Saratoga Living 2022 Design Issue

SARATOGA FILM FEST VIBES: Will

Ferrell, Stephen King and Martin Sheen

*{ramen comes to broadway}

THE C IT Y. THE C ULT U R E. THE LIFE.

SPRING 2022

Free

FLIP Edition!

DESIGN THE

issue

ANDREA ZAPPONE ’S

GORGEOUS SARATOGA HOME IS PROOF— INCONTROVERTIBLE PROOF—THAT THE INSTAGRAM STAR IS AN INTERIOR DESIGNER IN EVERY SENSE OF THE TITLE. by

NATALIE MOORE

MARK WALHIMER MUSEUM GURU STEEL PINES LOGGING IN SUSAN SOFIA-M c INTIRE THE TOY MAKER

plus THE X-FILES SETS UP SHOP saratogaliving.com | @saratogaliving

2022 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500

2022 CHEVROLET TAHOE

2022 CHEVROLET SILVERADO HD

2022 CHEVROLET EQUINOX

2022 CHEVROLET BLAZER RS

2022 CHEVROLET TRAILBLAZER

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2008 FERRARI 430 SCUDERIA

2008 FERRARI 599 GTB

2001 FERRARI 550 MARANELLO

403 MILES, SCUDERIA RED

5,850 MILES, ROSSO CORSA

1984 PORSCHE 911 TARGA

1986 PORSCHE 911 TURBO 41,147 MILES, GUARDS RED

371 MILES, TAN

1978 INTERNATIONAL SCOUT

1980 INTERNATIONAL SCOUT

1973 FORD BRONCO

29,694 MILES, GUARDS RED

94,327 MILES, ORANGE

96,981 MILES, BLUE

SOLD

4,375 MILES, ROSSO CORSA

1965 MGB

722 MILES, GREEN

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1966 SHELBY GT350

22,000 MILES, WIMBLEDON WHITE

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Discover Upstate New York This Summer at The Cove at Sylvan Beach What makes the perfect family getaway? For many, it’s about embracing a slower pace with boating,

fishing, hiking and evenings around the campfire. It’s no surprise then that visitors from across the Northeast are falling in love with Upstate New York family vacations. This summer, The Cove at Sylvan Beach, a lakeside vacation rental destination from Oneida Nation Enterprises, the parent company of Turning Stone Resort Casino, offers a new way to experience it all—with the amenities of a world-class resort nearby.

The Cove’s location on Oneida Lake, New York’s largest inland lake, welcomes guests with 70 beautifully appointed two- and three-bedroom lakeside cottages. Each weekly rental includes use of a pontoon boat and dedicated boat slip, making it easy to enjoy carefree days on the water fishing or cruising. Sylvan Beach Supply Co., The Cove’s flagship store, will provide rentals for paddleboards, kayaks, canoes and more.

Yet it’s not just the unique amenities or premier location that make The Cove so appealing. With Turning Stone Resort Casino just 20 minutes away, guests can enjoy dining at AAA Four Diamond- and Forbes Four Star Award-winning restaurants. Skana, the resort’s spa, recently topped Spas of America’s Top 100 Spas list, and the casino’s golf courses have earned top honors from NBC’s Golf Pass, Golf Channel’s Golf Advisor and Golf Digest. At The Cove, there’s no need to choose between the perfect family vacation and a luxury resort getaway—guests can enjoy truly unique experiences that offer the best of both.

The Cove draws on Turning Stone’s long history of award-winning guest experiences to create a new vision for recreation with more choices, more amenities and more ways to relax, reconnect and enjoy.

No matter what defines your family’s best-ever summer vacation, you’ll find it at The Cove.

LIFE IS BETTER

AT THE LAKE.

This is the type of place you could spend every day. A luxury vacation rental with a boat included where you can kick back or let loose. Make memories with friends and family. Enjoy endless views and stunning sunsets.

The lake is calling. Book your vacay today at covesylvanbeach.com

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saratogaliving.com 3

starting gate contents | spring 2022

The

Design Issue

2022 29

ANDREA ZAPPONE’S COMING OUT PARTY

BY N ATALI E MOOR E p h o t o g r a p h y by EL I Z A B ET H H AY N ES

34

THE MAN WITH THE PLAN

BY RAY R OG ER S

38

PINES OF THE TIMES

BY N ATALI E MOOR E p h o t o g r a p h y by D OR I F I TZ PAT R I C K

44

THE TOY MAKER

BY N ATALI E MOOR E

46

What’s Old is New Again

BY N ATALI E MOOR E p h o t o g r a p h y by M A R K SA MU

FE AT U R E S 52

Alien Invasion

BY RAY R OG ER S

54

Film Fest Vibes

BY BE N JA M I N L ER N ER

hall of fame “I have a subscription to every single design magazine that exists,” says Andrea Zappone, seen here in the hallway of her Saratoga home. “The ones I can’t get a subscription to, I go to Barnes & Noble and buy.” p h o t o g r a p h y by

ELIZABETH HAYNES

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starting gate

contents | spring 2022

10

FROM THE CEO

First turn

Home stretch 59 Fashion: Piper Boutique 60 Food & Drink

13

13 Chic Peek: The Grove 14 Arts & Crafts: Nourish Designs Panel: Influential Interiors Kids’ Corner: Fashion Lab NY On Trend: The Suite Life Poetry: Spa State Park Photo Op: The Yard’s Greenhouses 22 Horse for the Course: Black Maria 23 #TBT: Katz’s Newsroom 24 DIY: Joe’s Bar

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60 WORLD TOUR: RHEA 61 AL FRESCO: CARSON’S WOODSIDE TAVERN 62 MOVING DAY: ARTISANAL BREW WORKS 62 ON DECK: IRON’S EDGE 64 DEAL OF THE DAY: BARREL HOUSE 65 BY THE GLASS: BOCAGE

16 18 18 20 21

22

67 Book Nook 68 Haute Property: Bella Home Builders 73 Horseplay Crossword: DIY Time Overheard

saratoga living After Hours 74 Mind Games

(24) FRANCESCO D’AMICO; (22) NATIONAL MUSEUM OF RACING AND HALL OF FAME; (13) 32 MILE PRODUCTIONS

24

A family-run business, Belmonte Builders has been building high quality, new homes in the Capital Region for more than 40 years.

We take pride in building vibrant neighborhoods and oversee every step of the construction process to ensure that we build a home that exceeds our customers expectations!

Halfmoon/Clifton Park: Alexandria - high $400’s Windsor Woods – high $400’s Round Lake Griffin’s Ridge – high $400’s

Saratoga Springs: City Square – from $1.3 million Meadowbrook - from $1.2 million Sonoma Grove – high $500’s Regatta View – high $500’s

Coming in 2022: Forest Gove: Saratoga Springs | Waite Meadows: Clifton Park

Don’t Miss Your Chance to Live in Griffin’s Ridge or Alexandria

Adjacent to the Village of Round Lake, Griffin’s Ridge is the perfect choice for families and outdoor enthusiasts with its close proximity to Round Lake and the Zim Smith Trail.

Adjacent

to the Village of Round Lake Easy access to the Northway Pricing starts in the high $400s

Tucked within a popular neighborhood, Alexandria offers its owners the benefits of new construction as well as the comfort of being a part of an existing community.

Close to shopping, dining & the Northway Shenendehowa Schools Pricing starts in the high $400’s

Stop by our model home in Griffin’s Ridge to learn more 50 Village Circle South, Round Lake, NY 12151 Open Daily 12pm - 5pm, Tuesdays 10am – 2pm, Closed Mondays Contact: Spencer Lewis 518-410-4158 | spencer@belmontebuilders.com

To learn more about Belmonte Builders, visit: www.BelmonteBuilders.com In neighborhoods with a Homeowner's Association, Homeowners will be subject to all HOA covenants and design guidelines and will be required to pay HOA dues. For complete details see your sales representative.

Abby Tegnelia CEO CREATIVE DIRECTOR DIRECTOR OF CONTENT SENIOR DESIGNER SPORTS EDITOR SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHERS

ON THE COVER

FASHION EDITOR

Andrea Zappone, photographed by Elizabeth Haynes. Hair and makeup

by Make Me Fab. Shot on location at Zappone’s home in Saratoga Springs.

EDITOR AT LARGE

Kathleen Gates Natalie Moore Linda Gates Brien Bouyea Francesco D’Amico Dori Fitzpatrick Hannah Kuznia Heather Thompson Susan Gates

WRITERS

Lisa Arcella, Karen Bjornland Tony Case, Field Horne, Benjamin Lerner Daniel Nester, Tom Pedulla, Ray Rogers PHOTOGRAPHERS

Elizabeth Haynes, Dustin Lanterman, Konrad Odhiambo Terri-Lynn Pellegri, Susie Raisher, Alyssa Salerno

Annette Quarrier PUBLISHER CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER

saratoga living is published six times a year by Empire Media Network, Inc. subscriptions: $35 per year (Nonrefundable).

SALES DIRECTOR, CAPITAL REGION LIVING ART DIRECTOR, MARKETING SALES ASSISTANT SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGER

Tina Galante Tara Buffa Steve Teabout Tracy Momrow Rachael Rieck

saratoga living 6 Butler Place Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 Volume 24, No. 2 Spring 2022 Copyright © 2022 Empire Media Network, Inc. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission from Empire Media Network, Inc. All editorial queries should be directed to editorial@saratogaliving.com; or sent to 6 Butler Place, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. saratoga living assumes no responsibility for unsolicited submissions.

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⁄ SPRING 2022

Anthony R. Ianniello CHAIR

Abby Tegnelia PRESIDENT/CEO

Tina Galante CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER

Saratoga Quality Hardware 110 Excelsior Avenue | Saratoga Springs | 518.584.9180

Start with Quality

FROM THE CEO

Back in the Game hose of you who subscribe to our new Substack newsletter (you don’t? see p. 74) might remember that I’ve just survived, um, experienced my third Saratoga winter.

My first one was tough but exciting, the second one dominated by COVID lockdown.

This past one? I admittedly spent a little too much time under a on the town (clockwise weighted blanket indoors near my industrial, waist-high space heater. from left) CEO Abby But now, spring is here, and with it saratoga living kicks off its Tegnelia (left), at the Palace popular event series for the year with a group reading by medium Theatre to see the Albany Tracy Fluty, at the gorgeous Gideon Putnam on May 19. Turn to page 67 Symphony with triplets to sign up to receive a reminder email when tickets go on sale April 2— Anjuli, Elliana and Madeleine this event sold out quickly last year, so this is highly recommended.

Stamper-Kong, there on an And that’s only the beginning. In addition to many other parties and Emma Willard School field niche events that we have in the works, our nonprofit arm is alive and trip; photographer Elizabeth Haynes, cover subject Andrea well. We’ll again be partnering with SPAC in the summer months, and Zappone and Director of we also produce the program for the Albany Symphony throughout the Content Natalie Moore at our year. This Grammy Award-winning symphony is a treasure in our own cover shoot; Tegnelia with backyard—if you haven’t been yet, please purchase tickets for its March photographer Francesco or April shows. I’ll see you there!

D’Amico, Moore and Channel We’ve also been running fun online auctions, which highlight weekend 10’s Steve Caporizzo at getaways around the state of New York, as well as all kinds of small the cover shoot for sister businesses in the Capital Region. Plus, we’ve ramped up our hyper-local magazine CAPITAL REGION LIVING. coverage in our Substack newsletter I mentioned up top. Do you have an idea for something new we could be involved in? Let us know! We believe strongly that the modern local media company has at its heart a high-quality publication, but also a duty to be an integral part of its community. We’re here—talk to us!

