Paradise, Lawrenceville

By now you know just how much Indian food I have access to on a regular basis (and I am sure you're jealous... at least you should be). Sadly (for the other places) we have pretty much spent all of our recent time at one particular restaurant... Paradise. Boy is that an apt name... the place has an extensive menu, really efficient service, and awesome food. The decor is nice, not impressive by any means, but the place is clean and the food is a delight, so, really, who's looking around?

As I am sure you also know by now, I absolutely adore paper masala dosai... the thin, crispy lentil crepe stuffed with an oh so delicious mixture of potato and spices. Paradise serves this up in a slightly unique way... while it's still absurdly over sized, instead of having the potato schmeared throughout (think burrito) it has it all gathered up into a ball in the middle, leaving the majority of the crepe to be torn off and dunked into the happy ball of filling. This makes me thrilled, as it means more crunchy bits of crepe and less soft bits. Their potato mixture is far more spicy than others I have had, and it leaves my mouth all a-tingle. Delish. So yum.

Matt's new favorite dish is called the malai cheese kabob, even though it is completely dairy free... weird how it's called that. What it is is chicken chunks over a veggie slaw... mostly cabbage and onion, but some bell pepper, too. The chicken is so tender... our assumption is that it's marinated in yogurt, along with spices. The cabbage and onion get sweet and soft, adding an awesome contrast of flavors. This all comes out on a steaming hot plate... I don't remember what it's called, but think fajita platter (metal... has a handle... waiter always says 'don't touch it it's crazy hot'). Anyway, it keeps the chicken warm, and continues to cook down the onions. Delightful! Drizzle it with the spicy green sauce that comes on the side (I think it's corriander) and the whole thing brightens up and gets a serious kick.

The vindaloo at Paradise also happens to be spectacular. While I typically steer clear of dishes that have heavy sauces and potatoes in them (because they get so starchy and are often done ickily), I made an exception here after seeing how well they do everything else. Good move on my part (genius... I know). The sauce is thick and flavorful, lending a decent amount of heat and a ton of spice to the chicken. The potato is cooked to perfection, not at all mushy or fall aparty, but fork tender and completely saturated with saucy goodness. Suggestion... eat all of the big bits out of the dish and then use the extra sauce left at the bottom of the bowl to mix with white rice. It's like an Indian risotto. You can send all thank you notes to me via comment. While not pictured in this blog, perhaps what Paradise is BEST known for is their biryani, a rice dish that has meats and some veggies and some SERIOUS heat. Paradise has won several awards for this dish of theirs, and I can see why. We ordered a chicken biryani and out came a giant bowl, holding an almost obscene amount of rice, two chicken legs, a hard boiled egg, half of an onion and some lime wedges. The sauce that the rice and chicken are cooked in is HOT (we never order 'hot' in Indian restaurants... their 'medium' practically made me weep, so from now on, on this dish at least, its mild or bust! The flavor is outrageous.. a little citrusy, a little earthy, so much spice, it's like a food dance. This is really special.

Paradise seems to have several locations, although it is by no means 'chainy'. I do not know how the menu's vary from location to location, but I bet that they can't be too far off from one another. Check out the website for one closest to you... let me know what you think!

Paradise

www.njbiryani.com

3800 Quakerbridge Rd

Lawrenceville-08648

609 586 9119

Enzo's La Piccola Cucina, Lawrenceville

Everyone knows of a cute little Italian joint where the food is too good to be believed, the space is romantic and the service is killer. From what we had heard around town (and on Yelp, of course) Enzo's La Piccola Cucina promised to be just that.... quaint and charming and just plain good. We must have gone on an off night. I have to say, the place in teeeeny. Almost awkwardly so... I totally bumped elbows with the person sitting at the table next to me when we both went to take a bite of food at the same time. It was decorated in a homey, grandma-ish way (kind of cute), but so teeny I would seriously suggest reservations if you're planning on going on a busy night. The servers were a bit harried and distracted and the food was eh, despite the promises of outstading cuisine.

Every review we read and every person we knew who had been to Enzo's mentioned the 'button bread'. Where the wacky name comes from, I do not know, but it gets a lot of buzz. Described on the menu as a little round loaf of bread topped with butter, garlic, leeks, tarragon, and parmesan cheese, it sounds too good to be true, right? It kind of is... while it was delicious at first, steamy hot and jam packed with flavor, as soon as it cooled down a bit I began to notice just how saturated the bread was. It was downright oily...seriously sitting in a pool of grease. When I took a bite and heard the 'squish' of the oil flooding in to my mouth, I knew it would be my last bite. If we were splitting the whole loaf with a table of 4-6 people it may make sense, but for two it got too cold and too slimy too fast. Ugh. Thinking back on it now it makes me feel heavy.

