PERILLA TONIGHT..

Back into the city tonight to dine once again at Perilla restaurant. Perilla is Chef Harold Dieterle's (Top Chef winner season 1)restaurant down in the West Village on Great Jones....Have been a few times and always enjoy, I'll post tommorrow how everything was!
b.

CONGRATS TO ALL GRAD'S...

Congratulations to all of the 08 grads out there, be it graduating from kindergarten to 1st, or out of a Doctorate program, and everyone in between...we tip our hats to you.

But a SPECIAL congrats to Mr. Corry Ellis Boyle!!!
Corry graduated with his Byram Class of '08 and is off to Lenape Valley next year. Good luck next year you guys!

b.(Dad)

THIS WEEKS FEATURED BEER!

This week we bring out...

Lancaster Brewing's "Milk Stout"..A traditional English style sweet stout. A bold, dark ale, bursting with roasted barley dryness and mellowed by hints of chocolate and coffee.

River Horse Brewing "Tripel Horse"...A unique nose with a hint of vanilla esters, which comes from the Belgian ale yeast. Tripel Horse has a big body and rich mouth feel and finishes mostly dry with a touch of sweetness. If you shy from some of the sweeter Belgian ales, we think you will enjoy this one. This is a small batch release.

A new one added to our Beer List this week...
TURBODOG
Abita Turbodog is a dark brown ale brewed with Willamette hops and a combination of British pale, crystal and chocolate malts.

This combination gives Turbodog its rich body and color and a sweet chocolate-toffee like flavor. Turbodog began as a specialty ale but has gained a huge loyal following and has become one of our three flagship brews.

Just a bit stronger than our other brews, so . . .beware of the dog!

MUSIC....MUSIC....MUSIC

Music at Salt is on it's way.....Starting Friday July 11th at 10pm Salt will be featuring the music of BD Lenz.
Since picking up a guitar at the age of 14, B.D. has studied with such jazz luminaries as guitarists Mike Stern, and Vic Juris, as well as pianist Charlie Banacos.
After graduating from Musician's Institute in Hollywood, CA., B.D. continued his studies at the College of New Jersey, where he graduated with honors.

He has played in bands ranging from pit orchestras to rock bands, big bands to jazz combos and even an Elvis impersonator!

B.D. has released 4 recordings of his melodic jazz/funk (Tell The World, Lost and Found, Simple Life, and Tomorrow's Too Late) and has recorded or performed with such artists as Randy Brecker, Mark Egan, Richie Cannata, Mark Ledford, Ada Rovatti, Greg Federico, Jeff Callahan, John Virag, MAOR, Blue Number Nine, Kathy Phillips, and Ron Velosky among many others.
Hailed as one of the top 20 "up and coming" NJ jazz artists by the Newark Star-Ledger and featured in the New York Times, guitarist B.D. Lenz leads a band that is very funky, highly melodic, and supremely groovin'. Lenz and crew have released five CD's of their original contemporary jazz, which fuses virtuoso musicianship with expert songwriting. Joining B.D. will be bass wiz James Rosocha, and groovemeister Tom Cottone on drums.

Featuring keyboardist/singer Scott Monetti on the 11th and 25th.



B.D. will be bringing his spin on classic Motown and Funky Blues to Salt for 4 evenings starting July 11 and followed by the 18th, 25th, and August 1.

Shows all start around 10pm and are 21 and over!

UNTIL NEXT SEASON...TOP CHEF...

That shit was just WAYYYY to close.....wow! Could you have imagined? And who would have thought that Richard would have blown it so bad when it really counted? I have to hand it to Lisa though, she showed them both up tonight, but when you add up week after week....well, she just did'nt even belong in the finale'. Well, another season down, and we had fun here at Salt watching it each week, even when it did suck or the judging was uneven, or they crucified SOME people for dipping their fingers in food to taste and not others, or called out people that did'nt stay true to the challenge and let others skate around that small fact...or even just the simple fact that they actually let a hammer-head like Eric through the screening process. We enjoyed the company here, and it really was fun...So what's next you might ask?...hmmmmm.

b.

DAD'S & GRADS

It's that time of year again! Time to show Dad how much you love and appreciate him all year, and to show that you want to take him to the NEW place in town and get him some great food and let him choose his favorite beer or two to enjoy....

Also it's that time of year to celebrate that special milestone in juniors life. The time where he or she is moving on to a new phase in life...be that from nursery school up to the big "K", the big "K" up to first grade....Or that huge jump in life from 8th up to the big High School.... Maybe it's leaving those memorable high school years for bigger things, or perhaps it's crossing that threshold in life from college into the "real world" (with which you may want to drown your sorrows and try not to think about that, we can help there too!) In any case, come celebrate that special day with us here at Salt and the grad's dinner is on us!

Give us a call at 973.347.SALT

For these special day's we are accepting reservations of any size
Sunday is Father's Day...and we'll celebrate grads through June 25th!!

3 NEW BEERS TO TRY THIS WEEK!!!!!

Ok, to kind of mix it up a bit, here are three new ones to try...

On Draft we now have Victory Brewing "Golden Monkey". Strong and sensual, this golden, Belgian-style ale glows with goodness. The richness of German malts and Belgian yeast are tempered by a sparkling approach and overall light body. Considerable depth of character with abundant herbal, fruity notes make this one to savor.

We also have on Draft one that I just had to get on for myself. McSorley's Ale. Yes THE McSorley's Ale, the same one flowing through the veins of the McSorley's Ale House in NYC....When John McSorley arrived in America in 1854, authentic Irish pubs were scarce. So he started his own and the rest is history. This timeless beer has quenched the thirst of thousands of New Englanders since 1854. No other domestic beer or ale can claim as old of an Irish-American heritage as McSorley's

And lastly is Founder's Brewing Co. "Centennial IPA". Selected as a benchmark for the Beer Judge Certification Program used in all American based beer judgings. Centennial IPA has quickly become the IPA of choice. Pour yourself a pint of this complex flavorful ale and bask in the frothy head?s floral bouquet. Relish the immense citrus accents, achieved by the abundance of dry hopping. This ale?s sweet, malty undertones balance the hop character with a finish that never turns too bitter.
Cheers!!!

b.

AIR CONDITIONING!

It's on it's way....We thank all of you who put up with us trying to cool you down with the little A/C we had and ton's of fan's! The Central A/c is on it's way though and should be up and running this week...This weather took us, just like everyone else, completely off guard. Even the bears were too hot to come rummaging through this weekend. Speaking of the bears, for those of you who don't know, we have an entire bear family living with us here behind Salt, so just use caution and common sense when out by our dumpsters, and feel free to take a pic!
b.

YOUR COMMENTS.....MY REPLIES......

This is certainly not done to offend anyone, so if you think it is directed at you ..it's not...It's just poking fun at: some of the comments we get, sometimes at myself, and sometimes just at how "funny" we can all be sometimes.

