We found Chef Deanna through Instagram and were intrigued. I sent her a quick note, and next thing…read moreyou know, we're on a phone call for over an hour that felt like 10 minutes. We asked Deanna to cater our 115 person, mountain top wedding with as much fire-prepared food as possible. Think Francis Mallmann (google him if you arent familiar). No running water. No electricity. She was game. She was more than game. She came ready to rumble and was cooking on the fire pit from morning until late night. Deanna is warm, talented, energetic, charming, and generous. She made amazing, locally sourced, fresh food our guests are still raving about. She has real relationships with farmers and producers in the area - her local connections are priceless. Her whole team never broke their professionalism and wowed us with their service and hospitality. She helped our moms serve apple pies instead of wedding cake. She sprinkled flowers all over the buffet tables. She shared with us all her beautiful old plates. She surprised us with a late night round of sloppy joes. She let us borrow all the props and baskets and water jugs for our whole wedding weekend, even for events that she wasn't specifically there for. I could go on and on. Book with Deanna, she is a true unicorn of the catering world.

We hired Chef Deanna in 2019 for our farm wedding in 2020. We had an amazing, romantic and intimate…read moretasting with her at her beautiful home in the winter of that year in which we fell in love with her food...and then the pandemic hit. We postponed two times, and Chef Deanna was incredibly accommodating throughout it all. In fact -- she supported our decision to postpone (even the second time!) when so many people questioned why we were doing it. Postponing twice was absolutely the right decision, and we had our dream wedding on 4/9/22 of this year. Chef Deanna worked with us to create a menu that was rustic and aligned with our tastes/personalities. We did a barbecue buffet for the main course -- with macaroni and cheese, multiple types of meat, cornbread, etc. -- and a more classic cocktail hour with charcuterie/cheese etc. Everything was delicious. My only regret is that I didn't go up for seconds! In ADDITION to that, Chef Deanna provided her gorgeous vintage plates that were a perfect fit with our venue. This really helped make our planning easier, and added to the beauty of the tables on the day. Everything went seamlessly -- We could not have been happier with Chef Deanna's catering!

While we weren't able to use Sarah's team for our event due to scheduling logistics, I wanted to…read moreleave a review because I was blown away by how easy it was to work with her for a short notice event. -Sarah responded to my inquiry and we were on the phone within minutes to discuss an event that was less than a week away! -She clearly loves what she does and cares to make your event 100% special and catered to food preferences and dietary restrictions. I was so impressed by how quickly she could come up with various dish ideas based on details of the event and the venue (in our case an Airbnb) -for those booking during covid, she takes safety precautions very seriously and ensures your comfort level -she sources fresh local ingredients for delicious meal combinations I'd certainly recommend Sarah and her team for catering and hope to book her sometime in the future!!

This was the absolute best catering/private chef experience I could imagine. The food was…read morescrumptious, unique, beautiful, and so, so tailored to our needs. Everything was vegan, vegetarian, and organic -- perfectly pleasing the vegans and meat eaters in the group (including one VERY picky eater). The owner is kind, thoughtful, punctual, and super creative. The team was extremely health and safety conscious. We will always remember this experience.

Not worth trying. Was excited to try them out for the first time after their hiatus with court…read moreissues and their name. Ordered my food and my friend ordered right after. After 15 minutes he finally got his food. I waited another 5 minutes before checkout my on my order. They said they were running behind on the grill. I waited another 5 minutes and they said it would be ready soon. Finally after 30 minutes of waiting I just asked for my money back. During the wait, I saw multiple other people check on their orders and that's when the staff realized they lost order tickets. My friend had ordered the rogue (braised short rib sandwich) and did not enjoy it at all, stating there was no flavor to the meat. Do not bother trying Wandering Dago. They are unorganized and even though they make it seem like a gourmet menu, the food is not good. Stay away and try any of the other good options around

Steak sandwich was great! (I had it at RPI career fair)read more

We had Chef Kevin handle a special private dinner for our daughter's graduation from Skidmore…read moreCollege. We were staying at an Airbnb in Saratoga Springs and after a busy graduation day there was nothing better than relaxing in our Airbnb with family and celebrating. Chef Kevin cooked us the most incredible dinner. It was the highlight of the weekend and I recommend Chef Kevin 100%!!

