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adegiulio

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Posts posted by adegiulio

    Rocca, a new restaurant in Glen Rock

    in New Jersey: Dining

    Posted · Edited by adegiulio (log)

    Our meal was quite good. The atmosphere could use a little work. Service was quite good, our guy was frienldy, helpful, and confident. I had the orrechiette with sausage and escarole, then the hanger steak. Both were fabulous, though my pasta was a little overdone. Amy had the seafood salad and halibut, both of which she enjoyed a lot. The only bad part of the meal was when the hostess came by to inform the dining room that the Yankees had blown a lead in the ninth and lost the game. :sad::biggrin:

    I'm sure we will be back...

    OK, after posting and seeing my avatar, I remembered the other bad part of our evening...when we returned home we found that little pup you see below my name had gotten sick in his crate. Everything, including little Frankie, was covered with poop.... :shock:

    Wine Service (On premise)Customers wine

    in Wine

    Posted

    And yes, I HAVE brought in corked wines to restaurants before, so small tastes ARE important!

    Why is a small pour important? If the bottle is corked, there's no difference between a small pour and a big pour...its all getting dumped. Often when I am at a restaurant, I just tell the waiter to forget all the "pour a small taste, let the guy smell and taste and proclaim it ok, then pour for the table" BS, and just pour it. If it is corked or something is wrong, you have just as much of a chance of them replacing the bottle as you would if there was just a small tasting pour. I agree that a small TASTE would be important, as compared to a large gulp, but screw it, let the waiter pour away. I have never been served a corked bottle from a restaurant, though I have opened a few at home and brought a few to dinner (there was one at the last eGullet dinner, Curlz do you remember which one?) While I don't relish that wet cardboard aroma of a corked wine, being exposed to it doesn't lessen my enjoyment of the next, uncorked, wine. The only instance that I would want the waiter to be a little more gentle with the wine is if there is a chance of heavy sediment in the bottle. Lets be gentle here and not stir that into the rest of the bottle.

    To address the original question, I can see the issue both ways. As the owner and caretaker of a special bottle, I would like to open and decant the wine. However, I can certainly see how the server might be offended. Unless I knew the server well, I wouldn't trust him to care for the wine the way I would. In some places I might be correct with that judgement, in others I would be wrong, you just can't tell. If I have a precious bottle, I would rather not take the chance. Let me say that, if I were an offended server, an additional tip wouldn't make me feel better (though I would enjoy it for other reasons). My serving abilities were called into question, and no additional gratuity would change that. So, for this one, I will sit fimly on the fence. Both sides are right!

    Mail order steaks

    in Kitchen Consumer

    Posted · Edited by adegiulio (log)

    David Rosengarten did an article on the best mail order steaks in the Rosengarten Report.  His testing was done on strip steaks.  His Utilmate Five Star finds are:

    Lobel's $29.97/LB fresh

    Palm Restaurant/Palm Pak (800) 388-PALM $27.25/LB can be shipped fresh or frozen (they did fresh

    Main Street Steaks $31.25/LB frozen

    Peter Luger $43.87/LB fresh

    Allen Brothers $31.60/LB for wet aged/frozen, 34.45/LB dry-aged/frozen

    Gepperth's (773) 549-3883 $12.99/LB for Black Angus Strip/frozen, $18.99/LB for Prime Strip/frozen

    These prices are certainly out of date, since this is from a while back.  However, you can see the relative costs.

    Jennie

    His prices were out of date the moment I got that issue. If I have one complaint about the Rosengarten Report, it is that the prices listed are ALWAYS wrong (they are always too low). From the steak at Lobel's to the caviar to the bacon, the prices are consistently wrong.

    On a related note, that Cowboy steak does look delicious. Tommy has agreed to buy 8 of them for a cookout at his place. Price tag: $512.98...plus shipping. But we all know dinner with tommy is Priceless

    Trattoria Fresco, Caldwell 7/16

    in New Jersey: Dining

    Posted

    imported Newark bread

    Comments like this one earn you the position of "next eGullet get together organizer person"...Great review Frank/Lindsay. You captured pretty much every aspect of the evening. From Joanne's impression of Cirque du Soleil to Rosie's eGullet thong, the whole night was jam packed with fun..EAT YOUR HEART OUT TOMMY!! :raz:

    It was great meeting the new folks. Mark, Stacey and James, hope the long ride home was quick and uneventful. Amy, I have one word for you...BINGO!!! Fun evening all around...

    I only wish I knew why my bones are so brittle... :raz::laugh:

    Trattoria Fresco, Caldwell 7/16

    in New Jersey: Dining

    Posted

    Honestly Tommy, I get the impression that they will do whatever it takes to make us happy. I don't say that lightly, since I typically think most restauranteurs only think about themselves. In talking to the manager and chef (and enjoying a pizza, thanks guys!) I feel comfortable in the fact that they will do a great job...

    Besides, I'll have a corkscrew handy. We can always get drunk and see who can stick their head furthest into the pizza oven...

    Trattoria Fresco, Caldwell 7/16

    in New Jersey: Dining

    Posted

    OK, we have a small problem. Thanks to a well timed PM from Rosie, I discovered that we didn't have a reservation for Friday night. There was a mis-communcation between one person I spoke to a few weeks ago and the manager. I also dropped the ball by not getting there sooner with a deposit. Anyway, we need to push dinner to 8pm. I stopped by there tonight to give them a deposit and square up all the details, but unfortunately they have another large table earlier.

    So, its not the end of the world, just pushing things back an hour. If that creates any problems, let me know. For those who really want to start at seven, I'll tap a keg in my backseat and we will wait out front...

    Which reminds me, parking is a bit tough because they don't have a parking lot. Park out in front on the street, around the corner, or in the PNC Bank lot (I think it's PNC). Don't park in the lot that says "No Restaurant Parking" which is right next to the restaurant. The bank is just before the restaurant (if you are coming from the Verona side) or just past the restaurant (if you are coming from the West Caldwell direction)

    Confused yet??

    A

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