Prime Restaurant (Huntington, NY) – Great Burger @Brunch

Posted on June 18, 2015 by jfoodeats

Sandwiched between two fantastic crossings of the Long Island Sound from CT was a visit to Prime Restaurant in Huntington to enjoy their Sunday Jazz Brunch. The restaurant offers outside waterside tables in a relaxed environment plus more formal tables indoors. On this visit we were a little late for the first come first served tables on the deck and we were seated at a very quiet table next to the windows in the rear of the dining area where we could enjoy conversation with jazz in the background.

The Sunday Brunch menu consists of salads, maki rolls, eggs, and sandwiches, or dive into Prime’s famous and enormous steaks. I ordered the “Prime Burger” that includes a large 8 ounce patty, melted cheese, a slice of tomato, thinly sliced red onions, and lettuce on a brioche with a side of shoestring fries.

The burger was served on a wooden carving board, masquerading as a dinner plate, with the large order of fries assembled inside a wire basket. The burger was held together with a bamboo spear adorned with a cornichon.

I first grabbed few fries. The few on top were a little cool from sitting, but the next layer were hot, crispy, tasty and nicely salted. I next removed the onion slice (I am not a fan of raw onions) and cut the burger in half. It was perfectly prepared to my requested medium-rare. Likewise the kitchen prepared the bacon to crispy, but not overcooked. I pulled a little of the patty and tasted. The meat was deep in flavor, seasoned properly and excellent.

My first bite of the entire construction was delicious. The meat worked fantastically with the sweet tomato and the crispy lettuce was very refreshing. The bacon added just a touch of saltiness and a little smokiness. The roll was good, but it was not in the same league as the other ingredients, that would be my one suggestion, upgrade the bun, the meat deserves better.

We finished the meal with a single slice of cheesecake, topped with chocolate and caramel sauces. I was the only person at the table that was not fond of the cheesecake. I thought it was too gelatinous versus the creamy delightfulness of traditional NY Cheesecake.

Overall, it was a beautiful day on the Sound, a fantastic burger and a great time with friends.

Bounty Food Truck – #7 on 2015 Best Burger List

Posted on June 16, 2015 by jfoodeats

A lot of trucks sell burgers…Bounty Food Truck is the only one I found that sells one that is is great and should be included in my Best Burger List. Over the last year I enjoyed both the Bordelaise Burger and the Bounty Burger and each could make the list.

The “Bordelaise Burger” was outstanding. The meat was full of deep rich flavor and juicy, and then it was grilled to a perfect medium-rare. It was next topped with melted Gruyere cheese, which added a touch of creamy nuttiness. The slight pepperiness of the arugula was a fantastic addition and also contributed a little crunch. The caramelized onions were sweet and added just a touch of sweet back-notes and then the Malbec butter kicked in with a bold earthiness and a little pungency.

The “Bounty Burger” began with the same great meat, again prepared to a perfect medium-rare. This included traditional toppings of melted cheese, tomato, lettuce and onions in a sesame seed bun with a swath of Bounty sauce. The juicy meat and tomato slice was complemented by the slightly sweet sauce. It was a great burger.

I am glad Bounty will park at the New Canaan Farmer’s Market this summer where I can sneak down and grab a great burger every Saturday.

#burger #newcanaanfarmersmarket #bounty

Fleisher’s Craft Butchery (Westport) – #8 on 2015 Best Burgers

Posted on June 14, 2015 by jfoodeats

A few years ago Saugatuck Craft Burchery opened in Westport, buying locally-raised meats and poultry, dry-aging the beef on premises and selling to the public. A second phase was opening a cafe using their meats as the centerpiece to the menu.

The “Craft Burger” is the next new addition to my Best Burger list. It included dry-aged beef, IPA fondue, bacon bits, bitter greens, and an onion ring served on a brioche. The meat was fantastic, perfectly prepared to medium-rare and delivered that wonderful rich flavor we have grown to expect from this butcher. The IPA fondue was a thick cheese sauce that covered the top of the meat and the mini-cubes of bacon were a great addition. The ingredient that elevated this burger was the bitter greens. It added a level of complexity that none other contained and the sweetness of the brioche was fantastic.

2015 Burger Favorites – #10 (tie) Mama’s Boy (South Norwalk)

Posted on June 12, 2015 by jfoodeats

For my 2015 Best Burgers in southwest CT, it was difficult to fill the last spot. There were two excellent burgers, each delivering a different flavor combinations. So I used poetic license and called it a tie.

