Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Luke’s Kitchen serves up reliable contemporary fare with seasonal products and a changing décor.
- RESTAURANT REVIEWS
- Cindy Loh
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Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Part art gallery, part “farm fresh” tableau and part restaurant, Luke’s Kitchen is a little bit like the culinary version of a fashion show. Despite how you dress it up (or down, as the case may be), at the heart of the matter is owner Rod Hernandez, a chef, who consistently puts out solid, contemporary cuisine. Luke’s Kitchen serves a $42, three-course prix fixe menu only, with additional “supplements” for those who wish a culinary upgrade ($7-12 more for mains and $3-4 more for desserts). The menu changes regularly since Hernandez likes to incorporate “the best, freshest ingredients available on the market on any given day.” Dinner at Luke’s Kitchen (which was named after Hernandez’s son) starts off with a basket of assorted, savory …
40.730613
-74.278222
Luke's Kitchen
175 Maplewood Ave, Maplewood, NJ
/articles/new-ingredients-new-look-same-solid-cuisine
6672
/locations/51770
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Husband and wife team is serving inventive, high-end French/New American cuisine.
- RESTAURANT REVIEWS
- Cindy Loh
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Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Julia Child once said, “In France, cooking is a serious art form and a national sport,” a sentiment that Chef Charles Tutino and his wife, Jane Witkin, are taking to heart at their French/New American restaurant Verjus. Verjus offers a variety of traditional French dishes—but all with an inventive, modern flair. It is clear Chef Tutino likes the challenge of deconstructing each dish and then stretching its limits to make it his own, most of which work extremely well. The menu changes daily and seasonally, using local and directly sourced ingredients and a host of interesting garnishes. On two separate visits, I was served warm, crusty rolls from Englewood’s Balthazar Bakery (the wholesale arm of the famed French bistro in New York City) …
40.721272
-74.265814
Verjus Restaurant
1790 Springfield Ave, Maplewood, NJ
/articles/french-classics-reinvented-at-verjus
3602
/locations/51053
Sunday, July 26, 2009
It was a busy week for schools, the police union and more.
Monday kicked off with the Planning Board's announcement of a special meeting to continue discussions about the proposed Springfield Avenue Walgreens. In news involving a diving, rather than a planning, board, a lifeguard was rescued at the community pool. Mary Mann reported that the school board voted against allocating public funds for lighting at Underhill Field and Supt. Brian Osborne appointed people to the new leveling committee at the Board of Education meeting. And in sadder school news, Marilyn Lehren mourned the beloved summer program teacher Magic Frank. The DeHart Park rehabilitation process took another step at Maplewood's Township Committee meeting where Turco Golf was awarded the contract. At the meeting, Republican …
40.730412
-74.272102
Township Municipal Building
574 Valley St, Maplewood, NJ
/articles/week-in-review-11
3110
/locations/51054
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Maplewoodstock, silent films, police tips and more added up to a fully loaded week.
We kicked off the week in media res, with the last leg of our coverage of Maplewoodstock. When we were done looking back at the weekend that was, we looked forward to the next one, and its barbecue and sidewalk sale. Also, Brooke Lefferts shined a spotlight on a Maplewood community supported agriculture effort. On Tuesday, our friend in South Orange, Cotton Delo, reported on the continuing issues between cafeteria workers and management at Columbia High School. Our sports editor Jose Ortiz wrapped up the Legion's baseball season. And Danielle Elliot looked at how local landscapers are doing. On Wednesday, we reported on a contentious planning board meeting where the developers of a proposed Walgreens on Springfield Avenue presented their …
Sunday, July 5, 2009
The first week in July featured articles looking ahead at Independence Day and more.
