We went to Central + Main for the first time Sunday night. Chef/owner Leia Gaccione also owns South + Pine in Morristown, and used to work for Bobby Flay. This is a good neighborhood restaurant if you live within a 20 minute / half hour radius, but it would not be considered a destination restaurant.
We started off with a nice and creamy spaghetti squash with local mushrooms, asparagus pesto, and a poached farm egg. Below is a split portion.
We also had spicy Lamb meatballs with Greek yogurt and cucumbers.
For entrees Mrs. P had the excellent crunchy fried chicken with crispy sweet potato waffles and harissa honey. This was worth the trip alone.
I attempted to finish the EXCELLENT spaghetti squash/mushroom/asparagus extravaganza an hour ago and failed. It is so good I may reconsider my passion for steak/burgers/veal. It’s a substantial dish, and if you start with the ricotta toast with fresh peas you feel so good about yourself that you may just travel 25 miles to do it again.
Yes, that spaghetti squash was really good, and a substantial portion. My wife & I split it, and still had some leftover for tonight. The poached farm egg really brought it over the top.
We had another excellent dinner at Central + Main Sunday night.
We shared crispy squash blossoms, with charred corn, goat cheese, & piquillo peppers. It was in an excellent sauce that had a little kick to it, & was one of the better versions of squash blossoms that we have had.
We also shared crispy soft shell crab tacos with honeydew & cucumber relish, green curry vin, & lime. This was very good but was too big for a taco. You had to eat it with a knife & fork. It would have been fine without the taco. I liked the honeydew & cucumber relish. It was very refreshing.
Mrs. P had the crispy fried chicken with a sweet potato waffle, drizzled with harissa honey. This was written up in the Record as one of the best fried chickens in North Jersey (and rightfully so).
Leia Gaccione won on “Chopped” last night. South and Pine and Central and Main should be required dining for any serious gourmand. Alton Brown brought the goods and our Jersey Girl slayed them.
"Gaccione said there are a number of reasons for the closure of her second restaurant. Among them is the fact that the landlord is planning to knock down the building in a year, she said, and build an apartment house. Plus, she said, she is about to lose her chef de cuisine and has not been able to find a replacement. And of course the pandemic didn’t help the situation.