Let me start this by saying that if I took EVERYONES advice on how I should do things here...from the food, to the beer, to the wine, the decor, the side dishes, the outside, the lighting, the bears (yes, how to handle the BEARS), the glasses, the soda, the silverware, the tables, the music, the noise, the television and which channels should be on, the staff, the hours, our marketing, bread (or lack of), pickles,entertainment, the temp in the restaurant, the windows opened or closed, the parking, where we should advertise, what would help us, who we should buy from, .....well obviously I couldn't do that, now could I? So things I feel that we can, want to, and might help, well, we do.
I think I will pick one each time I come on here and address it, and since the last comment to me on here was about beer, and that is only one of many about the beer, I will tackle that one first. This is one that seems to baffle me. Now granted, we may not have every beer under the sun, and to some of you it is unfathomable that we don't have your favorites, but we can't. There is no doubt we have one of the best selections around, we offer 50 some odd bottled and 5 draft. Of the draft, none of them are your "budmillercoorslight" beers. I know, I know..Yeungling? Stella? But these are beers that people want, and a happy middle ground for the average person...the other three, Blue Star, Blue Moon, and Red Seal are solid beers. The bottle selection you can't touch around here. I know it may not have the depth that some of you may want and we don't have obscure beers (maybe not to you, but to the average human being) that only you and your friends may have heard of from all over this planet, but I think we have a pretty good list touching on most styles people are looking for. We can only offer so many, and they have to fall into a certain price point or I eat them. We are now bringing in a beer of the week, something to just mix up the selection a little..I know, I know, it's not the 35.00 a bottle aged chimay blue label or that beer from that obscure brewery on the outskirts of that obscure town in Austria...but it's fun, and it's different to be able to try affordable beers that you may not get anywhere else...and that's it. You may be saying, "well it's not hard, you just should bring in this or that and from here and there and this size and that size and this style and that style and this season and that season", and what not...we just aim to be a place that people can enjoy..period. We can't be everything to everyone...we just want to be a place that people can enjoy. Did I say that already....a place where neighbors can meet, eat, and drink...and enjoy. Don't take this the wrong way. We appreciate every last one of you, but like said, we can't be everything to everyone...so just enjoy!

And now on to the next one...... lol

b.

THIS WEEKS FEATURED BEER!

River Horse - Hop Hazard Lambertville, NJ

Hop Hazard is hand crafted with a rich malt base that counterbalances a combustible five-hop blend and still leaves your taste buds with enough room to enjoy a unique, dry-hopped finish. 5.5% abv

INTERESTING TOP CHEF RANT....

If Lisa Is Right, then the World Is Wrong and the World is Wrongo.

For a number of reasons this week, it occurs to me that maybe Earth is a crummy planet, or at least crummy to the extent it is inhabited by man. Our reign at the top of the food chain is near its end (Three fine examples of why may be found here and here and here) Last night's episode of Top Chef did little to reinvigorate my faith in man, mankind and man's kindness.

Lisa stays. Any creature with a heart and soul must agree that for Lisa, a human being riven with maggoty and fetid misery, to remain on the show for yet another episode does not bode well for our fate as a species. And yet, though it pains me to write it, Lisa stays. If Lisa is right side up, the world is upside down. Admittedly, in fairness, her food didn't seem that bad. (I lay the blame for this whole situation on last week's guest judge Tony Bourdain who axed Dale instead of Lisa in a fit of pique. Had the even-keeled Tom been there, this situation never would have arisen. Goddammit, TC! What charity was so important he had to miss his scheduled appearance on reality TV anyway?!!?!) Spike went home instead. He was always a bit of an idiot but really?. Lisa stays!?!? Ai!

Critics you might say that I only hear what I want to, that I don't listen hard. You might even say I don't understand if you really care, I'm only hearing negative. But no. No. No. There is hope yet. And it comes from the past, what was, and the future, what yet shall be. On this episode, former winners Harold, Ilan and Hung were guest judges. My optimism comes not in the form of Ilan who is still an unctuous twat nor Harold who is nice but boring but in the form of the once-vilified Hung. Shown outside the competition setting, Hung is elegant and smart and kind and charming. All the things that, in competition, he wasn't made out to be. This means two things: Maybe Lisa isn't actually as miserable a wench as she seems. Ah fuck it. She is. But it also means, that good can still win in this world. Indeed, it seems inevitable which is a good thing.

Think about it: Lisa is out next week. She has to be. She took Spike's job at the Manhattan restaurant, Mai House so you know girlfriend didn't win. That leaves Richard, Antonia and Stephanie as possible winners. All three are fundamentally solid people, good people. Sure Stephanie might be boringish; Antonia might be too much like an emo Helena Bonham Carter and Richard is called Blais (and not like Cendrars) and has a faux-hawk. But all three of them seem genuinely kind, enthusiastic, smart and talented chefs. They are mensches (menchiz?). Clinging to the assumption that Lisa is gone next week—an assumption that makes living possible—we can afford to be charitable and magnanimous in victory.Lisa's greatest or rather only contribution to the season is to cast the menschlekeit of her competitors into warmer contrast. That's why we need villains, to make heroes. But now that she's served her purpose, it's time for Lisa to pack her knives, her scowl and her hideous haircut and leave.


funny stuff....
b.

THIS WEEKS FEATURED BEER!

WALT WIT


The American poet Walt Whitman once portrayed a sunset over Philadelphia as, "...a broad tumble of clouds, with much golden haze and profusion of beaming shaft and dazzle." Pour yourself a bottle of Walt Wit Belgian-Style White Ale and see what he was talking about. A pinch of spice and a whisper of citrus lend complexity to this fragrant, satisfying ale.

Walt Wit - it's transcendentally delicious.

~5% abv.
Let us know what you think!
b.

PEOPLE SHARING THOUGHTS...

Here are just two thoughts shared with us this past week.

"This place will never make it without bread and butter".
"If you want this place to be busy you have to get Miller Genuine Draft bottles".


No disrespect to anyone at all....but I think we are going to roll the dice on these.

b.

REVIEW THE REVIEWER....

