The Farmhouse in Bedford, N.Y.

Written by Fran Sikorski
Thursday, 29 January 2009 11:25

by FRAN SIKORSKI

The Bedford property where Nino’s Italian restaurant operated for 50 years has been transformed into a luxury complex with two restaurants, a yoga loft, and a soon-to-open luxury spa/inn, a project conceived by Richard Gere, his wife Carey Lowell, and business partner Russell Hernandez. The original 1750 building was an inn and tavern and post office during the Revolutionary War.

According to Mr. Gere, who lives in Bedford, the partners planned the acreage “to be at one with nature, reminiscent of simpler times when people would gather at a central town hall to discuss happenings of the day, a place where the minds of people who could change the world would meet.”

Plans became a reality in 2008 with the arrival of executive chef Brian Lewis to take charge of the two restaurants, a casual café and bakery called The Barn and a fine dining establishment, The Farmhouse.
A Westchester native, Chef Lewis trained at the Culinary Institute of America, then spent eight months abroad working with well-known chefs Jean Louis Palladin, Marco Pierre White, Andre Solter and Andy D’Amicio. He worked as executive chef at Bix in San Francisco, and chef de cuisine at Village Pub before returning to New York, where he was chef de cuisine at Oceana, sous chef at the Sign of the Dove and also at Lutèce. He was executive chef to open the Greene House in Scottsdale, Ariz., and was executive chef at Vu at the Hyatt Regency in Scottsdale.

He is now  displaying his vast culinary talents at The Farmhouse, and is looking forward to having his own vegetable and herb garden on the property in the spring.

Chef Lewis has created a small menu that has everything one would hope for, including crudo di pesce, Japanese Hamachi, pink snapper carpaccio and chilled Beau Soleil oysters ponzu among the first course selections. Also offered are Roots, Shoots, Fruits and Leaves with goat’s cheese, medjool dates and ice wine vinaigrette; Cabbage Hill lettuces with dill-banyuls vinaigrette and marcona almonds; and risotto Nero, la bomba, sepia and Calabrian chilis. A fingerling potato soup with osetra caviar, chantilly and sorrel was outstanding.

Handmade pastas include soft farm egg ravioli made with sheep’s milk, ricotta, spinach and rosemary crumbs with a sunny-side up egg inside the pasta square, a delicious surprise. Other temptations: hand-cut pappardelle with wild mushrooms and pecorino romano; butternut squash tortelloni; and spaghetti alla chitarra.

Our main courses were crisp Atlantic skate with honey-glazed rutabaga, cauliflower and guanciale; and tenderloin and short rib of Wagyu beef with black trumpet mushrooms and potato ribiola fondutta. Other choices were Madeira-glazed black cod, whole branzino baked in rosemary salt, braised Summerfield Farm veal, and crisp John Boy’s chicken.

Chef Lewis and his team offer a daily and spontaneous tasting menu, inspired by the rhythms of the season and the family farmers who supply the restaurant.

We selected a Meyer lemon meringue tart with wild huckleberry gelato, and a warm bittersweet chocolate tart with passion fruit caramel and vanilla gelato. Excellent choices to end a grand dining experience.

Mr. Gere and Ms. Lowell were very involved in all aspects of construction and decorating the 60-seat country chic Farmhouse dining room. There’s a comfortable bar with sofas, club chairs and lounge seating, and fireplaces in each room, and a private dining room for 12.

The team at the Farmhouse does a fine job managing the delicate balance of offering fine dining and casual elegance.

Breakfast at The Barn every day from 8:30 to 10:30; lunch 11:30 to 2:30 Monday to Saturday; supper Sunday to Tuesday from 5:30 to 8:30. Bakery open 6:30 to 4 Monday to Friday. Dinner at The Farmhouse Wednesday to Saturday from 5:30 to 10; a la carte Saturday and Sunday brunch, 9 to 3. Yoga classes every day but Sunday.

Reservations recommended; handicap accessible; major credit cards; child-friendly; full bar, international wine list, emphasis on small producers; personal wines welcome, corkage fee applies; contemporary American fine dining with French influence; vegetarian selection; no take-out; business casual dress, jackets not required; seasonal outdoor dining; private parties; cooking classes; complimentary valet parking evenings.

Soup: $16

Appetizers: $9 to $16

Salad: $10 to $16

Handmade pastas: $15 to $17

Main courses: $30 to $45

Sides: $10

Wine, glass: $6 to $17

Wine, bottle: from $40 to $1500

Five-course tasting menu: $85 per person, with wine pairing, $140

Dessert: $9