Tag: food

Homemade Pizza

Here at Utica College, the Resident Assistants (RA’s) host fun events for the students that live in their assigned dormitory. These events can be arts & crafts related, educational-based, but most importantly, they can also be food related. The RA of my floor hosted a “Make Your Own Pizza” event. I was slightly skeptical to try it at first because I’ve never done something like this before, but it’s actually really simple and when it comes out of the oven, it tastes great. I made one plain pizza and a pepperoni pizza. But, we all know that there are an endless amount of pizza toppings.

The ingredients include:

Pre-made pizza dough (there are numerous brands available in any supermarket)

Mozzarella cheese

Any other topping of your choice

How To Make it:

Spread the tomato sauce onto the pre-made pizza dough, put your toppings on and preheat the oven to 350 and bake for about 15 minutes. This is really easy to make and is great for lunchtime.

Bacon-Wrapped Barbeque Chicken

This dish made by a Utica College student, Alliyah McClellan, has bacon wrapped baked chicken, smothered with honey barbeque sauce. The side of cheddar & bacon mashed potatoes adds even more bacon flavor to the plate and the more bacon, the merrier. With simple ingredients and a reasonable cooking time of about 2 hours (at most), this dish is very simple to make and comes out tasting great. Though it was her first time making this dish, Alliyah mixed the perfect amount of seasonings together to make a delicious dish.

The ingredients she used a very simple and are as follows:

Purdue chicken breast (using chicken breast makes it easier to wrap the bacon)

Idahoan Applewood Smoked Bacon Flavored Mashed Potatoes (available in any supermarket)

Larry’s Seasoning Salt

Goya Adobe

Oscar Mayer Naturally Hardwood Smoked bacon

Honey barbeque sauce (or any bbq sauce of your preference)

How to make bacon wrapped chicken:

Preheat your oven to 400

Cook the bacon about mid-way, on the stove top

While chicken is baking, take the half-cooked bacon and wrap it around the chicken and let it bake together until both are fully cooked

This dish is simple and fun to make, so why not give it a try at home.

Applebee’s Survey Results

Thank you to everyone that participated in last week’s Applebee’s survey for your take on their best entree. The votes have been counted and Applebee’s Crosscut Ribs was the entree with the most votes.

The results are here.

Applebee’s

Although it isn’t unique only to the Utica area, Applebee’s is a very popular restaurant with over 2,000 restaurant locations in the United States. They specialize in casual dining, serving everything from salads to steaks. In addition to food, every restaurant location offers a bar section that serves alcoholic beverages.

With their new slogan, “Together is good,” it’s clear that Applebee’s emphasizes on comfortableness and casualness.

They offer a very wide range of food options. For meat lovers, they offer chicken, burgers, steaks and ribs. For seafood lovers, they sell different variations of shrimp and salmon. Lastly, for those who like to eat a little lighter, they sell pastas, soups and salads. Each entree comes with a side of either french fries, mashed potatoes or cole slaw.

To vote on what you think Applebee’s best entree is, click here.

Gerber’s 1933 Tavern

Gerber’s 1933 Tavern has been around for years and has offered many different services throughout those years. At one point in time this tavern has been a cafe, a tobacco shop, a produce place and much more.

The original owner, Harry Gerber was born in 1880 and opened up Gerber’s Grill in 1933. Years after his death in 1942, Gerber’s Grill closed.

The place remained vacant for some 40 years before Gerber’s 1933 Tavern opened in 2013. The company has experienced tremendous success since and has received rave reviews from critics and customers. With a wide range of options on their menu and reasonable prices, Gerber’s 1933 Tavern is a must visit restaurant.

Tramontane Cafe: A local favorite

The fall season is here and it shows promise that the bitter cold is here to stay for awhile.

That’s no surprise to us folks who live in Upstate, New York we’re immune to the cold, but that doesn’t mean we can’t hold back on warming up with a little something special. The first sip of coffee sure is something to look forward to. It warms my soul, perks me up right away and as a college student, coffee is what gets me and many other students through the day.

As a native of Utica, I’m all about finding new local hang-out spots. I believe there is so much more to Utica than what meets the eye. One thing I know for sure is, coffee spots are a definite favorite here.. and I’m not talking about corporate chains such as Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks, which are great for on the go runs, but the local ran cafe’s all over Utica are what make the city unique.

One cafe in particular that caught my eye was the Tramontane Cafe. The Cafe also known as “The Tram” is a local favorite because of the uniqueness and entertainment it has to offer. With funky, bohemian and vintage furniture including couches and lamps and humorous wall art bouncing off the walls. The Tram makes it feel like your in the comfort of a family lounge.

Owned and operated by Robin Raabe and Garrett Ingraham, The Tram has been open since 2008 and was rated Utica’s 4th best coffee house, but if you haven’t heard of it, you are not alone. It took me awhile to find it. Tramontane Cafe uses local coffee grounds and beans, mostly from the Finger Lakes and local produce as well. And If coffee isn’t your first go to, then have no fear because the cafe offers so much more than your ordinary cup of coffee. Whatever you’re wishing for, they have it. From latte’s, to chai tea, to homemade vegan soups, vegan burgers, salads, hummus, baked goods and sandwich melts, The Tram has it all. But it doesn’t stop there, when you stop in stick around for the events and entertainment. The Tram is open 7 days a week and offers nightly events including open-mic night, poetry night, story night and also has local band performers time to time. Stop on in and check it out for yourself. The Tram is located on 1105 Lincoln Ave. Just shy of Downtown Utica.

Babe’s Macaroni Grill & Bar

Babe’s Macaroni Grill & Bar is a local eatery that serves an array of food. They serve burgers, french fries, ribs, mac and cheese, fish, chicken, pasta and more. Everyday they start their menus with fresh ingredients.

They purchase their vegetables on a daily basis from Masi Produce. Their chicken is also fresh, along with their certified angus beef. They offer homemade soups, sauces and freshly baked bread. You can even stop in after work for Happy Hour. On certain nights, they have specials, making this food not only delicious, but also affordable.

In addition, they are well known for their hand cut steaks, freshly cut, every single day. Check out the map below for some famous steak eateries. Babe’s stays open until midnight Monday’s through Sunday’s.