This is not meant in any way to slam Cody Kendall, nor is it meant to try to excuse any of the review she did on Salt this week....But, I have to share my thoughts about the review here. I know if I were a reader of this I would be sitting back saying "Yikes, I wish I were a fly on the wall in his house this morning".
First let me say that I didn't find the review that bad, 2 stars, not what I wanted or expected, but fair enough and we can fix what she thought might be broken. That being said...."WHAT THE FUCK CODY???" (and I mean no offense by that), but c'mon after 2 weeks of being open you do a review??? Any reviewer worth anything would give a place more time than that to get up and running, to find what is working and what isn't quite hitting the mark. That's my initial reply.....now for addressing the review itself.
I think in her first 2 or 3 paragraphs about English Pubs I saw where this was going. We are not an English Pub...nor English Gastropub for that matter. We are an American Gastropub. Claiming we are really a NJ Roadhouse Bar, she is kind of right...We are a NJ Gastropub, where we take food seriously a use ingredients that people are comfortable with and try to prepare them in an upscale way through technique, presentation, quality of ingredients and service. I think part of the problem was that we were not what she wanted us to be.
I am not going to knock at all the 2 stars nor her problems with the food,like I said, we can fix those things, and prior to this review even coming out most of the "problems" have been fixed. But to spend most of the review describing what we "are not" and not of what "we are" seems wrong. No "why is the bike outside?" "where did the name Salt come from?" "why the domestic wine list?" "why Byram?" "where did the 5ft painting of a salt shaker in the foyer come from?" "what's with the tutu on the wall?" "why classic movies on the two 42" tv's in the dining room?" "are the dessert's made in-house?" "are they hand-cut fries?" "are you supporting local farms and orchards?" (something gastropubs are known to do..keeping local) "what's with the staff uniforms?" Or how about more description of the foods? Did she only try 4 entrees? which would leave me to believe it was just one visit...And a review based on one visit? Is it not typical to come back at least twice if not numerous times to compare visits for consistency, good or bad...
As you can tell I feel we got a bad shake on this one,and it's not sour grapes, or even disappointment in her critique...It just seems we were a "phoned in" review which was a slap in the face to all of the staff who work hard and take alot of pride in their jobs, and that's disappointing. Just as she would expect good things from us because of our reputation at bula, I have come to expect good things from Cody Kendall, and the QUALITY of this review sucked. She should know better than to knock a place for not being what she wanted it to be, or what she thought it should be.....When you come to Salt we want people to enjoy what we ARE, not what we ARENT....And I think if people do, they will "get" us and love us, because speaking for myself, as well as all of our staff, we're proud of what we are doing here!
That's all. Anyone?
b.

OUCH....

OK, so the Star Ledger did their review of Salt this weekend....Was it what I would have wanted? No..but....
As far as reviews, you have to kind of take the good with the bad. You have to take what can be changed or needs to be changed and change it. You smile about the things that they liked, and you say "fuck it" to the things that you feel are what you are just not going to change.
By no means are we going to whine or make excuses for short-comings, like I said, those can be fixed....but as I have been doing all along here on the blog, I will give my take on the review, minus sour grapes, later today.
b.

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND...

Let's just remember why we celebrate!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENN!!!!!!!!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR JENNIFER
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

Everyone wish Jenn a Happy Birthday when you see her this weekend!
Here she is at Salt with her "birthday flourless chocolate cake" being serenaded by the staff!

THANKS FOR THE RESPONSES...

Boy this restaurant has aged me!! LOL
Thanks to all of you Salt fans out there....Boy, I asked for some feedback and you guys gave it to me. Thanks for the support and the re-affirmation that we are doing it right. We are constantly trying to get better and to offer a great experience, something you just can't get at those other places. We have a "waitstaff training" scheduled for today, and boy are they all excited, so Laurie and Jenn, as well as our friend Nick Cutrone will be running that. Tony is working on "specials" that we will be starting to run next week. I am trying to put together some fun "happenings" that we'll be doing at Salt. We are getting a huge amount of requests for a volleyball court out back...who knows, "Industry Nights" are still in the workings, culinary book group, Beer Club, running/riding club, building birdhouses, (not really)...speaking of birdhouses, if anyone knows where you can get "bat-houses please let me know, we could use a couple around the property!!
Again, thanks for all of the support, and we look forward to seeing ALL of you at Salt.
b.

LOOKING FOR SOME FEEDBACK HERE.....

I just read a post on Salt and had some questions for you that have been here.....

This is the post...

Wine list was sketchy, presentation wonderful, service good, appetizers tiny, entrees OK in size. Salmon smallish, chicken decent size. Odd combinations: if you are a meat and potato guy go somewhere else. Pricey

Here are my thoughts on it, and I would love feedback from anyone reading, maybe I don't see it...

First...wine list is sketchy..not sure what that is supposed to mean. We tried to touch on all of the major styles. We kept them in a reasonable price range. Have a great variety "by the glass". Tried to keep it mostly domestic to keep it more "local". And went with fairly big houses to keep it familiar but not mass produced crap.

Appetizers are tiny... any input?

Entrees OK in size... The entrees are all weighed out and are appropriate sizes, and what I think is a good value. We are definitely not Applebees with the bottomless bowl of food, nor do we want to be. We want people to be comfortable and satisfied and do so at a fair price, which I think we do.

Odd combinations.... Again not sure here.... Strip steak with fries and snap peas, grilled chicken with sweet potato, fish and chips, bowtie pasta with chicken and olives, hanger steak with mashed potato and slaw, these don't seem too far out to me...I understand its not chicken parmigiana, chicken marsala, penne' bolognese, and mounds of fried calamari or mozzarella sticks....but odd?

pricey? This one seems odd to me.....by no means are we the 36oz steak for 9.99 place, or again, the all you can eat pasta with a salad bar. We can't nor do we want to compete with "value meals". You don't get a toy or and kind of frequent eater points here. No super-sized meals. No all you can eat shrimp. I think like I said before that we want people to leave comfortable and satisfied and do so at a reasonable price...This is how small businesses stay in business, and why we are being taken over by the box places......We appreciate all of you who support us and understand that....I would love any feedback on this. Like I said, maybe I just don't see it through your eyes. If things need to be tweaked I will certainly do so. Thanks all!
b.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIRK....

Another local restaurant celeb......Kirk Avondoglio celebrated his 30th birthday with us last night here at Salt....Here he is with his beautiful wife Mary and friend George Giller.

b.

SO, YOU WANT TO OWN A RESTAURANT...

These are just some thought that ran through my head when I spoke with someone in the not so distant past about the restaurant biz. Their comment was, in summary, I am going to buy a restaurant because I want to have fun. (And this person did just that, buy a restaurant that is). First and foremost, don't get into, at least not the ownership end, the restaurant business "TO Have Fun"...It's not! Don't get me wrong, there are fun days, and fun moments. You get to meet alot of interesting people, you get to share with people some of their happiest moments, you are thrust into a spotlight at times. Now, that being said.....you will give up basically every holiday, you will work long hours, usually 7 day's a week, you will work every weekend, you will miss important family times. There are NO sick days. You will be relentlessly abused by the public telling you everything you did wrong, why should they wait, why do you do things THAT way, you should do it THIS way. It was too cold in the dining room and I think you should comp our dinner. This is not risotto, I belong to a cooking club and I know risotto, this is not risotto. It was too warm in the dining room and I think you should comp our dinner. I don't like peanut butter but I will try the peanut butter pie for dessert.....I didn't like it and don't want to pay for it. People will steal every and anything they can from the restaurant. They will do un-mentionable things to the bathrooms, drink too much and throw up at their table (this HAS happened),in corners, in foyers, or anywhere else. The music sucks. There are parents who allow their children free range of the restaurant, screaming, running around, throwing food. You will literally be attacked by the local PTA's, the Tricky Tray people, every local, state, regional, national, international, and universal charity and be expected to donate to each and every one and if you don't, it is promised that they will bad mouth you as loud as they possibly can to anyone that will listen. Anyway, I could probably go on for day's about this kind of stuff.....but getting back to my point, DON"T get into the restaurant business to have fun. Be in it because in spite of all of that stuff you love it. And in some sick and twisted way you actually love all of that stuff as well..I didn't get into this business to have fun, but man do I have fun! So "Thank You" to all of you crazy people that make my life fun, that have kept me in this biz for the past 28 years......SO, YOU WANT TO OWN A RESTAURANT? "LOL"

b.

