Breakfast, Bridgewater Commons and Chimney Rock

Tournaments sometimes give you far away places to enjoy food.  Close by tournaments cost less for hotels, and you can take your meals at home, but why when there are good pancakes to sample?  The Bridgewater Diner was the stop Saturday between games.  Joined by a hungry group of red clad players and parents, we sampled this Rt.22 modern diner.  The mood after a victory was festive, and the food was hot.  Omlettes were the order of the day for most, with the scorekeeper ordering the most aggressively.  His gyro meat custom omelet was taken by Lily the Russian waitress like it was an everyday order.  All seemed happy with their breakfast except for the Goalie Mom who struggled to eat left handed.  I sampled the sweet potato pancakes which were very light.  Not like a potato pancake at all, they seemed to replace the egg with sweet potato, but not without a true pancake consistency.   This one gets three pancakes.

Andrew in some mall therapy with AJ, Billy, Dave

From there it was off to Bridgewater Commons.  A mall is a mall, is a mall to me, but the gang of red suited boys loved pushing one of their buds around in a wheel chair, and playing at the Apple Store, Sharper Image, and anywhere in between that had buttons to push.  Billy met a girl at the end of the trip that looked strangely familiar…

Billy looks smitten

Dinner at the Chimney Rock Grill after game 2 was a treat.  Hockey family friendly, packed, with a menu that featured great soups, burgers, and thin bar pizzas, as well as full dinners.  A place I would stop again if I were in the area.  I had talapia in a bag, not something I would have expected to find on their menu and surprisingly good.

 

Coliseum: Back to Breakfast

Taking Andrew to meet his team mates at the the Cranford game Sunday allowed us to meet up with my egg-eating friends to sample another breakfast joint.  The Coliseum, right across the street from Warinaco Park on St. George’s Ave. (RT27) was the selection this morning and overall was a good choice to warm the bones after the outdoor rink in Roselle Park.   The person that painted the lines in the parking lot must own a Yugo or a motorcycle because my car was too fat to fit in the spaces. 

Inside the decor was 1980s Greek diner, no points there. But they sat us quickly, and we were pleased when opening the menu.  The egg-eaters were liked the daily special selections, which in many places are not available on the weekends. were offered Sundays and were a great bargain.  The eggs arrived perfectly cooked, meals hot and complete when they hit the table (no missing toast).  I sampled the chocolate pancakes which were fluffy and huge.  My only complaint was lack of pancake variety.  The oatmeal was only passable, but the boys liked the both the hot chocolate and the french fries.  A good meal, a good bargain, and somewhere to keep in your head coming out of a Cranford game. 

rating 2.5 pancakes 

 

2-2 Ties us in Pretzel knots. Good Pretzel Knots

Rich fights the traffic on his way to a  goal 

 In a game where we dominated play from the start, used the body well, and had great goaltending support, we should have come home winners today.  The Titans came out hard and checked, passed, cycled, and looked like a very good hockey team.  The scoring started when Neil took a pass from Adam who had taken a pass from Andrew, and scored with a shot from the corner, just like his goal in the game at Old York Road, putting the Titans up 1-0.  It would stay that way until late in the Second, when the Titans took a penalty.  They made a number of good kills today, but this one was better.  The defense of the Blazers shot the puck at the legs of Austin T. who blocked it (and hit a few people good today).  As a result, the puck bounced out of the D zone and Rich F. fought through 2 Blazers for the puck. 

They literally hung on his back until he finally broke through and then beat the goalie high, right side for a shorthanded goal and a 2-0 Titan lead with 4:01 to go in the 2nd.   We almost converted on the next sequence as the puck was broken out of the zone by good work behind the goal by Tyler who got the puck up to Andrew and out to Adam.  Adam was dragged down and fell in pain before he could get off a shot.  The ref ruled a clean check and we were disrupted.

Coach observes the action

AJ continued his magic, stopping all 20 shots he faced, flashing glove and stick and being particularly good about driving the puck away to the low corners instead of in front.  He also had great defensive support. Until….the odd man rush.  With just 3:45 left our defense got caught pressing up on one side.  The blazers broke out 3-1.  AJ went up for it, and covered a lot of net… but bang, it hit the back of the net 2-1.

