Rail Paul

Dee and I stopped in at Krogh's recently. Krogh's is a bar -restaurant located in the community of Lake Mohawk, just south of Sparta off NJ 181. Pleasant place, good, home brewed beer. We split a small Mexican pizza (lots of queso, cilantro, chopped sausage, a little greasy). I enjoyed it. Dee had their seasonal Pilsner, light and thirst quenching. Reminded me of the old Piels beer. I had their red ale, OK, had an aftertaste which was a little sweet for me, but fine. Folks around us ordered onion rings, steaks, sandwiches, etc. Super strong smoke-eater, you could actually see the cigarette smoke in the bar drifting up and out. Even though people were smoking ten feet away, you'd never know it. One negative, the rest rooms were beyond foul. Very dirty, flush unit didn't work on one urinal, etc. The Bistro on the Plaza (3 stars in the Ledger) is at the other end of the Plaza, and there's a place called Arthur's Bistro in the center. Based on the cars parked on the plaza, and the prices of real estate in the immediate area, it looks like there's money arond the lake.

Call the cookies anything you wish. I liked the chocolate biscotti. By telling people they'll be even better with coffee in the morning, you leave open the opportunity for them to buy another cookie for right now It seemed to me that when you described the mayan chocolate cookies with cinnamon and chile as "you know, like those magic love cookies in the movie Chocolate " people immediately bought several. Guys, women, all kinds of folks.

CPC used to have a fairly extensive facility in its Englewood Cliffs HQ, don't know if it still exists. CPC is now a part of UniLever, I believe. I'd suspect many colleges which offer home economics degrees for the co-eds might also have them. (Two anachronisms in the same sentence)

Elyse said that the Mexican love cookies sold out VERY early. Several people purchased more than one, and a fellow who stopped by about 5 pm was very distressed when Elyse had to tell him there were no more. It seems he may have had plans for the cookie... The selection (by the time I arrived) was an anadama bread, a cuban bread, the pao, two pies, several large and small chocolate biscotti, large and small oatmeal cookies, and about a dozen cranberry muffins. The location is very convenient for people descending from the train station

Make sure tommy gets his pie first. He'll be good for 50 angry posts if Elyse stiffs him with no pie for a second week

Rosie - I presume you are proceeding east on Bloomfield Avenue from Montclair. East on Bloomfield, remain on the Avenue, pass Ridgewood Avenue Glen Ridge, down the hill, past the last extant Arthur Treacher's and the Bottle King, past the traffic light for State Street. You're still on Bloomfield Ave The next traffic light is Washington, as Tommy noted. There's a sign for NJ Transit Rail on a post. Turn right onto Washington, bear left at T, and follow the road as it winds around a parking lot. The station is ahead up on an embankment. Parking is available on the street in front of the station. The market is in a parking lot directly opposite the station, between the station and Bloomfield Avenue. The trip should take you under ten minutes from the area of Blue Sky. If for some reason you miss the turn for Washington, the next right should also get you to the market. If you run a mapquest search for "Lackawanna Plaza, Bloomfield NJ" the location is correctly marked. However, the railroad tracks are not indicated. Curiously, the now inactive tracks of the former Erie line on the opposite side of town are marked.

Late night dining in the suburbs is difficult. Many places take their last orders at 9 or 930, and bars will often close their kitchens by 10 or 1030. Even Montclair has very limited accomodations if you get out of a movie at 10 pm on a Wednesday and want real food. I worked my way up and down Route 10 in Livingston and E Hanover last year without success. Panevino accepts its last customers "around 930" they said, Mr Chu was already closed, so we ended up at the diner on 46 in Montville by New Road.

Just a reminder that the Farmersville Cheese folks have returned to Madison's market. Thursday 2pm to 7pm, IIRC. Unusual to have two gourmet cheese providers in one place. Farmersville produces a tangy sheep milk cheese, with a very tangy, almost spicy aftertaste. The rinds are often rolled in herbs to provide a nice visual and mild flavoring. Prices typically run $16.99. Greenwood had frozen organic free range poussin last week, just under two pounds. Smoked mozz

I'll take the pao in a 32 oz size, if you don't have me on reserve already Bloomfield NJ Farmers Market, opposite the NJ Transit train station at the Glenwood Avenue end. Thursday, starts 2 pm ends 7 pm?

