The Lake Luzerne Regional Chamber Of Commerce and the town of Lake Luzerne announced the inaugural Food Trucks and Music Extravaganza series this summer.

The event will take place from 5-8 p.m. on six consecutive Wednesdays beginning July 12 and ending on Aug. 16 at the Pavilion Park located at 248 Lake Avenue in Lake Luzerne.

The events will bring together a diverse selection of food options from various food trucks offering items including tacos, fish and chicken sandwiches, gourmet mac and cheese, lemonade, doughnuts and more.

Organizers said the live music will feature local bands and regional artists, adding to the ambiance and creating a festive atmosphere.

In addition to offering food and music, the extravaganza will hold a 50-50 raffle to raise money for the Lake Luzerne food bank and local scholarships. All proceeds from the raffle will go directly to support these community organizations.

“We are thrilled to launch the inaugural lake luzerne food trucks and music extravaganza,” said Pam Petteys of the Lake Luzerne Regional Chamber Of Commerce.”

By Christine Graf

A&W restaurant, a Lake George staple since 1959, will open for the season under new ownership.  

Hao Yang, a restaurateur from Albany, purchased the franchise from Wayne Pelak for $605,000 in May. Just one year earlier, Pelak purchased the restaurant from Dave Madden who owned it for 44 years. 

America’s first franchised restaurant chain, the first A&W was established in Sacramento in 1923. Today, there are more than 900 A&W restaurants operating throughout the world. Of the 550 that are located in the U.S., just seven are in New York state. New franchises continue to open throughout the U.S., Canada, and Southeast Asia.

A&W’s is known for its root beer, made fresh at each restaurant and served in frosty mugs. They also serve a variety of fast food items including their 1963 invention, the bacon cheeseburger.

“The A&W has been operating very successfully in Lake George for about 50 years. It’s an iconic restaurant. The location is outstanding, and they have a very loyal clientele,” said Mitch Muroff, owner of real estate brokerage firm Muroff Hospitality.

According to Muroff, Pelak was forced to sell due to health concerns.  

By Paul Post

One of America’s favorite summer pastimes has nothing to do with baseball or backyard barbecues. Coast to coast, an estimated 6.5 to 9 million garage sales are held throughout the U.S. each year.

 For some, it’s a fun way to earn an extra couple hundred dollars, but can provide an economic impact worth millions for communities that host town-wide events.

“It’s bringing people in to let them know what else we have to offer, like the Betar Byway (Hudson River walking trail) or the town Rec Park,” said Jean Gutheil, South Glens Falls-Town of Moreau garage sale coordinator. “Maybe they stopped in Stewart’s, Cumberland Farms, Common Roots brewery, The Pepper Mill Restaurant or Sorrentino’s market for a garage sale map. They might have bought a coffee, ice cream cone or stayed for lunch. It lets people know we’re back in business.”

 This year’s sale, which dates back several years, was the first since the pandemic. More than 75 homes and organizations took part.

 Similar town-wide events are held throughout the region, in addition to countless others hosted each weekend by individuals and neighborhood groups.

 In Saratoga County, Charlton held a garage sale weekend in May, Ballston Spa’s was held June 10-11, while Galway and Greenfield hold theirs in August and September, respectively.

Common Roots Brewing Co. in South Glens Falls is under contract to acquire the assets of CH Evans Brewery at the Albany Pump Station. 

Common Roots will purchase the building and take over the full operations at the iconic downtown Albany location this November, the company said in a statement.

In announcing the acquisition, Christian and Bert Weber, owners of Common Roots, said, “We are both excited and humbled to be continuing the CH Evans legacy while bringing this historic building into the Common Roots family”. 

 CH Evans owner Neil Evans made the decision to sell the operations and was looking for a buyer who would continue the tradition and help elevate the business to the next level. A mutual acquaintance brought the brewery owners together and an agreement was reached in late March.

 “We are thrilled to be able to continue the historic operations at the Albany Pump Station while expanding the Common Roots brand there,” the Webers said.

Common Roots has agreed to continue to brew some CH Evans original recipes and will supplement this with Common Roots beers and a newly revised menu after the anticipated sale is finalized in November 2023. This will be Common Roots Brewing’s first expansion outside of its original South Glens Falls locations and satisfies the company’s established goal to open a Capital Region location.

by Paul Post

 Snow is still melting off the slopes and West Mountain already has a full slate of summer activities planned including a brand-new Sunday farmer’s market (9 a.m. to noon) from June 4 to Labor Day Weekend.

