brandywiner's Profile
Restaurants that do brunch near Ridgewood, NJ
Yes they do. Haven't been there for brunch (yet), but I've been there at closing on Sat. night, when they're setting up the tables!
What discontinued products do you miss?
Table Talk Boston Cream (or was it "Creme"?) Pie.
Specfically, the version I knew as a kid, where the filling was a vanilla cream not unlike the filling in a Twinkie (but, as I recall, smoother and tastier, almost like the frosting from a good bakery). We used to be able to get them cheap (on or just before the sell-by date) at the Table Talk store in Davis Square (Somerville, MA) in its pre-hip days.
At some point (early 80s?), Table Talk changed the filling to a more authentic custardy thing, and just ruined it for me. (By any reasonable standard, it was probably an upgrade, but it wasn't what I was craving!)
Best Chain Breakfast?
Re: Cracker Barrel. Have you looked at the syrup bottles lately? They no longer serve 100% Vermont maple. It's now a 55/45 mixture of maple and cane syrups. Admittedly, that's more maple than you get at most places (where it's generally zero), but still, a major disappointment for some of us.
What discontinued products do you miss?
Gauchos!! Fudge Town!! I haven't thought of those in years! I used to love both of them.
Musical Artists with Food in their Name
Jazz saxophonist Vincent Herring
And am I stretching it to include the New Riders of the Purple SAGE?
Musical Artists with Food in their Name
And, thinking of alt-country bands with a Boston connection, here's another favorite:
The Blood Oranges
(Apparently, there's now a UK band using the same name.)
Musical Artists with Food in their Name
And a terrific alt-country/Americana/whatever band from Boston:
The Swinging Steaks (sometimes just called the Steaks)
(Actually, I now have reason to be grateful for the thread: it inspired me to check their website, where I found and downloaded a newly-released live album from their early 90s heyday!)
Musical Artists with Food in their Name
And then there was the early 70s synthesizer hit, "Popcorn" by Hot Butter!
Musical Artists with Food in their Name
All these entries, and no one gives honor to that All-American food, the hot dog???
As in,
Frank Sinatra
Frank Black
Frank Zappa
...
"With au jus" = with with the juice
Not to accelerate the thread drift, but the cleaning company apparently comes by its name honestly. It was started in San Francisco, in the same neighborhood as Coit Tower, which in turn was bequeathed to the city by one Lillie Hitchcock Coit.
Now, about the shape of that tower....
Driving from VT to Albany on Sunday to see a movie at Spectrum 8. Where can we get a decent dinner after the movie?
Another vote for New World! I was in Albany the weekend of Irene, and had a couple of wonderful dinners there, including one after catching a pair of movies at the Spectrum.
Dining for couples only?
Exactly. Often, the solo diner is the one who's inclined to scope out new places, and suggest them to friends, co-workers, etc. Treat him/her well, and the multiplier effect can kick in. Treat him/her shabbily, and the negative word will spead.
Dining for couples only?
Because nothing says "Welcome! Eat, drink, and be merry!" quite like "an agressive FOH staff"!
Thanksgiving dinner at '76 House in Old Tappan
Never been on a holiday, but I've eaten there several times over the last 6 months or so. (Mostly on their Wed. jazz nights!) I'll echo the general theme: it's not cutting-edge cuisine, but everything's well-prepared, and sometimes excellent. I'm fond of the bronzed catfish and the rack of lamb.
If you're a Caesar salad fan, theirs is one of the best I've had recently.
Best of all is if you can get Robert (the "tavernkeeper") to give you his brief (or not-so-brief, if it's not too busy) spiel about the history of the place, and its role in the War of Independence. Cool stuff.
North Jersey Beer Flights / Samplers
The Office has several locations. Depending on what part of North jersey you're from, one should be convenient. (I'm most familiar with the one in Ridgewood.) And they definitely do flights.
The Local
OK, I'll bite...
Maybe because not all of us want our mac & cheese baked, much less broiled, especially with a "5 cent ritz cracker crumb topping"?
Recs for breakfast near Arlington?
+1 on Andy's. My brother and I frequently meet there when I'm in town and he's working Sunday morning. Nothing fancy, but they cook their omelets exactly how I like them!
If I go to Baltimore, MD what kind of foods are the known for other than crabs and crab cakes? Thanks.
And, after you've sampled all of these suggestions, comes the true Ballmer delicacy:
Bromo-Seltzer!
Food Franchises That Don't Suck
Ah, but the chain remains....
(In fairness, I've only been to one; it was a long time ago, and apparently left no impression on me at all.)
New to Boston - the good and the bad so far
You have to be careful with the mapping function, though. It usually works well, but, sometimes, the software links to an inappropriate place with a similar name. In your case, instead of linking to the A & J King Bakery in Salem, it linked to a breakfast place in Warwick, RI! (Which looks like it might be worth a stop, next time I'm passing through...)
Why no good Chinese Cuisine west? 帮助
Haven't tried Red Pepper, but I agree that Gourmet & Garden are definitely in the same ballpark. I've never been to the Brookline location of either, but I've been a happy camper anytime I've gone to Gourmet (Framingham or Billerica) or Garden (Woburn). If you want ambience, Gourmet in the old Baldwin's mansion blows everything else away, but the food is wonderful at all three.
New to Boston - the good and the bad so far
Who knew that Raymond Chandler was a Chowhound!!!
Sbarro Pizza prepares to file for bankruptcy
What killed me about Sbarro was that fresh pasta IS fast food! Most types are done in 3-5 minutes; add sauce (which can be pre-prepared) and/or cheese, season, and you're done!
But Sbarro kept the noodles in warm water, losing flavor and texture, leaving a mushy, tasteless mess!
I'm sure it had its fans, but AFAIC, good riddance.
Food Franchises That Don't Suck
Was in Richmond last weekend for my fantasy baseball draft. On Saturday, I took a break from draft prep, and drove out to the Sandston Golden Skillet (near the airport). Took out an order of legs and thighs, with a small side of livers. The livers were OK, but the chicken pieces were exactly as I remembered! I was a happy camper!
Food Scars - Things you will never eat again.
Sorry you went through that. Sadder still, the teacher probably thought he/she was doing what was best for you!
But then, we know what the road to hell is paved with....
Family foods I thought was normal
I've had it twice in South Africa. It really is oxtail, and, more importantly, it's delicious!
Food Scars - Things you will never eat again.
I'm probably just as old. At our school, they simply didn't serve anything but milk. You paid your milk money every week, and you got your milk at lunch. No other options. (Another great thing about the aforementioned Hot Dog Day: you could get a Coke!)
I'm not sure what happened if the kid was lactose-intolerant; that's not a term we ever heard back then!
Food Scars - Things you will never eat again.
I'd have done the same, but that wasn't an option. It was milk or nothin'.
