Court Street

Keith and I are determined to try a lot of local restaurants and bars in our area. Our goal is to sample a lot of places and build a knowledge of this new place we're living in. There are SO many places to eat and we're constantly finding new places tucked into corners. Our list of places to try is constantly growing. So, when we heard about Hudson Restaurant Week, we jumped at the chance to try someplace new and to eat more courses than what is usually in our budget.

We decided to check out Court Street, because the pre fixe menu for Restaurant Week looked really good and it was someplace new. Its interesting because walking into Court Street is like walking into a small but casual bar. Keith and I agreed that it would be a cool bar to grab a drink and order off the bar menu. When you walk through the bar, you are lead to a nice dining room -- white linen table cloths and table candles nice. It actually feels like two different restaurants under the same roof.

We both started with the baked brie puff pastry over greens, pears, and apples. The brie was soft and warm and covered with an apricot filling inside of the light pastry. It was served over arugula (I think, based on the bitterness) and fruits with a spicy mustard dressing. Overall, it was fantastic. Keith and I agreed that it could be a meal on its own and that it was the best part of the meal.

For our main course, I ordered a lamb shank braised in rosemary and red wine sauce. The meat was so tender I was pulling it off the bone and the sauce was very rich. Very yummy and very huge. It came with a side of squash, a squirt of mashed potatoes, and a few sliced and roasted sweet potatoes. I love sweet potatoes, but I thought that both the squash and sweet potatoes were way too sweet and heavy to go with this dish (but were very good on their own). The mashed potatoes were light and creamy.

Keith ordered a Shell Steak au Poivre. He thought it was good, although neither of us knew was au Poivre meant. His came with a side of squash and two squirts of mashed potatoes.

For dessert, I ordered a pecan tart ala mode and Keith ordered a warm brownie sundae. Unfortunately they were out of the the peanut butter and chocolate pie that he was planning on ordering. However, his brownie sundae was really delicious, but very rich. My pecan tort was good, nothing special, but after having such a rich meal I don't think I could have eaten anything sweeter.

Overall, we were both happy with our meals. However, in the future I think we'll return to Court Street to hang out in the bar instead of in the dining room, as we're really more comfortable in a casual environment.