eG Foodblog: suzilightning

[suzilightning]

Thanks for posting a link to their website. It's one of the first 18-page menus I've ever seen! I can't imagine them being able to offer such a variety out of a diner. And now I'm jonesing for Greek food.

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Stay tuned and you will see a Greek inspired dish on Friday when John goes up to Poughkeepsie to visit his family. And it comes out of the Road Food book.

[suzilightning]

Vicky and I always leave early when we're heading to Sparta to see the "outlaws', oops inlaws, just for breakfast at the Jefferson Diner. The corned beef hash is awesome. The Gyros are great for dinner and they have great burgers.

Cheers

Tom

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Voted #1 burger in Morris County in the Daily Record pole. Now the burgers are ok. I was going to take all of you to a little place called the Circle Grill but unfortunately they have closed. They had the BEST onion rings according to New Jersey Monthly magazine and I would agree. Some of the best coleslaw around and the Circle Burger with bacon was what I crave.

[suzilightning]

Greeting to you in Europe and Asia. It's almost 0500 here and the bread has been set to rise for baking later in the day. Please let me know if there is anything in particular you would be interested in seeing or talking about since I have been fascinated to read about your customs....oh, and there is a pocky shot coming if I can sneak my camera into a large food store here.

[Jensen]

Thanks for a great blog, Suzilightning.

Also, thank you for allowing me to appear far more intelligent than I am at dinner last night. A colleague of the Spouse was in town from New Jersey and so I was able to ask seemingly knowledgeable questions about his home state thanks to your blog!

[Taboni]

Great blog Suzi. My family used to rent a bungalow at Lk. Hopatcong when I was a kid in the late 60s and early 70's. My one great recollection (besides this great big moose head in the living room) was eating out at the Windlass. That was the epitome of fine dining for me in the summer. Is it still there?

[Smithy]

Greeting to you in Europe and Asia. It's almost 0500 here and the bread has been set to rise for baking later in the day.  Please let me know if there is anything in particular you would be interested in seeing or talking about since I have been fascinated to read about your customs....oh, and there is a pocky shot coming if I can sneak my camera into a large food store here.

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Good grief, Suzi. I hope you're still catching up on your sleep.

When you do wake up and get back to the bottomless maw that is the blog (aren't you glad it only lasts a week?) I have a customs question for you. I was very surprised the first time I ordered coffee at a stand in New Jersey and got it already sweetened. It's been long enough now that I've forgotten the terminology, but it seems to go something like: coffee, white = coffee with cream and sugar; coffee, black = coffee without cream but with sugar, and...

I've forgotten now how that goes? I think some of your left-coast readers will be interested. If I wanted coffee with cream but no sugar, what would be the standard way to ask?

[suzilightning]

Great blog Suzi.  My family used to rent a bungalow at Lk. Hopatcong when I was a kid in the late 60s and early 70's.  My one great recollection (besides this great big moose head in the living room) was eating out at the Windlass. That was the epitome of fine dining for me in the summer.  Is it still there?

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Taboni, yes. The Windlassand the Jefferson Houseare still there but the food is a little tired. The service is also sooooooo sloooooooowwww but the reason you're there really is so you can sit lakeside and drink. Then take your boat and motor to the next place. For those who have never been around waterside restaurants those like the Windlass and the Jeff House have valet boat service.

Also just opened is a boat side food delivery service by one of the pizza places that is lakeside. You can order your pizza to really go.

Edited August 29, 2007 by suzilightning (log)

[suzilightning]

Good grief, Suzi.  I hope you're still catching up on your sleep. 

When you do wake up and get back to the bottomless maw that is the blog (aren't you glad it only lasts a week?) I have a customs question for you.  I was very surprised the first time I ordered coffee at a stand in New Jersey and got it already sweetened.  It's been long enough now that I've forgotten the terminology, but it seems to go something like:  coffee, white = coffee with cream and sugar; coffee, black = coffee without cream but with sugar, and...

I've forgotten now how that goes?  I think some of your left-coast readers will be interested.  If I wanted coffee with cream but no sugar, what would be the standard way to ask?

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I had to get the bread made today and, since it was supposed to - and did- get humid, I wanted to get it made early so it would take less flour and give me a better rise. It's not as bad as when I was working in the bakery part of a restaurant, The Cook, on Shelter Island. Then I would be rolling in just about an hour after the cleanup crew left.

This will take a bit more research. Most of the people I work with have never heard the ordering referred to that way. Course about half of them are originally from near Chicago.

[suzilightning]

Well, sometimes I just wake up hungry and nothing else will do

pb& lingonberry jam on whole wheat.

Sent John off with the rest of the leftover steak as a salad and the last of the blueberry peach kuken so I won't bother you with those pictures.

Then it was errand time. I had fudgy bourbon brownies and a recommended reading list to deliver to the ladies at our post office, recycling to drop off, get to the gym then off to Bed, Bath and Beyond to replace the old toaster using the gift card from my mother-in-law. I was only half done and had to get back to bake off the bread from the final rise so hit Rt. 10 and An American Grill for a light lunch.