JUST IN...TOP CHEF....

Just to add some juice to the Top Chef stuff...I just read that Drew Nieporent, the man behind Tribeca Grill, Montrachet, Nobu..just to name a few, had hired "TOP CHEF" Spike Mendelsohn to man the stoves at the place he opened in Nov called Mai House. No sooner was Spike in that he was out and replaced by......none other then Lisa Fernandes...YES, THAT Lisa....just makes for interesting conversation.

A HAPPY CUSTOMER...

After a long night out with Mom & Dad ! Thanks guys for joining us tonight! And may there be visions of Salt Shakers dancing in her head....

REQUESTS...

"local beer"
"more menu items"
"bread"
"larger servings"
"more vegetarian choices"
"peanut butter pie"
"more choices for people with allergies"
"particular beers"
"different chairs"
"louder music"
"different hours"
"reservations"
"no foul language on the blog"
"more lighting"
"less lighting"
"different fish in the fish and chips"
"more "gluten free" choices"
"live music"

These are just the requests I can remember off the top of my head...
and though we do try to listen to what people want and we certainly welcome suggestions, we have come to realize that there is no way we can please "everyone".
We certainly want "everyone" to enjoy themselves, and we try to accommodate "everyone", but if we try to please one we will undoubtedly offend someone else. That being said we have decided to stick with just being "US", and we hope that everyone understands that. So if you have made a request, it's not that we didn't care, it's merely that we are just going to be "US" and hope that people like "US" as "US". Not to say that we don't want suggestions, if there is any way we can make "everyones" experience better we would love to do it, and we are more than open to listening, we just don't want to offend anyone that didn't see the change that "they" wanted. Cheers!
b.

GREAT NIGHT..

Another fantastic night here at "chez Salt". Thank you to all who are supporting us and showing us love! Tonight we were host to a book group dinner, some young culinary students, local teachers, and just alot of happy people. We also had the NJ Star Ledger in taking photos for something upcoming. We were also contacted by NJ Magazine for something for them in the future. There has also been alot of interest in forming a bike club, which with combining forces with Cycle Works up the street will hopefully come about real soon. They're doing real cool stuff over there and were hoping to put something together with them, so if you're interested drop us a line and I'll keep you updated.

TOP CHEF...

I'm on top of things this week!

Soooo....it's about time that crackhead Andrew finally met his demise.
One thing of note, as we were all watching at the bar last night, we all commented on the total lack of respect of the panel this season. From season 1, where it was basically "yes chef" "no chef", to this kind of arrogance and talking back. If they don't get a grip on that right away I think the show is down the shitter. I have to say, I love the show, but the inconsistency in judging and the attitude and arrogance of the "chef's" is spiraling downward. To add to that, what the fuck is Sam doing as a guest judge...what has Sam done that they would put him in with the likes of Daniel Boulud, Rocco (though his talent is questionable, he has been successful), Bourdain, amongst others top in the field. Correct me if I am wrong but Sam cam to the show as a "cook", didn't make it into the top 3 of his show, as far as I know has not done anything worth mentioning since the show and is brought back as a JUDGE!?!? So if you are "sexy" you get to judge I guess? Hmmmmm, there goes that spiraling motion I was talking about....If I were one of the contestant's I would have been like "what the fuck?" this guy is only one step away from where they are, and as far as a couple of them maybe even a few steps behind!! Oh well, it's only tv, right?

So I was happy to see Andrew go this week, and was glad to see the judges finally stuck to the rules "they" layed out, that if you don't follow the rules, you don't move on, no matter how good or bad, or how bad anyone else sucked...they have seemed to have a problem with that rule in the past.
As far as next week, I think we will be saying good bye to Lisa. But if you have been going by my picks, forget about it, I've sucked this season!
b.

TOP CHEF.....

Alright, I know I am almost a week late on this...but after watching it again on TIVO here is my take on last weeks Top Chef.

The quickfire challenge this week was a fav...the relay race really kind of shows what these guys are about..if you can't do these basic skills, and do them well, as Dale said about Nikki "why are you still here?" And that ended up ringing true.
Antonia...cmon, how long does it take to peel and supreme (section) 5 oranges....you suck! Now the fish on the other hand..damn, Dale and Richard I have to say really kicked ass...that was pretty impressive.

Wedding Wars....It was a good challenge, but it seemed that the bride and groom were pretty lame in their wants....damn, if I was getting married and was going to have the Top Chef tv show cater it I would call them out, I would want to challenge these guys to put out the best, to really impress. Pizza? filet? seemed more like high school prom food....but thats just me.
And what is with Andrew....with this challenge "I have a culinary boner"..You are a culinary boner Andrew! C'mon Spike...what is rapini? ? (rapini is just another name for broccoli rabe)
It also seemed very obvious that Nikki was "in Charge" whether she liked it or not, and she should have stepped up...you know she would have taken credit if everything had turned out well. Dale whined about doing almost "everything" but almost "everything" sucked.
All of that said, I wasn't sad to see Nikki go, but if they were being consistent and this wasn't for TV, I think it probably should have been Dale last week, just based on the challenge at hand, but Dale makes good TV and he is overall one of the stronger ones....but.

One last thing...Is it just me or does it seem Padma has packed on some serious pounds this season. Not in a bad way. It looks like she has been seriously hitting the gym....huge guns on her, and slightly larger in other areas as well. She actually looks human now as opposed to anorexic. Just my opinion!
b.

RANDOM THINGS..

-Answer to question on application "Desired Salary" - 1,000,000 ! (for real)
there is something to be said about honesty, unfortunately that is not "you're hired".
-That picture does not go with the theme of the decor. (The semi-nude girl at the bar)
-"If you put Smithwicks on tap I will get a cot and live here"
-"Just because you don't drink anymore doesn't mean you can't taste"
-"what exactly is potato puree'?"
-We had a visit from the "3 bears" this week. Apparently they really like fryer oil. We left three 5 gallon tubs of the stuff by the dumpster for the garbage pick-up, next day there was 1. I followed the grease trail into the woods and up a rock, and sure enough there were the empty containers. Man, the belly aches those guys must have had the next day....and the mess they must have been making in the woods. Watch where you step.
-Top chef this Wed nite at the bar..10:00.... I will actually post my comments on last weeks episode later tonight when I watch it again on TIVO. Things have just been so hectic these past few Weeks that I haven't been able to gather many thoughts, or find the time to get them down on here......but From here out I will be trying to come on each night after service just to put down something, just for my own journal of this craziness...and if you want to read it, comment on it, ignore it, or whatever it will be here!

