menton1

Unusual request-- Europeans usually don't like the American style of cooking steak-- they prefer a pan-grilled version, with different cuts of meat than we typically use. That being said, have you considered the Chart House in Weehawken? It is a chain, but the view and the setting is exceptional. (Having the NY Skyline in view might be good for business... )

The paella at Tapas de Espana in Englewood is excellent. Far superior to the stuff in the Ironbound, IMHO. Nice environment as well. Tapas de Espana 47 North Dean St Englewood 201-569-9999 They have their original restaurant in North Bergen, but I am not familiar with that one.

Sorry, that's a gross oversimplification of the issue-- you might as well just have a "Northeast" Forum, instead of all the different regions separated into NY, NJ, Pa, DC, etc... the culture of upstate is just different from Manhattan. Manhattan is a place that needs to be by itself. If there is to be ANY meaningful discussion of "outside Manhattan" on Egullet, it needs a forum separate from Manhattan.

Eating dinner at a decent restaurant in Paris before 7PM is going to prove quite difficult-- the French like a late-ish dinner for the most part, the most popular start times being between 8-9PM. Dinner before 7 will most likely relegate you to a "non-stop" type cafe with super-ordinary food, or a place catering mainly to tourists that would probably also be unspectacular... P.S. Terminal 2F at CDG has a branch of Brasserie Flo that serves non-stop; might be an acceptable alternative considering your parameters.

Ironic that one of the hosts here mentions this fact--- I have complained that the exact same geographic issues are right here on Egullet. 99% of the discussions are about Manhattan. There is a lot of territory outside Manhattan, of particular interest to me is Westchester. At least Zagat has a NY State book, outside Manhattan, that includes Westchester. Egullet does not have a separate forum at all for outside Manhattan!!

Well, of course they wouldn't let there be a huge disparity between their survey and the resto's reputation-- that would raise too many eyebrows. But if they are so sincere, why wouldn't they give over the survey and its tally to a 3rd impartial party? They surely have the resources to do that now! (Is Arthur Andersen available?)

Thought I'd bring this thread back to the top, because we were actually discussing this topic at length, but on a thread that was supposed to be devoted to another topic... (Perhaps those relevant posts can be moved here) Starbucks no more belongs in Zagat than it belongs in Michelin. Zagat claims to be a restaurant listing. I know they used to have Boston market in there for a few years, and now that is gone. It's not even that people vote for a place, it's getting listed on their ballot. "Write-ins" have about as much a chance of getting voted in as do a write in for UIS President; The other process in question is that the votes are tallied in secrecy by Zagat, not a third party, so the veracity of the results are in question as well. As far as DeMarchelier, it is packed every night, 7 nights a week, and is a long-established restaurant. It's absence from the Zagat listings (and surely the ballot) is certainly conspicuous. And I'm sure there are many others examples. And sure, Zagat is laughing all the way to the bank, because there is little outrage, except on Eg.

Oakapple's vociferous defense of Zagat is baffling; we have about 12 or so threads here concerning the pitfalls of using Zagat as anything other than a phone book. Furthermore, your argument that a restaurant needs to have a FAVORABLE review in the eyes of the public to be listed is just all wrong. We need ALL reviews, good and bad!! And lastly, the issue of Starbucks being listed in Zagat has been conveniently ignored. I'm sure that is a really tough issue to defend...

Of course, I immediately thought of Relish in Sparkill, one of my favorites. One of their entrees now is "Red Wine Braised Lamb Shank". Sounds like it fits your bill to a "T"!! http://www.relishsparkill.com/pages/menus/menu_dinner.html Second choice would be Citrus Grille on Saddle River Road, just over the border in NY State. Here's their menu: http://www.citrusgrille.com/ 3rd choice would be to wait until Wednesday...

OK, I spelled it wrong, it's DeMarchelier. It's in Citysearch, AOL, Yahoo, NYMag, etc. Oh, yes, MenuPages too. Why are you going to such lengths to defend Zagat? Do you work for them? On the thread I referenced, there is an interesting comment from a restaurant owner about the sham business they have of selling a Zagat plaque to put in the window. Rating or review is not important-- the plaque just says "Zagat Listed" (Whatever that means). Sure, that's why they list Starbucks...(!!??)

Sorry, duplicate.

Not to digress, but it seems that American culture is now evolving into improper usage of the apostrophe. "Closed Monday's" is common, as is Car's for Sale". Everyone must be sleeping through secondary school grammar these days!!

One would hardly need Zagat for the top 30; it would only have 4 pages if that was all it listed. It's the restaurants in the middle, the bistros, the family restos that the public needs to be made aware of. Here is just one of the many threads on Eg discussing the vicissitudes of depending on Zagat: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=53786&hl= DuMarchelier, a lovely bistro on 86th and 5th is not in there. Bandol Bistro, on 78th and 3rd is not there. But Starbucks IS listed. Then there is the whole sleazy issue of their decals in restaurant windows, even if the resto got a horrible rating...Zagat is a joke.

