Wish - West Orange

[jb_973]

I drove past the old Primavera location on Pleasant Valley Way, just south of Eagle Rock (West Orange), and saw a new temporary sign up saying 'Wish - An American Bistro - Coming Soon.'

Anyone have more information on this? This is within walking distance of our house, and a good bistro would be a welcome addition.

Jason

[Rosie]

Hey Neighbor---They will be opening in a few weeks. Watch Table Hopping With Rosie for info. The website doesn't have any info yet.

www.wishnj.com

[jb_973]

Hey Neighbor---They will be opening in a few weeks. Watch Table Hopping With Rosie for info. The website doesn't have any info yet.

www.wishnj.com

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Rosie - Thanks for the info. I'll have to restrain my curiousity for a few more weeks! Do you know if the owners/chef have any been associated with any other ventures in the area?

[Rosie]

Yes. Owner/chef was involved with Jerry's NYC.

[hitmanoo]

Nice, a new restaurant to explore. I think they'll find, especially in the summer months, that parking is the major problem with having a restaurant at that location. With the ice cream parlor in the strip mall (mark and julie's I think), that location tends to get loaded up with cars.

[coughy]

I guess we are all neighbors because we can walk to the restaurant also. We usually don't and park in the bank lot across the street.

[jb_973]

I guess we are all neighbors because we can walk to the restaurant also.  We usually don't and park in the bank lot across the street.

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We moved from Brooklyn (Park Slope) to the Pleasantdale area of West Orange earlier this year. I think we're still trying to maintain the idea that we live in an area where we can walk to shops and restaurants :) So far, the opposite has been true!

That said, it would be nice to have somewhere to go for a nice meal and a bottle of wine, without either of us having to worry about driving back afterwards.

[coughy]

jb - have you tried Sweet Basil?

[jb_973]

jb - have you tried Sweet Basil?

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You must have read my mind, as I was about to post a question asking about that place - worth checking out?

Jason

[Curlz]

Wow, not the last time I was there! Unless someone can report something has changed, it was average at best.

JB, have you been to Montclair?!? Pretty much what you described about your hopes for West Orange--except it actually exists there!

[jb_973]

Yes, I've been to Montclair a few times - still getting grounded on the good places to eat (looking back through past eGullet discussions.) Restaurant-wise, we've only really been to Indigo Smoke - and our experience was similar to that described in other threads: Great food, questionable service.

By the way - Don't let it sound like I'm disappointed with the area that we moved to. We love it - our neighbors are great, the area is peaceful, and we've no regrets moving out here from the city. The fact that there's not too many restaurants within walking distance is a very minor point.

By the way, thanks to eGullet, we've found a number of great restaurants in places such as Livingston, Caldwell, Whippany, as well as West Orange. Montclair is next on our list for some serious food exploration :)

[Rosie]

I think--you need to call and ask--but Sweet Basil's only serves lunch now.

Montclair is restaurant heaven. Check it out. Also, there are a list of Montclair restaurants here:

http://www.baristanet.com/barista/food.html

Scroll down the page.

[jb_973]

Just noticed that the Dinner Menu has been posted to their website:

http://www.wishnj.com/dinner_menu.html

[Rosie]

We dined here recently. The room is stuffed with tables placed very close together. Only three tables were occupied so it was a little weird.

Bread is from Balthazar’s and we especially liked the pistachio, walnut, cranberry bread. The flash fried calamari & zucchini with shaved manchego cheese and lemon aioli was good and the calamrai tender. I would have preferred the sauce on the side rather than spread over the calamari and zucchini.

Lowell liked the whole grilled Idaho brook trout with warm lentils, spinach and a tangy sherry dressing much more than I did. I found the dressing to be too acidic. Boneless short ribs with mashed potatoes, baby carrots, turnips and gravy were very good but the meat may have been microwaved as steam was coming out of my plate but the meat was lukewarm.We didn’t have dessert. Lowell said his coffee was good. I’d give this place a shot and we would probably go back 3-6 months down the road. Phone: 973-669-9911; BYO.

[Rosie]

I just wanted to add that the restaurant was only open three days when we dined there.

[scarlet knight]

We ate there on day 2.

I had a arugula salad with goat cheese, beets,etc. My wife had a mesclun salad with pumpkin seeds, bleu cheese and dried apricots. Both were good. On the small side for 7 and 8 dollars.

