The Mean Fiddler

266 W 47th St
New York, NY 10036
themeanfiddlernyc.com

Today, we went into Manhattan with some friends. After wandering for awhile, we decided to go looking for some lunch. Our original plan was to find Pommes Frites, having heard there was a new location in or near Times Square. Alas, the internet might lie to you, and there might be no Pommes Frites location in or near Times Square. So, to 8th Ave we went in search of some inexpensive yet interesting food. I looked down streets for places that looked interesting, and we stumbled across The Mean Fiddler. They had pub food for most of their menu; burgers, chicken sandwiches, etc, but they also had a nice looking Irish food part of the menu too. Having spent a chilly morning wandering the big city, I decided a nice warm Irish stew sounded like the perfect lunch to me. I wasn't at all wrong. My dining companions loved that there were mashed potatoes on top of my stew. I loved that it was so tasty! A friend got the "mean burger," which is much like Burger King's Angry Burger, but he said it was much fresher and tastier. My other friend got the Dublin Chicken Burger, and remarked that it was REALLY good. Finally, my husbad got the Rachel, and thought it was pretty tasty!

For the four of us, our meal came to $60; not too shabby for a NYC lunch for four... especially considering we were all so full we just had a VERY light dinner.

Bagel Pantry

577 Middlesex Ave
Metuchen, NJ 08840

On our way to Metropark station, we decided to stop for some bagels. These were pretty tasty; fresh, good tasty cream cheese. I didn't go in, so can't speak to how reasonable their prices are, but the bagels were good and fresh. Yum!

El Meson

40 W Main St
Freehold, NJ 07728

You know when there is a restaurant that you've heard so much about that you just can't wait to try it? And you go and try it, like it, but then realize it's so far away it's not really worth it? Yeah, this is that story. I know, it's not that great of a story.

Anyway, I had heard about El Meson since planning my wedding in 2005. We got married in the area, and were searching for a restaurant in which to hold our rehearsal dinner. This came up in a discussion with a friend, and she said she had heard it was the best Mexican food around. In a quick google search, I discovered others agreed. It wasn't at all what I expected, and I don't know if I'd consider it the best Mexican food in the state, but it was pretty darn good.

As far as being "authentic," I don't know if that's true or not. What part of Mexico this style of cuisine is from, no idea on that either. I do know that their menu consisted of nothing one couldn't find at a typical Mexican food restaurant a la On the Border. But it tasted way better... the one exception, I'd say, was my chile relleno. There was just something about it that disappointed me. I was a little bit saddened to see they didn't have mole sauce on the menu; it's something I really enjoy but have a hard time finding. Each entree gave you a choice of salsa--the waiter asked if we wanted hot, medium, or mild, but having read the menu, I requested salsa verde; it was excellent!!!