Jersey City Gastronomer

The Gastronomer’s arrival in Seattle kicked off a festive July Fourth week of eating and enjoying the fruits of Lunch at Citizen Coffee and dinner at Panos Kleftiko.

Citizen really delivered with a fatty spicy pork banh mi sandwich and a freshly made vegetarian crepe stuffed with avocado, caramelized onions, roasted asparagus, apple smoked bacon, spinach & goat cheese then artfully topped with homemade crème fraiche.

The natural extension of my visit to Seattle would be to attend the Seattle International Beerfest under the shade of the Space Needle. The beers tasted - and largely loved - are as follows:

Stone Brewing Co. Double Dry Hopped IPA - A hoptastic experience only for the bold
Finn River Dry Hopped Cider - More like a sour beer
Fremont Brewing Co. The Brother Imperial IPA
Mad River Brewing Co. Mad Belgian
Lagunitas A Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ Ale - A great go-to beer with a little hop and a little wheat
Doubtain Mountain Brewing Co. Peche Mode
New Belgium Brewing Ranger IPA - An honest tasting IPA in a can that I saw all over hiking country

What’s for dinner?

500sandwiches:

Jersey City Mix-Up: Combining Grand Sichuan leftovers (dry and spicy chicken), crazy good unknown vegetables from Nha Trang Market (251 Newark Avenue) and leftover Indian spiced basmati rice

I love Nha Trang Market. I bought duck eggs there and aforementioned unknown vegetables. The vegetables are very fresh. It’s worth a stop in to it or the other market across the street to check out what the markets have in store.

rue viet update

Sadly, Jersey City’s hip Vietnamese fusion restaurant Rue Viet closed in late June. The Jersey City Independent wrote a brief article about the closing and there was no comment from the owner, Hoboken-native Dianna Muniz.

If you do get a hankering for Vietnamese on Newark Ave., try Nha Trang Place. It lacks the atmosphere but serves up some interesting and authentic Vietnamese dishes.

rue viet

Like a half-painted lady, Rue Viet sits on the corner of Monmouth St. and Newark Ave., with bright yellow accents on an artfully weathered exterior. Inside you are greeted by a modern clean but “tongue-in-chic” design and an open kitchen populated by hip kitchen staff choreographed to the constant beat of Pandora’s tunes. Each table is accessorized with a canister of chicken-flavored peanuts (don’t knock it until you try it), Sriracha, and sliced hot peppers.

Rue Viet admits its food is not authentic but it succeeds in bringing fusion Vietnamese cuisine in a fashionable manner to Jersey City. The fluffy pork bun appetizers were sweet and slightly greasy, with a thin slice of cucumber slipped into each. The baked soy-ginger chicken wings lacked flavor for which ample Sriracha could not recompense. The main courses were banh mi, one a spicy chicken satay, another a fatty pork belly, and the last a traditional ham and pate. Although the proper elements were present - baguette, shredded pickled vegetables, cilantro - the sandwiches left a little to be desired for a banh mi afficionado. I like my baguette to require massive jaw force to break through accompanied by a shower of bread crumbs. The ham was disappointingly grocery-store quality.

*STUNT BANH MI, not the actual banh mi.

That being said, the sandwiches had a short life on the plate. Rue Viet keeps its menu brief and sweet but it also serves noodle dishes and pho. On the weekends the kitchen offers intriguing baked egg dishes which I look forward to sampling.

The fresh macaroons, made in house, were perhaps the star of the evening. They were slightly crispy on the outside, moist on the inside, and finished with a thin layer of Nutella in the middle. It occurred to me that while Rue Viet does have a soft-serve ice cream machine, it does not have a coffee selection that would nicely complement the vibe and/or Vietnamese food.

In toto -

Food: Fusion Vietnamese food, at times clumsy, but always fun. BYOB.
Ambience: Chic modern and with a sense of humor.
Pricing: Reasonable and worth it. Most dishes between $5 and $8.
Service: Laid-back, cool yet attentive.
Summary: Enjoy a decent fashionable meal here with friends or linger with your laptop.