Here’s a plate of sushi for two from one of my favorite restaurants in the Capital Region – Mr. Fuji! Strangely tucked away in a strip mall in Clifton Park, this place delivers some excellent sushi with great service in a bizarrely comforting atmosphere. Ignore the pastel drop ceiling tiles, the errant silver spraypaint on everything and simply take a peek at their specialty rolls. There’s some combos on that list that are crazy and delicious.

From left to right ->

“D and D Roll” ( spicy tuna crunch, deep-fried with chef’s special sauce! )
“Deep Fried Rainbow Roll” ( spicy salmon, deep-fried with chef’s special sauce and caviars )
Sweet Potato Roll
Salmon Skin Roll
“Scallopfornia Roll” ( California Roll topped with torched scallops, sesame seeds )

This was a delicious meal.

Recommended.

It was quite a treat to find ramps incorporated in the menu since we’d bought and cooked with a few bundles recently from the Schenectady GreenMarket. I literally jumped on the “Chicken” which was accompanied by a ramp waffle (!), mushroom and ramp salad and maple on the plate. The chicken was light meat wrapped around dark meat, cooked sous-vide and then finished in the pan. The ramp waffle was a small, literal 4 square waffle with ramps mixed in to the batter. This dish was a perfect showcase for every ingredient. Each element was seasoned excellently, cooked optimally, and presented gorgeously. Highly recommended!

As a main course I chose the half-portion of the “Carrot Gnocchi” which came with some delicious smoked duck, pickled ramps, and a thick, creamy parmesan situation below the above goodness. The large round bowl just emanated a smoky, robust flavor. Each bite was well-balanced and complimentary to the rest of the plate. I found myself dredging the bottom with each chewy morsel of the gnocchi, trying to sop up the parm cream. It was that good.

My dining partner enjoyed the “Beet” first course, which had some interesting “beet marshmallows” added to the plate, along with the “Black Cod” plate – whose edamame puree was snappy in color and in taste.

We both finished the night with the standard “Wine Bar Chocolate Cake” which comes complete with salted caramel ice cream. Just perfect.

( note: Wine Bar Saratoga has been offering a Wednesday night $4 small plate bar menu. For those looking to try out what the place is all about, this is a nice introduction. I caught a peek at the bar menu and saw “RAMP PESTO” included with the vegetable tart… sounds right to me! )

Working on the farm has been great so far, some much needed fresh air and dirty fingernails have been first and foremost. A few weeks ago, we planted onions and leeks while today we planted a few different kinds of potatoes and laid plastic sheets down for tomatoes to be planted later in the week. So far we’ve taken home some of last year’s potatoes (D E L I C I O U S!), some leeks, sunchokes and garlic!

It’s going to be quite a work-filled and bountiful summer…

Witness this very creative use of locally-raised lamb by the amazing J.T. Baker and the companion story written by Times Union staff writer Steve Barnes about the lamb’s lifespan. Fascinating, kind of terrifying and different all at the same time.

My first experiences with J.T. Baker’s food was at the Bistro 120 (R.I.P.) in Schuylerville in 2006 (?). I remember our first meal there — it was exceptional from start to finish, with the main course of filet with lavendar (absolutely incredible). While our “foodie” level has raised considerably since then, I think this may have been the start of the spiral towards more inventive food choices. It was our first “palate cleanser” experience as Chef Baker sent out some sort of green-apple concoction.

The lamb meal play-by-play jumps J.T.’s restaurant to the top of the “to visit when we have money” list….

Make sure to get there early (no reservations) as Lanci’s only seats about twenty at capacity and they are almost always packed. Also of note are their communal, regionally themed dinners which look well-planned and enticing. Keep an eye on their website for updates.