Citronelle is a wonderful restaurant. It's on the third floor, IIRC, and you can watch people rollerblading on the pathways by the beach, and watch the sun set over the pacific if you have dinner there. The rooms in the hotel are very reasonable, too. Definitely agree on Wine Cask and Super Rica (Julia Child's favorite?). There are several sites which lay out tours of the Santa Ynez valley, just over the hill, literally. Hearst Castle is just north of Cambria, we found it to be delightful and a wonderful experience Many wineries are very helpful in providing no name, cushioned boxes to ship your "olive oil" home to NJ. The UPS store in Santa Barbara has the drill down pat. PM if you want details...

Large portions served often mean large amounts of food prepared. Several charitable organizations specialize in the capture of already prepared food for distribution to America's hungry and malnourished through food banks and other means. Among these are Second Harvest, and the American Culinary Federation (a large chef's professional organization). The ACF has a very active Chef and Child initiative Second Harvest American Culinary Federation

The article appeared in the July 17 edition of the WSJ. If you have a subscription, and care to do a search, the terms FedEx and wine will get you there. It covered the changing landscape of interstate wne shipping in light of several Federal Appeals level rulings weakening state barrier regs, and a 2002 Bush administration decision which simplified the Federal policies. The Wine Institute, Free the Grapes, a cusomer, and several wineries were mentioned. I would suspect that many other folks were interviewed, but their contrib didn't make it to print

pink as in raw? how much does the inside of a hot dog change color when it's cooked in oil, as J&H does (and rutt's of course), as opposed to when it's blanched before being put in oil? Not "raw" pink, but cooked pink, speckled with what might be finely ground pepper. The char was real, but very thin on the edge. There was no graduated browning effect from the edge in slightly toward the center, as you might see with a nicely grilled Lobels steak (hint, hint hint)

Thanks, John. JH lists their "all beef hot dog" as a separate hot dog from their "franks", you're absolutely correct you have to specify the beef. I don't recall noticing an all beef dog at GG, though. It makes sense that they blanch the dogs, they were cooked through, but definitely still pink inside. With the char, that suggests blanching first. Goffle Grill may have had car service at some point in the past. There's a covered arcade in the back with sufficient room for cars to pull nose in, and get a window tray.

Gourmet magazine, August 2003 The focus is on the ripeness of Summer crops. Links should be available in about ten days. Letter objecting to the romanticized treatment of Havana in the May issue. The UK writer observes the attractions aren't available to most Cubans (aka the workers and peasants of socialist lore). WD-50 Jay Cheshes continues his campaign to turn sacred cow into prime burger. He contrasts WD with Angel Palacios in Miami, another Adria devotee, and finds WD wanting. There were two major points in the review: 1) WD isn't a true disciple of Adria; 2) the food isn't all that good, unlike 71 Clinton. Many dishes at WD were uninspired or bland, fish was a low point with tough sturgeon. Cheshes wonders if the NY foodie community is in the "emperor has no clothes" mode. He made a similar point in the review of 66 last month. A.O.C. Caroline Bates says this LA resto wants you to like it. A page of cheeses, 50 wines at the cruvinet, as A.O.C. plumbs the Mediterranean with brio and respect. Only rarely does the kitchen slip. Roadfood The Sterns are in the state where they have to put USA on their license plates. They visit El Rito, a tiny northwest New Mexico town where the restaurant has the only light on after 9 pm. El Farolito (the little light) offers an opulent stew of tender pork, tomato, ribons of hot peppers. In Chimayo, they visit Leona's and gorge on the carne adovado, and the chile relleno burrito. Leona's is on the upside of the Santuario parking lot. Brunch features a honeydew melon in lemon thyme syrup, a striped omlet (chard and strips of bell peppers) and a bacon and lettuce salad. Rose Wines Rodewald likes a Sola Rosa 2002 (very complex nose), a Chat de Peyrassol Cuvee Marie Estelle 02 (sweet smelling). Gerald Asher likes Arrowood La Rose Saralee, Bodega Muga Rioja, Bonny Doon Vin Gris de Cigare. Dublin Maeve Binchy writes about 1950s Dublin and the contemporary scene in her suburban village. Summer Day Herbal white sangria, Corn fritters with aragula, cheddar dill puffs, bacon wrapped cornish hens, Orzo with squash. Boston Guide A fairly superficial list of restaurants, food stores, bakeries, etc in the metro area. The thumbnail descriptions sound almost Zagat-like. Cambridge Mr Bartley's Burger with its 36 configs, including Viagra Cambridge 1 a sleek post modern pizza place Chez Henri with a Cuban inflected (this is Cambridge!) menu Formaggio Kitchen with 200 artisanal cheeses Hi-Rise Breads for exquisite creations Jasper White's Seafood Shack for its perfect lobster (remember, this is a list) East Coast Grill & Raw Bar for spicy imaginative seafood Oleana takes a walk on the Middle eastern side Beacon Hill Savenor's Market for everything from pattypan squash to rattlesnake to ostrich Harvard Gardens Bar and Restaurant for cold beer and meaty burgers North End V Ciraco for regional Italian wines and grappa Daily Catch for Sicilian style seafood Sage restaurant for the best pasta in town Chinatown Chau Chow City or China pearl for dim-sum breakfast, or Hing Shing Bakery's red bean donuts. South End Charlie's Sandwiches for turkey hash breakfast or griddle cakes at long communal tables. Aunt sadies for hundreds of olives Tomatoes A short article mentioning several heirloom totmatoes. Full page, poster quality rendering of a dozen heritage tomatoes. The recipe is for a sea bass with tomato + watermelon salsa Patchwork Pilgrimage Writer Barbara Lazear Ascher journeys to the rural town of Floyd VA in search of a quilter who will hand make a quilt from life's leavings. On the trip, she and her elderly dog Gabriel visit Oak Grove Meadows (Middleburg VA) for organic butter and honey, commune with the Cistercian brothers at Holy Cross Abbey, and spend a night at an Appaloosa horse breeder's B&B. Seeds of Dreams A Bengali view of the cooling powers of poppy seeds, and a reflection on the First and Second Opium Wars in the British Empire prior to the 1857 Uprising. Gourmet Every day Sauteed zucchini ribbons Cantaloupe soup Layered taco salad Balsamic London broil Grilled pork kebabs

