TomDel

Thanks Jeff. I'll let you know how we make out.

Jeff - Thanks for the response. My son has a birthday coming up and wants to try it. What do you recommend on the menu? ← 2 questions: What kind of food does he like? Any favorites? What day/night are you planning to go? They have specials on each day of the week and that is always the way to go there. ← Well, his birthday is on Saturday February 9th, but I really hate to eat out on Saturdays due to the crowds. So I think we’ll probably shoot for either the preceding Friday or the following Sunday or maybe even that Monday. I understand that they’re closed on Tuesdays. He’s pretty easy to please. My guess is that he’d probably want a steak or maybe a lobster or shrimp dish. I don’t think he’d order a tomato sauce based dish as we have it often at home, although he might try a Bolognese or special sauce (gravy). If they have a clams casino appetizer, I’m sure he’ll order it. I think I read somewhere that they make a white chicken cacciatore. If it sounds something like the old Marsilios’ used to make, I’m sure that’s what my wife will order. I’ll probably order a steak or maybe the veal chop, which I hear is excellent. None of us are particularly picky and would probably try anything if it sounded good.

Jeff - Thanks for the response. My son has a birthday coming up and wants to try it. What do you recommend on the menu?

We need a super bowl of pizza. I’m Trenton born and raised and I’ve sampled them all – both Delorenzo’s, Papa’s, Top Road, Bartolini’s, Conte’s in Princeton, Palemero’s in Bordentown and numerous other wannabees. Jo Jo’s in Hamilton Square is the best pizza/tomato pie in the world period. The Ivy Tavern on S. Broad St. is a close second.

With the demise of the restaurant scene in the Chambersburg section of Trenton, I was trying to come up with some alternate choices. I thought of Chick and Nello’s Old Homestead Inn on Kuser road in Hamilton Twp. I haven’t been there in too many years to remember, so I’m looking for a review of their current fare. I imagine that they still don’t have menus or accept credit cards, so I’d appreciate any advice on what to order or avoid and a ballpark estimate of their prices.

I hate to admit it but I tend to agree with you regarding the quality of the steaks at Lorenzo’s. I’ve gone there a few times a year since the seventies and the last couple of times I’ve noticed that the steaks were not quite as tasty or as tender as they have been in the past. Hopefully, this is temporary and not a downward trend. As you correctly pointed out, Lorenzo’s is the only real steakhouse within a reasonable distance of the Trenton and the surrounding area.

I’ve eaten at KC Prime a number of times for both lunch and dinner and quite frankly I haven’t been impressed with either their food or the service. To be honest, I think the Longhorns in Hamilton Marketplace has better steaks at half the price. If I want a really excellent steak, I’ll go to Pete Lorenzos in Trenton or the Old Homestead if I’m in AC.

My wife and I tried the new Outback on Klockner Rd. and Rt. 130 South next to the Home Depot in Hamilton Twp. We got there around 5:30 PM and it was already pretty crowded, but we did get seated right away. Since this was our first experience at an Outback, we naturally had to try the “Bloomin Onion” as an appetizer. It was actually pretty good and as it turned out, the best thing of the evening. I had the 9 oz. Victoria’s “Crowned” Filet with Blue Cheese along with a salad and an order of the Aussie Chips. The salad was okay but nothing special. The chips were not crisp at all and only lukewarm as was the filet. I’ve been having bad luck with filets lately. This one I can only describe as spongy. It didn’t taste that bad but the texture was weird. The blue cheese seemed to be salad dressing not crumbled cheese. My wife had the Baby Back Ribs with a salad and sides of Aussie Chips and Cinnamon Apples. The salad and chips were the same as above. The ribs were tender enough but in our opinion had too much BBQ sauce on them, but that’s just our preference. We both like ribs with little or even no sauce, i.e., Memphis style with just a dry rub. The real looser was the Cinnamon Apples. This concoction came out as a goopy, syrupy mess with a couple of chunks of apple. It was inedible. We decided to forego coffee and desert as we wanted to get home to watch a hockey game. One thing that was unusual was that we had a waitress who took our order, but everything else was brought to our booth by different people, e.g., drinks, appetizer, water, bread and entrée, each by a different person. I don’t know whether this was a planned process or just a coincidence. In analyzing it, it probably is a more efficient use of personnel, but it certainly seemed strange. Since they’ve only been open about a month, I might give them another try in about six months or so. But I have to tell ya, I was disappointed as I had heard nothing but good things about this chain in the past and was glad to see one open near us. If tonight was the best they could do, then I think Longhorn’s has them beat hands down.

Thanks to all for the suggestions. My sister decided to go with Lu Nello. I’ll try to get some feedback on how the newlyweds liked it after they’ve been there.

Tracy, thanks for the suggestions. I’ll be sure to pass them along to my sister. Someone else suggested Kopici’s but I couldn’t find a website. Do you know if they have one? Also, it seemed a little too casual. I think she’s looking for a more upscale special occasion type of place.

