Blue Lotus

One of the few Indian restaurants located in Downtown Jersey City, Blue Lotus opened earlier this year near Hamilton Park on Erie Street between 7th and 8th in a space that has seen a lot of restaurant turnover. Luckily, Blue Lotus seems to be here to stay, offering lunch, dinner, take-out and delivery.

I went for dinner on a weekday and while it was pretty quiet early on, the restaurant soon filled up, stopping short of being crowded, but never got loud or chaotic. Service was attentive and very eager to please, but not overbearing. The menu is separated into categories with several options to choose from under each category and you'll find both classic dishes and some original options.

When we sat down, we were given poppadom but instead of the two chutneys (usually a tamarind and a tomato/onion) that I usually see, we were given three - one was a very good version of the sweet, fruity tamarind, then there was something that tasted almost like orange marmalade that I don't personally recommend, and a very smooth tomato chutney that was spicier than I typically taste but also very good.

We also ordered mango lassis ($4) which were good, but not especially memorable, and vegetable samosas ($5) which were excellent. They were perfectly fried - nice and crispy on the outside with a tender and well-spiced potato and pea filling, accompanied by the tamarind chutney and a cilantro sauce. The cilantro was excellent, herby and slightly spicy which paired well with the potato and I recommend using that versus the tamarind for this dish.

The Mozz Boss

A few weeks ago, when Uber was running their NJ free ride promotion, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity to visit an area of Jersey City I don't otherwise often go to, Greenville, and check out The Mozz Boss. That's right - I'm so dedicated, I used my free rides to get sandwiches to benefit all of you (actually, the logisitics just ended up working out well, but still).

I first saw The Mozz Boss at La Festa Italiana last summer where they had a booth, but I never ended up trying anything although I did see people walking away with delicious looking bowls of food and stuffed-to-the-brim sandwiches. A couple of months later, when I heard they'd opened up a storefront in Jersey City, I put it on my to-try list but took a while to get to it - my mistake.

Walking in, I was amazed at how much space there is. There are plenty of seats - a rare commodity for most downtown delis. It seemed like most of the cold cuts were Boar's Head brand (despite the stickers) and there were some salads and antipastis to choose from as well. I went in on a Sunday when they close early and felt like they had less available than they might otherwise.

ME Casa

ME Casa is the type of place I'm always looking for, but rarely find. It's an underground alcove with dim lighting and less than 15 tables, atmospheric without being suffocating. Perfect for an intimate date, a few friends catching up, or even a small group just having fun. The servers seem intent on providing a good experience, sincerely exchanging pleasantries and keeping a watchful eye. All this plus delicious food.

                                                                    (Pernil Asado)
Boasting authentic, but with a twist, Puerto Rican food, ME Casa is not someplace I'd recommend for vegetarians or vegans, but would recommend for just about anyone else. There are a lot of classic dishes here with delicious and familiar flavors being shown off in a new way.One of the best-known and most widely acclaimed dishes is the Mofongo - a bed of mashed and fried plantains topped with beef, chicken, or shrimp stew. On one visit, I tried the chicken entree and on another, we ordered the mofongo appetizer which is three mini mofongos topped with whatever variety of stews you'd like - in this case, one chicken, one shrimp, and one beef (seems like the obvious choice really). The chicken seems to be the favorite, but all of them are excellent. The plantains are garlicky with a creamy texture and while each of the stews is slightly different, they are all very flavorful with a bit of peppery taste to them.

Another favorite is the pernil (shown at the top) which is basically just served as a large plate of shredded pork. This is nothing to complain about as the pork is incredibly tender and juicy, highlighted by the simplicity of how it's served. The roast chicken was similar - fairly simple in preparation, it seemed like it had just been given a spice rub and then roasted, but came out tender and juicy. It was definitely well-seasoned, with lots of garlic and I think oregano. With the addition of the money sauce (ME Casa's green sauce), it doesn't get much better than this.

I've also tried the Pollo Boracho (drunken chicken) which was served with lots of perfectly cooked onions and the Bistec Encebollado (steak). Again, both excellent, perhaps slightly more complex in flavor. Everything has been well cooked and I strongly suspect this is one of those places where there's no bad order, just favorite ones.

