HudsonRW: Sabores

RER 8.2.13

It was a double date for Hudson Restaurant Week, and we were headed to a place that none of us had ever gone too, so we were excited to try out Sabores for their $30 prix fixe.

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Amuse Bouche

Guacamole

The plate of bold green guacamole came decorated with a few colorful tortilla chips and hot red peppers, almost as if they were an indicator. It initially seemed like a lot of guacamole, almost too much for the number of mildly stale colorful chips, but in the end it was devoured. The guacamole was very spicy and flavorful, drowning out the stale after moment of the chips. It was creamy and just enough to hold us over for the coming dishes.

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First

Ensalada de Sandia

Watermelon, papaya, tomatillo and cucumber salad

This watermelon salad sounded light and refreshing, delicious and different, but we all ignored something in the item description, the orange-mezcal vinaigrette. And I wish I hadn’t. The appetizer would have been all of those things I wished for, if it hadn’t been for the smokiness of the mezcal that plagued the fresh fruit. It made everything taste like tar and thick, just my palate found it less than appetizing.

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Quinoa

The quinoa starter was alive with vegetables and encircled with a cilantro jalapeno salsa, but this too was spicy. The quinoa grains were smaller and wetter than I was used to, and the serving was just a sampling, but it was pretty good, hearty and a nice start.

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Gazpacho de Nopal

Unlike the gazpacho I am used to, this appetizer was green and served in a fancy drink glass. The summer soup was made with cactus, tomatillo cucumber, bell peppers and a beautiful dash of color, with the cherry tomato. The surface of the thick cold soup was dotted with oil and two halves of cherry tomatoes. It was pretty to look at, but thick and viscous, kind of salty in a soy sauce kind of way, but definitely edible.

Second

Pescado

Fish tacos

Now the fish tacos were not a part of the prix fixe menu, but they were absolutely delicious. The ratios were just right; a thick piece of seasoned and lightly fried fish nestled in double corn tortillas, topped with a bright pico de gallo. The flavors married well, the spicy, and sweet, and the almost dry tortilla.

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Lomo de Cerdo

Grilled Pork Tenderloin

Two of our party got the lomo, and unfortunately that was a moment where we saw inconsistency in the pretty new restaurant. One of the thin pieces of pork was far more well done than the other, resulting in a completely different experience. The sweet potato puree and honey chipotle glaze played to the affinity pork has for sweetness, adding moisture and texture, while the seasonal veggies almost blended in with the other elements, colorful but forgettable.

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Costillas en cacao

Short ribs

The plump piece of  short rib sat on a little bed of mashed potatoes and was surrounded by a dark meaty cacao demi glaze, and nestled by a  patch of dressed salad greens. The meat was super tender, decadent and delicious, everything you really want in the texture of a short rib, though the flavor was kind of muted, and dulled further by the dense, startchy potatoes. The greens not only made the plate look more balanced, but it lightened the dish, and added a little brightness.

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Third

Nieve de Horchata

Horchata sorbet with spicy pecans

The rice milk based drink, Horchata, was transformed into an icy and almost watery sorbet, encapsulating spicy cinnamon and warmth. The flavor was really nice of the sorbet, arousing almost contradicting memories of spicy fall and refreshing summer. It was super light, but the texture was a little chalky, and almost dense, missing a smoothness to unite the taste.

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Natilla de Maracuya

Passion fruit crème brulee

This crème brulee looked like any other, yellowish custard in a ramekin, browned and crisp on the top, and even the decorative strawberries recalled other crème brulees. This time, however, the smooth and creamy custard was infused with tangy sweet passion fruit. There were no pieces of the fruit throughout the custard, which maintained the expected texture, with the surprising flavor.

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Overall, there were delicious moments to our dinner, mainly with our mains. The portions were not too large which made three courses easier, but in the end it may not have been enough. The service was a little slow, especially in getting the bill and paying (oddly enough), and the atmosphere got to be a little draining with loud music and bad acoustics. I would go again, but maybe on taco Tuesday.

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8.2.13

RER 8.2.13

third time's the CHARM : Hard Grove Cafe

RER 7.6.13

We took another go at the Cuban restaurant, Hard Grove Café in Jersey City for a date over this heatwave weekend. This time it was early, we were not desperately hungry, and it was hot. Last time, was a second chance (take a peek at what I had to say) and my first adult adventure there is recorded on yelp. This time was most comfortable. It was not crowded or loud, but it was just right. We could talk over the Spanish music, and we could hear isolated conversations of other guests, but it was nothing we could not handle.

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We ordered two drinks: One, a beautifully colorful and sweet mango mojito, decorated with a lovely pale stalk of sugar cane. Two, a less interesting looking coconut rum infused lemonade, garnished with only a wedge of lime.

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For an appetizer, we stuck to what we loved, the codfish cake fritters. They are crunchy, fatty, salty and fishy, all in a good way. The cakes are absolutely delicious with a dousing of fresh lemon juice and a tiny tiny bit of tartar sauce. For some reason this time the fritters were even better than I remember. A great start.

