Places We've Lost and Replacements
I miss Churrasco on Springfield Ave. I know that Burnet BBQ isn’t too far away but I liked the food at Churrasco a lot and I liked the owners. We did takeout frequently and ate there a couple of times.
Lots of places have come and gone on Maplewood Ave and I haven’t gotten overly attached to too many.
Some of the places we have lost have no replacement. I used to be able to walk to Maplewood Center (as it was called then) or Springfield Avenue and get just about any essential I needed. This is n longer the case. Amazon delivery is not an adequate replacement.
I liked the music and beer at Highland Place, and I'm impressed that Luna Stella was able to get rid of whatever smell Highland Place had coming from the basement. I loved the food at The Laurel. Also miss Scrivener's and Shenanigan's. Another place I really liked, but only got to go to a couple of times was The Dancing Goat.
Sinclaire's seafood, which was in South Orange and then moved to Millburn. Also miss the places in the "Millburn" (really Vauxhall) Mall that I think were old Newark transplants. The hot dog place, the old bakery, and Tabachnicks.
The_Soulful_Mr_T said:
The Blue Plate Special.
Yup. No replacement ever for that. Or Laura.
The_Soulful_Mr_T said:
The Blue Plate Special.
the new restaurant going in there is called “catracho” and has been delayed opening for ever. Think it’s Honduran or Salvadorean. But yeah, that spot has Laura’s signature all over it…. They could paint it in whatever color… it’s still blue to me.
Sweetsnuggles said:
I miss Verjus.
A place from a time that seems to be passing into history. Fine dining. Quiet atmosphere. No TVs. It was a nice place for a splurge.
Well I miss Gary’s Ribs, then Verjus took over that place, and I miss them also. Watching that building that replaced them being 3 feet away from traffic gives me agita…I miss the old avenue… period!
yellowgato said:
What are some old fav places that are no longer around and what are your replacements?
I still miss Church's Kitchen and Tomo's Cuisine badly - the best fried chicken and sushi respectively.
Tomo was great. The next best sushi I've had since then was at a Ryokan in Amanohashidate, then at Matsuya in Taipei and after that a grocery store in Kyoto. It's totally impossible to buy bad sushi in Japan. As a challenge, we tried one day. For a while I lived around the corner from Tomo and would eat there a few times a week having him make my dinner to his liking. ETA: his currry was also phenomenal.
I also miss Verjus - classy food and classy owners.
I miss Crane's.
I miss the Mexican place owned by Carlos, which became Luke's Kitchen (also miss that), which is now Chutzpah Kitchen (or Wild Ginger - I get the two spots mixed up).
I miss the music at Highland Place.
I miss being able to walk to Arturo's but enjoy the new Artie's.
Not a restaurant, but I miss Wooden You Know. It was a great toy store and a great addition for Springfield Ave.
dave said:
Tomo was great. The next best sushi I've had since then was at a Ryokan in Amanohashidate, then at Matsuya in Taipei and after that a grocery store in Kyoto. It's totally impossible to buy bad sushi in Japan. As a challenge, we tried one day. For a while I lived around the corner from Tomo and would eat there a few times a week having him make my dinner to his liking. ETA: his currry was also phenomenal.
I never tried Tomo's curry because his sushi and other cooked dishes were just so good - esp the sushi. Had been a fan since his Cedar Knoll days. It was a place that absolutely allowed me to not venture into NYC to get great proper sushi. He's impossible to replace because he had this whole diverse Japanese menu yet it was mainly him prepping and cooking the food alone with Fin and maybe one other server to assist him.
I've been searching for a good replacement sushi spot in NJ but all have not been anywhere as satisfactory - Umai, Domodomo, Ilpoom, Sushi by Bou, Ai Sushi, Aoi, Bon, etc. I have found a place that could be a very worthy successor although it has a more limited menu... trying it again this week!
I miss Churrasco (the owners were so nice and we enjoyed chatting with them when we ate there) - it had a lovely, cozy vibe, you didn't feel rushed or crowded, parking was easy and the food was so good. I miss Verjus also - especially the special theme evenings they would do. I miss Peter's Bakery - such delicious treats there. I miss the TJ Marche store (but Kokoro is a very good replacement!) My kids miss Scrivener's for out of the ordinary toys. Words is excellent, but I miss chatting about mystery books with Betty at the Book Stop.
What are some old fav places that are no longer around and what are your replacements?
I still miss Church's Kitchen and Tomo's Cuisine badly - the best fried chicken and sushi respectively.
Frankly, the best fried chicken I've found is actually the ones at ShopRite! Would love to have better options but most have just been poor substitutes for the Churches.