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Is the Park better than River Palm, Mignon, Mortons, Frankie and Johnnies, Ruth Chris. This Park place seems to be so great. I guess nobody goes to the Park anymore though it must be too crowded. ← That's the whole point! These polls always inspire debate. The magazine probably loves it! There are several places to go to gauge the NJ Monthly results. One is obvious--Zagat's. Others are local papers etc. I have seen nothing to suggest that placing Park or Esty in the list of say--top five is a "mistake" something to suggest there is a problem. From there it is a matter of the voters who participated in the poll and their preferences. Whatever the category, most likely there will be at least three (often more) places that could be considered "tops." Which one specifically wins out in any given poll will always be a matter of debate. Remember this is a popularity contest--not a critical evaluation by a singular reviewer. (often --to be really gimmicky--a magazine will have two "Best of" categories--one for readers and the other for the magazine's opinion--talk about milking the whole best of phenomenon!). Most of the time there isn't all that much disagreement. Everyone would agree on a list of the top three or five etc. and then debate away as to their pick for number one. ←

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I am interested in learning more about kid friendly non-chain restaurants for well behaved kids. Asian restaurants are kid friendly but we would like to find more places. I have heard Corso 98 in Montclair is very kid friendly. I have found Mignon in Rutherford kid friendly.

food is poor here and not authentic. go to Palisades Park for real Korean.

Thai Chef is a big place compared to the smaller Thai restaurants.

Sounds great. I look forward to trying your dinners.

[-promotion or PR firms? Perhaps.......... That was to what I was referring...not to you by any stretch. ←

[but to make a blanket statement that they are fixed doesn't seem Kosher to me. ←

[Tommy pretty much put the Park/steak issue into perspective in this thread. If Park is not number one it surely has to be in the top two or three. ←

both are highly regarded and have shown up in the past in NJ Monthly. discussion on this website is certainly not the end-all and hardly a barometer of the dining habits of NJ diners. ← if both are so highly regarded why have neither been mentioned on this site for years

these threads always start with innuendo and then it just keeps building. Rather than attempt to hint at a massive conspiracy, can anyone look at the two restaurants in question and present some solid evidence that they are not deserving of being in the top two or three restaurants in their respective categories? I haven't been to Park and I have dined at Esty street several times (though I haven't been there recently). I always found it to be one of the better spots in North New Jersey area. Northern NJ is a relatively small area with relatively few top notch restaurants (my guess is there are a dozen or so) so naturally 1,000 or so respondents is a pretty decent turnout. Tommy pretty much put the Park/steak issue into perspective in this thread. If Park is not number one it surely has to be in the top two or three. so far--no one has presented any evidence that Esty street is not one of the top two or three spots for fish in Northern NJ. I just can't see where there is any fix or conspiracy here. NJ Monthly is a reputable publication and if the poll was fixed they run the risk of losing their credibility--it just doesn't make sense. It is pretty boring to see restaurant owners and chefs and other employees hint that these polls are fixed with the results tied into advertising. Never have I seen any credible evidence to support these veiled hints--they always seem to remain innuendo and never emerge as a well supported specific charge. So, a lot of this makes little sense. If the Park and/or Esty Street served lousy food--if there was a large number of diners who howled in complaint or if reviews by sources other than NJ Monthly were in total disagreement then I might believe there was a problem here! until i see some evidence otherwise there doesn't seem to be anything "fishy" about Esty street and there seems to be little support for anyone with a "beef" over the Park's poll results. ← It seem you have not seen the restaurants that received the most votes. The area included in North Jersey included restaurants in Union County so some may say northern NJ is not a relatively small area. I have read very good reviews on this board for Mignon but little talk of The Park with one person saying or inferring it is a good steakhouse to order something other than steak.

Is it a coincidence that the best seafood restaurant Esty Street and the best steak restaurant The Park Steakhouse both are located in Park Ridge yet neither has been highly discussed on egullet.

I disagree. I don't think any of these chains are particularly cheap. A dinner at these chains can cost the same as a moderately priced chef/owner restaurant. It's more perception than reality. They are just "easy". Finding an individual restaurant takes some time, research, and also a test run to find out what kind of meal you will have there. I am willing to spend that time. For me, there is always a better choice than a chain, and for the same price as well. ← I never said chains are cheap. I also prefer non-chain restaurants. My point was that for those with kids chains are more of an option.

[What I do know is that places like OUTBACK or Charlie Brown's will never see me. I want to go to a place where the chef/owner took time to create a menu that he likes himself, supervises the kitchen himself, a place where creativity and attention to detail reigns. Does that make me "un-average"? /quote] Maybe it does makeyou un-average. Many people with kids do not have the luxury of going to the places you frequent so there only option is a chain.

The River Palm has three locations compared to the Park's one. Most people here have not been to the Park. Rather interesting.

[My wife loves this board so jumped on her laptop to ask a question.. Would like to surprise her ←

do you have any idea if the steaks at Mignon in Rutherford are dry aged?

I was surprised the Park Steakhouse was voted best steakhouse in North Jersey considering they do not even offer prime steaks. To pay such high prices for meat that is not even prime is it worth it? Also has any comments on Esty Streets which was voted best for fish in North Jersey.

[ The outdoor space is quite nice ←

Location is good for parking but with so many other choices in town can it do well enough especially at such low prices?

could it be that there are too many restaurants in Englewood making competition hard. In Emerson, Pimaan does very well and is really the only place in that area.

I have been here twice. I found the sashimi no better than other places.

great place for Bergen County. Expensive but worth it. Great service and food.