menton1

Ahhh... you now have me yearning for a wonderful warm salade de campagne, with those fabulous lardons!!

How would you compare this place with Pluckemin Inn, about 10 minutes away, which constantly gets raves from all who have been there?

Don't forget about Red Bank and Lambetville, the other good restaurant "towns" in the State, NOT north of New Brunswick.

Readington??

There is still lots of stuff unique to France and/or Europe; The "Sacs de Glaçons" that I mentioned above, "Gini" soda, in those beautiful cans! More later. Also, a lot of items are available in the US, but at 2-3x the price, so that is also worth a little schlepping...

I somehow question the sincerity of "drock" on this thread; he/she has changed the subject many times, just read the posts. P.S. Readington.

Swiss Chef: It seems that you have now revised your opinion of food in Torino, no? Sure looks great from the photos!!

No need for Splenda anymore; they now have "Canderel" widely available all over France. I remember not too long ago when they didn't even have diet soda, though...

Readington.

Please take note, I mentioned Red Bank, and Lambertville above. Cape May, though, that's REALLY the end of the world...

Ok. I yield. I'll reserve comment until I try it. (Hole in the ground is a great system = luau)

Hope you're right. I'm skeptical. Same owners as Peter's Whale, which was very diner-like. But I guess the word "oysters" on their sign gave you pause.

I'm starting to lose what the topic of this thread is. "Towns" with a lot of restaurants, or restaurants with tablecloths. or why towns with high per-capita income have or don't have restaurants (Has a lot to do with zoning laws, not income) (??)

It's just the nature of the business. Don't have exact numbers, but there must be at least 10 times more people eating at restaurants on weekends as on weekdays. I'm sure many restos in NYC are quieter on weekdays as well, not including the "movie star" places that draw crowds 7 nights a week. But I suppose we need one of the restaurateurs here to chime in on this issue.

OK, so you are looking for individual restaurants that fit this bill, not towns where they are ubiquitous. I'm not a fan of SR Inn. I think it doesn't live up to its hype. Lots of mediocre restaurants are full everyday. We have discussed this phenomenon here often. The 4 you mentioned are among the best in the State. I would also vote for Pluckemin Inn, Bernards Inn, and Rat's. Also, Xaviar's, but that's technically 2 miles over the NY border. Can't judge by busy, though. The busiest restos I ever see are Charlie Brown's and California Pizza.

Alpine has no restaurants, or any business save a gas station. You also need to define "fine" as it refers to restaurants, there is a lot of debate here as to what that may mean, and it is different to different people. Quality aside, for sheer quantity, Montclair and Ridgewood take the cake in North Jersey. Red Bank has many restos. Lambertville, lots of restos. Also, keep in mind, that Jersey towns are smaller than those in other states, for the most part. so it's hard to find towns large enough to support a lot of restaurants. But I thinkyou need to redefine exactly what you are looking for, and also what part of the State you are looking in.

It really depends upon whether you are looking for a "fast-food" type burger, or a "burger & beer" joint to sit down and chill at. For Burger and Beer, the best burger in Montclair is at South Park Grill, corner of Park and Church Sts. It's winter now, but in the good weather the outside seating is lots of fum. Inside, they have about 4 TVs going. Fast Food, take a 15 minute ride to The Hearth, Rte 46 West, Clifton. Really good charcoal burgers, unlimited pickles. Good stuff.

Do they have an actual pit and/or smoker? If not, what's their BBQ method?

Funny, I remember the little game of "Telephone" kids play, and how the ending message bears little resemblance to the one at the beginning... Your statement is a long way from my statement. Seems quite contentious and baiting, I have no idea why. The real meaning of my statement, without over-interpretation, is that operating a Bagel Store in combination with a Greek Restaurant is an unusual combination. Something like a math teacher operating a dress shop after school (was in the newspaper last year). There is no sarcasm or hidden racism, as your statement implies. There is no implication as to the national origin of the owners, or anything that has to do with qualifications. Edited to add: N.B. Here is an old thread about GV where you had some wonderful things to say about it: Greek Village Thread

Maybe, but the French have these fabulous "Sacs de Glaçons" which make for terrrific shaped ice cubes, as well as a great convenience and uniformity. Nothing like that available in the US.

Nothing to do whatever with restaurant capacity. I've never seen more than 1 customer in River Edge, and I pass it every day, several times, at different hours. They experimented with Sunday opening, which should have been a great day, and then retrenched. Greek Village is packed almost to capacity from before lunch until closing at about 9PM. So the RE place can't possibly have the same freshness quotient, nor the variety. N.B. RE is the same ownership as the Bagel Store next door, strange bedfellows...

Remember the old Ripple and other laughable wines with the screw top? The 2 guys Bartles and Jaymes (They were actors) and their cheap screw top wine ads on TV? Well it seems that scientific studies show that screw tops do a better job of preserving the wine in the bottle than a cork. The biggest problem is psychological. The French feel that the public just won't go for a screw top on a wine, it connotes poor quality. I know I myself would feel a bit peculiar opening a nice wine with a screw metal cap. There is just something nice and traditional about a cork. Plus, what would those French waiters and sommeliers do, they have such style and panache when they open your bottle at your table. The popping sound is fun as well. Anybody here that wouldn't mind a fine wine with a screw top? Here's the news story from Bordeaux: Wine bottles with Screw Tops

Yes, I've heard that that Misto can clog, but it's only $10, and I've seen PAM sprayed into a stove top and ignite!! Do you want this type of oil spray to restiict the amount of oil used? Friends in rance always ask us for Maple Syrup, and, of all things Sambucca, the Italian liqueur. It's true, even in Nice, so close to the Italian border, you just can't get Sambucca. Guess they want you to use Pastis...

Well, it's a moot point. Greek Village has hundreds more customers than the place in River Edge. Fast turnover means fresh food, and great variety. You yourself have preached that often.