ABBY TEGNELIA CEO @abbytegnelia

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{ first turn }

C H I C P EEK

T

chapel thrill “The Great Hall at The Grove was built as a chapel,” says developer Sonny Bonacio of what is now known as the “Great Room.”

“A cool thing about that was all the people who called me to tell me they were married there back in the day.”

Great Escape PHOTOGRAPHY BY 32 MILE PRODUCTIONS

he first-floor common area of The Grove, a luxury apartment complex on Lake Avenue, is known to residents and the Saratoga community alike as the “Great Room”—and for good reason. The magnificent architectural details and thoughtful interior design really do make the space, which was formerly a chapel, great.

“The coffered barrel vault ceiling is just amazing,” says developer Sonny Bonacio, who renovated the aging building after it was purchased in 2014 from a group of Redemptorist priests. (The priests had been using the space as a retirement home; previously it served as a teaching college for priests and as a rectory for Saint Clement’s Church.) “It’s not something

you often see outside of an old European cathedral,” Bonacio continues. “It’s also a great mix of form and function—since the curvature of the ceiling amplifies sound, music sounds great in there even without modern mic systems.”

Following extensive renovations and an interior design facelift courtesy of Beverly Tracy Home Design, The Grove reopened as a luxury apartment building, boasting an indoor pool, theater room, and onsite fitness center. But even with granite countertops and a washer/dryer in every apartment, there’s no question that at The Grove, access to the Great Room is the greatest amenity of all.

— N ATA L I E M O O R E

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{ first turn }

AR TS & C R A F TS

A Flourish to Nourish

I

t was about 10 years ago that Betsy Seplowitz first began doodling nature-inspired mandala designs as a way to decrease stress. It was about six years ago that she began volunteering for the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York’s BackPack Program, which provides meals to nearly 7,000 food-insecure school children across 22 counties. But it wasn’t until more recently that the Ballston Spa native realized she could marry her two passions to help even more local kids.

“One in six kids in our area does not have consistent, reliable access to healthy food,” Seplowitz says. “A little over two years ago an idea sparked in my thoughts—could I do something with my drawings that would bring awareness to food insecurity and help provide meals for kids? That was the start of Nourish.”

Seplowitz, who herself has a 15-yearold son and 10-year-old daughter, launched Nourish Designs, a brand of merchandise featuring her original mandala drawings, online and through in-person events in 2019. Despite the pandemic, business boomed, as a spotlight was shone on the number

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food ink Each of Betsy Seplowitz’s mandala designs are hand-drawn in ink, without the use of stencils, and then are printed on merchandise like shirts and water bottles.

of children who rely on free, in-school breakfast and lunch programs as their only source of nourishing meals. In November 2021, Seplowitz opened a storefront in Downtown Ballston Spa, where each of her wares—everything from hoodies to stationery—is marked with both a price and the number of meals the purchase of the item will provide. The purchase of a T-shirt, for example, provides 12 meals to children in need.

“Since we started in November 2019, Nourish has been able to provide funding for over 82,000 meals,” Seplowitz says. “One meal at a time, together with our customers, we are making a difference.”

–NATALIE MOORE

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{ first turn } PAN EL

Influential Interiors TWO ANTIQUE-LOVING LO CA L I N STAGR A M I N F LU E N C E R S O N H OW TO TURN YO U R H O U SE I N TO A H O M E .

Darien Rozell

Bethany Bowyer Khan

@pantry.hill

@arcadianrevival

One easy design tip to spruce up a room:

Add live flowers, greenery or house plants. Especially during the dormant months of winter and early spring here, plants can boost our mood and clean the air we breathe indoors.

Favorite room in your house: Our butler’s Favorite place to shop for home décor: Favorite room in your house: The kitchen.

We keep a stool at the counter almost 100 percent of the time to include our 2-year-old daughter in everything we prepare.

You can also find us dancing around the island before/after dinner on a regular basis.

Favorite place to shop for home décor: An antique

shop, like Waverly Square Antiques in Ballston Spa, or a solid flea market. The one-of-a-kind pieces make a space unique and bring out a style you cannot buy new at a store.

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Antique stores and thrift/ consignment shops. I love the thrill of the hunt.

Saratoga Consignment Studio is a favorite. For new décor and tableware, as well as the occasional antique find, I turn to either Silverwood or Front Street Home.

One easy design tip to spruce up a room: Include

pantry! We converted our original mudroom into a traditional scullery with a big farm sink and oval window that overlooks our kitchen garden.

something old. Bonus points if it’s useful. As the great William Morris once said, “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

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{ first turn } witt the times John Witt’s home boasts two upstairs bedrooms en suite, with features including a cozy window nook and (below) a soaking tub and heated flooring.

ON T REN D

The Suite Life

photography by RANDALL PERRY

O KIDS ’ CO R N E R

Camp Rocks

S

aratoga Springs is known for many things—horse racing, performing arts, history…the list goes on. But fashion design? Not so much. Sure, we have Staci Snider, Saratoga’s resident high-end design guru, but beyond her Congress Street shop, not much clothing actually gets made here in the Spa City.

In a few years’ time, that could all change, thanks to the efforts of Arlene Kay, owner of Buffalo-based company Fashion Lab NY, which teaches children, teens and adults the art, science and business of fashion. Last year, Kay hosted two week-long fashion camps for children ages 8-12 at Saratoga Paint & Sip Studio, and plans to return to Saratoga for two more camps this summer. “The campers get to be designers for a week,” says Kay, whose son lab work Campers lives in Saratoga. “We teach them how designers at 2021’s Saratoga Fashion Lab camp. get inspiration, how to create mood boards, fashion Visit fashionlabny.com illustration, how to design a collection, and then for more info on 2022 ultimately they learn to sew.” At the end of the camp dates and rates. week, campers model bags, hair accessories and a pair of shorts or a skirt—all of which they’ve created themselves—in a fashion show put on for family and friends.

“The camp not only teaches kids sewing and the path to becoming a fashion designer, but it teaches them such great skills,” Kay says. “Sewing is math, sewing is reading, sewing is patience, coordination.” And so a decade or two down the line, when these campers come of age, what will Saratoga be known for? Horse racing, performing arts, history…and maybe, just maybe, its cuttingedge, home-grown fashion scene.

–NATALIE MOORE

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ne home design trend that’s sweeping the area is making sure that we all have a little more privacy.

This movement, toward making every bedroom a “suite,” is being spearheaded locally by John Witt, president of Witt Construction.

“The biggest trend right now is making every bedroom with an en suite bathroom,” Witt says. “If a home has three bedrooms, all have a bath.”

Witt’s own home, which was displayed last fall in the Saratoga Showcase of Homes, has a junior suite near his master upstairs (in effect creating two master suites) for visitors to stay in, and a suite downstairs that offers guests even more privacy, “The lower-level guest suite,” he says, “is for guests that like their space.”

Some couples are taking this “two master suites” trend one step further and spreading out into two separate hisand-hers bedrooms. One recent home Witt built on an 85-acre lot in Wilton exhibits this beautifully. “He snores, and she wanted a bigger closet,” Witt says.

The result? Two master bedrooms with a sprawling master bath in between— and a happy, well-rested couple who never fight about closet space.

–ABBY TEGNELIA

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{ first turn }

P OET RY

T

Do Look Up

BY N ATA LI E M O O R E

he next time you find yourself strolling through the Saratoga Spa State Park on a warm spring day, do exactly the opposite of what Meryl Streep ordered in last year’s Netflix hit Don’t Look Up. Instead of a planet-killing comet hurtling towards Earth, by gazing skyward you’ll see something a little more mundane but still intriguing: some oddly placed reading material.

The Hall of Springs, Administration Building and Roosevelt Baths are all known for their long arcades, covered walkways adorned with arches that were built in the 1930s to provide shelter to Saratoga Spa patients confined to wheelchairs. Along those arcades are square pavilions, at which wide staircases offer access to the walkways. It’s on the upper part of those that you’ll find plaques inscribed with phrases about Saratoga’s mineral waters.

“In this favored spot spring waters of life that heal the maladies of man and cheer his heart,” one plaque on the Hall of Springs reads. “Renowned art thou and to the joyous scene of health and pleasure drawest the thronging multitude,” reads another.

The phrases themselves are borrowed from a 1817 poem written by Reverend Reuben Sears of the Ballston Center Presbyterian Church more than a century prior to the construction of the arcades. “The use of inscriptions as a form of decoration is one more characteristic of the architecture of the time,” former Skidmore professor James Kettlewell writes in Saratoga Springs: An Architectural History, 1790-1990. “This was done in imitation of the many inscriptions found on the buildings of ancient Rome.” Those ancient Roman buildings have stood tall for some 2,000 years. We can only hope the same fate awaits the arcades of the Spa State Park. inscription key The phrases inscribed on the arcades of the Saratoga Spa State Park were taken from a nearly 4,000-word poem entitled “Mineral Waters.”

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PHOTO O P

Greenhouse

Beautiful

the yard’s shtick The Yard’s signature greenhouses, which seat up to six people, are $70 for a 90-minute reservation and can be booked WednesdaysSaturdays through mid-May. This is customers’ last chances to see “Under the Sea,” “Wonderland” and “Barbie World,” as the themes are scheduled to change before reopening next fall.

L

eyla Kiosse’s vision for The Yard Hatchet House & Bar sprung from her contempt for winter. “I do not enjoy the cold, snow or winter sports in general, so living in Upstate New York during the winter months is tough for me,” says the owner of the Albany hotspot (pun intended). “I wanted to figure out a way to enjoy the things we love about summer—greenspace, outdoor activities, hanging out in the backyard—even during the winter.” So in January 2020, two months before COVID hit and eventually sparked a hot new market for private spaces like her greenhouses, Kiosse opened The Yard. Her slightly-ahead-of-its-time bar boasts ax-throwing, eight indoor lawn games, Boozy Moo! (Kiosse’s brand of alcohol-infused ice cream)— and those greenhouses, three veryInstagrammable private party spots

that customers can rent for a pictureperfect night on the town.

“My greenhouses were a pre-COVID idea, although COVID accelerated the need for them and forced me to think about how I could make them more appealing,” Kiosse says. “Initially I thought about a basic space for outdoor seating in the winter, but then I realized that in a world of utter deprivation, people were really craving

experiences.” So Kiosse christened her greenhouses with themes, designing last winter’s spaces, as well as two of this year’s (“Under the Sea” and an Alice-worthy “Wonderland”), herself.

To complete the “experience,” each reservation includes an exclusive cocktail menu that Kiosse created for that greenhouse’s theme. For the 2021-22 season’s third greenhouse, she turned to social media to throw a “Pimp the Greenhouse” competition last fall, which called on those who “have what it takes” to submit mood boards for the greenhouse theme they’d like to bring to fruition. Then, The Yard’s Instagram followers voted on their favorite theme, and the winner (Ashley Salvadore) received a budget to turn her idea (“Barbie World”) into a reality.

“The community loves the greenhouses,” Kiosse says of the cozy, heated structures. “They’re very popular, especially in the height of winter. The first season we ran the greenhouses they sold out every weekend two weeks in advance.” This year, greenhouse season runs through mid-May. That means, yes: You still have time to book your unforgettable Friday-night Barbie bash.

–NATALIE MOORE

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{ first turn }

H O R S E FO R THE COUR S E

Maria Maria

SA R ATO GA STA N DOUT BL ACK MARIA REMA I N S T H E O N LY HO R SE TO HAV E WON BOTH TH E KENTUC KY OA KS A N D T H E W H I T N E Y STA KE S. n BY BRI EN BOUYEA

B

lack Maria didn’t exactly set the racing world on fire when she made her career debut at Saratoga on August 5, 1925.

