In case you didn’t know, I’m on a mission to attend every food festival and food event I possibly can. When I had heard about the Catskills Cuisine I had to reach out and see how I can get involved.
This led me to an incredible, and much needed and relaxing weekend in the Catskills.
With great food, adventures, hotel, making new friends, and shopping/dinning, here’s how I spent a quick weekend away in the Catskills Mountains.
Friday - Travel Day
Drove to the Catskills. I’m based in Orange County, NY and the drive took me about an hour and a half. Coming from NYC this could take about 2-1/2 hours depending on traffic.
Always such a peaceful drive overlooking the mountain views and winding roads.
Checked-In to our Hotel: Callicoon Hills
I wrote all about Callicoon Hills in this blog post, but this hotel and resort is so much fun. Loved all the amenities and how central it is to everything in the Catskills area.
Go check out that blog post for a full breakdown of the hotel.
Dinner & Drinks: Catskills Provisions Distillery
Went into downtown Callicoon area to grab drinks and dinner at Catskills Provisions Distillery.
They have a FREE tasting room where you can try their spirits. Fun fact, did you know their Pollinator Spirits are artisanal crafted with honey from their bees.
For dinner ordered their Rita Mae cocktail, made with their pollinator vodka, house made citrus mix, and agave, and for dinner had their double cheeseburger.
EntertainmenT/Movie Night: Callicoon Theaters
Headed to see a 7:30pm showing of the movie, The Fall Guy. It actually was pretty good and would be a really great date night movie.
My absolute favorite part was the theater and it’s rich history.
The Callicoon Theater was built in 1948 and is the oldest continually operated cinema in Sullivan County. With 350 seats, the historic art deco movie theater recalls a bygone era of the Western Catskills, while they have upgraded digital projection equipment and dolby surround system providing you with a modern cinematic experience.
They have a mix of new releases, cinema classics, film festivals, and live music events.
Currently, Matinees are $9, Adults are $11, and Children are $8.
The artifacts from the theater over the years give it that hint of a cinema museum on your visit. It was a really cool experience.
Things to Note in “Downtown” Callicoon… Cell Service
I did want to note that I had NO cell signal in this downtown Callicoon area. While trying to head back to the hotel, I had so much trouble trying to pull up Google Maps to find my way back in the evening. This happened to me twice during the trip in this downtown area.
A dorky as it is, I’d suggest printing a Google Map of directions to get back to your hotel from downtown Callicoon.
Saturday
Morning Routine & Things: Callicoon Hills
Woke up and did a workout in their fitness center
Free hot coffee in lobby
Showered/Dressed
Brunch at their on-site restaurant, Conover Club
Headed to Event: Catskills Cuisine/Bethel WOods Center for the Arts
This was a culinary event between Sullivan Catskills and sponsored by Labelle Farms and presented by Resort World Catskills and Bethel Woods Center for the Arts.
This 2nd Annual culinary event was packed with A-list Food Network Celebrity Chefs. Including Anne Burrell, Melba Wilson, Scott Conant, Michael Symon, Andrew Zimmern, Marcus Samuelsson, and Geoffrey Zakarian.
It included everything from cooking demos, vendors and shopping, food samplings, book signings, alpacas, and live music.
Dinner Back at Hotel/Conover Club
Was pretty tired after a long day at the festival so headed back to the hotel’s bar and restaurant, the Conover Club. Ordered a drink and for dinner their Pesto Chicken with house made fettuccine and nut-free pesto. Highly recommend, that meal was amazing and their drinks are strong.
Then capped the night off with the hotel’s nightly s’mores offerings. It was such a night little dessert treat to end the night.
SUNDAY
Morning Routine & Things: Callicoon Hills
Woke up and did a workout in their fitness center
Free hot coffee in lobby
Hotel tour of the property
Showered/Dressed
Headed back to Bethel Woods and Day 2 of the Catskills Cuisine
Headed to Event: Catskills Cuisine - Day 2 - Mother’s Day Brunch
As part of Catskills Cuisine Weekend was a Mother’s Day Brunch at Bethel Woods, hosted by Food Network’s Anne Burrell and Melba Wilson.
Tickets had included a brunch beverage of either a Mimosa, Bellini, or Bloody Mary and brunch buffet filled with so many choices from scones, donuts, pastries, to lobster mac and cheese, brussel sprouts, eggs benedict, chicken and waffles, a carving station, deviled eggs, dessert, and so much more.
What was great was that Melba and Anne really walked around greeted and talked to everyone in the room, it felt so personal which I loved.
I came solo, as my own Mother’s Day treat, and was great to chat and meet other creators in the area as well over a great meal.
Woodstock Museum// Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
Bethel Woods is the home to the famous 3-day Woodstock 1969 Music Festival. My aunt attended Woodstock and had to quickly see the museum and take some photos for her.
The museum is full of artifacts from planning documents, concert photos, lineup/flyers, historical timelines, to many music clips from the festival. It even has a theater where every 20 minutes you can see and hear footage of the festival as if you were actually there. And of course, they have a gift shop at the end.
Exploring Around Towns & Heading Back Home
Before heading back home I had to stop at a few nearby shops. Here’s a few I visited.
Stop 1: The Callicoon Pantry - Callicoon, NY - A low-waste grocery and refillery. They offer minimal packaging and affordable pricing.
Stop 2: Sullivan Sundries - Jeffersonville, NY - A specialty grocery store and indoor market hall with vendors including Bloom Coffee, R52 Homes (a vintage/modern home variety store.), Slug Wines, a Cheesemonger, International snacks, and so much more.
Stop 3: La Salumina - Hurelyville, NY - A classic Italian salumeria, meaning they produce all their salumi (charcuterie) in their onsite USDA facility.
They have a selection of antipasti, locally sourced and imported cheeses, and offer Italian speciality food products.
On the weekends they make panini and sourdough (Fri & Sat). And on Sundays have fresh focaccia. I got some and it was sooo good. They support small farms working sustainability and striving to farm in a regenerative manner. It’s a really cool shop, taste of Tuscany in the Sullivan Catskills, and the owners are so nice.
Overall, the past three days were so much fun. Callicoon Hills hotel was so relaxing and yet so fun and accommodating, I even got the chance to see the Northern Lights one night. Catskills Cuisine was perfect for this foodie. Exploring new food, dining, and shopping in the area always feeds my adventurous explorer side.
If you’re heading to the Catskills let me know some of the stops and places you check out. I’d love to know for my next visit!