Lou Reda, the owner, wasn't there but his day manager remembered me from a wine dinner we did several years ago there. We had a lovely talk while I had iced tea and the Wild Mushroom, Fresh Mozzarella and Hot Sausage Puff with brandied cream sauce.

Thus fortified it was on to buy bird seed(hey you didn't think the humans were the only ones I fed around here, did you?, drop off a pan of the brownies at the liquor store I freqently use and get stuck in traffic for half an hour to get to the butcher's for 2 pounds of lovely lamb for Friday's dinner.

Along the way I ran across something you still find on the back roads of Morris and Sussex Counties.

[suzilightning]

Eating at the Bar

Due to slightly limited funds and a limited amount of time due to work I won't get to show you all the places I visit on a semi-rotating basis. I love to eat out with my husband, I truly enjoy eating out with my friend, Michelle aka Dangerous Dining Companion but I also enjoy eating alone, many times while running errands. At those times I prefer to eat at the bar. Here are a few of the places I enjoy around the area.

In Wharton, NJ is Hot Rod's BBQ.

Even before you open the door you can smell the wood smoke. This is a hybrid BBQ but I will take the brisket wrap with wasabi mayo any day.

Closer to home - oh, maybe 1/2 mile as the crow flies - is the Warehouse Grille here in Lake Hopatcong.

For me this is like Cheers, the neighborhood joint you can walk home from if you have one too many - though I never have. Steaks and martinis are their specialties but if they have the Buffalo chicken wrap on the menu that is what I go for - along with a good pulled pint of something interesting.

Since I am not heading down into Morris County as much as I did, I'm less of a fixture at this bar.

An American Grill.

I like the relaxed atmosphere here for lunch when I can order an appetizer and a salad and not feel like a stuffed sausage.

If you're in the area look me up and I'll meet you for lunch.

[monavano]

Well, sometimes I just wake up hungry and nothing else will do

pb& lingonberry jam on whole wheat.

Sent John off with the rest of the leftover steak as a salad and the last of the blueberry peach kuken so I won't bother you with those pictures.

Then it was errand time.  I had fudgy bourbon brownies and a recommended reading list to deliver to the ladies at our post office, recycling to drop off, get to the gym then off to Bed, Bath and Beyond to replace the old toaster using the gift card from my mother-in-law.  I was only half done and had to get back to bake off the bread from the final rise so hit Rt. 10 and An American Grill for a light lunch.

Lou Reda, the owner, wasn't there but his day manager remembered me from a wine dinner we did several years ago there.  We had a lovely talk while I had iced tea and the Wild Mushroom, Fresh Mozzarella and Hot Sausage Puff with brandied cream sauce.

Thus fortified it was on to buy bird seed(hey you didn't think the humans were the only ones I fed around here, did you?, drop off a pan of the brownies at the liquor store I freqently use and get stuck in traffic for half an hour to get to the butcher's for 2 pounds of lovely lamb for Friday's dinner.

Along the way I ran across something you still find on the back roads of Morris and Sussex Counties.

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Great blogging! Is that produce stand on the "honor system"? These stands also dot Bucks County, PA where I used to live.

[suzilightning]

This was an interesting summer for us. The 47 year old septic system original to the house died. Behold my $12,000.00 USD new front yard.

95% of that front lawn is new. John rebuilt the front wall and put in a second rows of stones so we could do some plantings. We also had two trees removed earlier in the year so now we get sun and can grow something other than moss in the front yard. I lied about killing everything I plant. These seem to be doing well in the whiskey barrel. Can't say as much about the back porch plants but if you look closely you can see one Juliet tomato.

The patio out back where we eat. And watch the stars - from the hot tub.

The future perennial garden with a pink and white scheme. Oh and there on the lower left is what is left of my beloved Weber kettle grill. When the legs fell off I buried the bottom half there, filled it with good dirt and those are John's mint plants.

The work on our small rooms is at an end for this summer but ... to be continued next spring.

[tommy]

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korbel brut rose? NICE!

[suzilightning]

Jen mentioned the book Road Food, one of the books you could see in my teaser photo. That one is very special to me.

I, like my mother, am a graduate of The State University College at Fredonia. Unlike her, I am a theatre graduate, not a zippy(music major). Going to school in western New York we used to avail ourselves of the advantages such as visiting Niagra Falls at least every other month(if you have never seen the Falls in the winter do go. It is spectacular), hitting up the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, rock shows at Rich Stadium or the Aud, performing at Kleinhans Music Hall with the Buffalo Philharmoic(Harry John Brown conducting), Schwabl's and Anchor Bar.

The recipes of course are for

Unlike the Buffalo version of Beef on Weck I make it Fredonia style like they used to serve it at the late Dickinson's Restaurnt. Cold with thin roast beef, swiss cheese, lettuce and Thousand Island dressing.

