Savor The Drive
Here's where to eat up and down Route 22.
The central spine of the Rural Intelligence region is New York State Route 22, with the Taconic State Parkway (to the west) and Route 7 (to the east) being the other main north-south arteries. Here’s where to stop when you’re hungry on the 60-mile stretch between Copake and Brewster.
1. North Star at the Alander 7519 Route 22, Copake
The Alander lodge’s restaurant, North Star, serves up seafood and creative New American cuisine— New England clam chowder, lobster bisque, pan-seared Atlantic salmon and New York strip—in an upscale-casual, intimate setting. Sit in the outdoor dining pergola and enjoy beautiful sunsets with your meal.
2. Round Tuit Cafe
5523 Route 22, Millerton
This quintessential backcountry diner is a quirky spot for all-day breakfast, burgers, melted sandwiches, and ice cream cones that you can order from an outside window in warm weather and eat while overlooking rolling cornfields. And if you’re looking for a copy of the day’s Wall Street Journal or Daily News, you can buy your copy here.
3. King’s Highway Cider Shack
5409 Route 22, Millerton
The cidery is adjacent to McEnroe Organic Farm market. Besides selling an array of ciders made from Hudson Valley apples, the Cider Shack is a full-service restaurant with menu options that include lobster rolls, bratwurst, chicken tacos, and vegetarian items.
4. Four Brothers
4957 Route 22, Amenia
With a large outdoor dining area, the flagship location of the Four Brothers chain is summer incarnate with its adjacent drive-in theater and a “grand shack” where you can get a burger and fries on the fly; there’s also table service if you’re ordering from the familiar red sauce menu.
5. Kelly’s Creamery and Kelly’s Husband’s Food Truck
3202 Route 22, Dover Plains
Everyone knows that RI loves this roadside duo that also includes a miniature golf course. You won’t find better French fries along Route 22 or crispier pieces of boneless fried chicken. And it would take all summer to sample the extensive menu of ice creams, sundaes, and shakes.
6. La Guadalupana Mini Market Wingdale
1475 Route 22, Wingdale
In the space that housed the late, lamented Big W’s barbecue, there’s now a fully stocked Mexican market where you can pick up everything you need for authentic Taco Tuesdays and Fajitas Fridays. You can also order enchiladas, tamales, and other standards for takeout or to eat in at bare-bones laminate tables.
7. Rocco’s Pizza
2908 Route 22, Patterson
Located in a vintage stainless-steel diner, Rocco’s is cozy, welcoming, and dependable. There’s a tasty Greek salad with a generous amount of feta; well-priced New York-style pizzas that rock with traditional toppings like peppers, mushrooms, and sausage; and the full array of Italian American-sauce standards like eggplant parm and baked ziti to eat in or take out.
8. The Putnam Diner
2600 Route 22, Patterson
You don’t often find menus these days that run 10 pages but you do at the Putnam Diner, where you can satisfy any craving. The endearing waitstaff cheerfully fulfill requests for extra crispy hash browns with your eggs (served all day) and well-done French fries with your charbroiled burger.
9. Panino Gourmet Deli
2011 Route 22, Brewster
With the aromatic old-world ambiance of a shop you’d find on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx, Panino offers Italian-style heroes (such as the “Michelangelo” made of fresh mozzarella, fried eggplant, roasted peppers, olive oil, and vinegar) and everything you need for an antipasto
platter such as marinated mushrooms and freshly sliced mortadella.
10. The Red Rooster
1566 Route 22, Brewster
Nostalgia for `50s drive-ins is the secret sauce accounting for the 60-year-old Red Rooster’s popularity. Its iconic red-and-white striped
facade and peaked roof is winning over a new generation who stop for selfies as well as soft-serve ice cream, burgers, onion rings, and other fried treats.