In a 5½-furlong maiden event, the Kentucky-bred daughter of standout sire Black Toney was never a factor, finishing last in the field of 10. After being defeated twice more at the Spa in the next 10 days, Black Maria broke her maiden on her fourth attempt. She was then trounced in the Hopeful Stakes, finishing ninth, to conclude her 2-yearold summer at Saratoga with a lone

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victory in five outings. However, there would be better days ahead for Black Maria…much better.

After a four-length victory in the 1926 Kentucky Oaks, Black Maria returned to Saratoga, finishing second in the Alabama Stakes, first in the Saratoga Sales Stakes, and third to Hall of Famer Crusader in the Huron Handicap. That

fall, she won two stakes at Belmont, the Aqueduct Handicap, and the October Handicap at Jamaica. At the close of that season, Black Maria was regarded as the top 3-year-old mare in America, having won or placed in 15 of 17 starts that year and with earnings of $56,380 to top all sophomore fillies.

Black Maria’s 4-year-old season went largely the same way. The mare was first or second in 12 of her 15 races— including a victory against males in the prestigious Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont—and topped the older filly and mare division with earnings of $39,839.

But in 1928, her final season, Black Maria struggled to return to her best form, winning only once in her first five outings. Her sixth race, however, was the inaugural edition of the Whitney Handicap at the Spa, in which she went up against 1927 Belmont Stakes winner Chance Shot and Kentucky Derby winner Whiskery. After jockeying for first with Whiskery early on, Black Maria took the lead in the stretch. But Chance Shot was closing in. “For a moment it looked as if Chance Shot would pass ahead to the victory,” The New York Times reported. “However, Black Maria had something left.” At the finish, it was Black Maria by three-quarters of a length in front of Chance Shot.

The Whitney was Black Maria’s final victory. Although she won only twice as a 5-year-old, she was again regarded as champion mare for 1928, thanks to her Whitney win. At the time of her retirement in late 1928, Black Maria had won 18 races—14 of them stakes, and many of them at the place her legendary racing career kicked off: Saratoga.

T r ac k fac t:

A female horse aged three years or younger is called a filly. A female horse aged four years or older is called a mare.

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF RACING AND HALL OF FAME

coe the distance Trained by William H. Karrick for owner William R. Coe, Black Maria posted a career record of 18-14-6 from 52 starts with earnings of $110,350.

# T BT

The Newsroom

THE SARATOGIAN

T

BY N ATA LI E M O O R E

here is no shortage of longtime Saratogians—especially former students from a certain Catholic school—who have fond memories of Katz’s Newsroom, a hot dog, candy and newspaper shop that operated at 267 Broadway in the middle of the 20th century, and its proprietor, Max Katz. “He always gave me free candy when we would stop by,” one local Facebook user posted in the I Love Saratoga Facebook group. “Mr. Katz was wonderful to all of us at St. Pete’s!!” another wrote of St. Peter’s Academy, the school that’s now Saratoga Central Catholic. cool katz Max Katz, “Most of us from St. Pete’s were in there on our breaks,” former who was born in Poland, came to run his shop Saratogian Robert “Razz” Rosse says. “Everybody loved Mr. Katz. after he married Lottie When he would get tired and need to sit down he would tell us to T. Zlotnick, owner of work the register. I think every student who ever went in there worked Simon’s Refreshments & behind the counter at one time or another.”

Novelties, which occupied In 1963, by which point Katz had already operated the store for twothe 267 Broadway building previously. The shop was plus decades, he was so popular amongst St. Peter’s students that a located next door to group of them pooled their money—15 cents each—to buy the beloved St. Peter’s Academy. shop owner a giant birthday cake. “I was so surprised it almost brought tears to my eyes,” Katz told The Saratogian of the gift. “When children like you, it means a whole lot—a lot more than money.”

Shortly after that heartwarming gesture, Katz’s Newsroom closed for good, a “victim of urban renewal,” per a different Saratogian article. But a half-century later, the shop lives on in the memories of all those who stopped in for a piece of five-cent candy or a magazine. “I can hear Mr. Katz now,” Rosse says. “‘This is not a library—buy the paper or put it back!’”

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{ first turn }

DIY

Joe’s Bar

HOW ONE SARATOGIAN DI Y-ED H I S WAY TO TH E DREAM OF H AVI NG H I S OWN B A R .

BY NATAL I E MOOR E photograp h y by FRANCESCO D’A M I C O

J

oe Bunk has wanted a bar in his home for so long that his in-laws gave him a “Joe’s Bar” coaster set as a wedding present.

But he didn’t want to buy a bar—he wanted to build a bar. “I’ve always been the type of person who likes to take things apart and put them back together,” says the Saratogian. “I’m very goal oriented, and I wanted to put some time and energy and thought into it.” And so, even before COVID halted restaurantdining, bar-hopping and out-of-home social gathering, Bunk got to work constructing his very own Caroline street-worthy home bar…on a budget.

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While he sourced the salvaged granite bar top, galvanized metal base and copper trough from local construction material retailers, just about everything else that went into the project was something Bunk already had on hand. The floor behind the bar is an old cabinet top; the foot rail is made in part out of an old barbell; the sink was one Bunk nabbed from an old kitchen he dismantled when working in property management; the corner liquor cabinet was one his father built; décor came from Bunk’s existing personal collection of beer memorabilia; a light fixture was given to him by a neighbor who had recently downsized his classic car garage. “Mike

bar exam When creating his new bar, Joe Bunk tried his best to make the space look old by incorporating reclaimed materials and vintage décor.

Roohan, the owner of Granite & Marble Works, did the tap hole,” Bunk says.

“That was part of the deal—I said, ‘You can do the granite in my kitchen as long as you drill a hole in my bar top.’”

These days, Joe’s Bar is the perfect place for Bunk’s family and friends to dig into a takeout dinner, play a round of darts or foosball, or catch a football game. It’s also become the practice site for Get Loose, a band Bunk formed after learning how to play base guitar when he went back to college for his graduate degree in his 50s. And while Bunk certainly enjoyed the process of building Joe’s Bar, there was no hesitation when I asked him what his favorite part was: “Opening night.”

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Love Your Home

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15 Cooper St., Glens Falls 518.793.7788 • mahoneyalarms.com A local leader in CCTV, security, fire, access control and environmental alarms, Glens Falls’ family-owned Mahoney Alarms has been serving Upstate New York’s businesses, museums, theaters and homes for more than 65 years.

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The

Design Issue

ANDREA ZAPPONE’S

COMING OUT W PA R T Y W

T H E S A R AT O G I A N C L A I M S S H E I S N ’ T A N I N T E R I O R D E S I G N E R N OW— B U T M AY B E V E R Y, V E R Y S O O N .

BY N ATA L I E M O O R E p h oto g r a p h y by

E L I Z A B E T H H AY N E S H A I R & M A K E U P BY

M A K E M E FA B

love marks “If you look at our marble, there’s etching, there’s watermarks,” says Andrea Zappone of the countertops everyone told her not to choose for the Saratoga home she and her husband share with three young humans. “I knew it was going to happen, but we went for it. We probably shouldn’t have, but I’m still happy about it.”

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The

Design Issue

lookin’ goode Zappone’s living room, decorated with flowers

by Goode Farm, features a hidden TV that pops out of the cabinet next to the fireplace.

I

just want to make sure you are aware that I am not a real interior designer,” was the first thing Andrea Zappone told me when I reached out about featuring her in saratoga living’s Design Issue. “I didn’t go to design school, and I am still changing my kid’s diapers during the day.” Diapers or no diapers, upon taking one step into the high-ceilinged foyer of the custom home she designed on the outskirts of Saratoga Springs, I knew one thing to be absolutely true: Andrea Zappone is an interior designer.

What Zappone meant, of course, is that she’s not a trained interior designer, and isn’t currently running a full-time interior design business. Instead, she constantly designs and redesigns rooms in her own gorgeous white colonial, sharing hilariously candid and slightly self-deprecating posts to her Instagram—@andreazappone—along the way. “Sorry my unmanicured bare feet were on the table a couple hours before dinner time,” reads the caption of a photo of her standing on her immaculately manicured dining room table. “Spot the baby grabbing soil out of the fig tree and rubbing it into the white shag carpet,” reads one of her all-white living room.

“Behold! I moved the entryway table into the hallway thereby making it a hallway table,” reads another piece of interior design Insta gold. The mother-of-three explains: “When I was in college I always had the purple Nikon camera tied around my wrist, and I would come home and upload 150 photos to Facebook. That’s just always been my personality— to share pictures and be who I am. It hasn’t evolved, it hasn’t changed. I’m still the same crazy person that will upload a million pictures after doing one thing.”

What has evolved, on the other hand, is her design aesthetic.

The oldest of three children herself, Zappone’s parents allowed

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over the rainbow “This room has been widely criticized,” Zappone says of her son’s bedroom.

When she was designing it, she asked him for inspiration and he said, “rainbows”; (above) two of Zappone’s three children, incognito.

nook look Zappone chose the wallpaper (from UK brand House of Hackney) in her breakfast nook based on a gut feeling and without seeing samples beforehand.

On the far wall you can see her vinyl banquette. “It’s so cool,” she says. “It looks like python. I mean, I can see there’s marker on it, but I can just wipe it away.”

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The

Design Issue

in da house (clockwise, from top left) Zappone’s entryway; Zappone with her husband, Mike, and three children—James, Rita and Rockwell; a bedroom Zappone designed for a client; Zappone’s master bathroom.

S

her to design and move into their Utica basement when she was 11. “God bless my parents—they let me do whatever the heck I wanted,” she says of the space. “I decided that I wanted antiques to be my motif, so I had old quilts and vintage mirrors that I found at garage sales. Instead of hanging pictures of my friends, I asked my dad if he could find old portraits of my great-great-grandparents and distant relatives. And I actually had framed pictures of all these dead people. I can’t even describe it—my bedroom was absolutely insane.” But while the thought of her childhood room may make her cringe today, she fondly remembers closing her door, putting on a CD and designing a space that was all her own—something that, in adulthood, she’s been able to do on a much grander scale.

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ince marrying her husband, Mike, Zappone has renovated or completely designed from scratch four homes— two in Queensbury, one in Wilton (for which she won the Best Interior Design award in the 2015 Saratoga Showcase of Homes) and the one in which the family currently lives (it has been featured on housebeautiful.com and in House & Home magazine). “When we built a house in Wilton, I didn’t know how to design a home for a family,” she says. “But I learned a lot, because we had our first two kids there. I really built this house”—the Saratoga one, which was built by Belmonte Builders in 2019—“with an understanding that this banquette is going to get trashed.

So we put vinyl on it.” In fact, even beyond the breakfast nook banquette, the entire house is fairly kid-proof, as Zappone utilized performance fabrics wherever possible. She also has a room upstairs that I wasn’t allowed to go in, on account of it not looking like it belonged in a magazine.

“An important thing when you’re designing a house with young kids is you have to have a room that you literally just don’t care about,” she says. “I’m not putting time or money into it—that’s where they eat pizza.”

Another reason Zappone doesn’t want to touch that second-floor space is that as her kids get older (and therefore may be allowed to eat pizza in rooms she does care about), she wants to transform it into a home office to launch—yes—an interior design business.

Currently she works with a few clients, selectively choosing small design projects she’s excited about, but has a big project starting in March that she’s thinking may kickstart a career. (“This is like my coming out!” she says of this very story, not to get too meta.)

When she starts to second-guess her untrained design aesthetic, she turns to Instagram, where other self-taught designers are reshaping the world of interior design. “It makes me feel good about launching a business and not being ashamed of the fact that there’s stuff I don’t know,” she says of seeing such Instagram accounts. “But some people appreciate that I don’t follow many rules. I’m a little bit reckless and just go off the cuff.” So while everyone and their mother would consider Zappone an interior designer now, maybe someday soon, she will too.

