Albany NY, World Class With the Right Ingredients

I was a wee bit melancholy when I walked downtown Albany NY, the capital of New York State, yesterday. It seemed tired, worn down and lackluster to me. I wondered why many state capitals seem not to fit the title. They aren’t usually the busiest, brightest or even prosperous. Perhaps the better to do backroom deals in. I laughed A bit about my one Jan. semester when I worked as an assemblyman’s aid; Mr. Tills from Buffalo made it clear that a Dewar’s with ice should be left on his desk first thing in the morning. Other big assignments were to hire “models” for business meetings on boats on Lake Erie. Never invited myself. You get the picture.

Things looked considerably better when my son Chance came by the Albany Hotel to head to dinner at a place named Yono’s (after the chef–a winner of the Faces of Diversity American Dream Award by the National Restaurant Assoc.). It was beautifully decorated and had an Indonesian & French blended menu. The dishes were artfully picked, displayed and done–a real winner, and to think, in Albany. My son Chance the Braveheart ordered the kangaroo and I sampled…wonderful. It was however, the Indonesian dishes that won me over. When we walked back to the hotel the many steeples matched by numerous small well-lit pubs and bars transformed Albany into a beautiful looking place, imagine.

Fired up by great food and great conversation we stopped in a gorgeous building now named the City Beer Hall, numerous brews of many types and a mix of suits and slackers, a place for all–fitting in a State Capital. Albany had never looked so
world-class to me before, and without all the important ingredients may never again.