Jump to content
  • Welcome to the eG Forums, a service of the eGullet Society for Culinary Arts & Letters. The Society is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of the culinary arts. These advertising-free forums are provided free of charge through donations from Society members. Anyone may read the forums, but to post you must create a free account.

Village Green Restaurant


Rosie

Recommended Posts

it's one of my favorites in ridgewood. i generally like it better than 28 oak, certainly latour, and zarole as well. it's a little less well-known, that's for sure. they're not blazing new trails over there, but you can get a decent meal in a pleasant atmosphere with friendly service.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tommy! good to know, I am going this Sat. I have only been there in recent years, for lunch, what do you recommend?

"When women are depressed, they either eat or go shopping. Men invade another country. It's a whole different way of thinking."

- Elaine Boosler

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
Tommy! good to know, I am going this Sat. I have only been there in recent years, for lunch, what do you recommend?

jtphjlmnop,

what did you think?

i had a very good meal there this evening.

foie gras to start. it wasn't buried in overly-sweet sauce as one often finds.

a clam chowder that was light and wonderful, with littlenecks in the shell

halibut, poached i'm thinking, with more foie gras. :biggrin:

rack o lamb (a *lot* of lamb) with a very intense rosemary jus.

total before tip was about 90 bucks.

mostly empty from 7.30 to 9.30 on a friday night. however, i think most restaurants take a hit on the weekends during the summer in ridgewood.

don't tell anyone about this place, though. thanks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

we had a change in party members, and put off Village Green, went to LaTours instead -

"When women are depressed, they either eat or go shopping. Men invade another country. It's a whole different way of thinking."

- Elaine Boosler

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Memo to self: When Tommy says a restaurant is very good IT IS VERY GOOD! We dined this weekend at Village Green, 36 Prospect St, Ridgewood; BYO. I don't know why this little gem has not been discovered as Chef Thomas Goodman serves delicious, quality food and has a deft hand with sauces. The menu although small, is very interesting, with many tempting choices making it hard to decide what to order.

When seated an amuse bouche containing a sardine wrapped around a square of avocado and surrounded by finely diced tomatoes and crème fraiche was placed on the table along with a choice of olive, pumpernickel or seven grain bread. There were seven appetizers and Lowell had the seared squab breast, onion confit and duck broth which is one of the best renditions of this dish that I have ever had. The thick slabs of squab were juicy and the broth like all of Chef Goodman's sauces created a bread-dipping episode where we were each vying for the last drop. All of the dishes we sampled were very generous servings and I had a tremendous baby red mustard green salad with blue cheese, candied pecans, strawberries and a Cabernet vinaigrette. The interesting play of flavors-- tangy dressing, sweet berries and pecans and salty/creamy blue cheese, elevated this to a very special salad that could be easily shared by two people. Other appetizers that we would have loved to try were the lime marinated fluke ceviche served in a martini glass and the steamed little neck clam chowder. Entrees also had balanced flavors and provided instant pleasure. The chipotle glazed Niman Ranch pork tenderloin with blackbeans, sweet corn, cilantro, and parsnip puree was an exciting dish that contained a wonderful ensemble of tastes and textures without overwhelming the palate. I'm not a fan of cilantro but didn't mind it's subtle flavor in this dish and the parsnips had a hidden surprise of flecks of bacon. My Nova Scotia halibut was layered with blini and foie gras (do I need to say more?) and was surrounded with tiny multicolored heirloom tomatoes, English peas and consommé. Again, the bread became a sponge for the delectable sauce. Next time I'm ordering the Australian free range rack of lamb with potato gratin and rosemary sauce or the diver sea scallops with veal sweetbreads, morel mushroom, summer truffles and asparagus puree. And now that I have tasted Chef Goodman's preparation of melt in your mouth fois gras I hope the seared Hudson Valley foie gras with caramelized mango and huckleberry sauce is still an appetizer when I return to Village Green.

We were only able to manage one dessert and although the banana cream pie with mango caramel and chocolate shavings came highly recommended by our delightful waitress, we opted for a lip puckering lemon tart. All desserts are made in house and other options were: Tahitian vanilla bean crème brulee; fallen chocolate soufflé cake with raspberry puree; and fresh berries with crème anglaise. Coffee and cappuccino were excellent and a perfect ending to a memorable meal. With tax and tip the bill was $118. Do try this restaurant. Phone: 201-445-2914.

Rosalie Saferstein, aka "Rosie"

TABLE HOPPING WITH ROSIE

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 7 months later...

every time i drive past the Village Green, i eagerly look in the windows with hopes of seeing some sign that they'll reopen. last night, on the way to Zarole, i saw a sign. there was 1, maybe 2 tables, with people, and people walking around and whatnot.

i heard from a reliable source that they might be reopening with a new chef, after the untimely passing of Tom Goodman, who was just wonderful.

any news?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just called the Village Green to find the exact date they were planning on re-opening. The recording says they are reopening tomorrow!! That is fantastic news! Congrats to this terrific restaurant...

Shall I arrange an egullet dinner??

"It's better to burn out than to fade away"-Neil Young

"I think I hear a dingo eating your baby"-Bart Simpson

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Amy and I went to Village Green Restaurant late last week. Lets just say it was a fantastic meal. They now offer three tasting menus, a 4-course, 5-course, and 7-course. For the four courses, you choose from a selection of nine plates for three, then dessert. The five and seven course selections each have their own menu. We chose the seven course tasting.

An amuse of soup served in a demitasse cup was good. Don't remember what the soup was, as it was 4 days ago and my brain was quite fried that evening.

First course of Tuna Tartare with Lime scented cucumber, Tabiko, white soy and a Wasabi cracker was tasty and refreshing. Tuna was decent, fresh. Dish worked well.

