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| RER 8.2.12 |
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| RER 8.2.12 |
My boyfriend and I managed to go to
Dino and Harry’s in
Hoboken for Hudson Country Restaurant week, but found out once there that the
$35 prix fixe will last the rest of August. We always wanted to try Dino and
Harry’s, but our first attempts were unsuccessful, so we were looking forward
to finally try this time.
Like any special menu, the prix fixe list was small but the
variety and diversity was large. Dino and Harry’s placed the highlights of the
restaurant on the special prix fixe, a way to draw people back in, and continue
visiting.
For starters, I had the smoked apple wood bacon with an
apple slaw. I wasn’t quite sure what I was expecting when I first read the
appetizer option on the website, but anything with bacon is worth a try. But
despite that, when our server came over with our appetizers, and there were
three thick rashers on my plate, I was surprised. At first I thought that much
delicious bacon would be a gift, but it was thick and chewy, porky and didn’t
feel cooked enough. The inside just felt like raw bacon, like the stuff you
kind of leave on the side of the plate. The outside layers were crunchy and
salty, all that you want from bacon, but there was not enough outside to combat
the chewy meaty inside. The cool crisp slaw that topped each tranche was there
for that reason, but still wasn’t enough to balance the texture of the
applewood bacon, nor the saltiness. The apple cider reduction, which actually
looked like maple syrup, was meant to help equalize the saltiness with its
refined sweetness. Its likeness to one of bacon’s favorite companions, syrup,
is a great play on ingredients in a pretty traditional setting. In the end, it was just too much chewy
bacon and fat.
My date ordered the soup of the day option for his appetizer.
The soup was a gazpacho with crabmeat. A cold soup on a hot day was a good
idea, but it was not great, just wet. It was too fine for my taste (I prefer a
chunkier gazpacho), so it ended up just being a tomato soup, and the rest of
the ingredients and textures were lost. It was smooth and blended, but pretty
thin with little substance. Every bite taken that was lacking some of the cool
crabmeat, created longing for those bites with the succulent meat. The crabmeat
created a different texture and added chew to the liquidy soup. We both wished
for more crabmeat and larger pieces other than the fine strings we got.
For an entrée, I ordered the Petit Fillet Mignon, because I
can never really pass up steak. It was a very pretty cut of meat, decorated
with super sautéed mushrooms and delicate micro greens. The steak was cooked
almost just right, and chewed perfectly in the mouth, evidence of a good cut of
meat. The steak could have been seasoned a little better but the salty sautéed
mushrooms made up for it, and added a new layer of texture, that was the middle
ground between the chewy steak and the sparse micro greens. As a side, not on
the fixed menu, I ordered the cheese gnocchi, which alone was more cheese and
creaminess I could bear, but when the cheese and the steak combined it was
delicious, elevating both items.
My boyfriend
ordered the ravioli of the day, which was filled with veal and served with a
light mushroom sauce. It was extremely fragrant with the earthy aroma of the
mushrooms and attractive in the plate. This dish was satisfying in that it was
meaty and hearty- the heaviness and density of the mushrooms, combined with the
tender beef. The pasta of the ravioli was paper thin, just a subtle shell for
the insides and skeletal barrier to the sauce. I much prefer my pasta a little
thicker, though I can see the appeal of this thinner pasta, as it would not
mask the deep flavors of the filling and the sauce. Despite the small number of
raviolis in the dish, the end result was moderately filling.
The desert round was not so great. There were three options,
we ordered two, but magically we were able to taste all three. Our server mixed
up our order, and brought out pineapple cheesecake instead of the coconut flan
we ordered. We tasted it and realized it was wrong and asked for it to be
corrected. Both the flan and the cheesecake were overwhelmed with mysterious
citrus notes, fruit flavors that we could not identify and were muddled by the
sugars and creams of the rest of the dessert. I ordered the sticky toffee
pudding, which was not sticky enough. There was not enough of the decadent toffee
sauce to saturate the dry dark cake. I wish it came with ice cream or a dollop
of whipped cream to give the cake more moisture.
On the whole, the service was decent. We were able to ask
questions and get water without asking, and the food was prompt and hot. I just
don’t remember the atmosphere feeling very friendly, though it seems as though
Dino and Harry’s is a place full of regulars. I would really like to go back to
explore the extensive menu and wine list and see what makes the people come
back for more.
8.2.12
RER
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| JAR 8.2.12 |
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| RER 8.2.12 |
