Peter Conway

Here are two more A Reisling by Fritz Windisch, Niersteiner Spiegelberg Riesling Kabinett. 2003 Also under $10.00. winebuyer.com and probaly Bottle King 2003 Vouvray Domaine Pichot. Available at Wine Library and other stores for under $10.00. Full review here NJ Dinner at Home - Recipe and Wines

Lakeside is good, thanks for the reminder. I like that extra touch of a little mustard.

Pillar Box Red is a new favorite inexpensive wine. A delicious Cab, Shiraz, Merlot blend from Australia that can be had for less than $10.00 a bottle. It's not in a box, but it does have a screw top Parker gave it a 90. Wonder where the name came from? Pillar Box Red

Had a great dinner at Raymond's last night. We have been going there since it opened as 28 in the 90's. Like many places they have had their ups and downs. The chef there now is definitely up! The restaurant was filled with a very nice crowd. Hip twenty-somethings; sophisticated older adults; several families, two with infants; a group of laughing woman; and my wife, Diana and I with our son Pierce. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. The array of patrons truly reflects the restaurant’s universal appeal. We had four dishes from the specials of the day which included a delicious split pea soup. Just the right consistency and a nice sprinkling of bacon and rosemary that created a nice contrast to the buttery pea puree. Pierce was delighted to find a favorite, duck confit, on the menu. It was done just right served over a bed of savory greens, beets and walnuts swept with a balanced vinaigrette. For an entrée he had real “comfort food” macaroni and sheese served in an iron skillet. I had the pepper crusted yellow fin tuna, medium rare, seared about an 1/8” in, the fish was of absolutely top quality, rarely found out side of New York. It was served in an architectural stack that started with coconut risotto cake which was scrumptious, the rice just past firm and sweet with coconut, very unique. On top was a sparkling Asian slaw, again with a perfectly balanced soy vinaigrette. From the everyday menu, Diana enjoyed the lamb shank which was slow roasted and falling off the bone. It was basted in a bit of tomato. The creamy polenta, broccoli rabe and tomato made it a perfect dish.

Yes, the deck can be a little funky. I was there the other night. Paid my fee and tried to leave. The machine said my card was unreadable. After a few tries I was considering other options, like breaking the gate. Luckily a pleasant voice came on and asked me what was happening. I explained and he opened the gate. Technology, can't live with it and can't live without it.

Wicker Basket 84 E Main St # B Mendham, NJ 07945

We love the place especially in the warm weather. Peter

I love you guys, I am happy to know I'm not the only one who wonders in disbelief as I my wife and daughter are glued to such a phony event. In any case we had a great party. Food was a strange array of taquitos and guacamole from Costco. Chips and Salsa from Whole Foods. A homemade lasagna, roasted chicken from Whole Foods, and salad. We had some a good Italian and Flying Cloud Cabernet Sauvignon. Got go.

Heading over to friends who are having an Oscar Party. I'm personally not all that into the Oscars, did not see one Best Picture Nomination. Interesting all but one are based on "true" stories. I prefer obscure Indy and Foreign films. But I am always up to party and since I recommend the wine I know it will be ok. I'll be back with a report. And would love to hear yours.

Yes it looks like Whole Foods will be going to the old Pathmark in West Orange. I also heard a rumor that Trader Joe's is going into the Montclair WF location.

Sagami, Collingswood ← Dai Kichi in Upper Montclair on Monday or Wednesday. Maybe I'm crazy but it just tastes better on those nights.

Hang in their guys. We are with you.

Above average compared to what? My kids have gone to Daruma, and they loved it. I have not been bold enough to give it a try myself.

