If the first thing you think of when you hear “Catskills” is Dirty Dancing and “no one puts baby in a corner”, you’re in good company. The “Borscht Belt” or “Jewish Alps”, as it was once called, has changed a lot from its 1950’s heyday, but with a gassed-up car and GPS navigation you set BEFORE you head down these winding roads, you’re set for some fun, upstate adventures.

Catskill, NY

We stayed in this sleepy little town that FYI is more or less closed every single day except on the weekends. Check dates/times before you book your stay. Otherwise, you’ll have some fun antique stores, breweries and hikes to partake in.

FAVE ANTIQUE STORE: Sister Salvage

Deb, the owner, use to run Beauty Bar, No Tell Motel, Pharmacy and Tainted Lady Lounge in New York where Mike D from the Beastie Boys was her barback. The wallpaper in their bathroom is “Dia del Dumbo”—a design he created celebrating that Brooklyn neighborhood! https://www.facebook.com/Sister-Salvage-168511693333143/

FUN RESTAURANT:

Mermaid Café. Delicious ingredients, freakishly-good tacos and burritos—they make their own salsa which is off-the-charts amazing. A cute li’l patio out back is perfect for that CoVid dining experience.

EASY OUTING:

Walk over the Rip Van Winkle bridge and hike up to the Frederic Church home and studio. He was one of the central figures in the famous Hudson River School of Landscape Painting. Pretty vistas abound. You can also hit Thomas Cole’s homestead (another prolific painter) on the way back.

HIPSTER EXCURSION:

So many resorts in the Catskills have been renovated to achieve optimal cuteness. Our drive up to the Finger Lakes gave us a chance to stop at some new faves: Scribner’s—great food and the world’s cutest outdoor sauna, Urban Cowboy—craft cocktails and a Roberta’s pop-up, and Red Rose, est. in 1938!

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THE PHOENICIA:

Close-ish to Scribner’s. Originally built in 1962, updated to Instagram-worthy awesomeness. They have a new air stream trailer out back and loads of outdoor seating.

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WOODSTOCK:

Hippie Dippy Woodstock has really delivered with “The Mud Club”. If you’re going to hug trees, this is the place to do it. The grounds are lush and pretty, filled with greenery and healing crystals. The chocolate croissants are delicious. The coffee is divine. Big fan. Dixon Roadside is a great place for lunch/dinner. From the folks who brought you the Phoenicia, this spot serves up comfort food and locally-sourced Hudson Valley products.

PENN YAN:

Short for “Pennsylvania Yankee”, this was our home base in the Finger Lakes. OF NOTE: we stayed at the Best Western which was in a great location where you can walk to downtown (which we loved).

Penn Yan was home to many a mill (the first opened in 1794). Birkett Mills still makes the infamous “buckwheat” the village used in the Guinness Book of World Records’ size pancake they cooked up. It fed the whole town!

DINER DARLINGS:

Speaking of pancakes, ya’ gotta eat one (or six). I went to the two diners in town and did an unofficial taste test. Wagner’s had the best buckwheat pancakes (in my humble opinion) but Penn Yan Diner wins for overall cuteness—it was voted best diner in Upstate New York AND it’s in a Galion Dining Car (one of six left in the United States, circa 1925). Penn Yan diner also has “sweetcream pancakes”, a fluffy buttermilk flapjack that kinda tastes like angel food cake.

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Buckwheat Pancake Taste Test

FOOD N’ BEVVIES:

Amity Coffee Co. has great joe and avocado toast. 18th Amendment has solid dinner fare. The Laurentide Inn has a brewery and it’s downright adorable. Wager’s Cider Mill has homemade apple cider and donuts. Spotted Duck makes their ice cream with duck eggs AND you can get a “flight”. Seneca Farms has been serving scoops since the 1950’s.

VINEYARD TOURS:

Get yourself a driver (we used Dan from Keuka Taxi and he was delightful) and hit some of the area’s famous wineries. Dr. Konstantin Frank is a four-generation winery and listed as one of the Top 10 best tasting rooms in America. It was a personal fave. Loved the grounds at Point of Bluff, Weis is adorable, Bully Hill comes highly recommended.

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LUNCH:

The Olney Place is a hidden gem. Part sandwich shop, part bar, part teeny tiny market, you’ll be able to grab a craft beer and sammie and enjoy a view of the lake. I had “the Rachel”, hot turkey n’ swiss, coleslaw + 1,000 Island dressing on grilled marble rye. NUMMY.

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HIKE:

Watkins Glen State Park has beautiful 200-foot bluffs and 19 waterfalls—just be sure to go EARLY. The gorge is accessed through stairs and the crowds can be pretty outrageous. Then be sure to rent/befriend someone with a boat and get out on a lake. There are 11 little fingers to choose from. We went out on Keuka!