hitmanoo
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Posts posted by hitmanoo
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I don't usually travel over an hour for food, but in this case, I may have to make an exception!
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If you get tired of Rita's Ices there's always Clydes or King Kone or you can head to Pompilio's in Westwood for Ices. Where IS the nearest Ritas to the Westwood area anyone know?
Clyde's is that in Maywood on Maywood Ave?
If it's the place I'm thinking of then it is phenomenal!
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Like Eric said, Pal's is a good standby. It has particular meaning to me in the dead of winter, the wind whipping around the top of the hill fiercly, the darkness of early evening, maybe some snowflakes swirling around. Pal's offered warmth and good food for my wife and I on those kinds of evenings.
As for good burgers, I admit to rating the burgers at TGI Fridays as the best for my tastes. Just not the sad West Orange location (why is this place still in business?!). Also good burgers at Houston's (Hackensack and NYC locations). And in the Verona Inn vs. Tierney's burger war, I side with VI. The burger bun at Tierney's is sad.
I thought the burger at Tierney's was below average.
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Much to my dismay, Amazing Hot Dog has no Sunday hours. Too bad, because I cannot think of anything I would like more after a baseball game. (Eric & Matt - please reconsider - at least for the summer.)
The family spent yesterday afternoon with my son's cub scout troop at Montclair State in Yogi Berra Stadium. After the Mighty New Jersey Jackals trounced a team of hard working and well meaning Independent League visitors, we drove sadly past a closed AHD and continued south to Pal's.
Based on discussions here, bride and I stuck to the burgers and onion rings. My love, who is not a great burger fan, said and I quote "Wow, this is a really good burger...." to which I was obliged to reply "Hamburgers. The cornerstone of any nutritious breakfast. mmmmmm.... this IS a tasty burger." She didn't get the pop reference. Juicy, perfectly cooked and well salted. Wished it was a Martin's bun. Good cheddar and thick bacon on mine. Onion rings which were outstanding - only her homemade are better. (Pal's fries were awful, btw)
I also would love to see Sunday hours at AHD. I guess that they can't be open everyday...
As for Pals, I agree. The burger is solid, the bun could be better, and the fries are just so-so.
For a quick local buger Pal's.
If I have an extra hour, Franklin Steakhouse.
If my wife isn't involved, Michael's Roscommon House.
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crab is such a friggin pain the ass to eat otherwise.
AGREED!
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Well my husband and I decided today was a good day to visit AHD.
He liked the "design" of the hotburger hamdog and the toppings on the items he ordered, wish we had a fork it got a tiny bit messy.
Just got a bite at AHD and decided to try the hotburger hamdog. I agree that it got a little messy. The problem is that the hotdog kind of breaks apart when you eat it, and the circle just doesn't quite stay intact, leaving a few separated segments of hotdog in the bun. Once the chain is broken, it becomes a little difficult to keep the contents inside. Great concept, just requires a little more care.
Since it pretty much tastes the same as a straight up dog (without the bacon wrap) I think I'll go back to some variety of the Amazing on my next visit.
edit: oddly enough, they had Iron Chef on one of the TVs, and they were having of all things--a HAMBURGER BATTLE!
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Don't see anything mentioned in the article about how they prepare their ices, etc. So your issue is that a successful franchise is flawed by the very fact that they're successful? Setting up a franchise that sells flavored frozen water and a custard as their only product is obviously far less complicated than creating an entire supermarket.
Blown to bits? No, I still stand by my belief that just because something's able to be replicated at location after location doesn't automatically categorize it as crap, ie. Whole Foods, Rita's, Brooklyn Pizza, Starwich, etc. Flavoring and freezing water isn't brain surgery... whether you're the local bakery dealing out of a side window or a franchisee following your franchise's instructions. Yeah, IMHO Rita's is good at putting flavor, fruit and water together and freezing it. So are many other places. I just don't believe in faulting a place because they've become successful. Sorry, must be the capitalist in me.
