Ambition Coffee House & Eatery on Jay Street in Schenectady, Feb. 9, 2024.
Thanksgiving may be months away but this upcoming week will be a time to feast in the Capital Region with both Saratoga County and Schenectady County restaurant weeks on the docket.
Schenectady's is up first, running Monday, Feb. 24 through Sunday, Mar. 2, with a record-high count of 40 participating restaurants. Saratoga's runs Wednesday, Feb. 26 through Thursday, Mar. 6, with nearly 40 restaurants on the list.
The two are typically held around the same time, though this year Saratoga's is slightly earlier to avoid holding the event around Saint Patrick's Day, which is already a busy time for area restaurants.
"Ours is really a standalone so I don't think we impact anybody else," said Todd Shimkus, president of the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce, which organizes the event.
Restaurant weeks are meant to provide a financial boost to local eateries and employees during what would otherwise be a slower season.
For organizers in Schenectady, that means working around Proctors' schedule.
"We try to pick a week where there are no Proctors shows happening. We really try to target that because if there's a big Proctors show going on, the restaurants -- especially downtown -- really don't need the business. They're busy already," said Todd Garofano, executive director of Discover Schenectady.
The organization joined with the Downtown Schenectady Improvement Corporation (DSIC) and the Chamber of Schenectady County last year to make Schenectady's Restaurant Week more of a county-wide event.
"The whole team -- [all] three organizations together -- have done a great job in just expanding the program," Garofano said.
Participating restaurants in Schenectady are offering special fixed-price dinner menus for $30 and $40, with select outlets offering special lunch menus for $20.
At Ambition Coffee & Eatery, Inc. on Jay Street, that means a $30 three-course dinner, with a choice of lobster beurre blanc with fettuccine, a filet mignon or coq au vin for the main entre, followed by one of the cafe's popular boozy muffins.
Founded nearly 25 years ago, Ambition has been part of Schenectady Restaurant Week since its inception, and owner Marc Renson said it tends to bring in more reservations, something they've been relying on more following the COVID pandemic.
"COVID changed everything for everybody. So we pretty much pick and choose when we're going to stay open and when we're not. Just like last night, no reservations? I'm not staying open," Renson said.
Leading up to the weeklong event, they've had a steady stream of calls for reservations. Renson noted that it seems like there are more restaurant weeks planned in the Capital Region, including ones cropping up in Colonie and Clifton Park.
"We've never known this many restaurant weeks, so it'll be interesting. But right now, it's not fazing us at all," Renson said.
This year marks the second Schenectady Restaurant Week for Stella Pasta Bar & Bakery on Union Street, which moved to the location from Burnt Hills in 2022.
"We chose the $40 per person option so chef could flex his skills back there with some ingredients that we don't normally always have on the menu," said Chris Sule, one of the owners.
That includes panko-crusted asparagus, arancini, New York strip steak, salmon piccata and gnocchi pollo salsiccia. Dessert selections include a limoncello tiramisu or a salted caramel bundino, an Italian stovetop pudding with a graham cracker crust finished with caramel sauce and whipped cream.
Events like these help to bring in new customers, according to Sule.
"We don't advertise as a company policy. We try to focus on the experience in these doors and walls but the chance to come together with the town and work with all the other amazing establishments and get people going everywhere . . . it doesn't really even feel like marketing. [It] feels like being part of something," Sule said.
Organizers for Schenectady Restaurant Week don't charge businesses a fee to be part of the event, said Garofano, instead, they ask for a donation of a $50 gift card toward marketing efforts.
"I think this is an important distinction as our three organizations -- Discover Schenectady, DSIC and Schenectady Chamber -- recognize the winter months are challenging for restaurants, so we want to do our part to support small, locally owned businesses and the jobs they provide to our community," Garofano said.
In Saratoga, the first few months of the year are especially tough, noted Josh Cupp, general manager of Thirsty Owl Saratoga.
"I think we need the restaurant weeks now more than we ever have," he said.
"[In] January, February, March, it is tough to get people to want to leave their houses, especially the way it is now with people can stay at home, and they can order [through] DoorDash or Mealeo," Cupp said. "It's tough to get people out of the house."
From its South Broadway location, Thirsty Owl is offering lunch and dinner specials for the week, including fish and chips, a Thirsty Owl burger, and vegetarian flatbread, served with soup or salad for lunch. The dinner menu includes cedar-planked salmon, steak frites, chicken riesling and more.
Cupp noted that they usually see an uptick in business during Saratoga County Restaurant Week.
"By dining in or ordering takeout from Saratoga County restaurants, we're backing local businesses and helping ensure they can make it through this tough winter and thrive for years to come," Shimkus said.
The county chamber took over the event eight years ago. Participating restaurants will offer a $25, $35 or $45 three-course meal menu, plus tax and tip. Some restaurants will also offer $15 breakfast or lunch specials.
When The Gazette spoke with Shimkus, there were nearly 40 restaurants on the docket this year but he noted more tend to sign up the week of the event. To participate, restaurants pay a minimum of $125, with a more expensive option that includes additional promotion from the chamber.
"The other thing that I think is very unique about ours [is] . . . we created what we call a Restaurant Week Sweepstakes Program," Shimkus said.
Participants can enter the sweepstakes daily on the chamber's website to win a prize of multiple $100 gift cards to Saratoga County restaurants.
One restaurant is also taking advantage of the busy week to raise funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS). Pasta Pane, an Italian bistro in Clifton Park, is participating this year and donating $5 from every meal sold during the week.
"Pasta Pane is very excited to participate in the Saratoga County Restaurant Week again this year," said owner and operator Nicholas Porreca in a statement. "We love how our regular guests get a chance to try something new and we love meeting new guests who visit us for the first time because of this promotion."
For a full list of venues and more information on Saratoga County Restaurant Week, visit saratoga.org. For more information on Schenectady Restaurant Week, visit downtownschenectady.org.