Just to all reading, keep in mind that this is no reflection on or advertising for the restaurant, it is merely my ramblings and comments on life in and out of the restaurant. If you are easily offended or don't find slightly off color things, foul language, references to drugs or alcohol or sex or anything else that could make this an NC17 blog..then be warned....
b

HIGH SCHOOL BUDDIES...

Little did I know just how "buddy" these two were. Tommy and Eddie were inseparable and still are after all those years. I love these guys and I'm just glad to see them happy, and thanks for "coming out" to Salt!

Ok...just kidding. Tommy is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Healy of Lovey's fame and Eddie is their un-adopted son, needless to say I spent some time with these guys growing up, working, and getting into trouble, so it was great to see them in Salt (with their beautiful WIVES!)

CONGRATS TO THE SUMSKI CLAN!!

That's right...a big THUMB'S UP to you Jay! Congratulations on your 10# bundle of joy, and thanks for spending a night with us here at Salt.(the night before...I like to think we played a small part in realxing you guys and helping make the whole birthing much easier) Jay and his beautiful wife gave birth to a healthy baby this week. Congrats to the entire Sumski Family!
b.

MORE GOING'S ON..

This was a photo shoot we had set up for our, as Jeremiah so eloquently put it, "Food Porn", which I have to admit it did kind of look like a porn set in the back of the restaurant Tuesday evening. These pics will be making it onto the web-site, and who knows, maybe into the "Salt-gastropub" book. Tony and the kitchen did a great job on the food and John Anderson & Justin Johnson really captured what we are doing here (thanks guys......they are the magic behind the web-site), and without any manipulation....just clean food done perfect and presented beautifully....Tony at his best!

GOING'S ON AT SALT..

I have to say I was thrilled to see these two at MY place....These are our local celebs, Mr. & Mrs. Healy. They were the owners of the famous "Lovey's" restaurant in Byram for years, as well as the "Seafood Shak" in Randolph. They also happen to be my first "bosses" as I was a dishdog as well as a busboy for them at both places. It's kind of nice to see the passing of the baton so to say, and obviously they were people that I hold in high respect and were great role models. But as I also told Mr. Healy that afternoon, I should strangle him for giving me the restaurant "bug". Nahh, I love what I do, and I thank them for setting me on this rocky road straight to HELL, and for probably shaving 20 years off my life, and for my early gray hair, and my anxiety, my nasty habits, my mouth, and for introducing me to a career that I wouldn't change for the world....if you're reading this.."THANKS"!
b

SOME ANSWERS...

Here are just some answers to comments or questions I have gotten from through replys on the blog...

Let me just start by saying that I am not trying to offend anyone, and that the blog was just started as a way for me to journal and let the few people that cared to know about what was going on here in touch. The blog was not meant to be in any way any sort of advertising or way of portraying Salt. That being said the blog is just me being me, if it is taken as unprofessional or offensive I am sorry that anyone takes it that way. If anyone knows Myself or Laurie, or bula, you know that we run a very professional business, but you will also know that I have always stayed true to myself, and have learned doing so goes a long way.
I know more people would like to see me on the floor and talking with the customers and introducing myself, I understand that. My being on the floor at all is a huge step for me, being out in the dining room is a huge step out of my comfort zone. I do know that it sometimes comes off cold or not caring and it could not be further from that. I appreciate every single person that comes in and want everyone that comes here to enjoy themselves and enjoy what we've created, but by my nature I am a social reject, it really takes alot for me to just introduce myself...there I admit it!!! So if it is taken in any way as not caring I apologize, I am trying. (I know this kind of goes against the personality of a restaurant person, but that is why most chef's enjoy the kitchen, it is the rare chef who ventures into the dining room).
I have to run now and get to work, though I will post again tonight for anyone that cares. And for those that do get offended there is www.saltgastropub.com
b.

A WEEK IN REVIEW..

WOW....... What a fucking whirlwind. So,big "THANK YOU" to all of you who joined us this week at Salt. We got tons of feedback and learned alot this week. With that we took everything in that was thrown at us, what worked really well, what didn't. What you all liked, and what you hated. Where we lacked and where we were strong. We really do appreciate feedback, it's the only way we get better and give what you want, that being said, we have to weigh everything and still stay true to what We are doing here.
First..we want to clarify one thing from the get go....

WE ARE NOT BULA!...Bula is under new ownership and they are doing a great job over there. We are also not doing the "bula-thing" here. We are doing the "SALT-thing" here! Salt is supposed to be a layed-back relaxed place, a pub, with excellent food, friendly service, great music, great atmosphere,....a real sense of community...that is who we are! We want you to feel like this is YOUR place and when you are here you can RELAX. Period.

ok, now that is out of the way!

So we took a bit of a beating this week, though we were real happy with everything, we were far from perfect. This was to be expected, being our first week, and like I said we will work on everything...If you guys aren't happy, why are we here? We also realize we can't please everyone, though we will try our best, we can't be everything to everyone....we are Salt and we'll be the best damn Salt we can! LOL

Note right off the bat the change in our hours....they will now be
tue - fri 11:00 - Late
sat 2:00 - Late
sun 2:00 - 8:00

There will also be a few menu changes on the way.
We also know that at times service was slow for some of you, and we apologize for that, it is something that we think we have addressed, and something we will continually be working on! (We fired everyone) NOOOO.....Kidding..... We are actually very happy with the staff and how they are working together. We just needed to tweak some positions and what not. Believe me, I am not one to make excuses for bad service, or anything else, but bear with us and we promise to give you our best!

Now...WITH ALL OF THAT BEING SAID....... GO RANGERS!!!!!

b.

TOP CHEF NIGHT...

Wed night. Our first TOP CHEF NIGHT, so any of you TC fans that want to gather and watch come on down....10pm - 11pm right here at chez Salt. To make it even better we will be serving $2 Stella's at the bar from 9:30pm - 11:30pm. Some come cheer on you fav (Spike) or put some kind of voodoo curse on your least (Lisa, Andrew)! Hope to see you here.
b.

RANGERS.....OH BOY

Ok, so there were a few of you here to help me watch my Rangers set themselves up in a great position to show just how good they really are. After allowing themselves to get into a 3-0 hole to Pitt, now is when they will turn it on to show all the world they are Stanley Cup worthy......We will gather once again at the bar Thursday night at 7:05, and we will prevail, and we will laugh at the nay-sayers, and we will raise a glass to the mighty blue shirts at they plow there way back through the lowly penguins. ( Then reality will probably have to set in and we will have to come to the conclusion that they blew it again ) GO BLUE!
B.

THANK YOU!

