Two weeks ago I was in the Hudson Valley and stayed with my sister in Beacon. (You can’t take the Hudson Valley out of me) I haven’t been to Beacon in a long time and it’s hopping! Living in LaGrange we didn’t get down to Beacon for a night out on the town. I don’t know why, but call it lazy perhaps and only 30 minutes away.
Back in the 80’sand 90’s I worked in Beacon at a local radio station. I did everything from sales to managing it. When ever I needed to go to the bank..Fishkill National Bank on the west end of Main Street, it was drive through only. You didn’t want to get out of the car. It wasn’t the best of neighborhoods. Mid Main Street was fine and the East Main Street was abandon warehouses.
Fast forward to today…well a lot has changed. Now there are some great little shops, art galleries, antique stores, wine bars and restaurants. They have what’s called 2nd Saturday when the shops and galleries all stay open late. It has come a long way!
On this evening when I ended up with my sister, she and her husband took me for a night out on the town. Our first stop was wine and tapas at The Vault. It’s in a building of an old bank that had a rather large vault.
They have a decent wine list. I enjoyed the 2014 Gini Soave Classico, Donna had the 2014 Mount Riley Sauvignon Blanc and my brother-in-law Joe, well he had a vodka and OJ. My Soave went really well with the scallops.
Tapas is small plates so we each ordered different items. Usually it’s meant for sharing, however, none of us shared. Maybe because we were all hungry or that it was so good, we didn’t want to share. We had the Cannellini Bean Crostini, Coriander & Pepper Melange Crusted Scallops, Jombo Lump Maryland Style Crab Cakes, Crispy Pork Belly with Apple-Bourbon Glaze and the Pan Roasted Wild Mushrooms. The pork belly was amazing, it just melted in your mouth!
Next stop for the evening was down the street at Oak Vino Wine Bar. What I liked about this wine bar is I felt like I was in my living room with friends. They have tables and couches. The only thing was it felt more like a coffee shop. I was a little disappointed that they only had one local wine on the menu and that was Millbrook Cabernet Franc and she labeled it New York and not Hudson Valley.
The highlight of my evening was Baja 328 Tequila Bar. They have a very extensive Tequila and drink menu along with a nice Mexican flare food menu. When we got there it was around 9pm and the place was packed.
I braved it and ordered a shot of Tequila to sip on. Donna had a traditional margarita and Joe went out on a limb and ordered Chupacabra’s Blood. It was made with Tequila, Malbec, Agave Nectar and fresh squeezed lime juice. Not sure I would want to mix my wine with my tequila.
If you are in the Hudson Valley or staying at a hotel near Beacon, Main Street is definitely an evening hot spot.
