Chewhead Celebrating the joy of eating, in and around the garden state

We finally got up to Woodbridge this weekend to checkout another brew pub that’s been on our list for a while.
J.J. Bitting is located at the end of a very quiet Main St next to the train station in a very cool and old looking brick building.
Parking wasn’t a problem because the train station parking lot is free on the weekends.
After an uncomfortable minute or two waiting for someone at the hostess stand we opted to seat ouselves at a couple free stools at the bar. The bar was nice and woody with the usual bar decor complete with an authentic Jackelope head mounted on the wall. The music was controlled by a juke box that seemed to be playing a lot of 80s easy listening if I remember correctly.
We arrived at about 4pm on a Saturday. The dining room seemed to have some sort of event going on like a birthday or something but the bar had plenty of room.
There were 6 beers on tap and one cask beer. The bartender was nice and attentive. Like we normally would do at a brewpub, we ordered a beer sampler and began our little mini tasting.
There was a nice mix of brews. My favorites were the Golden ale for some thing light with a good flavor and the Hefe weizen. They had an imperial IPA on tap too which I thought was cool even though I don’t really care for the style. I would have liked to try the cask ale, but their 6 draft beers provided enough sampling for one visit.
They have a good sized menu with nice bar and grill choices. I orderered a tuna steak sandwich. It’s not something I often see on the average menu and I think I can now enter it on my list of favorite bar food after having it here and at the Dutchman Brauhaus in LBI.
The sandwich was great and paired nicely with my pint of Victoria’s Golden ale.
Prices here are cheaper than other brewpubs I’ve been to in Jersey and right now JJ Bitting is at the top of my ‘good’ list. Now I just need to find an excuse to get back to Woodbridge.
Fun fact: J.J. Bitting was voted #2 Brew Pub in America by the Beer Advocate in 2003.

Finally got a chance to check out this place for lunch with my mom. It’s located in the Foodtown stripmall on Fischer Blvd.
The dining room is nicely decorated and pretty big with tables in the front and a couple hibachi tables in the back.
We each had the 2 roll lunch combo which came with miso soup and a small salad with ginger dressing.
My mom tried to order the Nato roll and the japanese pickle roll, but were told that they don’t serve those anymore because only Japanese people order them.
Their Spicy yellowtail roll was the best thing I had and I liked it so much that I ordered it for take out again 2 days later.
For now, I’ll probably make Umi one of my local takeout choices for sushi since they’re right down the street.

Boston’s has been a good late lunch location close to our house. Their individual pizzas are good and come in a wide variety of styles. They have a very nice tap that seems to rotate often. Any beer snob should be able to find something decent. The dining roon can get overly crowded on busy nights which is why we usually stick with lunch. Our favorites right now: Pesto flatbread and southwest fried ravioli appetizer.

Siam Basil is the closest, good Thai that I can get to from my house. It’s in Sea Girt which I think is why they charge a little more than the usual Thai restaurant. The dining room is not that big, but does not feel cramped. It’s decorated very nice and ethnic, kinda fancy. The staff is always friendly and smiling.
Siam Basil does not serve alcohol, but it is a BYOB so we occasionally bring a bottle of wine to have with Dinner. 
We love their curry puffs. I really like their Kang Keaw Whan curry dish and my favorite noodle dish, which is the Pad See Ew. Everything I’ve had there so far has been very good. They have a dessert that consists of tapioca balls and black bean in warm condensed milk. Very sweet but so good. Almost like a warm bubble tea without the tea. 

I don’t know how fairly you can review a seafood restaurant in Point Pleasant on a Saturday during one of the first nice weekends of the summer but that’s where we were last week.  After an awesome wedding on the beach, we were part of a group of 24 for a reservation at 6pm.
In front of the Shrimp Box 2 guys were working on directing a line of cars to open parking spaces. I was ready for a stressful parking situation, but I only had to wait a couple of minutes for the guys to move some cars around and get me a space right outside the restaurant door.
The Dining room is a big long room with a mix of booths and tables, with windows facing the docks on the inlet where you can watch the fishing boats going in and out. It was pretty full and pretty loud with chatter. 
There seemed to be something for everyone on the menu with chicken, beef, pasta and seafood dishes all ranging in the $18+ range.  I had the grilled Mahi Mahi, served with steamed vegetables and a baked potato and it was awesome. The lettuce in their salad bar was cut into strips, which I thought was convenient too.
Full bar here, with a wine list and decent beer on tap. I’m looking forward to coming back during a weekday sometime soon.

Seeing the grand opening flags in front of Donavan’s came as an exciting surprise with the potential of a new non-chain Bar and Grille. The outside decor hints at the possibility of a fine Irish pub with a decent beer selection and some traditional Irish American cuisine. They had opened their first location in Manchester a while ago which I’ve never been to or heard of until we went to their Brick restaurant.
Jessica and I were there for an early dinner a couple of weeks ago and realized that it’s not as Irish as I expected it should be. In retrospect, is it wrong to expect a better tap when there is a shamrock on the restaurant sign? Regardless of the initial misunderstanding, the remainder of this review is a positive one.
The inside of the restaurant definitely has a “Diner” feel with the booth layouts and lighting. Albeit, a diner with a big bar in the middle and around 15 widescreen flat panel TVs showing every channel with a sport on. The music playing was a mixture of pop hits from the 90’s and today. Family friendly.
The Draft list features your standard Bud/Coors selection of beer. I was satisfied with my Sam Adams and Jess went with a Blue Moon. The bar appeared fully stocked and I can’t remember if there was a wine list or not.
After we were seated the waiter brought us a basket of popcorn. I like when bar type places give you popcorn and this also reminded me of Joshua Huddy. It’s not as awesome as when Chilis used to give free chips and salsa, but it’s better than the crackers and cheese stuff you get at the Office Lounge.
The menu includes all your standards from burgers to pasta with prices similar to Applebee’s. They have early bird specials if you get there before 5 which is also pretty cool. We went with the Buffalo wings as an appetizer. I chose the meatloaf from the early bird menu and Jess got some sort of chiabata chicken sandwich. The dishes came out of the kitchen looking fresh and presented nicely. The chicken wings and meatloaf tasted like they were supposed to so I wasn’t disappointed. Jessica really liked her chicken chiabata sandwich so we are 3 for 3.
From the food to the service, this place was a good experience. I’m sure we will be back the next time we’re looking for a sit down in Brick.

Welcome to the Chewhead food blog. We love eating out and finding new places to eat in and around New Jersey. We have decided to start chronicling our food stops to keep track of where and what we’ve eaten. Please share your comments on anything that’s posted and feel free to contact us with any feedback or recommendations!