Thank you to all of you who joined us last night here at Salt, it was a great opening. In spite of the crappy weather and being a Monday you all ventured out to help us open and we appreciate it! To those of you who haven't made it in yet we look forward to seeing you! We had a few minor glitches last night, to be expected on an opening night, but all in all we were real happy with everything, the staff was great, the kitchen rocked and all of you made it a great night! Pics are coming!
So now is when the real stories begin, and boy will there be alot...and I have to say i look forward to them, even if they stress me out, drive me insane and make me wonder why i chose this profession. Each of those stories though..be it dealing with the public, dealing with staff, dealing with my own insanity or what ever else goes on in the day of a restaurant it's what makes me tick, and I look forward to giving you all a glimpse into what a day is like in a restaurant! *Warning to the faint of heart*- there is usually foul language involved, and sometimes references to things some may find offensive....but fuck it, that's what the restaurant business is all about and what has kept me in it for 25+ years.

"OPEN" - ITS OFFICIAL

Salt is SOOOOOOOOOO happy to announce that WE ARE NOW OPEN. As of 5:00 this afternoon we are off and running. Its been a long haul, but we are there and can't wit to see you all and show you what we've been working on all this time. Now granted, the weather is shitty, and it is a Monday night, but come on down for a cold beer, a great meal, and what we hope will be a great night out. See ya here!
b

WHY SALT ?

Salt of the Earth - Rolling Stones

Let's drink to the hard working people
Let's drink to the lowly at birth
Raise your glass to the good and the evil
Let's drink to the SALT of the earth

Say a prayer for the common foot soldier
Spare a thought for his back breaking work
Say a prayer for his wife and his children
Who burn the fires and who still till the earth

When I search a faceless crowd
A swirling mass of gray and black and white
They don't look real to me
In fact they look so strange

Raise your glass to the hard working people
Let's drink to the uncounted heads
Let's think of the wavering millions
Who need leaders but get gamblers instead

Spare a thought for the stay at home voter
Empty eyes gaze at strange beauty shows
And a parade of the gray suited grafters
A choice of cancer or polio

And when I look into the faceless crowd
A swirling mass of grays and black and white
They don't look real to me
Oh don't they look so strange

Let's drink to the hard working people
Let's think of the lowly at birth
Spare a thought for the rag taggy people
LET'S DRINK TO THE SALT OF THE EARTH

****NEWS FLASH****

Ok, so here it is for all and any whom care to know, and I assume you all do since you are reading this blog.

Salt's long awaited opening is upon us....Monday April 28th at 5:00pm! So there it is, and as official as it gets. The Monday is only this week, our normal day of rest will be Monday's.

Salts hours will be
Tue - Sat 11:00am until "Late" lunch 11-4 Dinner 5-11
Sunday 12:00pm until "Late" serving from 12-8
Bar menu is available from open - close

We will be starting with 5 draft beers until our new system is installed next week which will then bring it to 10 drafts. Our bottle selection is 52 beers.

Everything can be checked out at the web-site www.saltgastropub.com

Thanks so much to all for all of the interest, we cannot wait to get open and start doing what we do! Come on in and say Hi and enjoy a cold beer, a 4 star meal, and a smiling (they better be) staff. And don't worry, we will still serve you at the bar during the hockey playoffs even if you aren't a Blueshirt fan.

Stay tuned for special nights and groups we will be having at Salt! "Membership has it's privileges."

"Go Rangers"

b.

TOP CHEF RANT....

Bye Jennifer! This actually shocked the hell out of me. Though I think their dish sucked, and they really had the opportunity to do something incredible with orange/asparagus/turned-on. They blew it! No pun intended. Another thing is, how did they find Jennifer to be more responible for the shitty dish than Stepanie? But at least they used the ingredients that were chosen. Lisa and Antonia on the other hand didn't even use the main ingredient of their challenge. And Lisa's attitude just sucks; just kind of bitchy/whiny/not fair attitude...go home!
Start with the quick fire challenge..... My picks for "suck" or at least "weak" were Lisa-just seemed real lame and amateur; fruit/yogurt/fried wonton skin, Andrew-weak, banana-chocolate ravioli topped with sugar...Mark-he seems to go off on these composed dishes, and they never seem to work for him. Though i did like Richards banana-scallops.
All of that being said...Every week it gets re-enforced how much I can't stand Andrew, and I could not even imagine working with this ass-wipe in a kitchen. I have really grown to dis-like Lisa, just way to defensive and combative about EVERYTHING! and looking at everything as being unfair or fixed("I'm not going to use some ingredient that some drunken schmuck shouts out"). Mark I think has yet to bring much of anything to the table. Antonia I don't get at all, just don't see her bringing anything to the show, entertainment nor talent. Nikki I think is just hanging by the skin of her teeth....Leaving us with Stephanie, Richard, Dale and Spike, whom I think all bring something to the show....They are all talented and all bring some sort of entertainment value....so there are my Top 4! Next week my pick for saying bye bye has got to be Mark!
So much more to say, but I'm tired tonight!

THE SKINNY ON THE OPENING....

We are still waiting!Though hopefully only one more day. The last of the cement is being poured in the septic construction, the surveyor has surveyed, the engineer is engineering as we speak, we are hoping tomorrow morning the electrician will be finished electrifying, that the Health Inspector does her inspecting, and that Byram will issue us a C.O.! Once again we are awaiting the perfect storm. Waiting to see it all come together at the same time at the same place and in the end shoot out this thing called SALT. If, and I repeat and boldly say "IF" this were to all come together, and the God's are smiling upon us, and everyone is in a good mood, and I wake up and tie my shoes right, and the planets are aligned, and my tele-kinetic forces are working properly, and I meditate into depths as yet unknown to me then we shall open for Saturday Dinner, April 26. That is a huge IF. If not, we are looking for a Tuesday opening. I will keep everyone informed!
The "oh so soft" opening on Sunday and Monday went great. Tony was putting amazing things out of the kitchen, and everyone really seemed to be enjoying the new digs. We were also honored to have a cherished family friend Fr. Angelus Croce (whom by the way is celebrating his 50th year in the priesthood this Sunday, a huge anniversary! We will be celebrating with him on Sunday.) bless Salt this past Monday night. And I can't say more than "it was truly a blessing"! So we thank Fr. Ang for doing that for us, and thank those that also took part in that!
b.

AND THE COUNTDOWN CONTINUES...

SOOOO......Here's the skinny. We were able to have a VERY soft opening this past Sunday and Monday for family. It allowed our staff to get familiar with each other and how things are going to run at Salt, as well as allowing the kitchen to get into the swing of things with how the flow is going to work. Things went incredibly well. The entire front of the house; bus-people, waitstaff, and bartenders all did great and all seemed to click. As far as the kitchen, Tony was putting out incredible food alongside Jeremiah and the crew, both looking and tasting great. So at this point we are dead on for our full opening. So here is where we are at...

