Burger with Crab Cake, Winner's Circle, Exton, PA

This is a burger with a crab cake on it and remoulade sauce from Winner's Circle in Exton, PA. It was good, but I really liked the photo and wanted to share it.

Franco Di Roma, Middletown, NY

Franco Di Roma is an unassuming place from the outside, it sits in a strip mall near the Middletown Farm store on Rt 211. Inside it looks better, but is still unassuming in a quant way. We were seated in the front, they have another dining room in the back, and given menus by a very pleasant waitress. Teresa decided on the eggplant parmesan at twelve bucks and I ordered the veal sorentino at seventeen bucks. Both came with pasta and a choice of soup or salad. These are two of our favorite dishes, and we often use them as a benchmark in comparing restaurants. 

Well, both were excellent. My veal was three pieces of meat with ample prosciutto and a delicate sauce that did not overwhelm the veal. The same sauce was on the penne pasta. The eggplant was quite nice as well with no bitter taste and a nice red sauce. 

Overall, I would say this is a place you should try sometime. It is a diamond in the rough.

Dixie Grill, Wilmington, NC

Dixie Benedict

I've heard some good things about this place, and from people I trust, so when it came time to have breakfast with my grandson I decided to try it. They were right.

I had the Dixie Benedict, shown above. It is a biscuit with a delightful fried green tomatoe, scrambled eggs and Vidalia onion sauce. I decided to go native and get grits as the side,in lieu of home fries. The benedict dish was very good and I think the grits were good, but since I come from a much higher latitude I don't know too much about grits. 

My seven year old grandson went for the strawberry pancakes. They come in 2, 4 or 6. He had two and inhaled them. 

Overall, good food at reasonable prices with excellent service. Stop by and see for yourself sometime. 

Update- I went back and tried them again, this time I had the Stafford burger (a nice mixture of beef and sausage, both of which are ground in-house) and it was delightful. My grandson had the black bean burger, which he loved. Good food, good prices, good service. 

Stafford Burger

Angelo's, Harriman, NY

I have to give one caution to this review. When you go, and I really think you need to go, and soon, make sure you bring cash as they do not take credit cards. That said, this is one of those out of the way gems so let's get into it.

Calamari

My friend Alicia has been raving about Angelo's for a couple of weeks now so when we went down to Woodbury Commons we swung over to try them. We got there at 4:15 and the sign said they open at 4:30. A nice gentleman was coming out, one of the owners, and after he talked to us for a few minutes he told us to go on in. We were seated and another of the owners introduced himself to us and told us a bit about the food. He also asked if we brought our own wine, it is BYOB, and finding that we didn't he suggested some soft drinks. We opted for tap water.

Veal cutlet with pesto pasta.

We started with the fried calamari and it was quite well executed. The calamari was perfectly cooked with a light breading that suggested they were made in-house. I did find the marinara sauce to be fresh tasting, but a bit bland. There was an option to have a spicy sauce (probably more like a fra diavlo) and that's what I'd do the next time. After we finished the calamari, we were brought small house salads with a nice vinaigrette dressing. 

Looking at the menu I found a few things that interested me, but I finally decided on the veal dish shown above. It is veal cutlet, perfectly cooked by the way, with home made ricotta and mozzarella on it with a wonderful pesto on the pasta, and the veal. Quite amazing, wonderful flavor and texture, good portion. I'd offer up more platitudes, but I'm sure you get the point.

Eggplant Parm

Teresa decided on the eggplant parmesan, her 'go to' dish. First of all, the portion was massive. I tasted it and it was really good, light in taste with delicate flavors. I asked her about it and she said it was one of the best she'd had, and she's eaten that dish in dozens of restaurants. She brought more than half of it home, that's how big it was. 

So you see what I mean? Get some cash together (Our bill was $60 before tip) and get there. It might be a good idea to call ahead as it looked to only seat about 30 in the section we were in. 

Cuisses de Grenoille a' la Provençal (Sautéed Frog Legs)

The French elevate simple ingredients, some of which may seem bizarre and unpalatable to the uninitiated, and turn them into culinary delights. Think escargot, or frog legs.

