Ayssa Levine | Brooklyn Eats World

Over at Rebel Cove in Middletown, Delaware in a re-fashioned railroad station hub, are some incredibly creative cheesesteaks, which according to a local patron originally from Philly I had met briefly upon my visit, are even better than the ones he’s had back home. The sound of swashbuckling and enthralling adventure soundtracks in the background from rotating pirate movies playing on the TV helped add to the atmosphere, as I listened to Captain Jack Sparrow while reading their menu with options named affectionately after pop-culture pirate movies such as Hook and PoTC. Crab cheese fries, sweet potato fries with coconut mango sauce, santa fe egg rolls, cajun coconut shrimp stew, oyster po’ boys, and dessert… don’t forget dessert! Your meal is never over unless you end with something sweet, and they have fried brownie bites with salted caramel, fried plantains with coconut mango sauce, and mango custard.

Now that I’m living alone and working two jobs, my idea of “cooking” is a packet of tuna or microwaved leftovers – usually the latter, which is why I was excited to recieve an invitation to a local home-cooked Italian meal by Not Your Mothers Pasta. Using services such as Eat With and Air BnB Experiences, Michala and Joe have established a successful venture hosting dinner parties and cooking classes featuring Italian cuisine, which are fantastic not only for locals looking for new experiences, but for anyone visiting from out of town looking to try something different or meet new people. Not only was the food delicious, from the beet-infused pasta with a cream-based sauce, to the juicy medium-rare steaks that cut like butter, but Michala and Joe were wonderful, accomodating hosts. Michala fed us and taught us about Italian cuisine, while Joe never left our wine glasses empty and brought us blankets when we got chilly.

I do love their mocha as well, especially with oat milk which offers a little extra viscocity, giving it a mouth-feel that goes well with the chocolate flavor. From their light, sweet and refreshing rose milk tea latte, to their lovely ube coconut milk tea latte, there is always something intriguing and wonderful. The ginger brown sugar tea can also be ordered hot, and without milk if you like, which I find incredibly soothing in the winter – and also very helpful whenever I’m sick or have a sore throat. They’re deliciously crisp on the outside, with a lovely toasted butter after-taste, soft and somewhat gooey on the inside, with a wonderful salty finish that really makes the flavor stand out.

Their decor is beautiful and rustic yet modern, with a flat stone wall, wood paneled borders, and industrial fixtures, as well as a large herb garden displayed on their wall within a  glass case, which are utilized in their cooking. Stone Bridge makes personal pies using farm-fresh, locally sourced ingredients for their menu items, most of which comes from their own farm in Schuylerville, NY, and the freshness of their ingredients is apparent the moment you take a bite of their pizza. I had ordered the Farmer’s Harvest specialty pie, which is topped with red and yellow bell peppers, mushrooms, herb-roasted eggplant, and beet greens. Not only was the texture perfect, from the thin crust of the pizza to the airy end-crust, but it had a lightly charred taste, with mild saltiness, and a wonderful olive oil brush.