Monday, April 30, 2012

$5 ‘Appy Hour




This past Thursday I visited one of my favorite spots for happy hour.  Located in Montgomery NJ, Tusk restaurant offers a phenomenal happy hour spread.  For $5 you can get pot stickers, sushi, calamari, nachos, pretty much everything but the kitchen sink.  Top that off with a $2 draft and you got what my grandfather calls a smorgasbord! For those of you who aren’t Danish that means so much food you have to un-do the top button of your pants and hope no one notices. $25 and 2 drinks later I was stuffed to the gills full of delicately fried calamari in a sweet and tangy sauce and 12 hand rolled fresh sushi rolls which I split with my friend.  You may think because the price is discounted, the quality of the food goes down.  Think again!  The food was delicious and portion sizes weren’t shrimpy by any means.  At the end of the meal we were both full AND had food leftover.  After we split the check in 2 the meal, drinks, and tip only cost me $14.00.  Considering one app on the regular menu will run you about the same price, I’d call that savings even Scrooge McDuck would be proud of.

 Like I said in my previous happy hour exposé, you don’t have to travel halfway across the ocean like Marlin looking for Nemo to find good deals. Restaurants all over the place offer a selection of appetizers or small plates for a discounted rate at happy hour. Check out happy hour specials in your area and get saving!
Keep your wallets full and your mouths happy
<3 DD







Copyright  © 2012 Christine Van Arsdalen. All Rights Reserved.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Wednesday's Wine of the Week

Avalon Sauvignon Blanc
   
 I had the fortune of trying this wine during Restaurant week at BYOB restaurant.  It was a very nice compliment to my delicious lobster feast.  I originally stumbled upon this bottle by accident.  See one of my favorite ways to find good wines is by asking, I know thats a little tough for some of you stubborn people out there.  My own father would rather drive around for a half an hour trying to find the right way rather than asking for directions.  Like hello if you had just asked you could have been there a half an ago instead of wasting your gas.  At any rate, as I said before, I like to walk into a liquor store and say "Hi I need a good bottle of wine that costs around $10."  You would be surprised at how many good ten dollar bottles of wine they suggest. So I brought the bottle home and my whole family fell in love.  My parents went out and bought 3 bottles... it was that good.

    Ok now that i've rambled on like a grandma in her rocking chair talking about "when I was a kid", I can get back to present day.  So as I was saying, it is definitely a great wine for seafood.  The wine itself tastes like like a summertime breeze.  It is light and crisp and tropical fruity and somewhat citrusy.  It has just a hint of sweetness which is balanced out by a light minerally flavor.  Some people have described it as grassy, however not being a cow, that does not sound very appealing.  Rest assure that being some who has tasted grass (I was an active child) this wine reminds me nothing of it. I'm assuming that they are referring to the slight minerally taste, however,  I find it to a have nice earthy note that provides a nice foil for the fruity flavor. It's kind of like a freak show, there's a lot of weird things going on, but they work together nicely to make one fantastic result ! I promise you, this is a very well balanced and delicious bottle of wine. The best part is most places sell it for $11.99, so you can buy it in bulk. Happy drinking folks!

Keep your wallets full and your mouths happy
<3 DD



Copyright  © 2012 Christine Van Arsdalen. All Rights Reserved.

Monday, April 23, 2012

Jersey Shore Restaurant week at Shipwreck Point



                This Saturday I dined a Shipwreck Point in Point Pleasant NJ.  Having eaten there before I already knew the meal would be delicious, and man did they deliver!  For $30 you got to choose from 3 different appetizers, entrees and desserts; all of which looked tempting.  For my meal I selected scallop crudo for my appetizer, seared duck breast for my entrée and chocolate Chambord cheesecake for dessert.  I was drooling like a dog waiting for a bone before I even got my appetizer.  They brought out delicious bread with homemade butters and sea salt from Normandy while we waited.  How cool is that French Salt! it made me feel all sophisticated like a should be sipping champagne under the Eifel tower.
       When I got my appetizer it looked so good I almost shoved my face in the bowl.  However being that I was in a fine dining establishment, I used some restraint and took a bite instead of embarrassing myself.  The scallops were amazing, probably the best I’ve had.  They were tender and juicy and sweet.  They were so soft they just melted in my mouth.  Those scallops were so good that if God had a favorite food, that would probably be it.  My sister and dad had lobster bisque with a hint of crème fraiche which was equally as delicious.  

