GoodEater

Hey DoverCanyon: Just make sure that you don't steal the bottles. GoodEatersteal

I'm anything but a wine expert BUT I know what I like to drink and what I think a good wine should taste like. That being said... Steele and Dashe are two excellent producers of red zins. From around $20 to $25 per bottle at Supercellars in Paterson NJ The Steele zin is a real powerhouse that goes best with flavorful foods. The Dashe zins are powerful too but have more sophistication as the flavours are more multilayered. What do you real wine experts think of these two producers wines? Thanks

A long time ago (before graduating college) it was working as a truck driver and I asked the people at this restaurant if I could borrow their telephone to make a local call (this was before cell phones were popular). They said no and gave me an attitude. They looked down upon me like I was not evenworthy of using their phone. I vowed that I would never eat in their restaurant. Now that I am older and eat meals out frequently I refused to even try this place. Like there aren't enough Italian restaurants in the North Jersey area! Not that one unknown person could really hurt their business if their food and service is at least decent- but if feels good to know that they will never get any of my business or that of my family and friends. Paybacks are a bitch.

This is too bad. Perhaps it was a franchise store or just one rude empolyee. Try another store or go back and speak to the owner/general manager about your concerns. I don't work for them or anything I just hate to see a whole chain disparaged because of one bad experience.

Corrected info- Panera is based out of St. Louis, Missouri. I mistakenly wrote Minnesota. The company has 531 store (144 company owned and the rest are franchises.)

Panera Bakery and Cafe is consistantly very good. Breads are much better than the average deli. The sandwiches and soup are excellent. Salads are just average. They are a five hundred plus location restaurant chain based out of Minnesota.

Heard of chicken-fried steak. Because you make a steak using fried chicken batter and pan fry. Is this the same as chicken steak?

Yes you are correct- Welsh Rarebit is the cheese- milk sauce. The frozen stuff is made by Stouffer's(sp?) foods. [Just checked google on Welsh Rarebit and one site said that it could be a play on words to be a slight to the Welsh people who could not afford meat years ago.] The frozen version on Rarebit is OK but next time I will make a home-made version.

My wife once sent me to the supermarket to pick up a package of frozen Welsh Rarebit. Everyone kept telling me they did not have any Welsh "Rabbit"! To be fair the name is confusing- especially if you have never heard of it..

Went to Bruschetta in Fairfield last night. Coincidentaly, it was reviewed in the Record today and it got three stars (Excellent). IMO this restaurant truly deserves this rating. The food is consistently delicious and approachable. I had a Mediterranean Salad and one of their evening specials- grilled Ahi tuna cook rare. Tuna was definitely sashimi grade and was seared on the outside perfectly-served over seasoned lentils. This was my fifth or six visit and I will be going back. In my last post about this restaurant I said that the service could be off sometimes; however last night the service was very efficient and very welcoming.

One of the best Italian restaurants in NJ (or anywhere for that matter) is L'Allegria in Madison. My boss (from Milan Italy) was visiting here a few months ago and he had the gnoochi. He said it tasted like his mother's cooking. I had an excellent veal saltinbocca (sp?). How much better can you get than home cooked taste, moderately sophisticated food in an elegant setting with top notch service. A bit pricey ($75.00 or so per person with wine and no cocktails) so it is a great special occasion place (Of course, it is depending upon on your budget and pocketbook if you think this is expensive). Going to Bruschetta in Fairfield tonight for dinner because it is consistantly very good and it is close to my office. Service can sometimes be spotty depending on the server but the food is good enough to overcome some of the minor service lapses. GoodEater!

Hello Rachel- Yes I ate at Kinchley's about five years ago. I remember it being a very good, very thin crust pizza but it was too long ago to really remember enough specifics about it to really give an informed opinion about how it compares to the places I mentioned. I will have to check it out once again soon and let you know. GoodEater!

Hello All. This is my first post to this excellent website. I am so glad that I heard about it on Arthur Schwartz- Food Talk to discuss everything with fellow food-lovers. I like the pizza at Puzo's. They have three locations- Hawthorne, Fairfield and Ridgewood. The Fairfield store is my regular lunch place as I work close by and they have the largest selection of specialty pizzas. They have a great sauce and they use quality ingredients. The other pizza place that I think makes excellent basic pizza is John's Pizza on River Road in FairLawn. Great sauce here too. Not too creative with toppings but sometimes simple is better when you just want a plain slice. My main complaint about many pizza places is that they don't have enough flavor in the sauce. I am a real flavor seeker and a plain flat tomato sauce is just showing that the shop owner doesn't really care about what they are doing. It should have garlic, onion, basil and/or other herbs to enhance it as well as enough salt to bring out the flavors. Also, too much oil on top of the pizza means to me that they are using inexpensive cheese (unless of course the purposely added addtional oil for whatever foolish reason they think it is necessary). A thin to medium thin crust cooked until it is crispy (but not burned!) is essential as well. A too thick, soggy crust and it is just bread with cheese and sauce. Thanks for letting me express my opinion. Good Eater in Northern NJ