tommy:eats

Ridgewood's Blend: gone (yay!), but coming back (awww...)

Blend opened up several years ago, taking up what seemed to be an entire block of Ridgewood's somewhat quaint downtown area.  Then it closed a few months ago, bankrupt.  But not before I spent some quality time at this restaurant-cum-dance-club-cum-live-music-venue.

During one of my first meals, on what was a guys-night-out sort of thing, my strip steak came to the table in the form of filet mignon.  I sent it back and waited.  And waited.  The manager, who was very nice, came over and apologized, explaining that they had my new steak ready and were bringing it out but the server dropped it on the stairs, so they were making yet another one.  I appreciated her honesty, we all had a good laugh, and we still chuckle about it today.  The steak?  I don't recall it being notable in the least.  But a good time was had by all.

On another visit, I spent a lazy afternoon at the back bar talking to the bartender (Steve, at the time), about cocktails and tequila.  He set up a little tequila tasting for me, and we had a grand ol' time.  The burger, not all that exceptional.  But the experience?  Wonderful.

But beyond those two visits, Blend just didn't do it for me.  The food was simply not very good.  And if I went at night to soak in that nightclub thing they had going, I'd find myself looking around, wondering who all these people were and from where they came.  They sure didn't look my neighbors and friends.  

That was indicative of my biggest issue with Blend:  it didn't serve the community. And to top off the perceived insult with tangible injury, its valet service seemed to take up about 90% of the only large parking lot in downtown Ridgewood.  Pre-Blend-opening, you could always get a spot there for 2 bucks for the whole night.  In a post-Blend-opening world, that parking lot was practically useless...unless you were going to Blend.  Or should I say, unless you were pretending as though you were going to Blend.  Many a time I would drop off my guests at our restaurant of choice, pull into that valet lot, hand over my keys, walk in the back door of Blend and right out the front.  2 dollar parking just turned free.

But my craftiness isn't what I came here to share.

Beef: found

I don't normally regurgitate news here, because that's boring.   But I'm really impressed with this feat:

This man has found the beef.  Although, I'm not sure where he put it. 

That's incredible.  Where's the video?  In this age of youtube no one captured this for all the world?

Meanwhile, the medical experts over on Roadfood.com are chiming in.  *sigh*

Green chile: cheeseburgers

Once again I found myself emailing iamnotachef about food instead of posting on this blog about food.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not under the impression that there's a collective minion out there who are hanging on my every word, but every now and again I feel the tinge of responsibility to actually keep this blog going, rather than just shutting it down completely or let it sit out there dormant.  For today, my choice is to keep it going with another post.

I emailed iamnotachef a few mornings back telling him that I've been really into making green chile stuffs, which are way better than ketchup.  About 10 minutes later, he's got this post about how mustard is the "new ketchup".  OK, well, first off, he shamelessly stole my idea.  Second, he's wrong:  green chile stuff is the new ketchup.

The Brick House: Wyckoff, NJ: Slammed by the Record

The Brick House (the "fine dining" restaurant in Wyckoff, NJ) was ripped a new one by the Bergen Record yesterday.  And just like clockwork, critics of the critic came out of the woodwork, defending the restaurant, and questioning the reviewer's food knowledge (you can read the comments at the bottom of that link and here as all of them here).   One commenter suggests that a reviewer should "educate me and enrich the dining experience".  That's good stuff.  I can't even make that stuff up.  And, of course, some made it known to the world that one little review was not going to change their opinion of the place (ummm, is that the goal of a review?  ever?)

You might recall that something similar happened when the Record slammed Biagio's.  The immediate outpouring of support for the mediocre Biagio's was mind-blowing.  These people were incensed!

I guess this phenomenon has something to do with these places being "local institutions."  My take on "local institutions"?:  generally not very good.

While I've had several meals at Biagio's to support that hypothesis, I've had none at The Brick House.  But not for lack of trying.

Our visit a few weeks ago went like this:

Mini burgers: Big City style

I was resting in bed today trying very hard to work off a Peter Luger induced food and bourbon hangover, when this came on the TV.  I hope it frightens you as much as it frightened me.  Enjoy:   

Study: Most kids' fast-food meals have too many calories

Study: Most kids' fast-food meals have too many calories

In related news:  no shit, Sherlock.

<WTF?>  Who pays for this stuff?  Shouldn't they be paying for studies on how to get seeds and flavor back into watermelon instead of the number of permutations possible with 7 sandwiches, 5 drinks and french fries?  Was this study run by a high school student looking for extra credit?</WTF?>

Tomatoes: what you've been missing

So, by now you're probably avoiding jalapeno peppers due to the recent scare.  And for most of the summer, you've been avoiding tomatoes because of doodie contamination. 

