vsasson
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Posts posted by vsasson
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Hi...Just wanted everyone to know I got Copper River Salmon at Costco (East Hanover) today for $10.99 a pound...YAY...It is so delicious and so good for us all...Enjoy....
The Hackensack Costco didn't have Copper River salmon last year, just wild salmon from Alaska, if I recall correctly. Is this the first time you saw Copper River salmon at your Costco?
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I drove by Sunday, on the way home from a good dinner at Baumgart's on Palisade Avenue. Rose's is in a location in Englewood that has long proved fatal for restaurants. I did takeout once from the Fair Lawn original and although the food was good, I didn't feel I got enough for the money. I have always gotten better meals at the Lebanese and Syrian restaurants in Paterson's South Paterson neighborhood, such as Assayad, which is on the Clifton side of Crooks Avenue.
Before the Bill Cosby Show at the Englewood Performing Art Center we headed to Rose's (confirmed on Opentable.com)After a friendly greeting we were ushered to the sunk-in living room to the left of the restaurant, where tables of multi generation families were mingled between multigeneration couples.
This is a BYO, which i failed to notice when making reservations, so we sipped ice-water that was promptly refilled, and began with warm pita triangles to scoup every last drop of a yogurt, cucumber, mint and garlic appetizer and smooth tangly hummus ($6.50 each and adequately shared by 2).
My Main course was ($15.95) two tender chicken, white meat, strips grilled with an outline of crispy herbs and spices (Shish Tawook Platter) served with roasted tomato, and beige colored soft rice! My guest has the grilled cornish hen platter, chicken that fell off the bone onto a neg of grilled onions, beige colored rice and grilled tomato. Sheltering the hen was grilled pita triangles (village bread). Not that we needed dessert (I had half of my dinner set aside for today's lunch) however we opted to share an order of baklava after hearing a near-by table proclaim they never leave without one bite.
With lipton tea infused with fresh mint we opted to share the double serving of (walnut) baklava ($4.95) and proudly devoured the crisp honey delight that fortunatley lacked the gooey syrup of too many inposters.
Rose's of Englewood
126 Engle Street, Englewood 201 541-0020 (take out available)
(a note on the take out menu links them to Fair Law's Roses...it's been a few years since I was at that location ...clearly I have not rushed to return - Rose's of Englewood...I would return in a heart beat!
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Whole Foods will open first, with a Middle Eastern food stand, to boot. I've started a blog about food shopping that you might want to check out:
http://doyoureallyknowwhatyoureeating.blogspot.com/
From Fairway's website March 2009. See the right side of the page 3rd banner down.http://www.discoverfairway.com/
Tour of Paramus Fairway from the same site.
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I haven't been there yet, but a friend of mine swears by Mompou for tapas AND atmosphere.
been to mompou 4-5 times. Good for tapas and drinks. Nothing earth shattering, but good. Atmosphere reminds me a bit like the bar in Adega Grill, though bigger. Have also heard good things about Vivo for tapas, a block or so up ferry st.
Strangely, they do not have any sherry, which is great with tapas. Might be Portuguese-owned, judging by the ports listed on the drink menu. The food is good, though not up to the dishes we had at Casa Mono in Manhattan, but compared to the cramped and noisy Casa Mono, there is plenty of stretch-out room. We will try Vivo, a tapas place a few blocks down Ferry Street, next time.
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The one in Palisades Park is on Broad Avenue, above a row of shops (Pharmacy, shoe store, etc) I dont have the name of the place, or the exact address, but here is the google location... I can find my way there in my sleep
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&time...5&t=h&z=18&om=1
Here is the review I did of the soft tofu places in 2006...Victor Sasson
Eating Out on $50: So Kong Dong, So Gong Dong
A meal in a Korean tofu house is tasty, nutritious, filling and cheap. You can't ask for more.
Two of the best in North Jersey are So Kong Dong in Fort Lee and So Gong Dong in Palisades Park, both named after a South Korean town famous for its soft-tofu stews.
The main attraction is sundubu tchigae (soon-doo-boo chee-gay), a beef-bone broth with soft bean curd, and additions such as mushrooms, beef or oysters. It's available unspiced to fiery. The price ($8 or less) includes hot or cold tea, rice, an egg to cook in the soup, and up to six small side dishes, including kimchi and bean sprouts.
That's enough for most people, but you also can order Korean barbecue – tender beef in a sweet sauce that makes terrific finger food ($11 or less).
You can see the satisfaction of the mostly Asian customers as they enjoy this comfort food. I like to order spicy soft-tofu stew and alternate spoonfuls of the reddish broth and bland rice. The meal explores the contrasting textures, colors and flavors of Korea's intriguing cuisine, which is spicy, salty, sweet and sour.
