Troy Night Out – for breakfast

Wasn’t last evening lovely? The breeze, the sunset, the deliciousness of air on bare skin…lovely, I say! It was the perfect early summer night to meet a friend in Troy, grab a bite to eat, and take a walk and catch up. Parking was surprisingly easy, (I think I finally understand Troy!) within a few cars of Lucas Confectionery on 2nd Street, and after one quick walk around the block, I spotted my friend and we grabbed a table in the exterior rear patio area at Lucas.

Prior to seating ourselves as requested on signage, we stopped at the bar to peruse the menu of items originating from both Donna’s and Little Peck’s* ultimately deciding on a caprese salad and the Broccoli Bob pizza, along with a curried chicken salad wrap and couple of glasses of an Austrian rosé. Our server helped get us to the table with plates, roll ups and a table number to assist the food runner in delivering our meals.

The rosé was a delight – a little mineraly with a beautiful floral quality. There were a couple of other tables seated, all well distanced, and the vibe was quiet and private. I had a brief pang, thinking of Jazz Mondays and missing them sharply, but Vic consolingly promised they’d be back. Our food was delivered – first the pizza, placed on a rack to preserve precious space on the table, followed quickly by the caprese in a bowl and the chicken salad wrap, accompanied by a mound of deep green, lightly dressed arugula.

I was all about that pizza. The crust had gorgeous bubbles, some with a slight char, and the oily sheen from the sausage (and perhaps a splash of olive oil) was wonderfully appropriate. I ate my first piece with a fork and knife, unable to wait for the pie to cool enough to be hands on ready, and was really impressed with the flavor and quality of ingredients that went into my 6-cut pizza.

Prior to tasting my pizza, I had almost asked the server for crushed red pepper, something I often add to pizza. The opportunity didn’t present and the request would have been unnecessary – the pizza had my perfect level of spiciness.  I wouldn’t have changed a thing.

The caprese salad was a nicely done version of this seasonal favorite. The tomatoes were a combination of fresh and roasted and they were joined by thin slices of red onion, hand torn fresh (house made?) mozzarella, and fresh basil. Again, the salad was perfectly seasoned for my palate and really delicious in its rustic simplicity. I didn’t taste the wrap, but it looked great and my friend happily brought half of it home to enjoy as another meal.

As for my leftovers, I knew last night what Saturday’s breakfast was going to be – a slice of my pizza from last night topped with an olive oil fried egg. Come on, tell me you wouldn’t do the same! It was just as tasty as I imagined, something that isn’t always true, friends, and I just might eat them very same meal tomorrow again.

As for TNY, it seemed pretty mellow. We missed a lot of the shops being open, but there were some great window displays, like Market Block Books, and graffiti to take in as we walked. The front outdoors seating at nearly every place we passed looked close to (modified) capacity with most people seemingly attempting to social distance.