We went to Don Pepe II in Pine Brook on Friday, because we were in the mood for seafood. It was our first time at this 32 year old restaurant. This is not a place to go for ambience or service (which was very slow), but the food was fantastic. Rosie had written up Don Pepe Steakhouse in her Table Hopping column, and it sounded good. Don Pepe II is more of a seafood restaurant, but the menus are almost identical.
We shared a fantastic, non greasy crispy fried soft shell crab entree as an appetizer. It came with three perfectly fried (and meaty) soft shell crabs. We got their garlic sauce on the side.
For entrees we both had the amazing (and messy) twin whole lobsters stuffed with crab meat, shrimps, and scallops. They came with perfectly crispy (and non greasy) handmade potato chips. The stuffing was very good.
I think next time we will just order takeout, because the messy lobster is better to eat at home, than in front of company. Luckily they had lobster bibs and wash & dries. We had plenty of leftovers.
We did 2 each They also sell live lobsters by the pound (up to 4 or 5 pounds) at market price. I think it was going for about $16 a pound last night. We were just in the mood for the stuffed lobsters. The scallop, crab, and shrimp stuffing was very good.
The two stuffed lobster special was always on the specials board at Costa Verde and never disappointing. I don’t recall if Fernandes has it on their specials, but honestly they generally have 25+ specials and I rarely read them because I know I’m either having 1 of 4 things:
Tomahawk
Steak on a tile
Rodizio
Paella Valencia
Just depends on what mood I"m in for the night. lol
Thanks cj. The lobster goes by market price. Last night the 2 1/2 pound lobster went for $42.00 (or about $17 a pound, but that also included the shrimp, scallop, and crab stuffing). It was well worth it. I originally ordered the twin stuffed lobster which normally runs for $40. They use 2 one pound lobsters for that. However, the guy called me back and said that their fish truck was delayed in traffic, so I went with one stuffed 2 1/2 pound lobster which was more than enough, especially with everything else we ordered. They doubled the stuffing.
We had some more excellent takeout from Don Pepe ii while I recover from my painful back surgery.
We had the usual twin seafood stuffed lobster, seafood stuffed avocado, clams casino, and fresh homemade potato chips. It all went great with a Chateauneuf Du Pape.
Thanks @CurlzNJ! Unfortunately it looks like it’s going to be a long recovery. I’m still in a lot of pain, but at least the bleeding in my back has finally let up after 4 days. I am going to attempt to go back to work tomorrow, but I’m not sure how long I will last. Luckily I work remotely from home.
Thanks Mr. Met! This is a great place for takeout. We only dined in once, but it is really old looking, and hasn’t been upgraded in years. The service isn’t the best either. We are only about 15 to 20 minutes away so the food stays pretty warm by the time we bring it back home. Plus we save on buying wine there since it is not a BYO. All of the food above came out to less that $75. The twin stuffed lobsters were around $40 but enough for the two of us.
Metsfan, mar belo in long branch has a special. I am pretty sure they would stuff them I’d you wanted, for an additional fee. However, I’m not sure that special applies to take out. Nonetheless, if you want a single stuffed lobster I’d say this is the closest spot.
They also sell live lobsters by the pound (up to 4 or 5 pounds) at market price. I think it was going for about $16 a pound last night. We were just in the mood for the stuffed lobsters. The scallop, crab, and shrimp stuffing was very good.
