At the bar: Legal Seafood

[menton1]

Yeah they do. Edgewater. That might be Hudson though, although thats totally unimportant, proximity wise.

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Definitely NOT in Edgewater. It's in one of those new commercial developments just outside the Lincoln Tunnel entrance, probably Weehawken. Hudson County.

[jwjojo]

Definitely NOT in Edgewater. It's in one of those new commercial developments just outside the Lincoln Tunnel entrance, probably Weehawken. Hudson County.

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[tommy]

well, this is all very pleasant, as usual.

let's just all acknowledge that menton is correct in that there's no PF Chang's in bergen county. anyone else actually been to Legal Sea Food, by the way?

[jwjojo]

well, this is all very pleasant, as usual.

let's just all acknowledge that menton is correct in that there's no PF Chang's in bergen county.  anyone else actually been to Legal Sea Food, by the way?

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Yes, in Boston. It was good. Nothing to write home about, but decent enough.

[Jason Perlow]

Definitely NOT in Edgewater.  It's in one of those new commercial developments just outside the Lincoln Tunnel entrance, probably Weehawken.  Hudson County.

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As I am in Edgewater/West New York often, PF is on the border, sharing its space with a Condo/Townhouse development called Port Imperial. It is not in Weehawken, and it is several miles north of the Lincoln Tunnel off River Road. Menton, mapquest is a good tool.

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Yeah, its technically West New York which puts it in Hudson, whereas Edgewater is Bergen (stores are closed on Sunday there whereas right over the border, they aren't. I remember when the Target had its Grand Opening, on a Sunday, and the cops were called in to close the store down!). Doesn't matter. I live in Tenafly, which is in Bergen County, and I can get to P.F. Chang's and New York Waterway in probably 18 minutes when traffic is not severe, and so can Menton if he wants. Just take Palisades Avenue until you hit the GW Bridge ramp, and instead of going on the ramp, continue to take the side road until you hit River Road/RT 5.

I've never eaten at a P.F. Chang's though. It happened to be the focus of derision on last night's South Park episode, BTW.

[menton1]

it is several miles north of the Lincoln Tunnel off River Road.  Menton, mapquest is a good tool.

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Great, thanks, but I prefer Yahoo Maps. GOING THERE is a better tool. "several Miles" is actually less than 1 mile. (from the L Tunnel) The towns in Hudson circle around each other, so you have Union City, West NY, Guttenberg, and Weehawken, with a little North Bergen (actually in Hudson County) thrown in. To get to Edgewater, you need to go past Palisades Medical Center and keep going another mile. About 2 1/2 miles from PFC to the Edgewater border.

Oh, yeah, Google Local is also much better than Mapquest.

[tommy]

Oh, yeah, Google Local is also much better than Mapquest.

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DOUBLE TRUE!!!

[whitetrufflechick]

One place I was not impressed with was Varka. Although the food (grilled shrimp) was excellent, the portion was miniscule and insanely expensive. I could have eaten four of the plates they served. I want to try Oceano's in Fair Lawn, but I'm afraid it will be the same thing. This is one case where I think the chain (Legal) beats the local joints.

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Was at Varka last night.

We generally don't order entrees at Varka and found what works for us it to do an array of appetizers... Varka Chips, Stuffed Calamari, Beets, Spinakopita, Scallops, etc. Sometimes we'll split a salad or a special if something gets our attention. The variety is fun and the quality outstanding.

[whitetrufflechick]

For those interested: Just read on the Riverside Square Mall (in Hackensack) website that PF Changs will be opening there as part of their current expansion.

So, there will be a PF Changs in Bergen County in the not too distant future.

Edited April 20, 2006 by whitetrufflechick (log)

[tommy]

So, there will be a PF Changs in Bergen County in the not too distant future.

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that's not important proximity wise.

definitely worth a trip, though!

[Anonymouze]

Mapquest has gotten MANY people lost who try to find our home. I have to 2nd and 3rd that Google or any OTHER thing but NOT Mapquest for some reason they don't have our street mapped correctly and people keep going to the next town over to a street with the same name as our street or they stop halfway here to our neighbor with the same house # (different street) and have delivered our stuff to them and vice versa! So much for Mapquest. BLAH!