We used to go to Vinnie's every few months back when it was on Bay Street. Always enjoyed our dinners there. Tried the new digs for the first time on Broad Street. Majorly disappointed. Had Clams Oreganato and my sin had Shrimp Cocktail. The chef is trying to emulate a fine restaurant by sprinkling parsley. The clams were pretty good after you pushed away the excessive bred crumbs. The shrimp were really flavorless, just worked as a spoon for the OK cocktail sauce. My son ordered his favorite Cavetelli and Brocoli, but to make it complete he ordered a side of sausage. In his words "nothing special but good." The pasta was nice but the Sausage was second rate. Too much fennel if you ask me. I had Savoy Chicken, I know I should just go to Belmont and get the real deal. It was not bad, ate the chicken down to the bone. But I wanted a vegetable, so had ordere Spinach. At least it was not over cooked. In the end our tab was $60.00. For ten or fifeeen more, we could have had an incredible meal at Giotto. So where do you get good moderately priced Italian. I'd love to know. Thanks

I think it is a lot in your expectations, but being some one who would only go out to dinner in New York up until a few years ago, I'd say that many of the Montclair restaurants are really excellent. Nevertheless, I have heard complaints about them all. Service is often an issue. Table 8 which I think is incredible, gets overwhelmed and has service issues. For that reason I rarely go out on a Saturday, or if we do, it is early before a movie. Blu gets rave reviews and I have enjoyed meals there, but others were unimpressed. One review I read from a person unimpressed by Blu loved Raymonds. I like Raymonds a lot, because I know the people who run it. They food is some times inconcistent, but usually very good. The place is very nice, but on the other hand it promotes itself to families, so at the first sitting there are often kids. Both Raymonds and Blu are a little less expensive that Table 8 or Fascino. Fascino is very good I hear. Have not gone yet. But if you believe the NY Times it is amazing. Two other Italians I like are Giotto, and Il Forno. They both have a homey feel. Il Forno is smaller. I have a review on that restaurant on my blog below. Some people love Corso 88. Epernay, I was just at Epernay and was blown away. It is basic Frenc and if that is what you like I'd go for it. But it is not Les Halle or Tartine. Everyone seems to love the Thai French food at Deja Vu but the service is just fair. In Upper Montclair I really like Cafe Sultan for a Middle East Fix. It is a tiny place, and I think Dai Kichi for Japanese is the best I have had in New Jersey. I'd search the forum here, there are lots of good posts on Montclair. Look at my blog as well. There are no places that I would call neighborhood places. In my mind that is like a pub or restaurant that has been around since 195.. Let us know what your tried and how you liked it.

Wow, I'd love to taste that. Here is one experts opinion. With a phenomenal bouquet of exotic spices, coffee and intense blackcurrant, and a firm but incredibly ripe palate of great class, this Mouton clearly has few peers amongst the 1988 crop. The famous Baron Philippe de Rothschild died in January of this year, and this highly underrated wine is a fitting testament. Drink now-2020. From http://www.bbr.com/US/db/product/32480B/Ch...auillac?ID=null

Have not been able to get there in some time, friends went on Saturday and loved it. Other friends that live out that way go every couple of months. It is homey, and if you don't just go with the flow you could be put off by the service, but the food is consistently outstanding.

This thread already exists in the Wine Forum, but since there seems to be a lot of fellow winos here I thought I'd start it in the New Jersey section. Do you have a special bottle or bottles of wine in tucked away for a special occasion. I know I do. But the "occasion" never arrives and that special bottle passes its prime. Seven years ago, Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher, the couple who write the "Tastings" column found on Fridays in the Wall St. Journal, Personal Journal, decided to create Open That Bottle Night, where the bottle itself is the occasion. I am still thinking about what I will be opening, how about you? Read more on OTBN here.

All alone tonight, stopped at Whole Foods in Montclair. Kid at hockey and wife at Mah Jung club. Had a craving for crab cakes, and I thought they would go great with a bottle of a Wieninger Austrian Wine I had waiting for me in the fridge. But they were out so picked the clams casino, big ones on a scallop shell. I love clams casino. A nice creamy cole slaw and pureed orange squash. Delicious. You might want to try this $10.00 wine Wine Library or Amanti Vino in Montclair. "Very much in the tradition of the Viennese heurigen, this is a lively and spirited young wine with slightly exotic notes, somewhat untamed and absolutely comparable with its namesake, Sophie Wieninger, the two-and-a-half year old daughter of the Wieninger household." -Winery

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My wife decided that she wants to get take out from AHD, she refuses to dine out on holidays, and then go to the movies. We've picked out the dogs we are having. I think I am going to open a new Bonardo Familia Mayol Kaleido Bonardathat I just bought at Amanti Vino Now for the movie. Something New or Firewall? I guess it would be good if my son and I would let my wife win on this one.

