B.Y.O.B.s in Jersey: April 2010

19 April 2010

Pho Xinh (Vietnamese)

Monday, April 19, 2010, Jay finally got her soup at Pho Xinh! It was sooooo good. They have a new menu!

She ate the Pho Tai Dac Biet (Pho with rare steak, well done flank, fat brisket, tendon, tripe and beef ball) first, because the kitchen misunderstood that she wanted to FINISH the appetizer before getting the soup. It was delicious!

She ordered the Tofu Nhoi Tom (not on the original menu) appetizer, which she actually ate last. It came with six+ big pieces of tofu, wrapped around bacon pieces and fried. You couldn't even tell it was tofu.

For takeout, she ordered the Com Tam Thit Nuong (charbroiled pork with broken rice) for Ken but what she got was Com Thit Nuong (rice looks long; we'll see if he likes it); and Pad Thai Thap Cam (pad thai with chicken, fish balls, squid and shrimp) for herself. Ken texted that he wanted spring rolls, (Cha Gio) so she brought 2 orders (4 rolls) home.

The hot tea provided was enough to complete the meal. Once again, no pictures - Jay was starving!

18 April 2010

Marcello's Fresh Catch Bistro

On Saturday, April 17, 2010, after a long day at work for Jay, and with the youngest, Reese, over before his move to Colorado, we decided to go to Marcello's Fresh Catch Bistro, which is Jay's 2nd favorite (still love La Campagne!).

We were promptly seated, even though we arrived about 20 minutes for our 6:45 PM reservation. We really love that we can get a same day reservation and they are so accommodating.

Demetrius was our server and he was very good.

Once the bread basket came to the table, Jay and Ken fought for the garlic bread - it's so good!

Appetizers enjoyed:

Jay - Oysters Rockefeller, 5 nice-sized oysters, which were very filling

Ken - Shrimp Kisses - wrapped in prosciutto and cheese. He's so happy they are on the menu and not only as a special

Reese - Bistro Barbecue Shrimp Skewers, with pineapple. He wanted more, but was happy with what he had

Entrees enjoyed:

Jay - Black & Blue Grouper special, with blue cheese and jumbo crabmeat. It came with mashed potatoes (not very impressive) and mixed vegetables (carrots, squash, broccoli, string beans). Very good, but the crabmeat tasted a bit waterlogged for some reason. Couldn't finish, so it will probably be next day's dinner.

Ken - Fresh Catch flounder francaise - flounder lightly battered and sautéed in a luscious citrus sauce served over sautéed broccoli rabe served with herb-roasted potatoes. Ken didn't finish the broccoli rabe, so Jay had it added to her meal.

Reese - Shrimp Caprese Pasta. Huge shrimp over linguine in a tomato-based sauce with lots of cheese. Reese couldn't finish, so he took it home. BUT, he ended up eating it at 3 AM, after he got in from his night out.

Amy, the owner, stopped by our table and, while talking, found out that we were the creators of this blog. She reads it often. It was amazing to hear that she remembered when we were in the parking lot and actually went to another restaurant. Jay didn't think that anyone else read the blog, except for friends.

Amy was so impressed with the blog (people who patronized the restaurant actually mentioned it and the wines that we took!), that she offered complimentary espresso and desserts. Ken took advantage of the espresso. We all took home dessert - creme brulee cheesecake (for Jay), carrot cake (for Ken), and cheesecake (for Reese). Very good desserts that were enjoyed the next day.

Wines enjoyed:
2007 Kali Hart Pinot Noir
2008 Menage a Trois California White Wine

10 April 2010

Blackbird (Franco-American)

We visited Blackbird in Collingswood for lunch today with our friends Karin and George.

We took our time and had a wonderful time. Everything was delicious.

Hot crusty bread was brought to the table and served with olive oil.

Appetizers:
Ken - Thai chicken spring rolls