Gourmet Utica: She Delivers!

Check out "The Dish" this week, fresh, healthy meals delivered to your home or place of work. Including lemon bars! The menu and prices are on the website: http://www.dishesbytrish.com/

Upstate Architecture: A Genesee Street Gem

If you have seen any pictures of old Utica, particularly looking north or south on Genesee Street, you are aware of what a grand avenue it used to be, lined with tall arching elm trees and residential buildings in a variety of architectural styles. Almost all of those homes are now small businesses or doctors' offices. And the elms were lost to elm disease years ago. Still, I love to imagine how it used to be. If I squint a little, I can see the crowded downtown, trollies, even the carriages, and the families on their porches in the summer. 

Here's a classic I passed on a walk a few days ago; one I had never really noticed. It's been home to various businesses and is currently for sale, if anyone's interested.

Gourmet Utica: Joeys

This will not be news to anyone who has lived here for any length of time, because Joeys has been around for roughly 20 years and has changed hands at least once, but it's a great restaurant, one of my favorites. It provides the simplest and most basic of Italian dishes--manicotti, lasagne, ziti, meatballs, eggplant parm, chicken parm, etc--as well as creative, delicious specials every night. The pasta is fresh homemade and the dining rooms remind me of Little Italy and Italy Italy and "The Godfather."  You almost forget you are in East Utica on the corner of Mohawk and Lansing Streets.

Little Italy, Italy Italy and "The Godfather"

I have been to Joeys with almost everyone I know over the years--with my family, people I worked with, for parties, and on Saturday nights with Ray.

And of course, I have to mention that a portrait of my former brother in law, Sal Amico, a jazz musician, holds an honored place on the wall near the bar.

Upstate Architecture: Two Whitesboro Beauties

I'm happy to post photos of two houses taken by my friend, Jeff Boehlert, who knows a lot about construction and renovation, having taught himself how to do just that.

A few weeks ago I posted a picture of a house I noticed as I was leaving the Dunham Public Library in Whitesboro and launched what I hope will be another thread  (Architecture) in this blog about life in Utica and/or Upstate New York. In its heyday, Utica and many other Upstate cities and towns created beautiful buildings, both residential and public. I know enough about architecture to see that some are elegant and/or unusual. Some are odd. Some imitative of 

Europeon styles. Many have been renovated and adapted for various uses today.

Jeff expressed an interest in this particular aspect of life here and sent me these photos a few days ago. I asked him to tell me what he liked about these two houses. Here's what he said:

"As for the houses they are both from upper Main Street in Whitesboro. I liked the first one because of the capped turret style slate roof over the porch. I love all things turret. 

I like the white house because it looks so classic and inviting...timeless. It's actually a very old home, maybe 90-100 years, and it has so many unique features. Large (25 small paned) front windows, great cornice details, a really nice roof line and to top it off the house is a 6 sided design. If I was ever to build a house, I would imitate that exterior."