Owner of Yankee Tavern, Joe Bastone.
With Peachy cheering to NYCFC (we say they will make the playoffs!):
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One of the saddest aspects of living in New York is that Peachy Deegan cannot go to Martin's Tavern every day. We love the historic aspects of it and Billy's phenomenal dedication to keeping his family business alive and thriving; and obviously, the cuisine rocks (did you see Harry Truman's prime rib). If this is your first time reading us, you should know that they boast a history back to 1933 and ever since, it has been run and owned by a Billy Martin (four of them, sequentially. The first came from Galway). We tell everyone that we believe exists in Washington how lucky they are that Georgetown is there (though in a perfect world, we'd move our favorite section of Washington right next to Central Park) and how lucky they are to go to Martin's Tavern as often as they like.
One of the happiest aspects of living in New York is the NYCFC and sadly for DC United, NYCFC made sure their most recent trip to New York was memorable (so if you are sad from Washington about your team, go see Billy to make you happy.)
Now clear your thoughts.
Being on time is paramount to success we believe, and we hate anything late, so we are almost never late, and the one time we can think of when Peachy was late was when she went somewhere last winter and the subway she was on broke down (you see we do not review the MTA.)
We never, ever want to be late for a soccer game (so far, so good), so sometimes we are extremely early. One day when we were, we explored the immediate area, and we met the absolutely terrific Joe Bastone, above in video format! He did not know us and we did not say too much about how we also write on food. Joe was already taking tremendous pride in his business, personally ushering people into his dining room (and may we say Joe puts the classy in the South Bronx with his dining room in the back) pre-game and Peachy was there as a soccer writer. Yankee Tavern is packed and popular.
Joe could not have been nicer, so at a later date we scheduled a post-game review. Though Yankee Tavern is not in Manhattan, we think of Yankee Stadium and its immediate area as its own kind of principality because the soccer team has impressed us so much (have you bought your season tickets yet?).
To us, Yankee Stadium is for soccer. And watching soccer makes us hungry! Joe and his place are one of the nicest surprises we've had this year, and you should know it is a destination in this spot. A lot of big names and big brands you have heard of go there, and if you think we know a lot of people, you should look at the pictures on Joe's walls. All pictures on the walls have been donated to the Tavern (because people love it there!). Joe is not a name-dropper but you should know that one person that visited was George Steinbrenner.
You need to know that their kitchen is still open after a game until midnight or 1am depending on the day.
First we will discuss the food. It's casual cuisine done so well, and we truly did love everything we tried. How many times have you heard us say that about a place we went to for the first time? There's a reason this place has been here since 1927. We can't wait for their centennial party!
If you've read us before, you know Peachy Deegan was a connoisseur of the chicken parm grinder from Lower Dining Hall at Boston College. She wasn't the only one that loved it, and the food at school was great. It's a long way to Chestnut Hill though, and we found Joe's just as amazing on our first try. The chicken was perfectly prepared and joined by fantastic sauce and mozzarella. Did we mention Joe is Italian?
Joe asked us if we liked pizza...of course!
They make homemade pizza fresh and we'd highly recommend the Fresh Mozzarella with Plum tomato sauce.
Yes you need to try this pizza. We enjoyed every bite of it, even leftover for breakfast. It is so good that you would have to be a nicer person than Peachy to share it.
Their dough is homemade and a celebration of carbohydrates, which are a very good friend of ours! The cheese, however, was the best component. Just look at it:
Yes, of course they make their own sauce and you will revel in it:
As you can see, this is not bar food and if it were, we would not be writing on it! Fresh vegetables arrive on a regular basis, and we enjoyed the Spinach Salad. They were happy to put the dressing on the side (ranch and we liked it!), and the winning team of vegetables included in the starting line up: spinach of course, tomato, mushrooms and it also contained perfectly boiled eggs and delicious bacon.
Then did we like corned beef Joe wanted to know? Louder than saying how much you should be personally supporting the soccer team is our cry for how Irish American we are (have you heard of the Deegan expressway? Did you know that Boston College was founded in 1863 by Irish immigrants?) and has been encouraged since birth. We don't remember not liking corned beef, and guess who often had it at Shelly's Deli in the Hartford Civic Center prior to Whalers games...(which we were never late for either.)
Clearly, you should have no concerns about going hungry near the principality Yankee Stadium. The corned beef has been a staple of Yankee Tavern since 1964 and it comes from Desola Provisions of Hunts Point. It is among the freshest we've had and it is perfect on rye with mustard and a pickle. You don't have to wait for St. Patrick's Day to eat it either, and it's been our experience that Jewish people like it a lot too!
As with many other of our experiences, it is the Italians that are the ones that execute it best. (disclaimer: Peachy is not Italian.)
Joe Bastone is an esteemed leader of his community, a terrific restaurateur and even more important, a nice person. He is definitely the kind of person that should have a restaurant because he's got a cheerful, friendly personality.
And for the history of Yankee Tavern?
The history at Yankee Tavern is just as outstanding as the food.
Peachy's BC degree is in American History and maybe she's the first to make it professional American food history in life. Another family started Yankee Tavern in the 1920's, and in 1964, Joe's dad, also Joseph Bastone bought the business with three partners. From the 1920's to 1964, Yankee Tavern had several owners. Both of Joe's parents are from Calabria, Italy and Joe himself was born only ten blocks away from Yankee Tavern. Here's Joe on the left, with his dad, on the right:
In 1966, the Joe we worked with on this visit started as a bus boy here at age 12, and the rest really is history! Joe's a CPA by trade (we love smart people)...
The decor is original Art Deco with a Terrazzo floor. Joe has expanded the spot multiple times over the years and you never know when he'll have a new business idea up his sleeve...
Obviously, Peachy is drinking a Guinness.
Yankee Tavern is for all sports!
Visit 72 East 161st street, literally across the street towards the Upper East side from Yankee Stadium! They are an independent business, not affiliated with the Yankees...