Montclair - OVERRATED

[toddevan]

decent restaurants, overpriced homes for such a bad school system, good train system

IS IT WORTH THE trip for a Meal anymore.

I used to frequent Thai Chef frequently when it was small. Now with expansion and slow service and food not as good. Overall has the rest of NJ caught up with Montclair.

[tommy]

i don't see how the price of homes should be discussed on a food website. but it might be important to note that Montclair is generally accepted as a good place to live, and the last time i looked the real estate market is showing little signs of letting up. not much unlike summit, westfield, chatam, etc, montclair is a bit bullet-proof as far as big swings in real estate go.

thai chef used to be such a great little gem. no more. i haven't been to montclair in years. actually, there really aren't many great places in NJ, so montclair is just like the rest. the restaurants appeal to people who don't have very high expectations (although they have higher expectations than most).

Edited May 7, 2003 by tommy (log)

[toddevan]

reason for the note that homes overpriced. When housing prices go up in certain towns (Montclair, Ridgewood) more restaurants show up. With the added restaurants perhaps more people see the town as attractive creating a positive vibe or allure that further increases housing prices. As the housing prices increase, more seemingly upscale restaurants pop up.

[tommy]

reason for the note that homes overpriced. When housing prices go up in certain towns (Montclair, Ridgewood) more restaurants show up. With the added restaurants perhaps more people see the town as attractive creating a positive vibe or allure that further increases housing prices.  As the housing prices increase, more seemingly upscale restaurants pop up.

oh. it seemed like you just felt like taking a swipe at montclair, and by extension, the people who've bought homes there and send their kids to montclair schools.

i think you'll see that very few upscale towns have good upscale restaurants.

ridgewood - few to none

summit - few to none

upper saddle river - none

westfield - 1 or 2?

rumson - none?

montclair - few to none

etc.

what towns *do* get when people are dumping money into the town, is a bunch of middle of the road restaurants, and that's only if they have a "downtown" to support it. although, it's better than no restaurants, that's for sure.

Edited May 7, 2003 by tommy (log)

[toddevan]

while these towns lack "good" upscale restuarants I do see a trend in increasin upscale restaurants in these high end real estate areas. (atleast in summit, Montclair, Ridgewood

[toddevan]

also increasing # of places in Westwood

[Wiener]

>>>>>>>>>>>>decent restaurants, overpriced homes for such a bad school system, good train system.........................

It alsmost sounds like NYC !

[rozrapp]

i think you'll see that very few upscale towns have good upscale restaurants.

rumson - none?

Fromagerie -- It's been in Rumson for about 30 years.

Restaurant Nicholas is not in Rumson. Its address is Middletown; however, it's not in a "town" because Middletown is not a town. It's just a zip code. As a matter of fact, I'd hardly call Rumson much of a town either. A few shops and antiques places along River Road don't add up to much of a town. Montclair, Westfield, Red Bank, Princeton, Chester, Lambertville, Freehold, etc., -- those are real towns. Anyway, Nicholas is in its own building on Highway 35. It's a 4-star-rated, upscale restaurant that Rumson residents patronize, as well as being a destination dining place.

[menton1]

Englewood has really gone cosmopolitan. Last Saturday, after a great meal at Saigon Republic, we tried to go for coffee and dessert, but even at 10:30, Starbucks had no tables, and the new Cosi had no tables, the Mexican resto Blue Moon was still 2/3 full and expanded onto the sidewalk in front of 2 other stores (like in Europe). A lot of people on the street. Really impressed with Englewood lately.

[201]

Paterson's pretty cosmopolitan too. I always see lots of people sitting outside at places like Checkers and Chicken Supreme. Many people in Paterson can even be seen drinking alcohol outdoors and riding bicycles, which is cleary an homage to the European lifestyle! Oh yes, they even have a train station too.

It's hard to think of something more European than taking a train into a city and stopping to eat outside of a restaurant while those around you drink alcohol in public and ride bicycles. Ah, Paterson in Spring...

[jhlurie]

Paterson's pretty cosmopolitan too.  I always see lots of people sitting outside at places like Checkers and Chicken Supreme.  Many people in Paterson can even be seen drinking alcohol outdoors and riding bicycles, which is cleary an homage to the European lifestyle!  Oh yes, they even have a train station too.

It's hard to think of something more European than taking a train into a city and stopping to eat outside of a restaurant while those around you drink alcohol in public and ride bicycles.  Ah, Paterson in Spring...

Cough.

[Rachel Perlow]

Not that it actually has anything to do with this thread, but since both Englewood and Thai Chef have been mentioned, I thought it would be fitting to mention that a branch of Thai Chef is opening in Englewood shortly.

[toddevan]

Thai Chef - branch just opened in Riverside Square although it is primarily Japanese menu

Englewood - on the rise, Montclair falling

[thereuare]

Englewood has really gone cosmopolitan.  Last Saturday, after a great meal at Saigon Republic, we tried to go for coffee and dessert, but even at 10:30, Starbucks had no tables, and the new Cosi had no tables, the Mexican resto Blue Moon was still 2/3 full and expanded onto the sidewalk in front of 2 other stores (like in Europe).  A lot of people on the street.  Really impressed with Englewood lately.

I agree with all the above EXCEPT the last line.

Paterson's pretty cosmopolitan too. I always see lots of people sitting outside at places like Checkers and Chicken Supreme. Many people in Paterson can even be seen drinking alcohol outdoors and riding bicycles, which is cleary an homage to the European lifestyle! Oh yes, they even have a train station too.

ROFLMAO!!

