Curlz

Interesting. VERY interesting. I drove past Epernay last Saturday night, and they were dark. It was just around 9pm, so I'm sure they hadn't closed for the night--just not open. I figured they had sold the place--go figure. As for the fumes, that is always an annoying block of foot and vehicular traffic.

Sounds good...where is this place?

Butter would be my suggestion, too. I made some thyme butter with my riches--it's now safely tucked in to the freezer, along with a (loose) roll of green basil with EVOO, salt & pepper and a jar of GORGEOUS purple basil with EVOO, salt & pepper. The rest of the thyme is slowly drying in my oven, and I'm going to jar some sage and salt tonight--thanks again for that suggestion!

Thanks for the rec! I'm definitely going to do this, as I'll never be able to use all of what I have before it goes bad! But what is pickling salt? Any reason I can't use Kosher salt, which I have plenty of?

Exactly what he said--on both counts! 'though I don't mind people in the kitchen when I'm cooking--as long as they stay out of my way, I like the company most of the time. And that's not about being a control freak (at least I don't think so) so much as I'm in my cooking mode and know what I want to do, when and how. Friends are still always amazed at how I can time a huge meal so well and everything comes out hot. It's all in the planning, kids... I'm also sans dishwasher, so I'm really grateful when friends refuse to let me wash dishes. One caveat: no clean-up shall ever interrupt FUN, wine-drinking or general regaling with my guests!

Perhaps not a fancy enough experience, but iirc, we had papardelle at Trattoria Fresco, which is in Caldwell. And BYO!

Ooooh, these sound great! If you have recipes to share, please do!! Curlz

Thanks a lot for putting that song in my head, John! As I was salad-spinning a TON of thyme, it's all I could sing. AAAAACK! A friend was doing me a favor when he turned over half of his herb garden last weekend (really), but since I'm single, there's only so much I can use. I mean, REALLY. I'm making a compound butter with some of it, since I know that will freeze well. I'll dry some more, and also give some away. At some point, one can have too much thyme on his/her hands!! But they smell good after stripping it off the stem...

Jason-- You're obviously hearing/reading about these festivals (i.e. the Brazilian one in the Ironbound); any reason you can't either post them on the calendar in advance or start a thread before you go to the events? Seems like many of us only hear about them after the fact, when you post the pics and torture us! Curlz

I guess my comment relates to a few others that have been made about what I'd call 'big' locations...I just can't imagine (now don't jump me!) that local families would make a hot dog place a 'destination' trip if there are more local spots available. I'm basing this on spending lots of time with an almost-4-year-old; when we want to go out locally, we prefer to find a place we can (gasp) walk to and/or that's a really close car ride. I'm thinking of the K-Mart shopping center as an example...that just doesn't seem like a place to duck in to a local, small hot dog joint. Of course, I could be completely wrong, but that's my initial reaction. It just seems like the Verona spot (or a similar one) is a place where a family could come in (on foot or by car), a hot dog connoisseur could make it a destination, and a bunch of t'weens could go after school to get an inexpensive bite to eat. For towns like that, I'd look to Verona, Montclair, Bloomfield, Nutley's downtown, or even Lyndhurst. My $ .02...

Don't know if it helps in terms of the OP, but Applegate Farm is having an Octoberfestival on Oct. 15th at their flagship store (Montclair), and the posters specifically note handmade caramel apples. I know they're not what you asked about, but maybe you can ask who their supplier is and see if they make candied ones? Just a thought. Not that I was standing in line today for a Graham Central Station cone and reading the poster or anything...

Just discovered this thread. WOW. Count another (spiritual) Jew among the crowds sending nothing but good vibes to both of you for a fast(er) recovery.

And besides, Eric, don't you want to be in a town so you can attract the 'family' traffic? Correct me if I'm wrong, but Verona seems very different from being on Rt 23! I'm also wondering if there is affordable rent on the end of Montclair towards Bloomfield (down near Fascino); that area is juuuust starting to pop with a few more places that are more attractive.

