Buckingham Lake/Pond (depending on what site you check) is in the middle of a quiet suburban area…read morein Albany. There's a path around it to stretch your legs and/or those of your canine companions - circle it twice and you've walked 1 mile. The playground area makes this a popular neighborhood destination. The fountains were active today (it's a warm day in February with some ice cover), but the ducks were.

Very pretty walk in the middle of stately housing. Even when walking through a mist it's ok since…read moreit's mostly shaded. Half mile around.

Ah, good old Wolf Road, always evolving. I don't get back home too often, but I seem to always see…read morenew businesses popping uphere. Chain burger joints seem to be the new craze on this strip. Luckily some of the oldies like JT Maxie's, Denooyer Chevy and others are still around! Most people don't realize this busy Capital Region road used to all be farmland a mere 60 YEARS ago. My mom grew up in the South Colonie area, it has got to be wild to have experienced how much this has changed. I think there MAY be one private residence left on this road. I was looking through an old book on Wolf Road while I was home in the 518. It's by Naylor, Platt and Platt, I imagine the Colonie Town Library would have a copy. I was skimming the book and found out that a country club once stood where Colonie Center is. I lived in Albany 30+ years and it's amazing how much that mall has evolved, it's now quite nice for this region. I remember the Herman's sporting good store on Wolf Road, that moved to Colonie Center and is now long gone. I miss the days when we had Papa Gino's across from the mall! I remember driving by Jerry's Bike Shop and Cranberry Bog often as a kid, hard to believe these spots are no longer there. Platt's Deli was another popular Wolf Road institution, that was replaced by Bucca di Beppo (if I remember correctly). It's amazing how many businesses have come and gone over even just the last 20 years. 2012 brought us Trader Joe's, which has horrible parking nation wide and even in Smalbany too! I'm not quite sure why they placed this popular store in such a congested area! The traffic on Wolf Road is to be avoided at Xmas, but after living in Los Angeles, I now snicker when my friends complain about this thoroughfare.

People demonize Wolf Road all the time. There are some folks who say that they avoid it all costs…read more Others won't patronize a business if it chooses to open up a spot on this commercial stretch in Colonie. They are missing out. Sure, to the untrained eye it can look like nothing but a parade of chain restaurants. On the south end there's IHOP, PF Chang's and The Cheesecake Factory. On the north end there's Moe's, The Outback Steakhouse, and Red Lobster. And there's a lot more in between. And during peak traffic hours, it can come close to resembling a small downstate traffic jam. All joking aside, it can be some of the worst traffic in the region. But Wolf Road has its good sides too. My love for Trader Joe's is well documented, and its convenient back entrance makes the Wolf Road business accessible to anyone clever enough to use it. Then of course there is the Hong Kong Bakery and Bistro. We don't have very many authentic Chinese restaurants in the region, but this is one of them. And I've heard there are good Chinese dishes on the menu at Buffalo Wagon too, although I have yet to try any for myself. Subbers is on Wolf Road too, and if you are a fan of mozzarella sticks, you have to try their take on the form. Ted's Fish Fry outpost also offers delicious fried treats that aren't from a nathional chain. Lemondrop was revealed to have tasty boba tea. I've got to get there and order one half-sweet. And the shop also has some of the tartest tart yogurt around. And lucky for me, that's just how I like it. Off almost everyone's radar is U Mundu E Ca, the Italian market that just hosted a pop up dinner featuring locally famous chefs Brian Bowden and Mark Graham. I'm not sure if it makes up for the evils of Buca di Beppo around the corner, but it certainly comes close Benson's Pet Center is there too, which is another great regional business that has nothing to do with food. Of course there is no getting around that this small strip of activity has two Starbucks. But one of them has a fire place and the other has a drive through. So, in a way, they are totally different. The truth is, that I don't instinctively hate chains or malls either. Some of them are fine. I love great coffee, but I occasionally go for the convenience of Starbucks. The wings at The Ruck are my favorite in the region, but once in a while I'll get a hankering for a breaded wing from Hooters. Honest Weight is a fabulous store, but Whole Foods has my favorite prosciutto and great salami sliced to order. And thanks to Wolf Road and Colonie Center, we even have a Tesla super charging station. I get the problems of businesses leaving the cities and moving to the suburbs. I understand how communities can improve with rich retail areas that encourage walking over driving. And I value those things. I really do. But I'm not so blinded by them that I can't see the good in this far too reviled road.

It's been a while since I ventured to a new restaurant in Troy. So I decided, there's a lot of…read moredevelopment happening and I looked for events...Troy had a fairly new restaurant an event. The choice was a no brainer. As I was driving through, my son saw how crowded it was and asked if were wine in NYC minus the sky scrappers Yes, Troy, New York is known as "The Home of Uncle Sam" because of its connection to Samuel "Uncle Sam" Wilson, a meat packer who supplied the U.S. Army during the War of 1812. In 1961, Congress officially recognized Wilson as the originator of the Uncle Sam symbol and declared Troy "The Home of Uncle Sam". The event that I experienced was, Troy Victorian Stroll. Held each year 10 days after Thanksgiving, the Troy Victorian Stroll has been a tradition that transforms the streets downtown Troy into 1980s. The event involves visitors in Victorian dress strolling the City. The costumes are antique and which includes people wearing hats, costumes and brings back colonial era back to life. Overall there are a lot of things happening in Troy. I need to venture out to Troy more and this was just the beginning. One of the most active politicians I have seen, who's pretty much involved in most of the things happening in the community, Congressman Tonko was rocking it!