The “Mama’s Boy Burger,” combined local grass fed beef with house-smoked bacon, Pimiento cheese, fried Vidalia onions and pickles on a brioche bun. The patty was juicy and perfectly seasoned, the bacon strips added a significant amount of smokiness and a touch of saltiness and sweet the pickle slices added sour and spicy notes. The fried Vadalia onion rings were delicious.

This mile-high presentation is held together by a steak knife, or the server would need exceptional balance or the fried onion rings would fall. I highly recommend that the guest add the pickles to the ingredients and enjoy with the patty. The sour and spiciness of the pickle really caps off an already great burger.

Parallel Post Burger (Trumbull) – #9 on 2015 Best Burger List

Posted on June 9, 2015 by jfoodeats

My 2015 Best Burgers in FFD County was posted on:

http://www.ctbites.com/home/2015/6/7/top-10-burgers-in-southwest-ct-2015-edition.html

In the #9 position was the “Double Burger” at Parallel Post in Trumbull. This lobby restaurant in the Marriott Hotel is stark in decor but alive with flavor.

The “Double Burger” includes two patties of very mild grass-fed beef, topped with Vermont cheddar cheese, Benton’s bacon and served on a sesame brioche bun with fancy sauce. The meat is delicious, and the bacon delivered a high level of smokiness to the entire burger. The nuttiness of the Cheddar was a great complement and the bacon added the salty component. The brioce was very buttery and really added to the overall composition. The fancy sauce was a tomato aioli with a little spiciness that added to versus detracted from the burger. The fries were perfect and there was just a little kick in the ketchup.

Amore Cucina (Stamford) – Outstanding Pizza

Posted on June 5, 2015 by jfoodeats

There is another entrant onto my Great Pizza List. Amore Cucina & Bar recently opened on Hope Street in Stamford and is serving outstanding pizza. On a recent Monday, Owner Bruno DiFabio, opened his doors with 100% of the proceeds earmarked for the Susan G Komen Research Foundation for Breast Cancer. DiFabio is no stranger to the limelight. He is a six-time World Pizza Champion and Television Personality and owns eleven restaurants in the US.

Amore serves two types of pizza and on this visit I sampled the “Ferentini” square pie. The making of the dough requires a 96-hour fermentation process, using condensed milk that breaks down the gluten in the flour. Bruno told me this creates close to a gluten free product and he recommends to people with gluten issues.

The Ferentini is topped with spicy salami, green olives, tomato, Mozzarella cheese and San Marzano purée, and was the winner in the Best Traditional Category at the Las Vegas Expo. The square shape is reminiscent of Chicago pan pizza and the thickness of the dough may give some concern, but after one bite you will understand that you are in the presence of pizza greatness.

The pizza was perfectly baked, with a tan crust and underside, the cheese was firmly holding all of the ingredients in place (I do not like when the cheese covers the ingredients) and they were evenly distributed so each bite of the six slices would capture all of the flavors. My first bite of the crust was similar to biting into air surrounded by a thin crispy crust…it was divine, and the flavor was fantastic. I moved onto the full slice and they were fantastic. The sweetness of the San Marzano purée combined with the spiciness of the salami and the brightness of the olives was perfect. The cheese added a hint of luscious creaminess. This was one of the best pizzas I have ever eaten.

Overall, Amore is a great place, the décor is wonderful, the owner is a great person who can deliver exceptional food and gives back to the community and the pizza is world class.

Tiger’s Den Sports Bar & Grill (Ridgefield) – Disappointing First Visit

Posted on June 1, 2015 by jfoodeats

There has been a fair amount of chatter on-line for Tiger’s Den Sports Bar & Grill in Ridgefield so I decided to see if all of the fuss was justified. Located AT 25 Catoonah Street, the restaurant itself occupies a stand-alone building in the rear of the property with a separate parking lot and entrance. The interior is pure sports bar with seating for fifty at tables and a long front to rear bar with stools. There are six TVs and sports memorabilia adorning all of the walls and 30 beers and mixed drinks occupy a lengthy beverage menu.

I arrived mid-day, grabbed a seat in front of the TVs to view three different sporting events and ordered a bacon cheeseburger medium-rare with fries.

When it arrived I followed my normal practice and cut it in half. As soon as the knife entered the meat I knew the bad news…it was cooked beyond well-done, hard on the exterior and gray throughout. I sampled one of the fries and it was inundated with salt, not edible. I asked the server for a re-do and he was quick to remove the burger, embarrassed after seeing the burger’s interior. While I waited, the staff was apologetic and asked if I wanted a salad while I waited. They were incredibly customer focused during the entire meal. They were the highlight of the visit.

