The Record Restaurant Reviews

tommy · January 11, 2003

wow. i didn't even notice two distinct sides of the Chef's Table menu! or perhaps i didn't, but it didn't make much of an impression on me.

My Cup of Tea in allendale was reviewed in the Times today. i think i'll go find that thread.

January 11, 2003

I can't believe they actually review buffets like that Dynasty Buffet. I drove past that place yesterday and sort of shook my head at the fact that a new building is bookended by a buffet and a 99¢ store.

Anyway, I also received a new menu from Hanami in the mail yesterday. They're definitely taking the "health food" approach. Amoung various assertions that they care about our health is one which reads, "At Hanami we don't use ingredients that are bad for your health such as MSG, butter, cream, peanut oil, or preservatives." Hmmmm... sesame oil is missing from that list... :hmmm:

menton1 · January 11, 2003

My disdain for the Record restaurant reviewers has grown again. Every restaurant, good or bad, seems to get 3 stars. I went to Chef's Table a few months ago and was very disappojnted. For the prices they get, the value just is not there. The place is so bright you need sunglasses; the food, while acceptable, is not worthy of the $24-$28 price tag on the entrees. Claude himself is quite nice, from a little town Collieres on the Mediterranean, but the place is in major need of a redorating job, and the entrees should be priced about $5 less. One more notch of less respect for the Record's reviews!!

January 11, 2003

The past two weeks' reviews seem to be missing the blue column to the right which lists all the pertinent restaurant info (rating, price, address, etc...). Do these get added to the online reviews later? (I'm assuming they're still present in the print edition)

ngatti · January 11, 2003

The past two weeks' reviews seem to be missing the blue column to the right which lists all the pertinent restaurant info (rating, price, address, etc...). Do these get added to the online reviews later? (I'm assuming they're still present in the print edition)

Sometimes they forget (Northjersey.com, not the Record). Northjersey.com which post the on-line versions of the reviews is responsible for the on-line content.

Nick

Nockerl · January 13, 2003

I liked Chefs Table but just thought it was odd that one side of the menu had French selections and the other side had Italian items. Had a very good cassoulet there.

The menu is no longer split. It's all French now. Claude's back to what he does best.

Rosie · January 13, 2003

Thanks for the update. I will try to get back to The Chef's Table now that it is all French! :biggrin:

menton1 · January 13, 2003

Thanks for the update. I will try to get back to The Chef's Table now that it is all French!

Rosie, when you go, please tell him to try to make the place LOOK more French as well; Get a dimmer switch on the lights, and redecorate so that it doesn't look like a diner with tablecloths!! Just like a restaurant in Colliure, France! :wink:

tommy · January 13, 2003

Ah nockerl, that's why i don't remember that! i thought i was nuts there.

also, i don't recall the decor being all *that* offensive. in fact, all around, it said "mom and pop shop" to me, which i can appreciate on many levels while forgiving the occasional faux pas.

Rosie · January 13, 2003

I remember that he had some beautiful cooper pots hanging up.

Nockerl · January 17, 2003

Rosie, when you go, please tell him to try to make the place LOOK more French as well; Get a dimmer switch on the lights, and redecorate so that it doesn't look like a diner with tablecloths!! Just like a restaurant in Colliure, France!

The place may not be the most beautiful, but why does it need to be? The didn't have the budget for a huge makeover or for that matter did they want one.

Claude and his wife are content with a simple, as Tommy put it, "MOM and POP" feel/loook.

His regulars don't seem to mind.

And after talking to claude I understood and could appreciate the personal attachment to some of the art/decorations, although they weren't my taste. The boats are a passion for claude andhis son painted the one hanging near the front door as a gift. If my kid did that for me, I'd display it proudly too. SOme of the other art work was also done by his son. The copper pots, as rosie pointed out were a nice touch.

Yes, the lights were a tad too bright for the atmosphere I might have preferred for dining with my fiancee but i found the food and the company more interesting and distracting that the lights. ANd i'm sure if you would have asked claude he might have dimmed the lights just a bit. :smile:

Rosie · January 17, 2003

Thanks for your input Nockerl. I must get back to this restaurant.

tommy · January 18, 2003

Thank for your input Nockerl. I must get back to this restaurant.

give me a holler if you're in the neighborhood. :wink:

Rosie · January 18, 2003

Thank for your input Nockerl. I must get back to this restaurant.
give me a holler if you're in the neighborhood.

Who were you talking to? Me or Nockerl or both? :wink:

Nockerl · January 18, 2003

Thank for your input Nockerl. I must get back to this restaurant.
give me a holler if you're in the neighborhood.
Who were you talking to? Me or Nockerl or both?

Yeah! Who were you talking to? Or maybe it is better to ask who you weren't talking to? :wacko: :hmmm:

tommy · January 18, 2003

who? me? i didn't say nut'in. :unsure:

ngatti · January 18, 2003

For your enjoyment.

The Starred review: (2.5)

Flirt Sushi

The Diamond review: (2.5)

Sakae in Ridgewood

Both Japanese restaurants. Go figure.

I'll read 'em later.