The second course offered a choice of Lobster and Artichoke salad with lemon oil and 12yr old balsamic -or- Foie Gras on brioche with caramelized apples and calvados reduction. Amy had the lobster and throughly enjoyed it. I didnt try it, but it was nicely plated and looked terrific. My foiegras was one of the best I have had in the area. I'm tired of thin, barely seared slices of foie served with cloyingly sweet, syrupy sauces. This was a nice thick slick, with a nice dark sear on it. Served on a generous piece of brioche and not sweet apple. The sauce was tasty but not too sweet. The dish was perfect all around.

Next was Halibut with celery root, fingerling potatoes, leeks and Truffle cream. The fish was a tiny bit overcooked and underseasoned. The rest of the dish was super.

Next was Rabbit, braised stuffed cabbage, bacon, and nicoise olive reduction. This dish seemed straight out of the Cafe Boulud playbook. The rabbit consisted of pan roasted saddle and braised leg. Both were good, though the saddle was a tiny bit dry, something I am sure is hard to avoid with rabbit. The stuffed cabbage was stuffed with what seemed like chicken or rabbit forcemeat garnished with vegetables. Tasty. The sauce was quite good, and the dish worked well.

Last was rack of lamb with isreali cous cous, snap peas, peppers, and a Moroccan sauce. Lamb was always a strong point in the old kitchen, and it was very good here also. Two perfectly cooked chops were presented on a very tasty medley of cous cous and vegetables with a spicy (not hot) sauce. Amy ate this, but I tried some.

The other choice was Filet Mignon with potato gratin, Sauteed Vegetables and cabernet sauce. A decent dish, but the lamb was better.

For the courses where amy and I had different dishes, there was a choice of two. When we only tried one dish, there was no choice. Worked fine for us, as we ate everything on the menu.

Next was a selection of cheeses. Nice selection of four cheeses, served a bit too chilled, but since we love cheese it was a welcome addition. I wish more restaurants offered cheese courses.

Finally, we had dessert. Unfortunately I forgot what it was, but there was a nice selection, I remember that.

Service throughout the night was so-so. The girl serving us was very friendly and polite, though it seemed like her first night and she was a bit nervous and jerky in her movements. No big deal. The other servers in the room all looked like they knew what they were doing. The place was pretty empty for a Wednesday, but since they just opened two nights before, I guess the word needs to get out.

So, PLEASE go to the restaurant. People like this need our support!! Forget that boring Italian joint and go to Ridgewood, you can have chicken marsala some other night...

Anthony

Oh, by the way, its still BYOB, just in case people are not familiar with Ridgewood..

"It's better to burn out than to fade away"-Neil Young

"I think I hear a dingo eating your baby"-Bart Simpson

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Village Green is very new and they are not having their Grand Opening until the end of April. Be aware that menus/prices etc may change. There are three tasting menus: 4 course $35; 5 course $45; and 7 course $65. VERY reasonable—actually unbelievably reasonable.

The amuse we had there was a mushroom consommé which was quite good. Would have loved more! Thought the halibut was outstanding. The tuna a bit overcooked. Wasn’t as thrilled with the rabbit as Anthony was but I was comparing it to the rabbit I had at The French Laundry. It came with a roll of cabbage stuffed with rabbit meat. Sauces on all of the dishes were outstanding. I’m not a big fan of squab but for squab it was good. Crabcake and salmon were delicious. Crème brulee was very good. Chocolate soufflé cake was overcooked. We didn’t order coffee.

The night we were there they were short staffed. A waiter called in close to the opening hour to say he was not leaving his other job and wouldn’t be working at VG. However, our meal was well paced. I certainly want to go back here and urge you to try this restaurant in a few months.

Rosalie Saferstein, aka "Rosie"

TABLE HOPPING WITH ROSIE

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Village Green is indeed closed on sunday and open on monday. i like this, as it gives me a monday option.

had the 7 course tasting tonight. a pretty damned good meal, with a few short-comings. however, i won't bother getting into anything, as they're still getting on their feet and i don't think it would be fair. i will say that the kitchen is showing great promise. that said, i'm with rosie with thinking that it's best to give the place a few weeks. from what i understand, they might even be a bit overwhelmed with the enthusiasm they're receiving from both old and new customers.

i'll no doubt return hundreds of times over the next year or so. give or take.

i should note that we were presented with an envelope thanking us for visiting them during their re-opening period. two coupons were inside: one for 20% off, and another for 10% off, ostensibly for a "friend" that we might turn on to the restaurant. that's mighty good business right there if you ask me.

as usual, a distinctly older crowd was filling the tables tonite. i have a feeling the median age might change soon. at least i hope so, as the secret should be getting out if i can help it.

Edited by tommy (log)
Link to comment
Share on other sites

"as usual, a distinctly older crowd was filling the tables tonite. i have a feeling the median age might change soon. at least i hope so, as the secret should be getting out if i can help it. "

Does the age of the crowd make a difference in your dining experience? How old is distinctly old? :wink:

Rosalie Saferstein, aka "Rosie"

TABLE HOPPING WITH ROSIE

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Does the age of the crowd make a difference in your dining experience? How old is distinctly old? :wink:

rosie, you're one of the youngest people i know.

and yeah, i prefer a young, energetic atmosphere. i'm like a hippie or something, but in the 2000's instead of the 60's. you can't trust the man, or anyone over 30.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

and yeah, i prefer a young, energetic atmosphere. i'm like a hippie or something, but in the 2000's instead of the 60's. you can't trust the man, or anyone over 30.

Have you been to South City Grill? They have a crowd there that seems to fit your demographics... :raz:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...