In the last couple of weeks, I’ve ended up at two AP spots that I don’t normally frequent.
In the first case, I solidified that the “meh” reports I’ve heard from friends were confirmed and I know why Modine isn’t in my rotation. The drinks were good, but their (reportedly) amazing fried chicken? Perfectly fried, but flavorless. Really. They smoke the chicken before frying; we got smoke flavor, but the chicken AND the coating were completely flavorless. We ordered the whole bird, so it wasn’t just an issue of one piece being off. The jalapeno cornbread madelines were delicious, but the few bites of salad were nothing exciting and especially not at the price. I will say this–it was some of the best service I’ve experienced in town, and at this point pre-season, that’s hard to do.
On to the other spot: The Bonney Read. This wasn’t my choice, although I didn’t have an issue with going–because of my shellfish allergy, it’s just not on my radar, but I knew I could get fish or their excellent octopus. Here, the food although expensive ($25+ entrees), was delicious across the board. The service? Notsomuch. Our waitress was lovely and definitely trying, but after her recitation of specials, explanation of which drinks SHE likes, what they were out of, and what she recommended for apps, one of my dining companions said “Did anyone catch all of that? Because I tuned out.” Then when plates were slid (by the runners) from one end of the table to the other or HANDED to someone at the table (complete with a full lean across another person), I was reminded that service doesn’t come first in most spots around here. They were also “auctioning” the dishes, as my dad says. When there are <8 people at a table, how hard is it to indicate who ordered what? SIGH. In any case, the octopus w/chorizo was delicious, so I left with a full and happy belly. And yes, there’s a big bar there! Good to know for happy houring.
I gave Modine three shots and have not been back.
Well I tried to go back for the peanut butter milk punches after some drinks elsewhere and was told they took it off the menu.
My wife tried the fried chicken after hearing everyone rave about it and didn’t think it was that good.
That’s disappointing to hear about The Bonney Read’s service. We usually sit at the bar. One time two of us sat at a table. Our meals (fish and chips and linguine and clams) were delivered separately about a minute apart. We hardly noticed and didn’t complain. When they brought our check, they comped one of the meals and apologized for bringing them out separately.
I’m hesitantly posting this, because much of it is REALLY pissing me off. As I scrolled through this list, I was thinking that the author and I really agree on almost everything, and then something went amiss in the 20s. Since I’m convinced that both NJ.com and NJ Monthly troll this board for ideas/commentary, I’m sharing it. Note how many times he states that food is ‘ordinary’ or a restaurant is ‘serviceable.’ I laugh every time someone says that Montclair, Red Bank, and Asbury are ‘foodie’ towns, because each only has a handful of places where the food is actually worth eating. That’s MY opinion, but when you start out saying that you wonder how Cross and Orange stays in business but rank it higher than so many other places, you’ve lost me.
Yes , the hotel tides is a bit of a hidden gem.
Doesn’t get a lot of press by we recommend it to people all the time.
We typically eat at the bar, which may only seat 7 or so. My wife loved the crab cake sandwich when we were there last week.
I agree about P&S. We just went there Wednesday, sat at the bar as usual, enjoyed the drinks and the pork chop was excellent, but our last few times were a bit off.
Two of the owners were a couple and they split up a while back which corresponded with the timing of P&S slipping.
@CurlzNJ I can’t quite figure out why but that list just feels somewhat “off” to me. Almost like a reverse popularity contest. I haven’t been to many of the places mentioned - I may have to try some just as an educational experience. I was glad to see the nice mention of Ada’s.
@Roro1831 We’ve been to Hotel Tides on several occasions and have always enjoyed it. I like the fact that it is away from the “hot” parts of town.
I have, and think they did a great job–and now it doesn’t feel like you’re in Siberia when you’re seated in the back room! I actually did the “All In” – all 12 dishes from the menu–a few weeks ago; there were 5 of us and it was perfect. Great chance to try things I might not have ordered otherwise. ALL delicious, and everyone loved it.
A few years ago our family went to Tides for dinner on Gay Pride Day. It was a terrible experience. Most of the food wasn’t prepared correctly and service was bad. We chalked it up to probably the staff celebrating instead of concentrating on the food. But, we haven’t given it another chance.
I actually read that as he wonders how they stay open because of his visual observation(s) of their empty dining room, not because he thinks the place is bad. He flat out says it’s it’s delicious and while expensive it’s worth it, so he is a fan of the place he’s concerned given their volume levels how they stay in business.
But seriously–he mentions how ‘serviceable’ lots of dishes and places are. How and why you bother (other than advertising revenue) putting this list together is beyond me.
He writes similar music columns, ranking things worst to first without offering anything insightful as to why he rated the way he did. As soon as I saw his name I knew to skip this one.