Matt ordered the home made papparadelle in Bolognese. It was not so good. The sauce was actually pretty well done, but there was not nearly enough of it to compensate for the watery noodles. While I love to see home made pastas on a menu, it really only works if they're done right... these were not. Completely overcooked, the pasta was mushy and clumped together. It also held wayyy too much cooking liquid, which diluted the otherwise tasty sauce. It was a bummer, but the bites he got at the very begining (before the whole plate got watery) were yummy, at least.

I ordered the veal Nicolo, which was listed as veal in a vermouth cream sauce, topped with spinach and sun dried tomatoes. The first few bites tasted pretty good, despite the fact that it was so heavily sauced... but there was something a bit off that I couldn't put my finger on. When I offered a bite to Matt he immediately declared 'that tastes like fish!' He was totally right... there was a clamminess in the sauce that was very odd. The sauce also got a bit 'congealy' as cream sauces can (if they're not done correctly) which made the whole thing even less appetizing.

Look, the thing is this place gets rave reviews. On Yelp they have 4.5 stars, which is absurd! We must have been there on a really off night, or when they were trying out a new chef, or... I dont know what. Long story short, the experience was off putting enough that it will be a while before we give the place a second chance, as deserving as they may be. Let me know if you've been there.... tell me if I'm crazy, people!

Enzo's La Piccola Cucina

http://www.enzoscucina.com/

1906 Princeton Avenue

Lawrenceville- 08648

609 396 9868

The Blue Rooster, Cranbury

Oddly enough the first time I even heard about The Blue Rooster was here, on IEatDC's blog... This is especially strange because A) I live literally 15 minutes from this place, B) I have been to downtown Cranbury before and C) SHE DOESN'T EVEN LIVE HERE ANYMORE! I am in total and complete agreeance with her thoughts on the coziness of this place... it's downright adorable. It's like a doll house come to life, complete with darling decorations, mismatched flatwear, and tea cozies wrapped around a variety of ceramic pots. Too cute... really. The whole street is actually really great... lot's of old houses, tiny store fronts, charming restaurants.... it's downright quaint. Anyway, The Blue Rooster is a bakery and cafe... all of their breads and other baked goods are made on site, which means not only are they all super fresh (and delicious) but the place SMELLS good.

Anyway, the menu at Blue Rooster is pretty cool. They have things like quiche, or sandwich, or omelet on the menu, but there is only one type of each offered daily. While this can backfire, I've found that I am always able to find something that will make my face tres happy. On this particular visit I ordered the omelet of the day, Matt went with pancakes, and we split a scone.

Holy cow. Let me tell you a little thing about the scones here. They're RIDICULOUS! Large and dense and full of flavor (even if you go with the plain!) They pair these giant baked delights with clotted cream and their home made jam. Forget it. Seriously? FORGET IT. You will be ruined for jam for life. I can't eat jam anywhere else now. It's basically just smushed fruit... so fresh, so naturally sweet, so incredibly tasty... pair it with the mild, cold clotted cream and the butteriness of the scone? I don't know why I ever eat any food that ISNT this. To date I have tried the plain, the raisin, and the ginger cranberry (HIGHLY reccomended). You'd be doing yourself a disservice in not ordering one.

Matt's pancakes were really good. I'm not a big pancake eater, so I don't have much experience or much to compare them to, but Matt says that they were fluffy and flavorful and tender. To be frank, the real star of this dish was the pure New England maple syrup. I have never tasted anything like it, buttery and sweet, but not cloyingly so. I don't have much else to say on the subject, really.

I doubt that you will be lucky enough to the same fortune that I did, but if you visit The Blue Rooster and hear the words 'smoked salmon, cream cheese and chive omelet' do yourself a favor and order it. I know that it sounds like a lot of heaviness, but it's not at all the case. The cream cheese is almost sweet against the salt of the salmon and the creamy eggs. The chive gives it a nice oniony bite. Also, not for nothing, but they shoved a ton of fish in it... they didn't skimp on the good stuff! Home made whole wheat toast (which I immediately doused with gobs of the ridicu- jam) rounded out the platter. So good. So so so good.

The Blue Rooster is a real treat... small and intimate with friendly service and delicious, fresh food and an ever changing menu. Dozens of baked goods are also available at the bakery counter(check out the web site for the fresh breads of the day). They also offer formal teas daily, by reservation, lunch and dinner. Check it out!

The Blue Rooster

http://www.blueroosterbakery.com/

17 N Main St

Cranbury- 08512

609 235 7539