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The

Design Issue

THE MAN WITH

THE PLAN

WO R L D - R E N OW N E D M U S E U M P L A N N E R M A R K WA L H I M E R , W H O J U S T R E L E A S E D H I S S E C O N D B O O K , S TA R T E D H I S E D U C AT I O N R I G H T H E R E AT S K I D M O R E .

BY R AY R O G E R S

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(top) JOSHUA BIGGS; (Walhimer and Shelton) MICHAEL VEGA, CITY OF FORT WORTH

M

ark Walhimer still arts, grew up dyslexic, and used art Creating installation sculptures for remembers the first and his hands as ways of expressing Pfaff led Walhimer to a fascination time he stepped himself. “I struggled in school, and that’s in planning museum spaces, and foot in a museum part of the reason I’m so interested in eventually the founding of a company at the age of 7. It museums—I got through school by called Museum Planning. The process of was a transformative making things,” he says, speaking creating a new museum is far more than moment for the boy who would today from his home office in Mexico architecture and construction plans, he’s go on to spend his life “Designing City, where he’s been teaching virtual quick to point out. “That part’s relatively Museum Experiences,” which just so classes throughout the pandemic. He straightforward,” he says. “The ‘why are happens to be the title of his newly channeled his creativity in making art we doing this’ is what takes the most released book. Wide-eyed amount of time. Not only do and impressionable, the you need to get people in youngster strolled into the the door, but you also need Yale Peabody Museum’s to think about how you’re dinosaur pavilion. “There going to fund this operation. was this beautiful terrazzo The building is the easy floor with these glass cases part. Even the exhibits are and the dinosaur in the the relatively easy part. The middle,” he says, the sound really tough part is creating of a child’s awe-struck the culture that’s going to wonder alive in his delivery. do this over and over again, “There was a formality every day of every year.” to this, a history to it—like Solving that puzzle takes that’s a real dinosaur! I was a lot of groundwork and like, I’m not even sure what thoughtful conversations.

I’m looking at, but wow is “Meeting with the mayor, this beautiful! I want to be meeting with the community, part of this!” understanding their needs As an undergrad majoring and how to provide for that— in Studio Art at Skidmore all of that is really where College, Walhimer had the work is,” Walhimer says. another “aha” moment that “Because if you’re serving would set in motion a robust the local communities, the career that’s now three local communities will then decades in: A presentation be vested in the project. by the installation artist Judy And they’re going to want Pfaff. “Judy, along with a few to give their time, and give others, was changing what financially if it’s possible, sculpture was,” he says. so that these can become school ties (from top) Built in 1919, this school once “With installation art, the sustainable organizations.” served segregated African American students and is space is the sculpture—you When helping to launch being converted into an African American museum and walk into the sculpture. In the Discovery Science cultural arts center; Mark Walhimer with Dr. Jason Shelton, 1983, this was revolutionary.

Center in Santa Ana in 1998, Director of the Center for African American Studies at the I walked up to Judy and told for example, Walhimer University of Texas at Arlington; (opposite) Walhimer’s her how impressed I was, relocated from New York plans for the school-turned-museum. and that I’d like to work for and hit the streets to talk to her. She said, ‘Sure, come families. “There was a main and see me.’ That January, she picks me and building forts in the backyard of his street of Santa Ana at the time with up in her little pick-up truck and takes family’s home in Woodbridge, CT, just mostly Mexican American communities,” me to her studio, and it changed my life. outside of New Haven. “When I would he says. “I started asking questions: That very day I was making sculptures.” tell Judy or other artists these kinds of ‘Do you know the furniture building Making things was nothing new for stories, they’d say, ‘Of course! That’s just down the street? We’re thinking of Walhimer who, like many people in the the way you get through life.’” creating a science museum there.

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The

Design Issue

lords of the ring (clockwise from above) Cloud ring–making children at the Discovery Cube Orange County, where Walhimer served as VP of Exhibits; Walhimer teaches at Mexico’s Tec de Monterrey university; the Yale Peabody Museum’s dinosaur exhibit that inspired a 7-year-old Walhimer; Walhimer’s most recent book.

Do you have children? What do you think your children would be interested in at a science center?’ Often the parents would not be English speaking, so they would ask me to speak to the children.

The children would then translate for the parent. There would be a comfort level there; ‘OK, this guy is trying to do something for the community.’”

To this day, Walhimer counts this experience as a career highlight.

“My first trip there, there were homeless people living in the building.

The building was flooded, most of the roof was gone. Over the course of more than two years, we converted that. I’m very proud of that project and what it did for the community: Science became a thing there.”

Walhimer has seen firsthand throughout his career the positive effects museums have on communities far and wide: the ability to bring people together, to inspire, educate and open minds. “I passionately believe in the power of museums,” he says. “I think issues like climate change, mores and

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civil unrest are going to be addressed through museums. I don’t see another place in society where these issues can be addressed on a community level.”

A current project that Walhimer is pouring his heart into involves the conversion of what were once segregated African American schools into museums and community

centers. “A local African American church in Indiana formed a nonprofit and contacted me about doing a strategic plan,” he says. “The idea of creating 15 African American museums in formerly segregated schools, in 15 different communities across the US is the part that excites me the most about that project.”

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The

Design Issue

2022

Pines of the Times M A R K A N D DA R C I E B U R R O U G H S

O F S A R AT O G A C O U N T Y– B A S E D S T E E L P I N E S A R E K E E P I N G T H E I R WO R K L O C A L A N D E C O - F R I E N D LY, O N E L O G AT A T I M E .

BY N ATA L I E M O O R E p h oto g r a p h y by

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D O R I F I T Z PAT R I C K

lumber theory Steel Pines is a Saratoga County–based sawmill and construction business that utilizes local lumber to create gorgeous homes, barns (like this one, in Edinburg) and interior accents.

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The

Design Issue

2022

arcie Burroughs escaped the craziness of New York City life for the peaceful backwoods of the Adirondack Park before it reached peak pandemic-era coolness. “Every time I came up here it was just so chill and quiet,” the New Jersey native says of Edinburg, the northern Saratoga County/ southern Adirondack Park town where her long-distance boyfriend, Mark, who worked for a commercial contractor, lived. “So I decided to make the move. At the time I was working for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit and my boss—this was pre-COVID—worked it out that I could work remotely, which was sweet.”

Five years later in July 2020, as the rest of the city was planning their mass migration upstate, Darcie cut ties with NYC for good. Mark, whom by then she’d married, owned a falling for you (clockwise from above) Darcie and Mark Burroughs, seen here with their dog, Axle, met at Bear Slide Falls in Lake Luzerne; the Burroughs’ sawmill turns logs into slabs of usable lumber; a pine slab turned bathroom countertop; a custom post-and-beam home under construction in Day.

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STEEL PINES

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The

Design Issue

sawmilling side gig, and the couple decided to strike out on their own with Steel Pines, a now-thriving custom construction and sawmill business. Mark serves as contractor and sawmill guru, and Darcie mans the books, marketing and social media. “It’s nice to give back to where you’re living and keep everything local,” says Mark, who grew up in Glenville.

“Working on the commercial end for 18 years, no one cares where you’re getting your wood from. You could order it from Mexico, and they’re like, ‘Whatever—just get it there on time.’

But with Steel Pines, we use local, natural resources. We’ll go take trees from a client’s land, bring it back to our mill, and build their house from it.”

That process is what Mark and Darcie call “from tree to home.” To make it happen, a logging company comes in, clears a client’s lot, and brings the usable wood directly to Steel Pines. Mark then uses his sawmill to cut the logs into slabs of any size, dry them, and then utilize them in the construction of the client’s home. “The idea is to keep our footprint small, which is what we love about those types of projects,” Darcie says. “It’s like how a hunter wants to—hopefully—use all of the deer. They’re going to eat the heart and they’re going to skin the hide and they’re going to freeze everything.” That hunter analogy also applies to the way the Burroughs actually mill their wood: Any bad cuts of wood are used to make lumber drying racks or to heat their or their neighbor’s home.

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CREDIT

2022

CREDIT

i came i sawed i conquered (from top) Darcie and Mark built their Edinburg horse barn as a showpiece for potential clients; this spring, Darcie’s Quarter Horse, which has been boarded in Middle Grove, will take up residence in the barn; (center) a pile of milled lumber; (opposite, from top) the Steel Pines sawmill in action; the company’s logo on a saw blade.

Of course, some Steel Pines clients don’t own an entire wooded lot, or need an entire house built. These customers can still expect their project—whether it’s a live-edge mantelpiece or beam-work renovation—to be completed with local wood; 85 percent of the logs that Steel Pines uses come from within a 50-mile radius of the Burroughs’ home. “We do a lot with local loggers and tree guys,” Mark says. “It keeps everybody close and keeps the money flowing around here.”

It also helped keep the money flowing into Steel Pines last summer, which saw lumber prices reach historic highs. When big box stores and lumber yards hiked up their prices due to an increase in demand, the Burroughs saw a bump in sales for rough-cut lumber from their community, as they were able to offer a local product for a better price.

“There’s so much heart and soul behind these residential builds because the money is coming from homeowners’ pocketbooks, not a commercial corporation,” Darcie says.

“Our work is a showpiece for them to talk about and tell the story: ‘This came from here.’”

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The

Design Issue

the

TOY Maker

S U S A N S O F I A- M C I N T I R E ’ S

FA L L I N T O T H E WO R L D O F P L U S H WA S U N P L A N N E D , B U T I T Q U I C K LY P R OV E D T O B E T H E H A P P I E S T O F AC C I D E N T S .

BY N ATA L I E M O O R E REID MCINTIRE

ost people don’t grow up wanting to be a plush toy designer, and Susan SofiaMcIntire was no exception. “I always wanted to be a fashion designer, and I went to Massachusetts College of Art for fashion design,” the recent Saratoga County transplant says. “When I got there, I didn’t enjoy the fashion personalities. I made a friend who was in graphics, watched what she was doing and changed my major.” Upon graduating with a bachelor’s degree in graphic design, she landed a job designing catalogs for Hasbro toys. One fateful day, as she was working on a toy photo shoot, something needed to be sewn on set, so she stepped up. Word got around at Hasbro, and next thing she knew, she was interviewing for a position in industrial design.

“They said, ‘You have all the skills to be a plush toy designer,’ Sofia-McIntire says. “I sat there and said, ‘What’s plush?’”

Today, more than three decades later, the question for SofiaMcIntire is more accurately “what isn’t plush?” The designer is an independent contractor for all the major toy companies— TOMY, Spin Master, NSI, Mattel, Child’s Play—and has created dozens of children’s products including the soft toys for the Green Kids Club book series; Present Pets, the best-selling toy of the 2020 Christmas season; and the Nested Bean swaddling cloth, for which she won an innovation award. “I just love the plush,” she says. “It’s a perfect blend of my graphic skills and my sewing and engineering skills.”

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Sofia-McIntire does occasionally work outside the soft product world: She received her first patent for a water-filled teether she made for Playskool, and that design has since become the standard for teethers across the industry. But she always comes back to fiber work—even in her free time. “I like to exercise my creativity every now and then and do something completely different than what’s on my studio table,” she says.

“So I end up having these one-of-a-kind, really cool things that serve no purpose—they’re just my total creative expression.”