[phaelon56]

For many of us, especially those who've more recently moved to the area, buying a home in any decent town in North Jersey is out of the question. I live in Rutherford, where a crappy 3 BR 1 bath cape cod in need of some work will typically sell for $300,000+. We're actually even starting to see some "knock-downs+ - formerly mostly a California trend - buy a $300,000 house, knock it down and build a bigger on on the same spot.

Montclair? As a newbie to NJ who prefers to spend my frtee time in NYC, it's the best alternate spot for me to visit in North Jersey. There are several good movie theatres (Claridge and also the Screening Room), a GREAT independent bookstore (Montclair Book Center) and a decent little espresso cafe (Cafe Eclectic - their espresso con panna with caramel drizzled on it is one of the few espresso drinks I enjoy outside the ones I make at home). When it comes to food? The hell with Montclair..... I drive straight down Bloomfield Ave into Bloomfield for a very tasty meal at Dev's Jamaican Cuisine. It's spotless (but horribly overlit inside), the family who runs it is really nice and the food is great.

[tommy]

i think you'll see that very few upscale towns have good upscale restaurants.

rumson - none?

Fromagerie -- It's been in Rumson for about 30 years.

rozrapp,

good i stand corrected.

however my point that these upscale towns don't necessary have upscale restaurants remains. and judging by toddevan's last post, it's becoming even more clear that he has a hard-on for Montclair, if not the people who choose to live there. you (general) can come to your own conclusions about that.

[Double 0]

  I drive straight down Bloomfield Ave into Bloomfield for a very tasty meal at Dev's Jamaican Cuisine. It's spotless (but horribly overlit inside), the family who runs it is really nice and the food is great.

A few more details please? Maybe an address?

[toddevan]

[hard-on]

quite the contrary.

[menton1]

Just want to defend Montclair, a diverse, interesting town, if not as aesthetically pleasing (downtown) as Ridgewood.

The only complaint I have about Montclair is that there is an old department store (Boscov's?) on an otherwise pretty street that has been closed for at least 15 years, but the building is boarded up, dilapidated, and an eyesore. Can't the city fathers see fit to demolish the building and at least make some sort of nice public space?

[tommy]

[hard-on]

quite the contrary.

you're missing the irony. but i'm glad we're on the same page.

[hollywood]

[hard-on]

quite the contrary.

you're missing the irony. but i'm glad we're on the same page.

This is beginning to sound like a circle jerk.

[rhubarbd]

Have lived in Montclair for seven years; our office is here, too. Rented an apartment all this time (great apartments are still available at really good prices); just bought a house in town three months ago. Office still in same location.

Everything everyone's saying is true - housing prices are absurd; the schools are merely functional; restaurants overrated; parking is a joke; etc. etc.

BUT ... I lived on the Upper West Side for many years and then in Brooklyn - and for me, Montclair combines the best of both. There are good movie theatres and fun, attractive shops; a Whole Foods Market; several great coffee places. And it's still a neighborhood. I walk around town and see people i know by name, and that's really nice.

menton1 - BTW - the store is Hahne's and the good news is, it was recently purchased by two developers. They're turning it into retail stores and apartments.

[njfoodie]

I agree about Montclair, I love the restaurants in Nutley, you have Terraza's, Franklin Steak House, Papillon and my favorite The Petite Cafe. Most of these restaurants have outdoor seating, it is just so pretty looking down Franklin Ave. and seeing all the tables outside. I only go to Montclair, because I have friends in Montclair, and we have to take turns who chooses the restaurants. The parking alone is exasperating!!!

[rozrapp]

i think you'll see that very few upscale towns have good upscale restaurants.

rumson - none?

Fromagerie -- It's been in Rumson for about 30 years.

rozrapp,

good i stand corrected.

however my point that these upscale towns don't necessary have upscale restaurants remains.

Tommy, I agree with you. Actually, if we made a list of upscale restaurants in the entire state, I'll bet we might find that there aren't all that many. And when it comes to their locations, some, like Nicholas, are not in a town, upscale or otherwise. Ryland Inn is another one in that category; it's in the middle of nowhere! Then there are some in towns or communities that would not be considered upscale. Frog and the Peach and Stage Left are both in New Brunswick, hardly an upscale zip code.

[Helena Robinson]

i think you'll see that very few upscale towns have good upscale restaurants.

rumson - none?

Fromagerie -- It's been in Rumson for about 30 years.

Restaurant Nicholas is not in Rumson. Its address is Middletown; however, it's not in a "town" because Middletown is not a town. It's just a zip code.

Glad someone else thought about Fromagerie, or I would've asked about that. (Haven't been there in quite a few years, though.)

Actually, Middletown is REALLY a town - its official name is Middletown Township, though it is served by several different zip codes, one of which is actually labeled "Middletown." This is unlike Hillsborough, which until two years ago was served by five or six different zip codes, none of which was named "Hillsborough." Neither municipality has a real "town center," though both are trying (very trying, perhaps) to establish one.

From a former resident of Leonardo, a section of Middletown that bordered Atlantic Highlands. We lived right on the border of most everything: had an Atlantic Highlands phone exchange, which made most of Monmouth County a toll call (as opposed to having a Middletown exchange). Then we were on the border between getting a young newspaper carrier (are there any "paper boys" left?) and an adult carrier for the local paper. (The adult carrier kept jacking up the rate almost every month as gas prices kept going up at the time. We eventually got the paper kid.) And then we landed in a voting district that had us traveling to what it considered the nearest polling place, instead of casting ballots at a site across the street from the house.

New Jersey... What a fun place.