BTW, I've yet to read any product specifics from you, other than "the lemon ice, which is my favorite, was short on tartness and the flecks and little bits of real lemon found in other south philly places," in regards to the issues you have with Rita's. What other flavors have you tried? If you were saying its some chemically, massed produced taste, then hey, you've got a point (though I haven't experienced anything like that from Rita's nor have I seen any comments like that here on the thread) . But that's not what you said, so I'm wondering what your beef with the place is. From your last post, I'd think that its just 'cause their popping up everywhere!
I belive I've already summarized Jeff's feelings about the shortcomings of Rita's. What I don't get is why you are getting so upset over some opinions that Rita's Italian ice just isn't top quality. The argument isn't that Rita's is midgrade because it is a franchise. The argument is not that Rita's isn't good because it is successful. The argument is that many of us, Jeff included, have sampled Rita's and don't find their product to be up to the standards of many other places we have tried. Nobody is faulting Rita for being a successful business, nor is anyone saying that Rita doesn't put forth an acceptable product. It's just that there are several places that serve a product which has a more natural and all-around better taste than the product they serve at Rita's. It isn't one thing or specifics, it's a conglomerate of things that lead to this conclusion.
To draw some kind of comparison, I think of Cold Stone Creamery. Sure they make a delicious ice cream product, and they are successful. However, I happen to think that their ice cream itself is midgrade, and can rattle off a list of establishments that are serving a far superior ice cream product.
It comes down to a matter of taste, not a matter of upsetting you specifically.
Yeah, what he said. By the way, I am a capitalist in every sense of the word. I've owned 5 businesses over the past 25 years and certainly don't fault Rita's because they are successful. It does seem to me (and hitmanoo) that you are taking our criticism of Rita's product way too seriously.
I have tried explaining my reasons for not liking the product as has hitmanoo but you still want to carry this thing on. Bottom line here is Rita's is expanding big time and franchisees seem to be making money so I really don't think anyone besides you really care if a few of us here really don't like Rita's stuff.
Now can we all just get along people
Discourse is what egullet's about, isnt it? The beauty of the whole discussion is the fact that we're focused on basically flavored water. Its amusing to see how far one can go debating the merits of frozen flavored water but my prodding to actually have a discussion about the product itself has only produced generalities and not the specifics I had hoped for. Sure, sure, there's lots of Rita's all over the place with more to come. But my goal was to have a discussion about specifics of the product that was offered... good, bad or otherwise. Looks like that's not gonna happen here.
Could have been fun. Too bad.
(Yep, waiting for some response about how having a discussion about the actual product is not worth time or effort involved.
)someones time or effort
Ok, since you insist.
Rita's product tastes "chemically" with a flavor of syrup and preservative, rather that that of natural frozen fruit. When biting into a mango Italian ice, I want to feel as if I'm biting into a mango that has somehow been transformed into a cup of Italian ice as if the mango tree sprang forth fruit that was in fact Italian ice. When I bite into Rita's version, I feel as if I'm biting into corn syrup and sugar injected into shaved ices with artificial mango flavoring. However, at several local establishments I get the taste and sensation for which I am searching.
At Rita's, I get a close approximation or some facsimile of the real thing. The overall product is too sweet and artificial tasting that comes close to tasting like the fruit it was intended to taste like, but not quite close enough for me to classify it as a top level Italian ice establishment on par with several local establishments I have patronized.
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Don't see anything mentioned in the article about how they prepare their ices, etc. So your issue is that a successful franchise is flawed by the very fact that they're successful? Setting up a franchise that sells flavored frozen water and a custard as their only product is obviously far less complicated than creating an entire supermarket.
Blown to bits? No, I still stand by my belief that just because something's able to be replicated at location after location doesn't automatically categorize it as crap, ie. Whole Foods, Rita's, Brooklyn Pizza, Starwich, etc. Flavoring and freezing water isn't brain surgery... whether you're the local bakery dealing out of a side window or a franchisee following your franchise's instructions. Yeah, IMHO Rita's is good at putting flavor, fruit and water together and freezing it. So are many other places. I just don't believe in faulting a place because they've become successful. Sorry, must be the capitalist in me.
BTW, I've yet to read any product specifics from you, other than "the lemon ice, which is my favorite, was short on tartness and the flecks and little bits of real lemon found in other south philly places," in regards to the issues you have with Rita's. What other flavors have you tried? If you were saying its some chemically, massed produced taste, then hey, you've got a point (though I haven't experienced anything like that from Rita's nor have I seen any comments like that here on the thread) . But that's not what you said, so I'm wondering what your beef with the place is. From your last post, I'd think that its just 'cause their popping up everywhere!
