Tag Archives: phoenicia

Phoenicia Diner – A Rebirth in Upstate New York

After my heart was broken when a sign at Sweet Sue’s said they were closed for the winter (something about losing their kitchen staff – what happened there?), we warily headed over to Phoenicia Diner as an alternative. I was worried because I stopped there to use their bathroom when I was last in the area, and back then it seemed like one of those outdated empty diners by the highway that have been forgotten by the world.

Corned beef hash skillet.

I was pleasantly surprised that a new energy had taken over the diner, turning it into a hip new joint boasting local meat and produce, promoting nearby artisanal companies, and giving away cool magazines on green, responsible living. A granola-infused wind quickly warmed my heart đŸ˜€ Continue reading

Sweet Sue’s, Phoenicia, NY

In 2005 we visited a cousin in upstate New York and became intrigued by the idea of a possible weekend house where the dog could run and we could flex some home improvement muscles and perhaps even landscape a yard. We first searched in Ulster County, in the towns surrounding Woodstock, with the help of a cooky real estate agent named Sharon whose canned responses and car conversation idiosyncrasies we still repeat to this day. During one of these Saturdays spent driving from one house to another, Sharon took us to Sweet Sue’s for lunch, raved about everything on the menu, and I had one of the most memorable meatloaf meals of my life. We vowed to go back, but somehow never got around to it. We bought a house in Sullivan county in late 2005, sold it by mid-2007, and only returned to Sweet Sue’s last weekend during our (blush) mini-honeymoon seven years later. Time flies.

Blue Monkeys - Buttermilk pancakes with blueberries and bananas

Blue Monkeys – Buttermilk pancakes with blueberries and bananas. (Sugar packet placed alongside for size comparison)

But WOW. We never even tried their pancakes before but have always known them to be good. Continue reading

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