Bergen County Knife Sharpening Service?

Everyone should own a diamond knife sharpener. Search for DMT Diafold Magna-Guide Sharpening System on Amazon or Google. Make sure to get the DMT FWCX Double Sided Diafold Sharpener Coarse / Extra-Coarse as well. Makes sharpening knives very easy. I get a better edge than sending out my knives. It's money well spent.

ubuwalker31 in New Jersey

Orange Squirrel in Bloomfield,NJ- has anyone gone? Other Options?

Everyone loves squirrels. To most New Jerseyites, they are cute and inoffensive suburban woodland creatures that gather and bury nuts. They are the wildest animal that many of us see on a daily basis, and they represent our connection to nature.

The Orange Squirrel restaurant idealizes the suburban woodland side of the squirrel. There are bags of peanuts sitting on the greeters table that you can win if you guess the number of peanuts in a glass jar. They have drinks named after squirrels. They serve cute squirrel chocolates at the end of the meal. It is a cute theme that is executed perfectly: the restaurant comes across as classy and fun without being kitschy.

The Orange Squirrel was recommended to my fianc?e and I by a couple we know as a "reasonably priced restaurant with great food". So imagine my surprise when I saw $30 entrees and $10 soups. Apparently, even in this terrible economy, a $100 dinner for two is reasonable. Only in Baristaville, I suppose.

A smoked salmon crepe was our amuse-bouche. It was very good, but surprisingly and unoffensively, fishy.

Our first dish was a lovely kabacha soup which my fianc?e swore was the best she ever tasted. We also shared a delicious curry PEI mussel dish. My fianc?e found the mussels themselves to be tender and delicious, but the sauce to be underwhelming. I thought it was amazing. Reasonable taste buds can differ, I suppose. We also shared a goat cheese and baby beet salad was also to die for.

The main courses revealed the squirrels hidden side, one unnoticed by most ordinary people who are disconnected to nature. Squirrels love raiding gardens and bird feeders and creating loud racket when they chatter to each other. Squirrels cause tremendous property damage by nesting in attics and causing power outages. And squirrels don't only eat nuts, they are also meat eaters.

As we were waiting for our main course, the chef came out to an adjacent table to explain that the veal would not be served tonight because it was not up to his standards. He apologized prolifically as he explained that they had run out of veal earlier tonight. I thought to myself, "Hmmm...he just changed his story in the middle of his apology. Did he just lie to his guests?" He made it up to the table by serving a small pasta appetizer...the table did not look happy.

Then our main courses came out. I had ordered the mint jelly lamb chops, which were very fatty, yet delicious. I realized after that there was no mint jelly served. My fiancee ordered whole Branzini, which was very tasty. The big disappointment were the side dishes. My truffle infused risotto was undercooked and flavorless, and we sent back a side because it was tasteless. It was replaced by mashed potatoes that had the consistancy of cheese soup. Boo...

Like its namesake, the Orange Squirrel has a dark underbelly which takes away from a diners overall experience. The location of the restaurant, right off of the GSP in a commercially zoned area, leaves much to be desired. A view of a massive highway and a car dealership does not contribute to the overall ambiance of the restaurant. The space is cramped, mostly as a result of the poor choice of installing a full bar - I think that a better use of space would have been to add tables to service the 5 diners seated at the bar. The appetizers clearly outshone the main courses and sides. Undercooked risotto and mashed potato soup are not what I expect at a class act like the Orange Squirrel.

We will visit again, but next time we will be sticking with sharing a few of the appetizers.

ubuwalker31 in New Jersey

Organic Thai Food in Passaic is a real foodie delight!

My family ate a wonderful meal here this past weekend. I didn't see any reviews of the restaurant on chow or egullet, so I thought I'd write up a quick review. The food is very fresh. And cheap. You can order a
half dozen appitizers for 2-4 bucks a piece. The fish cakes, shrimp soup, and dumplings are all wonderful. The main courses are delishious as well. The owner/hostess is very charming and attentive, and it is a real treat.

This place is truely a foodie's dream restaurant. Cheap and delicious food in a nice setting.

Check out this review as well: http://www.newjerseylife.com/restaurants/organic-thai-food

ubuwalker31 in New Jersey

Fiesta Garibaldi in Nyack gone

For the love of all that is holy, don't eat at Fiesta Sunrise. It is terrible. The service is disorganized. The drinks were expensive and mediocre.

I was shocked to discover later that Fiesta Sunrise is going to be featured on Kitchen Nightmares, a reality television show on FOX, where Chef Gordan Ramsay and his team help failing restaurants get back on their feet. I read this at http://insiderockland.lohudblogs.com/...

