HudsonValleyGoodStuff

Where to take Mom on Mother's Day in the Hudson Valley: 10 Ideas for all kinds of Moms

 

Brunch for 4 at Duo Bistro in Kingston 

Photo credit: Suzanne Wald-Balsamo of Partition Street Wine Shop

If you are spending Mother's Day Weekend in the Hudson Valley, you are in luck. There are plenty of places to take Mom whether she wants to relax, eat, do yoga, or even plant a tree.  Here are a 10 ideas:

 

1) Red Hook Curry House in Red Hook has a scrumptious Indian buffet Tuesday and Sunday night,  for $12.95. Kids are $7.95 from 5-10PM.. If your mom loves Indian food, she will be very happy! 

 

2) Yoga Mom:  Chichester Yoga offers heated classes on the weekends. The yoga classes are toasty at 85F, but not broiling like Bikram Yoga. It's a happy medium. Chichester Yoga is now offering a Mother's Day special and is doing a 50 for 50 Mama Massage.  This is a 50 minute intuitive deep tissue massage with a senior therapist on Mother's day (50 minutes, 50 dollars, 50 percent off.)  Or buy a gift certificate for 3 massages this week for mom for 135.00) So that's 3 /50 minutes massages that can be used between now and Memorial Weekend. Gift certificates can be mailed or emailed. For Paypal or credit card purchases add 5 dollars to the total. They also have cool yoga events happening on Memorial Day weekend.

 

 

3) River Rock Health Spa in Woodstock offers a variety of massages including thai massage, hot stone, deep tissue, swedish, and prenatal as well as holistic and traditional facials. Not to mention, a great steam shower!

 

4) Stroll along the Walkway over the Hudson in Poughkeepsie. I blogged about my stroll here. After your power walk, take mom to Brasserie292 for delicious French cuisine. (You might want to make a reservation ahead of time here).

5) Swing by Overlook Mountain Bikes in Woodstock to rent a bike for the day ($40).

 

6) Plant a tree with mom! Scenic Hudson is sponsoring a Plant a Tree with Mom event on May 13th at 10 am. Plant a tree along the Fishkill Creek. Click here for more info.

7) Duo Bistro, a new restaurant in Kingston serves delicious breakfast and lunch. (Their breakfast is served until 3:30pm when they close). Click here for breakfast review. Duo Bistro will be having a special prix fixe for $25 for Mother's Day. (Reservations only).  On the menu will be Crab Cake Benedict, Spring Morel Souffle, and Strawberry-Rhubarb French Toast. The $25 includes beverages and baked goods. If your mom loves Moroccan/Mediterranean cuisine, take her out for dinner at Fez Cafe in Saugerties.

 

8) If mom is more of BBQ Ribs kind of woman, I'd recommend Hickory BBQ Smokehouse for their wings, barbecued meats, and decadent comfort food.

 

9) If you are looking for a fun place to eat that is  informal where the kids can run around, I love the Hurley Mountain Inn. They have great video games, a pool table, and a pinball machine. It is a sports bar/restaurant, but very family friendly and perfect for spontaneous gatherings of large family groups. The place is huge so you rarely have to wait even though it is very popular on holidays.

10) If you are spending Mother's Day in Rhinebeck, why not take mom to Gigi's Trattoria after you sample the goodies at the Rhinebeck Farmers Market.  My favorite dish is the Skizza Bianca, but everything is good! Take it from famous mom Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who dined here during Chelsea's wedding weekend. Click here to see Gigi Trattoria's Mother's Day menu. Lots of yummy dishes and special Mother's Day cocktails.

Guest blog post: An Exciting RV Adventure through the Hudson Valley with El Monte RV Rentals

An Exciting RV Adventure through the Hudson Valley
By Joe Laing, El Monte RV Rentals

A trip through New York's Hudson Valley is a relaxing and inspiring experience. For an RV vacation, this lovely New York region can't be beat! You'll discover many charming spots to stop and enjoy some history and culture, plenty of outdoor recreation, towns with treasures tucked away in the corners of quiet shops, and abundant fairs and festivals.

Your adventure through the Hudson Valley begins in Yonkers and takes you along the Hudson River all the way to Albany. The lower Hudson Valley has so many sights that you will have to plan your itinerary well, so you won't stop here too long and miss out on all the upper valley has to offer.

