Ursula's Dish on Dish

By: Ursula T-C

To celebrate my birthday, my husband, Kevin, and I decided to try a new (to us) restaurant called DISH in Red Bank, NJ. After a short walk from our apartment to the place, we walked in to the cozy restaurant that was filled with amazing aromas and a very comfortable feel. As soon as we sat at a cute little 2-top against the wall, a bottle of my favorite champagne, Veuve Clicquot, showed up courtesy of my wonderful husband. Because DISH is a BYOB, he had stopped by earlier in the day to drop off the surprise...a very happy little surprise :0)

I had already checked out the menu online before we went as I do with most restaurants, the happy burden of a true foodie. The menu is short and sweet but satisfies all tastes. On Tuesday and Wednesday nights, DISH actually offers a prefixe menu which includes an appetizer (either a soup, salad or app), an entree (3 to choose from) and chef's choice on dessert all for only $25!

Since I had already read the menu online, I had basically picked what I wanted until I heard the specials...I heard blue cheese, lobster, and salmon and I was sold. I chose the wedge of lettuce with fresh, homemade blue cheese dressing with bacon bits and the lobster encrusted salmon with rosemary potatoes and asparagus and carrots specials while my husband chose shrimp wrapped in bacon and, as always, a meat dish - stout braised beef short ribs. My mouth is watering again even as I type this.

As we waited for our appetizers and enjoyed our champagne, I took a look around the restaurant. Its cozy, only about 15 tables, plates used as decoration on the wall. The restaurant looks like a store front from the outside with a huge show-window up front. Not too loud. Intimate enough for a romantic couple dinner but also feel comfortable with a bigger group of people..

Our appetizers came. My salad ended up being about 10 leaves of fresh, crispy lettuce with a TON of the homemade blue cheese dressing poured over it with bacon chunks sprinkled on top. Don't get me wrong, I love me some blue cheese dressing but the amount was obscene. I scraped off most of the dressing and still enjoyed the salad but wish there wasn't so much. I had such a big a pile of leftover dressing on the plate that when the waitress came to pick it up, she actually took my salad fork and poked in the blob to ensure there wasn't anything left in there! Hopefully they don't waste so much in the future.

On the other hand, Kevin's appetizer was glorious. The shrimp were each a very good size and perfectly wrapped in bacon. On the bottom of the plate there was a wonderful surprise...cheese grits. On the menu it is written quite small below the Bacon Wrapped Shrimp wording so it was forgotten until the plate showed up. Kevin is not very adventure and though he tried a small bite, I was the receiver of this deliciousness. The cheese grits tasted like Italian polenta but a cheesy version instead of a potato undertone...and it was wonderful. There was only a small amount and I savored every bite.

Next came out entrees, lobster encrusted salmon dish was beautifully presented while Kevin's short ribs were a splendid pile of meat. We dug right in and didn't speak for a good five minutes other than groans of delight. My salmon was great, the encrusted lobster actually ended up being kind of a lobster cream with chunks of lobster in it that was a layer on top of the salmon piece. I think it could have stayed in the oven about 5 minutes longer and it would have been perfection but it was extremely good otherwise - and a large portion as well. The potatoes and veggies weren't anything to write home about but a good side addition.

Now Kevin's dish needs its own paragraph. These short ribs were magnificent. Only a hair behind our amazing short ribs at Mama's Fishhouse in Maui. The food on the plate was a big mash-up but with every, bite you wouldn't wait to get another forkful in your mouth. The meat was perfectly tender and melt in your mouth good. The sauce had small cubes of beets in it so they sucked up the juices of the meat and the sauce. When you took a bite, they burst in your mouth creating pure joy. THEN when you add in the maple sweet potato mashed puree, you pretty much could say I died and went to Heaven tasting this dish. Amazing. It was so sweet and so wonderful. I actually took some of my rosemary potatoes and dipped them onto his plate to soak up some more of these amazing flavors.

After we thought there was no room, the waitress and Kevin convinced me to have dessert...I thought the Veuve was dessert the whole time! :0) I took a gander at the desserts and immediately saw Crème Brûlée. Any time this or flan is on the menu, I order it. So I did. The dessert was ok, I've had better. But it was good. It could have been heated or torched more. I still enjoyed it.

