Jenn's Rating: 80
Zagat: not rated
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Rob's Cafe, Madison NJ
A group of us were looking for a BYO in NJ to go to earlier this month. Rich suggested Rob's Cafe in Madison - a little traditional French bistro. We started with appetizers and then onto entrees. To start off...French Onion Soup, escargot, roasted bone marrow were some of the dishes the six of us ordered..
The main courses included mussels (moules mariniere) with pomme frites, steak & frites, duck-duck-foie, duck breast and bacon wrapped pork.
And to finish off we did cheese and desserts including tangerine semifreddo, chocolate mousse and baked brie.
Overall it was a casual BYO with pretty good food. Some dishes - like the duck-duck-foie (duck breast, duck leg confit and foie gras) were outstanding. The steak and frites also quite good. Some dishes were a bit off the mark - the onion soup was lacking taste. But a very reasonable check, and comfortable enough ambiance and a nice menu made the evening a lot of fun.
Jenn's Rating: 80
Zagat: not rated
Jenn's Rating: 80
Zagat: not rated
Bar at the Modern, NYC
Patty, Alan and I met up after work for drinks and lite dinner at the bar at The Modern in mid-town. We've eaten there once before and remembered it fondly so going back was something to look forward to. We got seats at the bar and ordered a few different plates to share including slow poached farm egg "in a jar" with Maine lobster, mushrooms and sea urchin foam; foie gras terrine with muscat gelee and toasted brioche; spicy steak tartar with quail egg and beer braised pork belly.
I don't have pictures for this one but the food was again quite nice. The spicy tartar had a nice kick to it without being too much to handle. The farm poached egg was more soupy than I expected it to be but the flavor was nice. The winner that evening was the pork belly. You really can't go wrong with pork belly.
The bar at the Modern is a fun place - lots of people watching - big comfortable bar stools so you can settle in for a few drinks while you sample the menu. Recommend it to anyone looking for an upscale bar scene in midtown.
Jenn's Rating: 86
Zagat: 26-26-25
I don't have pictures for this one but the food was again quite nice. The spicy tartar had a nice kick to it without being too much to handle. The farm poached egg was more soupy than I expected it to be but the flavor was nice. The winner that evening was the pork belly. You really can't go wrong with pork belly.
The bar at the Modern is a fun place - lots of people watching - big comfortable bar stools so you can settle in for a few drinks while you sample the menu. Recommend it to anyone looking for an upscale bar scene in midtown.
Jenn's Rating: 86
Zagat: 26-26-25
Marea, NYC
Patty and I were wanting to go back to Marea once one of their pasta dishes showed up on a NYC list as best pasta dishes in the country. It doesn't take much to get us to want to go back so in mid-January we met at the bar early for good seats and good food.
We started off with a bottle of champagne (Brut Blanc de Blancs, La Caravelle) and a platter of crudos including Ono (seared wild pacific wahoo), Tonno (bigeye tuna), mackerel and langoustine. If you haven't been to Marea I so wish you would ~ truly amazing! Their ability to pair these bites of fish with perfect accompanyments to bring out the natural differences in each one. So incredible!
And for our entree - pasta!
We got the BEST PASTA DISH anywhere...the fusilli with red wine braised octopus and bone marrow. And the new dish, spaghetti with crab, santa barbara sea urchin and basil.
Always faced with the hope that memory and hype will be lived up to when that fusilli is put down in front of you - it only takes one bite to know that yes, this is an exceptional, perfect, incredible dish.
The crab dish was also really, really good. Lighter and a touch sweeter, this one speaks to freshness and the wonderful combination of tomato to basil. The sea urchin and crab not getting lost and adding a lovely texture.
There really just isn't a better place to have pasta in NYC. Eating at the bar is fun and comfortable if you don't want the formality of the main dining - just get there early!!
Jenn's Rating: 95
Zagat: 26-26-25
Michelin: Two stars
We started off with a bottle of champagne (Brut Blanc de Blancs, La Caravelle) and a platter of crudos including Ono (seared wild pacific wahoo), Tonno (bigeye tuna), mackerel and langoustine. If you haven't been to Marea I so wish you would ~ truly amazing! Their ability to pair these bites of fish with perfect accompanyments to bring out the natural differences in each one. So incredible!
We got the BEST PASTA DISH anywhere...the fusilli with red wine braised octopus and bone marrow. And the new dish, spaghetti with crab, santa barbara sea urchin and basil.
Always faced with the hope that memory and hype will be lived up to when that fusilli is put down in front of you - it only takes one bite to know that yes, this is an exceptional, perfect, incredible dish.
The crab dish was also really, really good. Lighter and a touch sweeter, this one speaks to freshness and the wonderful combination of tomato to basil. The sea urchin and crab not getting lost and adding a lovely texture.
Jenn's Rating: 95
Zagat: 26-26-25
Michelin: Two stars
Sansu Japanese Steakhouse, Fair Haven NJ
First - seriously apologize for taking more than a month since the last post. I started a new job and have been crazy busy. But now is the time to get back on track!
In early January we met up with friends at a sushi steakhouse in Fair Lawn NJ. We started off with shared appetizers including this octopus dish. I thought this was the best dish of the evening - octopus was tender yet kept it's texture and sauce was thick without being too sweet.
Other appetizers were spring rolls, sashimi platter. The spring rolls were nice enough - crispy and warm with a nice duck dipping sauce. Most disappointing of all was the sushi and the rolls. Interesting names and descriptions on the menu just didn't translate to the plate. The platters were beautifully presented and yet the fish had a tougher consistency than one would want or like indicating that perhaps not as fresh as possible. Overall, not a sushi place that we would want to go back to or recommend when there are others nearby that get it right time and time again.
On a brighter note - one of our party is not a raw fish eater at all and got a hibachi with fried rice, proteins and vegetables and side dish of noodles. He liked it a lot and the noodles, which I tried were yummy. So if you're looking for hibachi - give it a go. If you're a die-hard sushi lover, maybe skip this one.
In early January we met up with friends at a sushi steakhouse in Fair Lawn NJ. We started off with shared appetizers including this octopus dish. I thought this was the best dish of the evening - octopus was tender yet kept it's texture and sauce was thick without being too sweet.
Other appetizers were spring rolls, sashimi platter. The spring rolls were nice enough - crispy and warm with a nice duck dipping sauce. Most disappointing of all was the sushi and the rolls. Interesting names and descriptions on the menu just didn't translate to the plate. The platters were beautifully presented and yet the fish had a tougher consistency than one would want or like indicating that perhaps not as fresh as possible. Overall, not a sushi place that we would want to go back to or recommend when there are others nearby that get it right time and time again.
On a brighter note - one of our party is not a raw fish eater at all and got a hibachi with fried rice, proteins and vegetables and side dish of noodles. He liked it a lot and the noodles, which I tried were yummy. So if you're looking for hibachi - give it a go. If you're a die-hard sushi lover, maybe skip this one.
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