Yonkers not only provides some historic sites to bring back the earlier era of this part of New York State, but outdoor fun is wonderful here too. Visit the Hudson River Museum to view historic and environmental exhibits. The Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site will trace for you the role of slavery in the U.S. and special events often occur, so check the schedule carefully.

You will find swimming, picnicking and hiking at Tibbetts Brook Park and Sprain Ridge Park, with Lenoir Preserve a wonderful spot to experience a nature center. Want some wonderful views of the Hudson River? Stop at Untermyer Park on North Broadway, and be sure to go to one of the Saturday night concerts if there on the weekend.

Traveling northward, you will reach Hastings-on-Hudson where you'll have to park your RV and take one of the self-guided tours of the village. Pick up a map of the route at the Historical Society. The MacEachron Waterfront Park will be the ideal place to have a picnic lunch and view the river. When you carry on with your trip, you will come to Dobbs Ferry where you can walk or bike on some beautiful trails.

Take an exciting hike along the Old Croton Aqueduct Trailway in Irvington. You'll pass the historic Stiner-Ross House and will catch some glimpses of Hudson River. Then in Tarrytown and the Sleepy Hollow region, you can bring back to life the literature of Washington Irving and his legend of Ichabod Crane.

The beauty and appeal of the Hudson Valley never ceases to amaze. One reason many come through here on RV vacations is due to the gorgeous views and the sleepy villages where shopping and dining are a real treat. Nyack has unique shops and many fine restaurants with international cuisines. After all, you can't be the cook every day. You're on vacation! Stop in Mt. Pleasant for more surprises, and then carry on northward along the Hudson River.

You need to put Sparta on your itinerary and see the Jug Tavern, probably the oldest building in the region. Move on to Croton-on-Hudson and visit marvelous places to do some birding, such as the Brinton Brook Sanctuary and the Graff Sanctuary. In Cortlandt you can become one with musical history by visiting the Aaron Copland House, where composers come to this day for a place of quiet to compose their own pieces.

Now it's time for some more outdoor fun. In Peekskill, New York, you have found just one spot on your motorhome excursion route where you can park a while and take to the river or forested landscapes for some recreation. Take a kayak tour where you can paddle along the river. At Riverfront Green you'll find a playground for the kids (if you've brought them along) and Hudson River views. Blue Mountain Reservation is a huge park with hiking trails and places for mountain biking and horseback riding.

Don't miss the United States Military Academy at West Point, because it would never do to say you passed right by West Point and failed to take a tour of this birthplace of our greatest leaders. More to go on your special adventure! There is still Poughkeepsie to enjoy and the Franklin D. Roosevelt Home, Presidential Library & Museum with the famous Rose Garden in Hyde Park. 

United States Military Academy at West Point

Wrap up this memorable RV trip with a canoeing adventure in Catskill, New York and a tour of the state's oldest museum ñ the New York State Museum ñ in Albany. It will be hard to leave the Hudson Valley behind. But you can always come back again another time for more adventures. The friendly townsfolk and this lovely valley will welcome your return with open arms.

About the Author

Joe Laing is the Marketing Director for El Monte RV Rentals. You can see more great RV vacation ideas in their Monty's Musings RV Travel Blog. Be sure to check out their New York RV Rentals location for a luxury motorhome for your Hudson Valley vacation adventure.

New restaurant alert: Duo Bistro in Kingston serves yummy gourmet breakfast & lunch!

I just had my first gourmet breakfast at Duo Bistro (50 John Street) in uptown Kingston. I blogged about the pre-opening tasting so you already know the food is good. I love the fact that they serve breakfast all day. I am a late breakfast kind of person. Today they had a silver dollar French toast with espresso cream special that was out of this world! I ate it way too fast though. Tom had the other breakfast special scrambled eggs with Spring morels. The restaurant is open from 8:30 am - 3:30 pm daily. Just from eavesdropping by the counter, I can report to you that the locals are really enjoying it.

One man who was enjoying a late breakfast at the counter confessed he had been coming in to eat here 4 days straight.  If I lived or worked in uptown Kingston, I'd do the same! It looks like they are getting a good "take out" following too. Duo Bistro, 50 John Street, Kingston, NY (845) 383-1198. They don't have a website yet, but you can follow them on Facebook or Twitter.