one stop between Newark and Budd Lake: Where?

[dimsumfan]

Yes, driving from the Newark Airport to Budd Lake tomorrow late afternoon/early evening, and looking for a place to stop for dinner - preferably the second half of the trip. Anyone with any ideas easily accessible to the highway? Bonus points for something interesting, unique, hole-in-the-wall, and/or ethnic. Anything from a slice of NY-style pizza to good Chinese food would be welcomed!

[Curlz]

First thing you need to know is that you should avoid Rt. 78 at all costs...they're redoing the highway between the GSP and the airport, and I hear it's a horror show. SO...that said, you could go a little out of your way and go across the NJ Tpk in to Elizabeth for some Q at Front Street Smokehouse...or if you take Route 21 North from the airport, you could swing in to the Ironbound (Newark) for some Spanish/Portuguese food (you'd best be HUNGRY)...or cut over from 21 to Route 280 West, and go to Verona to Amazing Hot Dog...or...or...there's Denville Dairy...or...or...I'm thinking...Noodle Chu in Parsippany...or...?!?

Come on, folks...we must have SOME recs!!

[rooftop1000]

Gotta be Amazing Hotdog....how could you suggest otherwise

tracey

[MJP]

1) Go up Route 21 until you get to exit 9, River Road/Clifton.

2) Take a left off the exit, then another left.

3) Pull into Rutt's Hut. Order a ripper, onion rings, and a birch beer.

4) Never eat another hot dog again, for you will have reached Nirvana. (so long as you added mustard and their homemade relish)

5) Continue north on 21 and then take 80 West to Budd Lake, avoiding all the traffic and backup from 78, 22, and other westbound routes.

Rutt's is right on the way and is THE ultimate hole-in-the-wall local place. I have such fond memories of their chicken soup with rice from my childhood.

[Curlz]

Except that out of close to 90 places that the Star Ledger Hot Dog team tried this summer, Amazing Hot Dog BEAT OUT RUTTS HUT as best fried dog in NJ!!!

[dimsumfan]

Thanks for the thoughts. I'm in Budd Lake now. Went to Noodle Chu, which was just so-so. met my brother there and ate pork tripe with jalapenos, salted squid with salt and chili, and braised tofu with mushrooms and vegetables (isn't a mushroom a vegetable?). Not bad, but nothing special.

Next time I'll try Amazing Hot Dog!

Oh... traffic wasn't bad on 78 west out of the airport at 4:30. I imagine it got worse shortly thereafter.

[nanyun]

dimsumfan- If you like Indian food, Cloves in the International Trade Zone (next to Bud Lake) is pretty good. Also, Fujiyama in Mansfield (about 15 min west on 46) has some amazing sushi.