Blue Sky Montclair

[Rosie]

We returned to Blue Sky Café, Montclair for dinner last night. For appetizers we had a portobello mushroom sandwiched between fried green tomatoes. It reminded me of a steak sandwich. Also, we had a plate of two different homemade raviolis; one was stuffed with oxtail and the other with a pear ginger filling. Brown butter and almonds finished this delicious dish. For entrees Lowell had a buffalo hanger steak with green beans and mashed potatoes. We loved the spices on the steak but prefer a beef hanger steak as the fat content is higher! I had a fabulous butternut squash stuffed with barley and vegetables. It was topped with melted mozzarella cheese. We were too full for dessert. And you? Are you going out this weekend? Be sure to give us a report.

[Casey]

Tried Elio's in Edison last night for the first time, and was impressed with the quiet atmosphere, and the value for the money.  Four of us dined, and we started with arugala salad with oranges and a lemon vinaigrette, beef carpaccio, and grilled shrimp served over a delicious garlic cream sauce that included grilled bread pieces which had soaked up the sauce (not a drop of sauce left on that plate when we were done, it was so good!).  For entrees, we had pepper encrusted veal chop, veal saltimbocca, sole with shrimp and asparagus in that same garlic cream sauce, and farfalle with grilled shrimp, asparagus and sundried tomatoes in a garlic broth.  Only one of us had room for dessert, which was creme brulee that was good but the custard portion was quite a bit sweeter than normal.  With one alcoholic drink each, espresso and coffe, plus tax and tip, the bill came to ๥ per couple.  I would definitely return.

Casey

[Rosie]

We use to go to Elio's alot when I lived in Edison. Thanks for reminding me of this restaurant. The only down side is that they have a liquor license and I LOVE BYO. ;)

[glenn]

I guess I picked the wrong meal to check out Blue Sky, though it seemed like the perfect place to go before the cinema.  It was buffet and seemed no differerent than brunch at a hotel, albeit upscale.  No alcoholic drinks - , or is there a law in NJ about that Sunday morning - for that matter, no table service of anything  other than coffee and orange juice.   Even so, service sucked -- had to ask for every single coffee refill.  This was actually my first buffet breakfast outside of a hotel so I don't know

I was also put off by the 18% tip included with the ฤ prix fixe (there were only 2 of us), or is this typical for a breakfast buffet?  I sure hope the hostess gets a cut because she did more work than the servers. :)

[Rail Paul]

Glenn -

the owner of Blue Sky posted to a previous complaint that the 18% tip addition was a "mistake" as it only applies to groups. Guess it is a mistake the staff makes often.

the restaurant is a BYO which also provides a liquor store on site from which you can buy stuff. my nearby town doesn't allow sales of alcohol before noon on sunday, perhaps montclair has a similar rule.

I've enjoyed blue sky on the several occasions I've visited there, I'm sorry you didn't.

Paul

[glenn]

Oh, didn't realize it was byo.  But no one made a mistake about including the gratuity.... it's stated on their website that the cost is ศ.95 which includes tax and tip (which I looked at after the fact), plus I asked the hostess about it.  I didn't voice my displeasure at the time because I was with my wife and I also thought I might have missed a sign stating such a policy, though I looked high and low on my way out and couldn't find any such notice.  Even if the policy was clearly stated, I'd like to know how they justify charging 18% for a very limited service.  And I won't get into how terrible the service was.

[Rosie]

We recently had dinner at Blue Sky Café, 400 Bloomfield Ave, Montclair. Foccacia with a bowl of chopped onions and tomatoes were placed on the table when we were seated. For appetizers we had addictive Heinekin beer battered onion rings with a spicy dipping sauce and a yellow and red diced roasted beet salad with a goat cheese timbale and frissee radish salad. This salad was beautifully presented as a tower with the colorful beets forming the base, then the goat cheese topped by the greens. Delicious. We all ordered fish but next time I would like to try the grilled duck breast with ginger honey whipped sweet potatoes or the grilled marinated pork loin with scallop potatoes, caraway scented cabbage and apples with a red wine and peppercorn reduction. This is what we did have!  Lowell ordered the pan-roasted Louisiana catfish stuffed with shrimp mousse on a bed of vegetable risotto with creme fraiche and caviar. I kept asking him for more tastes. I’m not big on catfish but this was excellent. I’ve been on a salmon kick and had a wonderful pan roasted Atlantic salmon with pears and honey on a bed of toasted egg barley and vegetable stir-fry. Our daughter had the North Atlantic scallops and PEI mussels in a lobster and white wine sauce with roasted garlic whipped potatoes. The scallops were huge and she took half of them home. All of the entrees were scrumptious and beautifully presented on different shaped glass plates. For dessert we shared a blueberry tart with ice cream. Chef David Joseph always creates interesting dishes with sauces that are bread dipping good. Phone: 973-746-2553