Burger #2 arrived with a new batch of fries. The edges of the burger were very crispy and when I cut the patty in half the middle was borderline raw while the edges were well done, but I was not going to return a second badly cooked burger. Surprisingly the meat was very tasty and offered a nice level of smokiness. It was topped with two slices of bacon, which were very good and the melted American cheese gave a nice level of creaminess. The brioche bun delivered a descent buttery flavor. Unfortunately like the original fries, the kitchen was careless with the salt, some bites were without any seasoning and other bites were over-salted. It was next to impossible to finish the burger. The fries were scalding hot and again they were over-salted and they were not fully cooked on the interior.

Overall it was a very disappointing visit to Tiger’s, not for the ingredients in their burger, which were very good, but with the lack of focus from the kitchen in its preparation.

Prairie Dogs – Great Potential; Needs Time

Posted on May 31, 2015 by jfoodeats

I really wanted to love this place. With two of my favorite dishes, burgers and dogs covered with creative toppings, I was hoping for a great couple of options. The website espoused local, fresh and natural ingredients, the combinations looked great and it was in a neighborhood which is beginning to boom with great food.

I arrived at 600 on a midweek night and there were a couple of people at the bar and a few at tables. The interior is well done, relaxing with a great Marilyn Monroe poster adorning the rear wall and the entire left wall is covered with a chalk board menu. The owner (I think it was the owner) approached and I asked for the “Tree Fort Root Beer” on the menu. They did not have it and he suggested, and I ordered, the Boylan’s Birch Beer.

I looked through the menu and ordered the Bahn Mi Joy Dog and a BYO Burger with American cheese, crisp onion strings, and B&B pickles. He suggested that a small order of fries would be a great accompaniment.

The Dog was all-beef in a natural casing and topped with char siu pork, chicken liver pate, pickled carrot, daikon, jalapeño peppers, and cilantro and a schmear of shoyu mayo. The dog was surprisingly mild in flavors with just a hint of saltiness. The pork was almost tasteless with a boiled meat flavor and texture. The liver was the highlight of the ingredients and delivered a good amount of flavor, the carrots and daikon were crunchy and also flavorful. I was hoping for a bright bold set of flavors in this combination and it just fell flat and was a bit disappointing

The burger had great potential. The meat had great flavor and was cooked with a loose grind, but a little sparse at probably 4 ounces. The strips of bacon added just a hint of smokiness and saltiness and the American cheese was creamy and perfectly melted. The crispy onion rings delivered a touch of pungency and crunch and the B&B pickles were excellent. Unfortunately, the kitchen overcooked the burger to medium-well, eliminating all of the juiciness, and then over-salted the patty before placing it on the bun. A little more care may have made for a great burger.

The kitchen took both a similar and slightly different approach in the preparation of the fries. First they were under-cooked, and then they were over-salted. Not a good combination.

Overall I still love the concept and if they can get the correct balance of flavors and instruct the kitchen to prepare as ordered and as the product deserves this may become a really good burger and dog place, but they still have growing pains to address.

Five-Course Tasting Menu @Bar Sugo – Norwalk

Posted on May 20, 2015 by jfoodeats

Several years ago I sampled Chef Pat Pascarella’s Pasta Bolognese from his original pizzeria and pasta storefront hidden off the beaten path on route 123 in Norwalk. It was one of the best Bolognese I had ever eaten and over the years I have enjoyed many of Chef Pat’s creations. He recently introduced Bar Sugo’s full-table Pasta Tasting menu and invited CTbites to sample the five courses, each very different…from a straightforward tomato and basil to a complex lobster, morel and truffle. The incredible Bolognese that Chef Pat served me several years ago was a prelude to the fantastic five courses that I enjoyed with wine pairings from Megan Pacarella.

The first course was a traditional Spaghetti with tomato and basil. The pasta was cooked to al dente with just a small bite to the texture. It was swathed with a rich and thick tomato sauce with a smattering of torn basil leaves. The sauce was a deep and vibrant concentration of tomato flavor. This simple presentation proved that a great dish requires only perfectly cooked pasta and a rich, delicious tomato sauce.

