Gordon Ramsay At the London - New York

Here it is, the night after Halloween, and we couldn't ask for better weather to hop on the train and head to Manhattan to celebrate our anniversary, albeit a few days late. But with busy schedules, it made perfect sense to save a special celebration for a weekend night!

Tonight we are dining at Gordon Ramsay At the London. We are both huge fans of Chef Ramsay, and we have wanted to dine here for months. I originially wanted to bring Zelda here for her birthday, but I had no idea that you have to book 2 months in advance, to the day. That being said, I made our reservation first thing on the morning of September 1st, and here we are.

Upon arriving at The London, you will see the bar and restaurant "Maze," also ran by Gordon on the right hand side. We were greatest by the hostess when we walked in, who immediately sent us to the host stand on the left. Upon looking around, Maze is a more laid back restaurant and bar, compared to the more formal dining that is in the main dining room. There was all sorts of attire, ranging from nice dresses and suits, to more casual blue jeans.

We were led to the back of the room left, and brought to a glass door, and upon opening this door, it revealed a gorgeous dining room. Gorgeous chairs with table settings with white linen and very nice china plates. Everything sitting perfectly, and everything uniformly spaced, from the placement of the napkins, to the placement of the silverware, to the wine glasses, water glasses, etc. Everything was set with a masterful precision, and I am sure that they would not settle for anything less.

Other things that I noticed was their gorgeous climate controlled cellar in the back of the restaurant on the way to the kitchen. This cellar is done in stainless steel and glass, with wire racking stacked nearly 15 feet tall. You can see this plain as day upon entry, and it is a gorgeous view! As we sat, we see a gorgeous Champagne cart being rolled around the dining room, with many different types of Champagne being poured. A few moments later, a cheese cart containing at least 25 different blocks of cheese rolled by, that looked like absolute heaven! YUM!

More to come when I get more time!

2005 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Koplen Vineyard

Purchased off the winelist at Gordon Ramsay "At the London." Over-inflated price, but what do you expect. One, it is Gordon Ramsay's Restaurant. Two, it is New York City. And Three, it is Kosta Browne. Regardless, it was our anniversary celebration, and worth every penny.

Popped and poured from the bottle, this wine immediately showed a gorgeous garnet/ruby color in the glass. The nose of the Koplen is absolutely intoxicating, and absolutely Kosta Browne! Tons of dark berries: blackberry, boysenberry, black cherry, jammy raspberry, and a hint of spice. This is a wine that I can sit and smell all night long.

On the palate, this wine is singing, which was kind of surprising. Regardless, this is a HUGE wine! When I say HUGE, I mean massive! I really expected this wine to be tight, and needing more time in the glass. I also expected a little more heat and alcohol on this wine, but not the case! This wine will however, still benefit from a few more years in the bottle or a nice splash decant.

Gorgeous silky smooth feel on the palate with more black fruits shining through again....dark raspberry, black cherry, a hint of color, and the slightest bit of earthyness. Wow this wine is amazing, and it just kept opening up with more time in the glass. The finish on the wine lingers forever, making it a pure joy to drink.

The 2005 Koplen is in contention for my personal wine of the year! 95 points, and a perfect example of why I love pinot noir! Happy Anniversary Zelda!

Hannah and Masons - Cranbury, NJ

After a long Air Force day, then a little shopping, what better night to go out on a nice date with Zelda. We left Quakerbridge Mall, and headed to Canal's Mercerenceville to find a nice bottle of wine for dinner, since more than likely we'd head to one of Jersey's great BYOB's.

Our original plan was to hit Fiddlehead in Jamesburg, but upon arrival, we found out that you have to call the day of to get a reservation. That being said, off to Hannah & Mason's in Cranbury we went. We were originally going to come here on our anniversary, but now it looks like we'll hit Fiddlehead instead.

A little background on H&M. This is a restaurant that we have driven past many times, and have never stopped. For a long time, we didn't even know that it was there, but the restaurant really got into the public eye when world renowned Chef Gordon Ramsay showed up there to film his show Kitchen Nightmares. Since hearing of the filming on Valentine's Day 2008, we have been meaning to get the H&M, and now we finally got the chance.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by the gracious hostess who was helping and elderly gentleman come down the stairs. When asked if she could squeeze us in, she managed to get us a great table right in the center of the first floor dining room. The room was finished in a nice green/blue color, with nice, clean white trim. I am assuming that this is the color scheme that Chef Ramsay chose for the re-launch, but without asking we'll never know.

Our hostess returned and opened up our 2005 Chateau Montelena, and came back with some red glasses. Our waitress, Britney then came over to our table, and greeted us with the days specials. We both opted for the Seafood Chowder as an appetizer, and while we waited, we were brought out a basket of nice, grainy wheat or pumpernickel rolls. I'm not sure what exactly they were, but they tasted nice with some butter, as well as a whole clove of roasted garlic. That was a nice touch.

Our soup came out later, and there were all kinds of large chunks of cod, salmon, and scallops. They definitely did not skimp on the fish, so that was nice. There was also corn and potatoes, along with various spices. One thing that I can say about the soup is that it needed just the slightest bit of salt and pepper. As much as I would have loved to do this, none of the tables at H&M have s&p shakers on them, yet they are on the wall in the back near the kitchen. What do I make of this? Maybe the slightest bit of arrogance, but this seems to be common practice these days at many restaurants we have visited.

Next were our entrees. Zelda ordered the Tuscan Chicken - palards of chicken, aged provolone, marinated tomato bruschetta, lemon beurre blanc, and orzo salad. This was a very tasty dish, and to me, it was the melted provolone that made it so tasty. I know, it's just cheese, but I love it. One thing that we found odd however was the orzo salad as we weren't sure at first, and it was not specified on the menu that the orzo was served cold. This is not a bad thing at all, but I would either mention it on the menu, or I would change it and serve something warm with it. Just a minor detail really, and a pick by myself.

I opted for the H&M Class Filet Mignon - porcini mushrooms, imported blue cheese, port wine reduction, toasted walnuts, and garlic whipped potatoes. I ordered it medium, and the chef truly knows how to cook a steak. This came out absolutely perfect! The steak was also rather large for a filet, and for $26, I would not have expected such a large filet. What a treat! The beef was from a good grade, and tasted absolutely delicious! One thing I did however was remove all the blue cheese. I am not a big fan of blue cheese, but I don't mind it. I did however find it overpowering, and it really took away from the beauty of this cut of beef. Once it was gone, it was perfect. The porcini mushrooms however were almost non-existent, but that is a good thing as I am not a big fan. I also did not see or taste any of the toasted walnuts, but to me, I want to taste the beef! The garlic whipped potatoes were nice, but there is nothing special about making garlic mashed potatoes. The blue cheese did however make a nice mix into the potatoes.

Dessert was skipped tonight as we were both stuffed, so we finished our glasses of wine and hit the road. All in all, a great little restaurant close to home, with a nice atmosphere, and great service. The entire staff was a treat to dine and chat with, Britney was a great server, and we really look forward to seeing their episode air on Kitchen Nightmares! We'll definitely be back! Cheers!

39 North Main Street

Cranbury, NJ 08512

Phone: (609)655-3220

http://jamesburg.net/fiddleheads/