Jimmy Buffs: One of New Jersey's Premier Grease Cuisine Spots

This past week we were taking care of my mother-in-law at our house. We took her back to West Orange on Saturday and from West Orange I headed over to Flushing Meadow in Queens to officiate at a wedding. (What a crazy day). When I got back, to West Orange, to my delight, I found a sandwich from one of my favorite New Jersey "grease cusine" places--a double Italian Hot Dog Sandwich from Jimmy Buffs. One of the cool things about living in New Jersey for a foodie is that because of the density and ethnic diversity of our population you will find food specialties that are known no where else except in that little area where the food originated. As people spread out from those areas, the special food spreads with them. Take for instance the hot dog. I already blogged about the Texas Weiner. This a particularly Passaic, County way of eating hotdogs. The Italian Hotdog, as exemplified by Jimmy Buff's is pretty much an Essex County way eating hotdogs. The first Italian Hot Dog was made in Newark and has spead to where ever folk from Newark and Essex County have settled through out New Jersey. Although you can get an Italian Hotdog in lots of pizza places in Jersey, they are all pale imitiatons of the authentic Jimmy Buffs dog.

What is so special about a Jimmy Buffs Italian Hotodog? There are two ingredients that are responsible for its uniqueness. The first if the bread, and the second is the grease. (Please be advised that when I use the word grease, I use it not in a pejorative way, but with intense appreciation and fondness for the flavors that can only be transmitted by high quality fat that has been seasoned by many uses.) When you go to Jimmy Buffs in West Orange, you enter this little stand with a tiny counter. The cook, (sometimes Jimmy, the boss, and son of the original Jimmy Buff or one of his sons), will take your order. If you order a double he will cut a loaf of Pizza bread in half. (Pizza bread is a round, flat, fat Italin Bread. Jimmy says it's short for "fat pita"). I don't know where Jimmy Buffs gets their bread, but it is very high quality. I am sure that it comes from one of the great Italian bakeries that had it's origins in the North Ward of Newark. Then the cook takes two hot dogs, (the kind with the skin on 'em so they split when they cook and snap when you bite into them) and deep fries them. Just a word about that grease. There is legend that the grease that is used is the same grease that Jimmy's father fried his first hot dogs in. As the grease evaporated, more was added. The legend goes that as Jimmy expanded, he took a portion of that grease to the new Jimmy Buffs store as a starter. I am sure this is just a legend, but it grows out the knowledge folks have that one of the secrets of Jimmy Buffs is how all the flavors blend together from cooking the hotdogs, pepper, onions, potatoes, sausage, etc. in that one big flat flyer.

While the dogs are frying the cook takes a portion of fresh cut potatoes, sliced onions and peppers and fries them in that same oil. Then he will put your condiments on the bread. I take mustard and ketchup on my Jimmy Buffs. Finally the dogs and vegetables are stuffed into the bread and it is wrapped up and packed to go. By the way, my 87 year old mother-in-law has been eating these things all her life and enjoyed one with us on Saturday. Maybe it is the secret to long life. What a great way to eat a hot dog!

Enjoy!

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Nathan's: Gourmet Fast Food At a Garden State Parkway Rest Stop

Yesterday we drove round trip to take my son and his friend to the camp in New Hampshire that he is working at for the summer. We got to New Jersey and the beginning of the Garden State Parkway just in time for the Friday night shore traffic.

Since our ninety mile trip on the parkway would probably take us two and a half hours or more with the traffic we decided to stop for dinner at the northern most Garden State Parkway rest stop. For those of you whose roads don't have such things, let me explain that New Jersey toll roads have these rest stop that include bathroom facilities, a store, recent immigrant guys selling sun glasses from kiosks, ATM machines and food courts.

The two nicest rest stops are the Montvale rest stop at mile post 171 and the Cheesquake rest stop at miles post 123. We stopped at the Montvale rest stop and were interested primarily in the food court. I decided to get supper from Nathan's.

Nathan's is that famous hot dog stand in Coney Island where the world famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating contest is held. Of course through the magic of franchising and branding there are Nathan's places in malls, rest stops and many other places. You can also buy Nathan's hot dogs and condiments in many grocery stores. New Yorkers and New Jerseyites take their hot dogs very seriously. (I have blogged about the wiener wars going on in the town that I grew up in. You can read about it here.) What makes the dogs around here great is that they are usually all beef and they always have a natural casing that splits when you cook them and snaps when you bite into them. Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs are one of the best examples of the high quality New York metro dog.

What gets me really excited about eating at Nathan's though, are their fries. Being the carbo king that I am, of course I have an opinion about Nathan's fries. I am inclined to agree with those that claim that Nathan's fries are some of the best in the business. Nathan's fries are pretty unique. They are made from fresh potatoes and they are "krinkle cut" into thick chunks of starchy goodness. I have a theory that the really great road food places like Nathan's have a "starter fat" that is kind of like a sour dough starter from the original oil fat that is passed around to the company's expanding universe, because all fries from Nathan's share a uniquely delicious Nathan's flavor. You can have your fries with cheese sauce or with chili sauce, but being the boardwalk prowler that I am, I have mine with malt vinegar and ketchup.

Next time you are riding on the Garden State Parkway stop at one of the Nathan's in a rest stop for some delicious Garden State Parkway gourmet fast food.

Enjoy!

Clifton Wiener Wars

I have been really, really swamped lately and haven't been a very good house hubbie. I am falling behind on the laundry and my cooking has been pretty basic, so I haven't had any great recipes or reports of meals to blog about.

However this past week I traveled up the Garden State Parkway to drop some music off to my son studying music at Montclair State University. I had a couple of hours before Rob got out of class and could meet up with him so I took a journey back to my hometown of Clifton, NJ to lunch on a Hot Grill Texas Weiner.

Clifton is a center of one of the great wiener wars of all time. It rages between The Hot Grill and their Texas Wieners and Rutt's Hut and their deep fried "rippers" and their secret relish.

Rutt's Hut dogs are unique in that when they are deep fried, they split open, thus the name "rippers". The natural casing of the hot dog crisps up and crunches when you bite into it. The main ingredients in their relish secret recipe is sweet pickle relish and mustard, and it has a vibrant yellow color. Sometimes a Rutt's Hut dog is just the thing.

However, most of the time, I am a Hot Grill guy. Hot Grill dogs are fried (not deep fried) so their skin "pops" like when you bite into it. The most popular way to order a Hot Grill dog is "all the way". This is a dog on a soft warm bun, with mustard, raw onions and the Hot Grill signature Texas Weiner sauce, which is a spicy red chili sauce.

I don't think the Clifton Wiener war will ever be won, at least I hope not, because I want to bring my great grand kids to these institutions 30 years from now. If you want to take sides in the battle, take a detour on your way to or from NYC someday. The Hot Grill is just off Route 46 and Rutt's Hut in on Route 21 just off S3.