(Edited by Rosie at 8:47 am on Feb. 7, 2002)

[tommy]

did they have any paragraph delimiters on the menu? ;)

[Rosie]

Yes, that was the best part of the meal.;)

[Casey]

Rosie, have you heard anything on an upcoming shellfish/wine dinner they are planning?  Heard a rumor but didn't see anything on the website....

[Rosie]

They had that wine dinner already. The next wine dinner 2/24 will be Pinot Noir--Old vs. New. The wine dinners are on the last Sunday of each month. You can call Chef David  for more information.

[Rosie]

Dinner at Blue Sky last night was scrumptious. We started off with a grilled calamari and watermelon salad that was presented as a tower wrapped with a long thin slice of cucumber. The tender calamari was "Thai hot" which contrasted beautifully with the cold watermelon. We also had a refreshing gazpacho served in a glass coffee cup and filled with finely chopped vegetables including corn, and a ceviche made with scallops, shrimp and other seafood. My entrée was the best ever-- two large panko encrusted soft shell crabs with bok choy. Lowell had yellowfin tuna perfectly cooked or not cooked--rare. Our daughter had a scallop/shrimp dish with risotto. The sea scallops were so sweet and the tremendous shrimp came with their heads on and were fabulous. Of course we had dessert and I don't know which was my favorite but we kept passing the plates around trying to decide. We had a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting; a chocochino mousse with crème anglaise; and fresh peaches with Muscato topped with whipped cream and beautifully served in an ice cream sundae glass. Phone: 973-746-2553. BYO.

[Rosie]

Had a scrumptious dinner last night at Blue Sky, Montclair. Started off with warm bread and baba ghanoush being placed on the table which was a nice alternative to butter or olive oil. For apps we shared a cheese plate with eight different cheeses and an intriguing panzanella salad. Chef David served the delicious diced tomatoes in a tall cylinder of toasted bread. It was a visual and tasteful treat. For entrees we had rare yellowfin tuna with wasabi noodles and steamed spinach; skirt steak topped with large deep fried onion rings and scallion mashed potatoes placed in a large roasted green pepper; scallops and shrimp in an Asian dressing with risotto; and fall off the bones short ribs with an apricot/carrot dressing. Dessert was also a eyecatcher. It was called "seven spoons" and consisted of seven Chinese soup spoons placed in a circle on the plate topped with a small serving of seven different desserts such as chocolate bread pudding, sorbet, ice cream, some other chocolate dessert and I can't remember what else. It was my mom's birthday and we finished with a serving of chocolate bread pudding with a crème anglaise sauce. BYO. Phone: 973-746-2553.

[Tom D]

First time at this restaurant, was expecting it to be very good from others past experiences.

Did not disappoint.

I will have to leave the particulars up to our dining companions but here is a quick overview.

First off, the appetizers and wine PRIOR to going to Blue Sky were awesome and much appreciated

At Blue Sky we were served a complimentary mushroom risotto with truffle cream.

In looks, a dead ringer for a Starbucks cappucino but soooo much better.

We split a couple of appetizers, a special of oysters and the skewered shrimp. Both were great.

Entrees were a blue nose grouper special from New Zealand (I think) which was very good, another special, rack of veal that was excellent, pork tenderloin and volcano shrimp, both very good.

Totally stuffed from all the food before and at Blue Sky, we shared a chocolate bread pudding that I wish I had more room for. It was indeed indulgent.

The above brief descriptions don't do justice to the excellent meal and service that we enjoyed.

3 bottles of wine over the course of the evening can do that.