The week began with our report on the $10,000 grant awarded to the Township by Sustainable Jersey. The grant will go towards education about energy efficient practices for homes. Tina Lehn was officially announced as the new principal of South Mountain, and Maplewood police are looking for a suspect who robbed a church. Michael Robertson was named the YMCA's youth of the year. And a Maplewood wild animal rescue organization dealt with a crisis in the bat population. Plus, we ran a story about another kind of bat entirely. Morrow Memorial kicked off their Turnover sale, and for the first day, lines were long and sales were hot! And then it was a smooth ride up to the Fourth of July, with art, pictures and events.
Friday, June 12, 2009
In search of the best 'Joe' across South Orange, Maplewood and Millburn
Anywhere else in the country, if I started talking about Sloppy Joes, you'd figure I was referring to ground meat, a can of Manwich and a cheap white bun. But not in North Jersey, where a Sloppy Joe sandwich has come to mean something significantly different and monstrously tastier. Here in our neck of the woods, a Sloppy Joe is a large, layered sandwich generally containing three slices of rye bread (with one in the middle), one or two varieties of sliced meat, cheese and piles of coleslaw, all slathered with Russian dressing. It might not sound incredibly appealing on paper (I don't even like Russian dressing very much), but made well, this sandwich is nothing less than a party in your mouth, a perfect medley of flavors, a sinful delight…
40.726891
-74.250598
Scott's Deli
290 Elmwood Ave, Maplewood, NJ
/articles/sloppy-joe-snackdown
3549
/locations/26882
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
The sushi joint has seen some changes, and they're all positive.
If you haven’t been to Samurai Sushi lately, consider reacquainting yourself with a visit. In the last year, Maplewood Village’s only sushi spot underwent a low-key ownership change, and the menu has become increasingly varied and surprising. You can still get a standard sushi and sashimi platter or bento box, but the daily specials are getting ever more creative—and delicious. Never dipped a piece of fresh yellow tail into jalapeño sauce? Consider it. It’s even better washed down with a cold Sapporo. Despite the rapidly evolving menu and roster of specials, some things haven’t changed. Samurai remains a great lunch option for business or social meetings. It’s a quiet, well-lit space, with a huge selection of lunchtime specials for under $…
Saturday, March 21, 2009
At the village's coffee house, the food is surprisingly good.
I held off from trying the food at Village Coffee for a long time. Frankly, the coffee scared me away from delving deeper into the menu. For an independent coffee store in the heart of an upscale shopping district, the coffee at Village Coffee falls short. It’s not bad so much as its sort of wrong; it tastes like the next-to-last trial and error test that occurred before the invention of coffee. The coffee does have a couple of things going for it, of course. It’s refreshingly over-caffeinated, reasonably priced and served in welcoming atmosphere by a personable staff. As for the taste itself, you get used to it. So the day I was hungry and pressed for time at the coffee shop, it was with great reluctance that I picked up a menu. I …
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Leave your dining experience in the hands of owner Dan Richer
- RESTAURANT REVIEWS
- Liz Zack
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Thursday, March 12, 2009
When I first came to Maplewood, an already-here friend emailed me three things the day before my moving van arrived. Directions to Target, the name of a decent bagel place and the phone number of Arturos. If you have these three things, she wrote, you'll survive your move-in. Equipped with two glowing wood-burning ovens and a loyal, best-pizza-in-New Jersey fan base, this place takes its pies and pastas very seriously. Don't judge it by the low-key, neighborhood ambiance—wobbly wood tables and plenty of high chairs may pack the front of the house, but the action in the kitchen is careful and apt. Arturo's offers guests a choice of two crusts: classic thin—their signature crust—and a "traditional" slightly thicker, New York style. Although …
40.73054
-74.27827
Arturo's Osteria and Pizzeria
180 Maplewood Ave, Maplewood, NJ
/articles/restauarant-review-arturos
3068
/locations/16006
Adam Bulger
8:37 am on Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Oh, I forgot something. And that something was an allusion to "Scooby-doo." I would have gotten away with running spell check after publishing the article, too, if it weren't for you meddling readers! more ›