poundpod

Paradiso Pizza, Route 46 in Rockaway. A true "hole in the wall," with no more than eight tables and no ambience, the food is fantastic and the owner, a true character. Aside from excellent pizza, Matteo, the owner, makes superb pasta. Homemade gnocchi, penne with fresh tomato and porcini mushrooms, excellent fish and veal (the pizzaola is terrific) It is BYOB, the portions are generous, and no entree is more than $14.00, with salad, homemade bread, and a pasta side.

John, Another detailed and thoughtful hot dog post! On the end of that small Plaza where you checked out Dino's is one of the undiscovered Italian gems of Morris County, Paradiso Pizza. It's a hole-in-the-wall, but when Matt, the owner, is cooking, it serves up fabulous pizza, delicious sandwiches, and wonderful value for the dollar you spend. Matty's veggie sub with fresh mozzarella is a fantastic sandwich, his thin crust pizza is top notch, and his salads are delicious. I recommend the place highly for a quick bite with the family, or take out Italian for a reasonable price.

Believe it or not, the best and easiest recipe I've found for this bread is in "Secrets of a Jewish Baker" by Greenstein. The recipe is foolproof and delicious. I've made it many times. I think they also call it "Broa"

Dottie's True Blue Cafe, on Jones, sounds like the place you are describing. Seats at the bar, a few tables, great pancakes and omelettes, great artisinal cheeses and preserves. Not a great neighborhood, mind you, but worth the trip. And it is still there.

My wife and I had dinner at Kokkari in early July. It is, indeed, a beautiful room with tremendous warmth--although on this Friday night, it was quite busy. The waitstaff is excellent, patient, and helpful. I had fantastic appetizers, including some Greek spreads, grilled vegetables, and artichokes. My wife and I each ordered fish, and it was fresh, perfectly prepared, with lemon, olive oil & Greek oregano. The sides of roasted potatoes with lemon and olive oil, and braised greens, were perfect. The yogurt and dates with honey was as good as it gets at the end of this kind of meal. I loved Kokkari. Judging from the spirit in the restaurant, I think they had a very happy and satisfied crowd that evening. Enjoy

I finally made it to Amazing Hot Dog. As I told the owners, I have a strong hot dog "history." My late father worked for Sabrett for 41 years, and when he retired, opened a Jewish deli in Houston, Tx. I've been around dogs for a very, very long time. My lunch at AHD was exactly what I expected. The place is a throwback to my youth, when it was about the food, not the packaging. Their all-beef Best's dogs are excellent, and well-prepared. The roll was spectacularly fresh and appropriately sized. Great brown mustard, and in the right quantity. Kraut was tender but still crisp, a far cry from the out-of-the-bag or limp stuff you usually get. The side of chili was sweet and spicy. A little sweet for my tastes, but not cloying. Good texture, without fat or water swimming around. The fries were very nice, speckled with coarse salt, tender and crisp, creamy inside. Those mealy frozen fries are awful, aren't they? It's nice to get a fresh fry, fried twice in clean oil, once in a while, particularly with a quality dog. My tastes--and my habits--run toward kosher franks, these days, particularly Empire National casing franks. However, Best makes a good product, and these gentlemen know the "flavor profile" they are looking to establish. The limeade, by the way, is wonderful. I can recommend AHD without reservations. It's a good value, with nice, knowledgeable, welcoming owners. Good luck!