I belive I've already summarized Jeff's feelings about the shortcomings of Rita's. What I don't get is why you are getting so upset over some opinions that Rita's Italian ice just isn't top quality. The argument isn't that Rita's is midgrade because it is a franchise. The argument is not that Rita's isn't good because it is successful. The argument is that many of us, Jeff included, have sampled Rita's and don't find their product to be up to the standards of many other places we have tried. Nobody is faulting Rita for being a successful business, nor is anyone saying that Rita doesn't put forth an acceptable product. It's just that there are several places that serve a product which has a more natural and all-around better taste than the product they serve at Rita's. It isn't one thing or specifics, it's a conglomerate of things that lead to this conclusion.
To draw some kind of comparison, I think of Cold Stone Creamery. Sure they make a delicious ice cream product, and they are successful. However, I happen to think that their ice cream itself is midgrade, and can rattle off a list of establishments that are serving a far superior ice cream product.
It comes down to a matter of taste, not a matter of upsetting you specifically.
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Are there any Japanese groceries or specialty stores that carry the rhizome? I want it specifically for home use. Not interested in eateries that serve it. I am trying to avoid mail order too.
The only place I've seen it is in a couple of Asian stores in Manhattan. It was quite expensive too, about $25 for 1/8 of an ounce.
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First, I agreed with Jeff as to what I read about Rita's being the "McDonalds" of water ice. Then I thought to myself, what the heck is water ice, isn't it Italian ice?
Deciding for my own piece of mind that it is in fact Italian ice, I checked out Jeff's link, only to realize that Capogiro is in fact not Italian ice at all, but in fact gelato and Sorbet. 
Upon further investigation, I confirmed my suspicions that Rita's form of gelati is not really gelato at all, but rather a mix of their Italian Ice and frozen custard. Trying to compare these two establishments would be like trying to compare your favorite pizza parlor to Dominos.
That being said, I agree with what Jeff is trying to convey. There is no particular flavor ingredient or aspect of Rita's that you can put your finger on to elaborate on why it isn't as good. Just as you can get a better cup of coffee outside of a Starbucks, you can get better Italian ice at a multitude of locations other than Rita's--far better. The lemon tastes like eating a frozen lemon, complete with zest. The watermelon tastes like watermelon, the mango tastes like mango, and the snozzberry tastes exactly like snozzberry!
I find Rita's to be to artificially sugary and chemically, and not like an authentic flavored frozen iced fruit.I guess when it comes down to I just think that high end Italian ice has more of an authentic flavor to it, and Rita comes up short. Like many successful franchises, Rita's uses successful marketing to drive a familiar tasting mass produced goods to a population that feels comfortable with name brand recognition and is satisfactoraly refreshed by a more or less average product.
Does Rita's make a tasty product? Sure! It's just not as good as some of the finer local places that you'll find.
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one word: service.
they drop the ball, and for me, it's not even worth the hassle anymore. and this coming from a guy who was perhaps their original proponent when they lived in Nutley. what a shame.
I have heard that they used to have service problems. I go there quite frequently, and it hasn't been an issue. Even when I went with a party of 6, they were quite accomodating and on the ball.
Maybe service issues are behind them. Maybe I've been lucky.
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Just went to Little Saigon for lunch. I'm still so suprised that it isn't more crowded.
Lemongrass chicken over rice with a delicious spicy flavor, and a very tasty and light wonton soup for an apetizer for $6.36. I just don't know where you can get a better lunch deal.
The food is consistantly delicious, and the prices are more than reasonable. They seem to do very well on weekends in the evening, but lunch is pretty quiet.
Located on Elm St. on the eastern part of town, parking isn't a problem like it is for much of the Montclair restaurants on or near Bloomfield Ave.
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Tuptim used to be good...discussed on a different thread that it is terrible now..new owners I believe.
I was underwhelmed by Tuptim last time I was there. I did not return. I thought Thai Chef was far superior.