Another favorite from the book will make it's appearance Friday. Road food of the best kind from Binghampton.

[suzilightning]

QUOTE(suzilightning @ Aug 29 2007, 03:52 PM

Along the way I ran across something you still find on the back roads of Morris and Sussex Counties.

[img)

http://forums.egullet.org/uploads/1188351976/gallery_403_5086_894367.jpg

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Great blogging! Is that produce stand on the "honor system"? These stands also dot Bucks County, PA where I used to live.

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Absolutely. Notice the lovely blue covered Tupperware on the right side of the table.

[suzilightning]

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korbel brut rose? NICE!

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Thought you might like THAT, Tommy. 10.99 at my local Bottle King.

[snowangel]

Oh and there on the lower left is what is left of my beloved Weber kettle grill.  When the legs fell off I buried the bottom half there, filled it with good dirt and those are John's mint plants.

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Does this mean that my Trusty Weber (circa mid-70's) will eventually die? If so, I'm remembering this trick as a wonderful homage to one of the greatest things ever invented.

So, what kind of grill do you have now? Do you grill or smoke very often?

[suzilightning]

Does this mean that my Trusty Weber (circa mid-70's) will eventually die?  If so, I'm remembering this trick as a wonderful homage to one of the greatest things ever invented.

So, what kind of grill do you have now?  Do you grill or smoke very often?

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susan, if you cover it, it probably won't rust out like mine did. See the picture of the back of the house? See that huge tan bulk? THAT is the monstrosity John picked up at the Home Depot. His rational was that with propane we could cook on a moment's notice. I do use it, occasionally, especially in hot weather and I do both hot and cold smoke on it. Last year, one of the hottest, most humid days, my neighbors could have seen me out there at 6 am in my baby doll pjs hot smoking some salmon for john's lunch.

[Priscilla]

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korbel brut rose? NICE!

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Thought you might like THAT, Tommy. 10.99 at my local Bottle King.

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I think the open-mindedness of New Jerseyans is commendable.

[suzilightning]

I hope my posting in bursts isn't bothering anyone but with the antiquated cow right now I have to upload pictures at work and do any photo manipulation here. My day off and I'm sitting among the crowd waiting to get dressed and go to dinner.

In the meantime sometimes a recipe box

isn't

Whenever I am reading - period- if I see something interesting I fill out a form for myself and file it by subject. Food, Clothing and Jewelry, Wine, History, Biography, Birds...

Every few weeks or so I pull an assortment out that appeal to me and give to Nancy, our Inter-Librarian Loan person.

Here is writing from 3 of the 4 generations of women in my family.

On top is the inscription my great-grandmother did in the cookbook she copied for my grandmother in 1934. The second one is the 2nd grade teacher's perfect printing of the family white fruitcake recipe. The third is the recipe I still use till this day.

[Smithy]

I like the way you're doing the photo montages: sometimes a full-sized photo, sometimes two smaller photos abutting or overlapping each other.

Thanks for the house photos on top of everything else! We also love to sit out in the hot tub and watch the stars. It's tough to stay up late enough to do it at this time of year, but the season is coming on fast.

The Weber grill trick sounds like a great way to control mint. We use the lawn mower to control ours. Do you use mint for things other than drinks?

Edited to add: the sweet flow and angularity of your great-grandmother's handwriting looks so genteel, and reminds me of the handwriting of my forebears. I think the approved style of cursive writing, as taught in school (do they still teach cursive writing in school now?) must have changed a lot over the past few generations.

Edited August 29, 2007 by Smithy (log)

[MelissaH]

Road food of the best kind from Binghampton.

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Binghamton? Spiedies, perhaps?

MelissaH

[Giagie]

I'm really enjoying this blog. I usually lurk but your blog has sparked more interest because we (my husband and I) will soon be moving to your neck of the woods - specifically Randolph. I am totally new to the area so anything that I can learn is really helpful. I've already read up on the American Grill, but are there any other recommendations that you have for the Randolph/Morristown area?

[StInGeR]

I'm really enjoying this blog.  I usually lurk but your blog has sparked more interest because we (my husband and I) will soon be moving to your neck of the woods - specifically Randolph.  I am totally new to the area so anything that I can learn is really helpful.  I've already read up on the American Grill, but are there any other recommendations that you have for the Randolph/Morristown area?

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Living in Morristown (formerly in Sparta by way of Australia) here's a few places for you:

Stonefire Grill on Rte 10W in Randolph

http://www.stonefire1.homestead.com/menu.html

East Tokyo on Rte 10E in Randolph (almost directly across from Stonefire)

An American Grill even though Lou's no longer there

There's just some to get you going

Tom

[suzilightning]

Road food of the best kind from Binghampton.

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Binghamton? Spiedies, perhaps?

MelissaH

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DING! DING! DING! WE HAVE A WINNER!!