I will try PF Chang when it opens in the Riverside Mall since it's pretty close to where I live if I hear it's good and reasonably priced and has good seating. BUT Nothing, I repeat NOTHING can replace my favorites but maybe they'll come close.

[zhelder]

For those interested:  Just read on the Riverside Square Mall (in Hackensack) website that PF Changs will be opening there as part of their current expansion.

So, there will be a PF Changs in Bergen County in the not too distant future.

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All right! Now we're talking! You probably won't be able to get in there for the first year or so though.

[zhelder]

Was at Varka last night.

We generally don't order entrees at Varka and found what works for us it to do an array of appetizers... Varka Chips, Stuffed Calamari, Beets, Spinakopita, Scallops, etc.  Sometimes we'll split a salad or a special if something gets our attention. The variety is fun and the quality outstanding.

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Well, I will say when I went to Varka the food was prepared very well. But when I spend almost $30 for an entree at a restaurant, I expect to leave feeling at least reasonably full. My plate consisted of five moderately sized shrimp and five asparagus spears. I expected something more for that much money. A while ago on the boards, I made a comment about how people were willing to spend $50 for a tiny plate of food in a fancy restaurant but didn't want to support restaurants that offered larger portions at more reasonable prices. That's what I was thinking about when I went to Varka.

Down in Jacksonville, FL, there is a very popular local seafood chain called Gene's. Now, don't get me wrong, overall, I'll take NJ's restaurants over Jacksonville's anyday. (They do have a lot of great chicken wing places down there though.) Most of their dishes are $10-$12, and you get enough for two meals. The food is just as good, if not better, than the food at the high fallutin seafood places here. I understand NJ is more expensive than Jacksonville, but entrees should not be triple the price for 1/3 of the portion up here.

There are good fancy restaurants out there, but I prefer casual, frugal places that offer you value for your money. Many dates/girlfriends I've had have certainly preferred fancier places, and fancy restaurants do fit that niche when necessary. But personally, I find that in most cases, the food at quality, inexpensive restaurants is often as good as if not better than food at the fancy places. You get more of it too, for a lot less money.

Edited April 21, 2006 by zhelder (log)

[whitetrufflechick]

So, there will be a PF Changs in Bergen County in the not too distant future.

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that's not important proximity wise.

definitely worth a trip, though!

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not important proximity wise? Thought there was some discussion regarding the distance to the Weehawken/Edgewater/West New York location from Bergen County and whether or not it was far for those living in Bergen County. My mistake.

[tommy]

So, there will be a PF Changs in Bergen County in the not too distant future.

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that's not important proximity wise.

definitely worth a trip, though!

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not important proximity wise? Thought there was some discussion regarding the distance to the Weehawken/Edgewater/West New York location from Bergen County and whether or not it was far for those living in Bergen County. My mistake.

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it's just a meaningless turn of phrase, really. more geared towards the "distant future" aspect, rather than the fact that west new york is way the eff out of the way for lots of people who live in bergen county...

[Tamar]

Can I ask what the fuss is about PF Chang opening in North Jersey? I used to go fairly often when we lived in LA (ie: last year). My 7 year old son liked it. But compared to NYC Chinatown? Or what I hear here about Hunan Cottage, etc? Not in the same league. Mass market Chinese. Pleasant but nothing to get excited about.

On the other hand, I love Legal's. When I was in college, I haunted the Cambridge restaurant. Back then it was Boston-only, just a couple of locations, not yet a true chain. Lately, I've eaten at the Palisades Mall location a few times. Enjoyed everything. Excellent seafood.

[NJ2FLA]

In Florida there is an offshoot of PF Chang's called Pei Wei

Pei Wei - Website

We also have several PF Chang's locations in the area that I live. When I was living in NJ, my brother and I would drive up the the location in Westchester, NY. I kind of got tired of going there after a while.

I enjoy going and think the food is good. I kind of remember it being better the first time I went there in Newport Beach, CA.

I like the fortune cookies they give you a lot - they have a nice flavor that I haven't found elsewhere.

-Scott

[Rachel Perlow]

Perhaps PF Chang's could be discussed on its own thread, rather than within one about Legal Seafood?