Courtesy Saluti
By Jill Nagy
Saluti, a new Italian restaurant at 25 Canada St. in Lake George, got off to a rocky start. They opened in February but had to close down in March because of the COVID pandemic. Then they re-opened after Memorial Day.
According to co-owner Jimmy Hartwyk, the biggest problem now is staffing because of the federal government cut-off of the usual stream of temporary workers from overseas.
But, “Things are going really well for us,” Hartwyk said, “I am pleasantly surprised.”
“It is not the year we thought we would have,” he added.
Requirements for social distancing limit capacity and, in general, “throws a wrench into our business plan.” For example, they are not yet serving lunch. On the plus side, “Our landlord has been very gracious” and, so far, “we are very lucky,” he said.
Saluti (the “i” is not pronounced and the name means “cheers” in Italian) serves dinner with indoor and outdoor seating and a full bar. All the pasta is cooked to order and they bake their own bread.
Some house specialties, according to Hartwyk, are a braised short-rib ragout with papardeli, a fresh mozzarella pan fry, and eggplant rigatoni. The menu is mainly Italian. Hartwyk, who is co-owner and co-chef, is Italian. He claims kinship with Michael LoPorto, the well-known chef and owner of the Troy restaurant bearing his name. Hartwyk also worked for LoPorto when he operated Sign of the Tree at the Empire State Plaza.
Hartwyk’s partner, Yerbol Kenzhebekov, is from Kazakstan. He first came to work for Hartwyk 10 years ago, at a different restaurant, as a J-1 student. (The J-1 visa allowed foreign college students to work temporarily at seasonal jobs in the U.S., many of them at restaurants).
He returned to Kazakstan and, some years later, won the green card lottery and returned to the U.S. with his wife and daughter, as permanent residents. The two are equal partners, according to Hartwyk, and share all the duties involved in running Saluti. The men are mostly in the kitchen. Their wives rule the dining room.
The new restaurant next door to Biscotti Brothers Cafe, a breakfast and lunch restaurant owned by Hartwyk since 2017. Before that he operated a pizzeria in Manchester, N.H.
Saluti will be open year-round. Their hours are 3-10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 3-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
People can order online or make a reservation at salutilakegeorge.com. The telephone number is 518 685-3030.