NJ: WORST Dinner of 2001?

[Rail Paul]

kimWB's comments on a Newark restaurant suggested this topic.

I lucked out this year, didn't have any truly, absolutely horrible, get me to a doctor meals this year.

Did have a doozy last year, though, in Williamsburg VA. Service was slow, took about 15 minutes to get menus given and drink orders taken. Waited, and waited, and waited. Saw an occasional server come out with 1-2 items.

Guy next to us said they'd been waiting for an hour, still didn't have appys. We threw ŭ on the table for our bread and water, and left. Nicer than a jail cell, though.

[Helena Robinson]

Although we HAVE tried to block out most of the lousy dining experiences we had this year <g>, here are our disappointments for 2001:

Le Plumet Royal at The Peacock Inn (Perhaps our "Bummer of the Year")

Dan's on Main (a close second)

Panico's

Stage House Inn

While the first two were REAL bummers that we'd NEVER place on a list of suggestions, the latter two ARE fine establishments that we'd still recommend to others - they simply didn't work for us .

[yvonne johnson]

I had successfully blocked out our one night (one night too many) stay at the Peacock Inn (Princeton) in the spring...until I read the above. Thanks Helena :)

The inn is a dive.  On no account stay there! Glad we didn't eat there.

Les Copains (Princeton) where we did eat wasn't up to much, though it would be unfair to say it merited a bummer award. Maybe it has improved. I don't think it was that long open back in March.

This is a neat idea, Rail Paul. Maybe New York could do with a thread on bummer meals.

[Tom D]

There were not any really "bad" dining experiences but here were a few that just didn't live up to potential.

Ironically, some are the same from earlier posts.

PEACOCK INN               PRINCETON

FORSGATE CC               JAMESBURG

PANICO'S                      NEW BRUNSWICK

AVANTI                          PENNINGTON

RATS (one great meal, one inedible)  HAMILTON

Tom

[Rosie]

Two people have posted that they didn't have a good meal at Panico's. Can you elaborate? I have had consistantly good meals there. What was wrong?

[Tom D]

My only bad dinner was at Rat's. Had dinner twice at Panico's in 2001, both times the food was good, not great and service was fair.

The problem is the bill is representative of GREAT food and EXCELLENT service, and during our two visits both were missing.

Another way to look at it is the food and service we experienced at Panico's could be had at half the price in other Italian restaurants.

Just IMHO of course and as the saying goes, your mileage could vary.

(Edited by Tom D at 10:41 am on Dec. 21, 2001)

[Rachel Perlow]

While preparing suggestions for the NJ eGullet Dinner (on January 27th) I remembered our worst dinner of 2001. We wandered into Green Fields (Hackensack/Paramus area in a strip mall where there used to be a Bradlee's, I can't find in Yahoo Yellow Pages) hungry and not wanting to drive all the way to Newark for Brazilian Rodizio. What a mistake. They push their mega salad bar/buffet, the servers bringing the meat were few and far between, other service was equally lazy. To top it all off, there was very little variety in the meat selections. It was just awful and was about twice as expensive as the wonderful rodizio at Seabra's at Mediterranean Manor in Newark to boot.