allie

I'm a huge fan of Famous Ray's at the corner of Bloomfield near Prospect Ave... I find alot of pizza places in this area don't have a good crust, or don't use enough sauce. Ray's has a great balance of cheese & sauce, and their crust is SO tasty. Not super thin & old skool, but the perfect slice IMO.

Just a quick note to say..... I the Amazing Hot Dog. Chris & I paid our boys in Verona a visit last week, and once again were satisfied beyond belief for a grand total of $14.75 (plus tip of course!) between the 2 of us. In complete contrast to our dinner in the city the night before, where we ordered a lobster roll and fish & chips @ BLT Fish Shack- for a grand total of $85 including drinks & tip.. tasty food, but just not satisfying for the price (the lobster roll being exceptionally overpriced for the amount of lobster salad). High fives to Matt & Eric for always having such a positive attitude whenever we stop by for a doggie.

Chris was dying to try a Chicago italian beef sandwich, so we went down to J's a few weeks ago. We each ordered an italian beef and a authentic chicago doggie, and both of us were pleasantly surprised at how well the flavors of the many toppings on the chicago style doggie mixed together. Vienna all-beef dogs and the poppy seed bun are integral to the mix. Very good! Chris wasn't as into the italian beef (he found the beef a bit too dry- he actually compared it to Katz's pastrami being more juicy), but I enjoyed the spicy flavor of the meat. After this visit, Chris was dying to know how the Vienna dog stacks up minus all the "Chicago style" toppings, so we visited a second time. He ordered a charred doggie plain, and just added ketchup, as well as a chicago style dog. This time, I ordered the garlic kielbasa- I thought the kielbasa was TREMENDOUS and would order it again. Chris's final opinion was that he highly enjoyed the chicago doggie in its element (with all the chicago style toppings), but for a traditional hot dog, he would rather have a Best, Hebrew National or Sabrett. Regardless, J has a great product, is very passionate about what he is selling, and we will definitely return in the future.

Oh thank you for a hilarious flashback Jason! Chris & I used a "buy one entree, get one free" coupon from the Entertainment Book for Lee's about 3-4 years ago and had the same opinion- good, strong drinks and bad, american chinese food. I found the food very greasy, and the pu pu platter was a total gut-bomber (I suppose this is standard though). Even though the drinks were good, and I have a coupon every year from the Entertainment Book, I just can't see going back again.

Chris & I found another reason that AHD rocks- the gourmet desserts next door are delicious! Eric... definitely partner up with those gals if you can, that brownie/fudge bar you hooked us up with yesterday was delicious I went for a Melt this time around (with an Amazing instead of a Classic)- I'm definitely a bigger fan of the sauteed onions over the raw onions. They have less of the "pickled" flavor if that makes any sense. I am seriously blessed to have this place a mile from my house!

Doh! I wasn't online all weekend so I just saw this now. Congrats on the NBC promo guys, can't wait to see you again soon. I know Chris brought some co-workers there last week who loved their doggies. P.S. Chris also snuck in a take-out order recently for us when we returned from Mexico- I went for an amazing with cheez whiz/raw onions/ketchup. Even takeout Amazing Hot Dogs are delicious!

I've been meaning to post since last week, but have been busy prepping for a vacation in Mexico. Chris & I visited AHD last Tuesday and shared 3 doggies- My Schmiero, the Caped Crusader and the newbie.. the Phoenix (which, if I remember correctly was an Amazing with spicy relish, spicy brown mustard & the "sweet heat" chipoltle sambal) and it was so great to chow on these doggies again! Eric gave us a slight bit of shit for not ordering fries, but we seriously were just all about the dogs- this time. Chris hates cream cheese, but he was a good sport & tried the My Schmiero since I love it so much. He still wasn't sold on it, but he also doesn't like raw onions (yellow, white or green hehe) so he picked off the scallions. Those are the best part IMO! I tried the Caped Crusader for the first time, and was very happy with the combo of flavors. Definitely will be a favorite moving forward! As for the Phoenix.. I enjoyed the sambal sauce, but the other combo of flavors- although I loved the spice- just didn't quite do it for me. Next time, I'm going Reuben... the boys have pics on the wall of some of the doggies, and the Reuben looks so delicious! Great to have you back guys- when we get back from Mexico next week, AHD is the first place we're stopping for chow

Thats awesome! Chris & I drove past AHD today and saw you guys working hard inside. I was so excited to see the stacks of buns near the front door, and now seeing this post makes me jump for joy. See you guys this week

Thats great, I can't wait to feast on another tasty My Schmiero soon!! Since the world of NYT now knows its my computer wallpaper courtesy of my posts on eGullet, I think I need a closeup shot with me & My Schmiero as my eGullet avatar

I hope you guys don't move from Verona! I promise to continue bringing a steady stream of customers in from Montclair if you stay near Chris & I

Wow, I don't think I've ever read a bad review of Casa Vasca. Chris & I used to eat there all the time, but I haven't been back in about a year so possibly things have changed. I've always had good experiences there, but I did notice after eating there repeatedly that everything is *loaded* with garlic, so alot of the entrees have a similar taste.... I'll chow there again soon and post a review!

Yayyyyyyyy! I'm so glad to hear this guys. I just drove past AHD today and it made me whimper to see it so dark in there. I've had Jason's pic of the My Schmiero as my wallpaper, and I drool every day waiting for you guys to re-open. Congrats on the mental health rejuvenation, and best of luck getting AHD off the ground again.

Ugh, looking at those pictures just made me so sad. On a positive note though, I think you're going to have a line around the block the first day you re-open. I know Chris & I miss your doggies & fries already!

This is so sad! Chris read about this on Baristanet today and passed this on to me. We just brought friends there on Thursday, and Chris was planning on heading there today as well. Matt & Eric- best wishes and I'm thankful you guys are okay.

Chris & I *finally* made it to the Amazing Hot dog tonight. We're pathetic slackers- we live about 5 minutes down the road in Montclair, and I've been drooling over the pics posted here, yet tonight was our first visit. Oh well, good things really DO come to those who wait I ordered the My Schmiero after reading so many good things here, and Chris was sold into the Hawaii 5-0 by the gentleman behind the counter (I think his name was Vic? He is 1-2 of the pictures I've seen), as well as a small order of fries with a side of chipoltle mayo. While Chris wasn't *as* blown away by the combo of flavors on the Hawaii 5-0, he absolutely loved the snap & the taste of the dog itself. We were both impressed that the bacon didn't take over the flavor of the dog. I knew I was going to love the My Schmiero after seeing pictures and hearing so many good reviews, and I scarfed this down in seconds flat. I was so full, yet I wanted another so bad. This was SOOOO good; I can't wait to have another! The fries themselves were very tasty- we are FREAKS when it comes to fries... indulging quite often at Pommes Frites and some of the other belgian frites shops in the city, so I was pleasantly surprised to see Chipoltle mayo as a side dipper (rather than just cheez whiz or ketchup). And it was tasty too! It had quite a smoky flavor and was relatively spicy. I found the fries just slightly too greasy, but they were piping hot so I'll chalk that up to not shaking them enough after cooking. No big deal, they were still very tasty- skin on is always good. Last but not least, Matt introduced himself, and of course I mentioned seeing rave reviews all over eGullet. All in all, a huge thumbs up to our new neighbor. We'll be back!