Hollywood and Horsepower Show, August 6, 2026

Hollywood And Horsepower Show with Mark Otto

Places to go in Saratoga NY, with guest Anthony 'Big A' Stabile from Howard Beach NY 🇮🇹, for those going to there for Horse Racing in August and some old NY 🇮🇹 Stories

Saratoga Stories: Racing Traditions, Road-Trip Memories, and the Local Flavor That Keeps Fans Coming Back

Summary

Saratoga as a Summer Pilgrimage

The episode centers on Saratoga Springs as much more than a seasonal racetrack. The host and Anthony “Big A” Stabile describe it as a meeting place where horse-racing fans return year after year with parents, children, siblings, and longtime friends. They discuss the city’s proximity to New York City, Boston, western New York, and Canada, along with lodging alternatives in Clifton Park, Malta, Glens Falls, Lake George, and Albany. Saratoga’s racing history, mineral springs, nearby Revolutionary War sites, museums, lakes, farms, and small towns all contribute to its appeal. The speakers repeatedly return to the idea that Saratoga feels like a summer camp for adults and a pilgrimage built around tradition.

A Winning Ticket and a Childhood Memory

Big A recalls his first lasting Saratoga memory from 1989, when he found a discarded winning ticket on top of a trash can after eating fried chicken with his father. The bettor who threw it away apparently did not understand that the 1 and 1A were coupled, and the ticket produced a $520 voucher. What began as a planned three-day visit turned into an 11-day stay after his father won approximately $17,000 over Friday and Saturday. The story captures the older Saratoga atmosphere of a four-week meet, simple food stands, and a less commercialized backyard. For Big A, the ticket, the fried chicken, and the nearly empty town after the meet became permanent symbols of Saratoga.

Food, Diners, and Local Institutions

Much of the conversation becomes an affectionate dining guide built from personal experience rather than formal reviews. The speakers discuss Marino’s oversized sandwiches, Compton’s deep-fried bacon and late-night atmosphere, Country Corner Cafe’s homemade jams, Mamma Mia’s braciole, Caputo’s Italian dishes and pizza, The Olde Bryan Inn, The Heritage, Ferrari’s, and several other local institutions. They also compare racetrack favorites such as macaroni and cheese topped with brisket and bacon, Jewish deli hot dogs, and lobster or seafood rolls. Big A argues that dependable mom-and-pop restaurants can provide better food and value than national chains, especially as fast-food prices rise. The looming closure of Compton’s gives the restaurant discussion an emotional weight, because the place represents decades of friendships and memories.

Road Trips, Family, and Vanishing Americana

The host describes turning work trips into adventures with his children, Keith and Grace, by traveling through Michigan, Ohio, Niagara Falls, Finger Lakes, Connecticut, coastal towns, New York City, and Saratoga. He remembers letting the children choose towns on a map and building yearly traditions around unplanned stops, local restaurants, and wandering through unfamiliar places. Big A shares a similar love of roadside diners, jukeboxes, old-fashioned Coca-Cola, supper clubs, and hidden restaurants found while driving. Their conversation expands to The Milleridge Inn, Christmas carolers, pot roast, and New England establishments that seem to transport visitors to another era. Both men lament the disappearance of greasy spoons and small family businesses, while celebrating the peace of mind and emotional connection those places still provide.