Entrees: I had Grilled Salmon with grits and bok choy. Mrs. had roasted boneless chicken. The salmon was very good-- no fishy or fatty taste and it was hot and cooked to my order (medium-well). The side dishes were not hot.

The boneless chicken was good. It had rosemary on it , which my wife detests, but it was easily wiped off. The Spanish rice pilaf had chorizo and cumin. I thought that it was too overpowering for the dish, but my wife thought it worked.

The salmon was $18, the chicken was $16, very reasonable.

I think that this place could be very good in a month or two as they work out the kinks. The staff was friendly, the chef personally talked with us and there was a positive vibe. Parking is tough, but doable.

Try it if you like Montclair restaurants but live in or closer to West Orange.

[pnapoli]

anyone been here recently? i might try to check it out this weekend.

[coughy]

I pass by everyday and wonder how it is. Please let us know.

[scarlet knight]

We have been there twice since our November post and it was better each time. We' ve recommended it to others and have received good reviews.

We ate at Etats-Unis on the Upper East Side this past weekend and we thought that Wish is better. We' re going to Wish with another couple this weekend.

We miss 28, Chelsea Grill, Blue Sky and The Show(food and service lacking at the last one, but it had charm for us). If you want this cuisine to exist in NJ, you have to patronize these places.

If you like New American food, this is as good as it gets in Northern NJ. We ate at Fascino in its first week--if that was Rookie of the Year 2003, this is R-O-Y for 2004-5. Try it!

[WestOrangeFrank]

Haven't been to Sweet Basils recently, but last time I stopped in on a Tuesday for a three course prix fix dinner. I remember it being ok, the carrot cake (made in house) was the saving grace. And it's BYO.

Hey Rosie (or anyone) what's the deal with Northfield Bar and Grill? Looks like another change Ecko or something?

Looking forward to meeting all the other local eG-ers and talking about our favorites.

[Rosie]

Ekko should be opening in a few weeks. Japanese.

[pnapoli]

we had a very nice meal at dish last night. we showed up around 9 w/o a reservation and the parking lot was almost full. while we were parking, a couple and a party of 6 walked in. the room was packed, with very few 2 tops. the couple ahead of us got the last 2 top, and we were told that the wait would be at most 20 minutes, which turned out to be accurate. the woman who seated us and appeared to be managing the FOH was very warm and welcoming.

soon after we were seated, we each received two pieces of bread and soft butter was placed on the table. like rosie, i particularly liked the pistachio, walnut and cranberry bread. for apps, we ordered PEI mussels in spicy lobster broth with tarragon croutons ($8), "Pretzel Crusted Jumbo Lump Crab Cake, Baby Greens & Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce" ($12) (I'm copying from their website for accuracy). both were good. i should note that the crab cake was not actually crusted with pretzel, rather there were 3 pretzel sticks drizzled with mustard placed on top. unusual, but i thought the flavors worked together rather well.

for entrees, we ordered the short ribs that Rosie mentions above, an ($21), and "Tapenade Crusted Swordfish with Bourbon Sweet Potato Mash, Grilled Asparagus & Pinot Noir Reduction" ($24). we enjoyed both dishes. the short ribs did not have that melt-in-your-mouth texture that you usually encounter, but i don't think they were braised, which may have something to do with it. (we had had beer-braised short ribs at Raymond's in Montclair the previous weekend, and liked those better, but these were still good). the swordfish was perfectly cooked and i really liked the sweet potato mash. we shared a molten chocolate cake for dessert, which was nothing special. cappuccino was pretty good.

i was somewhat surprised to see that people were still arriving after 10. toward the end of our meal, the chef came out and visited every table in the room. they're clearly enjoying some good buzz, so if you are planning to go on a weekend, i'd recommend making a reservation.

[hitmanoo]

Just booked a res for V-day, ladies choice.

I'll do my best to give a review. Tough night.

[hitmanoo]

Ok, so I went to Wish last night as planned for Valentine's Day. It was a most pleasing meal. The restaurant was not too crowded for our 7 PM reservation... in fact, I don't think it was so much as half filled.

We were promptly seated, and our bottle of champaign was opened and put in a table-side bucket of ice. Our waiter told us the specials of the evening, and was courteous to answer all of our questons.

We were seated only about 5 minutes when the chef popped out of the kitchen and made his way to a few tables. He came over to greet us and was both kind and pleasant.

Overall, the meal was solid. Even the three different types of bread were fresh and flavorful.

