tommy

since we seem to have a new thread on Blend here, some details: website (this link skips theabsurdly long "intro") 17 Chestnut Street. Ridgewood, NJ. 07450 t. 201.251.4343 f. 201.701.0377 and here's the old thread, where we had a nice time guessing what it was going to be and when it was going to open.

how was the martini? mrs. tommy do like her martinis. i might go tonight to check it out, as i have absolutely nothing else to do.

i wonder if they should revisit the express lane maximums. these limits (10,12, sometimes 15) were implemented back before scanning, and at a time when the entire process of check-out was less efficient. surely the differential in time between scanning (and bagging, assuming one's hands are functional) 10 products and 12 products in negligible. surely. i applaud people following the rules. but i think that there are other factors at play when considering check-out times and its relationship to number-of-items.

i don't get wrapped up in exact numbers. i'm confident that i'll get out of the line with my 10 + 4 items just as fast if not faster than the average person with 10 items. i don't dig in my purse for exact change. i don't stand there waiting for the cashier to bag my stuff. i get out of the way as my transaction is being completed so that the next person can load up the belt. the difference in time btwn 10 items and 14 items, for me, is not measurable by the average human being. these assumptions, of course, are not based on scientific studies, but rather on common sense and experience.

as silly as it might sound, Shop Rite (at least the one in Clark) has excellent fried chicken. had some this weekend thanks to my uncle insisting that he pick up a huge tray.

my jaw is resting on my lap. you guys are out of your heads. nice job.

and what have you heard?

i'm all about the Usingers franks tomorrow as well. what a great find. and pulled pork.

frank's manages to pull in a "very good" from david c. in tomorrow's NYT. this is probably the most i've ever disagreed with his assessment. i wasn't even sure the actual review read like a "very good", but that discussion is being beaten around elsewhere.

good effing god these were really good hot dogs. i ended up grilling the bratwurst, as i hadn't seen this post. seemed OK. i'm interested in other ideas for bratwurst, though, as i'm pretty sure people do all kindza silly things with them. out of the 2 hot dogs (the larger beef one, and the skinnier other one), we actually liked the skinnier one better. more spice, i think. regardless, these things rocked.

was the salad dressed to your (well, her) liking?

do we think this place will be interesting at all? do we think it will even make it? from what it sounds like, it's going to be a soho-y lounge-y place with music and dancing in one section at least, and food in some other area. i'm not sure it's going to fit in very well in ridgewood. although it could get a big following from those in the surrounding area. any idea if the chef is anyone notable? or will it be a cookie-cutter menu with a cookie-cutter wine list. the curiousity is killing me.

i just got my 8 lbs of meat from usinger. any thoughts on the best method of cooking these things? i'd like to maximize my enjoyment, and i also want to do a blind taste test (i basically ordered what holly and john the hotdog guy suggested).

I take it he has a shop someplace? indeed he does. he was written up in NJ Monthly, i think, not too long ago. i think i have the info somewhere. i'll post it if i find it. i think the guy's place is in Fairlawn or Hawthorne or something silly like that.

as they got older they stopped singing about women, well as much as they did at least. so i say: what's left to sing about?

that guy is pretty well known in the area (although the name escapes me) and very well might be worth the trip on its own, given the options in the area for fresh muzz.

I'm not really hoping for (or expecting) Babbo or Felidia...if I wanted that I'd just go into the city. I'm not looking for transcendant....I'm looking for decent "neighborhood" Italian food that's close to home. fair enough. but if you don't want to waste your time on bad food, don't. i can only recommend La Cambusa in ridgewood. i will also add that i had a second excellent past dish at Terraza's (sp?) in Nutley recently. i've always figured this place would be pretty lame, but i've been really impressed with the pasta. it's no Babbo, but it's pretty damned good. nutley isn't all that far from bergen county. about 15 minutes from paramus. edit: when i say "second excellent dish" i mean that it was my second time there and it was my second pasta dish and both were excellent.

i don't know if it's still there, but down below is Nam, where you can get vietnamese style pork, lettuce, pate, and nuoc cham on a baguette for a coupla bucks. pretty good in a pinch.

in the US it's 6 liters a year? i'd guess i hit that number on about January 10th or so. edit: ah, "pure alcohol." so if wine is 13% or so, i guess i hit the 6 liter mark by mid-march.

i don't know if big business created my need, but i need my cell phone just as much as i need email, a car, etc.

i find this holds true with just about any conversation i overhear.

Yeah, it's totally not necessary at this point. Unless there's a bus starting up next to you while you're trying to talk, generally speaking people can hear you fine if you speak at normal or even slightly quieter volume on a cell phone. People just speak loudly because the phone speaker is loud in their ear and they naturally respond in kind. we agree. and someone else suggests that phones aren't loud enough and that's why people talk loud. i wonder what the facts are? i'm tempted to agree with your 5 points as well. all 5 of them plus the etc.

i meant that it's not necessary to talk loudly into cell phones as it is, as they're pretty good usually. you may pee on my pants, but please don't tell me it's raining. i'm beggin' ya here.

i think people will always talk louder into a cell phone, or at least for a while after technology makes it unnecessary (although i think an argument could be made that it's not necessary even at this point). it will take years for that to change. it's new, it's human nature, it's tough to get around. the more aware of us are cognizant of our volume...most of the time.

no interruptions from babysitters, sick mom going to the hospital, etc. that's a touchy issue and one that has been discussed around here, with predictable results, earlier on. but i'm certainly in agreement that cell phones should be turned off when going to the theater, movies, opera, etc.