Nick

tommy · January 18, 2003

The Diamond review: (2.5)
Sakae in Ridgewood

"Guests descend three levels in the narrow and long restaurant to a dining area featuring Asian-style lanterns, neutral colors, and natural wood chairs and tables. "

uh? 3 levels? not really. that's quite an exaggeration.

sakae offers some of the most consistent and fresh fish in ridgewood. having never bothered with any items from the "kitchen" (and i'm not sure why anyone would bother unless at Nobu, or one doesn't eat fish :cough cough 201 cough: ) i can't comment. although in my experience, kitchen items and sushi are not always brought out in what most people think is the correct order, or the correct timing. personally, i'd say "don't bother ordering from the kitchen." but then again, what do i know about japanese dining.

hey! it's kinda fun getting all pissed off for no reason. thanks nick! :biggrin:

ngatti · January 18, 2003

hey! it's kinda fun getting all pissed off for no reason. thanks nick!

Welcome to my world. :wacko: :smile:

Nick

Edited January 18, 2003 by ngatti (log)

January 18, 2003

I need to get back to Sakae. The katsu and sukiyaki were both good and the service was VERY friendly. The Japanese DO eat foods other than fish and rice!

Rene Mack · January 20, 2003

:cool:

This is Rene Mack, one of the fine dining restaurant reviewers for The Record. I must admit that I've heard of this site before, but never visited it until this weekend and I find all your comments, refreshing and interesting. I may not agree with many of you on specific items, but I am glad to see that there are those who take dining seriously and read the newspaper. I'd like to make several comments...and these are not in any specific order.

The bottom line is that the review are really just a matter of opinion, based on a knowledge of food and the endless experience of eating out. All I try to do is call the restaurant as I see it. There are plenty of extremely popular restaurants that I personally don't like. But that should not taint my view. We try to describe the place, capture the atmosphere and explain the food, presentation and execution. In the end, it's the reader who must decide if they want to go there or not. My major concern is that at the end of the week, after most people have paid the rent, gone food shopping, put gas in the car, etc., that they have a good idea what the restaurant will be like where they will spend what's left of their disposable income.

To Nick, I'm glad you read the review of Sakae. I just wasn't all that impressed. And the restaurant really did have three levels, even though them may seem insignificant. The reason it's important to mention this is becasue of the elderly and people with disabilities who find levels a challenge. I agree it can be fun to get pissed off for no reason at all, as you put it. I won't go back unless assigned.

To those with comments on The Chef's Table, well, again, I wrote the review as I saw it and I think I agreed with most of you. It is too bright (I wrote that), it has no atmosphere unless you are looking for a provencial living room where all the souveniers are put on the wall, but the food is terriffic and the couple that owns the place doing an awesome job given there is only one cook in the kitchen and it's a family affair. It's not romantic (and I think, again, the review is dead accurate as to what to expect as far as the enviroment) but fun and unpretentious. It's completely French now with an American accent (there were no Italian dishes to speak of). And as far as the price...well, what can I say? I've seen plenty of bad Italian restaurants in this area charging $18 or $21 for glorified pasta. I'll pay the $25 any day for a great French provincial meal. In other words, what I wrote was true, I'll be back there in the future spending my own money.

In any case, thanks for reading the reviews. Please write to the food editor, Patricia Mack (no relation to me what-so-ever) and thanks for keeping us on our toes. Best, Rene.

ngatti · January 20, 2003

Rene Mack said:

To Nick, I'm glad you read the review of Sakae. I just wasn't all that impressed. And the restaurant really did have three levels, even though them may seem insignificant. The reason it's important to mention this is becasue of the elderly and people with disabilities who find levels a challenge. I agree it can be fun to get pissed off for no reason at all, as you put it. I won't go back unless assigned.

Well, Rene Mack, I guess I'll have to read the review (still haven't, nor have I ever been there). Errr...I think you may have me confused with Tommy. But I can think of worse people to be confused with. :smile:

edit: BTW, welcome and thanks for the reply. I figure we'll get you all here eventually. Squeaky wheels and nails that stick up, etc...

cheers

Nick

Edited January 20, 2003 by ngatti (log)

jhlurie · January 20, 2003

Ah, eGullet strikes again. :wink:

Welcome Rene. As always, points will be awarded for having the guts to back up your words in print with your reactions here. I'm not sure how or where those points can be redeemed, but we ARE tallying them!

I think most of us can accept that idea that restaurant reviews are based on opinion. Still, you've picked a tough field because someone will always disagree with you, and someone will always take it personally.

There's something of an ongoing debate here about what qualifies someone to be a restaurant reviewer. Me, I'm easy--I think simply doing it over a period of time can sometimes be enough to qualify someone. Others may be of the opinion that it requires a bit more... some kind of formal education in culinary arts. Personally, I've always seen some potential problems with that approach.

1.) someone with a formal "food" education who isn't actually doing it for a living may be a frustrated chef and have an axe to grind

2.) the compensation: if someone has a formal culinary education and HAS been successful as a chef, how could a local or regional newspaper possibly afford to compensate them fairly? What other reasons might they have to be a food reviewer besides money?

If you come back and read us again and see this, do you have anything to contribute to this debate?

Rosie · January 21, 2003

Welcome Rene and thanks for posting. Don't be a stranger. Happy to have you on eGullet.

ngatti · January 21, 2003

Oh, and Rene Mack and others may be interested in this discussion:

Symposium on Restaurant Criticism and Food Writing

Nick

Edited January 21, 2003 by ngatti (log)

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