Curlz

NEWS ALERT!!! AHD was chosen by The Munchmobile as the Best Deep-Fried Hot Dog in New Jersey! Congratulations to Matt and Eric! The article is in today's Star Ledger or you can see it here.

Happy Birthday, Viejo! For a group that size, my vote would be for Fascino (Montclair).

Just want to add my thanks and thoughts about the Bee Hive Tavern (Sandwich)rec, which was made somewhere upthread. Friends had found it by accident, loved the place, and wanted to go back while we were all there last week. When I saw that it had a good mention here, I was game. They loved the clam chowder, but I'm raving about the fish and chips. GREAT fish, not overly breaded, not greasy, and a huge portion, served over terrific fries that managed to stay crisp to the end. Definitely worth a stop!

As Skye said, "Folks, for $15 a bite, you deserve to be amazed by every single sensation." For me, that includes the service. I just hope nobody has an experience like we did in Vegas. Not for that kind of $$$$, and certainly not in NYC!

There are still a few of us looking for Cape dining suggestions on this thread...While I won't get up to Wellfleet or Provincetown this year, I'd love to have some of those suggestions in the Falmouth/Dennis/Chatham area...esp if they're not expensive!

Ah, but you do you make the requisite straw 'worms' for him?!? My niece still has me doing it--even though I've tried to tell her (now that she's pushing 5) that her oh-so-cool aunt didn't invent that trick...

I just had that very conversation last night with my bro and s-i-l...they had gone to Jyoti (near Willowbrook Mall) and were disappointed for the second consecutive visit. We were discussing other Indian restaurants that we like, and realized that NONE of them are within striking distance. It's really amazing that Montclair is such a huge restaurant town, yet there's no good Indian food. SO...if you're reading this thread and wondering where to open an Indian restaurant... Seriously--I guess it's because there isn't much of an Indian population on the Bergen/Essex border. It's really a shame.

Heading up to the Cape at the end of this week...any suggestions in/around Dennis are greatly appreciated! I know we also won't be far from Chatham... Thanks!

If so, it wouldn't be the first...there's a place called Sidebar in Newark, just blocks from a couple of courthouses, and surrounded by lawyers and judges! ← And today I spotted Side Bar at the Famished Frog, about a block from the courthouse in Morristown... SIGH.

Agreed! They might need to put it on a (BIG) bumper sticker! Too bad that most of the folks who need to hear and understand the message probably won't. Great job, Chris! Congratulations!! (we need a fireworks smilie)

Did you know... There is now a Corn Dog at AHD? Creamed corn and crunched up corn flakes on top! There is now a Pizza Dog? Turkey burgers? Grilled chicken sandwiches? Of course, those last two are not for purists... Great to see the place hopping, and of course, I loved my Melt!

If so, it wouldn't be the first...there's a place called Sidebar in Newark, just blocks from a couple of courthouses, and surrounded by lawyers and judges!

Is this on Ridge Rd almost to Route 3? Across from the Shell station? I noticed they had scaffolding up on the facade of the building today...

Total Wine store at Essex Green in West Orange definitely sells lots of different framboise by the bottle!

I've been to two recent (outdoor) concerts at the Oskar Schindler Perf Arts Ctr in West Orange this summer, and Mark and Julie's has had a table set up each time. The first time, a friend thrust his spoon at me and garbled "Try THIS!!!" and I had the coffee chip ice cream, which was fantastic. Needless to say, he lost his cup and had to get another. Last night, I tried the coffee chip low-fat frozen yogurt, since they had that, Oreo ice cream, vanilla chip, and a few Italian ices. Let me say up front that I rarely eat real ice cream any more. The fro yo was tasty, but having had the ice cream version just a week earlier, the taste memory overcame me! Still, it was full of those great chocolate pieces, and my pal got the Oreo and shared some with me (he's a good guy, huh?)...have to agree that I loved the HUGE pieces of cookie in there. I'm looking forward to checking out the store at some point soon so I can sample some other flavors!

