Wine, Beer and Restaurant Reviews

Craft Beer in New Jersey - Another Tap House Opens - Three Wise Monks Garfield NJ

They are sprouting like wildflowers in the spring. And here is the latest New Jersey craft beer pub, Three Wise Monks in Garfield.

They bill themselves as "a couple of craft beer drinkers and homebrewers here to share the world of great beer and brewing with our local community." And that they do.

We checked out this place this past weekend and enjoyed their great selection of beers on 20 shiny new taps. 

The grand opening is this Friday,May 18th, with River Horse Brewers of Lambertville, NJ taking over the taps.

Food is coming soon and a full bar is offered.  We liked this place a lot, for the beers and that they have their own Growlers ready to go in case you want to take some beer home which we did. In case you don't know a Growler is...

Albarino Wine - Friendly, Flavorful, FashionableLolo Albarino - Rías Baixas, España

We have written a lot about Albariño and since Spring is here and Summer is just weeks away we are back again. This Spanish white wine, vino blanco, is wonderful all year round but we especially love it in the warmer months.

It is very food friendly, pairs well with everything from a full bodied fish stew to sushi. It is also very comfortable with Indian, Thai, Mexican or as we enjoyed this Albarino, Lolo, with Brazilian at Samba, Montclair. 

Samba Montclair, Ceia de Novo Um Novo Favorito

People always ask me, "What are your favorite restaurants in Montclair?" Here is a place that is newly on our list.

I had been hearing a lot of good things about Samba Montclair the quaint Brazilian restaurant on Park Street in Montclair. We first dined here soon after its opening in December of last year.

Since then Samba has just gotten better with refinements in service and the menu. We loved our dinner last week, and having chatted it up we find that we are no alone.

We enjoyed a very nice Albarino, a luscious white wine from Rías Baixas, Spain, called Lo Lo with dinner.

Wines Go Green - Wines.Com

We love Green wines, those that have a "green" hue like Grüner Veltliner, Verdejo or Muscadet. But we love "Green" as in Sustainable even better. They taste better and are better for you and our Earth. Here is a great Infographic from Wines.com that tells the story. Click on it for more.

Presented By Wine.com, Purveyors of fine green Wine

Koreander Fusion Restaurant Split Personality or Identity Crisis?

I was so excited to see a Korean restaurant, an interesting one at that, coming to Montclair. I was sad to see QBA go, but never expected them to last. They just did not have the right mix. I am afraid that Koreander, even with its delicious Korean cuisine, might fall to the same fate. The pre-opening signage was well designed and the interior was looking good. Today the windows were covered with offers of exotic teas and shakes. So is this a drink place or a restaurant?

Inside it is warm and bright, I opened the menu to see a lot of tempting Korean dishes. I do really Korean Cuisine, go up to Palisades Park as often as I can. But, as I gazed to the right page of the menu there is a big selection of sushi. Sushi, really? I can get that in 6 or 7 other places in Montclair. Why?

We loved the dishes we had. But the pleasure of our dinner was interrupted by the grind of a shake maker.  Koreander, please just be a really good Korean restaurant.