I've been avoiding them too.  Then again, I always avoid tomatoes, because they are pretty crappy 99% of the time, not just when they're, well, crappy.

Here are some snaps of some of what you've been denying yourself:

Fairway in Paramus: Coming, soon?

I don't usually do much "reporting" on this blog.  Reporting is dry, boring, fact-based verse.  I don't deal in facts.  Additionally, reporting is a job for trained and professional reporters and newspaper people, and that's sure not me.  Conversely, being interesting and entertaining is my job.  And before you say anything, I don't get paid for that job, so if I'm sleeping on the job, not very good at the job, or just plain not showing up to work, well, too bad.

At any rate, a lot of people are excited about NYC's Fairway Market coming to Paramus (unrelated to Fort Lee's Fairway, which is a fine store in its own right, and has served the community well for longer than most people have been a part of the community).  And of course they're excited:  NYC's Fairway is a pretty darned good store, and, our Paramus version sure has been a looooong time in the coming. 

t:e visitor Jmags sent me this picture, which he claims shows the progress of the construction of Fairway (I sure hope he's right, because we don't need another stinkin' Linens -n- Things), and that got me thinking that I should probably look into this.   I figured I'd do some reporting on this story.

Here's the report:

Inventor of Egg McMuffin dies: Herb Peterson

[I could google and steal someone's picture, but you'll have to use your imagination instead]

I just read that the inventor of the Egg McMuffin, Herb Peterson, died on Tuesday.  I don't normally regirgitate news stories because, well, that's what news outlets and newspapers do quite well already, but I think he did some very very good work, and I think he deserves a mention.  Read on McCNN here (click).

I'm not sure if Herb had a hand in the Sausage McMuffin with Egg though.  One would think he did.  At the very least he created the foundation.  Some jerk probably came around afterwards and said "Hey, let's put some sausage on Herb's sandwich and take all the credit!"  Pricks.  That SMwE is a level up from the regular Egg McMuffin, and it's exactly what you need if you've tipped a few too many the night before or are getting a scratchy throat from a cold (it's like health food or something).  It takes a perfectly acceptable sandwich, and adds a bunch more fat and salt.  Excellent.

So, as I sit here eating a Talyor Ham egg and cheese on a roll (throat's a little scratchy this morning thank you), I think that I should stop at McDonald's tomorrow, and try the regular ol' Egg McMuffin.  Maybe I'll get a SMwE too, just in case.

Top ten: idiotic posts recently read on the "big boards"

As much as I'm tempted to start a series of posts pointing out the most idiotic, self-serving, naval-gazingest, disingenuous posts on those big boards (you know which ones I mean), my self-imposed rule of keeping things positive and helpful, and talking about food rather than people (including me, as much as possible, although the nature of a blog makes that a challenge) keeps getting in the way.

Damnit.

I guess, though, if I were to post something like this, I really wouldn't be talking about people per se, but rather, their viewpoints.  And maybe if I just hide a link and you can guess which posts I find idiotic, self-serving, or disingenuous, I really wouldn't be breaking my own rules.

Now that I think about it, I don't have the kind of time necessary to keep up with such a series.

Verizon: at the Tick Tock: Clifton, NJ

I noticed my beloved Tick Tock diner on the TV the other day, in a Verizon commercial...

Epicurious.com: slamming me with SPAM

Epicurious.com is really starting to get on my last nerve...

Bergen Record: opens up its website to thousands of...

...thoughtful and articulate people.

When I first read that the Bergen Record's website remodel included the ability for anyone to post a comment on their stories, I thought, "oh jeez, now the Bergen Record is going to look like a blog, with countless idiotic comments on every subject."  And I'll tell you that from what I've read so far, I was right.

Ben and Jack's Steakhouse spotted on "30 Rock"

Since no one else on the internet has mentioned it, I figure I'll take it...

NJ Monthly lists a few sort-of-NJ food sites

The March 2007 issue of NJ Monthly not only has a story on the Sopranos, but also a brief list of some food sites/blogs with New Jersey content. 

The Lazy Spoon: quite a spoon

I found myself in Paramus, NJ's, Chef Central the other day.  Chef Central is a local, pricy store, but it's convenient, and they have some nice stuff.  ANYway I noticed Rachel Ray's line of pumpkin-colored cookware.  It catches the eye so I took a look.  Immediately I noticed that wooden spoon that she pimps on her show (which show, I don't know...I do watch all of them).  It's the spoon with the little notch in it that keeps it attached to your pot, as seen in the picture above.  I thought it was a nifty idea I guess.  And then I turned it over to look at the price.