As usual, the longest lines at Saratoga Chowderfest 2020 was at Salt & Char. Not particularly memorable chowder after the wait.
Saratoga Chowderfest 202 is now history, so I am revising this post. It’s worth leaving up as a chronicle of the complaints from locals and specifically from those in the food industry. “Gave me hives…. nightmare…. the worst… not a chance… nnnooooope” are typical comments on this Facebook thread which got 25 responses and nary a positive word.
The problem was not the size of the portions or the creativity of the chefs, but rather the hordes of visitors who took it on themselves to get as drunk as possible as early in the day as possible. I heard from a local news source that Chowderfest now draws bigger crowds than Travers weekend during the racing season, and these visitors are not here to sip the waters or catch the ballet at SPAC. A photo went viral of a young woman relieving herself in the doorway of a restaurant building (with a public restroom available in the library, not 100 feet away) and when we ventured out at 6 pm for an excellent early dinner at Dominic Colose’s Amuse on Broadway, the hollering, lurching and friends-propping-up-drunk-friends atmosphere was palpable.
But we’ll return next year in spite of all this, and you should too as long as you follow our simple rules. Get there at 11 am if you can, when serving begins, and plan to finish no later than 1 pm. If you’re driving, leave your vehicle at one of the shuttle locations (Saratoga Casino and Wilton Mall this year) instead of the madness of trying to get a parking spot in town.
Best of the day was Seneca’s grilled shrimp chowder with ‘Nduja foam.
This year we tasted 7 chowders in about an hour. Best was Seneca, the wood fired place, where we also got to take a close look at themassive adjustable grill. As a bonus, it’s off Broadway so the line was much shorter. (If you want lines, stick to Broadway and Caroline.)
Wood Fired Grill at Seneca
Do a search for “Chowderfest” at right for previous years’ posts with many more tips for surviving this annual event. At its heart it is still a chance to see what kitchens that throw themselves into the project can do with a few ingredients and a dixie cup. For the reasonable investment of a dollar bill, you can be introduced to places that you might never have visited on your own. (We went back at 6 to Solevo for their dollar oysters–“they’re big” the receptionist promised–and all day happy hour; oysters were done and the bar was too packed to enter, but the oysters return on Wednesdays and so shall we.)
Sounds very crowded