Back on the subject of hot dogs, I visited Johnny & Hanges in Fair Lawn today, followed by a visit to Goffle Grill. Both are well known among hot dog fanciers. JH was first, it's a clean well maintained place on Maple Avenue, just south of NJ 208. Hot dogs (one with "world famous chili," the other with onions and mustard) on small white buns, french fries, onion rings, and birch beer. "All the way" appears to be mustard, relish, onions, and chili. Nearly instant counter service, by the time the counter person had assembled two cups with ice, and a bottle of Boylan's birch, the rest of the order was ready. Dogs were a 50/50 beef and pork mix, buns were cottony. Dogs were good to very good, a little char on the exterior, spice speckled pink inside. The chili was OK, I've had much better, this was very thin, almost like a gravy. Fries were OK, on a par with the old McD's, but not superb. Onion rings were very good. Hot, crispy, perfectly round, lightly breaded and big. These are good rings. All in, the meal cost $9.75. Dogs were $2. Other menu items included hamburgers and cheese steak. JH notes it uses fresh oil every day, doesn't reuse oil. They also grind their meat on the premises. Goffle Grill is about five minutes, away, west on 208, north on Goffle Road. Weiner is also $1.75, also 50/50, and also, I believe, a Thumann. I found this a much les satisfying experience. Dogs were OK, less char. Onions rings were also hot, but small, irregular and very bready. Fries were OK, not as good as JH, but similar. We tried the chile dog, the chile was very thin (I wonder if this is a Paterson area thing as the Falls View has a similar thin sauce.) GG's birch beer was very good. Slight popping after taste, I liked the taste. The counterpersons were much more into lingo than the JH staff ("Two down, brown, slaw..."). Prices for both places were in the same range, $9.35 at Goffle, $9.75 at Johnny.

The economic failure of the Hooters in Manhattan was noted at the time with some interest. Perhaps Manhattanites are jaded by their access to places like Scores, Lace, and other higher end gentlemen's clubs? Amsterdam Hooters failure is no surprise, though. There's lots more action, as you note, just a few blocks away

There are quite a few more Little America Hotels, including in Cheyenne, Flagstaff, Arizona, south of Austin. Little America, Wyoming is actually the name of the town itself. (I think it was the site of the first of their hotels (opened in the 1930's), but I'm not sure about that.) The Little America hotel in Little America, Wyoming is indeed their first US location. Little America is just outside green River WY, on the Union Pacific's overland train route. Cheyenne was the second site, and is also on the UP, as is Salt Lake City. The hotel's name was drawn from the pioneering scientific site at the South Pole, established about 1932, when the South Pole was as remote as Mars is today. A small team of American scientists produced exceptional research in an exceptionally harsh climate. Scientists in the 1930s had the same public adulation as rock stars enjoy in the current era.