Recently, she’s been playing around with a form of Japanese embroidery called bunka, and has used it to create a plush elephant and seahorse, as well as a seashell jewelry case that is currently on display back in her hometown of Amesbury, MA. Inspired by the free library stands that have been popping up in yards around Saratoga and beyond, Sofia-McIntire decided to make a similar-looking mini gallery to showcase these items right in her Gansevoort yard. She drew up a sketch, gave it to a builder friend and, voila—the one-cubic-foot Tiny Rhino Gallery, named after the steel rhino sculpture next to which it stands, was born. “Technically it’s a three-dimensional stage for a virtual store,” the artist says. (The products are for sale on her Instagram, @tiny_rhino_gallery.) At press time, a pair of colorful quilted slippers were on display. What’s on deck? Only Sofia-McIntire knows the next chapter of this toy story.

CREDIT (elephant) LISA PELONZI PHOTOGRAPHY

p o r t r a i t by

not-so-lazy susan Gansevoort resident Susan Sofia-McIntire has created dozens of plush products for major toy companies throughout her career in industrial design; (opposite) a plush elephant featuring a Japanese embroidery technique that was on display in her Tiny Rhino Gallery.

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Design Issue

What’s Old is New Again S A R AT O G I A N S B E T H A N Y PA R K S A N D M A R K S A M U A R E B E A U T I F Y I N G U P S TAT E N E W YO R K— O N E O L D H O U S E AT A T I M E .

BY N ATA L I E M O O R E p h oto g r a p h y by

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MARK SAMU

“I was going to need a creative project to work on, something to fill my time. On a whim, I asked my landlord if he would be interested in selling the Franklin Street property and—voila—he said yes.”

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n May of 2019, Bethany Parks needed a change the designer and I was the tweaker,” Samu says. of pace. She was divorced and living in a home “Because that’s what I did—I knew how to tweak in Greenwich that she had renovated herself. “I was something to make it look better.” like, ‘Alright, I just can’t be in Greenwich anymore,’” the After that reno project, the former Long Islanders kept at it, Ulster County native says. “’It’s too small of a town.” So she purchasing and renovating old homes around the Saratoga area. set her sights on bustling Saratoga Springs, researching When Lu passed away in June 2019, the couple had renovated brand-new apartments equipped with all the bells and a total of 11 homes together, two of them complete flips. whistles. The rental property she fell in love with, though, was a small, cozy home on Franklin In March of 2020, Parks met Samu— Street that was built in 1832, making who by that point had moved from it the third-oldest house in the city.

Gansevoort into a tiny 300-squareThe rent was a little more than she foot home on Lincoln Avenue—for was planning to spend, but she was the first time at Uncommon Grounds. smitten. “I was just like, ‘This is it—I’m Shortly after sitting down, a barista told going to pay extra and give myself them the shop would be closing soon, a vacation for a year,’” Parks says. even though it wasn’t close to closing “Almost like going to Paris…but not.” time. They picked up and went to While she loved the home she was Max London’s, which was also closed. about to move into, it was definitely They ended up grabbing burgers at dated. “I said to the landlord, ‘What BurgerFi, which was still open, but by are you doing with blue carpet?’” she that night they already suspected the says. (Surprisingly, he took out the world was about to change. carpet and put in wood floors before “When COVID hit, I was grounded she moved in.) “And then I came into from my work travel and pondering the kitchen—the dark, tight kitchen— if I would renew my lease,” Parks and I said, ‘Can I paint the cabinets says. (She’s the director of sales white?’ I’m sure he was like ‘Who does for Source International, a Bostonshe think she is? This is a rental—it’s based company that makes chairs not her house.’ And I’m like, ‘This is for homes and offices.) “I was going my vacation home in Paris—I want to to need a creative project to work make it really pretty.’” Ultimately, the on, something to fill my time. On a landlord said no to Parks’ art project, whim, I asked my landlord if he would but she moved in anyway. She lived be interested in selling the Franklin with the dark, tight kitchen for the Street property and—voila—he said better part of a year, imagining what it yes. I didn’t close until September could be but still enjoying the home’s 2020, but a week after that I was convenient location and its front tearing out walls with my Sawzall and porch, which she calls her window reinventing my kitchen.” to the world.

While Parks is certainly a handsfixer uppers After meeting just as on sort of house-flipper—“I like COVID hit, furniture salesperson Bethany tearing stuff apart,” she says—as her Parks and architectural photographer Mark Samu teamed up to renovate Years prior, in another part of New relationship with Samu grew closer, homes around Saratoga and beyond.

York, architectural photographer Mark she did utilize his contractor for some Samu and his wife, decorative painter of the little house’s larger projects, Lucianna, were living on Long Island, their professional paths like creating a closet off the kitchen for the washer and dryer, crossing occasionally as they both worked for clients with and removing the wall between the kitchen and dining room luxury homes in the Hamptons. Come 2001, the couple had had to create an open-concept entertaining space. Samu, with his enough of Long Island life and closed on a home in Saratoga eye for design, helped out as well; it was his idea to put a large Springs the day the Twin Towers fell. A few years after moving framed window above the sink. “The paint color for the black upstate, they bought a 3,000-square-foot home that was built frame is called Dragon’s Breath,” Parks says. “And then we in the 1780s and located on five acres on the Hudson River in painted the shed in the back [which you can see through the Gansevoort, and completely gutted and renovated it. “Lu was window] with Dragon’s Breath, too.”

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Meanwhile, Samu was working on a few reno projects of his own, including one on Cossayuna Lake in Washington County.

And this time, it was Parks who would help him out. “When I sold my Hudson River home, I said to my real estate agent, ‘I’ve got to find something else on the water,’” Samu says. “So she texts me that there’s something on Cossayuna Lake. I didn’t even know where that was.” He and Parks rode out to the property (it’s about 30 minutes from Saratoga), and when they got there, a devastated Samu didn’t even want to go inside. “It was a dump,” Parks says. Samu was about to call his agent to cancel, but there was no cell service. “We walked inside,” Samu says, “and Miss Optimistic Positive [Bethany] is like, ‘Oh my god, this is great!’

Then she walks into the kitchen and says ‘I think this was a trailer.’”

“And then it was game on,” Parks says.

Indeed, the tiny property on Cossayuna Lake, which Parks and Samu now refer to as “The Fancy Camp,” is a 1950s

beth house (clockwise, from top left) One of the “good things”—which Samu says every room needs—in Parks’ kitchen is her ILVE oven; Parks laying the subway-tile backsplash in her now-complete kitchen; the pantry door next to the fridge came from a property Parks fixed up in Greenwich, and the chairs around the island are from Source International, where Parks works; the kitchen in the Franklin Street house before Parks bought it and started renovations.

camper with a house literally built onto it. Upon tearing out an interior wall, the pair, by now all in on helping each other with various home projects, discovered it was actually an exterior wall of the RV, and what used to be an exterior window had been converted into a “takeout window” between the kitchen and living room. Now that the renovation is complete, the tiny 548-square-foot Fancy Camp is going for $300-$350 per

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Design Issue

fancy like (clockwise from top left) The coffee corner at Mark’s Cossayuna Lake property, a.k.a. “The Fancy Camp”; after renovations, the home now goes for up to $350 per night on Airbnb; you can still tell that The Fancy Camp is a converted trailer, especially in the kitchen; the camp, pre-renovations.

night on Airbnb, thanks in large part to Samu’s photography expertise. “Honestly,” he says, “the photography sells this stuff.”

h While Samu and Parks, who refer to themselves as “activity partners,” own each of their properties separately, they do make a good team when it comes to the renovations. He loves the negotiation to get the property, and then putting the finishing

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touches on a home; she loves everything in between. “Mark’s got this house that we’re working on now, and as soon as I walked in, I hammered this big hole in the ceiling,” Parks says.

“I can’t wait to tear things down.” Samu adds: “And I already know where artwork is going when the house is finished, even if the stairs are just being torn out.”

As for the duo’s interior design preferences? “They’re pretty similar,” Samu says. “A little rustic—almost like side-of-theroad, garage sale stuff. The thing I learned from Lu was that no matter what you do, you need at least one good thing in a room, whether it’s a good paint color, a good fixture or a good piece of furniture. The rest of it can kind of be junk.” But when a high-end furniture salesperson and photographer with a keen eye for design work together on a project, even the “junk” looks pretty darn good.

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ALIEN

I N VA S I O N S U R E , F I N E , W H AT E V E R : S C U L LY M I G H T B E OV E R I T A L L , B U T L O C A L “ X- P H I L E S ” A R E P U M P E D F O R T H E F I R S T- E V E R ( A N D DAV I D D U C H OV N Y- B L E S S E D ) X- F I L E S M U S E U M O P E N I N G S O O N I N W I LT O N .

BY R AY R O G E R S

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f, as The X-Files posited, “the truth is out there,” perhaps it can be found right here in Saratoga County, among the thousands of pieces of show memorabilia at the new X-Files museum, which is opening at 4284 Route 50 (just past Wilton Mall) on April 30. As “X-philes” the world over know, the daring, experimental procedural—a mix of science fiction, mystery, horror, comedy, romance and drama—inspired a cult following that’s very much alive to this day, almost 20 years after the original series finale. And two of its most ardent fans, Saratogians Jim and Kelly Thornton, have amassed a collection of upwards of 10,000 pieces from the groundbreaking television program that they are excited to showcase.

The original X-Files ran for nine seasons—some 202 episodes— from ’93–’02, spawning two feature-length films, two spinoffs and an additional two seasons that aired in 2016 and 2018, not to mention an uptick in women in STEM professions courtesy of “the Scully Effect” (inspired by Gillian Anderson’s character, Dana Scully, a cynical FBI agent and MD whose observations were rooted in science). At the height of its popularity, nearly 20 million viewers tuned in to parse the adventures of FBI agents Fox Mulder (played by David Duchovny) and Scully as they investigated inexplicable paranormal happenings. The show proved life-changing for a once-troubled Jim Thornton, whose X-Files obsession helped him turn his life around and inspired a decades-long search for the items that now make up The X-Files Preservation Collection and Collectibles (xfilespreservationcollection.com), the official name of the museum.

A place to show a permanent collection has been a long-held dream for Jim and Kelly. “We collaborated with the artist J.J. Lendl, who’s done work for several franchises including The X-Files, Star Trek, and Star Wars,” says Kelly. “Together, we developed a comprehensive look: color scheme, graphics and logos. We wanted something that felt dark and mysterious, like a ‘Monster Of The Week’ episode. We are excited to work this into the modern industrial feel of the building.”

Inside the museum’s walls, fans will find artifacts from as far back as the pilot episode—“show creator Chris Carter told us he had to pull the mammalian corpse right out of the dumpster after the episode was filmed, so it really is a miracle that it still exists,” says Kelly—as well as hundreds of wardrobe items, including garb worn by both Scully and Mulder. “We are also thrilled to have the actual computer Chris Carter wrote the pilot episode on, and many other items that detail the show’s creation.”

The pair have exhibited parts of their massive collection at various expos, but there’s one piece that is simply too large to transport: the Alien pod from the first X-Files movie. “We have had it for a long time now, but we have never had the space to display it,” Kelly says.

“It will be a sight to see.” seen on screen Memorabilia that will be on display in Wilton’s X-Files museum includes (clockwise from top): a coat worn by Gillian Anderson (Scully); an acid-tattered shirt worn by David Duchovny (Mulder), who blessed the museum on TMZ; limo accessories seen on screen; FBI equipment including a screen-used gun from Season 10; a watch worn by Mulder, one of many items donated by series creator Chris Carter, who will be at the ribbon cutting April 30 (“Knowing he trusts us to preserve and honor his creation is surreal,” says the museum’s Kelly Thornton); an alien mask from a wrap party; scrubs worn during an alien autopsy.

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t s e F Filmibes V From a blockbuster starring Will Ferrell as a talking dog to a documentary about America’s most famous traitor, these four films with Upstate New York ties are making a splash on the big screen.

betrayed secrets Not only does Benedict Arnold: Hero Betrayed tell the most comprehensive story of the Battle of Saratoga ever created—the locally made film is also the first to tell the story of the Battle of Valcour Island on Lake Champlain.

