NY, CT & MA May 2010

did anyone else notice the Frog Legs on Nathans Menu??? What the....?????
..and 400 calories to boot!!!lol

Hey Miami Guy, Thanks for the great report.  One of these years you have to venture out to good old Pennsylvania. 

Every now and then a real Gem appears on this part of the Forum.  Don, not only do you have my mouth watering, you have set "the standard" for what a great rport can be.  Thanks
 
(PS.one picky "pls"......adding shots of menus would help but since most have websites, I guess it's not necessary)

Thanks for the great update!  My sister used to live in Madison and we frequented Fishtale's on many occasions to enjoy a lobster roll.  Brings back great memories.

MD, you outdid yourself.  Definitely one of the best trip reports on here in quite a while.  The photo of the lobster roll has me planning a trip to New England ASAP.

  Very very nice!!!  I must say, Some of those pictures looked eerily familiar!   

AHI MPLS


  Very very nice!!!  I must say, Some of those pictures looked eerily familiar!   

You are right, Dawn!  I was dropping future report pix in the "Name that Roadfood Joint" thread.

Tony Bad:  I did not see the chow mein on a bun item, but I did not read all of the menu boards.

Great report!

Great report Don! I've always liked John's very much, but with all the "artisan" pizza options now in NY City it seems to have slid a little in the "best pizza" pecking order among the pizza mavens. I don't agree, I still like it.

My wife & I are heading up to Boston in August for the wedding of our neice, and since I'll be driving with both my Mother in Law and sister in law, the usual 6 or 7 hot dog and pizza stops in CT won't fly. Lenny & Joe seems like a great option. Thanks, we're going to give it a try.

Last time we did this same trip with them (for another wedding) we stopped at Abbotts on the way up(Touristy but great!). I've been craving another lobster roll ever since.

Ken, it looked like there were a bunch of good items on the menu, in case some of your party do not want a lobster roll.  I may very well stop by again for some other dishes.

Don, your review was GREAT! Good, good job.

 One thing surprised me, tho. I had a friend who used to love Lenny and Joe's cole slaw so much that at his annual picnic, he sent someone 20 miles downstate to buy ten pounds of the stuff. I'm not saying it's great, but I'm surprised you didn't like it. To each his own, I guess. But thanks for your review. We did Scott's pizza tour last June, and learned a lot.

Outstanding reporting, writing and photos. You have set the standard.

I am trying to decide where to take my Roadfood trip this summer. Meers, Oklahoma, is high on my list...but there is a lot of driving between stops.  You have given me great ideas.

Oh...and if you are in Natick again, visit Casey's Diner. I know they don't serve breakfast...but go anyway.

@joedeboer:  The slaw I got tasted stale and flat.  It was very much in contrast to the rest of the meal.  Maybe it was some sort of error on their part?  I cannot say.

@donb:  I'll be up in Framingham next year, so I shall put Casey's on my list of dining spots.  Thanks for the tip.

You were on I-95 in CT and you DIDN'T stop at Super Super Weenie? Forget Greenwich and Port Chester?

TG

I'll second that Super Duper Weenie,right off I95 is a great , fun stop fun toppings !

Don Miami...did you notice if they still had Chow Mein on a bun at Nathan's? Last time I was there, I didn't see it. Thought I might have missed it, but wondering if it is gone from menu.

Tony Bad

No roast beef on a bun, no chow mein and I think they also used to have pork on a bun.  All long gone as is the deli sandwich counter and the pizza.   They even served steaks for a short time.    For a long time, the Nathan's in Coney Island was NOT one of the franchised Nathan's - it was still under control of the Handwerker family, but I don't think that's the case any longer.  I believe (and if someone knows better, please correct me), it's controlled by Riese Restaurants, the same people who own many of the Friday's, Tad Steaks, KFCs, Haagen Dazs shops, Nedick's, Pizza Hut, Carvel and other crappy restaurants in New York.


IMO, Nathan's is a shadow of its former self.   For reasons I can't fathom, a few years back they replaced all of the hot dog grills - grills which had been seasoned for over 50 years.    The menu is a fraction of what it once was.   The dogs are "skinnier" (although they still seem to have the same flavor) and the french fries are not as good as they once were, although still very tasty.  I believe the fries used to be fresh and I believe today they are frozen.    They used to be fried in Mazola corn oil and there was always a rumor that they added sugar to the oil.    Today it's probably standard restaurant soy oil.  Back in the 1960s and 1970s, the workers were unionized and there in career positions.  These were the guys who could turn 50 hot dogs at a time and place 10 hot dogs in a bun and on a plate in about 8 seconds.      


Today, it's a bunch of minimum wage workers who seem to have trouble moving.  


There is already a second, smaller Nathan's on the Boardwalk.  If the developers have their way and turn Coney into condos, I do believe the original Nathan's will be gone, but frankly (sic), I'm not sure it will really be much of a loss, except for the memories.