Blazers break the shut-out

The next shift, Rich had another break-away. He moved alone in front, but the goalie poked away an almost certain goal.  Shortly after on the other side of the ice they got off a shot from the point.  AJ stopped it, but the crashing Blazers pushed our defenders into him.  He was standing, but could not get to the puck, which was laying there in the crease. A Blazer poked it home. 2-2 tie.  A mad scramble to win the game by both teams led to an exciting finish, but left us a little short of satisfaction, as most ties do. But there was a remedy to the empty feeling in our stomachs.

Billy’s Dad left the rink after dropping him off.  I had noticed the snack bar had the frozen little, damp pretzels circling under the heat lamp and commented on how sad it was that in an area of great pretzels they had resorted to the frozen food section.  Just then, Billy’s Dad came through the door with large paper bags full of 50 hot, just out of the oven fresh pretzels from the Philly Soft Pretzel Factory.  Well finished on the outside with that golden brown color, the right amount of salt, not too heavy, not chewy at all. He had enough for the parents, players, coaches and a few left over.  There’s a true team player and hockey hero. 

a rack of golden beauties comes out of the oven

  

  

 

Good breakfast, twice

Anyone who has been around the rinks in NJ will find menus crowded with fried foods, bad coffee and rewarmed pretzels. The Rock Ice Cafe is in a whole other world.  The rink is for the birds, but as soon as you walk into the cafe the place changes.  The light wood tables and booths, the country look, and no smell of frying, and no sign of bagged candy.  Warm, home made baked goods.  5 different gourmet coffees.  10 different tea selections.  Pumpkin pancakes on the menu.  Friendly and courteous young women to wait on you.  Was I in a hockey rink?  Given the other responsibilities I had this morning, I could not sit down to the full monty, but I did get a Chai tea and some homemade granola.  Nice and light, good fresh honey flavor, and more like cereal than candy.  Perfect.  One of my egg eating friends had the bacon egg sandwich and pronounced it very good, but missing a few points here and there.  Coffee was fresh and rated very good by the team, who actually hung out in the cafe.  The ladies who run it told them that when they took over 2 years ago it was all nachos and churros and cheese fries.  They have done it differently and it works very well.  All of those machines are in a pile in the back, they make everything themselves.  They should franchise at other rinks.  For a Rink Restaurant, it gets 3 pancakes.

Now, not to waste a trip to the area, I had to stop at one of my personal favorites on the way home; LePeep on Rt. 1 in Edison.  This place is known for fluffy fluffy pancakes, warm syrup, and unique specialty egg selections.  Since it was almost 1:30 by the time we pulled in, I was tempted to have lunch, but a second breakfast for me was in order.  Full pots of coffee, tea, water with lemon on the table when you walk in, friendly efficient service.  Wheat Germ pancakes it was.  Wheat germ may sound odd, but its toasted and works quite well without ruining the texture.  My wife had the Benedict and my son the Custard French Toast.  The only failing was a poorly done side of bacon.   Next time you head that way, don’t miss the chance to savor their selections.

3.5  pancakes

 

VERY DISAPPOINTED IN GRUNDY!

I was very disappointed in Grundy today….  I was given a great tip about a famous pretzel place in town from a former police officer (they know their baked goods).  “A Taste of Philly” boasts famous soft Philly pretzels in many varieties (even pizza stuffed pretzels).  As we came upon the place, less than a mile from the rink my mouth began to water… Maybe I could wash it down with a root beer.  I was hungry.  The sign on the door said “Open 12-4 Sundays”.  It was only 3:00…..but they were closed…Very disheartening.