In this scene from the movie, actor Peter O’Meara re-enacts the latter, playing the role of Benedict Arnold himself; (inset) actor Martin Sheen serves as the documentary’s narrator.

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CREDIT

By Benjamin Lerner

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capital rep (From left) Saratoga enedict Arnold: Hero Betrayed native and Colonie resident Tom is a must-see visual tour de Mercer, Niskayuna native Chris force that breathes new life into Stearns, Saratoga resident Anthony the story of one of American Vertucci and actor Peter O’Meara. history’s most controversial figures.

After decades of tireless research and Mercer. “I believe this film presents a years of logistical planning and filming, more accurate and unbiased reflection the efforts of Capital Regionites Chris of his life and historical contributions.”

Stearns, Tom Mercer and Anthony From the very beginning, the Vertucci, as well as executive producer Saratoga community stepped up to and chief historian James Kirby Martin, help make the documentary happen.

DIRECTED BY CHRIS STEARNS have resulted in a timeless tribute to “From the Adirondack Trust Company Benedict Arnold’s enduring historical supporting us early on,” says director WRITTEN BY TOM MERCER AND legacy. Featuring live re-enactments at Chris Stearns, a Niskayuna native, “to ANTHONY VERTUCCI historical sites in the Saratoga region, the State Troopers flying us over the RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 2, 2021 commentary from renowned historians, Saratoga Battlefield in a helicopter, and impeccable cinematography, the the film was truly a community effort.” film is truly epic in scale. It is narrated by Martin Sheen and stars Saratoga’s Universal Preservation Hall hosted the premiere of Band of Brothers actor Peter O’Meara as Benedict Arnold himself. the feature film with two special screenings in November 2021.

Writer and producer Tom Mercer first became interested in The movie is now available to stream on Prime Video, iTunes, Arnold’s story as a child growing up in Saratoga. “When I saw the Vudu, Roku and Vimeo.

Boot Monument that was supposed to be a tribute to Benedict “Here in Saratoga, our regional history is somewhat Arnold at Saratoga National Historical Park,” he says, “it deeply downplayed because it’s so intertwined with Benedict Arnold,” intrigued me.” After Mercer learned more about American history Mercer says. “By bringing his story forward, it helps restore during his college years, he realized that many historians saw our region’s rightful place in history. It also reframes the Arnold from a different perspective than he did. “It became a narrative of what the Saratoga region contributed to mission of mine to improve Benedict Arnold’s reputation,” says the founding of the nation.”

Benedict Arnold: Hero Betrayed

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ith a star-studded cast that television shows and includes celebrated Hollywood films, such as the icons such as Will Ferrell, Hulu documentary Jamie Foxx and Will Forte, series Behind the Strays is shaping up to be a humorous and Mask and Fox’s New moving addition to director Josh Greenbaum’s Girl, eventually directing cinematic résumé. Born and raised in Saratoga, 2021’s well-received feature Greenbaum fondly recalls attending concerts comedy Barb and Star Go to at SPAC with his father in his younger years.

Vista Del Mar. Greenbaum’s “He took me to see Eric Clapton for my first newest creative undertaking, live concert,” says Greenbaum. “It was a really Strays, chronicles the story fun experience.” Greenbaum’s father also of a stray dog who teams up introduced him to classic films such as Monty with several other dogs to DIRECTED BY Python and the Holy Grail and Breaking Away, exact revenge upon his JOSH GREENBAUM which directly influenced his creative trajectory. former owner. By making RELEASE DATE: 2023 After graduating from Cornell University, use of novel live filming Greenbaum eventually landed in Los Angeles, techniques, Greenbaum and where he began a fruitful career in the film industry. Over his production team were able to bring the the next 15 years, Greenbaum went on to work as a writer, story to life in evocative and fascinating editor, producer and director for multiple high-profile network ways. “When I first read the script, I was incredibly excited,” Greenbaum says. “The film is an R-rated, talking dog dog pack (inset) Saratoga-born director Josh Greenbaum movie, but it’s not animated—we used is working on an R-rated, talking-dog film starring actors (from top) Jamie Foxx, Will Forte and Will Ferrell. real dogs. Strays is a comedy, but I think

Strays

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audiences will be surprised about how emotionally honest it is. The film has a lot of heart, and it was incredible to watch the trainers work with the dogs on the film set.” Strays is expected to be released in 2023.

As Greenbaum moves forward with his career in the film industry, he remains grateful for the life lessons that he learned during his childhood in Saratoga. “My mother was an English

professor at Skidmore College, and she helped me to grow as a writer. Growing up in Saratoga, I was also able to develop a real sense of community and group effort throughout the course of my youth. I was captain of the soccer and lacrosse teams at Saratoga Springs High School during my senior year, which helped me to improve the communication and teamwork skills that I use in all of my creative collaborations today.”

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monkey business he tale of how Saratogian Spencer Spencer Sherry’s Sherry with the cursed upcoming feature toy monkey from his film came into upcoming Stephen King being has more exciting film adaptation. twists and turns than some bestselling horror response he was praying novels. Born just north of for: yes. After receiving Oneonta, Sherry moved to approval from the agent, the Saratoga area in 2017 Sherry joined forces with after working in the film Capital Region–based industry as a production filmmaker Joe Gietl. assistant in New York The pair are currently in City. When the COVID-19 the process of scouting pandemic hit in 2020, locations for the project, Sherry channeled his and plan to begin shooting artistic passion into writing the film in May. They are an adapted screenplay for also actively fundraising his favorite Stephen King and looking for producers short story, “The Monkey.” with whom to collaborate.

Sherry originally intended As a die-hard fan of to submit the screenplay King’s books, Sherry has for The Monkey to refocused the scope King’s “Dollar Baby” and storyline of “The program, through which Monkey,” creating a the acclaimed author project that draws heavily grants independent on the original story and and student filmmakers its plot elements. “The the license to adapt his story is a great example stories for $1, with the of everything that I love understanding that they about storytelling,” says cannot commercially profit Sherry.

“The cymbaloff them. Unfortunately, clapping monkey brings Sherry encountered a disappointing roadblock death in the film, but the fear of it comes from our wrestling when he realized that “The Monkey” was not with inevitability in our everyday lives.” Sherry adds that he is on the list of short stories that were originally approved incredibly excited to work with professionals in the Saratoga for the program. and Capital Region on this project. “It’s After shelving the story for a full year due important to me to make this film in Upstate to frustration and disillusionment, Sherry New York because the people who make decided to take a bold risk. He reached films up here possess a real love and drive WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY out to King’s agent in 2021 to ask if King for filmmaking,” he says. “The projects I’ve SPENCER SHERRY would consider extending the Dollar Baby seen come out of this area are incredibly program’s selection of stories to include personal and sincere, and I admire everyone RELEASE DATE: TBA “The Monkey.” Surprisingly, he got the I’ve met in the local film industry.”

The Monkey

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aratoga-born filmmaker Angela Sheil’s debut short film, The DoubleWalker, is a visually-arresting psychological thriller that serves as a profound testament to the power of artistic vulnerability.

The film tells the story of a grief-stricken young woman named Grace, who returns to her childhood home only to discover that she may have inherited a sinister family curse.

Sheil found the inspiration for the film during a stressful semester at Academy of Art University in San Francisco. “One evening, I dreamt of a world in which everyone had a clone,” she says. “Each clone was hunting for their ‘original’ and intending to kill them and take their place.

I woke up sweating, grabbed a pen and scrap paper off my nightstand, and the dream exploded onto the back of a utility bill. I knew instantly that the dream was a ‘death-of-self’ message. I needed to shed the person I was and start taking care of the woman I wanted to become. Part of that transformation involved manifesting that message onto film.”

Just two days after the dream, Sheil

completed the first draft of the script. In the years that followed, she continued to refine the script, and returned to the Capital Region from the west coast. After arriving in Troy in 2016, Sheil connected with the Collar City–based film production company Chromoscope Pictures. She has since collaborated with them on a number of music videos, for which she has served as an actor, producer, gaffer and director. During COVID-19, Sheil emptied out her savings to bring the script of The DoubleWalker to life, assembling a talented cast and crew from New York City, Los Angeles, Portland, ME, and the Capital Region. The DoubleWalker was shot in September 2021 in Sedgwick, ME, on protected land surrounding the only warm-water cove on the state’s coast.

After filming for The DoubleWalker was complete, Sheil started a fundraising campaign to ensure that all financial requirements for post-production were met. As the filmmaker looks forward to premiering The DoubleWalker in May, she’s excited to share her creative vision with the world. “The further I go down my path as a filmmaker, the more I realize what’s most WRITTEN, PRODUCED AND important to me is vulnerability,” she says.

DIRECTED BY “Transforming the joy and pain of what ANGELA SHEIL it is to be human and what it means to be vulnerable—that’s the kind of filmmaking RELEASE DATE: MAY 2022 I am interested in.”

KIKI VASSILAKIS

The DoubleWalker

sheil be back (inset) Saratoga native Angela Sheil returned to the Capital Region from the west coast in 2016; (top) Sheil’s short film was shot in Sedgwick, ME, in September 2021.

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alifornia Closets is a great name for a nationally renowned brand that has been providing clients with custom closet and storage solutions for more than 40 years. But, here in the Capital Region, in the midst of an ongoing pandemic that’s kept homeowners in their homes more than ever before, the name “California Closets” only scratches the surface of all the brand’s Albany-based franchise can do.

For one, the storage units sold locally are actually built locally, too—not in some far-off west coast locale as the name suggests. “What many people don’t know is that we manufacture our product locally at our facility in Albany,” says Joy Rafferty, who has co-owned the local franchise with her husband, Sean, since 2003. “Our installation team then professionally installs the custom product in the client’s home.

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(from top) During COVID, California Closets Albany saw a spike in customers looking for custom home offices; California Closets can create built-ins for any room in the house.

home offices in the last 18 months than ever before—everything from a simple desk and drawers to entire rooms with multiple workstations, overhead shelves and cabinetry.”

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home stretch: fashion

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Here Comes the Sundress SPRI NGTI M E I N SA R ATO GA MEANS PIPER SU N DR E SSE S, BRUNCH —AND WE A R I N G P I P E R SUNDRESSE S TO B R U N C H . p h otog r aph y by DORI F I T ZPAT R I C K the second i saw these two flirty sundresses at Piper Boutique, I had a onetrack mind: brunch goals. There’s nothing quite like getting all dolled up to chow down on a bougie Broadway brunch after the weather turns warm, and letting the mid-morning slip away into Bellinifueled oblivion. I’d choose the creamcolored babydoll dress for a Sunday morning Max London’s soirée— accessorize with a simple short heel and gold jewelry; and the slightly sexier, springier floral number for see-and-be-seen Morrissey's. Be sure to snap a pic in the Adelphi’s Insta-worthy glass atrium: This dress deserves to bask in all the natural springtime light it can get.

Oh, wait—I forgot about Boca Bistro’s brunch. Another dress, another day…

—Heather Thompson

@heathermariethompson

DAPHNE LO ORANGE BLOSSOM DRESS PIPER | $68

ENYA EMBOSSED BABYDOLL DRESS PIPER | $72

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home stretch: fashion ||

food & drink

|| book nook || haute property

The Ramen Empire there’s no denying that when former Druthers chefs Mike and Shelley Spain opened Seneca in 2019, they raised Saratoga’s foodie bar a few notches. And now the husband-wife duo is at it again.