Unfortunately, Gordon didn't get his message through to the owner. I feel bad for her...since she "put her life savings and more into the restaurant". However, piss poor service and food is inexcusable when charging $18 a plate and $9 for drinks.

Clearly, the interior was overhauled and the music was decent. But the food...oh lord...the food was terrible. It was clear that everything was done on the cheap and easy. The salsa was like a spicy gazpacho soup...the black bean soup tasted like they pureed canned Goya black beans...the tortilla soup tasted like Campbell's tomato, the Enchiladas were pre-made and served cold, the steak fajitas were made with poor cuts of meat and slathered with tomato sauce (the tortillas were served right on top, without their own plate, which made them soggy). The Pollo Con Mole Poblano was served whole, not pulled, and the mole sauce tasted strange. On the bright side, one of the fish dishes that our friend had was delicious, and the desserts were done very well.

I haven't been this unhappy with a restaurant in a very long time. Perhaps this place is good to have a drink or two with friends while listening to the wonderful Mexican guitarist serenade your lady friends...but otherwise, there are much better Mexican places in Rockland. I would recommend the Dona Maria in Suffern, where they make the Guacamole at the table for you...but do some research on Chow first, as they might have gone downhill as well.

ubuwalker31 in General Tristate Archive

sushi suggestion in Essex/Union/Morris County

Scratch Sushi Hana off the list of quality sushi restaurants in North Jersey.

Horrific experience. Just came back from Sushi Hana tonight, and was less than impressed.

The service was terrible, we had 4 different adult servers, none of whom understood the menu. And we even had 2 different 10 year old girls serving us...I guess they were the waitresses children...totally inappropriate.

The miso soup was too salty, the lettuce was brown, and my soup spoon was burned from the dishwasher. While the fish seemed fresh, the quality was extremely mediocre. We left at least 5 pieces of sashimi uneaten because of the poor quality. The tuna was stringy and inedible. Surprisingly, the mackerel was good. There was also some sort of brown (yes, brown) fish that actually tasted good...i think it was tuna belly.

We should have left without paying after the crappy salad and soup...but I was overruled against my better judgment. Then I noticed the camera outside, and realized that they must have had lots of "dine and dash" problems...which isn't surprising considering the crappy quality of this restaurant.

Needless to say, we didn't leave a tip, and we will never go back again.

I'm confused by all of the good reviews. I guess the restaurant attracts a less sophisticated clientele as far as sushi is concerned...but if you have a pretense of enjoying good sushi, don't come here, go to Nori or any other place in town. I need to go brush my teeth now to get the flavor out of my mouth. Feh.

ubuwalker31 in Mid-Atlantic

sushi suggestion in Essex/Union/Morris County

"[T]he generic Japanese restaurants you'll find all over North Jersey are fair, at best."

Oh, come on, give me a break. There are plenty of NYC quality sushi restaurants in Northern Jersey. Here in Montclair, we have Nouveau Sushi, Sushi Hana, and Nori, that equal or rival restaurants in NYC. Fort Lee and Edgewater also have amazing sushi restaurants.

ubuwalker31 in Mid-Atlantic

PIZZA OUTRAGE

If you want a great pizza experience, go to Little Italy Pizza on 43rd btw 5th and Madison. (not the one on 45th, which is crap) - You can get a slice for 2.25, which is cheap for Manhattan, and it is the most authentic NY slice that I have found midtown to date. Screw fancy Italian style pizza...its gross. A real NY slice kicks butt any day!

ubuwalker31 in Manhattan

i left ZERO tip. (long story- but get this!!!)

Sometimes two cents is two too much!

ubuwalker31 in Not About Food

Really hot natural pepper sauces?

I currently have a bottle of Talon. It is fairly hot. Krakatoa is also very hot and tasty. Definitely check out hotsauceblog.com though. They have lots of great recommendations.

ubuwalker31 in General Chowhounding Topics

Seamless Web Midtown - What are your favorites?

I was sad to see Korea Palace is no longer on my seamlessweb list...they had decent food. I had a disastrous experience with Hakata Grill sending me bad fish...some of the pieces were ok, but others smelt like they were decaying. Didn't realize it until too late, vomit-o-rama. Maru Maru has mediocre sushi. Sometimes I get lucky with Monster. Wondee Siam II is decent too. Berger's on the Go has good salad. Marrakesh has great shishkabobs. I enjoyed Zethith Vegetarian too. Organic Harvest screwed me over with a delivery once, so I don't order from there.

Keep this thread alive!

ubuwalker31 in Manhattan