After my 3-course meal and bottle of champagne, I rubbed my belly and we very happily walked home to our apartment a few blocks away. I recommend a walk afterwards because its a lot of food, but absolutely amazingly delicious nonetheless. Go. To. DISH.

Image# 0389 - short ribs - blurry because the plate was steaming!
Image # 0390 - lobster encrusted salmon
Image # 0392 - creme brulee

Dovetail: Monday Night Veggies

Katherine and I had a lovely Monday night dinner at Dovetail on West 77th and Columbus. There is a Monday night tasting menu of vegetarian and semi-vegetarian plates where you can choose three. First, the chef gave us an offering of fresh snap peas and falafel. I love fresh, crispy vegetables, so no complaints here. Meanwhile, Kat and I shared a bottle of Stout beer, which was presented in a bottle the size of a wine glass, and kept "chilled" for us. I found this hysterical. The beer was awesome, so cheers to beer.

My first course of brussel sprouts, manchego cheese, and pears was fresh and tasty, though I felt the cheese was overpowered by the sprouts and the pears were sort of lost in the mix.

Next, I had pea dumplings in broth, which were, again, very fresh, and the little packaging held together well, but there seemed to be a flavor lacking in the peas. Slightly bland. The broth was a bit on the salty side for my tastes, but still good, don't get me wrong.

Finally, I had the gnudi, which were turnip-gnocchi and duck prosciutto with butternut squash. By far, my favorite of the night, sweet and tender. I just wish the portion size had been larger!

We ended with dessert, and my maple creme brulee with a salt and pepper shortbread crust was delectable.

Overall, decent restaurant. Reminded us of a '70s airport joint, with very modern decorations and a lot of silver on the walls. Company was awesome, so great night!

(Image from: http://www.zagat.com/buzz/dovetails-new-monday-vegetarian-menu which has a nice little description of the vegetarian Monday)

Tombolino's Lunch Special

11.95 gets you: Eggplant Rollatini, Soup or Salad (neither is even close to skimpy, the soup is a meal on its own), dessert and coffee or espresso. Even on Saturdays. (Other entrees were 2-3 dollars more, unless you want steak which will run you around $22.) So is it good?

You bet your socks! The kind of socks that you need because you're suffering from severe blisters. So bet 'em.

First, the white bean escarole soup on display in the picture was hearty, and not overly-beany which I despise. Plus, the taste was fantastic. I wanted a whole jug of it to save for the upcoming winter months. Unfortunately, the soup by itself is $8.00 Boo. But I loved it. Adored it. Yet another reason why I need a food processor. Though, I probably don't for that type of soup. Tomatoes, onions, white beans, and escarole in a tomato-esque, chicken (I think) broth.

The eggplant rollatini portion size was small by appearance, but I was so stuffed from the soup and Addeo bread (best bread in the BX, maybe the country) that it was fine. Tasty morsel, with delicious broccoli (yes, delicious) and a giant tater tot creation that probably has a fancy French name I can't spell on the side. I took most of it home, and can't wait to eat it for lunch one of these days.

I opted for the espresso and the Italian vanilla ice cream sprinkled with almonds and topped with a maraschino cherry over the Italian cheesecake. I'm not a huge cheesecake fan in general, and the Italian version is a bit too cakey for my taste. Lovely, and the perfect topper to a great lunch.

But better than that was the company, my amazingly awesome 90 year old grandfather, who kept me entertained with stories the entire time. Lunch special was great, company was great, price was great. Can't go wrong!

Horosho: Rolling River Cafe, Parksville, NY

Have you ever discussed Anna Karenina with a chef? I have. In upstate NY, in fact. Imagine? Delicious Russian food, awesome "Rajun Cajun" ambiance (it's in a house), and Bashakill wine. I'm in heaven.

Brad and I split the Pelini Russian veal Dumplings, seared tuna in peanut and lime sauce, and Uzbekistan pie. Tapas, crepes, entrees, paninis... they have it all! Everything was delectable. The sour cream on the dumplings and pie were a perfect balance, and the tuna was cooked to perfection with a slightly charred undertone.

For dessert, we split the pecan pie which was almost as good as my Southern mother's. Served with fresh whipped cream on the side, it was delectable. Highly recommend!

