Bloomers rules. As of last night, it is one of our top two favorite restaurants in Saratoga Springs, along with Beekman Street Bistro. Coincidentally (or not?), both are bistros. The Bloomers subtitle is “An American Bistro.”
Housed in a beautifully remodeled old diner on Route 9 (technically in Ballston Spa, not Saratoga, but close enough), the Bloomers ambiance is top notch. The lighting is perfect. The Bob Dylan tunes were a great touch. And the service. Oh, the service.
From the moment we walked in and our coats were taken after we were given a table sans reservation (it really filed up later and everyone who came in had a reservation, from what we overheard) to our exit when our waiter shook our hands and another man (the owner or manager?) held open the front doors for us on our way out, the service was excellent. We couldn’t have asked for better service, better food, or an all-around pleasant dining experience.
Ironically, the building is the former home of the place with the worst service, Chez Sophie. Albeit we didn’t order wine at Bloomers — so we couldn’t explicitly compare the wine service experience — but given that there was superb service for the Saratoga sparkling water (it even got its own ice bucket), I have no doubt the wine service would have blown away that of Chez Sophie. Still, my Kettel One and tonic was silky smooth and arrived in timely fashion, as did my Stella Artois.
The food was fantastic and everything — from the hot bread with spread to the dark chocolate mints that came with the bill — was homemade. Jen enjoyed roasted beet and orange salad with walnut vinaigrette to start, followed by an out of this world shitake mushroom and spinach ravioli (she was kind enough to share two ravs with me). I started with the crab bisque — featuring chunks of fresh Alaskan crab leg — followed by the bulgur wheat and black bean vegetarian meatloaf entree. We really appreciated that the place had multiple dedicated vegetarian entrees.
That certainly won’t be our last time at Bloomers (2853 Route 9 in Ballston Spa, NY — just off the Northway Exit 13 South).
Thanks to Matt for the well-deserved glowing recommendation.
2 responses so far ↓
1 James // Nov 20, 2007 at 5:02 am
Che gonzo! I laughed so hard when i read this blog. I bet you felt completely justified when they went out of buisness kinda backs you on your opinion huh? Glad you guys found a new spot for vitals but I have to say…. you lost me with the meatless loaf. Vegetarians will surely be the death of american comfort food.
2 Betsy // Dec 5, 2007 at 6:05 pm
Gabe! I totally agree — this place rocks. And I, too, was blown away by the service. So glad to hear it is the “norm” rather than just one good night! Yay! Let’s all go!