MJP

Every good thing that's been said about Penang (East Hanover) is true. We went last night, and this was my first actual Malaysian experience. I've had bits and pieces of Malaysian before, but never the whole shabang. It was my girlfriend's first Malaysian ever, period. We started pretty basic with roti canai and chicken satay. They'd been turning out a lot of the stuff and we had ours about two minutes after we ordered it. The roti was flaky on the edges and perfectly chewy in the middle. I think the chicken curry was a little on the mild side, the girlfriend (spicy-sensetive) thought it was a bit spicy. She really dug the satay. We had recommendations from everyone in the thread: tofu nyonya, Penang jumbo shrimp (shells/heads on), and char kuey teow. The jumbo shrimp were absolutely delicious. I loved how they blended the spice, the shrimp paste, the onions, basil, and galangal... it became a thin paste that the shrimp were stir-fried in, and peeling off the heads and shells gave us the chance to go primal and lick off the sauce. The shrimp were split, so peeling was easy - and boy, did they mean it when they said jumbo shrimp. The tofu nyonya was equally delicious. It kinda reminded me of the Chinese "ants climbing a tree" dish with a very Thai flavor, only with fried tofu instead of noodles. I think it'd be good for more people, since it was pretty substantial and protein-laden. Finally... the CKT. I took one bit of this and it took me back to Brisbane: I'd get CKT take-out from a hole-in-the-wall Malaysian place, walk over to City Hall Park, and sit next to the bronze kangaroo statue while I tossed bits of noodles to the ibis. It was so delicious, and I could tell they used the dark soy that made it perfect. We can't wait to go back. This was very much worth the trip. BYO made it only better, although next time I'm not bringing a gewurztraminer. It was pretty overpowered at some points, pretty overpowering at others. I'm still a wine n00b, so this serves as a good learning experience.

Piast Provisions in Garfield makes fantastic Polish sausage... kielbasa, etc. 800 River Drive, Garfield. I think it's fairly close to 46 and 21. 973-340-4722.

It took me years before I started going to Rita's. Rita's bought out Jackie's Italian Ice in Belleville, where I remember having the best Italian ice ever. It was just a few blocks from my uncle's car dealership. The Lyndhurst Pastry Shop on Ridge Road, right next to the Kingsland NJ Transit station, does a fantastic lemon ice, zest bits and all. I can't speak for the pastries, but the line has been long these hot nights. It's served via a little window on the left side of the building. Not Morris, but worth it if you have to be around Lyndhurst.

Which do you guys think should be the first hit for someone like me who's never been to this type of Chinese restaurant before: Lee's Hawaiian Islander or Chan's? I live in Lyndhurst, maybe five minutes up Riverside from Lee's, but I'd rather get the full experience (and of course, better food). :-)

I have never been to a Chinese restaurant of this type... my sole Chinese experience has been either Generic Dragon or Chinatown. How does the food differ in quality from either? I'd kill to take my girlfriend to a place like this, but if the food tastes the same as my neighborhood Chinese place, we'd probably end up going to Han Ah Rheum and the Chinese place that looked good in one of Jason's other posts.

The girlfriend and I went to Mitsuwa for the first day of the Kyushu/Okinawa Food Fair and it was quite the blast. They had a bunch of sampleable foods, among them the squid shumai and steamed buns. We missed the squid shumai because whenever we went by that booth, people had already descended upon it and eaten all of the samples that were out. There were two types of squid steamed buns available; they were basically nikuman or Shanghai-style steamed buns, but they had two types of dough: one flavored with squid cartilage (I think?) and one flavored with squid ink. I couldn't get over the squid ink one. This was what we had for lunch: Hidechan ramen. It was done by someone who's apparently a famous ramen chef. The broth was very porky, with less spice or salt than a normal salt ramen, but it was a unique, deep flavor that really resonated and left no aftertaste whatsoever. It was a good change of pace, and the extra scallions and different pork slices were quite nice. The noodles were less thick and not the curly type I've seen at Santoka thus far. Worth it this one time, but I prefer the normal salt ramen a little better. They had these mochi in boxes to take home or fresh made. My girlfriend loves mochi, I hate it, but I tried it anyway and still hate it. Oh well. Mochi makers at work. In his hands is a griddle like the kind they use to make takoyaki. Normally the mochi isn't cooked, but I guess this is a Kyushu/Okinawa specialty style. These are basically balls of red bean paste rolled up in sweet potato powder. I've had this before and it's good stuff. We didn't get any this time. Various fish cakes and fried stuff that was being sold over in the deli corner. These are the squid buns. I love the guy with the dancing arms. Click here for a photo of the steamed-bun promo guy in action, along with the shumai makers. Solid bricks of Okinawan sweet potato and red bean jams. Fried stuff and fishcakes sold in the deli section. Some of these can be had year-round, but they had fresh fried softshell crab, anchovies, and squid legs (bottom left) along with different varieties of shrimp, cod, and pike eel cakes (top and bottom right.) The croquettes (top left) were tasty and crispy, but they weren't any different than the croquettes that are normally there. These were the real stars: sata andagi (the two brownish things) and sweet potato balls rolled in sesame seeds. Sata andagi is a fried flour dessert that's crusted in brown sugar. Ours were crispy and delicious. The inside of the sweet potato things. I guess the purple might be from taro? Regardless of its origin, these were the real stars: light and fluffy, with a wonderful crusty texture from the sesame seeds. Sorry for the long post, but this is just a little sample. For anyone that has the time, swing down for the food fair. There's a lot of really funky regional stuff there, a few dishes out for sampling. I warn you, it'll be crowded, but worth it. Not pictured: special mackerel sushi. We had the grilled mackerel sushi with dinner and it was gone before I could take a picture.

