Public Communications, Inc. presents 14850 Dining, Ithaca and Central New York's Dining Mecca. http://dining.14850.com/ en http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_bandwagon.html We're downtown this week for a look at the new Bandwagon Brewpub. This new underground eatery on North Cayuga Street has combined in-house brewing of small batches of beer (because that's all they have room for), a compact but surprisingly well-stocked full bar, and a kitchen that's putting out an ever-changing array of tasty food ranging from pub grub to bistro fare. http://today.14850.com/0220chilicookoff.html Downtown Ithaca is gearing up for today's twelfth annual Chili Cook-Off and Winterfest, with dozens of eateries offering samples of chili, vegetarian chili, wings, and more. At the same time, organizers of local events to fight hunger are raising money for an elementary school snack program whose funding is in jeopardy. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_givingtree.html Join us this week on Stewart Avenue to visit the Giving Tree Cafe. This new Collegetown eatery is in the former home of the ABC Cafe, which closed last spring, and like the ABC, Giving Tree focuses on serving fresh, vegetarian-style food throughout the day. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_thaiexpress.html This week, 14850 Dining is visiting the new location of Taste of Thai Express on Route 13 in Ithaca's west end. After a long delay, the West State Street eatery has finally moved, but they're still offering fresh, affordable Thai food for dine-in or delivery. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_prizediner.html Join us downtown this week to visit a classic Ithaca location reborn as the Prize Diner. Right across from the State Theatre, this remodeled eatery is open for breakfast and lunch daily, serving simple, homestyle meals to happy customers. The erstwhile Ithaca Diner closed several months ago, and the new owners spent a couple of months refurbishing before reopening in December. http://today.14850.com/0111givingtree.html A little less than seven months since its predecessor, the popular ABC Cafe, closed its doors, a new vegetarian-focused eatery is slated to open in lower Collegetown. The Giving Tree Cafe will open for business on Wednesday, 13 January, on Stewart Avenue. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_theshop.html This week we're trying out a new coffee shop in downtown Ithaca. You may have driven past The Shop without noticing it; it's Ithaca's latest combination tattoo parlor and coffee shop, on East Seneca Street, across from True Insurance and Contemporary Trends. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_crossroads.html After a several-year hiatus, it's nice to see a favorite old watering hole reopened where North Triphammer Road meets Route 34 and Route 34B a few miles out in Lansing. The Crossroads Bar & Grill opened its doors in mid December, a family eatery with a full bar and the beginnings of a pub menu. http://dining.14850.com/features/f_2009decade.html As 2009 draws to a close, 14850 Dining marks its tenth anniversary. We're going to look back at some of our favorites, and some eateries that have gone away in the last decade. Our favorites are the restaurants we keep coming back to, the ones we'll go to without a second thought. Thanks for joining us online and on the radio for the last ten years! http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_coalhouse.html This week we're visiting the Coal House Cafe, the new incarnation of coffee shop, pastry shop, and sandwich shop that used to be the Queen of Tarts. This small green building was actually the railroad coal office years ago, and was renovated in 2006 into a beautiful, cozy cafe. There are daily soups such as garden vegetable or goulash, but the outstanding chicken matzoh ball soup is almost always available. There are usually a few sandwiches to choose from, as well. http://dining.14850.com/features/f_bestburger09.html It seems like such a simple dish, but here at 14850 Dining we realize that the humble hamburger has achieved star status in our society. Burgers vary so much from restaurant to restaurant that it's hard to pick a single Best Burger for the Ithaca area, but we're going to talk about a few you shouldn't miss. http://magazine.14850.com/2009/1106chefsnightout.html Ithaca Taste of the Nation, the local group that hosts an annual fundraising showcase of local food and wine, is reprising a successful event from last year to raise awareness and money to fight hunger. This fall, the organization is holding three more "Chef's Night Out" dinners, bringing 15 local chefs together for a trio of special nights. http://dining.14850.com/features/f_wining_and_dining.html This week the 14850 Dining Report lines up a designated driver and heads out to try a fine meal accompanied by some of Central New York's finest products -- the area's wonderful Finger Lakes wines. Ithaca and the surrounding towns feature restaurants with some truly impressive wine lists, but we're happiest when those wine lists feature a good selection from local vineyards. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_rogues.html This week the 14850 Dining Report is visiting an old friend in Lansing, Rogues' Harbor Inn. This 1830s landmark just minutes from the Shops at Ithaca Mall or downtown Ithaca has developed a real flair for using local food and drink over the last couple of years, and they've just introduced a new fall menu that adds several new seasonal items while keeping lots of favorites. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_northstar.html Several new restaurants are opening in Ithaca this fall, and most are, quite naturally, opening in the former homes of other restaurants. One particularly beloved restaurant that closed with little notice this June was Willow of Ithaca, and we would thus feel remiss in talking about the new NorthStar House without a nod to Willow. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_rogues.html This week the 14850 Dining Report is visiting an old friend in Lansing, Rogues' Harbor Inn. This 1830s landmark just minutes from the Shops at Ithaca Mall or downtown Ithaca has developed a real flair for using local food and drink over the last couple of years, and they've just introduced a new fall menu that adds several new seasonal items while keeping lots of favorites. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_thaicuisinebrunch.html Ithaca has lots of brunch possibilities, from the simple egg-and-accompaniments approach to fancier entrees or sprawling buffets, but one unique approach is the dim-sum style Sunday brunch at Thai Cuisine, Ithaca's original Thai restaurant on Route 13. http://dining.14850.com/features/f_welcome_to_ithaca.html Every year about this time, Ithaca's population swells with thousands of new and returning students, who'll call Tompkins County home for the next several years. And, every year about this time, we know people are looking around and wondering where to eat. We have some thoughts on the matter. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_justataste09.html This week we're returning to an old favorite in Downtown Ithaca. Just a Taste wine and tapas bar is often near the top of our lists, and the food quality and creativity, surprising value for your dollar, excellent service, and ever-changing menu are among the reasons why. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_littlethaihouse.html We've talked any number of times about Little Thai House, the quick and inexpensive Thai eatery on Dryden Road in Collegetown. They've appeared on our Year-in-Review lists and Top Ten lists, they're featured in our Welcome to Ithaca feature, and they come up every time we talk about affordable lunch options. But, somehow, we've never given Little Thai House their very own review, until now. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_mahoganygrill.html This week, 14850 Dining is enjoying a meal on restaurant row at Mahogany Grill. This downtown eatery returns a beautiful restaurant space to the traditions started by Plums a few decades ago. A couple of incarnations later, Mahogany Grill brings a prime location back to a mellow dining feel, complete with attractive dark wood and brass highlights. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_thenines.html This week the 14850 Dining Report is in Collegetown visiting an old stand-by, The Nines. This College Avenue pizzeria and bar is in an old firehouse building -- the new station number 9 was built next door -- and offers the area's finest deep-dish pizza, plus sandwiches and a few surprises. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_asiacuisine.html This week the 14850 Dining Report is in downtown Ithaca visiting Asia Cuisine. We've heard good things about this combination Korean and Japanese restaurant on the corner of Seneca and Aurora Streets not far from the Commons, and we finally got to check it out for ourselves. http://dining.14850.com/reviews/r_242_providence.html From time to time, the 14850 Dining Report has the opportunity to review a restaurant that's outside our usual Central New York bailiwick. This weekend we were pleased to visit Two Forty Two, or 242, one of several excellent restaurants in the burgeoning Federal Hill area of Providence, Rhode Island.