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Because of my indecision, the server helped me chose my dinner, and we landed on the “catch of the day,” which that day was tilapia. I opted for the fish lightly breaded and baked with onions and peppers; the server said this was best, only it wasn’t. It had no flavor whatsoever, the fish was just white, flaky fish with no feeling or love. The peppers and onions were salty and buttery, but not even enough to compensate for the lack luster fish. Good thing the rice and beans had some life (and my boyfriend is a doll and switched plates with me).

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He ordered the mofongo with pork pieces. We have had mofongo before, and pork pieces as well, but somehow that night at Hard Grove, we got the best of both worlds. The display was mildly difficult; the smashed seasoned plantains came in a towering wooden vessel, pilón, while the tender pork bites with sharp white onion came in another little pot. There was not even enough room on the plate to mix the two and combine the flavors before putting it in our mouths. Both were delicious and flavorful, trying to make up for the lost tilapia. The pork was juicy and fatty, drenched in juices with a little tang. And the mofongo was garlicky and chunky, creating a starchy counter to the fatty meat.

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Even though this was a better experience—the food was better, the environment was better—I still feel like Hard Grove was lagging. The service was a little slow, but nice. They took forever to clear off our dirty dishes, which is a pet peeve of mine. But our server was really nice, answering all our questions and making inquiries about drinks. Overall, it is much better to go to Hard Grove earlier in the evening, especially on the weekends if you are looking to eat and not to party. I have a feeling I will be back there again...

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7.8.13

RER 7.6.13

hurry up and WAIT: ME Casa

RER 3.9.13

So we went to ME Casa in Jersey City, a small Puerto Rican spot, boasting great yelp reviews and word of mouth. The tiny subterranean restaurant was most definitely small and almost every table was full that Saturday night. It is a sweet, little set up, dark with candles and white table clothes, music in Spanish just under being too loud. I could not help but notice that despite its small size, two staff members were not enough for the mildly busy Saturday night.

We were not the only couple waiting for a table, but we were the couple that ended up waiting much longer than the host/waiter/owner said initially. Unfortunately, he looked frazzled, overwhelmed, and perhaps in too deep. It was apparent that he was trying to be in too many places at once; behind the front counter to greet the crowd, serving dishes to a loud party of girls, answering the phone and being overall attentive.  Also during our long wait, we were able to notice, that as well as some of the new enough restaurant’s surface shortcomings.

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As previously mentioned, there was not enough staff to meet the needs of the visiting patrons. Sometimes, small spaces and table capacity does not require too many people working, but on a Saturday night with a steady stream of people, more could be beneficial. There is nothing worse than leaving a bad impression because of a simple service problem that could be fixed.

This was underlined even further during our meal, as we had the perfect view to watch a lady who ordered for take out fight for the attention of the staff. I saw her frustration and felt it too, just in our wait and seeing the disorganization. It almost looked as if they were ignoring her, treating other patrons as if they were more important.

This was also reflected in our meal. It was really really slow. Some times that can be equated with precision and quality, but in this case it seemed like an overrun kitchen. Looking around, it seemed like many of the people were waiting for food. It was rare that many of the tables had their food at the same time. Sometimes it felt quiet, silence from hunger and frustration and modified patience.

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I was too hungry for the food to be slow. My date and I spent much more time there than we thought. There was plenty of time between the ordering of the appetizers, the food coming out and our entrees took a while too. It was very slow moving, even when it looked like the servers were whizzing around.

Not only did the food take a while to come out, but it was not practical or very attractive. I noticed so many people taking home leftovers. The portions of the entrees felt really large, because with each entrée you are offered the option of any of the sides. This is a way that restaurants lose money, especially if the menu items have low price points (two meals for the price of one…good for us but not for them). The presentation of the dishes were not really visually appealing, even when the ingredients and the kind of traditional cuisine could have been presented in a much more inspiring way.

I ordered the shrimp mofongo, mostly because of the rave reviews on yelp. It was pretty delicious, but the mashed green plantains overwhelmed the meaty shrimp. There could have been more shrimp to balance all the starch and the flavorful red sauce. I enjoyed the texture of the plantains and their heaviness, but it was too much. The shrimp were well cooked and large and meaty, but there were too few. My date had the tilapia with mango salsa. This dish was very straightforward but also a lot of food; large pieces of fish lightly breaded smothered with a pico de gallo spattered with fresh sweet mango. It was delicious, but really easy and dependent on cilantro.

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Even though the food tasted good, it was heavy in unnecessary ways. We were given grease drenched garlic toast, delicious and tempting, but mildly difficult to eat. Also the cod cakes, flat contrary to some we have had in the past, were heavy with grease from being fried. We both reasoned that there could have been a way to eliminate some of the excess to make them more enjoyable.

ME Casa is a relatively new establishment testing its boundaries and the lay of the land, from patrons to portions, and adjusting to the demands. Maybe it was just that one Saturday night that threw them for a loop, not the typical order of things, but the disorganization and the grueling waiting did not give me a great first impression. The close and cozy atmosphere is inviting enough to return to, and the food and the prices are just fine for an easy night out. I really hope that ME Casa is able to iron out the wrinkles in service and efficiency to make it a truly successful and welcomed addition to the community.

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3.10.13

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