Chris D. makes one of many saves on a busy day in net 

I was not so disappointed with the hockey, where they were just a little too big and fast and good at checking for our first year Pee Wees, so you can’t be too upset.   The game was more of a lesson than anything else.  The Senators brought their A game (or perhaps a AA game), and after controlling the puck for the first 7 minutes they opened the scoring.  They hit and they hit and they hit us some more.  Richie and Tyler both went down after hard hits into the boards, but seemed better after the game.  The second period was long, filled with penalties, some intimidation and Senator goals.  There were some very good efforts out there that need to be mentioned.  Chris D. stopped almost 40 shots, and never backed down to a very good shooting team.  Tim G. was all over the ice, helping some of his smaller ‘brothers’ and fighting for the puck.  Many of the boys learned a little about taking checks and we actually gave some back as well.  We did not come close today but there is much hope; the weekend shows we can be very good, but still have a long way to go to compete with the best teams.  There is also hope in my Pretzel dreams, as I learned by doing a little reading tonight that “A Taste of Philly” has 7 outlets in Pa.  Wait till that next road trip!

Austin gets of a shot, but the defenseman did his job.  Drive him wide and get a stick on him! 

 

Guest writer samples local Bfast joint

I was engaged in other activities after Sunday morning Hockey, but one of my egg-eating friends took up a solo trip with my son and and his.

Here is his entry:

This past Sunday created for a definitive stir in our normal hockey activities: a house league game mixed with players of all sorts and abilities and a practice in the parking lot, known as “dry land”, to work on face offs and positioning.  Rather than going to many of our standard hang outs, I decided to visit the town of Farmingdale, only 10 minutes away for a change.  We didn’t go to Connie’s restaurant (a town favorite) as I thought I should save that for our broader group that would include the other egg eating friend and our usual pancake sampler.  I decided upon Main Street Bagels as a good place to grab some breakfast, especially that one of the boys in my small crowd had never been there before.

Main Street Bagels has been in the town for many years and been under the same ownership up until this past Summer when it finally changed hands.  I didn’t realize at first since when we first entered the facility, much of the old look and feel was still the same, as was some of the same customers that I’m sure I had seen before.  Since I knew we weren’t going to just grab something ‘to go’, we entered the dining room for a sit down meal.  It was then that I noticed something different  and realized that there were new owners.  Although much of the old feel (I mean very old) was still there, apparently there was a fresh paint job which came out very nice, more current art work hanging on the walls and a flat screen TV for the customers to watch.

We kept our orders somewhat simple: an egg and cheese on a roll, another egg and cheese but on a bagel and a bacon and egg on a plain bagel. They didn’t have the first 2 choices we asked for which is quite disappointing for a bagel shop!.  We were the only customers sitting at a table and the service was pleasant and courteous.  The coffee was plentiful and there was no problem getting a second cup. Everyone was satisfied with their meals but we knew it just wasn’t the same as when we are with the broader crowd.  I’m not upset that we went there, but just not so sure that we may be back with the gang.

1 pancake.

Editor’s note:  You too can contribute to the team Web Log.  Take a picture?  Want to share a video?  How about some insight into our competitors?  Just Email me!

 

Local Italian

“All great change in America begins at the dinner table“.  Ronald Reagan 

These Friday night power skating lessons gave me another reason to eat out with hockey friends.  The Great Communicator’s biggest fan and his Team Manager, two great people we met through the Titans joined my own clan, along with my two Egg Eating friends and their lovely brides for a nice meal at Basile’s in Freehold.  No pancakes here (and no intended review), but the food was hot, the conversation was warm, and the kids were cool.  Part of your tuition is for ice time.  Part is for the opportunity to meet new people, and for the kids and parents to develop friendships that otherwise might never happen.  The nice part is that the conversation had very little hockey in it.  Just 4 sets of parents talking about life, and enjoying the opportunity to unwind after a long work week.  Its hard for everyone to get together for a meal (hopefully we can when we have tournaments).  But in the meantime, there are plenty of opportunities to break bread in small groups.  You have to eat, right?  By the way, Basile’s did a great job with the food….

http://www.basilesitalianrestaurant.com/

 

Marylin’s, a nice little country stop

Sometimes, staying off the big highways has its benefits. Taking 206 through Chester was a little longer than taking some bigger roads, but the Chester-Dover pike between the Randolph rink and Chester was such a nice ride, it almost made us forget the morning’s results. Lots of old farms, historic buildings, and valley views were packed along the roadside on this beautiful Saturday.

