tommy

a bouncer was stabbed and killed last night while apparently trying to get 2 guys to stop smoking in a bar in manhattan. details, of course, will most likely never be known. pass judgment as you see fit, if you see fit.

pick up 2 beers and go to Fink's in river edge. legal seafood in the mall for oysters and sancerre at the bar. check if Joel's Malibu is open. many restaurants in Ridgewood are closed on mondays. Brooklyn's Pizza in Hackensack, right off of 4, or in Ridgewood. hackensack has wine and beer, ridgewood does not.

hmm. i wonder why the people who can't have dinner with me want to, and those who can never call. i'd pick keith moon. he'd make me look sober.

posted this on another thread: went to Scuttlebutt's in Nutley. i saw that they had oysters on the menu. i asked the waitress what kind of oysters they had. she looked at me like a deer in headlights, and kinda giggled and said "uuu, oysters?" i asked if she could possibly go to the kitchen to find out from someone. the answer was blue point. interesting food at this place. smoky old pub cum fine cuisine outpost. the grouper was perfectly cooked, and served over a ratatouille type thing. bit of fresh tarragon were throughout the butter-based sauce. the sauce, although clearly made from better, wasn't overpowering. a very good dish for 20 bucks. the hanger steak was cooked to order, med-rare. served with flavorless mashed, whose texture sucked as well. tasted like they were made the day before, and not even given an extra dose of butter and cream when reheating. the blue cheese-carmelized onion sauce was more appropriate than i had feared. not overpowering at all, and provided an unexpected and delicious foil to the already rich meat. the blue cheese flavor popped right out of the sauce. entrees come with "soup or salad." lentil that night i think. good soup, and the whole thing is in keeping with the diner theme they have going on there. the wine list is dismal. there was a huge zin offered at, um, oh hell, i don't remember how much. i'm guessing 20's. at 15.5% alcohol, perhaps it should have been on the port list. service is always nice, although they are certainly "diner waitresses." the place is smoky, and people smoke at the tables. everyone around us was ordering wings and burgers and pitchers of beer and watching whatever boring game was on the 4 or so TVs that are all around the dining room. it's quite an interesting place.

does yesterday count? how about wednesday? went to Scuttlebutt's in Nutley. i saw that they had oysters on the menu. i asked the waitress what kind of oysters they had. she looked at me like a deer in headlights, and kinda giggled and said "uuu, oysters?" i asked if she could possibly go to the kitchen to find out from someone. the answer was blue point. interesting food at this place. smoky old pub cum fine cuisine outpost. the grouper was perfectly cooked, and served over a ratatouille type thing. bit of fresh tarragon were throughout the butter-based sauce. the sauce, although clearly made from better, wasn't overpowering. a very good dish for 20 bucks. the hanger steak was cooked to order, med-rare. served with flavorless mashed, whose texture sucked as well. tasted like they were made the day before, and not even given an extra dose of butter and cream when reheating. the blue cheese-carmelized onion sauce was more appropriate than i had feared. not overpowering at all, and provided an unexpected and delicious foil to the already rich meat. the blue cheese flavor popped right out of the sauce. entrees come with "soup or salad." lentil that night i think. good soup, and the whole thing is in keeping with the diner theme they have going on there. the wine list is dismal. there was a huge zin offered at, um, oh hell, i don't remember how much. i'm guessing 20's. at 15.5% alcohol, perhaps it should have been on the port list. service is always nice, although they are certainly "diner waitresses." the place is smoky, and people smoke at the tables. everyone around us was ordering wings and burgers and pitchers of beer and watching whatever boring game was on the 4 or so TVs that are all around the dining room. it's quite an interesting place. last night was a quick stop at kinchley's in ramsey. just fantastic thin crust pizza.

better you than me. i haven't been to Outback in years, but it always bothers me when the steak that i'm getting at a restaurant is about 1/10th as good as something i could make at home for little effort and little money. i agree that when traveling to places where the local food scene is dismal, Outback and Olive Garden can be your friend, especially when you've just landed, and it's 8.30 and pissing down rain, you've just checked into the hotel, and you just want to get something in your stomach so you can get to bed and get up in time for that 8 o'clock. traveling is so glamorous.

ron, glad you enjoyed march so much, which i've often said is my favorite restaurant in the city. now, don't tell anyone about.

any word why?

that is fantastic news, and it sounds like quite a deal. a bit more than the 20.02 specials we love so much (but are hard to come by), but no doubt a great deal nonetheless.

i was, um, "escorted" out of Madison Square Garden by about 5 very dumb looking rent-a-cops during a concert a few years ago for smoking a cigarette. people all around me were smoking out of pipes and bongs of all shapes and sizes. they, apparently, got to see the rest of the concert. i gotta start smoking more weed.

the NYS law is not different than the NYC law as far as "Cigar bars" go. that's why they're applying for the exemption.

good point, poots, about having a hand in it. my only experience was delivery.

there has been one in Hoboken for a while. i found it to be an average to above average burrito place, which isn't saying a lot, unless you are happy getting a bunch of rice for 5 bucks, which obviously appeals to lots of people given the popularity of the place. "baby sized" sounds like it might actually be better, as there might be a lower rice to flavor ratio...

the NYT, today, has an article on that. here if you're subscribed.

no no. the tie needs to be "tossed" over one's shoulder. the derivation of this term is clearly from "look at that tosser with his tie over his shoulder." some rules: please, tuck it into your shirt btwn the buttons if you must get if off of your belly. napkins on your lap. elbows off the table. fingers out of your nose. that is all.

i got to thinking about where all of the extra butts are going to go. one has to assume that the hundreds of cigarette buts that used to go into ashtrays and end up in garbage bags are now going to be littering the street and gutters in front of the bars and around the city. hopefully, bar owners will put ashtrays in front of their places, but that clearly won't be the standard. i like the ash tray in front of Blue Smoke. if i recall, it says "blew smoke." kinda silly.

nope.

recent reports from my local suggest that they, and other bars, have seen a noticeable dip in sales since the ban went into effect.

that's a shame. that used to be a great store. when i lived in hoboken i went there all the time.

i've never met a coleslaw that i didn't like. i like all forms of coleslaw. from the mayo-y stuff, to the vinegary-y stuff. i'm not sure if "cole" suggests "cabbage," but it's certainly important to realize that you can slaw so many things. fennel, vegetables of all sorts, etc. they are beautiful dishes, and always a big hit at summer cookouts. yummy.

my goal is to be the first person in NJ to go here. oh, wait, perhaps others outside of egullet are actually enjoying dinner at this place. sorry, i was suddenly overcome with self-centeredness and absurdity, for there is a good chance there's more than 1 "tommy."

i really just didn't know. after spending countless dollars at Shun Lee and Chin Chin, to experience what was purported to be the "best" chinese that my dollar could buy (outside of hong kong, of course), i figured that it all pretty much sucked here in this area. china 46 has raised the bar, for me, and i've very thrilled. it's a whole 'nother world for me... and i have have egullet to thank for that find.

i just realized i've been here many times. tiny little place, really. i recall it being just another chinese place. although, i was much younger and much more foolish back then. i'd be interested in hearing if it's actually something special and i just didn't get it.

no way! that's a great dish when done right. i'm trying to remember where i had it recently. it was probably at Goodie's down in chinatown. it's a decent enough szechuan place, although not as good as China 46 (not that a restaurant needs to be as good as China 46 to be appreciated).