If you don't mind a beautiful drive, there's a farmer's market just over the border in Spring Valley, New York. The town is such a wonderful little place for an afternoon trip. It's basically all the way up route 94, so you're taking 23 North for a good long time. NJ Transit runs a line up to Spring Valley if you'd rather take the train, but the views are fantastic, especially at sunset.

The girlfriend and I trekked out from a friend's place in Morris Plains to Royal Buffet in East Hanover (We had a gift certificate; it was a little better than Majestic, but that's another thread) and saw, in the same mall, not far from Kam Man Market, Penang, a Malaysian restaurant. I haven't had good Malaysian in NJ... not ever, I think. Has anyone been? Is it worth the drive out from Lyndhurst to go again? I would kill a human being to have char kuey tiow like they did it in Australia when I was studying there for a semester.

Absolute truth for Sol-Mar. Eat in the bar, not the dining room; the menus are slightly different and they have more specials in the bar side. Now that the smoking ban is in effect, it's a much better experience for non-smokers. If they have a cuttlefish rice stew thing on the menu, GET IT. It's like a risotto, but not so creamy and not so soupy... it's bloody delicious. Just veer left on Ferry Street as you hit the church where the road forks. It gets me every time.

Are there any samplings available? Especially for the cheeses... O_O

Truth for Iberia. They have a stuffed lobster that's wonderful if you're in the mood for it. It's big enough to share between people depending upon the size. Also, Brasilia Grill has a rodizio that is among the best out there if you don't mind a more casual environment (read: there's soccer on the flat-screen TVs and it's kinda got that cafeteria ambiance) but they do have feijouada that's made special and only available on the weekends. They have good seafood dishes if you're not feeling particularly carnivorous.

Curlz, you reminded me of a new chain that I've seen one or two of: Saladworks Cafe. Haven't tried, so YMMV. www.saladworks.com

Brasilia BBQ has a resoundingly comprehensive salad bar. Hot dishes, fried bananas, seafood dishes and salads, all along with your standard veggies. The name of the street escapes me, but it's just a little bit off of Ferry Street. You could probably get a decent salad bar at the big buffet places. I remember that there's one off of Route 4, but I forget where and the name. The last time we went there, I was worried I'd miss Ally McBeal that night, so take the accuracy as you will. :-)

Bringing the thread back on topic, I just got the latest Mitsuwa flyer in the mail. They're doing the Kyushu/Okinawa region food fair from 6/30 to 7/3. These food fairs are real trips and worth the trip. Last year was a blast, and this year looks like a good one too. They're doing a specialty ramen (they always do a regional specialty during most of the food fairs), and there's going to be demonstrations of making michoi, fish cake, squid shumai, and at least three different kinds of mackerel sushi. I also saw what appears to be sata andagi on the list, but it didn't have a demonstration note. It might just be selling the dough to make it at home. It can get a little crowded during the lunch rush, but it's a hell of a scene. Worth it for the unique fresh stuff they demo and sell.

Bergenfield is a little closer than the GSP to Lyndhurst, and hopefully less trafficky, too. This may sound random... but are there any mini golf places in/near Bergenfield? My girlfriend and I wanted to mini-golf this weekend and this'd be an awesome surprise for her.

