Eating My Way Through Plattsburgh

By Adam Blanchard

In downtown Plattsburgh there are countless restaurants calling your name, beckoning you to spend your night, and money. In the past few weeks I decided to take a look at a few of these restaurants with some friends to see which ones are worth the journey from campus into downtown. Being a Plattsburgh local, you can trust that I know my stuff.

Yama Sushi

I started the journey off at a restaurant called Yama Sushi.  I was accompanied by my good friend Elias Cross to broaden the palette.  We arrived at 6 p.m. and were seated immediately. With only three other tables sat in the restaurant, there was a somewhat small, and  peaceful atmosphere. A tiny speaker played ambient Japanese music that matched the ambiance of the restaurant. 

The menu was large and fairly priced. I made note of the wide variety of sushi types. However, I chose to go with the teriyaki chicken bento box. This included teriyaki chicken, eight pieces of California roll, three pieces of fried shu mai, orange slices, steamed white rice and a choice of miso soup or salad. I chose the miso soup. Eli decided on a Hibachi steak dinner, which included two pieces of shrimp, fried rice, vegetables, green salad, and clear soup. We also ordered an appetizer of gyoza.

The soups came out in two minutes, hot upon arrival and tasting great. The miso in particular had a slightly salty taste that wasn’t overpowering, but paired somewhat strangely with its pineapple aftertaste. Eli’s clear soup was also tasty, with a slightly saltier flavor than the miso. Accompanying the soups was also Eli’s salad, which I only tasted the sauce of. 

Eli noted the salad had a strong, divisive taste, but overall not bad. As we finished the soup, the gyoza arrived. The taste and texture of the gyoza was similar to that of a fried dumpling, which was very enjoyable for both of us. The sauce it came with also complimented the gyoza amazingly, adding a beautifully delicious sweet and sour taste, which complimented greatly with the doughy texture of the gyoza. 

Not long after we finished the appetizer, the main course came out. My bento box was neatly organized with each item having its own space on the plate. Eli’s plate almost overflowed with the amount of food on it. The portions were both great for the price. Each item in the bento box tasted amazing, with the highlight being the chicken teriyaki. The chicken was served with caramelized onions and a sweet sauce that mixed together perfectly. Eli’s steak was cooked perfectly, with just the right amount of pink for a medium rare. The steak was very juicy, contributing to an amazing flavor overall. I had also ordered two sushi rolls to go, which were small in portion, but put together and presented very nicely. 

Overall, Yama Sushi was a great place to go. Suitable to anyone, whether you’re bringing a small group of friends or going on a date. The menu has much to offer and the prices are affordable for a college student. The quality of the food itself was amazing, with every flavor meshing together to create a stellar dining experience.

Arnie’s

My next stop was Arnie’s Restaurant, an older style establishment with some fancier options for meals. I brought a group of five to eat to see if this place was suitable for a small group. Arriving at 6:50 p.m., we made our way to the upstairs dining room. The upstairs was rustic in design with traces of modernity, a TV playing the Powerball in the corner and a faint radio playing somewhere.

Looking at the menu, the prices were somewhat high. Oddly enough, the drinks didn’t have a price either on the menu, which was somewhat off-putting. I decided to give the lobster ravioli a try. This was somewhat expensive for me, so I had high hopes. I also put in an order of mozzarella sticks.

As I chatted away with my friends, I began examining the upstairs a little bit closer. The walls had marks at table level, suggesting that they had moved around the arrangements of tables previously. I had also noted that there wasn’t a men’s restroom upstairs, which could be troublesome in the event of an emergency or should somebody have trouble walking. This led to one of my stranger experiences dining, as the server said I could use the women’s restroom.

Coming back from my bathroom break, I was greeted with my mozzarella sticks. In order to get a true judgement of how good these sticks were, I did the classic cheese spread. When I broke apart the stick, it passed with flying colors, as it spread an arm’s length before breaking. The actual taste was great, being hot and crispy. For my friends who didn’t order an appetizer, the server was kind enough to bring out a loaf of white bread that was made in the restaurant’s bakery. 

