the road | the food | a new direction

Month: December 2014 (Page 2 of 3)

Gates Bar-B-Q, Kansas City MO

REVIEW

As soon as you walk in you are hit with a greeting of “Hi, may I help you?” Of course, if you’re new here then at least a quick scan of the overhead menu will be necessary. So step aside and listen to the regulars place their orders: it’s like another language. Folks here are very specific about how they want their meats cut, their meals prepared. Slice this cut of beef in such-and-such a manner from that side, extra meat on a roll. None of these options appear on the menu, mind you; they are simply the requests of experienced barbecue eaters who know what they like. Newcomers can get flustered and overwhelmed. Continue reading

LAF in the A.M. December 16th, 2014

A Morning Menu of LAF-Style Food News and Stories to Begin Your Day

Atlantic City Casino Closures Hit Formica Bakery Hard

Bringing the NYC Burger to London

Black’s vs. Black’s in Austin

Bagel Boy, Masquerading as Fairmount of Montreal, Comes Clean

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Checking In at: Rossi’s Bar & Grill, Hamilton NJ

This is our second time to Rossi’s new location in Hamilton, but our first burger at the new spot (we’d eaten them for years in Trenton). That’s Rossi’s biggest claim to fame, the Rossiburger. And those burgers have not changed a bit. They are still as bulbous and massive as ever, still served on a Kaiser roll, and are still under-seasoned, a small flaw that can be mostly corrected for at the table. Continue reading

LAF in the A.M. December 15th, 2014

A Morning Menu of LAF-Style Food News and Stories to Begin Your Day

Jacques Torres on How to Deal with the Cocoa Bean Shortage

Fate of Lerua’s and El Torero of Tucson in Question

An Ode to Lowcountry Cuisine

Best Tamale in Tucson

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Mammy’s Cupboard, Natchez MS

REVIEW

Mammy’s Cupboard is a classic piece of vernacular architecture and, as such, is well worth a visit for that reason alone. How often do you see a restaurant in the shape of a mammy? She’s been spruced up, and made ethnically vague: if you mixed all the different peoples of the world in a jar, and shook them up, you might get today’s Mammy. But here’s the kicker: this Esperanto mammy serves some superlative pies and cakes! Continue reading

LAF in the A.M. December 14th, 2014

A Morning Menu of LAF-Style Food News and Stories to Begin Your Day

Top 10 Charleston Restaurants

Make a Yinzer Expat Happy for the Holidays

Detroit Coneys in Florida

How to Win Friends in Your New Hometown

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Checking In at: Trap Rock Restaurant & Brewery, Berkeley Heights NJ

Early Sunday evening visit. We dined at the bar, as we always do. Trap Rock was in top form. Prof. Bob’s Brown Ale is a delicious malt bomb. Kestrel IPA is a crisp, bitter classic American-style IPA. Now if we could only figure out how to get our beer photos to focus. Continue reading

LAF in the A.M. December 13th, 2014

A Morning Menu of LAF-Style Food News and Stories to Begin Your Day

Wintzell’s in the 21st Century

Capriotti’s Watch

Watch Frank Brigtsen Make BBQ Shrimp with Shrimp Calas

Portland’s Voodoo Doughnut Heading East

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Lobster Claw Seafoods, North Reading MA

REVIEW

The best fried clams in America can be found in the Ipswich-Essex area of Massachusetts, but it’s not the only place to find good fried clams. The hand-breaded whole-bellied clams fried up by Lobster Claw, while not quite at Ipswich level, can more than hold their own against most challengers. These clams are not as gushy and sea-briny as those at The Clam Box, but they are far superior to the fried clam strips found in most parts of the country. Lobster Claw’s clams are probably a good entry point for novices who approach the consumption of the entire clam with some trepidation. Continue reading

LAF in the A.M. December 12th, 2014

A Morning Menu of LAF-Style Food News and Stories to Begin Your Day

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls and Much More

Shake Shack London

An Old-Fashioned Jewish Christmas!

Philly Pork, Provolone, and Spinach To Go… Six Feet Down

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Checking In at: Daphne’s Diner, Robbinsville NJ

Breakfast at “our diner” on the way to the tree farm for our Christmas tree. Interesting mix of gospel and soul playing loudly on the sound system this Sunday. Continue reading

LAF in the A.M. December 11th, 2014

A Morning Menu of LAF-Style Food News and Stories to Begin Your Day

The Elusive Shake Shack Breakfast

First Report on Houston Gino’s East Is Positive

A Look at Cafe du Monde

Is Los Angeles Now the True Home of the Jewish Deli?

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Kooper’s Chowhound Burger Wagon, Baltimore MD

REVIEW

We love to try the local cuisine when we travel — we’re LAFers, after all! — but it would be nice to have at our fingertips a list of the best burgers, dogs and, perhaps, pizza, wherever we might be. So, while we crave steamed crabs plastered with Old Bay, crab cakes with big pearlescent lumps, and Maryland crab soup with a kick, we also enjoy the occasional palate refresher when we’re in Baltimore, and a hunk of crusty, flame-cooked beef, as served by Kooper’s Chowhound Burger Wagon, fits that bill perfectly. The trick is in finding it. Continue reading

Checking In at: Longwood Gardens, Kennett Square PA

500,000 Christmas lights… illuminated fountains dancing to Christmas music… decorated and lit trees galore… holiday singalongs… hot cocoa, spiced cider, cookies and cupcakes… all that and more can be found through January 11th at Longwood Gardens during their annual A Longwood Christmas celebration. Continue reading

LAF in the A.M. December 9th, 2014

A Morning Menu of LAF-Style Food News and Stories to Begin Your Day

From Northern Michigan to You

Don’t Evict Grandma!

Indy Charcuterie and Cheese

Birthday Party for Seattle’s Cupcake Royale

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Eagles Nest, Brewer ME

REVIEW

We’ve traveled in Maine many times, but rarely have we ventured more than a few miles from the awe-inspiring coast. A visit to the Bangor State Fair brought us further inland in Maine than we’ve ever been, and lucky we were, as our search for dinner in the area turned up a gem in the nearby town of Brewer. Located on the banks of the Penobscot River, well out of town down Route 9, the Eagles Nest serves Maine down-home cooking to a mostly local crowd. Continue reading

Esposito’s Pizza & Restaurant, Mahwah NJ

REVIEW

We found Esposito’s, not far from the NJ/NY border, to be a thoroughly ordinary New Jersey pizza joint with one exception: service is unusually attentive and caring. Nothing we sampled was less than OK, mind you, but neither did anything rise above that level, although the food looked particularly good. Better ingredients would do wonders for the place. As it is, if we lived nearby we might stop in on occasion, but it doesn’t rise to LAF levels. Continue reading

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