Don't laugh...go to the Wegman's on Route 1 in Princeton. You could spend a couple of hours there oohing and ahhing AND have whatever you want for lunch!!

Here's the thread on Village Green... and here's their web site. In their words, it's contemporary American cuisine. Oh, and it's BYO!! We had a fantastic dinner there one night, back in the day when people from eG used to get together on a more regular basis. The only reason I mentioned the weather is that I think of that as a heartier type of eating, esp b/c I know I've got to have foie gras... But that's not to say that they don't have seasonal menus--they definitely do. If you haven't been yet, add it to your list for a nice night out!

Happy Birthday, Viejo! I was going to offer the same suggestion; head to the Ironbound. Pathmark fried chicken just can't be worth it on ANY day! ENJOY. Curlz

As my niece would say, "EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! That's yucky."

That's great to hear--it's just a shame that the first impression that many got may not have been a good one. I hope Vincent was as up-front in explaining their issues this past weekend to new customers!

Let me state for the record that I am NOT a baker. But I've been making fruit gallettes all summer b/c once I made the first one, I saw how easy it was--and how easy it was to impress others! Line a baking sheet with parchment (TRUST ME). Choose a fruit (or two--I've been doing peaches and blueberries); cut 'em up, sprinkle with a TINY bit of sugar (turbinado if you have it) and a squeeze of half a lemon. Mix with your hands. At this point, you could add some liquer if you were so inclined. Either way, let it sit for about 10 minutes. I've used 2 large or 3 medium-sized peaches, btw. In the refrigerator section of your supermarket, puff pastry comes 2 to a box. (And can be frozen.) Take one (unfrozen) of the two packages and roll it out. Put the fruit mixture (2-3 cups, I'm guessing, but I've never measured) in the middle of the dough, and just roughly pull the sides of the dough up around the fruit on a bit of an angle. There should be an open 'hole' about 3" in diameter at the top. Put a dollop of sugar-free jelly (i.e. Polaner) that matches the flavors (I've used blueberry on a peach/blueberry as well as just on a peach one) in the 'hole' and sprinkle the top of the gallette with a little more sugar. Bake for about 20 mins at 425, then kick it down to 350 without opening the oven and let it cook for another 15 or so. DELICIOUS, with or without a big scoop of vanilla ice cream, but certainly better WITH. I'll switch to things like pears and figs when it gets cooler...

Two completely different places... Village Green in Ridgewood, which I must get back to once the weather cools down and Indian Chef in Lodi, which I can eat in ANY weather!

Is it at all possible that the review was submitted before these two left?!?

Better yet, get it up on the web site!!! At least give us the exact date...?

Yeah, gotta say that everything about this place makes me think "RUUUUUUUUUN!" (to the Ironbound, that is). Meanwhile, Amanda Hesser's review of Tia Pol in this past Sunday's NYT Magazine had me drooling. And wondering if there is any place in NJ doing that kind of tapas. I doubt it!

Ah, the tuna melt...one of my most favorite sandwiches EVER!! Glenn, I've got to say that hearing that there are pickles (or alternately, relish) in tuna turns me off. But that's ME. I'm a big fan of celery, red onion and a good amount of black pepper, but I'm also not a huge salt fan, so I tend to buy low-salt tuna. That said, a friend recently whipped up his recipe, which included all of the above + carrots (!) and mustard. WOWSA. Loved it, and will likely mince up some carrots the next time I make it at home. As for cheese, my favorite for a TM is probably muenster, just b/c I always loved it as a kid, but I'm betting that the horseradish havarti is EXCELLENT. If only you didn't have those pickles in the mix... One other thing--I do enjoy nuts/granny smiths in tuna, but in smallish pieces, and I only like them if they stay crunchy; I'm wondering if they would get mushy in the press? My $ .03.

Another thought/question...would any of these be good for compound butters? I'm sure those would freeze well! I'm open to any recs y'all have. Thanks!