Hoolihans - Weehawken, NJ

Hoolihan's

1200 Harbor Blvd
Weehawken, NJ 07086
201-863-4000
www.houlihans.com

Hoolihan's is a pretty decent chain restaurant that has excellent service and surprisingly good food.  Their menu is about a quarter tapas based, which allows for pretty good family style sharing of food, allowing everyone to try a large number of dishes.  The rest of their menu is most typically American, but of decently high quality and with some flair.

The service--that we received, at least--was superb, and was that rivaling individual restaurants.  At the time, I actually didn't know that Hoolihan's was a chain, I had not paid attention to the planning until afterwards.  Chains usually get some a bad rap, for good reason, usually, but this one broke free of the stereotype and provided well above average service and food quality.  I was happily surprised.

We ended up essentially getting a bunch of tapas for the four of us.  From (in order of the pictures) seared salmon to pickle fries, ahi tuna salad to disco fries, eggrolls to mini burgers to Aztec shrimp--it was quite a feast.  This particular chef had a liking to a mild horseradish mayonnaise sauce - it was on a number of the dishes, and on the side of another.  It was good - a little too mild for my wild tongue, but just far enough away that I didn't dive into the bay craving for some raw oysters.  All the dishes were fantastic, except for the burgers, I'd say.  But restaurant burgers have a particularly strong handicap with me - I like my burgers rare, I can grill a pretty mean burger myself, and the burger is one of those foods that restaurants don't often focus on. Like chicken fingers.  A cop out food for the non foodies.

Before I go any further, yes, I have stereotypes, can't you tell?  But that's what makes me who I am, and what my tastes are looking for.  Eccentricities of personality, if I may say, and some foods just have certain priorities and handicaps over others.  However, I am always willing to try everything twice, and am liberal with second chances.  Iterum eundem ad lapidem offendere.  Which, unfortunately, sometimes has led me to stumble over the same stone twice, or thrice.  But all's part of being a good foodie.  Eat, or be eaten.

Where was I?  Oh yes, the mini burgers.  The burgers had promise, but were essentially ruined by the dryness of the meat.  It was definitely well done, if not a bit past that, and had lost a good amount of the moisture and juiciness that a burger is supposed to have.  The bread seemed a bit dry as well, but it seemed purposefully done.  I almost wonder if it was missing a thin brown or white gravy dip.  Now that would turn the entire thing around.

Of the entire meal, my most favorite was the ahi tuna.  Seared ever so lightly, and seasoned with drops of the horseradish mayonnaise and a sort of light bbq honey cocktail sauce, it was simple, yet brought out that what makes ahi tuna what it is.  The shrimp was similarly done and had the same affect on me.

Tastegasm achieved.  I'll be back, Hoolihan's.  To you or one of your sisters.

St. Charles Tavern - NOLA

St. Charles Tavern
1433 St. Charles Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70130
www.stcharlestavern.com
504-523-9823

New Orleans is famous, or rather infamous, for being a city that is 24/7.  Most locations that consider themselves restaurants first take a normal restaurant schedule, closing after dinner at around 11pm.  Even bar and lounges close their kitchens close to midnight.  For a city that is known to party around the clock, where does one--a foodie accustomed to delicious fare--get a bite to eat after a rowdy party night, then?  St. Charles Tavern, of course!

Definitely several large steps above bar and diner food, St. Charles Tavern definitely puts out some delicious dishes available around the clock, 24/7.  Blessed be.  If you think IHOP is great at 4 in the morning after a night out, be ready to have a shuddering tastegasm when you have St. Charles Tavern at 4 in the morning!

Just about on the border of uptown and downtown on St. Charles, it is a most ideal pit stop for those making their way home on the trolley line.  Living uptown on the trolley line myself - it was practically a required stop for going back home after a exciting evening and night.  I've had practically everything worth getting on the menu, and it's all fantastically good.  Definitely give their gumbo a try, as well as all other classically New Orleanian foods on the menu.  I highly recommend the boudin balls.  Deep fried Cajun flavored concoctions of boudin sausage, eggs, flour, and seasonings, all covered with remoulade sauce--boudin balls are definitely a fantastic party in your mouth.