Thanks for the suggestions. I’ll be sure to pass them along to my sister. Blu was one of the places that I heard good things about and put on the list. The other two places that looked pretty good were Rosemary and Sage in Riverdale www.rosemaryandsage.com even though it’s not Italian and Bruschetta in Fairfield http://www.bruschettarestaurant.com . Any comments on either would be appreciated.

I would certainly think that a range of ten miles is okay. I’m not sure how much she wants to spend, but since it’s a wedding gift I’d say at least $100, but more likely $200. I don’t understand your meaning regarding a ton of posts. You’re the only one who’s responded so far. Are you referring to the 100 people who viewed the post? I read a lot of good reviews and had recommendations for LuNella in Cedar Grove. Have you ever been there? PS. You forgot to turn back your computer clock.

My sister would like to send a gift certificate as a wedding present to a very good friend in Wayne, NJ. Any suggestions for a really good restaurant, preferably Italian, would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

I’ve since discovered that CB was sold to a New York private-equity firm on March 7, 2005. If these people were only looking at the bottom line it might account for the drop in the quality of their food.

Last night my wife and I had 5:45 PM appointment that lasted for about an hour. Since we had not had dinner, we decided to get something to eat before we went home. We went to Charley Brown’s located at 2110 Whitehorse-Mercerville Road & Klockner Road in Hamilton Twp., since it was close to our then current location. Now before you all start ranting about how terrible the chains are, I have to tell you that I’ve had some excellent meals at this location. Unfortunately, the meal that I had last night did not fare as well. We started off with drinks and decided to share the three cheese crab dip appetizer. We purposely didn’t order entrees in order to give us time to enjoy our drinks and the crab dip. We got our drinks and halfway through them, put in our meal order. I ordered the 9 oz. filet mignon with a blue cheese topping, fries and a Caesar’s salad. My wife had a combo platter of wienerschnitzel and tempura shrimp along with a baked potato. She chose the salad bar. This is when things started to go bad. Within a minute or so after ordering our entrees, the waitress showed up with my salad. I asked her what happened to the crab dip. She gave me a perplexed look and said that it was in the oven being cooked. Her expression said, “Duhhha! It’s a hot appetizer dummy”. I advised her that we didn’t want it and to cancel the order if it came out with or after our entrees. I pushed my salad aside, ordered another martini and waited for the crab. It arrived in a few minutes and was delicious. It was served with toasted pita bread wedges for dipping and was basically crab meat au gratin. Our entrees arrived after a decent interval, allowing us to enjoy our drinks, the crab, and most of our salads, which by the way were excellent. I started to cut my steak, with a steak knife mind you, and it bounced off! I tried a different section with the same results. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that the meat was interlaced with a very fine gristle or connective tissue, giving it a rubber like consistency. After a few more tries, I called the waitress over and explained the situation to her and told her that the steak was unacceptable and that I would like a replacement. She said no problem and took it back to the kitchen. After about fifteen minutes she returned with another steak, or so she said. Of course by this time my wife was half way through her meal, which she enjoyed. The second steak looked suspiciously like the first. My attempt to cut it yielded the same results. I called the waitress over again and told her that I wasn’t going to pay twenty plus bucks for this junk and to please take it back and give us a check for what we had eaten and drank, and no I didn’t want to order something else. The good news is the Manager came over to our table while we were waiting for the check and expressed her sorrow that we didn’t enjoy our dinner and as a show of good faith comp’d us for the meal and drinks. It had probably been a couple of years since I had been to this location. They may have changed management, chefs, cooks or owners in the interim. Whatever the reason, I won’t be back anytime soon.

This would be just about impossible for me to order. I suppose I could bring myself to taste a piece of someone else's pie however. ← Think of it in the same context a hot soft pretzel with mustard. I don’t think there’s any tomato on the pie only cheese and mustard.

Since my review of Route 130 South was rather critical of their food preparation and service, I think it only fair to point out that I forwarded the review to the restaurant’s owners and have since had a response from one of them. I’ll paraphrase, but essentially she read my review and shared it with their management team and staff. She also thanked me for bringing to their attention the food and service shortcomings, which she agreed needed to be addressed. She assured me that they were working to correct these circumstances presently. She also indicated that they have recently had a management change for the better, and if we did come back soon we would be sure to notice a difference. The owner seemed very sincere in her appreciation of the critique, both the positive and the negative. Only time will tell whether or not they’ll be able to reach the level of excellence that they profess to be striving for. I’ll certainly give them another shot in maybe a month or two. But I think I’ll try lunch or maybe the Tapas bar before I try dinner again.