We were lucky enough to randomly find Chef Kevin and his team just recently when seeking a private…read morechef for a 1-week vacation for ~10 people at an Airbnb in a relatively remote location in upstate NY. From ideation, to custom menu design, to contract reviews, paperwork including proof of insurance, and payment, Kevin was incredibly professional, flexible, responsive, and ultimately was the determining factor in ensuring our family (with young kids) would actually be able to enjoy the vacation without worrying about cooking, ordering in, or carpooling far distances on windy, dark roads. Kevin and team were also dog and kid friendly. Beyond the professionalism, the food and service were absolutely outstanding. It was hard to believe, but each meal was better than the last, as were the quality of the ingredients used. We would recommend Chef Kevin to anyone seeking relative affordability and a great value yet making zero sacrifices around taste, quality, and service. We are happy to write this review and support Kevin. We expect when we reach out for our next family event that Kevin will have a team of 100+. There is no better - Kevin and team won't disappoint.

A little crowded (holiday weekend), a little loud, locally sourced farm to table, great food and…read moreexcellent service--Miss Lucy's came up in someone else's review when they mentioned it's better than Blackbarn. I tried both places and they were 100% correct. You can order anything and be happy but you HAVE to try their cobbler or bread pudding, so check out their dessert board. Also, reservations are highly recommended--I think I saw them have to turn people away during their dinner rush. Cheers!

Went here for brunch recently, and found it to be very cozy inside. The ambience was lively and…read morejoyful. I had an omelette with home fries and a salad. They were out of home fries, so substituted french fries. The service was OK. I found the staff a little bit unfriendly, even though I was sitting right at the bar in front of them. They were much more friendly with people that they seemed to know. Overall, this is a great place to grab a drink or brunch. The food and the vibe are good.

Absolutely scary to pull together a luncheon of executives and clients on the other side of the…read morecountry where I have never been. So much to think about: can different cultural tastes be addressed, can a casual lunch of sandwiches and sides be taken up a notch, will plates and cutlery be of good quality to so that the meal won't plop over a valued client's lap, etc (!) and all being kept within a budget? Mike hit all my concerns with A+ responses. Not only were the meals great for the group of 40+, Mike was flexible with last minute changes, catering was delivered in a timely manner, and I could count on his professional customer service for the venue without me even attending. 5 Stars for Michael's Express Catering - my go-to caterer for service, creativity and quality in food items, and Mike's enthusiastic personality to work with. Thanks big time, Mike! We'll do it again!

Mike, Just wanted to Thank You again for catering our 15th…read moreBi-Annual Family Reunion Banquet. Relatives came from California, Washington State, Tennessee, Maryland, Connecticut and various places in New York. They only had good things to say about the food. "How tender the beef was, how moist the turkey, how delicious the vegetable lasagna was and etc." I will certainly be recommending you to family, friends and acquaintances. And you will be the first on my list the next time I need to have an event catered. It was a pleasure to meet and work with you. Pat S.

My husband and I stopped here on a whim while driving through the area looking for ice cream. It's…read moreOctober, so naturally we decided on the apple fritter with ice cream. We were expecting an apple fritter donut with ice cream on top, what we got was a huge container of apple slices fried in what was similar to funnel cake batter and a side of ice cream. It was amazing! The apples had brown sugar and cinnamon on top, but it wasn't overly sweet. My husband and I agreed this was probably one if the best things we had on our trip. It was so unique, and so very delicious. Just a warning though - they only take cash!

Always the best place to visit. The girls at the window, Jacky and Jillian are so attentive,…read moreprofessional and polite. We always enjoy our time here and the food. They have several options to choose from. Cold & hot sandwiches, salads, ice cream, milkshakes and more. Prices are cheap, and the quality of the food is GREAT. Will always return! Thanks girls.

Frese's is delicious!…read more Great food, great people, and great prices! Cannot go wrong with the weekly dinners (on Thursdays), but pre order in advance to both save on price and also guarantee your order... They frequently sell out. When not doing the Thursday night dinner; the subs, the pizza, and especially the deserts are all delicious! Such a great hometown place. Oh and during lent and occasionally in the summer, the fish fry's are great, too! Saturdays have pop up sandwich specials. Bread is fantastic, as well. All-in-all, an A+ operation

If you missed out on Frese's special Saturday, 15 Sept 24, you missed out on Chef Frese outstanding…read moreproduction of the best BLT I have ever had! Sure, I thought about paying $12 for a sandwich but with Frese's fabulous dinners, the decision wasn't hard and I would gladly do it again. We always seem to end up being disappointed with other restaurants BLT solely because of the lack of the amount of bacon. Frese's had full bacon flavor with several pieces accompanied by the perfect amount of lettuce and tomato. We look forward to their continued treats!