It could just be me, but I typically skip "regular" foods from restaurants that are known to be good for specialty foods.  So don't ask me how good the burger or chicken fingers are here, essentially, because like it or not, it's simply a waste of caloric intake.  In my sincerest humble opinion, of course.

The prices are reasonable, but naturally a waste of calories and dollars if you're coming here with drunken taste buds.  The food is incredibly tasteful and rich, but should definitely not come with a nutritional facts label.  No calorie or fat percentage is spared, but not to excess, of course.

All in all, St. Charles Tavern may not be on the list of places to visit for lunch, but is definitely great for a late dinner, and the place to go to for a late night or early morning tastegasmic meal.

Marea - Manhattan, NY

Marea
240 Central Park S.
Manhattan, NY 10019
www.marea-nyc.com
212-582-5100

Marea has all the makings of a trendy restaurant, and doesn't slaughter the portion size that drastically in becoming trendy.  Yes, quantity is not necessary in experiencing proper taste, but sometimes, I want to experience that taste a few times, especially in what happens to the taste as my tongue gets accustomed to the flavor.  One thing I've noticed, however, is that trendy has more and more doubled in definition to the word snobby.  Like the wealth class division, the foodie trendy class division has been as nose turn uppish as it has ever been.  If you don't understand the culture, you have to ask and be treated as a foodie child, hand held.

I consider Marea a blending of Italian and seafood, with a Japanese twist.  Having a rather purist background, I wanted to separate the two and experience the flavors separately, making it two separate experiences, rather than blending the tastes in fusion.

For $185 worth of food, and approximately $100 for roughly 2 rounds of drinks, four people were reasonably filled for people who were expecting calories.  For what I was expecting, not bad, but I also held back.The sashimi here is delicious, and I could definitely do some serious damage here. Each four pieces sashimi plate, priced at $12 to $20, was every bit delicious and tastegasmiccally savory.  Given a chance, I would have grabbed each one of them.  I grabbed the pappagallo (parrotfish) and Panna.

The meals consisted of the swordfish, cuttlefish, cheese pasta, clam risotto.  Naturally, being me, I stole food from each dish to try it.  Growing up in NOLA, my tongue is still used to a lot more flavor and zest in each layer than most other cuisine areas.  However, I've noticed that mild flavors are only used because bold statements can quickly overwhelm more subtle flavors.  Multilayer tastes and flavors should complement each other in their boldness - not complement each other in it's closeness in taste, in some of these cases, blandness.

I paired my cuttlefish with occhi 68, 2009.  A rather more bland than expected, but it came with recommendation for the cuttlefish.

Now, mind you, the food was good.  It was perfectly made, and tasteful, and for the menu item, it was fantastic.  I just expect more zing, more pow, more bam, to quote Emeril, even though I don't like his ways.  Trendy fusion is not about following the standard.  It's about amazing your clientelle.  It's about generating fans with your art that you can call your own, not providing the customer what he expects.  It's about wow factor.

Side note to self, eat more caviar.  Caviar has zing factor, all by itself.

The more and more I go out to eat, and boy, have I gone out to eat, I've noticed that the company you're with is incredibly relevant.  The sights, the sounds, the smells, the atmosphere of the restaurant is incredibly valuable.  I think I finally made a hard distinction this time around due to the different characters with me.  As I was enjoying my meal, beyond the flavors shifting on my palate, I noticed that my heart felt and showed who I was talking to shifted my palate.  Neither good nor bad.  Just interesting observation.

The bill shock chocolates, as I call them, are fantastic, and the ladies left with chocolate gifts that they promptly gifted away again outside the restaurant.   Must have been all those rich butter laden dishes creating tastegasmic guilt trips.

Moritomo - Concord, NH

Moritomo

32 Fort Eddy Road

Concord, NH 03301-7404
(603) 224-8363

www.moritomonh.com


Moritomo is one of only a few Japanese sushi restaurants that grace the Concord area, but that does not mean that this isn't a gem in itself.  The named rolls here are fantastic, and the sashimi is incredibly fresh and crisp.