This was followed by two filled pasta courses. The first was a golden beet and Robiolina cheese stuffed Casonsei. The triangular pockets were served atop a butter sauce, accented with a drizzle of saba and finished with a sprinkling of poppy seeds. The Casonsei were minimally filled with the golden beets and cheese purée which offered a touch of sweetness from the beets and a slight tanginess from the cheese. The saba delivered a delightful sweetness and the poppy seeds were an excellent addition to add earthiness and a little crunch.

The next course was Ricotta Ravioli topped with peas, a mint and pea purée and a few shreds of pickled ramps. The mint and pea purée was fantastic with the peas served al dente to add a little textural difference. The pickled ramps were a great addition and added a different twist with its pungent notes to complement the earthiness of the peas and the mint. These three ingredients created a perfect balance to this dish.

The fourth and first non-vegetarian pasta was a Fusilli Bianco & Nero. A traditional fusilli was paired with a squid ink fusilli. The twin pastas were swathed with a smoked tomato sauce and served with chunks of sausage, shrimp, smoked tomato and “pickled hots.” This playful “surf and turf” interpretation featured various competing components. The sausage, tomato and pasta were wonderful and the addition of the pickled hots added a great layer of spiciness. The squid ink with the shrimp and pickled hots was a different flavor profile, combining the mildness of the shrimp with the spiciness of the peppers. In the end, I really enjoyed the sausage and pepper combination and would order that as a separate and delicious savory pasta.

Chef Pat saved the best for last and when I say best, the fifth pasta was one the best entrées I have eaten in quite some time. The presentation began with a delightfully soft ricotta Gnocchi, which was served with chunks of lobster, morel mushrooms, with a black truffle butter sauce and finished with a smattering of black truffle pieces. The gnocchi were the perfect canvas for the decadent combination of the rich lobster, truffles and morels. The holey texture of the mushrooms captured the sauce with each bite and the lobster added a mild sweetness. The entire dish was elevated with the addition of the black truffles, which added a rich and fragrant earthiness. This was a brilliant execution in every aspects.

Overall, the five pastas that Chef Pat prepared were fantastic. From the simplistic tomato and basil to the highly complex gnocchi with morels and lobster, each showcased a balanced approach to pasta with creative and delicious combinations. I hope each will be available separately to Bar Sugo guests so more people can enjoy some of the best pasta in the area.

#pasta #barsugo #patpascarella #norwalk

Rincon (Norwalk) – Visit #2 Also Outstanding

Posted on April 26, 2015 by jfoodeats

A little over a year ago I visited Rincon and enjoyed a trio of tacos that opened my eyes to a new level of Mexican street food. Over the last fourteen months I have told numerous people about Rincon…they serve the best tacos in the area. Last week another blogger suggested we meet for a few tacos and I jumped at the opportunity.

Located on Route 1 (heading east/north) in Norwalk in the same building as a catering hall, across from Kohl’s, there is plenty of parking in a lot just beyond the building. When I entered Rincon slightly before noon they were busy filling to-go orders…trays and tray of tacos were being prepared and the mega-burritos were in process, others were about to enjoy these culinary treats.

I ordered two tacos and two empanadas.

I started with the fish taco. After adding a squirt from the slice of lime I carefully rolled the double-tortilla in hopes of keeping the heaping portion contained within. The fish was perfectly fried, just a light coating and was joined in the tortilla with red onion and cilantro that delivered citrusy back-notes. It was bright, sweet and vibrant. The fish taco was fantastic. The pork taco was a totally different profile. After the brightness of the fish taco I was bolted back to the more traditional taco with spiciness and cilantro. The large serving of pulled pork was incredibly moist and flavorful and then the toppings added a great kick to the pork. There was a sprinkling of cheese on top that added a little saltiness and softened the spice. While totally different, both were as great as I remembered.

I next moved to the empanadas. Two large empanadas filled the plate, these were not two-bites and you are finished; like the other items on the menu, Rincon serves a real serving. I started with the beef. The crust was flaky, buttery and perfectly prepared. And the filling was incredible. The meat was moist with great flavors and a hint of spiciness. Then I moved onto the chicken and, like the beef, delivered incredible flavors and textures. I stated on numerous occasions that the tacos were the best I ever tasted…the empanadas might be better.

I learned a lesson today. When you find a go-to restaurant, go to it. If they make one dish incredibly well, there is a strong possibility the rest of the menu might also be outstanding. In the case of Rincon, the tacos are fantastic and the empanadas set a new standard and are definitely worth a trip.

Jfood Eats

Eating and Enjoying