(Image from: http://www.google.com/imgres?q=rolling+river+cafe+parksville&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1280&bih=613&tbm=isch&tbnid=2oPBOa442vdudM:&imgrefurl=http://www.countryhouserealty.net/countryhouse/livman.html&docid=jaHqX_veLXqwWM&w=201&h=267&ei=7DFHTqmTH8-_gQf1l8TBBg&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=368&page=1&tbnh=149&tbnw=112&start=0&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:15,s:0&tx=76&ty=134)

Benji and Jake's: True Brick

Nestled along Lake Kauneonga in upstate NY, you will find one of the best pizza spots in the state. Benji and Jake's has it all: a brick building with gorgeous lake views from both the lower and top level, a full bar, and live music on the weekends. Run by two young, ambitious hometown brothers, their brick-oven pizza is something different--it offers a whole wheat crust that's absolutely delicious. Apparently, the crust was a learned skill from Wyoming, and it is absolutely fantastic.

The T-Rex (meat lovers) is fabulous, and made better by the fact that even though it involves a lot of meat, it lacks the over-oily nuisance of most meat lovers pizza.

The Bernadette is my personal favorite: pesto, broccoli, and chicken. Menu states that the chicken is organically and locally grown.

The Eggplant Parm and/or Aubergine are both incredible, sweet and soft.

The Margarita is perfect if simple pizza is what you crave.

Those would be my top 4. Death by pizza is not very hot, shrimp scampi pizza is a bit lacking in the scampi area for my tastes, the Jackson Pollock is decent, and the drunken chef is rather tasteless.

Hot pepper, oregano, garlic powder, and parm cheese are all supplied.

As for appetizers, the waffle fries come in a nice cone, and while I recommend the seasoned ones, the plain ones aren't bad, either.

However, save room for dessert because the gelato is incredible. The coffee flavor is very light, but creamy, and the pb&j gelato is a party in your mouth!

Also, there are many craft beers on tap, from Chimay to Magic Hat. Seems like they switch every once in a while. There's also a decent wine list and sangria and of course, mixed drinks to enjoy as a cocktail as you gaze out across the scenic lake. Definitely recommend!

(Picture from: http://www.google.com/imgres?q=benji+and+jake%27s&hl=en&biw=1280&bih=613&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=B5HOj5CG_HOk6M:&imgrefurl=http://careerfan.com/jobs/listing.php/WPVNYEULXJ/&docid=i19_234sbPLnWM&w=250&h=187&ei=2EA4Tt2JJMXegQfr69STAg&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=606&page=1&tbnh=133&tbnw=176&start=0&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:17,s:0&tx=101&ty=114)

Emilia's Italian Restaurant, Arthur Ave.

So for my brother's college graduation (I know, crazy), my brother decided he wanted to go to his favorite Arthur Ave. haunt, Emilia's. So, with family in tow, we trudged in and we greeted with "Chris!" and a host of waiters high-fiving him and slapping him on the back.

The meal was good. Not exceptional, cloud-nine, don't talk to me good, but still good. Thick, crusty bread with Chris' antipasto was well received. The peppers did not taste jarred or canned, the cheese was pungent, and the prosciutto was only slightly fatty. Unfortunately, the Roma tomatoes were a bit tasteless. For an entree, the wild boar pappardelle was tasty, though the pasta did not taste homemade, which made me yearn for Lavagna. The wild boar was delectable, though the few fatty pieces tossed in were a turn off. The sauce was a tad bit salty, but not to the point where I pushed the dish aside. I managed to eat the entire thing in one sitting, so I must have liked it enough for that! Most people ordered the swordfish on Chris and Beebe's suggestion, and they were not disappointed. Perfectly cooked with beautiful grill marks, it melted in your mouth and was served with a cool salad. If I ever find myself at Emilia's in the future, that would be the meal I ordered. I'm a sucker for ordering pasta and an Italian restaurant though, so I'd have to remind myself to go when I'm in the mood for fish. The Sicilian wine that Uncle Joe ordered was a nice complement. Overall, a lovely meal, attentive service, and a made-for-tv family made it a wonderful experience.

Then, we headed to "Howl at the Moon" known to the locals as "Howl." If you drop Chris' name at Emilia's, be sure to drop "Dave" at howl. But seriously, who makes a soco shot without the lime? At least Joe learned how to Catdaddy!