They used uncolored ginger at Moritomo, which is a refreshing change from seeing the more well known pink color from regular pickled ginger.  Practically no one that I know notices any difference between the two, but everytime, I seem to be able to taste that the pink one is a little more artificially sweet than white ginger.  Splenda versus sugar.

I usually focus on the dishes in a restaurant that makes the restaurant unique.  Signature dishes.  Special rolls.  Menu items that get recommended right next to the restaurant name upon suggestion.  Every restaurant can come up with chicken tenders -- every restaurant does, in fact.  If I want chicken tenders, I'll go to a restaurant that is known for their chicken tenders, where someone has gone to me and said "Dude!  Go to the Puritan!  They've got the best chicken tenders!"

The difference between Moritomo's special rolls and regular rolls are quite significant, in my opinion.  The chefs definitely put a lot more focus and concentration in creating these delightful works of art, where they usually just slam the regular rolls together, as can be seen in the pictures.  Mind you, the special rolls are easily twice the price of regular rolls, but who goes to eat sushi to watch their wallets?  Not I, by far not.  I'm the guilty party to order all the special rolls on the menu.  I've tried about half of the 30 special rolls that are on the menu, and they're all good.  Grab one of ingredients that you like, one to experiment with, and another to share.  Five rolls are plenty.


They don't really take care to pack the leftovers well, usually just shoving everything into as few containers as possible, however, in my household, the leftovers are gone usually before the sun next rises, so not an issue.

All in all, Moritomo is quite a good sushi restaurant, focused on good service and traditional looks and feel.  Their designer sushi is fantastic, and really brings out the creativeness of the chefs.  I will definitely return back here again and again.

Cooter Brown's - New Orleans, LA

Cooter Brown's Tavern

509 S. Carrollton Ave. (St. Charles Ave.)

New Orleans, LA 70118

www.cooterbrowns.com

504-866-9104

Cooter Brown's is another one of those restaurants / sports bars that I lived three and a half blocks away from, and saw me, a lot.  Thankfully I was addicted to their raw oysters, else I'd truly be in trouble if I partook in their fried food fare as well as often as I did their oysters and beer.

Cooter's is unique in a sports bar is that the amount of varieties of beer that they serve is staggering.  Grocery store style full length glass window refrigerators line three whole walls full of different kinds of beers, as well as standard national chains in standard under the bar fridges.  If you wanted beer, and a different type of beer every beer you drank for year, you came here.  I tried, and failed to have every kind of beer available here, and I had time.

They serve fried foods, and fried seafood restaurant fare and sides, including some pretty damn good onion rings.  Everything is fresh battered and fried to order, and comes out hot and crispy, and leaking oil.  Delish.

I usually try to stay away from fried oysters in a place that serves raw oysters mainly because of the thought that they deep fry the oysters that are going to spoil, but the turnaround at Cooter's is fast enough that I don't think they have this problem.  Either case, the fried oysters?  Prima.  Still a waste though, because I come here to drink and eat raw oysters.

The raw oysters.  Cheap, large, fresh, deliciously tasty.  Gulf coast raw oysters is the reason why I don't really eat raw oysters from other harvest sites.  They're just that much more tasty.  They've been filtering all the crap coming down the Mississippi for decades, and they are to die for.  Get the cocktail sauce ready, get the horseradish mixed in.  Get the tobacco sauce ready, and order them by the dozen.  There's nothing like eating them with your friends over great laughs by the dozen.  (or hell, without, for that matter, there are always new friends to be made at Cooter's).

Don't forget to make your first raw oyster an oyster shooter!

PS.  What?  You don't know what an oyster shooter is?  Shame on you!  Shot or two of chilled pepper vodka in a large shot glass or small tumbler, with enough room left over for an oyster and a bit.  Prepare oyster like you would a regular raw oyster, but with almost double the amount of horseradish.  Drop it in like a car bomb, give it a quick second swirl, and down the hatch!  A start to a great night!

