAURANT (1958)

315 8th St., Watervliet

518-273-3314 | website

KAY’S BURDEN LAKE PIZZA (1958)

10 Walsh Lane, Averill Park

518-674-5413 | website

BUBBLES RESTAURANT (1958)

150 South Central Ave., Mechanicville

518-664-4946 | website

THE FOUNTAIN (1962)

283 New Scotland Ave., Albany

518-482-9898 | website

CHEZ PIERRE (1964)

979-1144 Saratoga Road, Gansevoort

518-793-3350 | website

RED FRONT RESTAURANT & TAVERN (1964)

71 Division St., Troy

518-272-9241 | (2nd location in Clifton Park) | website

SCOTTI’S RESTAURANT & PIZZERIA (1966)

1730 Union St., Schenectady

518-393-7440 | website

BROADWAY LUNCH (1967)

2101 Broadway, Schenectady

518-372-3222 | website

INFERNO PIZZERIA (1968)

496 Albany Shaker Road, Colonie

518-459-2121 | (and 5 other locations) | website

THE BEARS’ STEAKHOUSE (1969)

8254 Duanesburg Road, Duanesburg

518-895-2509 | website

COUNTRY DRIVE-IN (1969)

1455 Crescent-Vischer Ferry Road, Clifton Park

518-371-3455 | website

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(William M. Dowd, a longtime journalist and author and a judge in the fields of food and drink, lives in Troy, . His daily blog, Notes On Napkins, covers those fields in the Greater Capital Region, Adirondacks, Catskills, and western New England.)

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