Both restaurants easily can feed four people for under $50, including tip.
Fort Lee
Our party of four visited So Kong Dong on a Saturday and got the last parking spot in the lot. By the time we left at 6:10 p.m., the small vestibule was packed with people waiting for tables. This place may be too popular: Service wilted under the crush of customers.
My seafood stew ($7), with its custard-like bean curd, was as good as ever, but strangely, the cabbage kimchi had no kick. The beef barbecue ($10) was fattier, and the portion smaller, than I remembered.
Service is usually attentive. On this visit, I asked but couldn't get a fork for my wife, hot tea for a guest and more side dishes. The bill was $47.50, including three soft drinks ($1 each).
The interior has more charm than the Palisades Park spot. Don't miss the tall case of beautiful Korean dolls.
Palisades Park
So Gong Dong, the newer of the two, charges $1 more for its tofu stews and other dishes but also gives you more – six side dishes instead of five, more rice and more choices on the bilingual place mat menu.
My first visit was for lunch, and the restaurant was half-full. My tofu-oyster stew ($7.99 on the menu, rounded off to $8 on the check) was bubbling furiously, and I received a second stone bowl filled with rice. One of the side dishes, raw squid in a red-pepper sauce, left my mouth and lips tingling. When I finished three of the side dishes, they were replaced immediately.
I also ordered dumplings ($7.99), which were tasty. I couldn't finish the meal and still felt full at dinnertime.
When three of us returned for dinner a little after 5 p.m. on a Saturday, some staff members were eating, while others were putting spoons in paper envelopes and pairing chopsticks with napkins. We were seated next to an uncleared table.
Service seemed relaxed, and one couple sounded a chime from their table at least four times to summon a waiter. Two of our side dishes were replaced before we finished them — without the chime — and we were given extra napkins.
Besides beef barbecue and dumplings, the restaurant serves pork barbecue and a seafood-vegetable pancake. A special during my visit was a whole grilled squid.
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E-mail: sasson@northjersey.com
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So Kong Dong
130 Main St.
Fort Lee
(201) 585-1122
* Korean tofu house
* Casual
* Inexpensive
Fare: Soft-tofu stew, barbecue.
Prices: Entrées, $7 to $10.
Recommended dishes: Seafood tofu soup, beef barbecue.
Liquor, beer: No.
Service: Hit or miss.
Setting: Traditional Korean inn.
Noise level: Moderate to high.
Credit cards: AE, M, V.
Reservations: No.
Days closed: None.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
Smoking: No.
Accommodations for children: High chairs.
Dress: Casual.
Lunch: Yes.
Takeout: Yes.
Parking: Front lot, meters.
Reviewed by The Record: March 10, 2006.
So Gong Dong
118 Broad Ave.
Palisades Park
(201) 313-5550
* Korean tofu house
* Casual
* Inexpensive
Fare: Soft-tofu stew, barbecue, seafood pancake, dumplings.
Prices: Entrées $7.99 to $10.99.
Recommended dishes: Soft tofu stew with oysters, dumplings, pork barbecue, free side dishes.
Liquor, beer: No.
Service: Uneven.
Setting: Second-floor restaurant with traditional touches.
Noise level: Moderate.
Credit cards: AE, M, V.
Reservations: No.
Days closed: None.
Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.
Smoking: No.
Accommodations for children: High chairs.
Dress: Casual.
Lunch: Yes.
Early bird service: No.
Takeout: Yes.
Delivery: No.
Parking: Rear lot, meters.
Web site: No.
Reviewed by The Record: March 10, 2006.
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Cafasso's Fairway in Fort Lee dates to the 1920s (the exact date was on their plastic bags) with the motto: "Where U.C. the Finest Food" or something similar. Anyone who thinks the lawsuit is a joke hasn't shopped the Fort Lee store, which was expanded about five years ago. Part of the expansion was many more parking spaces, adding to a previously adequate lot.
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The Record reports that the REAL Fairway from the UWS is coming to Paramus, at the Fashion Center, circa Fall 2008. It will be about 50K sq ft.
This is not to be confused with the imposter of the same name in Fort Lee.
This also means that one will no longer have to trek into NYC for great Nova, great cheese, and all the other great stuff at Fairway.
Welcome to NJ, Fairway!
I'm a little late to this thread, but in defense of Cafasso's Fairway in Fort Lee (and that's the name of the store), it was around for decades before the store in New York stole its name. It was and remains one of the top food stores in northern New Jersey; in the Fort Lee area, I don't think any store even approaches it. The produce, the prepared food, the bread from many bakeries, the fish and meats are all top-notch. The store was cramped until the owners finally got permission after many years of opposition to expand. Indeed, it's a smaller version of the New York Fairway, but different enough to have its own identity. It's too easy to dismiss everyting in New Jersey as inferior to food stores and restaurants across the river or border.