My 4.5 year-old niece is quickly becoming a restaurant aficionado...we take her pretty much anywhere, with the exception of truly upscale restaurants, and have never had a problem. I think the keys are: a) to start taking them when they're young, and to teach them restaurant manners (I probably do this more than her parents), part of which is that if they can't behave, they don't get to go to restaurants b) take them when they're not tired/cranky/about to crash c) go places that are appropriate d) be prepared to go for walks outside e) learn to make 'worms' from straw wrappers She has been everywhere...Raymond's, Nori, Jyoti, Tuptim, Amazing Hot Dog, Nauna's, Joe Bertoni's, Saffron, Tinga Taqueria, the Tick Tock Diner and most recently, to Trattoria Fresco (at 6pm), just to name a few. The girl really loves to go out now, but I/we also know when and where NOT to take her (i.e., when we're going to Blu or Fascino, someone babysits)! If you behave and your kid isn't throwing food or a tantrum, I think most restaurants are accommodating. The real joy is to go someplace where they actually LIKE kids!

I had a fully mediocre meal the last time I went to Mojave Grill, but don't they also own an Italian place a few doors down? Teresa's, maybe?

I'm betting that the place in Caldwell is Trattoria Fresco (click on the name and you'll go to the thread about it)... it's BYO and as you'll see, lots of us on this board enjoy it. Personally, I'd pick Blu, but if you're looking for a new experience, a lot of folks also like Epernay in Montclair (french). There's also Highlawn Pavillion in West Orange...

Thoughts, pics and conversation about Sabor are also here...

Yes, he's local...Upper Saddle River, iirc; wherever it is, definitely a northern NJ resident.

WOW...you're not kidding...Bucky P is a fantastic, world-renowned jazz guitarist; that's QUITE a coup on their part, imo. Wonder if he has any connection to the place! And it's interesting, b/c iirc, the new place the owners of The Jeff were talking about is supposed to be in that part of town as well.

Right. Morris COUNTY. But definitely not Morris Plains!

Thanks for floating this to the top, Tracey! I was at TF this week too...ten of us celebrated my mom's birthday on Saturday night, and had terrific food with (sadly) just ok service. I know good servers are hard to come by, but when you have that large a party and the restaurant isn't packed (we arrived at 6 on Sat), I would think you'd want to be on top of things; we thought our waiter was at the outset, but that didn't turn out to be the case for the remainder of the night. I actually got up from my chair twice to get wine from the stand to pour for our guests, and had to ask for a refill another time--that's not right regardless of the size of the group! We also had a runner who literally didn't understand a word of English. She was pouring water and one of our guests asked for more wine; at that point, there was only one bottle of white open, and although she resorted to holding up her wine glass (which had a bit of the wine left in it), the communication just never got through. Enough said? The food was wonderful, and despite a lot of eye-rolling about the service, we had a great time. We ordered a selection of apps to share, including the antipasto, a couple of artichokes, a cone of fries, the tomato 'pretzels,' and a special of oven-fired black mission figs stuffed with shrimp and goat (?) cheese. They were wonderful, but since there were only a few on the plate, we had to order a second batch. Entrees included steak, salmon, short ribs, and others I'm forgetting, and I had the veal chop, which was cooked perfectly and accompanied by arugula arranged between two huge onion rings that looked like a hamburger bun. DEEEEELICIOUS indeed! I had the rest of it for dinner the next night and enjoyed it all over again. For dessert, I ordered the fonduta for four, which was plenty; imo, this is the don't-miss dessert at TF because those zeppole are absolutely stunning, the fruit is always fresh, and the chocolate is simply divine. Great way to finish the meal, and as a bonus, my niece (the family's newest dining expert) declared it her favorite dessert that she's ever had in a restaurant. And the birthday girl was happy too, so it was a good night all around; just hope they can fix those service issues...that's all!

Couldn't agree more...Anthony is an excellent chef, and I'm sorry he's no longer in my neighborhood, 'tho I haven't been able to get there in some time b/c of my new schedule. It is good to hear that someone had a good meal there recently, though; I take that as a sign that he was not only personally great at the stove, but that he left a well-trained staff as well.

Trust me, Meyersville is NOT part of Morris Plains! It's south of Morristown, just outside of the Great Swamp...right on the border of Gillette.