Appetizers:

Calamari/Zucchini--not too heavy and quite tasty. The sauce added a nice complement of flavor and did not drown the dish. The calamari was light and tender.

Mushroom risotto--very well prepared. The rice was neither too tough nor too mushy, and the mushrooms really absorbed the creamy flavor of the dish. I don't have an abundance of experience with truffles or truffle oil, but there was certainly a delicious flavor that I couldn't quite place, and that may have been it.

Main:

Filet Mignon--ordred medium rare and cooked to perfection. A filet can be a fairly standard dish, and is easy to ruin by overcooking. This piece of meat was cooked to order, and the combination of the vegetables and wine reduction gave an added tasty flavor.

Snapper--I ordered the Snapper from the specials...potato encrusted with a roasted red pepper salsa. I've been on such a roasted pepper kick lately, and this dish did not disappoint. Very tasty. The fish was flaky and fresh, and the combination of flavors of the sauce, potato crust and salsa were extraordinary. Definitely my favorite dish of the evening.

I told our waiter that I'd be posting a positive review here, and sure enough the chef popped out for another chat. His name is Bret, if memory serves me correctly. We chatted for a few minutes, and he was very animated. He seemed very passionate about his food. (He did NOT appreciate your microwave comment, Rosie )

To finish the meal, they brought over some chocolate covered strawberries, which were perfect with our champaign. In fact, I don't recall getting strawberries with such a thick coating of dark chocolate. As a dark chocolate fan, I was loving it!

Our waiter brought a single red rose over to my wife at the meal's end, which was a thoughtful Valentine's Day touch.

I truly couldn't have been more pleased with our experience there, and I am excited to return.

Edit: Forgot to mention, the price of dinner (keeping in mind it is a BYO), with tax and before tip was about $75

Edited February 16, 2005 by hitmanoo (log)

[Soda]

Dined there last night. Brought along a nice Pinot, which was immediately opened for me while I awaited the arrival of my date, who was late...

"Wish" is a nice-looking place, with a comfortable, polished interior you wouldn't particularly expect in a little strip mall bistro. Tables aren't too close together, and though the crowd was pretty decent for a Tuesday, it wasn't noisy.

While I waited, the Chef/Owner came out and introduced himself. Brett Winter is clearly a personable young guy, and a good host, chatting with the patrons at every table. I learned the following from him:

*The place opened about four months ago, and if he hadn't opened it up in West Orange, "Wish" would have been in NYC (Lucky us!).

*He thinks that "Jocelyne's" is the best restaurant in the state of New Jersey, and laments the fact that his place is closed on the same days as that little Maplewood gem; otherwise he'd get to eat there more often.

*Two of the cooks in his kitchen used to prepare Sloppy Joes at the venerable Town Hall Deli in South Orange (one of them for fourteen years!), and Brett's thinking about adding a "Joe" to his lunch menu someday.

*Some of his regular patrons have known him all his life, leading one to the conclusion that he's a local guy, living his dream not far from his roots. Nice.

From all this, you could get the idea that the food at "Wish" might be nothing much more than pedestrian. You would be wrong. It's creative, stylish, solidly wrought, and beautifully presented.

My lady started with a hefty crab cake appetizer (fresh and moist; no fillers; fabulous tangy mustard-spiked sauce) topped juauntilly with crispy, twisty pretzel sticks, themselves garnished with shredded romano. Her perfectly-done lamb entree was nestled on a bed of creamy polenta, circled by bright cubes of fresh veggies and peppers. Tender and terrific (I tried it.)...

I pondered whether to start with Prince Edward Island Mussles or Wild Mushroom Risotto. I went with the risotto (I'm not sure I really want to know whether ANYBODY can beat the Bantry Bay Mussels at St. James' Gate...), and although it arrived a bit too quickly to have been completely whipped up on my order, it was luscious, laced with thinly-sliced criminis and chanterelles, fortified by a lovely fontina, and lubricated with truffle oil and just a smidge of pesto. Yumm.

My entree was Slow-Roasted Short Ribs with Mashed Taters and Whole Baby Carrots, with a red wine reduction. Oboy.

So, yeah, I like this place. We'll be back. With friends. You should go, too. Brett's a local boy who should make good, and it'll be delicious fun helping him do so.

"Wish" is located at 500 Pleasant Valley way, West Orange, NJ // 973-669-9911 // Open M-Sat