 “There’s really not a lot on this side of town in terms of grocery shopping. I know how successful the Glens Falls Farmer’s Market is and thought was a good opportunity to have one in Queensbury and another way of bringing people to the mountain,” said Sara Montgomery, who co-owns the resort with her husband, Spencer.

 Vendors will offer farm, food, jewelry, art and floral goods and products.

 Bread maker Rachael Lujbli currently belongs to the Lake George Farmer’s Market, but not Glens Falls—which is held Saturdays on South Street—so the West Mountain event is opening doors for her to a whole new customer base.

Rachael’s Breads most popular items are sourdough, cinnamon buns and cookies. 

“People are going to find healthier and more local products when they go to a farmer’s market,” she said. “Everything I have is organic so I feel like it’s the perfect market for me.”

For the second time in recent years, Adirondack garnet mined from Barton Mines’ quarry in Johnsburg and processed into an abrasive blasting product at the company’s plant in Indian Lake is playing a key role in the refurbishment of a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier.

Barton Mines is a family-owned company, headquartered in Glens Falls, that has been mining garnet in the Adirondack region since 1878. 

Barton Adirondack 30/60 CG garnet blast abrasive is being used to clean and prepare the entire steel exterior of the USS John C. Stennis for the application of a new protective coating. The work is being performed by Barton’s customer Mid-Atlantic Coatings, Inc. (MAC) at Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia where the Stennis is in the midst of a four-year refurbishment.

The same Barton product was used by MAC on the USS George Washington during the surface preparation phase of that ship’s refurbishment, which began in 2017.

“Barton products are American-made by a family-owned company and we’re immensely proud and humbled to serve the brave men and women who serve our nation every day,” said Barton CEO Randy Rapple. “Whenever we see or hear about the USS Stennis or George Washington, Barton employees, many of whom are veterans themselves, will know they played a part in keeping the ships at sea.”

The Deli and Meat Store of the North, the venerable market on Warrensburg’s Main Street, received a facelift recently but, according to its present owner, it has “the same DNA” as when it was founded more than a century ago.

“We haven’t changed, but we updated,” said Jennifer Nadler, the third generation of her family to own and operate the store.

Originally, two Syrian immigrant families, Jacobs and Toney, opened the Adirondack Fruit Market at its present location. The name was changed 10 years ago.

Each of the original families had an apartment above the store. Nadler is the granddaughter of James Toney, one of the founders. She took over the business from her father 12 years ago. He still comes into the deli a couple of hours a week to check on things.

He bought the shares of the Jacobs family and was the sole owner when he retired. Sandwiches and meats are the biggest sellers, according to Nadler, but “we sell everything.”

By Christine Graf

A mecca for game enthusiasts, Go Play With Your Food is now open at 126 Glen St. in Glens Falls. The family board game tavern opened its doors at the end of April.

Co-owner Mark Shaw, president of Queensbury-based IT consulting firm Stored Technology Solutions, and his wife, Kristen, came up with the idea for the business while living in North Carolina where they have a second residence. All it took was one visit to a local board game tavern for the entire Shaw family to be hooked.

“We went and played every other weekend, and our kids absolutely loved it,” said Shaw. “I have two boys, 9 and 10, and a daughter who is turning 13. I saw how much fun they had, and I wanted to share that fun with everyone else.”

Go Play With Your Food’s ownership group also includes Charles Ives, Kevin Malinoski, Angela Sweet and Jason Wescoat.

“A lot of them are coworkers at StoredTech,” said Shaw. “We used to do game days on weekends, and I said, ‘If we open a board game tavern, do you guys want to be part of it?’ They all said they did.”

It was out of a desire to be part of the revitalization of downtown Glens Falls that they chose 126 Glens St. as their location. The former TV-8 building was purchased by Elizabeth Miller in 2022.

 “When Elizabeth Miller bought the building, she spent a significant amount of money on renovating the building,” said Shaw. “We’ve probably invested a quarter of a million dollars ourselves.”

Although the family-friendly tavern does not serve hard liquor, patrons can choose from a large selection of craft, domestic, and draft beers. The drink menu also features mead, wine, hard seltzer, and hard cider. Food offerings include appetizers, sandwiches, salads, flatbread pizzas, and desserts. All menu items are priced at $12 or under.