Moe Joe's Country Diner - Manchester, NH

Moe Joe's Country Diner
649 E Industrial Park Dr Map.
Manchester, NH 03109
eatatmoejoe.com
(603) 641-2993

Moe Joe's Country Diner is a quick breakfast place one step up above a chain place.  It's where you go when you're running late and need a little more than just a coffee and wrap of some sorts in the morning.  They need about 10 minutes to get whatever you want done, so call it in and they'll have it waiting for you when you roll in.  Or you can eat in, and they'll keep you company, but I've always associated the place as a take out place for me.

A few things that I find Moe Joe's is exceptionally good at - their Irish Eggs Benedict, with hollandaise sauce.  Maybe because it brings memories of my childhood to me, or maybe Moe Joe's is just damn good at it, but 4 out of 5 times, that's my choice.

Moe Joe's has a home made baked beans that is a bit bland, but is delicious with just a touch more salt and pepper to bring out the flavors.  Eat this one quickly - for some reason it gets cold quickly, and no one likes cold beans.


The price is just about average for an above average diner, especially since most of the menu items are relatively simple and can be managed in most kitchens with a quick visit to the grocery store.

The winning side from here is the cornbread.  This cornbread must be homesick, because it definitely belongs in New Orleans.  It is made just right, so sweet and fluffy and orgasmically tasty.  Excuse me, tastegasmically tasty.  Just because my tongue is used to it, I usually pinch a touch of salt into the side, and shake it through, and for those hardcore butter lovers, I'm sure you already know you can melt some butter on your cornbread for your ultimate heartstopping fantasy.

Stop by, it's conveniently a minute right on exit 6 off of I-93.

North Garden - Manchester, NH

North Garden Restaurant and Lounge
715 Mast Rd
Manchester, NH 03102
(603) 668-1668

North Garden is diamond in the rough, or perhaps a diamond that's been roughened up.  It serves a menu that consists of Americanized Chinese food, some more traditional Cantonese / Chinese dishes, and a limited order based Dim Sum lunch menu.  There is a bar on one side of the restaurant, and butted next to the restaurant is the lounge.

The chef, Raymond Zeng, is extremely personable, and often eats with his family in the dining area with his patrons.  To my amusement, however, he often whips up foods not on the menu, and that he will not serve to anyone else either as he says with a friendly smirk, so to leave us with mouth watering eye candy, but nothing more.

That's ok, there is plenty of the menu that appeals to my tastes, especially those dishes that haven't quite been Americanized yet.  The Americanized dishes are quite good for Americanized dishes, not quite as bland, and soaked in oils and grease as one would expect from American Chinese.  The rest of the dishes that still scream culture is why I come to North Garden.

The rice in all applications, whether steamed white or fried, is light and rightly textured.  The vegetables are fresh and almost flash fried - no wilted, overcooked look or taste.  The meats are tender, fall apart in your mouth, and full of flavor.  The spices are just right, and bring out the natural flavors of each of the dishes without overpowering it.

The Dim Sum is top class, but reflects Boston prices, rather than Manchester.  A limited order based lunch menu ensures that each tidbit is fresh and hot, and ever so tasty.  And yes, they do have fantastic tripe and chicken feet!  All the classic basics are there, enough to keep my Dim Sum cravings at bay, and only ten minutes from my home!

The bar and lounge are some of the plain as day indications that money is king.  Everyone knows in order to make bank in the restaurant industry, booze has to be involved.  It has a high mark up, it's sales are limited to locations that have liquor licenses, it doesn't require much talent to serve (but a lifetime of practice to serve with class and gusto, as shown by some career bartenders I've known and known of), has an easy to store and very forgivable shelf life, and practically everyone drinks it to excess (ahem!).

I don't care much what North Garden has to do in order to make profit in order for the dishes to remain as traditionally Cantonese as possible.  In fact, I've been known to make a donation to the lounge every once in a while - the mixed drinks are cheap and strong, and get you where you need to go (or not need to go, for that matter) in short order.

All in all, North Garden gets a thumbs up from me.  Perhaps they'll get one more visit from me before I attempt another new year's resolution.