Oktoberfest and Autumn Feasts - What’s Cookin’? – Smithtown

Oktoberfest and Autumn Feasts - What’s Cookin’? – Smithtown

 By Nancy Vallarella

This is the best time of the year to satisfy cravings for Bavarian cuisine.  Smithtown residents are especially lucky, we do not have to travel far to satisfy the yen.  Many options are available here in town but hurry; some are only available through Sunday.

Faradays of Smithtown kicked off Oktoberfest on October 1^st with a German three course dinner.  Some of the specialties featured are: potato pancakes, knockwurst, jaegurschnitzel, Hungarian goulash, and sauerbraten.  This three course German dinner is offered for $25. Pints of Paulaner Oktoberfest and Riesling by the glass are offered at $5 each. This dinning event is available through October 31^st.

Further west on Main Street, Croxley’s Ale House of Smithtown is serving German specialty dishes. Bavarian pretzels, potato pancakes, knockwurst, sauerbraten, kasseler rippchen (smoked pork chop) and wienerschnitzel with an accompanied reduced price for German biergarten beers are served through this Sunday, October 21st. 

Available all year round – Main Street Meats (MSM) located at 36 E Main Street. Here you can grab frozen entrees that are prepared on the premises.  Jaegurschnitzel, rouladen, dumplings in sauerbraten gravy and wienerschnitzel are some of the choices available. MSM has a large selection of fresh and vacuum packed knockwurst, weisswurst, krainerwurst and bratwurst from Forest Pork Store, Karl Ehmer and Schaller and Weber. They also stock imported spaetzel, red cabbage, sauerkraut and mustards. If all of this inspires you to host your own Oktoberfestapoluzza – Main Street Meats can cater the event.

For a home cooked Oktoberfest family dinner, try Great Grandma Fank’s German Style Pot Roast Recipe – located in the right column of Smithtown Matters Food & Restaurant Directory. This family recipe is over 100-years-old.  It requires marinating the beef in beer overnight instead of the several days of marinating in brine that traditional sauerbraten requires. It captures all of the sweet and tart goodness one looks forward to in a traditional sauerbraten but is somehow even more delicious than its traditional cousin.  I’ve been making and serving it for twenty years to rave reviews. The smell of this cooking will turn your residence into a chalet in the Alps. 

After you have labored over a hot stove, treat yourself and some company to a fine dining experience…This Sunday, October 21^st, Mirabelle Restaurant is offering a five course Peconic Bay Winery Autumn Dinner. The dinner starts with an Autumn Salad with pears, mache, beets and Catapano goat cheese curd and ends with a Spiced Sweet Potato Cake with pear ice cream. I won’t tease you with the rest of the in between menu items (trust me they are even more divine) because only a few seats are available. Call now for availability at the 5pm or 6:30pm seating. $75 pp ++ includes the ten wine pairings. Mirabelle Restaurant contact information is available in Smithtown Matters Food & Restaurant Directory.  - Access their website here for more information on seasonal menus and other dining events.

KAT – Kitchen a Trattoria is creating new fall menu items daily. This small kitchen turns out some big flavor.  Orecchiette with roasted cauliflower, raisins and breadcrumbs, Chicken Liver Crostino with apple preserves and Duck Confit severed with mushroom cream sauce have been featured.  Shown in this photo:  KAT staff turning fall harvest favorites into menu items.   Wondering what they are making with that squash?   Guess we will just have to dine there to find out!