Newark Airport has an internal transporter called the monorail, which links the terminals and parking areas with the Amtrak / NJ Transit Northeast Corridor rail line to Newark and NY City. The monorail is free for use within the airport. Access to, and use of the rail line to NYC is about $11.55 for a one-way trip on the NJ Transit system (Amtrak is more expensive) . As noted, the trip takes about 20 minutes from the airport, trains run about every 20 minutes during the day, less frequently on nights and weekends. Penn Station NY is located on Seventh avenue at 33rd street, a short cab ride from the Broadway and off-Broadway theaters. Wednesday and Saturday are matinee days for most Bway shows (2pm), many shows have a 2 pm or 3 pm Sunday as well. Bway shows generally play Tuesday thru Saturday evenings. The Metropolitan Museum of Art (5th Ave at 82nd), or the Museum of Natural History (Central Park West at 72nd) are also good bets. Within the immediate Newark area, the Newark Museum has an extensive collection of Tibetan art (who knew?) and a gloriously restored home once occupied by the Ballantine beer family. That will do 3 -4 hours, have a nice dinner in one of the Portuguese places, and cab back to the airport. Should you wish to simply relax, most major hotel chains have locations in the airport area, and are happy to accomodate short stay guests who crave a shower and a warm, flat, bed. edited to reflect thereuare's correction

you've been to both? or is this just speculation. I've been to strip clubs. Never been to Hooters, and feel really weird about even going in. The Wayne NJ Hooters is quite pleasant, and not at all sleazy. It's basically a restaurant / bar with waitresses in orange hot pants or skorts and tight shirts, and a few guy waiters in orange slacks and white, somewhat tight shirts. The waitstaff is perfectly adequate, and not unattractive to view. Burgers are better than average, beer is beer. My wife has been in many more Hooters than I have. She has visited several Hooters when she travels to pick up T-shirts for me. It's like any other bar, really. Hooters sells the sizzle of sex, not the steak of contact. They do a good job of it, move a lot of product. One of the guys in the office reminded me "the girls of Hooters" have done at least one feature photo selection in Playboy magazine.

Some NYC outlets carry the NJ section in their Sunday Times, at least some of the time. I've purchased a Sunday Times at the Port Authority on Saturday night, the NJ section is in it. Maybe some folks in NYC don't like to get the midwestern (NJ) editions.

There doesn't seem to be much rhyme or reason to the Times's practice of when regional reporting items go on the website and when they go "premium." John's article took about eight days to go on the website, and went to premium four days later. Marge Perry's several days older Korean restaurants article of June 29, went on the free side in six days, and remains free and available as of July 18, or 20 days after paper. It would be nice if they had a general policy that material will be posted on the website x days after publication, and will go premium y days after that. News items typically go on the site at 11 pm the night before paper publication

Doesn't the Terminal Market have a system where purchases are bagged or box marked for professional pick up people to move? The buyer marks this crate of lettuce, and that case of oranges, etc and moves on to another booth after getting a ticket from the floor guy. The pick up person then assembles the purchases and brings them to your truck at the loading area. These gentlemen own the franchise to move produce. The buyer isn't expected to move his or her own goods. I believe the Fulton Fish market had a similar system for many years before Mr Guiliani found new employment for some of the enforcers.

yip. the chocolate did have a kick as well. was there cinnamon in them? Elyse decided that her dark Mexican chocolate cookies with the chile and cinnamon resemble the mayan love chocolate featured in the movie Chocolate. I suggested that to a buyer who wandered through and he took one, hope he got lucky with it! There were quite a few people leaving the Midtown Direct trains while I was there, probably 50 or 60 per train. Capturing some of those people will add $ to Elyse's till, so I'm sure there will be a sign at platform level next week. I wonder if the Epernay French bistro in Montclair (north park street right off Bloomfield Ave) would be interested in buying 20 or 30 heart shaped Mayan love cookies for $1.50 each? Might make a nice dessert item with coffee, tied in with the movie theme

Hooters is also expanding its locations in northern NJ. A sign on the Wayne NJ location is currently advertsing for managers and staff for new area Hooters locations. The financial report cited earlier in the thread identifies another aspect of the Hooters business model. As with many micro-breweries, the sale of merchandise is a significant revenue stream. Two hundred grand a week is good revenue for a bar, but 20% of that in merchandise is huge