eleeper's Profile
I found Mexican Coke in NJ! (No HFCS!)
Around Passover time you can get regular Coke made only with sugar (no HFCS) in the supermarkets. Look for the yellow caps with "Kosher for Passover" on them. Do *NOT* be fooled by the fact that Pepsi has yellow caps--it always has HFCS in it!
Whether the rest of the formulation differs between the US and Mexico, I don't know, but many people swear that the US-made Coke for Passover tastes much better than the rest of the year.
Matawan Cafe, a.k.a. Chopped Salad Shoppe, a.k.a., Philly Cheesesteaks, a.k.a. 18Burgers, a.k.a. ...
Passed there today about 2PM and the door was open with people milling around (but apparently not customers--maybe the owners?). It may yet return, or mutate into something else.
Matawan Cafe, a.k.a. Chopped Salad Shoppe, a.k.a., Philly Cheesesteaks, a.k.a. 18Burgers, a.k.a. ...
Maybe it's like Starbucks, which must have a rule about having a few outside tables. The one on Route 35 in Middletown, for example, has a great view of the traffic light....
Matawan Cafe, a.k.a. Chopped Salad Shoppe, a.k.a., Philly Cheesesteaks, a.k.a. 18Burgers, a.k.a. ...
Latest update: seems to be defunct. At any rate it has been closed the last several times I've driven by, with stools up on the counters, etc. The good news is that people around here must be fairly honest, because all their outdoor tables and chairs are still there.
Puerto Rican in Freehold
By the way, the article claims Puerto Rican food is not very common south of Perth Amboy, but there is also Salsa Latina in Old Bridge.
Wang Sushi Toms River anyone?
Agree on the tempura. In fact, I think the problem is that Wang's does many Asian cuisines, but none of them well. My "Crispy Noodle Bird Net" [sic] was crispy at least briefly, but because it came in a bowl of "soup" (really too thin to be called sauce or gravy) it didn't retain any crispness for more than a couple of minutes, and had very little flavor.
Matawan Cafe, a.k.a. Chopped Salad Shoppe, a.k.a., Philly Cheesesteaks, a.k.a. 18Burgers, a.k.a. ...
Already have several sushi places nearby, but any Korean would be nice.
(I remember when we first moved to NJ in 1978, there was one Indian restaurant in Fords, and the next closest was in NYC! Thai? Forget it. Korean? Not a chance. And now we're so spoiled we complain that the closest Korean restaurant is in East Brunswick.)
Matawan Cafe, a.k.a. Chopped Salad Shoppe, a.k.a., Philly Cheesesteaks, a.k.a. 18Burgers, a.k.a. ...
Yes on CC's location. I'm not sure if Matawan Cafe is actually a different company/owner than the previous incarnations, or whether they just keep re-positioning themselves looking for a market.
Matawan Cafe, a.k.a. Chopped Salad Shoppe, a.k.a., Philly Cheesesteaks, a.k.a. 18Burgers, a.k.a. ...
This seems like a restaurant that cannot find its identity. Currently there are signs hanging up outside with three different names. (I think they actually dropped the 18Burgers, possibly with some encouragement from 25Burgers down the road. In any case, their menu lists only 14 burgers.)
On another note in the same strip mall (at Routes 79 and 516), it looks like "Chelsea's Creamery" has finally opened as Chelsea's Ice Cream, after years of a sign saying it was coming soon.
Foie Gras in Old Bridge!?! New "JUST Restaurant" opens on Route 9
Every time I drive north on Route 9, I look over in that direction, trying to spot the restaurant. I have yet to do so. I am unlikely to go there (a bit pricey for me), but I'm curious to see what it looks like. is this place invisible or what?
Foie Gras in Old Bridge!?! New "JUST Restaurant" opens on Route 9
Of interest: .
(Yeah, I know the text says everything three times!)
Chipotle coming to East Brunswick
It's ironic that there is such a dearth of restaurants when there is one of the few Asian supermarkets for the area on the road.
China Palace - Taiwanese - Middletown, NJ
And now China Palace seems to have closed. At least when we went there yesterday at 1:45PM it was closed, and it was supposedly open for lunch until 2PM. Does anyone have any definitive information?
Coming to Matawan/Aberdeen
I'll recommend the pozole (not on the menu, but often on the specials board). The owner seemed really happy to see "gringos" in the restaurant--I suspect that he would like to see business pick up a bit, and branching out to Anglos would help. (As it is, I suspect most Anglos go to Aby's--which has, IMHO, gone downhill a bit lately, with smaller portions and beans that are more sauce than beans.)
