By the time you read this, we as a society will have recently celebrated two milestones of freedom:

 Independence Day, which celebrates the birth of the United States on July 4, 1776—247 years ago

 And Juneteenth—June 19, 1865—which commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S.

 It’s true that we’re living in a nation that seems divided right now. It seems to me that those with extreme viewpoints have hijacked our conversations.

 But it’s always refreshing to get another point of view.

Meet Gashi Isnija, owner and proprietor of Solaia Restaurant, located at 3317 State Rte. 42 in Monticello, NY.

 To hear Gashi tell it, the U.S. is the greatest country in the world. And upstate New York is the greatest place to be within it.

 Of Albanian ancestry, Gashi was born just across the border in Kosovo. As a young man, he served a year in the Yugoslav People’s Army, where he was assigned to construction details and helped build roads.

 But ever-increasing tensions with Slovenia got him thinking, “Do I really want to stay here?”

 Luckily, Gashi had uncles in the U.S. They supported his desire to emigrate and helped get him over here in 1985. He made his way to New York City, got his green card, and he started as a busboy at a restaurant on 82nd Street.

 “I didn’t know anything else,” he’ll tell you in his soft but precise voice today.

 Before long, he heard there was an opening for a waiter at a nice place on 34th Street. He jumped at the chance.

 “It was tougher to find a job then,” he says with a shrug. “I’d sit around hiring halls for hours, and nothing would turn up.” 

 Very much a people person, Gashi worked hard and did well waiting on customers. But then, disaster struck when a fire broke out in his residence.

 Gashi lost everything in the blaze. 

 Devastated, he attempted to take the day off from work. But his boss wouldn’t let him.

 “Come in today anyway,” he urged.

 Reluctantly, Gashi agreed.

 When he got in, Gashi discovered that his employer had demonstrated his appreciation for him by supplying Gashi with clothes, shoes and anything else he needed.

 “I was very grateful for that,” Gashi says, obviously still moved.

 As time went on, Gashi continued to learn the ins and outs of the restaurant biz. He also married and had four kids.

 It was a trip to Smallwood, NY to visit an uncle that inspired him to move upstate.

 “The house across the street is for sale,” his uncle informed him. “Why don’t you make an offer?”

 More than 20 years later, the Isnija family is still there.

 Eventually, Gashi and his son began running a small pizza place in Monticello that his cousin was involved with. But when his son decided to move on, Gashi thought it would be best for him to go as well. 

“I’m not a pizza guy,” he explains. 

Instead, he bought the property down the road on State Rte. 42—formerly the site of Rossini’s Restaurant—and renovated the building from the ground up. After three long years, he was ready to open. 

He decided to name his new place Solaia (pronounced ‘so-LI-ya’) in honor of the famous vineyard in Italy. The word “solaia” means “a place where the energy of the sun radiates,” which represents Gashi’s view on hospitality. 

“We’re about the food and the service,” Gashi explains. “Not many restaurants in this area feature veal or Chilean seabass like we do. I also know the wines my regulars drink, and keep them in stock. We want to put our best foot forward with service.” 

Visiting Solaia is a pleasure. Inside, the dining rooms are spacious and decorated with tasteful paintings. The tables are adorned with carefully appointed glasses and silverware, placed upon crisp tablecloths with matching folded napkins. Music from the likes of Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra plays softly through the speakers. 

There are tables on the patio outside as well. 

And there are beautiful gardens where Gashi grows his own herbs and vegetables. 

“I do that to ensure freshness,” Gashi says. “We like to buy locally whenever we can. And I have my brother in Westchester who gets us the best fish and meat. We also buy from Ace Endico, a family-owned specialty food distributer in Brewster [NY].” 

Solaia has been open for seven years now. The menu features Northern Italian cuisine. Among the most popular dishes are truffles, gold chicken and veal chops. They also make their own pappardelle, fettuccini and ravioli. Five members of the Isnija family are employed there, and Gashi himself often waits on customers. 

And the food is excellent. I have a number of food allergies, including one to gluten—“The cake artist who can’t eat cake!”—but the folks at Solaia had no issue accommodating me. 

Another thing I’m particular about is the texture of my food. Well, the seafood salad appetizer featured perfectly-cooked squid, and a light olive oil dressing really allowed the shrimp, octopus and olive flavors to pop. The chef was also willing to add roasted peppers and melted mozzarella to my entrée, pollo paillard (grilled chicken over sauteed spinach), which is one of my favorite meals. (And, yes, my husband Fleck was happy, too, with his fettuccini con salmon. When he reheated his leftovers two days later, he was bowled over: “Salmon never tastes this fresh this long!”)

 The prices are affordable—they haven’t changed since before the pandemic—and the sizeable facilities are available for events. The folks at Solaia are also happy to cater.

 It’s obvious that they love making people happy.

 “We have our regulars,” Gashi says, “but many others come from New Jersey, Connecticut, Manhattan. The Inn at Lake Joseph is just up the road, and many of their guests come over. We have every nation in the world here, and we have no problem with any of them.”

 This is why our project this month is a Solaia bottle cookie. I think it captures the classy but fun spirit of the restaurant. It’s also pretty simple to make, but delicious.

 As always, feel free to try this project your way. Put whatever edible label on it that you’d like. If you have your own business, you can use these cookies as your business cards. You can bet folks will remember you for that!

 And if you stop by Solaia, don’t forget to say hello to Gashi and the rest of the friendly, knowledgeable staff. Oh, and make sure to let them know that you read about them in the River Reporter.

Using your favorite sugar cookie recipe, roll the dough out and cut out bottle- and glass-shaped cookies using cookie cutters or stencils. Bake until …

Roll out modeling chocolate in the colors of your choice...

Attach modeling chocolate to your bottle cookies with piping gel. Trim the edges to fit...

Repeat the process on your glass cookies...

Print labels for the bottle and any design for the glass on edible paper using edible ink. Cut out printed labels/designs on edible wafer paper with …

Attach labels/designs to cookies with piping gel...

Add highlights to cookies with petal dust...

Add details to cookies with petal dust...

Add shadows to cookies with petal dust. Your bottle and glass cookies are ready to be enjoyed!..

Kim M. Simons is an artist, cake artist and food artist. She has competed on numerous Food Network shows, winning “Holiday Wars” and “Cake Wars: Star Wars.” She is proud to have been voted “Best Local Celebrity, 2022” by the readers of the River Reporter. Kim is available to teach classes individually and in groups. Visit Kim’s website: www.cakesbykimsimons.com.