Sunday, August 17, 2014

Hart's Local Grocers

There's a new store in town and it's loooooking good
Got an egg, got a roll, in the neighborhood
They've just opened up but if things work out
it's gonna stayyyyyy ahhhhh whiiiiiiiile.
Bup bup bup bupbaaaaaa.



Hart's Local Grocers just opened up in the East End of town (behind the Little, across the Parking lot from Two Vine) and has a coffee/grill station in the southwest corner with a breakfast menu. Karen saw them post it and we headed on over.

They have two breakfast sandwiches on their five item breakfast menu and anything with avocado is is a shoo-in for me; I ordered the Signature (two Happy Hen eggs, sliced avocado, arugala, pancetta and Sriracha mayo) though I wasn't feeling porky so I passed on the pancetta (Easy enough to do but as Karen noted - why no egg options without meat to begin with in a store that offers vegan cheesecake?). It was nice to see the grill adjacent to the coffee counter and know that the sandwich was being made to order. A couple minutes later it was ready and after some counter confusion I grabbed it and we went to sit by the big windows that look out over Winthrop Street. I unwrapped the sandwich and the roll looked delicious. I was excited to dig in.

Good news! The roll was delicious! Crusty top, firm insides that didn't collapse under jaw pressure or get soggy next to lettuce and mayo. The Hart's website lists their bread suppliers as Baker Street Bread Co. and Small World Food so I don't know who gets the credit. Egg (menu said two but I only recall one) was fried hard, but was good, Sriracha mayo is a no brainer though a little mayo goes a long way and half of what I had would've been fine. Arugula and avocado kind of got lost in the mayo which got me thinking that the pancetta probably helps even the whole thing out. Don't be mislead, I am nitpicking here, this was a very good sandwich. I especially appreciate that Hart's offers an egg sandwich for under $5 that doesn't consist of lowest common denominator ingredients.

I got this sandwich on their second day open and I'm hoping as they hone the place this could go from a very good sandwich to a favorite. No pressure, Hart's. No pressure.

Hart's Local Grocers
Sandwich cost: $4.95
Rating: It's a pretty good sandwich

Saturday, August 9, 2014

Maria's Luncheonette - Road Trip Entry
























It has become a family tradition to head to Atlantic City for a few days each August to jump in the waves, marvel at all the crap the boardwalk has to offer, and take in some of the best people watching there is. The boardwalk can get a bit pricey for food, so we ventured into the streets behind the casinos and glitz to find some regular ol' eats.

Around the corner from the hotel was the Lenox Cafe but as it was a Tuesday they were not open (thanks for nothing, yelp!) so we headed a few blocks over to Maria's where we had good luck last summer. A pretty standard diner in a narrow older building, we grabbed a few tables in the back and looked over the menu. "Breakfast All The Time" beamed up at me in Curlz MT and I knew all was well in the world. After a quick scan at the sandwich options I figured I'd go for the egg and cheese with sausage pork roll since I wasn't sure what that was. I asked our waitress who went into a lengthy description with hand motions but as it turned out she was thinking of scrapple. She backpedalled a little and said "It's good, you should try it." Hoping that New Jersey's proximity to Manhattan might mean a better bagel I asked her what she thought. Turns out she is from NYC and waitressing in AC for the summer: "Well, it's certainly not the best bagel, but it's not terrible." A ringing endorsement! I went with it anyway.


Our food came quickly and I took a look at the sausage pork roll. Kinda looked like ham. Took a bite. Kinda tasted like ham/Spam/Canadian bacon, but the mention of Spam is not meant to be disparaging. It was grilled but not too greasy, sweet and salty as well. I would get it again and wondered what the pork roll story was. God bless the internet for introducing me to this delightful mail order company: Jersey Boy Pork Roll.

So, the egg, white American (just look at the gooeyness!), and pork roll were all well suited to each other and the bagel...well, it was certainly far from being the best but also not the worst. It had the shiny, boiled exterior on top but not on bottom. Sort of half bagel/half breadel, but it didn't collapse when I bit into it so a step above the usual diner bagel.

Maria's Luncheonette
2319 Atlantic Avenue, Atlantic City, NJ 08401
Sandwich cost: $4.50
Rating: I'm writing home about it, but it's a short letter.

Saturday, August 2, 2014

Pat's Coffee Mug


It's a beautiful Saturday morning and there's plenty to do today; Better eat a solid breakfast. Karen picked me up and we headed to the South Wedge to investigate Pat's Coffee Mug after hearing many colorful reviews of it.

There's not much to look at or notice from the street so I was surprised to see the sprawling diner that was inside. A counter with stools in the front section, a middle section with some big tables, and an adjoining dining room with lots of booths and tables. And wood panelling. And a fireplace with snow globes on top. And hockey sticks on the wall. This is just some of the decor, you really should go and check it out yourself. Karen summed it up as Elks' Lodge basement circa 1975. But in a charming way. This is a real-deal, genuine neighborhood joint.

Menu was straightforward and cheap! They listed the fried egg sandwich on a grilled roll and I didn't have the energy to inquire what kind of roll. I ordered it with bacon and figured I'd steal some of Karen's home fries. Our food came out quickly and it was nice to see that the roll was toasty and buttered, but the real pleasure came when I put the sandwich together to reveal sesame seeds. Oooh! Aaah! Ohhhh! It may have been from a supermarket, but not having that smushy Rochester hard roll is a victory in itself. I dug in: fried egg cooked but not crispy, cheese melty and salty, bacon with alternating crisp and chewy salty goodness. And the roll did not collapse after a few bites. This makes for a pretty darn good $3 breakfast sandwich! Beverages were refilled without asking and everyone is happy! I did steal some home fries from Karen's plate and did not regret not getting my own. These are the home fries my grandmother Yetta would try to get the greasiest spoons to serve with fail: dry as a bone and unseasoned, but I like a little more going on with my potatoes.

Pat's Coffee Mug
627 Clinton Avenue South, 14620
Sandwich cost: $3
Rating: A breakfast sandwich if ever there was one