      When my entrée came out I didn’t think anything could be as good as the scallops, however I was wrong.  The duck was cooked perfectly and had a crispy skin that was to die for; which is saying something because I am a duck lover with a very discerning palate.  I don’t think I have ever said “mmmm” as much as I did while eating the duck.  It was nice and juicy, full of flavor and had a side of mashed sweet potatoes that were also delightful.  After that meal I can definitely see why Elmer Fud spent all those years trying to hunt Daffy Duck, he knew how good he tasted. 
      The icing on the cake was the dessert.  When chocolate and raspberries get together, you know it’s going to be good. When you throw cheesecake in the mix it’s like getting ice cream cake on your birthday when you’re a kid, the best thing ever! The chocolate really came through, leaving you with just a hint of raspberry.  The cake was light and fluffy as a cloud ... absolutely divine. I definitely had my cake and ate ALL of it too.  As a whole it was probably one of the best meals I’ve had.  And to top it off, it was only $96 for 3 people.    That’s like meeting your idol and winning the lottery all on the same day.  I left the restaurant one happy, and full girl.  I will definitely go back to Shipwreck Point soon!
Check out the broke girl on a budget for another review http://brkgrlonabudget.blogspot.com/

Keep your wallets full  and your mouths happy!
<3 DD


Copyright  © 2012 Christine Van Arsdalen. All Rights Reserved.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Happy hour- not just for drinks!


Anyone who has a job looks forward to the end of day where they can unwind, kick back, and enjoy a drink.  It’s like being a kid waiting for the bell at the end of the day, once it rings you’re off like a shot. They don’t call it happy hour for nothing!  Even those of us who thoroughly enjoy our jobs need a little R and R at the end of a long day.  I used to think happy hours were just for cheap drinks until I turned 21 and discovered they were so much more. It was like Aladdin plopped me onto to his magic carpet and showed me the world of happy hour.  Since then I have been all over the country sampling what happy hour has to offer.  In my travels I have had some amazing food that I normally could never afford.  Don’t get me wrong, the drinks are great too, but I am and always will be a food lover.  I started out small going to places like Applebee’s and Chevy’s.  Once I discovered that certain locations of chains give a free buffet (check your local restaurants for availability) I pretty much ate out every day.  All you had to do was buy a $2 beer and you could fill up on pasta, pizza, tacos, sandwiches.. the list goes on.  I was over the moon and stuffed to the gills.  And so, my love of happy hours was born.
Soon after I decided to branch out to the places I could only go to with my parents.  (Don’t judge I was a college kid)  The first place I tried was in Wayne, PA called White Dog Cafe.  My sister convinced me that even me, a person of little money could afford to eat here.   If you could see my face when I looked at the menu you would have thought I was a kid who got a puppy on Christmas or Charlie Bucket when he walked in the Chocolate Factory.  They had steak tartar, tuna tartar, farm raised beef sliders, mac and cheese, salads, pretty much anything you could possibly want to eat, all for 5 dollars. The portions weren’t  so small even a mouse would turn them down, they were actually really big.  Needless to say I was stuffed at the end of the meal and had only spent $ 22 including drinks and spend my 5 pm there at least once a month.
   After that day I made it my business to find happy hours like that. Surprisingly, there are a TON of places that have a great happy hour menu.  I have been all over the place and have managed to find a great place wherever I go.  Most recently I went to a new place that opened in Toms River, New Jersey called Aqua Blu.  For those of you who haven’t figured it out yet I am a born and raised Jersey Girl who spent her summers near Seaside NJ. NO, I am NOT a Guido.  I haven't been near a gym in years, the only tan I get is on the beach, and I have flat blonde hair.  Getting back to the point, it was a place that I heard people raving about.  Though the menu was a bit out of my price range, I did a little digging and found that they had a happy hour menu.  Let me tell you, the food was as good as people said it was.  I had fish tacos that were not only delicious, but not over cooked as they can be, and mac and cheese that made my mom’s taste like it came from a box (sorry mom!)  After two generous portions of food and 2 glasses of wine, I was only set back $20.  My stomach and my bank account were very happy!

So, all you dexterous diners, I have vowed whenever I find a diamond in the rough I will share it with all of you. I am aware that while this may sound good, it is not very helpful if you are not on the east coast. While I do get to places other than New Jersey, you can also find great happy hours near you. I post some on my twitter @dexterousdining; however sites like http://www.happy-hour.com  will give you a list of happy hours in your area.  You can also check the website or facebook of a restaurant, sometimes they post their specials there.  Believe it or not there is even an App for that (not very surprising there’s an app for everything).  So you have no excuse not to find one.  Get out there and get happy!


Keep your wallets full and your mouths happy
<3 DD

Copyright © 2012 Christine Van Arsdalen. All Rights Reserved.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Wednesday’s Wine of the week


Simply Naked Pino Grigio

After all the hype I have seen in the past weeks I decided to try a bottle of the wine that is EVERYWHERE!  Yes even communication majors like myself sometimes fall for advertising, shocking.  After all the hype and hoopla it was under my skin as Frank Sinatra says. It was stuck in my head like a bad 90's song.  My curiosity got the better of me and after some consideration, I decided to try it.   Tracking it down on the “Simply Naked” website I discovered it was at my local liquor store, so I went to pick up a bottle of the Pino Grigio.  Much to my delight, the bottle was on sale for $7.99 which pretty much sealed the deal.

