Yellow Rock Café, Indian Ladder Farms
At this 102-year-old farm, nearly every menu item lists the producer from which it was sourced: potatoes from Schoharie Valley Farms, smoked cheddar cheese from Oscar’s Smokehouse, chicken breast from Murray’s Chicken. Sandwiches include the Indian Ladder Turkey & Apple with sliced turkey, Swiss cheese, and apples, topped with walnuts and lettuce, served on wheatberry bread. What more could you want from a farm-fresh meal? Open for lunch on weekdays and weekends, plus brunch on weekends.
Mon–Fri, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.; Sat–Sun, 9 a.m.–3 p.m.
Altamont — 342 Altamont Rd, 518.865.2956
Yellow Rock / Photo by Nicole McLean
Bee’s Knees Café, Heather Ridge Farm
Featuring a menu that rotates weekly, this Albany County café serves brunch every Saturday and Sunday in September. Under the stewardship of Chef Jimmy Lee, the focus will be on down-home dishes like Oink and Moo Chili with beef and chorizo, spicy beans, cheese, sour cream, and cornbread, alongside global fare like huevos rancheros with cotija cheese and meatballs pomodoro. Check their calendar for additional monthly food events like the fried chicken picnic — voted one of the best fried-chicken meals in the Capital Region.
11 a.m.–3 p.m.
Preston Hollow — 989 Broome Center Rd, 518.239.6234
Bee’s Knees / Photo by Robert Piacenza
Blooming Hill Farm
Blooming Hill Farm is well known for their farm dinner events, but lucky for us, their restaurant is open every weekend. Standout items include their sourdough crust pizzas like garlic scape and corn, pomodoro, or breakfast pizza with tomato, roasted potato, mixed cheese, herbs, and fried eggs. Pizza is also available for brunch or dinner, but the latter might tempt you to try the roasted heritage pork or wood-fired half chicken. At brunch, the baked blueberry pancake with ricotta cream and lemon curd is tough to resist.
Brunch Sat–Sun, 10 a.m.–2 p.m.; dinner Fri–Sat, 5 p.m.–9 p.m.
Monroe — 1251 State Rt 208, 845.238.5004
Blooming Hill / Photo by Belkis Hull
Pané Café/Black Dirt Grill, Warwick Valley Winery
This collaboration between Warwick Valley Winery and Black Dirt Distillery is popular for lunch and brunch. Pané Café bakes fresh bread every weekend, but if that’s not enough to get you to the farm, there are artisan pizzas, sandwiches, salads, and charcuterie. A seasonal presence is the Black Dirt Grill, which offers smoky entrées like grilled Maine lobster, brisket on brioche, and a grilled portobello sandwich.
Open Thurs–Fri, 12–4 p.m., Sat–Sun, 12–5 p.m. Cash only.
Warwick — 114 Little York Rd, 845.258.4858
Pub & Grill at Pennings Farm
Fresh equals flavorful, and the folks at Pennings Farm are well aware. Veggie-lovers can opt for salads, like beet and burrata or strawberry and arugula, or try a sweet potato burger with herbed goat cheese on brioche. Carnivores need not fret thanks to options like grilled flank steak with Korean barbecue sauce, sweet and sour apricot pork, and grass-fed beef, turkey, and salmon burgers. The house specialty? Fish ’n’ chips.
Mon–Wed, 11 a.m.–8 p.m.; Thurs–Fri, 11 a.m.–9:30 p.m.; Sun, 9 a.m.–8 p.m.
Warwick — 161 State Rt 94 S, 845.986.1059
