Rhinebeck Revisited

I neglected to get photos of our booth on opening day -- I was fussing with the internet hook up so I could take credit cards.  These are from Sunday morning, after we moved Halloween to the north wall and rearranged everything to make the booth look full again.

We are always tired at the end of the day, and Rhinebeck is always crowded, so we often eat dinner at the Eveready Diner in Hyde Park.  It's not far from the hotel and not too expensive.  It is also not very good.  Lots of people sing its praises, but we've tried all sorts of stuff there and have never really been happy.  The salmon is dry, as is the chicken, and the sandwiches and fried stuff are really greasy and salty.  I am a foodie of sorts, and I really do like to eat finely made food, but finding a parking place in Rhinebeck at dinnertime is near to impossible.

For years we have driven past an Indian restaurant with a big parking lot on Route 9 heading toward Hyde Park.  I looked at it wistfully, knowing Barb didn't care for Indian food and because there were very few cars in the parking lot.  This year, it was packed, so I looked it up and discovered it was under new ownership.  So on Saturday night we stopped, and, boy, were we glad we did!  It's called Cinnamon now, and the decor is young and elegant.  (They have these cool hanging lights made of squares of kraft paper.)  It is more expensive than diner food, but it is worth it.  I had sea bass the first night, cooked tandoori style, and Barb had Chicken Tikka.  They were both moist and delicious and served with fresh veggies seared on a cast iron pan.  Paired with a bottle of Kingfisher beer, my dinner made me smile for the rest of the night.  We even had leftovers for lunch the next day.  And we went back for dinner again on Sunday night!  The young couple who own it sent us some delightful little onion fritters as a gift when we sat down.  The meal was a great reward for a busy weekend and Barb now officially likes Indian food.  We'll be dining there again next year, for sure!