Tomorrow morning we are scheduled for our final inspection with the Health Dept. assuming all things go well with that we are looking for our Opening Night to be Thursday Evening at 5:00. But until we actually have word from the Health Dept. we are in a holding pattern!
We are keeping our fingers crossed, but tune in here to find out the exact time and date!
Tonight at some point I will get on here to give you all the low-down on the down-low soft opening the past two nights!
Don't forget...Wed evenings will be our "Top-Chef" parties at Salt! We will also have the Hockey Playoffs going on in the bar area every night through the "Lord Stanley's Cup", when I am more than confident it will be presented to Mr Shanahan, Mr. Jagr and the rest of the 2008 Stanley Cup winning NY RANGERS!!!!!
b.

TOP CHEF RANT...

Sorry for my Thursday post on Friday...for anyone out there who really gives a crap about my opinion on Top Chef....but i have to put it off for just a bit longer....we are in the midst of absolute hell here trying to get this thing off the ground. My "perfect storm" the other day actually went perfect with just a horrific ending. the day went as planned and everyone showed up and did their thing.....then the inspectors came! I'll keep you hanging on the edge of your seat to hear about that! Check back tonight for all the latest fun and escapades here at Salt. And maybe you could send a card my way. Send it to Morristown Memorial Hospital, just address it to the guy in the psych ward who shaved his body and was found running northbound on 206 completely naked except for the pink tu-tu, and speaking in some sort of foreign language yet unknown....it will get to me!
b.

MY "PERFECT STORM".......

Here is how tomorrow morning must go in order for this whole thing to work....(all of this because my friggin'gosh darn gas guy this morning totally screwed me by not finishing what he had come out to do.)
8:30 am gas guy MUST drop off the gas valve needed. 9:00 am plumber MUST be there to hook up valve so that at 9:30 my Service Plus guys can (MUST) be there to hook up and test all of the equipment. 10:00 am my hood guy MUST be there so that at 10:30 (my scheduled time) the Fire Inspector can check our fire suppression system and give us the nod to get this beast open. And this is just a day in the life. I can't make this shit up! Stay tuned to see what happens.
b.

BIG DAY IN SALT HISTORY..

Today the entire kitchen will be installed and running. Tim the electrician did his final work last night by finishing the electric on the hood. Gas lines are being installed this morning, equipment is all in place and being connected. Dishwasher is being finished. Oh what a glorious day. Back to what we do best, and hopefully time to bury the hammer! Tune in later tonight to see just how fucked up one simple day can be.....or....(and hopefully)tune in to hear just how sweet it is to be back in business and doing what we were put on this earth to do! I will update this tonight, or possibly as we go along if the day warrants it!
b.

OH SO CLOSE...

We're almost there. Here is a pic of the new entrance, we love it! The official (as official as we as we can be) opening is set for April 22 (assuming all inspections go as we hope). That puts us at about 7 weeks behind our original schedule. Which I guess in contractor and trades-guys world that means we are actually ahead of the game. Not to say that is what held us up, just saying they probably have a more realistic idea of how these things progress. So, that being said, I guess we are right on schedule. That is just one of the things I have learned through this process.... I have also learned more than I would have ever liked to know about new septic systems. Though I love DeJohn (our septic company), and can't say enough about the job they do, if I never see them ever again in my life I would be happy. That is from across a leech field or looking up into a tractor of some sort....I will be happy when I am actually looking across the bar at them and we're all getting a good laugh at this whole debacle we call 76ers.
Enough babbling here for now...I GOTTA GET TO WORK!
b.

TOP CHEF RANT...

Poor Zoi. But-No room for babies in the kitchen. It seemed quite clear from just a few minutes into the elimination challenge that Zoi should and probably would be on the block.
First things first...It was a great quickfire challenge. This is one that they should have right at the beginning and anyone that gets under 80%...GONE. C'mon, if this is what you do for a living, and for most of us live and breathe this biz, you better be able to differentiate between quality and crap MOST of the time. For Stephenie to get only 6 of 15, and then to say "well, I never do good in the quickfire challenges." What? This was you against yourself, no-one else...you better do good, this is a measure of knowledge and taste, not skill or pressure. Lame. Now Antonia (whom I picked to lose this week, I suck) was right on solid...12 of 15, that's impressive!
Back to the elimination challenge. Richard, in all of his culinary gadgetry, and scientific wizardry didn't scale his fish properly (don't they make some sort of figga ma jigga to just remove the scales magically? Cook dude, this is not science, this is called "culinary art", and scaling the fish is one of the fundamentals! Should be mastered before you ever learn how to sous vide! As far as Team Earth, I think Antonia was right on with their dish, they just fucked it all up. Great idea, bad execution. I think Tom and Ming were full of shit that he thought a soup was perfect. I think if anyone lamed out and made a soup for their dish they would have been beaten down. They always say, "lay it out there", "was that what you thought would impress?", "don't go for the safe dish, go for a winning dish", "Top chef, not Top cook". Again, a hypocrisy, soup would have been a "safe" and lame dish to try to win. Andrew I still think is an ass and rides coat-tails, though this week I would not have wanted to have been on them. In the end, Zoi deserved to go. More than Spike, or Richard, or Mark, or Ryan...not sure about that, but she deserved to go none the less. The drama is starting to get good though, and i loved Lisa's reaction to "her chef" being "fired"...she is one tuff cookie! My pick for next week....Andrew. Not much talent and talks alot of smack.
b.

YABBA-DABBA-DOO

Well, it is official. We FINALLY received our liquor license from the state, which took forever for no other reason than it was a state thing. Big government, boy, you've gotta love it! That being said a HUGE thank you to the Byram Town Council for getting together and approving that for us last night. Again, I can't say enough about working with Byram, they have really been great to work with. So if Doris and Jill, you are reading, this..Thank You!
Things are going at full steam right now. Gas line is being put in the kitchen, the hood is in its final stage of installation, our service techs from "Service Plus" have been out to deal with our equipment. Rich, our Plumber from "Reliable Plumbing" has just about finished all of the plumbing work. John, from "Crossroads Construction" is doing his finishing work on both the inside and outside. And John from "DeJohn Equipment Co." in Hopatcong who is putting in our septic, and been put through more than any one man should ever be put through for what should have been a straight-forward installation, is getting a wee bit closer to finishing. I thank all of them for working hard to try and get this whole thing going. So right now it seems the OFFICIAL PUBLIC OPENING IS APRIL 22!!!!!
Last night was "Project Self-Sufficiency" Taste of Talent at Perona Farms. And as always it was a blast and a well run event. These things are just loads of fun. It gives us the opportunity to talk with all of you who attend and see you all outside of the restaurant, as well as giving us time to meet with the other chef's, both local and not so local. So its a fun time for us to kind of just shoot the shit about biz and what not. For us it was also our public debut with Salt, giving us the opportunity to talk to everyone about our "New Thing" and introduce Tony, our new chef and Jennifer our Manager. It really went well and got us real excited to get this thing open! It was also a great time for us to talk about our "Industry Night" to everyone in the "Industry". For those of you in the biz, these are really going top be fun nights, hope to see you all there. So stay tuned for info on that. Another idea that came up and could be lots of fun is "Top Chef Nights" Every Wed. at 10 to get together have a few drinks and cheer and jeer at these guys. Could be lot's of fun.
One last thing, I was in last week talking with Frank and John over at "Cycle Works" down the street a little ways in Byram..Great guys, and what a biz, really really cool. They are interested in working at some level with us as far as a biking group, or just a place to gather after a ride. So if anyone is interested let us know. Running season is also upon us with lot's of organized runs all over the place. We'd really like to put together a group of people, at all levels, just for the camaraderie of running together and then gathering together for fun times. Shoot us an e-mail if you're interested.
Well that's the update for today.....
b.

