Creekside – August 2017 (dt)
6.58 – 6.9, 6.8, 6.75, 6.7, 6.5, 6.5, 6.5, 6

Is it possible our last visit to Creekside was June 2008? Almost a decade later, it is our late-summer, waterside revisit. (Is it Creek Side, or Creekside? I have evidence for both.)

We could have eaten outside but the temperatures were marginally t-shirt risky – safety attained by sitting inside but wondering about summer evening air just a few feet away, or potential enjoyment of outdoor tables with a likelihood of goose bumps to be endured. I think we made the right choice.

We chose inside and wistfully gazed across the creek through windows unless we were distracted by good company, which happened often!

The menu is classic Catskill-American, tourist-pleasing combination of seafood, beef, chicken, pasta, with a nod to seafood. Throw in burgers, sandwiches, and an array of appetizers, along with a cozy, shaded west bank view of the Catskill Creek just before it empties into the Hudson, and one can understand the popularity and appeal of Creekside.

Entrée choices: crab cakes (Deb K); Fiery Pasta with shrimp and scallops (Chay); broiled seafood platter of shrimp, fish and scallops (Deb T, Mark); swordfish special (Don); stuffed chicken Marsala (Joyce); and sirloin steak (Kriss & Ken). Almost all were deemed average to good, with a couple votes for very good, and a couple for very average. Our narrower-than-usual range of scores showed this middle-ish trend.

A basket of rolls to start, and included salads for most were satisfactory enough, with mixed vegetables accompanying some of the entrées.

The drink order featured not a drop of wine, instead running to draft, soda, and a Tanqueray and Tonic (Kriss felt summer-y!) And the long pause in clearing the table persuaded us to decline dessert, that and the sated feeling.

Service by Dana was efficient and attentive, even if a tad brusque. All the necessities were taken care in good order.

Ambiance at Creekside is an interesting mix. Outdoors is the spot to be, if possible, to watch the other side of the creek and ships gliding by on their way to the marina or open water. Inside opens to the bar area and then a quick jog left to the main dining area. A vaulted ceiling, lots of whitewashed and pastel colors on stone or mortar provides a spare cavernous look, with no dividers. Such a setup invites echoing sound, and Creekside is a tad on the noisy side. A couple of outside hangers-on made for interesting distractions, a little less so when an opened window draft cigarette smoke inside.

The price per couple was about $75, if my memory is close to right, aided by a similar recollection from a fellow participant. Neither my notes nor my memory contained that number.

Conversations included: the Notars busy helping Chris move into new house, oohing and ahhing over photos of grandchildren, fading summer, boats heading to the Hudson, to eat inside or outside, the full parking lot, sheep on Weed Rd, horses on Weed Rd, lackluster golf games, NYS Fair, the Teator trip to the Finger Lakes, Deb T’s new hairstyle (and less hair too), the Teator cruise to the Baltics, scheduling the Bears, the Adamses possibly selling the house, no pork chops again, cigarette smoke wafting in an open window, a few familiar faces, not missing school days, the one remaining wage earner, tomatoes not ripening soon enough, peaches almost ready, and more.