I took six frog legs (three pair before snipping them apart) and rinsed them off. Next they went into a bowl and were covered with milk, the bowl was covered, and into the fridge for thirty minutes. 

Next step was to pat them dry, salt and pepper liberally, and coat with flour. Into a sauté pan I put a half stick of butter at high heat until it started to sizzle. I cooked the legs for four minutes, turning once, until golden brown.

Let the legs rest while you wipe out the pan and heat a quarter stick of butter. Put in two cloves of garlic, minced small, some more salt and pepper, and a dash of lemon juice. Cook for about a minute stirring vigorously. Pour some of this over the legs and eat.

If you have never tried frog legs you will be surprised. The taste is a bit like a meatier talapia with a chicken consistency. Of course all that butter and garlic adds a new dimension. 

The Nu~Cavu, Consistently Amazing.

Lobster Tempura

I was thinking of a place to take my mother-in-law to for her birthday dinner and a few places came to mind. As I thought about it, I decided to take her to someplace I knew well, and that I was certain would not disappoint. Two places immediately came to mind; Beacon Falls Cafe and The Nu~Cavu. Beacon Falls Cafe was a distance to make two round trips, so we hit the Cavu, and it was a big hit.

Service was impeccable, as usual. Nick, a former student of mine, was attentive and knowledgable. Food was amazing, as usual. We started with fried calamari and the special lobster tempura (shown above). The calamari was great, but the lobster tempura was truly great. It came with a tempura sauce and a sweet and sour sauce with garlic and a bot of heat. Perfect. 

Mom (second generation Italian) said the marinara sauce on the Calamari was quite good, so good that she changed her side dish from potato and vegetable to a side of pasta. Her dinner choice was  the seafood scampi and she requested no garlic which they were happy to accommodate for her. I tasted the fish and it was good (okay, I would have wanted the garlic).

Seafood scampi

I got out of my comfort zone (The Pescadore) and ordered the Tuna Ahi and I was glad I did, It was delightful. I chose a side of garlic and oil that was delicious. The tuna was cooked to perfection.

Ahi Tuna

Teresa had the Gnocchi special with shrimp and it was delicious. They added a bot of the fra diavlo sauce which gave a subtle heat that was not over powering. Quite nice.

Gnocchi

Carmela sent out desert for us, and had the staff sing for Mom. This is indeed one of my favorites and you really need to stop by and try them. 

Beer Battered Bacon

A friend challenged me to do this after she saw something similar. 

For the batter-Combine the ingredients and mix well. This produces a nice thick batter. Feel free to add any seasonings, dry mustard might be good, or try a different beer. 

1 cup flour

1 cup beer, I used Pabst Blue Ribbon

1 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp cayenne

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp ground garlic

Cut the bacon strips in half, coat with flour, coat with batter and immerse in hot oil until golden brown (three to five minutes or so)

I used buffalo blue cheese dressing, but I think a home made spicy remoulade, or a satay would have been better.

Poughkeepsie Ice House

Bridge Music Burger

The Poughkeepsie Ice House is a new place on the Poughkeepsie waterfront in an old building that was once a working ice house. Harvesting ice was once a very important, and dangerous, business prior to modern refrigeration. The building spent some time as a snack bar at Waryas Park, between the Mid-Hudson Bridge and the Walkway Over the Hudson. While the outside is unassuming, the new owners must have dropped some serious change in the interior remodel. The place is exposed brick, stone floors, wood and windows overlooking the Hudson River. I don't think there is a bad seat in the house.

They have been reviewed by North County and Hudson Valley Rambler and Hudson Valley Magazine. Having read both articles, I put it on my short list of places to visit. It was a rainy day when we went, giving an interesting view of the bridges and the ice flowing by. 

We were seated quickly and given menus and ample time to look them over. It took a while for our waitress to come. We both ordered the Bridge Music Burger at $11.50. I took the fries with mine and Teresa had the side salad. Mine was ordered medium and hers medium-well. Both came out close to well done. That said, the burgers were quite good with cheese, crispy bacon and aioli on a toasted brioche bun. The fries were really good.