(Calling ourselves "Anglos" just seems wrong--neither of us have any Anglo-Saxon/English heritage whatsoever. In fact, I'm half Puerto Rican, but look totally Anglo.)
Anyway, another plug for Pancho Villa's.
Chipotle coming to East Brunswick
Pollo Tropical was better when they had ribs rather than riblets.
We go to Pollo Tropical and Baja Fresh, but neither is (IMHO) authentic ethnic cuisine. At Baja Fresh, I get the Skinny Chicken Bowl, but with the rice on the side. (With the rice in it, there are way too many carbs for me.)
Chipotle coming to East Brunswick
The only place along Route 18 I like is the Korean restaurant in the Goodwill shopping center. I don't know how good the food is on an absolute scale, but it's the only Korean restaurant near me, and I always order the same sort of thing anyway (Soon Du Bu Jigae or something similar).
Indian grocery in Red Bank area
I just drove by, and Amravathi is flanked by a massage salon and a Papa John's pizza. You may be thinking of the Middle Eastern grocery (Sahara 34) which has actually been there a while, but now has a relatively new Middle Eastern (Egyptian) restaurant attached to it.
Sahara 34 is a good source for Middle Eastern products. Hop Shing in the McDonald's "plazette" down the road has Chinese groceries, but is to something like Asian Food Market as a 7-11 is to a World-Class Shop-Rite.
Lunch Today at Shanghai Bun Matawan
In the Dunkin Donuts plaza one block south of where Route 79 crosses Route 34.
Restaurants in Parlin
A couple of questions:
Has anyone tried Dragon Bowl (where Checkers used to be on Route 9 South)?
Is Haldi Chowk still/again open? At one point it appeared to have closed, but now I'm seeing cars parked there.
Asian Food Market coming soon in Marlboro
I suspect that the AFM in Marlboro will get more business than other Asian markets, just because there are no other supermarkets really close to that area. I saw a lot of people in the AFM who did not seem like the sort of people looking for Asian foods, but just for staples like coffee or soup or produce. The fact that they carry a whole line of Goya, as well as general "American" foods will probably draw in more people.
(We went about 12:30 Sunday--it was mobbed!)
Foie Gras in Old Bridge!?! New "JUST Restaurant" opens on Route 9
Can you give any better description of where it is than you did? (I can't think of any Asian marketplace on Route 9 South in Old Bridge.)
Coming to Matawan/Aberdeen
I have to agree on the oil and sodium. It may be partly that we are used to things without much oil and no added salt at home, but I found my udon noodle dish to be incredibly salty. And there are really only two items on the menu that even appeal to me. (I like vegetarian food, but IMHO it shouldn't pretend to be non-vegetarian. In particular, a vegan "Philly Cheese Steak" is just not a good idea. :-)
Mango's--Indian/Mexican Fusion Restaurant (Parlin)
Actually, we do have the equivalent of coupons--gift cards that we bought in their holiday sale last year. But it's also that we've been going there for a long time, and like it.
That said, we'll probably try Texas Roadhouse at some point.
Mango's--Indian/Mexican Fusion Restaurant (Parlin)
I have to tell this:
We tried to eat at Mangos last Tuesday and ... wait for it ... it was closed. Not their fault though--read on!
Our plan was to eat at Outback, and stop on the way at Tomatoes on 34 market. But Tomatoes on 34 market was closed (out of business). On to Outback--it was also closed (for maintenance). Okay, we thought, we'll try Mangos. So we got there at 4PM--but it's closed between 2:30 and 5 (or something like that).
Clearly, the Fates have decided that we are not going to eat at Mangos. YMMV.
(We went back to Outback Friday. It was open, but so crowded that we couldn't find a parking space. We're not having good luck this week.)
Coming to Matawan/Aberdeen
The 18 Burgers sign is off the Philly Cheesesteak place--I wonder if 25 Burgers got after them.
Scungilli near Matawan?
There are tons of Italian restaurants around here, and a lot serve calamari, but I don't know of any that have scungilli. Does anyone know of an Italian restaurant between Freehold and Sayreville that has it?
Coming to Matawan/Aberdeen
Loving Hut says they're opening Friday, 11/11. I checked out the menu on line--it's a bit limited, but we'll definitely try it. I'm not sure about a vegan "cheese steak" though--in my opinion, vegan food does best when not trying to pretend to be non-vegan.
Coming to Matawan/Aberdeen
I should have updated this before. I saw a sign a while ago in the window that said it would be a Mexican restaurant named Pancho Villa's.
