Restaurant Recommendations

Well, the last couple of columns were kind of heavy so, I thought I would lighten things up with some local restaurant recommendations. My wife and I travel frequently and we appreciate good food when we find it. So, I thought I'd start off with two of our favorites.

Smoke House BBQ Pizza Bar (Formerly "Patsy's")
407 Jericho Turnpike, Syosset, NY
516-802-4125
Web: http://www.dlsmokehouse.com

For us this restaurant has a special meaning. Two weeks before our wedding in 2008, we realized that we needed to plan a rehearsal dinner. Several guests were staying at a nearby hotel and we started driving up Jericho Turnpike for a nice venue. We stopped at a few restaurants that wanted to charge as much as we were paying for our reception, that's not what we had in mind. When Patsy's appeared on the horizon it was a shining destination. We found the managers and staff to be friendly, helpful and the prices were reasonable. Needless to say the rehearsal dinner was a big success and we have returned to dine there on a fairly regular basis.

Recently, they went through a change in decor and an expansion of their menu. Now known as Smoke House BBQ Pizza Bar, thankfully, all the great Italian dishes and pizzas are still very much there. They've added some Barbecue items as well as burgers, sandwiches and a few specialty items. One item I tried was a BBQ Sushi Roll of Buffalo Chicken. An interesting reconstruction of the classic Buffalo Chicken. All the ingredients are there, the chicken (minus the bones), the hot sauce, blue cheese and celery all wrapped in rice and crisp seaweed. It tasted great and I didn't have to worry about messy hands. It's an excellent appetizer!

They still make our favorite salad, the Pear Salad. The salad is prepared with a nice selection of greens, sliced pears, almonds, fresh blue cheese with a healthy drizzling of raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Another delicious dish! It's great to see that even after their makeover, Smoke House kept all the quality and great food that made them such a special place.

Puerto Vallarta
48 Cedar Swamp Rd, Glen Cove, NY
516-277-2900

We recently discovered this little gem. My wife is from Mexico so, when we find authentic food so close to home we celebrate! The restaurant is nicely designed with ample seating on two floors. The sounds of Spanish music and decor work to create a really nice ambiance perfect for any type of party from a family fiesta to a romantic dinner for two.

The menu is filled with authentic Mexican cuisine made and served quickly by a friendly wait staff that is very knowledgeable in what they are serving. I can recommend the Chicken Enchilada Mole. For those not familiar it is chicken meat wrapped in flour tortillas covered with a mole sauce and topped with creme. The mole sauce is actually a spicy type of chocolate but, without the sweetness of sugar. It may be hard to explain but, take it from this Gringo, it is nothing like a Hershey bar, it has a very unique and pleasant taste. The dish is served with some refried beans and a small salad. In terms of price, very reasonable.

Next up on the blog, I'll get back into tech and talk about long distance communication and VoIP!