I tend to agree with you regarding Papa’s. I mentioned it because it’s an institution in the Trenton area. I have not had a pie at Champions; I was referring to the previous owner’s place, when it was called Bartolini’s. I would certainly recommend that you try Jo Jo’s. They make my current favorite pie. However, they are extremely busy and about the only time that I could guarantee you a parking spot and table would be on a Saturday afternoon. My wife and I went there a couple of weeks ago on a Monday night at around 6 PM and couldn’t get a parking spot in their lot! I think they make a mustard pie even though it isn’t listed on their website http://jojostavern.com/ I know that the Ivy Tavern makes one, as my son has ordered it there on numerous occasions. I’d have to say that the Ivy is probably my second choice for a good pie. http://www.ivytavern.com/ I haven’t eaten at the Hudson Street Delorenzo’s in probably 30 years and then only once. I don’t remember it as being anything special, good or bad. I’ve had pies at the Hamilton Ave. location a number of times when guests insist that they try it. I think the pies are okay but quite frankly, they don’t knock my socks off. I think their dough or crust is very bland. Another place that I like to stop at for lunch occasionally, is Scotto & Crimani’s in Yardville, NJ. They make a nice thin, crispy crust pie that you can order by the slice. http://laforchettaristorante.com I haven’t tried Conte’s in Princeton, as I don’t get up there very often, but I have heard that they make an excellent pie. To each his own I guess. As the great used car salesman once said, “There’s an ass for every seat”.

Everyone is familiar with the two Delorenzo’s in Trenton (Hudson & Hamilton Aves.). They both make excellent pies. However, there are a number of other places in the Trenton area that are arguably as good or better depending upon your taste. There’s Papa’s on Chambers St., Jo Jo’s at five points, Top Road on Brunswick Ave and the Ivy Tavern on S. Broad St. to name a few. A lot of locals think that Papa’s and/or the old Bartolini’s (now Champions) were better than Delorenzo’s.

My wife, son and I dined at Route 130 South American Grill and Sushi restaurant last evening. Unfortunately, it was a somewhat disappointing and expensive evening. We arrived at our scheduled reservation time of 6:00 PM and were promptly seated in an almost empty dining room. The room and the interior in general are very nicely decorated and comfortable. After being seated, a young lady approached our table and asked if we would like water, which we did and were subsequently served. We assumed that she would be back in a minute or two with menus and ready to take our cocktail orders. After waiting fifteen or twenty minutes, it became apparent that this was not the case. Finally, I saw her, got her attention, and asked if we could order drinks. She informed us that she would get our waitress. After a few minutes, another young lady arrived and apologized for the delay indicating that there had been a mix-up in table assignments. I thought okay, no big deal, but this was a bad omen and preview of things to come. We ordered drinks which were good, and perused the menu. We started with appetizers. My son had the crab cake that he thought was very good. My wife had the lobster bisque in lieu of an appetizer and also thought it was excellent. I had the baked oysters with crab meat and saffron mayonnaise. This had the potential to be outstanding but unfortunately arrived at room temperature. The four oysters topped with crab meat and mayonnaise were still good but could have been great had they arrived bubbling hot. The salads that came with the entrees were nondescript, mainly chopped iceberg lettuce, and only available with Italian dressing. My son and I both had the “8 + 8 Surf and Turf”, an eight oz. filet mignon and same weight lobster tail. I should have known better and asked what kind of lobster was being served. I expected a cold water Atlantic type and received what I believe was a S. American species. They’re not bad but nowhere near as tasty as a “Maine” lobster. The filet was okay but nothing like what you would expect to get at a good steak house. The potato wedges were virtually inedible. They were extremely overcooked and completely dried out on the inside. I can only conclude that they were reheated a number of times. The asparagus was okay but nothing special. My wife had the rack of lamb. She ordered it medium, expecting a warm pink center. It arrived extremely well done, almost the texture and doneness of pot roast. She indicated that otherwise, it was excellent lamb and probably would have been great if cooked properly. Her roasted potatoes were also dried out and overcooked. The tomato ratatouille was okay but nothing special. For dessert, I had a Grand Marnier soufflé that was delicious. My son had a banana cake that he enjoyed. My wife passed. We finished things off with espresso and Sambuca. The espresso was okay, but didn’t have the creamy head of a really good brew. My son and I ordered doubles. They arrived in standard demitasse cups, not the larger “double” cup. When queried, our waitress assured us they were doubles. Not wanting to argue, we drank up asked for and paid the bill and then left. I guess my main complaint had to be the service. Our waitress was a lovely and personable young lady who didn’t have a clue on how to be a professional server. Looking around, most of the wait staff seemed to be high school or college kids. Nothing wrong with that if they were trained properly, but apparently they weren’t, at least not our server. She couldn’t answer any questions regarding how some of the entrees or sides were prepared. We had to ask for a number of things that should have been standard with our order, e.g., steak knives, drawn butter for the lobster, a glass for a beer that I ordered!, a lemon peel for the espresso, et al. All of these omissions delayed our meal. I hope this review doesn’t sound overly critical or petty. The service and food preparation would probably have been okay in a casual bar and grill type of place, but our expectations were that we were going to an upscale destination restaurant. It was certainly priced as such. I doubt that we’d go back any time soon. I might try it in six months or a year if the word of mouth from friends and published reviews were good. It certainly has the potential to be a great restaurant.