 Well I would just like Baccus for bringing this wine into my life.  Don’t let the name fool you, it may be naked but it is definitely not bare of flavor.  In fact it is quite the opposite.  The flavor of the fruit really shines through giving it a crisp clean taste.  I must admit I was a little skeptical; there are very few wines that I have had that were not made in an oak barrel. I mean come on wine without oak is like peanut butter without jelly, is still good but it can’t be as great right? Wrong!  I definitely ate (or drank) my words after trying my first glass.  The fact that it was “unoaked” as they put it gave it a very refreshing and bright body.  You can pick up the notes of melon, passion fruit and peach with just a small hint of citrus, and surprisingly a little bit of spice.  This is definitely a great summer wine, perfect for sipping on a lazy afternoon.   But as they say on Reading Rainbow "you don't have to take my word for it."  Go try it for yourself!

Keep your wallets full and your mouths happy
<3 DD

Copyright © 2012 Christine Van Arsdalen. All Rights Reserved.

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Restaurant Week


Spring is a magical time of year.  The flowers bloom, the bees buzz and restaurant week comes around. What is restaurant week? It's a week where even the most expensive places become miraculously affordable for us budget conscious people.  Cities select a week or two weeks where participating restaurants offer a discounted 3 or 4 course menu.   I have eaten at Le Bec fin, one of the most pricey places in PA and spent only $35. Yesterday I had a menu of mussels in a lobster broth, steamed fresh NJ lobster, and key lime pie for $30. The broth on the mussels was so good I licked my plate so clean Jack Sprat would be proud.  Not to mention that the lobster was probably the best I have ever had.  It melted even before it got to your mouth.  And the key lime pie was to die for.  Normally you can’t even get half a lobster for $30. Talk about having your cake and eating it too!  If that isn’t amazing, I don’t know what is.


Restaurant week is a foodie’s paradise! You can eat like a king on a serf’s budget and can hop around from place to place trying succulent entrees and scrumptious appetizers.  Nosh on tartar and caviar while you wait for your duck and foi gras. Try NYC’s trendiest places for discount prices, thats like drinking a fine wine but paying for beer.  Restaurant weeks aren’t just for big cities, they’re everywhere, so visit good old google and check out the date for your area.  Find one near you and get hungry!

Keep your wallets full and your mouths happy 
<3 DD

Copyright © 2012 Christine Van Arsdalen. All Rights Reserved.

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Wednesdays Wine of the Week



Layer Cake Chardonnay

“Whats in a name”.. . a good wine! Much like last week’s cakey named wine, this bottle is fantastic!  It is a bit of a hidden treasure, it’s not at every liquor store you have to do a little searching to find it.  Don’t worry it’s not as hard as finding Waldo but I promise it is worth the trek.  I would walk to Guam for it!  The bottle itself cost around $10 (sometimes on sale!)  but tastes like a million bucks.  The flavor reminds me of a lemon merengue pie; light and creamy yet has a crisp citrus note.  There are hints of guava and pineapple laced throughout, giving it a fruity yet tangy body.   Much like a lingering kiss it is soft, yet zesty enough to leave you wanting more.  It’s the kind of wine that makes you feel like you’re running barefoot through an orchard in the middle of the summer or diving headfirst into a wave.  Either way it’s invigorating, sweet, surprising, and intoxicating (literally).  It’s so good even the “Most Interesting Man in the World” would toss aside his Dos Equis and become a wino.  Good pairings include seafood, chicken, pasta; the standard lighter fare.  That doesn’t mean can you can’t drink it by itself.  I like to unwind with a glass, close my eyes and enjoy the sweet sweet symphony of flavors.  Try it for yourself and soon you too will love it as much as Sonny the Cuckoo Bird loves his coco puffs.

Keeps your wallets full and your mouths happy!

<3 DD

Copyright © 2012 Christine Van Arsdalen. All Rights Reserved.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Wednesdays Wine of the Week



It's finally here, my first pick for Wednesday's wine of the week!  So what's my first big pick..the very aptly name Cupcake "Angel Food".  This wine really is divine, it's so good it's almost sinful!  Not only can you find a bottle for about $14 (a plus for any win enthusiast on a budget), but it has a sweet refreshing taste.  This wine really mimics the taste of an angel food cake;  you can taste that light and delicate slightly lemony vanilla flavor in every sip, it's cake with a kick!  For those of you expecting me to say it has a floral aroma with a fruity body (which it does), this is not that type of wine review.  Who knows what that even means anyway, I mean really what does a "floral aroma" really tell you about the way it tastes.  At any rate, for me this wine was love at first sip. I have not drank a different kind of wine in over 2 weeks, it's THAT GOOD! It makes a great pairing with pretty much anything. Food and "Angel Food" go together like Bert and Ernie or Scooby and Shaggy.   So far I've had it with pasta, shrimp, chicken, in the bathtub, on my couch; in the words of fergie "I'm addicted and I just cant get enough!"It's the kind of wine that is perfect for sitting outside on a spring day, sipping on a sailboat or pretty much anything.  So all you lovers of wine, or cake, RUN not walk to your nearest liqour store and pick up a bottle of this angelic wine, and experience heaven on earth.



Keep your mouths happy and your wallets full!
<3 DD

Copyright © 2012 Christine Van Arsdalen. All Rights Reserved.