Americana Diner- Middletown, NY

French Onion Soup

A Rueben at a diner, it doesn't get much simpler than that. Whenever I try a 'new to me' diner I always go with a Rueben, a burger, a gyro, or an omelet. Any of these are simple and so easy to get right, yet so many don't. I use these dishes as a benchmark and I must say that the Rueben I had at the American Diner today was quite possibly one of the best I have sampled. 

Rueben Lunch Special

We went for lunch and one of the specials was the Rueben for under eight bucks which came with fries, soup ($1.50 extra for the French Onion), and desert. The sandwich was what they called a half sandwich sitting on only one slice of bread. It was plenty filling though with copious amounts of fresh, moist, lean corned beef, just the right amount of Swiss cheese, and fresh sauerkraut. 

Dish of sides

The onion soup was good, tasted home-made, and Teresa liked her bean soup. We were stuffed so we took the rice pudding home with us. Service was good and friendly, food very good, prices reasonable. We'll be back again.

Putnam House- Bethel, Connecticut

Sirloin Burger

The Putnam House in Bethel Connecticut is one of those neat colonial American restaurants, the building dates back to 1852 and was once a hotel near the train station. It reminds me of some other places we've been before in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. 

I decided to go with the sirloin burger at $9.25 (add .50 each for the bacon and gorgonzola cheese). I ordered it medium and it came out a perfect medium with plenty of cheese and bacon. It was quite good indeed. Teresa had the cheddar sliders at the $9.75 and they were good, but a tad undercooked for her. She didn't specify a doneness, one usually assumes sliders will be overdone, so it wasn't the restaurant's fault the they were a perfect medium. The fries that came with both were hot, fresh, and tasty. 

Cheddar Sliders

Overall, good food at reasonable prices, warm, nostalgic ambiance and good service.

Twisted Soul- Poughkeepsie, NY

Caribbean Baguette with sausage

A friend who once lived in Poughkeepsie recommended Twisted Soul and since I trust her tastes, I put it on my short list of places to visit. Well, today was the day and I'm glad we stopped. 

Twisted Soul is an interesting, and eclectic, fusion of soul, Caribbean, and Asian foods. They specialize in small plates and it took a few minutes to decide what we wanted. While we were thinking we were greeted by Chef Ira Lee, the owner, and he was very friendly and helpful in making our selections. You order, and pay, at the counter and they bring the food to the table.

Teresa chose the chicken Bahn Mi, a Vietnamese sandwich, and she said it was very good. I took a taste and agreed with her. We shared a beef empanada which was also quite nice. I had the Caribbean Baguette at $9.50. It was pulled pork, cilantro, a Caribbean sausage and cheese (plus more things that I forget). It was quite tasty indeed with a sweet taste and many flavor notes. 

They also have an extensive cupcake menu and while they looked good, we didn't have room to indulge. Next time, and there will be a next time. Stop by and see what I mean. They have another restaurant across the street called Intro which looks interesting.