When we got to Chester, we found our way to Marylin’s Cafe in the strip mall across from the old Lairson’s Turkey Farm on Main St. The little diner, done up in a cross between cute country clutter, historic Chester, and Harley gear, was quite welcoming and crowded with locals. Apparently a waitress, named Marylin bought the place a few years ago. She has done a good job. Despite the late hour, I had breakfast, a rare treat, fresh raspberry pancakes. Our Titan had the Choc Chip cakes, and the Mrs. had a spinach omlette. The cakes alone were worthy of a return engagement, the tart, local berries matched off the sweet of a small pitcher of what I detected as Log Cabin. The only negative to the entire experience was there was a draft along the right side of the restaurant. Next time I return up rt. 206, I’ll stop here for a bite, but sit where the locals sit; on the left.

Rating: 3 pancakes

 

Slow service knocks over the Barrel

 

Sunday sent us far and early, carpooling with one of my egg-eating friends and his family.  A great chance to sample some odd diner or breakfast joint far from the homestead.  The corridor in NJ along the NJ Turnpike & 295 offers a wide variety of spots.  Without any hard plans we let random events get us to our meal; a little girl who needed a pitstop, a father-in-law who crisscrossed his exit numbers, and a car load of hungry folk who wanted to wander no longer led us to the Cracker Barrel.  A southerly chain, whose biscuits, grits and gravy are scattered all over Rt.95 all feature an old fashioned country store up front, and a 1940’s barnhouse decor for their interior.  I have been to this chain a number of times before (as far north as Binghamton NY).  Sunday we sampled the Burlington (exit 5) version. 

As always, the late Sunday morning crowd features seniors (today a bus load, gratefully behind us), and well dressed folks coming from church services.  And as usual, the
service here is very friendly, but as slow as a South Carolina summer evening.

The breakfast all-day menu has multiple egg specialties, and the servings are
plentiful.  Pancake choices include a Southern Pecan that was a hit with Mrs. Eggeater.

 I chose ‘wild maine’ blueberry, with Dickinson’s preserve syrup. They also give Real Maple with their griddle specialties, so of course I sampled their liquid gold.  The Cracker Barrel serves over 6% of the US supply, even if it comes in tiny little bottles.   The syrup alone gets 1 pancake. 

Everyone was starving, and did not leave much.  I was certain going in that the ‘Barrel’ would hit 3 pacakes.  But, ‘cakes were a bit cheap with the berries, and a little ‘lardy’, the french toast (stolen from my son) lacked flavor, and Nicole’s service was just sooooo sloooow, I had to knock this edition of the chain down to 2.5 pancakes.   Next trip down the pike will get us to Ponzios or Olga’s or the NJ State Diner, or some other southern NJ experience.

I’m already looking forward to my breakfast on the way to the game next Saturday.  I love lePeep in Edison, but maybe we should stop in Chester, or Morristown…So many choices, so few road games.  If you have some great breakfast ideas, please share.

 

Atlantis Diner, a little far south, but worth the drive

In our continuing review of breakfast joints after hockey (see others using link to the right under Hockey Dining) , the Atlantis Restaurant 2601 Hwy 35 Brielle, is a little far from Wall in relation to my northerly drive, but since we had time to kill during the tourney, it was no problem at all. A larger group than normal attended as my reviewers were 13 strong. All were well satisfied, including my egg eating friends, our wives and kids who were conveniently sat at a second table (the kids, not the wives). Decor was freshened up a few years ago, lots of glass, granite and smooth, clean surfaces. Pancakes (chocolate chip this morning) were light, fluffy with a homemade batter taste. 3 syrup choices included a genuine strawberry and a decent blueberry, although the maple was as most diners ‘maple flavored’. The coffee was dropped in pots on the tables and the service went off without a hitch. Dry toast was actually delivered dry, and one of the moms declared the shredded potatoes as quite good and freshly cut. They offered several unique choices including egg wraps of all sorts. New guy had a sandwich which looked good, understandable given the late hour. A solid performer all around. Rating: 3.5 pancakes