They have a fairly good beer list (including Icehouse Beer), and wines, but I don't think they have a full liquor license as yet. This would be neat place to visit in nice weather to watch the boats passing by and walk along the water, which is what we intend to do. Definitely worth checking out, so pay a visit and see for yourself.

Benedict Burger, Beaver Creek Tavern, Downingtown, PA

What you see above is the Benedict Burger, a fried egg, Canadian bacon and Hollandaise sauce sitting on a half-pound of quality beef. It sounds like an odd combination, but it is amazing. 

I wanted to try this beast the last time we went to Beaver Creek Tavern, but I was a tad under the weather and I went with a regular burger. This time there was nothing holding me back so I went for it, as did my son-in-law. We agreed that while we both ordered with mild trepidation, it was a good decision to try it. The fried egg and the sauce gave a delightful moistness and flavor to the beef. Turned out to be a winning combination.

I would order it again, but there are a few other combinations I'd like to try first. 

PBR Onion Rings

I got this recipe from Eclectic Recipes, just click on it and you'll see how easy it is to do. She used a wheat beer, I used Pabst Blue Ribbon and the rings came out great. I think the next time I'm going to see what happens with Guinness. That might add just a bit more flavor punch, and make them darker in color.

Crew Restaurant Bar, Poughkeepsie, NY

And here's another place I've driven past for years. Actually I've parked in front of it several times as it is located next to Half-Time Beverage Store on Rt 9, one of my favorite places to buy beer. From the outside I'd always thought it was a small bar and didn't give it much thought. I decided to look it up online and found that it was quite well rated, and they'd won a few Hudson Valley Magazine 'Best of' awards. I think the category was soup.

Inside it was much nicer than I'd imagined. There is a bar in front and another section where you sit at a counter and can watch the chefs at work, tables and booths on the side. We got there at about five-thirty on a Saturday evening and it wasn't too crowded, but by the time we left almost all of the seats were taken. I did notice that the noise level was rising while we were there, so if you go at a peak time be prepared for some noise, and some crowding. 

The dinner menu is a bit pricey, the top items being in the mid-thirties, but there are some interesting offerings such as; duck breast, steak frites, a few pasta dishes and more. I was bouncing between the duck and the burger. 

I finally decided on the burger with jack cheese. The meat was Pat La Frieda's blend (a top quality meat purveyor in Jersey), grilled with fries, salad, coleslaw, a pickle and your choice of cheese for $16, I chose pepper jack. That's a bit high for a burger, but look at the photo above and see what came with it. I gave Teresa most of the salad, and some of the cole slaw because I was full. 

That burger was good, darn good, just a step below life changing. I ordered it medium, and it came a perfect medium with no grease. Clean, fresh taste with no aftertaste. It was a burger where you just feel good after eating it, not heavy and bloated. The fries were crisp, hot and good. The cole slaw was home made and fresh and the salad had a very nice vinaigrette dressing. 

Teresa got the Club Salad which was a fairly large salad with chicken, bacon and cheese for $10. I took a taste and it was good.

Overall, good food, nice ambiance (if a bit noisy) and excellent service. We'll go back again sometime. 

Main Line Diner and Pizza Company, Maybrook, NY

Many years ago this was called the Maybrook Diner and when the railroad was in town it was a hopping place. After the Railroad died out, so did the diner and it sat vacant for quite a few years. It was purchased by a couple of guys who own a pizzeria in the area and they did some renovations. They took a few years to do it, but hey, they did reopen the place.

Greek Omelet with Gyro Meat

The interior got a good cleaning and a sprucing up, but they left the charm of an old fashioned diner, especially in the front section where the chrome just glistens at you with that cool art-deco look. The back dining room is big and bright with a ceiling that pays homage to the region and its roots as a rail town and transportation hub. 

This was our second visit. The first was a couple of weeks ago after church when I did not have a camera. On that visit we had paninis, mine was a Rueben panini that was quite good. Teresa had a chicken panini on which there was a bit too much balsamic vinaigrette making it a soggy. Overall it was good, but it take some time for the food to come. Since they'd only been open a week at this point it wasn't a big deal, they just needed to get the kinks out. 