Anonymouze: on the first page at Rocca's site, it's in a little box. The header is "Pasta tasting every Thursday."

The okonomiyaki is gone since there is no longer a place to grill it. The taiyaki shop no longer has a griddle. Also, Iseya was completely gone and gutted out, covered by a movable fence. This really makes me sad; they had the only bubble tea close to me other than the Garden State Plaza (trafficky as hell) and Top Quality Food Market/Maxim's in Parsippany (too far). :-( If you want mochi, now you have to get it from the coolers in the market itself. Oh well. Word to the wise: if you're ever faced between the salt ramen and the hot miso ramen, get the salt. I had a not-so-great experience with the latter and was in envy of my girlfriend's, the former. Melon bread was nonexistent at St. Honore. If they're not there next week (We have to run back around en route to gather things for an anime convention) I'll ask them what the deal is.

There's a 98% chance I'll be there tomorrow; any requests for tastings, scouting, photos, information of any sort?

Has anyone been here recently? I don't recall seeing any reviews anywhere and my girlfriend lives in Little Falls. If this place is as good as Ironbound, it's a welcome alternative to Newark driving and parking.

I stand corrected; I could have sworn I saw yakisoba for sale last time I was there. orz They do have it in the pre-made food place in the corner, near the groceries, and at the little sweet shop where you can get mochi and other Japanese style sweets. I don't know if there's anything different between the two yakisoba; maybe they come from the same area and are packaged the same. The girlfriend wants to do a picnic, so I'll see if I can finagle some yakisoba there and report back.

I wish that Rita's hadn't bought out Jackie's in Belleville. Jackie's made their lemon ice by hand. Rita's is good, but not that good. Their "gelati" makes everything better, though. It isn't stracciatella, but it's good for a hot day.

Addendum to the taiyaki (which are best eaten outside in late fall/early winter; trust me on this one): they also have white bean obanyaki. The same thing (different shaped pastry) but not as cloyingly sweet as red bean paste can get. I think the obanyaki are weekends only, but don't quote me. Try the yakisoba they make, too. It's great outside during the summer festival (it's meant for kids, so bring them or you'll be bored silly) but fresh off the griddle is fresh off the griddle. Tug, if you don't like red bean, try the melon bread from St. Honore. It's quality.

That's the one, Rachel. If you're looking at the plastic ramen displays, it's to the right, and it's also on the counter to the left of the cash register when you're looking down. According to the website, Santoka is indeed the ramen shop. It also states that the ramen is in the style of Ashikawa in Hokkaido. I have no clue how relevant or true that is, but it says the salt ramen is the signature dish. I find that the salt ramen is superior to everything else, IMHO. I have no clue what's in the new ramen, but it tastes like it's a sweeter, lighter version of sesame oil. My advice: swing by the market part while you wait for your order to grab a bottle of iced oolong tea. I don't recall the brand, but it was on the second shelf from the top near the right of the cold drinks aisle. If you're across from the stall where you can get mochi and bubble tea, you're in the right area for the decent teas. The non-tea drinks are often way, way too sugary for any form of human consumption.

Italian Tomato balances between Japanese-style Italian and the pastry shop. The former is a bit of an acquired taste. The basic meat and tomato sauces are just that and are decent enough, but cod roe spaghetti is a bit of a leap of faith. I tried it once and opted to toss it and buy a bowl of ramen instead. :-/ They used to have fantastic melon bread at St. Honore. It was filled with what was either melon cream or melon custard. Now it kinda shifts in and out; some days you can find it, some days you can't. If it's there, get it. Definitely also try the green tea soft ice cream at Ito En. It really does taste like sencha. Last but not least, the ramen shop has a new cold ramen dish that's absolutely delicious. It's in a sesame brothy kind of sauce/soup with pickled ginger, sliced zucchini, and a bit of hot Chinese mustard. Blend them all together and you've got the perfect combo for a summer ramen dish. It may sound insubstantial, but it's perfect if you don't want the steaming hot deliciousness that's better for the winter.

I'm coming into the city for the auto show on Saturday and don't want to do just a hot dog and pretzel for lunch. I'm in the mood for anything quick, ethnic, and decent; not too expensive if possible. Is there anything good within a few blocks of the Javits Center? I'll be walking it from the Herald Square subway station. I know that there's stuff near Port Authority, but that's mostly chains and burgers. What's something I might not expect on the way? Any thoughts or suggestions?