Natasha is the best! her for is truly special and reminds you why a home cooked meal is better than…read moreanything. she's also a lot of fun. highly recommend

Pros: We chose Natasha for a small family party to celebrate our wedding this spring. We went with…read moreher mainly because she was the first/only chef to begin our conversation by asking us what WE had in mind and letting that be the foundation for building the menu. She seemed eager to help us realize our vision rather than impose someone else's onto us. There are also four other people on the IBN team: the sous chef, whose name I forget; the bartender, for whom the same is true (maybe Aaron or Erin), and two servers: Mason and Spencer. These folks did an AMAZING job and we were both so grateful for their kindness and professionalism on the day of the event. Finally, I liked what I ate! I was happy with my day-of meal. Cons: Natasha was incredibly rude to both me and my husband in the weeks leading up to the post-wedding party. I had only spoken to her twice before the party: once when I hired her and again in February. She'd said in February that we could have a third and final call two weeks before the event. When I emailed her three weeks before the event to schedule this final call, she sounded irritated and said we'd spoken "a few days ago" (we had not; I even asked some relatives in case someone else had, but no) and she wanted to "stick to the plan" of having a call at a date a time to which we had not agreed--- only *five* days before the party. My husband reminded her that she'd said we could talk two weeks before and she eventually, reluctantly scheduled a call with us. When we call at the date and time she told us to, she does not pick up; instead, she texts us that she's in the middle of an event. All of these things are perfectly normal, human mistakes. We all get clients confused and talk to one as though they are another (like the "a few days ago" thing). We all overbook ourselves every once in a while and are unavailable after telling someone we would be. A professional would have simply apologized; instead, after I used *one sentence* of an email to express my disappointment about the missed call--- because my husband had taken off work to be available for it, so lost money for no reason--she used this as an excuse to threaten not to show up. Said she needed us to "confirm" in light of my "tone." In light of this, I decided not to speak to this person anymore unless absolutely necessary (i.e. at the party, for the sake of our guests). My husband took over talking to her, at which point we had a fun little role-reversal in which he was now the one reporting to me on a regular basis how rude Natasha was being to him. So at least I know it wasn't personal! Conclusion: If you just need to place a big food order and don't need to talk to the chef again after that, you can go with IBN and you'll probably be fine. If, however, you are planning an event of great importance to you--or just don't want to risk being treated like a burden for wanting to speak more than once with someone you're employing-- maybe look elsewhere.

For our wedding anniversary, we traveled across the river to Annarellas Ristorante on 276 Malden…read moreTurnpike in Saugerties We arrived early as we were traveling about an hour away and we're aware there were many detours as the Malden Bridge is undergoing repairs.  I'd read about Annarellas prior to this, and based on glowing reviews chose this to mark 50 years together, 39 as husband and wife...long engagement! We were not disappointed. We were seated promptly by our lovely hostess, and Shaun immediately came over to recite specials and to take our orders. He was attentive and we knew we were in good hands! We started with the Dr. Fox Cocktail: Angostura bitters, Bulleit Rye, Apple Liqueur, Dry Curacao, and Sweet Vermouth, which was perfect. It was accompanied by a hummus trio to spread on the bread. There was also a delicious foccacio. Next we were served a perfect salad, delicately dressed, and what made the salad so delightful was that the lettuce was torn into manageable pieces. A pet peeve of mine is large lettuce leaves that are difficult to wrangle, and this was not the case here. There were also tiny bits of cauliflower that gave the salad a nice texture and crunch.  I had the Stuffed Artichoke and my husband had Shrimp Gamberi on an Arugula salad. Both were substantial and beautifully seasoned. We had two glasses of an Argentine Tomero Malbec. It was a generous pour. For the main course, I had Polla al Limone (Lemon Chicken) over spinach. A simple dish done well. My husband had the Halibut special, a classic Mediterranean baked halibut with tomatoes, capers, and olives. So good that he finished it all...a rarity for him. (The halibut was pricey and it would be appreciated if the price was mentioned when the specials were gone over. Perhaps we should have asked.) We finished with a Sorbetto al Lampone, a tart raspberry sorbet in a dark chocolate shell and sliced.  And as we left, our sweet hostess brought over Lucianno, the most adorable puppy, to send us off with puppy kisses! We definitely will be back...especially for the wild boar ragu over pappadelles. One nitpicking observation. The entrance to the restaurant was a tad shabby. We mistook it for the service entrance. It needs to be spruced up to match the superb food inside!

The wild boar ragout was the best part of the meal, I would definitely recommend trying it and skip…read morethe stuffed hot Italian peppers. Usually I like to pick what dishes are considered popular on Beli but I really wanted to try them, they're just too hot and not very satisfying to kick off your palate. The bread was okay, a little (very) messy and the hummus trio was cute but not necessary or particularly tasty. The pollo al limone and gamberoni e fagioli were good, a little dry but not a deal breaker. Service was nice, the place is pretty casual so I would recommend for a regular casual date night, it's not fine dining--the experience was nice but not luxurious. What I mean is it's cozy and inviting, not elegant and stuffy. Cheers!