The wait for the main course was somewhat long, taking 20 minutes, but that can be expected with the size of my party. The presentation of the lobster ravioli left much to be desired, with sauce being slapped on half of the raviolis and the other half being barren. In terms of taste, the ravioli was alright, but wasn’t what I was expecting for the price. The lack of sauce was somewhat disappointing as it was easily the best part of the dish. The ravioli itself didn’t have much lobster flavor. The portion size for the price was also a little upsetting. 

Unfortunately, Arnie’s was a little bit of a letdown this time around. Having been here in the past, I had high expectations. The atmosphere of the restaurant was cozy, more suited to a two-person date. Being so expensive, I had expected the food to look a bit more appetizing. Having pleasant experiences in the past, I was bewildered by the quality this time around.

Hobie’s

Hobie’s Sports Den is one of the many pubs and sports bars in and around Plattsburgh. My party size this time around was three, including my friend, Zach Johnson, and my girlfriend, Haylee Gooley. We arrived at 6:30 p.m. on a Sunday. The atmosphere of the restaurant was lively, with sports playing on the TVs and music blasting from the speakers scattered throughout the restaurant. The floor was packed, so seating was limited. The silverware and menus that the servers used were directly next to us, so my group hardly had any time where a server wasn’t hovering around us.

Our server was extremely busy, which gave us lots of time to decide on our dishes. Looking at the menu, they served a wide array of pub food. Burgers, pizza, wings, fries and hot subs filled most of the menu, with there being a variety of each to choose from. Having decided on an appetizer and a main dish, I still had to wait quite a considerable amount of time to put in my order. This was confusing, as there seemed to be servers standing around doing nothing while ours was working both the bar and waiting on tables.

After a 25 minute wait, we were able to finally put in our orders. Sundays are happy hours all day, meaning that some appetizers were discounted. I went with the Hobie’s Animal Fries. For the main meal, I asked for the Hobie’s Loaded Burger cooked medium rare. Haylee put in an order of 10 mild wings and Zach ordered two Michigans, a hotdog with meat sauce on it. Having waited so long to put in our order, I had hoped that the food would come out within a reasonable amount of time.

Clearly my hopes were too high, as the appetizer came out 30 minutes after we had put our orders in. The animal fries were alright. They had cheese, romeo aioli, and onions on them. The flavors worked okay together, but the sweetness of the romeo aioli stood out over all of the other flavors. The portion size was acceptable for an appetizer. 

Surprisingly, the food was out relatively quickly. The burger I had ordered came topped with sauteed onions, mushrooms, swiss cheese and thousand-island dressing as well as a side of potato chips. The burger itself was cooked nicely, with just the right amount of pink. Flavorwise, the burger wasn’t the best. This was the most soggy burger I have ever had, with sauce oozing out every time I went to take a bite. Both buns were soaked in juices from the burger which didn’t help much either. By the time I had finished my burger, the chips had been drenched in juice, becoming soggy and very sad to eat. On the other hand, Haylee enjoyed her wings, remarking that they were very crispy and tasty, and Zach had an unremarkable experience eating his Michigans.

Having finished our food, we were yet again left waiting much longer than we should have had to, waiting 20 minutes with empty plates in front of us. If you’re looking for a quick place to eat, Hobie’s Sports Den is not the place to go. The staff seemed to have their work cut out for them. The food was fine for a pub, with nothing particularly standing out to my party.

*Closing Disclaimer*

Don’t let your eyes be bigger than your stomach, as there are more than enough restaurants to eat your fill in Plattsburgh. While these experiences may not be the most flattering or highlight what you may want to know about some of the places in Plattsburgh, that doesn’t mean that you can’t go out and try them for yourself. Give yourself that break from classes that you deserve after working tirelessly on that paper or group project that nobody else is contributing to. Who knows, maybe you’ll even find a hidden gem downtown that you can tell your friends about.