The Spains’ newest venture TOUR is Rhea, a sister restaurant to Seneca that will take over the former Saratoga Stadium location on Broadway this spring. Inspired by the Noodle House pop-ups that Seneca offered during the pandemic, Rhea’s menu will be split into two sections: One offering globally inspired sharable small plates (chorizo dumplings, fried chicken bao buns, blackened green beans and tuna tartare), and the other reserved for ramen. “We’ll feature house-made noodles and broths that can take days to prepare,” Mike says. “The idea is to keep learning new techniques and researching ingredients while having fun in the kitchen.”

As for the restaurant itself, the Spains are “blurring the bar/dining areas to create a laidback and energized atmosphere.” There will be a 30-seat bar (serving draft beers, wine, tiki-style cocktails and more) running down the center of the dining room, with leather booth seating around the perimeter.

The entire front of the building will be replaced with a retractable all-glass wall, to again “blur the lines,” this time destination is one of them,” Mike says. between indoor and outdoor dining.

“It’s exciting to be a part of a group of Rhea is scheduled to open midowners and chefs that make up such to late-March, supply chain willing. a great restaurant scene. We hope “Saratoga is known for so many that Rhea will be a great addition and things, and we think being a food complement to what is already here.”

WORLD

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dig in to china When it opens this spring, Rhea will be a continuation of Seneca’s Noodle House pop-ups, which featured dishes including steamed duck wontons, steamed pork buns and Korean fried chicken wings.

ORIGINAL JEWELRY

overlooking glass While Carson’s will still have plenty of outdoor seating, the restaurant is transforming its covered patio into a year-round dining room with huge windows that overlook Saratoga Lake.

THE P E TA L COLLECTION

Views for Days

anyone who’s been to Carson’s Woodside Tavern overlooking Saratoga Lake knows that the stunning views from the patio are almost as important—if not as important!—to the dining experience as the gourmet American fare the restaurant serves. And that’s saying something, because the food is, in a word, great.

Come this summer, though, outdoor diners will find some changes to the Carson’s property.

“We got rid of the old covered patio and are building a beautiful yearround room with two big walls of windows that can fold up,” says coowner Susie Carson. “So you’ll still get the fresh air wafting in during the warm-weather months, but we can close them up in a jiffy if a rainstorm blows in.” The new space, which will have a cozy fireplace for winter dining, will also be available for private functions.

But even with the new building, there will still be plenty of “real” outdoor dining opportunities for those willing to brave the elements.

“Our big outdoor patio space and The Overlook Bar will open back up around Memorial Day or sooner if the weather warrants it,” Carson says. “We built a new kitchen just to service the patio and haven’t gotten a chance to use it due to the hiring challenge.

Once we finally get that up and running it’s going to be fantastic.”

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home stretch: fashion ||

food & drink

|| book nook || haute property

To a Tee Taproom Tap Dance it’s been a rollercoaster of a couple years for Artisanal Brew Works (ABW), a nationally known craft brewery that’s been serving Saratoga since 2016. (The brewery’s located in the Spa City, but distributes brews—including its popular Warheads® Extreme Sours, a collaboration with the sour candy brand—all over the country.) Upon leaving its original Geyser Road location in December 2020, ABW moved into a small new home, who dis? space next to a car dealership on Maple Artisanal Brew Works’ new taproom; (top) ABW’s Ave. And by January 2022, they’d moved Welcome Home IPA, which again—this time into a space at the back of was brewed in celebration the same plaza. “Moving into this building of its new location. has always been our plan, ever since we left our original location,” ABW’s Kelley Lanham says. “The new taproom is much larger than both our original location and our temporary space.”

While ABW is finished with moving trucks for the foreseeable DAY future, there are other big things on the horizon for the brewery. “We have plans to expand and utilize the rest of the 10,000-square-foot building by opening a full restaurant and having a large outdoor biergarten that will be surrounded on the backside by the Palmertown Range,” Lanham says. “We’re hoping to have more details and a concrete timeline on our expansion in the next couple of months.”

The opening of the new restaurant may be a ways away, but ABW has already made its first step beyond the beer world: This February, Bloody Marys made with Albany Distilling Co. Vodka hit the menu. In a recent Instagram post, ABW called its new Bloody the brewery’s “first” cocktail….In other words, there’s more—much more—where that came from.

MOVING

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ON DECK

chad dorrough and chris mccarthy, owners of best-keptSaratoga-secret The Hideaway at Saratoga Lake Golf Club, aren’t hiding away any longer. The restaurateur duo have announced a brand-new restaurant called Iron’s Edge, which they plan to open at Ballston Spa Country Club this April. “Iron’s Edge will be very much a sister restaurant, but we don’t want to duplicate The Hideaway,” says Dorrough. “You’ll see some of The Hideaway’s staple menu items, but it’ll have its own unique menu.” Since 2019, The Hideaway has been serving an array of soups, salads, sandwiches and Italian-inspired entrées—plus all sorts of boozy concoctions, wine and craft beer—to golfers and non-golfing foodies alike. The new restaurant will replace Mangino’s Fairway Grill at Ballston Spa Country Club and, like The Hideaway, be open to non-golfers as well.

“The trick to running a restaurant at a golf course, we’ve learned, is to go in and figure out what the golfers want first and then add your restaurant concept around that,” Dorrough says.

“They’re there every day, so your

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edge of glory (from top) Irons Edge’s coconut shrimp; buffalo rangoons; and bourbon-glazed salmon; (opposite) the new restaurant will operate at Ballston Spa Country Club.

target market should be them. We’ve been pretty fortunate to do that at The Hideaway, and now we have the opportunity to do the same thing in Ballston Spa.”

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home stretch: food & drink

30 Riverside Drive, Saranac Lake, NY

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The Canfield Casino in Congress Park www.saratogahistory.org 518.584.6920

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perfect pair On Wednesdays from 5pm-close, Barrelhouse customers can get a specialty pizza and pitcher of beer for just $30.

Pie Expectations this past january, The Barrelhouse made a pizza-lover’s pie-in-thesky dream a reality: The Beekman Street BBQ joint started serving a Wednesday night pizzaand-pitcher special for just $30. Owner Charlie Usas says that while pizzas OF THE DAY aren’t on the restaurant’s normal menu, they were offering them on weekends during football season. Now, customers can choose between seven specialty pizzas, including the Wide Right (white pie with mozzarella, chicken, hot sauce and smoked blue cheese dressing) and the Ciao Randy! (red sauce, mozzarella, ground beef, pickles, onions, tomato and Russian dressing), as well as any beer on tap (or a bottle of Prophecy Wine), every Wednesday from 5pm-close. The deal is even good for takeout orders (minus the vino option)—customers should just come with a growler in which to bring home their beer.

DEAL

F R O M

Y O U R

P E R S P E C T I V E

champagne dreams Bocage, Saratoga’s first bar dedicated to the joys of bubbly, is planned to open this March.

Sip, Sip, Hooray

if you’re someone who saves Champagne for a special occasion, Clark Gale and Zac Denham’s new Phila Street Bar, Bocage, is about to change your mind—or at least help you redefine “special occasion.”

“There’s girls night, date night, the start of your night, the end of your night,” says Denham. “There’s a sparkling wine for every occasion.”

The cozy confection of a bar (it seats 20, holds 30, and at press time was scheduled to open in early March) is a nod to all bubbly, and boasts an unheard-of 10 by-the-glass options.

Some stand-outs you’d be hardpressed to find anywhere else in the area: Mosnel rosé from Franciacorta and a Cá Furlan prosecco.

Not that the party is limited at Bocage (named after the landscape of Champagne, France, a landscape style that also exists here, thus the Capital Region-Northern France link). It also offers a full bar, signature cocktails, and New York State still wines. To complement all of the toasting, there’s a packed menu of sandwiches, local cheeses and charcuterie, oysters and caviar. To start, the bar is open seven days a week, 4pm–midnight. A festive tea service brunch and extended hours are planned for summer.

“Celebration is synonymous with Champagne,” says Gale. “And there’s always something to celebrate in Saratoga Springs.”

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Golden Phone Cocktail Recipe Serving: 1

1 ounce blanco tequila ½ ounce yellow Chartreuse ½ ounce Lillet Blanc ¼ ounce crème de cacao 1 dash Regans orange bitters Garnish: lemon twist, two St. Agrestis cherries

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice and stir until chilled.

Strain into a Nick & Nora glass.

Garnish with a lemon twist and two St. Agrestis cherries.

PURDY’S Discount Wine & Liquor

70–72 Congress Plaza Saratoga Springs 518.584.5400

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home stretch:

fashion || food & drink ||

book nook

|| haute property

A Pair of Pageturners

W hat ’ s W it h Those A dir o n dack M o unta in Na mes?

BOOKMARK THESE TWO N E W R E A D S BY C A P I TA L REGION AUTHORS.

BY A B BY T E G N E L I A

By Robert C. Lawrence

W E S H AL L NOT S HAT T E R

of Judaism and of the disabled (Aanya is deaf). Stock, a longtime resident of Rensselaer County, spent years researching the war and building her family tree (which includes a deaf great aunt who perished in the Holocaust) as a basis for her inspiring book, which hits shelves this May. Her heartfelt connection to her ancestors shines through, landing Stock on the Historical Fiction Company's “Highly Recommended” list.

By Elaine Stock Elaine Stock’s tug-at-your-heartstrings historical novel We Shall Not Shatter follows the story of friends Zofia and Aanya on the eve of World War II. Inspired by her Polish family’s true wartime stories. Stock’s protagonists defy Nazism—both its condemnation

Robert C. Lawrence was kayaking with his wife, Carol Ann, in the shadow of Blue Mountain when he found himself wondering where all of his beloved Adirondack mountains got their names. The avid history buff put his history degree to good use and began researching. The result? What’s With Those Adirondack Mountain Names?, self-published here in the Capital Region by the Troy Book Makers. A must-read for all local hikers, this fun resource covers everything from name origins to the definition of a Dippikill.

saratoga living & CAPITAL REGION LIVING invite you to join us for

Cocktails & Clairvoyance with

Tracy Fluty Psychic Medium

TRACY FLUTY has been Nationally Certified & professional Psychic Medium for over 25 years!

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Thursday, May 19 L Gideon Putnam Hotel 6-7pm Cocktails with hors d’oeuvres, first drink on us!

7-9pm Clairvoyant Conversation In fairness to all participants, Tracy will randomly draw names for readings throughout the night.

Everyone will be able to watch the magic unfold as messages from their spirit guides and loved ones who’ve crossed over are relayed to their friends and family.

Tickets $75/person

Scan to sign up for an emailed reminder

SEATING IS LIMITED TO 100 PEOPLE—WILL SELL OUT FAST! TICKETS ARE NON-REFUNDABLE

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home stretch: fashion || food & drink || book nook ||

haute property

Brant Lake Beauty AS THE W E ATHE R BEGI NS TO H EAT UP, ONE FA M I LY WA RM S U P ITS B RAND-NEW BOATER’ S PAR A DI SE , FE ATU R IN G HE A RT-STOPPING LAKE VIEWS A N D A LL T H E TO P A M E N ITIE S F OR A DREAM WEEKEND AT T H E LA KE .

BY R AY RO GE R S

n

p h otograp h y by RANDA LL P E R RY

this custom-built stunner on Brant Lake was built with one thing in mind: the water. “The magic is the water, so everything you do, you have to think about the water and your view,” says Dave DePaulo of Bella Home Builders, who designed and built the home for Denise and

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Jack Rifenburg of Brunswick-based Rifenburg Construction. So with H2O top of mind, DePaulo strategically put all of the closets and pantries on the non-lakeside of the house, so there’s nothing but seemingly endless glass on the side overlooking the picturesque Adirondack lake. “The

family room, kitchen and all bedrooms and bathrooms have beautiful views,” DePaulo says. The living area, dining room and screened-in porch all spill out onto the lakeside.

