Recently we acquired a weekend house in Bedford, N.Y., so naturally the local restaurants have become quite important to me. My favorite is TRUCK a farm-to-table Mexican restaurant that began life as a food truck.

The menu has the usual suspects: tacos, guacamole, etc., but the ingredients are absolutely fresh, first rate and well prepared—and the margaritas, with all fresh juices, are terrific. Prices are reasonable and staff extremely professional, which can be hard to find in this region north of Manhattan and east of the Hudson River. I find most restaurant servers in the area to be overly friendly, fairly inattentive, and somewhat sloppy.

Truck is one exception, and so is The Inn at Pound Ridge by Jean-Georges. This is by far the most professional restaurant I have encountered. A well trained, pleasant but not oppressively so staff serves Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s superb (at times) cooking seven days a week at lunch and dinner. The wine list here is also excellent and avoids the insane markups that are rampant in most restaurants.

This menu boasts fresh ingredients, yet the quality of preparation can vary according to which cooks are on duty. Still, both restaurants are shining examples of what professional service looks like and are reasonably priced for the quality and service.

On the other side of the plate, I had two not-so-satisfying meals at the Bedford Post Inn recently. The restaurants are now operated by Michael White of the Marea Group in Manhattan. Their in-city establishments are all good and professionally operated. The food does not thrill me as much as it does others, but it certainly is always above average. Sadly, his restaurants at the Bedford Post Inn are disasters. The food itself is more than passable—but the overall operation is disordered, clownish, and could be comical if it was all for free. Unfortunately, it’s not. Actually, it’s expensive—especially in the fancier Campagna, which is open for dinner service only. The Barn is more casual but still no bargain, and the staff seemed to be enjoying a Mexican fiesta of their own during my last visit. I’d avoid the place until they season the staff more.

The Meeting House, Bedford Post’s most unpopular restaurant, has closed, and we have not had the pleasure of trying its replacement yet but plan to before we go to Nantucket for the summer.

Herbert Rose is Director Emeritus at GUASTAVINO’S and 583 PARK AVENUE. He has 50 years of experience as Director of Catering at New York’s finest venues. 

Questions for Mr. Rose? CONTACT US and he will be happy to address them in future posts.