         (Pollo)

 
                                             (Bistec)

The White Meat Side of White Star

In the interest of full disclosure, I did not actually consume either of these chicken sandwiches at White Star that I'm about to talk about but I was there during the consumption and discussed them at length. I had a burger but I feel I covered those pretty well in my White Star delivery post so no need to rehash. It was still good, juicy and flavorful although once I saw the chicken sandwiches, I did experience some regret at not ordering one myself.

Two Aprons: A not-quite-hidden gem

Two Aprons is a small cafe with a Mediterranean-inspired menu that serves everything from croissants to a turkish cheese sandwich to hormone and antibiotic free rotisserie chickens you can take home.

The store is on Warren Street, a tiny space with a table inside, sometimes one or two outside and a tempting display case of the day's pastries. They have their menu written on the walls for those who need to ponder and with so many delicious sounding options, I definitely needed some time. For breakfast, there are the afore-mentioned pastries, yogurt parfaits, and bagels while the rest of the extensive menu is made up of a wide variety of sandwiches including wraps and paninis, salads, and sides; many of which I was happy to see were vegetarian. While reading the menu, I was intrigued by the fact that the Mediterranean influence is seen in just about every item I saw - even if it was just in the form of an ingredient or the way the ingredients were put together, creating a slight twist on some of the more "classic" menu options.

Grove Square Bistro

Last week, I met up with a couple friends to try the much talked about Grove Square Bistro. I’d been watching this place be built out for months and was genuinely curious and excited to see what it would turn into. Even when I started seeing some mixed reactions online, I held out hope that the Bistro would be a wonderful addition to the neighborhood. The first week it was open, it seemed packed even with the limited menu and what I’m sure was slightly disorganized service as the restaurant got its bearings. I'd hoped by waiting a bit until the opening kinks were worked out and the full menu was being served, I’d have a better chance of getting a feel for the place.

My friends arrived before me and when I joined them, I ended up waiting at least 10 minutes before someone came by to take my drink order which is a pretty long time considering the restaurant was fairly empty. I know it’s still early days and I understand it can take a while for a staff to find its rhythm so while it wasn’t that big a deal, I was also frustrated by the fact that the glass of water the server told me he’d bring without me even asking didn’t show up until the end of our meal. Other than the timing being off, the server we had was very nice, checked in with us a few times, and did seem anxious to make sure we had everything we needed.

Drinks wise, we all had something different off their cocktails menu. There was red sangria, a margarita, and I chose a mojito. None of these were terribly successful although the red sangria was decent. I wouldn’t go out of my way for it but nor would I turn it down. My mojito tasted like…well, like nothing. I got a bit of sugar and occasional taste of mint…but that was it. The margarita was weird.  All of us agreed that was the best description as we weren't able to put our finger on exactly what was off, just that something was. I will say it didn’t taste like it was made from a mix, so that’s a plus. I couldn’t discern much alcohol in either one which is a disappointment at $8-$10 a cocktail.

Farmers Market Find: BBQ at Legal Beans

I’ve seen the somewhat clumsily named BBQ at Legal Beans at various events downtown and they’re a pretty constant staple at the Grove Street farmers’ market but I’d never actually stopped to get anything. A couple years ago, I went to the storefront and truthfully, wasn’t that impressed but always thought I should give it another shot. Naturally, I never got around to it and in the meantime, it seems as though Legal Beans has reworked and expanded their menu.

Figuring I might as well take advantage of their presence at the farmers’ market, I stopped by to get dinner and see if the food had improved.  As I approached the stand, I was hit with the mouthwatering smell of grilled meat and warm BBQ sauce. It smelled like summer. They had a series of large covered foil pans on one table that held different cuts of chicken, at least two kinds of ribs, pulled pork, and probably a couple more I didn’t see. There was also a second side table with smaller pans containing all their side options; I saw rice, beans, mac and cheese and mashed sweet potatoes. I ordered a grilled quarter chicken with a side of mashed sweet potatoes.  The server asked me if I wanted extra barbecue sauce on top and I went with it, noticing he was being pretty generous when pouring it on without flooding the container. My total came to $8 which I found incredibly reasonable, especially when taking into account the huge serving of mashed sweet potatoes they gave me.