The 5,603-square-foot weekend getaway was built for entertaining and relaxation, featuring a finished 1,902-square-foot lower level that boasts a fabulous bar and TV room.

“They put in changing stations and designed the lower level so people may come in and out of the lake wet,” DePaula says. The porch also has a floating tile floor with a rubberized deck.

DePaulo worked hand in hand with the Rifenburgs to design their dream

home. “We started with a blank piece of paper,” he says. “We removed a raised ranch that was there, and this breathtaking house was drawn and designed every inch of the way with Jack and Denise. The home’s layout is perfect as it has exceptional flow.

The design, scale and uses of material blend nicely with the surroundings.”

The five-bedroom, four-and-a-halfbath home features a custom timber frame from the front entrance to the interior, and mahogany flooring throughout. The railings inside are all custom, and there’s an open staircase.

“Denise did all the design and chose the color of the stones,” says DePaulo, noting that real granite was used all

the way around the house, and inside along the fireplace.

Another feature DePaulo is proud of is the use of radiant heat, designed and installed by Anthony “Moose” Lashway, throughout the house. “It’s highly technical,” he says. “For a camp like that to have all of that high-tech stuff is very cool.”

These top-of-the-line amenities paired with the enviable views make this Brant Lake’s newest, and ultimate, boater’s paradise. Jack is “big into boats; that’s his passion,” says DePaulo. “So the lake house empties out onto their private beach with a private dock and the best views of the lake, so they can fully enjoy the sunsets and sunrises.”

lake life livin’ (clockwise from left) The stunning front of this weekend getaway, custom built by Bella Home Builders; this kitchen was made for entertaining—the homeowners broke it in with a party to thank everyone who helped build the house; the front foyer; stunning Brant Lake views from the dining room; the living room features stonework by Roger Houck, who sourced all materials from New York State.

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SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL SECTION

The Hideaway

I

t may be called “The Hideaway,” but it’s no secret that Saratoga Lake Golf Club’s onsite restaurant is one of the best places to enjoy drinks or dinner all year long. Whether you’re looking to cozy up to the bar for a light snack and a cocktail, sit by the big stone fireplace for an intimate dinner, or enjoy brunch with a view, The Hideaway has you covered. The staff can’t wait for golf (and outdoor dining!) season, and invite the public to help celebrate the restaurant’s third anniversary on Masters weekend, April 9–10.

Open 11am-9pm MondayFriday; 9am-9pm Saturday and Sunday.

Osteria Danny

R

un by Executive Chef Danny Petrosino and his wife, Patti, Osteria Danny specializes in Italian-American cuisine with an emphasis on simplicity and creative development. As such, the menu is updated frequently to encompass new culinary concepts and locally sourced ingredients whenever they are available. Although the menu is continuously evolving with the creative will of Chef Danny, the original recipes remain a pivotal influence on the dishes that Osteria Danny produces.

Open 5-9pm Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday; 5-10pm Friday and Saturday.

26 HENRY ST, SARATOGA SPRINGS osteriadanny.com 518.423.7022

35 GR ACE M O O R E R D , SAR ATO G A S P R I NGS hideawaysaratoga.com 518 .30 6 .1 9 00

Henry Street Taproom

G

ood food, lots of beer and an atmosphere that’s the perfect mix of relaxed, cozy and chic? That’s what you can expect at Henry Street Taproom, which has been serving local craft beers and ciders, classic cocktails, and locally sourced, made-from-scratch food (think: charcuterie, fried chicken sandwiches, fish and chips, and chicken liver pâté) since 2012. After dinner, tune in to Back on the Table, a podcast on beer, movies, music, food and local businesses, hosted by Henry Street owner Ryan McFadden.

Open 4-10pm TuesdayFriday; 2-10pm Saturday; 2-9pm Sunday.

86 HENRY ST, SARATOGA SPRINGS henrystreettaproom.com 518.886.8938

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T

Lake Ridge

ucked away in the village of Round Lake, just off Exit 11 of the Northway, Lake Ridge is only 15 minutes from Saratoga Springs and 25 minutes from Albany. Enjoy a full seafood, steak or pasta dinner in one of the award-winning restaurant’s three dining rooms, savor a snack from its expanded small plates menu, or skip food altogether and stop in for a martini or specialty cocktail at the breathtaking mahogany bar, which stocks an abundant supply of more than 30 scotches and 20 bourbons.

Open 4-8:45pm Tuesday-Saturday.

35 BURLINGTON AVE, ROUND LAKE, lake-ridge.com 518.899.6000

SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL SECTION

Rivers Casino & Resort

S

chenectady’s Rivers Casino & Resort is known as the Capital Region’s premier gaming and entertainment destination, but it’s also home to different restaurants that appeal to a wide variety of taste buds.

Those seeking a higher-end dining experience should visit Dukes Chophouse, which is known for its fine dining in a comfortable atmosphere just steps from the gaming floor. Treat your whole party to appetizers such as fried calamari, crab cakes and pan-seared short rib. A wide variety of steaks and chops highlight the menu, as do other main course offerings such as mac & cheese or C.A.B. Ragout. Be sure to leave room for dessert!

Guests who are looking for some of their all-American favorites can check out Flipt, which serves specialty burgers and sandwiches fresh off the grill, chicken wings and homemade milkshakes for dessert. For the early risers, Flipt also has a delicious breakfast menu, which includes pancakes, The Joker (6-ounce grilled strip steak

with home fries and eggs of your choice), tiramisu french toast drizzled with chocolate syrup, and more!

Next up is Mian, which offers quick-serve Asian cuisine with each dish made to order. Fresh ingredients meet authentic preparation techniques, and culminate in dishes such as fried rice, lo mein, pepper steak, Singapore street noodles, dynamite shrimp and specialty dumplings.

Finally, guests can visit Johnny’s To-Go, an outpost of one of Schenectady’s most iconic restaurants, right inside the casino! The restaurant offers a selection of favorites from the original downtown menu, including Johnny’s pizza, pasta, salads and sandwiches.

With so many great options, you really can’t go wrong.

Come raise the stakes and treat yourself to a winning dining experience at Rivers Casino & Resort.

Restaurants open 7 days a week.

1 RUSH ST, SCH E NE CTA DY 518 . 57 9. 8 8 00

rive rsca sin o .c om

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SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL SECTION

Courtesy: STU GALLAGHER

Keuka Lake: A Wine Story

W

ine is a language used to tell the story of place: of the land and the people. It connects us to the world around us and to each other. Used in rituals, celebrations and ceremonies for millennia, wine seems to possess almost magical qualities. It can be unpredictable and mysterious. Sensual, sacred, romantic.

The magic, of course, is found in the way the people and the land work together to create something that has become an indelible part of the human experience. Keuka Lake: A Wine Story explores the origin of the world-renowned Finger Lakes wine region, a story that began in the small town of

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Hammondsport nearly 200 years ago. It reveals many of the traits that have helped establish the region as one of the best wine destinations in the world, from the unique terroir found there thanks to glaciers that passed through more than 10,000 years ago, to the hard work and indefatigable resolve of the farmers and the innovative and collaborative spirit of the winemakers who have transformed the region into something truly spectacular.

Discover Keuka Lake’s Wine Story.

{ horseplay } DIY Time

1

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49. Homophone for a number 50. Word with skeletal or 46-Down 53. Where Fire Station 1 is in Saratoga 55. One-wheeled transport* 57. “___ fallen and I can’t get up!”

58. “Life, liberty and property” philosopher John 59. Practice exam for HS students 60. Labor 61. Obsolete racial term 62. Kim’s boyfriend and Ariana’s ex 63. Prefix meaning before 64. Exchange cans for money, say* 65. Gronk and Rafa, for two 66. “Interesting…”

DOWN 1. Bit of plastic banned in Seattle 2. One-named Still Da Baddest rapper 3. Reinforced haphazardly, perhaps 4. Webmaster’s mission, for short 5. – 6. Word with county or hot 7. Trail 8. Nashville to Detroit, dir.

“lizards know their place.”

–SCALLIONS

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30. Childlike Eternal of the MCU 32. Works 33. First word of the Lord’s Prayer 34. Sherlock network 37. Discarded pear part 38. – 43. Les ___ (famous musical, familiarly) 44. Liam Neeson thriller with two sequels 46. Popular renewable energy source 47. Keep someone awake, perhaps 48. –

overheard er the “she’s und at i care th impressioner at all.” h t abou BARREL –SPA CITY TAP

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9. Deity of Greek 20-Across 10. ___ of the crime 11. Trimmed 14. – 15. Chinese Zodiac sign 20. Actress Lucy’s father, say 21. Baltimore bird 23. Aliens, for short 24. Reptile of Steve Irwin’s affection, for short 27. “I just might” 28. Trunk contents 29. Fictional North Pole dweller

9

“i wear the same pants every day.”

50. A campground has many 51. Email to which you RSVP 52. Skirmish 54. Letters before an alias 55. One on a website 56. Multi-nation military alliance, for short 59. COVID-era SBAbacked loan 60. ___ chi ANSWERS ON saratogaliving.com SEARCH: CROSSWORD

“is chicken vegan?”

—KILLINGTON MOUNTAIN

–TRUSTCO BANK

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Mind Games saratoga living AFTER HO U R S

for some completely Now, if upon attempting I NTRODU C E S “GA M E T I M E ,” irrational reason, to solve said puzzle you PLUS VI P SUB SC R I B E R –O N LY C O N T E N T. it always comes as hit a mental block and just a surprise when you can’t for the life of you discover that other people don’t do exactly what you do, figure it out? Then you can become a paid subscriber (it’s only know exactly what you know, or experience things exactly $5 a month) to receive the Game Time answers sent directly as you do. “You’ve never been to Dango’s?” “You don’t know to your inbox every Tuesday at 8am—along with a juicy story what a Keurig is?” “You didn’t cry when you listened to ‘All Too revealed only to paid subscribers. If this all sounds like a thinly Well (Taylor’s Version)’?” Et cetera. veiled attempt to get you to pay $5 a month, that’s exactly what And so you can imagine my shock when, after a lifetime it is. Our print magazine and regularly-updated web site are spent playing any and all word games I can get my hands completely free, so we’ve created a membership that allows for on, I discovered that other people don’t open the New York exclusive content—and the satisfaction of helping keep local Times Crossword app during every 45-second wait time journalism alive. So far, membership-only content has included before meetings, when their Zoom host has yet to let them what really went down when Saratoga Spring Water’s iconic on the call. Why not squeeze in one last dopamine hit that blue bottles turned (gasp!) clear, and a run-down of all the things comes free with the completion of every clue? I’m even Saratogians want to know but are too embarrassed to ask. hearing that before Wordle—essentially the junior version of Think you have a good story idea for us to chase after? Paid Jotto (you’ve never heard of Jotto?!)—most people didn’t play members also get to join the conversation in the comments. word games at all. Crazy.

(Keep your eye on this column in future issues for some of our And so I have made it my sacred mission to bring the favorite hot takes from paid subscribers.) wonders of word plexers, word jumbles and all manner of Puzzles by Saratogians for Saratogians, juicy tidbits from nerdy, wordy goodness to the puzzle-deprived people of around town, the chasing down of stories you won’t find Saratoga, by way of weekly Game Time posts on Saratoga elsewhere—plus a “subscriber-first” community focused on Living After Hours. (ICYMI: SLAH is our kinda-new, kinda-edgy delivering the content you want to read? Game on. newsletter on a platform called Substack, which you can subscribe to at saratogaliving.substack.com.) Every Monday at 8am, every SLAH subscriber will receive a glorious Game Time puzzle (no, not all of them are word puzzles, but they do –Natalie Moore all have a Saratoga theme) sent directly to their inbox.

Head Gamemaker

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