I was coming here to suggest Skylark too!

Yes, it closed some time ago. Nothing has taken its place.

Bacon & mango salsa - Hawaiian dog!

I'm not sure if they have a store but I've often bought Ducky Life teas at various fairs and festivals around central NJ. They have a nice selection and I've enjoyed a few different varieties.

I make a frittata on Sundays and eat it all week. Today I made one with spinach, onions, garlic and halved cherry tomatoes.

It's not totally clear to me either. For what it's worth, I'm mid 30s and wasn't uncomfortable with the crowd, but I went before 10 on a Friday and on a Sunday for a playoff game.

The beer selection is pretty good but they do need to expand a bit more if they want to reach the beer connoisseurs. I tried the wings and the fried pickles and they were both good. The manager is very welcoming and informative. The service lacked follow up but wasn't terrible.

Maybe Tomato Factory in Milltown or Lucas in Franklin Park (not to be confused with Loucas in Edison)

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Loucas Restaurant
9 State Route 27 Ste 9A, Edison, NJ 08820

There's a new place that just opened in New Brunswick called George Street Ale House and they are service fried pickles. The chipotle ranch that comes with the pickles is awesome.

I was in a similar position (minus pickiness) a few years ago and in all honestly, the Betty Crocker cookbook Cooking Basics helped me a lot. It covers a lot of basic recipes and techniques. It really helped me get more confident with cooking and I feel like I am able to adapt recipes pretty well now. Here's an easy recipe with great flavor:

Chicken w/ mushroom sauce
Brown boneless chicken breasts in 1 tbsp olive oil. Remove and keep warm. Add some butter to the same pan and sautee a diced onion and a package of sliced mushrooms until soft. Add 1/4 cup of sherry to the pan and bring to a boil. Simmer for 2-3 minutes. Mix 2 tbsp flour with 2/3 cup 2% milk, then add to pan. Bring to a boil and simmer 2-3 minutes more. Return chicken to the pan and heat through.

I usually serve this over egg noodles.

We shared the share with another couple in summer 2009 and decided not to continue after the 3x trial period because it didn't seem worth it.

Pros
Fun to get different vegetables and try them out
The fruit was great

Cons
The produce isn't local so there are a lot of food miles (an issue for me)
It went bad very quickly - we picked up on Thursday and by Sunday we were throwing things away

I'm looking for restaurants in the New Brunswick area and north to Morristown that will do a chef's table and any related info such as cost minimums, best nights to do it, restrictions on party size, etc.

If you have been to a chef's table anywhere, even outside of the area, I'd also love to hear how it went!

Have you tried Aposto in HP? Someone recommended it to me as an alternative but I haven't been able to try it yet.

We've been disappointed with Meola's in the past but we'll give them another try. I haven't been to Vincenzo's or Carpaccio in years but we'll probably audition them as well. I like having an old standby Italian restaurant nearby.

They're keeping the pasta dishes, for what it's worth. My understanding was that any alcohol is against the owner's beliefs so he doesn't want it being consumed in the restaurant. Wine, Italian food, and steaks all seem to go hand and hand so this is an unusual business model in my opinion, but as you said, I'm sure there is a clientele that will be interested in it. I like a good steak so I'm willing to go back once they are on the menu...perhaps with a flask hidden in my purse. :P

We've been going to Cafe Primavera for years and tonight we discovered that it is under new management. In addition to being under new management, it is no longer BYOB and alcohol is not being used in the cooking. Pork and veal have also been removed from the menu due to the religious beliefs of the new owner.

That said, the kitchen staff has been retained and the food seemed generally they same, with a few exceptions. I'm sure we'll go back but the change in the BYOB policy is really a disappointment because we absolutely loved pairing the food with wines from our collection.

We also found out that the name is going to be changing soon and dry aged steaks will be added to the menu within the next week or so, once the first round of steaks has completely their aging process. I'm interested in checking this out but again, and not to sound like an alcoholic, the restriction on drinking is a bit of a let down.

Any other experiences since the change?

The food is very good, especially the lentil soup and falafel. The hookah is enjoyable, especially when they open the upstairs room. However, their espresso machine has been broken for over a year yet the menu still offers lattes and cappucinos!

I had dinner there a few weeks ago and would return.

We had an appetizer of brushetta 3 ways and it was very tasty, although a bit on the small side because there was only one serving of each. We also had the ceviche, which seemed very Thai, due to the coconut.

For entrees, we had the crab cake sandwich, which was about average and the grilled colossal shrimp, which I thought was outstanding. The shrimp is served with potatoes, corn hash and chorizo and the flavors all just blended together perfectly.

I also really enjoyed the Dragon Kiss drink - strawberry and basil go together perfectly. The Greenhouse was also pretty good if you're open to things like celery and cucumbers in your drinks.

Some of the places mentioned have the potential to be complete zoos on Saturday night. Harvest Moon is typically packed with the college crowd and it's far too crowded for me (in my 30s) so I can't imagine that it's appropriate for hard of hearing seniors. You can barely move in Clydz, Old Man Rafferty's is crowded and loud too.

I second the suggestion to order some food and drinks in the bar at Catherine Lombardi. The drinks are the best in NJ and if you choose wisely, it can be affordable.

Steakhouse 85 or Due Mari may be other options to consider as well. Also Sputino 360/360 Gill might be an option. It's usually not crowded.

There are a lot of good options in New Brunswick, but I'd also suggest Cafe Primavera on JFK Blvd in Somerset. It's Italian, with a large menu, inexpensive, BYO.

I soak and them just add them directly to the recipe and they come out fine. I tend to cook things for 8 hours on low though - not sure how it would come out if you do 4 hours on high.

I used it in a sweet potato quesadilla with good results.

I saute some onion and garlic in about 1/2 tbsp of butter while a sweet potato is boiling. Mash up the sweet potato and add chili powder, cumin, and cayenne pepper to taste. Mix the sweet potato in with the onions and garlic. Spread the mixture on one flour tortilla, then spread one wedge of laughing cow on the other, assemble and prepare however you normally prepare a quesadilla (I pan fry with cooking spray).

Chocolate "quesadillas"
Heat about 1/2 tbsp of butter in a pan. Put about a 1/4 cup of chocolate chips in a flour tortilla and sprinkle some cinnamon over the chocolate chips. Fold the tortilla over and pan fry until golden, flip and fry the other side.

Have you heard of Hungry Girl? It's not exactly gourmet food but they offer a few pumpkin based baked goods:

Cookies
http://www.hungry-girl.com/chew/chewdetails.php?isid=1366

Brownie muffins
http://www.hungry-girl.com/week/weekl...

I like cream cheese and pistachio nut sandwiches. I ate them as a kid but I've never heard of anyone else eating them. I tried one awhile back and it was just as good as a remembered. :)

How about beef bouguignon? You can make it the day before, then it just needs to be heated the day of the party.

If it is at least 40% fat, you can freeze it to save it for another time. it won't whip up the same once it's thawed, but it should be fine in recipes.

You could also mix it with milk to make half and half if you like that in your coffee.

I followed this recipe but used French bread instead of Panettone & added chocolate chips. I made them on Saturday night and everyone loved them! The muffin tins made it so much easier to serve.

How about shrimp cocktail? That's pretty light and I can't think of much that is easier than that.

My mom always used to make lasagna with just mozzarella because my dad doesn't like ricotta. It comes out fine. Maybe you could add some spinach if you are concerned out it being dry.

I also recently saw a recipe for pierogi lasagna that sounded really good.

Thanks, I try! :) We're going to stay there for a few days after xmas.