Thanks Lou. I think they are.

Got to try AHD yesterday. Gotta say I love the place. Have had dogs in Chicago and Toronto both claim to have the best in the world, and have covered many of the Jersey spots Hot Dog Johnny's, Hot Grill, Johnny & Hanges, Falls View, the old, now gone, Anthony Wayne, Goffle Gril, The After, etc. These are real good.

On a spur of the moment impulse, Diana suggested dinner at Epernay Friday night. We dine at Epernay at least twice a year, tasting the fall and spring menu changes. This dinner was the best we have ever had at Epernay and we will be returning again soon, at least for the special Australian Wagyu (Kobe) Beef dinner they are serving on the February 19th. Having decided against selling, Coutney and Mark have settled in and are very focused on making Epernay the great French restaurant that it is and can be. Mark’s talents as a chef continue to advance. To start we tried the soup Lentil Du Puy, a new item on the menu for us. Lentils Du Puy are named after the French city Le Puy en Velay a beautiful place with ancient sacred sites in Auvergne where they are grown. These lentils are well known for their exceptional flavor and texture. Choosing these exceptional beans to create the best lentil soup I have ever tasted is in Mark’s style of always using the best ingredients available. We also had the Roasted Beet, Mache and Leek Salad with Walnuts. A appetizer we have enjoyed many times before, but on this day it had a little fancier preparation, the dressing a little more pronounced. Of course a trip to Epernay would not be complete with out the Frites with Aiola. Alone served in a paper cone or with Steak Frites they are delicious and a good way to fill up the kids if you are feeling generous enough to bring them. They are cooked just right and sprinkled with salt and dry sautéed parsley. The wine we poured was a Sauvigon Blanc from New Zealand that I bought at Amanti Vino. It is produced by Claire and Mike Allan of Huia Vineyards. They both spent time learning their trade in Champagne, France near the city of Epernay. This delicious wine is more well rounded than most New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs, which tend to be very sharp. I agree with the winemakers description “On the nose this aromatic wine shows uplifting bright gooseberry and ripe citrus. It is finely structured with multi layers of fresh squeezed passion fruit, pineapple, lime and some flower notes. The flavours on the palate are intense and long.” Epernay is in Burgundy, were Pinot Noirs and Chardonnay tend to rule, however, I think a Boudreaux Cabernet or Sauvignon Blanc would go better with the menu at Epernay. The table next to us had two German Rieslings they were enjoying and another table had two California wines. As I have said before when it comes to wine, drink what you like. I'd suggest stopping by Amanti Vino on Church Street, tell them what your planning to eat, your price range, and they will suggest a wine I'm sure you will enjoy. For entrees I had the new Creamy Chicken and Wild Mushroom Pot Pie. I always loved pot pie as a kid, but have not had one in years. I had to try it. What was the best pot pie you have ever had? Your Mom’s? Horn and Hardarts in New York or Philly? This one is better, with a perfect light but crispy crust over delicious chicken in gravy with carrots, potatoes and exotic mushrooms. We also enjoyed the Smoked Double Pork Chop, Braised Cabbage, Bacon & Onion, Dried Cherries Jus. We have had this before and was excellent again. Too full for dessert, we passed on favorites of the Berries with Sabayon or the Apple Tarte Tatin If you go to Epernay, please go hungry, the portions are hearty and rich, very filling. For appetizers you can easily share a Steak Tartare or Country Pâté and one or two salads among four people.

I've heard Greek Delights is still good.