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King here is $40 a pound.
Honestly.
I guess I put this on the wrong thread earlier. Costco in Hackensack had gutted sections of whole Copper River sockeye salmon for $6.99 a pound today. My nearly two-pound section yielded six small steaks and a nice tail section. They cooked quicly in the oven and were terrifc, with sea salt, lemon juice, allspice and Aleppo pepper.
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I think Chef said the King Salmon would be coming in next week. But the Sockeye was pretty damned tasty as it was. I can't imagine too many degrees of deliciousness above it. I suspect we'll sell out of it by tomorrow as well, if not tonight. I recommended it to everyone.
I dropped in at Costco in Hackensack this afternoon and found wild sockeye salmon fillets from Alaska for $9.99 a pound and sections of wild sockeye salmon from the Copper River for $6.99 a pound. Copper River was written on the label. The nearly two-pound, gutted section I bought yielded six small steaks and a nice tail section. I seasoned them with sea salt, lemon juice, allspice and Aleppo pepper, and they cooked in about 10 monutes at 375 degrees. Delish.
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Thanks! Will check them out.
Just took another look at a Web site I had saved in my favorites. It lists Korean restaurants, but more importantly has lots of great photos of main and side dishes, with their Korean and English names. Here is the address:
http://www.trifood.com/gimbop.html
Enjoy!
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Can someone help a Korean-food newbie, not that familiar with the Bergen County area? My unadventuresome parents live in Fort Lee and spend 6 months in Florida, so we have to try "different cuisine" by ourselves. While away, we have access to their place and usually use it as a jumping off point to NYC. We have discovered some other Asian restaurants in the area, but are much less familiar with Korean food, which we are eager to try-though we've been to some Korean restaurants elsewhere with friends. We are not vegetarians, but generally don't eat red meat, which I realize is very basic to many Korean dishes-bbq's, short-rib dishes, etc. But we do eat fish and chicken (am anxious to try some of the Korean fried chicken places recently discussed. Anyone have any suggested dishes and places to try in the area-FL, Palisades Park, etc.? Authentic is great, but would also like to try some places where they may be amenable to non-Korean customers visiting.
There are almost too many places to recommend. For twice-fried Korean fried chicken, try Boom Boom Chicken on Main Street in Fort Lee. Madangsui on Palisade Avenue in Fort Lee and So Moon Nan Jip on Broad Avenue in Pal Park are two restaurants that use charcoal in their table-top grills, but have extensive menus that allow you to have a satisfying meal without ordering meat. The Lighthouse near the Han Ah Reum in Ridgefield is good for combinaiton lunches such as spicy tofu stew and short ribs.
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Hello Rachel,
Unfortunately it closed
I heard of a place from my Peruvian clients in WNY, but I never tried it and would have to do come searching for the name.
You can find terrific Peruvian food at Pollos El Chevere at 228 Washington Place in Passaic. The ceviche is beautifully plated and the rotisserie chicken (pollo a la brasa) is moist and aromatic. The owners are Japanese-Peruvian. A smaller place, Jaimito's, is at 389 Lexington Avenue on the Clifton-Passaic border, and the owner is Chinese-Peruvian. The green spaghetti, in a pesto-like sauce, can be ordered with fried fish on top, and they also have stir-fried dishes.
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Try the Brenda Lee Taqueria at 76 Market St. in Passaic. It does lots of business so the food is always fresh, the tortillas are handmade, and they have a half-dozen or more kinds of soft tacos. Plus, there is a great jukebox there.
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There's a small, family owned place that has never failed to please me: Hiura, on Main Street near Anderson Avenue (there's a Korean restaurant on the corner). Hiura has great sushi as well as bento box dinners and other cooked items. It's a BYO. Parking is in a lot just around the corner on Anderson.
Yamaguchi, which has a branch in the city, has had half-price sushi on weekends, and when I visited with friends in the summer, they offered free draft beer and sake as well. It is housed in a no-luggage hotel, and there is the Cheap Beer Depot next door.
Korean bbq with private room?
in New Jersey: Dining
Posted
Try Madangsui in Fort Lee, a BBQ restaurant that says all its meat is fresh. You might be able to get the front room to yourself, but would have to sit at several tables because of the sprinklers, in-table grills and so forth. I think it's gas before 6 p.m. and charcoal after. I recently visited So Moon Nan Jib in Pal Park for the first time after a renovation and service has really fallen off, so wouldn't recommend it. That used to be the best place I knew. There's also Woo Jung, near So Moon Nan Jib, but can't recall the layout. Good food, though. Get phone numbers by Googling the names.