Swoon Kitchenbar Celebrates Its 20th Anniversary With A Monthly Food Series
In 2008, the earliest days of Rural Intelligence, one of our first restaurant reviews was for Swoon Kitchenbar in Hudson: “Is there another restaurant in Columbia County as New Yorky (in a good way) as this smashing place?” All these years later, Swoon is still smashing, but rather than emulating a New Yorkiness, its emphasis is and has always been on locally sourced cuisine. From now through November, Swoon is celebrating a remarkable 20 years in Hudson with “Swoon Celebrates: Monthly Food Series,” a four-course, $59 prix fixe menu that will highlight a star ingredient grown in the Hudson Valley.
How many ways can you create a menu featuring asparagus, or corn, or chili peppers, from appetizer to dessert? Diners will learn the creative powers of the Swoon kitchen, run by husband-and-wife team and chefs Jeff Gimmel and Nina Bachinsky Gimmel. The $59 menu series will be available the last two weeks of every month.
Photo credit: Shannon Greer
“In discussing the past 20 years, and with anniversaries, you reflect back on what’s happened, who we are, what’s our statement that we’re trying to make,” says Chef Jeff Gimmel. “We’ve always tried to be about working with local farmers and being seasonal-menu minded. We thought, let’s showcase that along with our regular menu.”
It’s an opportunity to get creative with the seasonal produce from the farmers the chefs have worked with. It’s also a seven-month event that chefs and waitstaff look forward to, “building a nice anticipation for the seasons as they come along,” Gimmel says.
Additional events include burgers and oyster Thursday at 2004 “throwback prices” on June 13, and “20 years of Swoon highlights” June 14-16. This throwback weekend of “greatest hits” menu items will bring back fan favorites that haven’t been on the menu for years. Those events and the monthly lineup are posted on Swoon’s website.
To give you a taste of the monthly program, last month’s featured item, ramps were iterated “au naturel” with grilled lemon and romesco sauce; arancini, with nori aioli an ramp puree; ramp-wrapped scallops, and tempura ramps with local honey and goat milk ice cream for dessert.
As the produce comes up, so goes the menu:
Asparagus, May 15-26
Cherry and strawberry, June 19-30
Corn, July 17-28
Tomato, August 21-September 1
Chili pepper, September 18-29
Mushroom, October 16-27
Squash, November 20-December 1
Owners and chefs Jeff Gimmel and Nina Bachinsky Gimmel. Photo credit: Shannon Greer
Pick your favorite produce or come back each month to experience what the chefs cook up. And when you’re there, don’t forget to offer a hearty congratulations to the Gimmels and Swoon staff. Twenty years in the restaurant business is impressive, and something to celebrate.
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