Giovanna's

[tommy]

we were in search of a red sauce and pasta joint last night. having been to so many mediocre italians in bergen county, we were at a loss. then it dawned on us that hawthorne has a few restaurants that seemed like likely candidates for a decent fusilli puttanesca. we ended up at giovanna's.

the place seems like a mom-and-pop. most of the people there seemed to be regulars, and referred to the staff by name (note that the servers did not speak italian and were unfamiliar with basic aspects of italian culture )

the menu consisted of your usual suspects. clams casino, fried muzz, crabcakes, salads, veal dishes, chicken dishes, pasta, and seafood.

we started with the crabcakes, which were very crabby, with little filler. just enough to bind the cake together and provide some contrasting elements. these were served with a *bit* of spicy marina (i say bit because it was just enough, not overly sauced), and a side of mashed potatoes, which i thought was odd. however, by the time we were done, we had happily finished each cake and the pile of mashed.

a dish of chicken breast with roasted potatoes, hot peppers, and sausage was quite satisfying and very sizable. the sauce was not the brown gloppy thick stuff that i was expecting. i think there were 3 good sized breasts.

my penne puttanesca lacked the elements that i would associate with a usual puttanesca dish (specifically, olives and capers). but, it was evident that they were used somehow in the preparation, but they just weren't visible. not sure if they pureed them or what. this was a huge bowl of almost perfectly done pasta (these places always overcook pasta for my taste). each entree is served with a salad of mesclun, cherry tomatoes, and red onion. dressed lightly with an italian dressing that was quite good, with nice acidity, herbs, and garlic if i'm not mistaken.

byo.

i think it was about 40 dollars before tip.

234 lafayette ave

(973) 423-4345

hawthorne, nj

[201]

Sounds decent. Sorry to hear that you weren't able to order in Italian though... I know that you usually have the time and are comfortable doing so.

This is a really second-hand recommendation (as I've never been), but a friend of mine always recommends Puzo's in Hawthorne for a good red sauce kind of place. Have you been there yet?

[tommy]

nevah heard of it. location?

hawthorne and fairlawn have a lot of these places, as i think there is/was a large italian-american population in that area. we also go to volare's in fairlawn sometimes. they were just reviewed in the bergen record a few weeks ago. here.

[Rosie]

In Fairlawn we like Campania 17-15 Broadway 201-797-8222 BYO

[LiquidBread]

I believe the corner Puzo's is on is Grand & Garfield. If you know where Pleasurable Piercings is near the intersection of Lafayette Ave & Warburton Ave., just drive down the sidestreet PP is on.

I like the place, then again I'm not Italian. The dishes I enjoy the most are the Chicken Marsala and the Eggplant Rollitini. You get a side of pasta with them but I'm not real big on their red sauce, too dry for me. Good pizza too. Nice atmosphere, inexpensive. 2 people can easily eat for $30. Good bang for your buck.

I've never been to Giovanna's.

(btw, Hawthorne is in Passaic County)

[Rosie]

LiquidBread--Welcome to the NJ board. Where do you like to dine?

[LiquidBread]

LiquidBread--Welcome to the NJ board. Where do you like to dine?

I prefer to eat, I'm not much for dining.

If you can call it a "joint" I probably like it. (ex: pizza joint, hot dog joint, mexican joint, etc.)

or anywhere there's good beer.