BUDDHISM, OLD AGE, I CAN'T EXPLAIN IT...

Old age must slowly be creeping up on me. I sat down last night to write up a post. It was a post on a dinner that Laurie and I went to with two good friends to a local restaurant. Over dinner we all decided that the place was really worthy of an unbelievably in depth post about how bizarre the entire evening was. The menu was insane, the service was sloppy at best, the food was mediocre, place was just a huge mess, not literally, but decor was kind of every decade (from the mid 1700's to present) and genre (80's bar scene, revolutionary muskets, stuffed game fish, gumball machine, period furniture) mashed into each room. The food sounded fairly straight-forward until it listed ingredients that were just very bizarre combinations...ok, enough, enough, this is what I am trying to avoid. So anyway. I sat down last night and typed out this very detailed evening that we all experienced, and it read like a novel, a very bizarre Hunter Thompson/ Brett Easton Ellis/Quentin Tarantino type of novel (that truly is how bizarre the whole thing was). Then it hit me. I can't be like those people that I hate. I think the owners, and I am sure the chef, are very proud of their restaurant. It was clean, the food was prepared well, they had ideas, maybe poorly executed, but ideas. They obviously cared, and who am I to judge them. I never wish anything but the best for people that actually care about their businesses, Lord knows we put our heart and souls, not to mention every penny we have into these things. That being said, I wish nothing but the best for these guys, again, who am I to say whether something will work or not. This is a change of heart for me, usually I am one to share my opinion with anyone that will listen (or not listen), and this time it just didn't feel right...had they been rude, or the place filthy, or the food rancid, or anything that would have given a hint that these people didn't care and were just hoping to make a quick buck on unsuspecting diners I would be the first to share and to warn every and any one. That just wasn't the case. So I will keep the name to myself and keep the details of the evening to just this, the chips will fall where they will....Not sure if it's old age or all of these Buddhist studies and meditation, perhaps no longer drinking, I don't know, I can't explain...but it feels better.
b.

THURSDAY'S TOP CHEF RANT..

Bye Manuel...and we hardly knew ya! Really! We hardly knew ya, which is one reason he is probably gone, he brought nothing to the table or the show. But if it were really based on talent there is no doubt there could have been other choices to send packing....say...Ryan. Antonia. Zoi. Maybe even Andrew. But each of them bring something to the table (except maybe Antonia, who was my pick this week by the way.)
I thought the quickfire challenge last night was tough, but thought they all kind of did well on that. The elimination challenge though should have been an opportunity for each of them to shine, and in my opinion, the only ones who really ran with it were Richard, Andrew, and Dale. Though for the same reason that Manuel was booted, for following blindly, so went Andrew with Richard. Fortunately for Andrew, Richard is much better then Spike so he was safe. I also felt that Spike and Manuel showed much more technique and skill with their dish then Zoi and Antonia, c'mon...It shouldn't have come down to how much of your budget you spent over how well you executed your dish. Anyway it was fun to see Daniel....The guy is just a culinary God, and seeing him on shows like that make me realize what an experience it was being able to have worked with him for as long as I did.....
For next weeks pick I am going to have to stick with Antonia, though I don't think Zoi or Ryan have much longer either..
b.

UPDATE...

Sorry these are getting longer in between posts, it just means we are busier both physically and mentally as the opening is approaching. Just to keep everyone in the loop...We have officially started our front of the house training this week. It got off to a bit of a slow start but perked right up on day 2 due to some ice breaking games that Laurie and Jen came up with (something about toilet paper and mummies..as you can see above) Today is training for group 2 front of the house as well as our first kitchen meeting. So as you can see, things are moving along. Septic has hit some glitches but we're back on track with that. Plumbers have been on the job and are finishing up there stuff. So we are "Oh So Close"!!

TWO SALT CONGRATS THIS WEEK...

Happy Birthday to Laurie and
Congrats to Jeremiah and Susie on the birth of their healthy baby yesterday!!

Salt will be making it's debut at this years "Taste of Talent" benefit for Project Self Sufficiency at Perona Farms on Monday April 7th. So if any of you out there are attending stop by and say "HOWDY" we'd love to see you!
b.

A FEW MENU ITEMS....

The menus are finally done and ready to go. This is how they will play out.
Open Tue - Sun
Bar menu- will be offered from 11am until close, all day
Lunch menu- will be offered from 11am until 4pm
Dinner menu- will be offered from 5pm until 11pm

BAR MENU

Olive & feta tapenade with pita crisps
Goat cheese quenelles with a raspberry balsamic reduction and poached pear
Flight of pub sliders (3) with roasted tomato aioli, chipotle aioli, Guiness onions
Salt fries, hand cut and tossed with sea salt
Meatloaf sandwich (chilled) with smash potato and house ketchup on crisp french bread
Cheese plate with a fresh fruit compote and pickles
Boiled eggs

LUNCH MENU

Shrimp Po'boy with lettuce, tomato, pickles, and a srirachi aioli
Turkey club with a sundried tomato aioli and candied bacon
Chilled roasted vegetable salad with goat cheese and sunflower seeds
Bar-b-que pulled pork sandwich with house slaw
Tofu saute', cornmeal crusted with spring herbs and baby greens
Country French salad; baby greens,chunks of crisp bread,olives,red onion,sundry toms

DINNER MENU

apps.
Steamed pot; clams,cockles,mussels in hearty fish broth with crisp bread
Risotto of the day
"Bloody" prawns;skewered,panko crusted with a bloody mary dipping sauce, celery stalks
Baked caesar with beer battered anchovy, baguette croutons and lemon/parm vinaigrette

entree
Rack of lamb,mustard crusted with apple risotto and a cider reduction
Grilled strip steak with brussel sprouts,fries,and a red wine reduction
Mixed Grille,lamb chop,banger,and hanger steak with house kraut and home made mustard
Blue moon chicken, orange/blue moon lager marinated with sweet potato smash
Carbonara pasta with crisp pork and bacon in parm cream topped with sunny side up egg
Fish & Chip...our spin on the "Classic"
Pan seared scallops tossed with lemon and mint with pignoli nuts and white wine
Pub burger flight (3)

Well, there it is, that is just a sampling of the menu which will be posted in it's entirety on the web-site www.saltgastropub.com very soon. What do you think so far??
b.