Spinach Omelet

This time we stopped by on a Friday morning as winter storm Nemo approached. We decided to get out of the house before it hit. I had the Greek Omelet with Gyro meat, shown at the top, and Teresa had the Spinach Omelet. Both were quite good and quite filling. Service was fast and pleasant. It looks like they got those kinks out.

I really hope they do well here. They have a good menu, good food and what seems to be a good staff. This is something the area needed. Stop by and give them a try, support a couple of local guys. We'll be going back again, I want to see how the burgers are.

Update- We've been back a few times since I wrote this and I have to say they are consistently good. I've tried the burgers and liked them but I think my favorite so far was on the special menu. It was a crab cake with macaroni and cheese (shown below). For $11.99 I got this huge portion as well as a salad and a bowl of soup. The crab cake was fresh and the mac and cheese got better as I ate it which tells me it was freshly made as well. No, it was not real crab meat, it was of the imitation variety. Oddly, it was an improvement over most of the crab cakes I've had as it was moister and more flavorful. 

Main Line is fast becoming my favorite diner.

Crab Cake with Mac and Cheese

Time to Eat Diner, Bridgewater, NJ

Sliders with Sweet Potato Fries

We have driven past this place many times coming home from Pennsylvania and we've wanted to stop for some time. The problem was how to get to it from Rt 202 as it sits on a parallel road off an exit. I studied it as we passed the last time we went by and figured out the road we needed to take, so we made plans to stop this time.

The parking pot was packed on a Monday afternoon. We were asked if we wanted to sit on the noisy side, or the quiet side and we said we didn't care. He seated us in what must have been the quiet side. We looked over the menus and there were some things that jumped out but the specials menu got my interest. We both decided on the beef sliders with sweet potato fries for $8.50. They came with a choice of soup or salad and included a desert. 

Teresa had the potato leek soup which was good and I got the tomato bisque which was very good. The sliders were good and the rolls were fresh and sweet tasting. The best part was the sweet potato fries, probably the best I've had. They were slightly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. They melted in the mouth. We took rice pudding to go. 

All told a good, filling meal for two for about twenty-two bucks, tax and tip included. Service was good, bathrooms clean and we'll be back.

Landmark Americana, West Chester, PA

We went to the Landmark Americana for two reasons. One, Brian and Nicole have been there and said it was good. Two, kids eat free on Sundays. Since we had two kids with us that sounded like a good idea. 

It is a rather large place with big televisions strategically placed, all tuned to the big game. It wasn't all that crowded on a Sunday afternoon so they put three tables together for the six of us. One of those tables was superfluous but we spread out.

Really good, expensive beer

I included the picture of the beer, something I don't normally do, for two reasons. First, it was very good. It was a Union Jack IPA from Firestone Brewing in California and it was hoppy enough, yet light and crisp with a good aftertaste. The second reason is that it was seven bucks a pint so I thought it deserved a place on this page. I had two (I wasn't aware of the price) so the beers cost more than my meal.

Parmesan Garlic Wings

We tried the wings as there was a fifty cent wing special. The parmesan garlic shown above were good, but the traditional hot wings were better.

Southwestern Burger

I ordered the Southwestern Burger at twelve bucks. It had pepper jack cheese, bacon, chipotle dressing and guacamole. What it lacked was flavor. It was hard to believe that with all that good stuff on it, the burger was bland. Brian had the shepherd's pie which he said was also bland.

The service was okay, atmosphere typical sport's bar, the food mediocre. Would I go back? Maybe, but I think I'd go to the Iron Hill Brewery up the street sooner.

Kangaroo Patty from Lambertville Station.

The Lambertville Station has an interesting game menu from time to time, but it seems I always missed it when we stopped in. This visit I saw a few cool things like an alligator dish, an ostrich dish and a kangaroo patty, shown above, at fifteen bucks. It had cheese, grilled onions and sweet and hot peppers. It came in a pocket bread, presumably to keep the kangaroo theme going, with an ample supply of house made chips. It was quite tasty, but since the meat is so lean it needed something else like an aioli. I would definitely have another.