Tom

[phaelon56]

On the basis of these mostly positive reviews, I will make it a point to try dinner there (once I finally get home to NJ for long enough to venture out of the house for a meal!). I will agree with the poster sho felt that their brunch was not a good value. The food and the pastries were okay but as indicated, nothing different from what you'd find at the average hotel brunch. If I recall correctly, my service charge was also included and the tab for two came to well over $50. We're not talking top shelf smoked salmon, champagne or caviar here - just fruit, pastries, granola, yoghurt and an omelet bar. Don't know about you folks but I'm not capable of getting remotely close to my money's worth for that price from a breakfast menu. My expereince with the service was similar - it was almost non-existent. I'll keep heading over to Montclair to the Candlewyck Diner for a great breakfast value - now if they could only learn to make (or choose to make) real honest-to-goodness home fries, cooked crispy with onions. Does anyone offer the real thing in north Jersey?

[Rosie]

"First off, the appetizers and wine PRIOR to going to Blue Sky were awesome and much appreciated "

Thanks Tom. I usually do a good job buying cheese.

You left out that the bread came with an eggplant dip. Nice change from butter or olive oil.

[menton1]

We decided to go to Blue Sky last weekend, Rosie has been raving about this place so much. A pleasant looking place, except the lower level by the windows are isolated and have a peculiar feel. We sat upstairs.

There was a sales pitch for the bottled water, which I detest. We ordered, and then they brought a nice bread basket, with the bread tightly wrapped up in a linen towel, and when unwrapped, was ice cold!! When I asked if the bread could be heated, they stammered a bit, and then said yes. But the bread never returned for about 15 minutes and 2 additional requests. I guess that was our "punishment" for daring to ask for warm bread!! Why wrap this bread up so carefully if it is served cold? I would be interested in other Egulleters' comments on "better" restaurants serving cold bread.

The beet appetizer was beautiful to look at, but very bland and uninteresting. The mussels appetizer was quite good, and the sauce was excellent. The Char Entree was very tasty, but served with dull whipped potatoes, as almost every entree is served with. The yellowfin tuna was nice as well, but the sauce was very spicy, with no indication on the menu that it would be. All in all, with all the hoopla, the place was not terrible but was disappointing. I will not return for a long while.

Thoughts about cold bread are appreciated as well.

[Rosie]

I don't like cold bread either. But I can't remember if I had cold bread or not at Blue Sky. I'll check to see how they serve it. Did you have dessert?

[menton1]

No, but we usually do not get dessert, too much to eat at one sitting. I asked if they customarily serve cold bread, and they said Yes. And then they never voluntarily brought the bread back, we had to ask TWICE.

To eliminate confusion about my grammar in my original remarks, I do NOT detest bottled water, I detest the sales pitch for it.

[Rosie]

I called Blue Sky. They bake their bread daily and it is kept at room temperture. It is never refrigerated. Don't know what to tell you about the bottled water. When we have been there they ask if we want bottled or tap water. I always get tap water. Do you know the waitress/waiter's name? I am sure management would want to know which waitstaff told you that they always serve cold bread.

[menton1]

Sorry, another grammar misspeak-- I consider "cold" bread to be room temperature-- I did not mean refrigerated. As opposed to heated bread, which to me, should be pro forma in a good restaurant.

[Rosie]

I prefer bread warm but don't mind if it is at room temperture as long as it is fresh.

[tommy]

Sorry, another grammar misspeak-- I consider "cold" bread to be room temperature-- I did not mean refrigerated.  As opposed to heated bread, which to me, should be pro forma in a good restaurant.

when bread is heated it dries out during the process. it's not always preferable. why don't you start a thread on the General board, as i'm sure there are people outside of NJ who might want to contribute.

[Wiener]

Does anyone know how the custom started, ....serving bread at the table before and during dinner. I love eating some good freshly baked bread and butter before dinner but is it really necessary? In some cases, I have ordered a sandwich and the waitperson still plopped down some bread and butter before the main course arrived. I am not saying I do not like it, just wondering if it is really necessary, considering the amount of calories already included in many many meals.

[Rail Paul]

There's a NY Stock Exchange ad running on TV, with "ordinary folks" explaining how they trust companies who do biz on the Big Board (he he he) because of its rules and disclosure policies. The lead off ordinary person is a chef who looks very much like David Joseph of Blue Sky.

Is it he?