I'd like to try Brookside Thai on Broad St, now that I've read a couple of positive reviews.
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hitmanoo - what are the prices like?
I'll tell you a couple of the prices I remember, as I didn't pick up the check last night.
Mussels- $11
Risotto- $25
I don't want to lead anyone astray by guessing at other prices.
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Went to Reggiano tonight. They have had their liquor license for a couple of days now. A few people didn't realize and brought some wine. Personally, I think they should have been informed of the license and allowed to drink their own wine, since the license is brand new. However, it appeared that they were charged a $15 corkage fee for a couple of bottles--I digress.
The food was pretty good. I tried the zupa di mussels with a red sauce, and while it was pretty straight up, it was just as it should have been. Quite tasty with a light red sauce for dipping some bread.
Had the soft shell crab special which was done with a very lightly sauteed crab in a green salad with sliced mango and shredded onion. Finished with a balsamic dressing. I'm not sure that this dish really worked for me as I hoped it would. I enjoyed the salad and the mangos... the crab didn't really tie well into this one, leaving me a little diappointed with my first soft shell crab of the season.
Also tried the seafood risotto. This was quite flavorful, though a little oversalted. Not killed with salt, but a little overdone.
Was told that the chicken marsala was excellent. If I return--given how close it is to home, I'm sure I will give it another go--I may have to try it for myself.
In all, I'd have to say that in my opinion, it was just another standard local Italian place with a liquor license. Good enough to be a local stand-by, but not worth the trip in from out of town.
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I didn't get any wristbands with the pass we got this year, for whatever that's worth...
Neither did I. Are they distributed on-site to prevent counterfeiting?
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That lobster video is so bad ass. How much is an omakase style meal at this place?
That lobster video seems almost cruel. For some reason it reminds me of a scene from Jurassic Park where they talk about the dinasaurs eating prey while they are still alive...
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Thanks Jason!
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Also, the Bubba Pass allows TWO people at a time to jump the lines, not just one. If you try each pit, each person getting a plate, that covers the $125.
Does this mean that one pass allows 2 people to stand online together? Are you allowed to bring some of the food to a 3rd person?
I was hoping to get just 1 fast pass that would allow a group of 3 (possibly 4) of us to eat together. I'm not 100% sure about the rules. Is it just one fast pass for 2 people in line, or do they limit it in some other way?
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Of course. I was just trying to point out how rediculous the price is in NY. If the market will bear it, its fine.
Well, it doesn't actually cost that much for BBQ, it just costs $125 or $200 if you want to get the fast pass. If you want to pay $7-$8 per order, you are welcome to, but then you have to wait on some ridiculous lines. They limit (supposedly, we'll see
) the number of fast passes that they sell. Basically it's just ordering some BBQ in advance so you don't have to wait on line as long.Since I don't see myself eating $225 in BBQ food in 2 days, I'll bring a few friends along to help me to mange!
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For $128 less, you could buy a ticket into the Memphis in May world championship BBQ contest. And if you are good enough to do some smooth talking, you can get into a lot of tents and eat all the BBQ you want. Plus all the cold beer that you could possibly want,handed to you by the contestants. I got to try the number 3 hog (Jack's Diner, of Jack's firehouse grill in Philly) and the number 1 hog (Old School Smokers from Skullbone Tenesee) at this years championsip. Plus some of Chris Lilly's chicken and shoulder. Also some of his mother-in-laws homemade sugar cookies and her bundt cake! Try that in NY!
Not to argue that it's not a great deal with some top notch BBQ, but a trip to Memphis would cost way more than $128!
For the price difference, i'll just have to settle for BBQ in NYC.
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SOMEWHAT CRANKY? That's the understatement of the decade! How about nasty asshole! I've lived in Livingston for 12 years and though she has GREAT bagels, she is one of the rudest retailers I've ever met. How ironic that many people refer to her as the Bagel Nazi...the irony being that she's an orthodox Jew.
...everytime i go there she's either having a hissy fit over something or other, or she's in crisis mode.
Jeff
I must say, now I'm even more eager to go just so I can witness this for myself!
Pal's Cabin
in New Jersey: Dining
Posted
Does this mean I'll have to seek out Copelands the way I sought out Michael's Roscommon?