I think restaurant websites can be useful. I like to use them, especially when I travel, mainly for the photos and the menu. It is annoying to find that often the menu on the site has not been updated, and differs greatly from the current menu at the restaurant. Also, many American restaurateurs have a fear of putting prices on their website. This is a cultural peculiarity-- it extends out to actually being in the restaurant and, after being given the list of specials, you have to ask the prices of the specials. VERY ANNOYING!! In Europe, most countries have laws requiring the menu to be prominently posted in the window or outside-- and specials are on a blackboard with prices. This is a huge mistake, IMHO. Not only is the credibility of Zagat in great question, but many many good restaurants are not listed at all, probably a quid pro quo for some editorial grudge, or the like...

Conspicuous by its absence on this discussion is one of the best food shops/specialty stores in Providence, Costantino's on 265 Atwells Avenue in Federal Hill. Handmade, homemade pastas, breads, a cheese department rivaling any of those in the larger cities, homemade soups, gourmet olive section, salumis, and prepared food that is wonderful and you can take it out, or point to your choices and they will make up a plate for you to eat at the tables amongst the shopping space. The handmade ravioli is the most acclaimed food, but everything here is wonderful! If you go on Sunday, parking is much easier.

A new restaurant opened in Englewood on Demarest Ave and Engle Street, a place which has had several incarnations, the original being the Jane Dooner many years ago. I believe the new place has "Blue"in the name; Any reports?

Echoing tommy, Total Wine has the largest selection of wines in Northern NJ and the lowest prices. That's certainly a winning combination. The place is very big, and the wines are very organized, grouped by Country and then by region and type. Only about 7 minutes from Teaneck. It's now next to the re-incarnated Levitz Furniture off Rte 4 West, on Kinderkamack Rd and Main St in River Edge. I highly recommend it.

That's certainly not as much of an anomaly as "New York Weiners" being only available in Rhode Island!!

A little more to add to this discussion: I still could not believe that my friend "imagined" this red chowder when he grew up in Providence. The Legal SeaFoods Menu today offers "Rhode Island Red Chowder" http://shop.legalseafoods.com/index.cfm/pk.../list/cid/10118 Cooks Recipes offers a specific recipe for Rhode Island Red Chowder: http://www.cooksrecipes.com/soup/rhode-isl...der-recipe.html And a phone call to Johnson & Wales Cooking University resulted in a conversation with a "Mr. Kelly", a RI native, who said that up until about 10 years ago, RI Red was THE chowder of choice in the Providence Metro area. The demise of the Rocky Point beach area and the development of condos there that closed the clam shacks sparked the end of the red dominance, but it is still a major player in the Providence scene. He said the red chowder is "as native to RI as Johnnycakes and New York Weiners." (??) Wanted to set the record straight.

Papaya King in Manhattan! ( I prefer grilled dogs anyway.) If you insist on deep fried, there is Jolly Nick's on Madison Ave in Dumont that moved from Cresskill 5 years ago. Supposedly legendary among the locals. Just on the side of CVS.

The Bertolli scam is old news; Besides, what does Bertolli have to do with France?

A very interesting site, Busboy; Thanks. A nice little resource for "off the beaten track". I, like you, am very comfortable is these local informal places, and have many times found the food to be on a very high level. The only part of the site that is a bit of a turn off is that the little blurbs read too much like an advertisement. I don't know the way this site is assembled, but it seems that it is a paying site, and it is hard to see if there are any checks and balances on what the restaurant can say about itself. It is also generally pretty easy in France in a small village to park, take a little stroll through the town, read the cartes in the window, get a little feel for the places and the town, and decide to go in somewhere and have lunch. 9 times out of 10 it turns out to be a good experience. But this little guide can facilitate things if you happen to be near one of the bistrots on the site.

I think that will prove daunting because, as I mentioned, 100% French Olive oils are not mass-marketed; they are generally produced on an artisanal basis and only distributed locally. One of the producers that I am familiar with is Alziari in Nice. I have been to his shop, and the oil is available at some specialty grocers in NYC, such as Zabar's. But I have no idea if this is a "best-seller". (It is a lovely Olive oil, though). Web Site: http://www.alziari.com.fr/eng/mill.htm

If an oil sold in France is marked "AOC", it is not only all French but entirely from the specific region that is marked on the bottle. These oils are not top sellers because they are made in small quantities, mostly available at the producers and the artisanal shops. Here is one source: http://www.nice-art.com/huile/champsoleil.htm The French supermarkets mostly sell blended oils from Italy and Spain-- the French producers are, for the most part, much smaller. The French climate is such that only a small portion of France is conducive to growing Olive trees. Italy and Spain have much warmer climates overall.

Well, the Wine Spectator article indicated that Spanish Olive Oil is quite good. Does the American public actually feel that Oilive Oil from Italy is superior to that from Spain? Is that the thinking behind the subterfuge? (Lying!) What's taking the EU so long to correct this situation? And if they do, would that slow the bulk olive oil flow from Spain to Italy?