The Top 10 Saratoga Living After Hours Stories of 2024
This year, Saratogians wanted to know—well—everything.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year: The time when I get to look back at all the SLAH stories published in the last year and figure out which ones readers liked the best. It’s not surprising that these 10 (well, actually, 11) stories were the most read: 2024 was a year of uncertainty in the Spa City, and Saratogians turned to us for the inside scoop on the Belmont, the paid-parking experiment, the once-in-a-lifetime eclipse, and a lot of other stuff, too.
Before I get to the list, I’d like to thank you for reading this newsletter. I literally work after hours to bring you the stories we publish here, and it’s so rewarding when I see them being read and shared by the people who make this city worth writing about. If you feel you’ve gotten something out of Saratoga Living After Hours this year, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription for full access to all past and future stories. Your contribution will help ensure SLAH, your source for info on Saratoga’s hottest happenings, sticks around for years to come.
10: Humans of Travers Day / Everything We Know About Downtown Saratoga’s Paid Parking Proposal
This year, 10th place was a dead heat between stories on a 150-plus-year-old Saratoga tradition (the Travers Stakes) and a first-of-its-kind initiative (paid parking). Apparently, you wanted to know who was at Saratoga Race Course’s marquee event exactly as much as you wanted to know if you were going to have to pay $2 to park your car downtown.
9. The Inside Scoop on 6 New Saratoga Restaurants
Since publishing this article last month, I’ve gotten an updated scoop on two of the restaurants featured: Refresh Kitchen owner Matt Richardson tells me he hopes to have his fast-casual joint open in the Saratoga Springs Senior Center by the new year, and Familiar Creature, the wine bar from the owners of Hamlet & Ghost, is eyeing a January 12 opening.
8. Where to Play Indoor Pickleball in and Around Saratoga
If you’re anything like me, this article prompted you to buy your own paddle, hop on the pickleball bandwagon and never look back. The timing was actually perfect; shortly after the story was published, Legacy Pickleball opened for business right down Route 50 in Ballston Spa.
7. 23 Things You Didn’t Know About Saratoga Springs
This listicle proves that no matter how long you’ve lived in Saratoga or how well you think you know the city, you don’t know everything. After publishing it, I had two longtime Saratogians reach out to say they they learned something new about the place they call home. I already have a list going to publish a follow-up story in 2025.
6. 37 Dishes & Drinks You Have to Try in Saratoga
This article was truly a community effort. Dozens of Saratogians sent in their favorite Saratoga dishes, and we compiled it into a handy-dandy article that should serve as your road map for Spa City dining in 2025. One new dish I’d like to add? Hamlet & Ghost’s mushroom tempura appetizer.
5. Talk of the Town: Belmont Edition
The Belmont Stakes being run at Saratoga didn’t quite cause the economic windfall the City of Saratoga was expecting, but it sure as heck caused a jump in traffic on Saratoga Living After Hours. Nearly 5,000 people read this story about the first couple of days of the Belmont Racing Festival at Saratoga, the celebrities alleged to be in town, and the special events going on in conjunction with the historic occasion.
4. Everything to Know About the Total Solar Eclipse Coming to Upstate New York Next Month
For a brief moment this past spring, I became an astronomy reporter, and apparently, the people of Saratoga appreciated it. This article covered everything from eclipse basics and safety to the economic impact the celestial event was expected to have on the region. My article on what actually happened on eclipse day in Saratoga was notably less popular.
3. Who Sits Where at Saratoga Race Course
This summer, I made it my mission to visit every corner of Saratoga Race Course in an effort to determine who sits where. In my travels, I met the owner of Surfside, a baby named after a mint julep, and the creator of the Clubhouse tradition the Seventh Race Shake.
2. What’s the Deal With Quarters?
For years, I drove by this strip mall bar, wondering what went on inside. Apparently, I wasn’t alone. Saratogians were dying to know what the deal with Quarters is, so I went three times in two days to find out.
1. Everything We Know About the Belmont so Far
It’s really no surprise that a Belmont preview was our most-read story of 2024, given how much buzz surrounded the lead-up to the last leg of the Triple Crown. In this story, we covered everything from ticket sales and lodging to what Saratoga businesses were doing to get ready for the big weekend of racing. Next stop: Belatoga 2025!
—Natalie
Video of the Week
Lucy’s Bar was where Anna and Matt met, and it’s where they decided they would spend the rest of their lives together. Thanks to a little help from the Lucy’s staff, Matt popped the question by way of a special message printed on the bar’s cocktail menu.
Brew Year’s Eve
This week, Stewart’s President Gary Dake announced the impending return of Mountain Brew, Stewart’s Shops’ own brand of canned beer, this coming February. Two Buttons Deep’s Instagram post about the comeback elicited some nostalgic comments about drinking Mountain Brew back in the day, as well as my personal favorite: “Mt Brew is so potent they have to ferment it from now to February.”
Get Out of Town
This year, Saratoga is going to have to learn to share one of our favorite events with our neighbor to the south. Hattie’s Mardi Gras, the annual fundraiser hosted by the Spa City’s iconic fried chicken joint, is making the moves from Saratoga to Albany’s New York State Museum and from January to March. Other than those not-so-minor details, the 2025 event will be the same old Mardi Gras Saratogians have come to love, featuring catering by Hattie’s (which, appropriately, has a location in Albany) and live music. Proceeds will benefit The Faces of Medicine Program for Underserved Youth at Albany Medical College and Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Capital Region.
ICYMI
Maria Bucciferro on the Legacy of the Late John Hendrickson