2 Best Restaurants in Rome, Albany and Central New York

At this Italian restaurant you can enjoy an intimate meal or just sip cocktails at the bar and listen to live piano music. The walls are covered with photographs of celebrities who have visited since the place opened in 1908. The menu offers pasta and seafood dishes as well as traditional preparations like manicotti and chicken cacciatore. The fried meatballs (greasy and rich as they are) are a popular appetizer. The cocktails are imaginative and generally well mixed. Try the Savoy Manhattan for a smooth, refreshing twist on an upstate favorite. The bar, separate from the dining room, has intimate seating.

The restaurant is part of the Beeches, an estate with a lovely manor house. The place serves top-quality Continental fare that's full of flavor and attractively presented. Rack of pork, rarely encountered on menus in these parts, is marinated and slow roasted so that it melts in your mouth. Salmon steaks are broiled and dressed with the restaurant's tasty dill sauce. The dining room, with a large fireplace and hand-painted ceiling panels, exudes 1920s style. The chandelier, crafted by Raulli Ironworks of Rome, is original.