Beard Papa

Beard Papa Himself

Frequent readers have been inundated with a run on burgers and pizza, two of my favorites. However those that know me can attest that I have quite the sweet tooth (and not one cavity to speak of - and I'm knocking on my wooden tooth to not jinx things).

Lets rewind a bit, we'll call this (non acid induced) flashback: Giant White Man in Tokyo. In this episode, the giant white man is played by me and Tokyo is played by itself, after all whom can play a city? To say I had much of a clue as to where I was while in Tokyo is an understatement, however thanks to a good friend we were able to navigate our way around the city and take in the sights. One pleasant surprise was the bearded man himself! Fear not my friends, while I know my recent reviews have taken me on the road I'm only adding the presence of Beard Papa in Tokyo as an anecdote. HOWEVER! If you are a true die hard and find yourself in Tokyo, give Papa a taste of the best cream puffs your Yen can buy.

Where we were? Ah yes, puffs. On the east coast we have only two locations to choose from and since one is over in Fort Lee, NJ we'll leave that out of the mix and set our sights on 2167 Broadway, the home of Mr. Papa. When I say that this is the best cream puff ever, I mean it. It's the best cream puff ever. Don't believe me? What's it say on their site? Ahem, "World's Best Cream Puff." That's good enough for me. Oh sure lil' Miss Skeptic, don't believe me or them. Go there and give it a try for yourself and fear not, I'll save room on the bandwagon.

Three good reasons to try Beard Papa's today!

1. You think those frozen, pre-made cream puffs are good and you're upset that your freezer is now void of said puffs. Consider this your lucky day because Papa's Puffs are much, much better.
2. They say they are the best. I know the p.c. police do not like such bombastic statements but I do. I especially like these claims when the claimant can back it up the way the bearded one can.
3. How can you say no to that gnome?

But what makes them so good? I say the secret is nestled in Papa's magical beard. Or maybe it's the pipe? In truth, the pastry is fresh, light, flaky and delicious. The cream, not too sweet and just right. The end result, the best puff ever! And they are always filled to order and never just sitting around filled with cream to get all soggy for you.

Rating - 5/5 - I was going to go with a 10 here since it's like totally the world's best but I figured a perfect score was just as good. However, they are really better than perfect so maybe I should stick with a 10!

Their site - http://www.muginohointl.com/

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Candlelight Inn

I'll preface this by saying this is not going to be a review, not a formal review anyway. For quite some time I've heard great things about the Candlelight Inn in Scarsdale, specifically their wings. I was in the area last week taking my mom to the doctor and I suggested that we try the Candlight for a late lunch/early dinner. It's not every day I'm in Scarsdale so this just had to happen.

Upon arrival, I checked in on Foursquare and my friend Nick hits me up and simply asks, "Chernobyl?" I answer in the affirmative and he replies "You could have just come over to my place and I would have stabbed you in the tongue." I laughed for a while and debated leaving to go get stabbed in the tongue, after all you need a baseline to determine which of these things feels worse.

Chernobyl

I knew what I wanted but for some reason, the waitress didn't believe. Or maybe it was she didn't want to serve me? Or most likely, she just didn't want to see this grown man cry. I asked for an order of 10 wings, Chernobyl. She said, "Are you sure?" Yes I'm sure. She asked again, "Why don't you just get hot wings? I can bring you some Chernobyl sauce on the side." I replied, "No thanks, I want Chernobyl." She said, "You really sure? They're so hot. 98% of the people who order them can't eat them." Yes, I'm sure.

All this talk made my mouth water. I LOVE hot food and was ready to take on these wings that share their name with a Russian nuclear disaster. Deep down, I never did question whether or not I can finish the ten wings. My own stupidity would not allow me to stop short of finishing the heat these wings could deliver. I must say these wings are HOT! They are possibly the 2nd hottest wings* I've ever eaten and my physiological reaction spoke volumes - uncontrollable tearing, sweating, red swollen lips. However, as strange as it may seem, my mouth did not feel hot. It sounds crazy and it's hard to explain but these things are so hot but it was not unbearable.  More important than the heat is the size. For under $7 I got 10 wings and look at the size of them. Big, meaty, juicy and NOT fried.

If you enjoy hot wings I'd suggest the Candlelight Inn to you. If you want to push how high you can go on the Scoville Scale, go for Chernobyl and let me know what you think.

*Note - The hottest wings I've ever eaten were at a spot just outside of Boston. I challenged that place to make them as hot as possible and when I bit into the first wing it felt like I was kicked in the teeth and my mouth went numb.

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Zinburger

THE Zinburger

A short drive from Giants MetLife Stadium on Route 3 West, is Zinburger, which came highly recommended from a friend. On my first visit to the Zin (that's what the cool kids call it, ok, just this cool kid) I was informed that the big Z is the first in NJ with the others being in Arizona; so keep that in mind if you are reading this from AZ and need your Zinburger fix on your next trip to the NYC area or if you're plotting a trip to AZ and want to sleep easily knowing you can get your Zin fix.

The menu is pretty simple for this burger and wine bar, it mainly consists of burgers and well, wine. Go figure. However, it's worth noting that you should not sleep on a few of the sides and more importantly, the shakes.

Before we stray to sides and shakes and anything that's not a burger, let's talk about beef. It's either Certified Angus or Kobe (not Bryant) served here so you know the meat is quality. It's also fresh, not frozen so that is a big + in my book. The size of the burgers is also worth noting, these guys are rather large and on my first visit I was pleasantly surprised by the size of this thing and the bun pairing was almost perfect*
*I say almost because I first ordered a rare burger and the bun did not hold up to the juicy mess that I held in my hands. Next go 'round I went medium rare and it was on point.

As for the burgers, if you start with the Zinburger (Manchego Cheese, Zinfandel Braised Onions, Mayo) you really can't go wrong. The braised onions really stand out and add a delicious sweetness to this massive burger. Another great option here is the Samburger (Applewood Smoked Bacon, American Cheese, Thousand Island Dressing), the sweetness of the thousand island and the smoky bacon just bring this burger to the next level.

You can't have a burger without sides and I have to say that the Zucchini Fries are out of this world! I also really enjoy the Cole Slaw, Asian inspired with ginger and toasted sesame seeds.

Behold, the Crème Brûlée

If wine is not your thing, there's beer. If wine and beer don't quite do it for you, there are shakes. The Crème Brûlée Shake is one of the best frozen treats I've ever had (it rivals my personal favorite Toasted Marshmallow Shake from Stand!) The Crème Brûlée Shake is truly one of a kind and it is so good and SO BIG! I've also had the Bananas Foster Shake and must admit that I was very disappointed with this one. It looks pretty but the flavor did not invoke the taste of Bananas Foster - however it did inspire me to work on creating this masterpiece in my kitchen!

Rating - 4.75/5 - There are some solid options on the menu though it is not very deep. It's also a bit pricy when the sides creep into the picture. Is it worth the trip out to Clifton? That's for you to decide but I cannot stress how much I enjoyed both burgers and the Crème Brûlée Shake.

Their site - http://www.zinburgernj.com/

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