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hitmanoo

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Posts posted by hitmanoo

  1. A great place to try in Montclair is Richie Cecere's.

    Star Ledger Review I figured I'd post this newspaper review that may help you out a bit more.

    Located next to the Walnut train station, Richi Cecere's offers some delicious food with a solid menu. They offer a variety of steaks and seafood dishes that are all tasty, and the specials change often and are usually excellent.

    Bear in mind, the prices are moderate to expensive, so it's not a place to hit 5 nights a week. They have a liquor license, and the drinks are not cheap. They do have some more reasonably priced entrés, but the higher end dishes come with a premium.

    The last time I was there, I had pistacio encrusted lamb chops that were just sensational. The look on the waiter's face when I ordered them was priceless, and I knew I was in for a treat. I must say that they exceeded my expectations, and I could not have been more pleased.

    They offer a tuna sashimi appetizer that is well garnished and delicious.

    If you plan to go, dress accordingly. During the week, you can get away with a pair of jeans and a button down, on the weekend, perhaps a nice pair of slacks. Not quite a sports jacket place, but if you wore one, you wouldn't be out of place any day of the week, due to the weeknight business crowd, and the weekend night on the town crowd.

    I highly recommend that you give this place a try if you're a fan of surf and/or turf, as the food is well prepared, the service more than adequate, and the prices not out of control. I'd love to hear what others have to say about this place--I'm a fan.

  2. I never ate in the restaurant at Caldwell Seafood. I actually grew up in West Caldwell, and my mother introduced me to the store. Back in the day, it had no restaurant and was a hole in the wall. The entire store smelled like the Fulton Fish Market, and had absolutely zero decor.

    Over the years, they've made improvements to the appearance of the store, and I'm not quite sure when they added the restaurant portion. I know it's been there for quite some time now, but for me, in my mind, it will always be the hole in the wall fish store that puts out a great fresh product. Not sure when I'll give the restaurant a try.

  3. There are 2 Sushi places in the area that I have frequented. I've been to many but these 2 places have brought me back several times.

    1. East Tokyo in East Hanover, in the same building as the bowling alley, near the Loew's theater. The prices are reasonable, the service is quick and friendly, and the sushi has been fresh and tasty. There are a variety of interesting rolls and specials, and I have not been disappointed. They also have a liquor license.

    2. Dai-Kichi in Montclair, BYOB, with a nice liquor store across the street. A bit pricier than East Tokyo, and usually a longer wait to be seated on a busy night. The food here is tasty, and quite fresh. They don't have a wide variety of rolls, but do have nightly specials. I've been told that if I like a certain special, they'll make it for me anytime, and they also take requests.

    Interestingly, both of these restaurants are near to an Applegate Farms ice cream parlor, so a delicious dessert is a short ride away.

    3. Nori, Caldwell. BYOB. Tasty sushi with moderate prices. A bit disorganized. Ordered a special role that they did not bring to me with the rest of my order. When I told them of this, they were puzzled. A long time after, our waitress asked us if we still wanted the role, however we were long past finished with our meal and declined.

  4. I just returned from a trip to Orlando, and my wife and I ate at Moonfish. We were both delighted. Here is the review that I sent to my friend who helped us to find this restaurant:

    We weighed our options, and went with MoonFish. Let me just say that I give the restaurant an 8.5/10. We were quite pleased with our selection, the meal was excellent.

    For drinks, I had a bottle of Belgian beer--Chimay Red. Quite tasty. *** had a couple of apple martinis. Whatever they did, her drink tasted the closest to a granny smith apple of any apple-tini I've ever had.

    We shared an appetizer--soft shell crabs, fried with a peanut dipping sauce. Delicious

    For dinner, we both had fish. *** had Chillean Sea Bass in a miso broth. The fish was cooked so tender--almost falling apart, and the broth was a great accompanyment. Not an overbearing sauce, but adding an exquisite accompanying flavor.

    I had a fish I'd never tried or heard of before. I believe it was called Lupe de Mare, seved with a lobster gravy. This fish was a bit denser than the sea bass, though still white in color. For a fish, it was very filling, and the gravy was a bit on the thicker side, with chunks of lobster meat--I assume it was gulf lobster meat, far easier to obtain in Florida than Maine lobster. The blend of the gravy, fish and lobster made for an interesting combo that was both sweet and rich.

    I give it an 8.5, being that I don't think I can give any restaurant a 10, as perfection in food is not attainable, and I was so blown away by my meal at Nobu in Manhattan that to put this smaller meal on the same plane would not do justice to how good a meal I had at Nobu.

    If you're ever in the Orlando area, I suggest you give it a try. I would like to think that this is a restaurant that even ***** could enjoy, as they had a variety of beef and chicken dishes for those not liking seafood. The bill came to about $130--including tip and about $24 in alcohol. Not cheap, but not break the bank expensive either.

  5. I've been to Bern's several times, and aside from my first visit, I've been unimpressed.

    On my last visit to Bern's, the waiter began to prepare my Caesar salad tableside. In the middle of making my salad, he left to go attend to other business, leaving my salad half prepared next to the table. 15-20 minutes later, he returned to finish the salad. That type of service is unacceptable.

    As for my steak, it was overcooked, and arrived about 1 minute after I finished my salad. For a restaurant that prides itself on fine food and excellent service, this is also unacceptable. At a fine restaurant, there should be at least a 5 minute pause between courses to allow the patron to refresh his palate.

    Over priced experience that just doesn't deliver to its lofty reputation.

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