Mangia Italian Trattoria!
So last week, my brother in law, his girlfriend, Steve, baby Lucca and I all went to get a no-fuss, quick meal at Mangia! It was great! Let me preface this by saying that in order to be an outstanding Italian restaurant, you really need to have something special! There is just too much competition out there not to be. With that being said, the ambiance was casual, which is great when you have a baby with you. The waiters were nice and friendly and understanding of our child's desire to exercise his vocal chords.
The first thing we needed to get in order was getting Lucca occupied with some food, so they brought us some nice crusty bread for the table which Lucca loved. We then ordered some nice looking pasta salad that they had on their "to go" counter, and they kindly heated it up for us......and either forgot to or purposely did not charge us for it! I got a cavatelli dish with Broccoli Rabe and Sausage, which was deliciously satisfying. My husband got the Manicotti, which unfortunately I was too wrapped up with my own dish that I did not bother trying his. He liked it but wasn't going nuts about it (He's italian by the way, so I'm sure he was being extra critical). The dishes came with a Salad that had a decent dressing on it. It was also BYOB so we brought along a bottle of wine to enjoy with the meal.
All in all, it's a nice, no fuss place, with good food and service. The one drawback that I found was that when taking in the ambiance, the fact that it's BYOB and it's no fuss vibe, I would have expected the entree prices to be a few bucks cheaper. Pasta Entrees are between $15 and $18 per dish, and a meat or fish dish is upwards of $18. That is not what I would expect when I am looking for a quick fix friday night out with a child. I'm not sure if I will be adding this place to my circulation of easy-access restaurants, but it wasn't a disappointment by any means.
I'm sure, that back in my 20's, I wouldn't have even looked twice at the price per entree, but ah the joys of growing older and the responsibilities that come along with that. I can't help but notice and take into account all of the details, including the prices and unless I am "wowed" by the incredible explosion that is going on with every bite that I take, Mangia will have to lower their prices by a few bucks for me to put this on the A list.
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
Friday, August 22, 2014
Rumba Cubana
Greetings!
I'm back.....from my 3 year hiatus and I'm here to stay, promise! I get a little ADD when it comes to writing projects, seem to be into them for some time and then forget all about it, kind of like I am with reading books. So my apologies to those who actually read this:)
Moving on - Since 3 years ago, I've been to many restaurants as you can imagine! However, now I am looking at them from a different perspective...A mother's perspective! I have a 10 month old boy who has just entered the phase of "can't sit still because everything is so awesomely interesting!" Yeah, needless to say, it's not the most relaxing experience every time, but experiencing a receptive to kids v.s. non receptive place makes or breaks the experience all together.
With that being said, Rumba Cubana in North Bergen NJ is one of our staples. If you like Cuban food that is cheap, great tasting and fast, then this is your joint! They have awesome Sangria too, a full bar with killer Mojitos and a really fun atmosphere. They recently relocated to a bigger location with views of NYC from across the river. We love it because it's casual enough for any day of the week and affordable enough so that it doesn't need to feel like a big decision!
Dish - My personal favorite is Ropa Vieja. It's shredded beef that tastes like it's been marinating for hours and just melts in your mouth. I get it with black beans and rice along with a side of Maduros (sweet plantains). You want a party in the mouth? This is it.
Avocado salad is awesome too, and I have to add that I've never been a big fan of raw onions, but they seem to be big on them there and with a few squirts of lime, it's suddenly awesome! Any dish I've ever gotten there has been great! Plus portion sizes are rather large so it's usually a two meal situation.
The drawback to this place however, is that if you go past 6:30pm, you will wait an hour or more for a table. If you go on a weekend day, forget about it..... They are currently taking reservations for large parties two months in advance. So unfortunately, I'm not the only one who really likes this place.
So if you stick to early dinners, your golden. Not to mention, with a 10 month old, it's great because they are very accommodating and the noise level is not too quiet so if your child decides that screaming is the cool thing to do in the moment, you won't get death stares from neighboring tables.
I'm back.....from my 3 year hiatus and I'm here to stay, promise! I get a little ADD when it comes to writing projects, seem to be into them for some time and then forget all about it, kind of like I am with reading books. So my apologies to those who actually read this:)
Moving on - Since 3 years ago, I've been to many restaurants as you can imagine! However, now I am looking at them from a different perspective...A mother's perspective! I have a 10 month old boy who has just entered the phase of "can't sit still because everything is so awesomely interesting!" Yeah, needless to say, it's not the most relaxing experience every time, but experiencing a receptive to kids v.s. non receptive place makes or breaks the experience all together.
With that being said, Rumba Cubana in North Bergen NJ is one of our staples. If you like Cuban food that is cheap, great tasting and fast, then this is your joint! They have awesome Sangria too, a full bar with killer Mojitos and a really fun atmosphere. They recently relocated to a bigger location with views of NYC from across the river. We love it because it's casual enough for any day of the week and affordable enough so that it doesn't need to feel like a big decision!
Dish - My personal favorite is Ropa Vieja. It's shredded beef that tastes like it's been marinating for hours and just melts in your mouth. I get it with black beans and rice along with a side of Maduros (sweet plantains). You want a party in the mouth? This is it.
Avocado salad is awesome too, and I have to add that I've never been a big fan of raw onions, but they seem to be big on them there and with a few squirts of lime, it's suddenly awesome! Any dish I've ever gotten there has been great! Plus portion sizes are rather large so it's usually a two meal situation.
The drawback to this place however, is that if you go past 6:30pm, you will wait an hour or more for a table. If you go on a weekend day, forget about it..... They are currently taking reservations for large parties two months in advance. So unfortunately, I'm not the only one who really likes this place.
So if you stick to early dinners, your golden. Not to mention, with a 10 month old, it's great because they are very accommodating and the noise level is not too quiet so if your child decides that screaming is the cool thing to do in the moment, you won't get death stares from neighboring tables.
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