This wine was amazing and so was Bailee, the wonderful person behind the desk. I have never had a…read moresparkling wine that wasn't ridiculously sweet and off a grocery store shelf, so I hadn't ever given it the respect it deserves. Bailee told us that it was a dry, sparkling red, that this would sound strange, but we would know what she was talking about after trying it. The wine was barely sweet at all and it was very refreshing. It tasted like a nice red wine mixed with champagne, in a good way. I am so impressed with this wine and this winery that I can't wait to go back for another glass. This was an awesome experience and great way to kick off 2019! Thank you, Yelp! Cheers & SYOY, Michelle

From the owner: Local wine from local grapes.The Chelois is as sparkling as the Yelp Elite Squad. Plus we kinda…read morehave a thing for red.

Great mural located in Troy New York. It has a great positive message behind it which I really…read morelike. It's right next to another mural and both are nice to see

Always great food no matter what you order. We came with 2…read morefriends that had never been and it was a great evening. All went home with lunch. The next day our son said I saw you on a Facebook Ad.....little weird as not one actually asked us for permission. But one just never knows

Despite the look of the place, there is good food being served. The fried calamari appetizer is…read moresuper good, not rubbery, very fresh, but it should not be served with cocktail sauce. We requested marinara sauce instead (which waitress told us was an upcharge) and it was almost the best we'd ever had. The shrimp fra diavolo was very good, and the Chianti they poured was good too. I think my friends had chicken Milanese and they enjoyed it. All in all, it was a very satisfying meal.

Great good! Amazing pizza and salads. Always leave with a full, happy stomach. Friendly peopleread more

DeFazio's has exploded in popularity in recent years because of rave reviews from pizza purists…read more It's critically acclaimed as not only one of the premier pizzerias in the Cap District, but some (me) say it's a top ranker across the country. And that ranking is well deserved. You get a strong familial feel walking into DeFazio's. If you're lucky enough to meet the Boss himself (he will actually be wearing a shirt that says "Boss"), he will give you a history lesson on the pizzeria, his family, and the state of pizz-ology Nationwide. He proudly proclaims that he is still The Sauce Guy around these parts because he has to keep up the quality control. There's something special about eating at a restaurant where the owner cares that much about the product, and they want you to as well. I encourage you to take the plunge and order the General Tso's pizza. It sounds insane, I know. But if you grew up eating this stuff, it will take you back to a time where you were traversing a mall food court and eating free samples (funny enough, that was the inspiration for this pizza). A lot of chicken-based pizzas will have red sauce as a base, but this is actually replaced with the Tso's special blend which has a beautiful sweet-heat to it. If you're coming here for the first time, it's nice to also balance a pizza like that out with a classic. Maybe a cheese or something similar. That way you can try out the red sauce and cheese in its purest form. I had the pleasure of walking through a cheese packing session that was going on in the restaurant, so I got to see that raw mozz up close, maybe 20 pounds of it. At that moment, I felt as though I was approaching enlightenment. When fully melted on that 'za, this cheese has the ideal mix of density and squish. DeFazio's has a special place in my heart. Your time here will make you feel like you are in a pizza sitcom. And you will leave with a feeling that you may have just had some of the best pizza of your life.

The City of Albany is going to be a test review to see if it posts. Since yesterday my photos have…read morenot been posting on Yelp. The last app update was four days ago. I'm very sad. As for my state capital I think it's beautiful. I've never been unhappy with our state government. As a low income senior citizen I don't pay taxes in my state. I feel our governor always works well with my City of New York. There you go! I'm a fan and if you live here you may be a fan too!

If you like parking tickets and school zone violations this is a great city to add some tax to your…read morealready unbelievable amount of taxes due. Come to visit the capital and get a 50 dollar parking ticket when the sign says free parking after 3pm. Why not drive around and explore the city. Feel free to drive through one of the 20 ,20mph, school zones with speed cameras. Summer when school isn't in session, doesn't matter, they still are school zones. O by the way the deliberately obscure the former blinking zone lights so you are not aware of the school zone. Have another 50 dollar ticker for the thrill. I'll avoid this run down dump like the covid vax going forward.

I wanted to see Moby and made my way down to Lark after 2pm. I wasn't sure what to expect or how it…read morewould be made as Moby is know for electronic music. But it was amazing. Moby is kind of a dork and would say after every song "thank you, thank you very much" intoning almost none of the soul contained in the music. Soul there was, Moby is near genius in the color of sound. Grabbing a rhythm and riding it out, exploring it from angles and giving it dimension. The band was amazing, violin, vocals huge drums and keyboard made the future of music. The crowd started a little stiff but everybody was dancing by the end. Wrapped and surrounded by an incredible sound system all of the tens of thousands of people who were there on an amazing September day were having a good time. I'm usually kind staunch about my personal space and I had to throw that right out the window. It was friendly however and Albany cool was in full display. Except for the dude right in front of me. I don't know what the hell he was on but was totally out of control. Going from Maori warrior to cheetah in the grass dance moves. He was spasmodic and epileptic and we tried to crowd surf him away. But he wouldn't go. He was directly channeling music into movement and that was scary. Larkfest is a highlight of Albany.

Not sure on details about when this event happens, but i was fortunate enough to be in Albany…read moreduring Lark Fest. Live bands, vendors, food and a packed street in front of the park. A lot of fun for a Saturday afternoon.