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Bacon prices soar due to pig shortage

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photo David Mcglynn

Bacon prices soar due to pig shortage

By Amber Sutherland, Daniel Prendergast and Chris Perez

August 5, 2014 | 8:54pm

Bacon lovers are getting socked in the piggy bank.

City butchers and restaurateurs are beginning to squeal for mercy after the price of bacon rose to the highest it’s been in nearly 30 years — thanks to high demand and a shortage of healthy pigs.

“We’ve had to raise the prices in small increments in the last month,” said Vincent Santiago, an employee at Staubitz meat market in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn.

The pork surge began last year when a virus swept through US farms in about 30 states and killed millions of pigs.

Bacon prices have shot up around 10 percent this year alone and reached an all-time high of $6.11 per pound, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Santiago said a half-pound slab of bacon now costs about $3.99, as opposed to last month when they were about a dollar cheaper.

“We don’t like to raise prices, but this is what we do for a living,” he added. “People are still buying it.”

https://nypost.com/2014/08/05/bacon-prices-are-sky-high-during-pig-shortage/

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WHAT GMO LABELS REALLY TELL US

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WHAT GMO LABELS REALLY TELL US

Op-ed by Amanda Maxham

17 hrs ago by Amanda Maxham

Ayn Rand Institute

This spring, Vermont passed a law requiring any food that includes genetically engineered ingredients – otherwise known as “GMOs” for “genetically modified organisms” – to carry a label. Vermont is the first state to pass such a law, but it likely won’t be the last. Oregon voters will decide on a similar measure in November and about 25 other states have proposed mandatory labeling legislation so far this year.

Proponents of the laws claim that the labels will lead to “informed consumers” making “better choices” about the foods they are eating. That sounds laudable. So what information will consumers actually find on the labels?

Will the labels inform you that approximately 80 percent of foods on grocery store shelves contain genetically engineered varieties of corn, soybeans and other fruits and vegetables? Despite the scariness of the term “GMO,” chances are you ate one for breakfast. People have eaten trillions of meals containing GMOs since farmers first pushed the first biotech seeds into the ground back in the mid-1990s. These foods haven’t caused a single ill health effect.

Will the labels point out that humans have been “genetically modifying” foods for centuries? Even something as familiar as sweet corn began as a wild grass-like plant that produced a few, tiny cob-like fruits. More than 5,000 years ago, Mesoamerican people began selecting and planting the seeds of the plants they preferred, discarding the rest. Our ancestors, without knowing anything about DNA or genes, were influencing changes in the genetic make-up of their food, making it tastier, more nutritious and easier to grow.

Today, scientists are using their understanding of genetics to make small and targeted improvements to the foods we eat. If you imagine that the genome of a plant is like a book, modern genetic engineering amounts to editing a few sentences to make it read better.

Will the labels tell you that farmers have rapidly adopted these engineered varieties because they are easier to grow and keep healthy in the field? Varieties of corn and cotton resistant to insects can be protected with fewer pesticides. Papayas and squash inoculated against nasty plant viruses don’t get sick and rot on the branch.

No, the labels won’t include any of these facts about GMOs. In fact, the labels won’t convey any actual information at all – just an intimidating warning that the product contains GMOs. So what’s their real purpose?

In an episode of Penn & Teller’s aptly named TV show “Bullsh*t!,” a woman gets a bunch of people to sign a petition to ban “dihydrogen monoxide.” Dihydrogen monoxide, of course, is just the scientific name for “water,” but for people who aren’t scientifically versed, the name isn’t informative. It just sounds scary.

The term “genetically modified organism” is as unfamiliar as “dihydrogen monoxide” and anti-GMO activists know that. The goal is not to inform consumers, but to frighten them away from buying something that is in reality as innocuous as water.

The activists’ long-term strategy is to achieve an outright ban on GMOs. As one prominent anti-GMO leader, Dr. Joseph Mercola, said: “Personally, I believe GM foods must be banned entirely, but labeling is the most efficient way to achieve this. Since 85 percent of the public will refuse to buy foods they know to be genetically modified, this will effectively eliminate them from the market just the way it was done in Europe.”

The anti-GMO fear-mongering is not based on science, but on the dogma that man should not “play God” by trying to improve nature – and that if he does, his hubris will lead ultimately to disaster. But there’s no evidence of this pending disaster, so activists have resorted to fear tactics and the strong arm of the government to drive people to reject a successful technology and the foods improved with it.

What really needs a warning label is the anti-GMO activists’ toxic, anti-technology stance. They pose an actual threat to people’s health.

Dr. Amanda Maxham holds a PhD in astrophysics and is a research associate for the Ayn Rand Institute where she writes and speaks about science-based policy issues. Follow her on Twitter @DrMaxham.

https://politix.topix.com/story/13326-what-gmo-labels-really-tell-us

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Now Open: Roots Steakhouse in Ridgewood

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Now Open: Roots Steakhouse in Ridgewood

JULY 21, 2014    LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, JULY 21, 2014, 1:21 AM
THE RECORD

NOW OPEN

Roots Steakhouse

15 Chestnut St., Ridgewood

201-444-1922; rootssteakhoue.com

* How it started: This Roots Steakhouse was eight years in the making. Harvest Restaurants, the parent company for nine restaurants in New Jersey, including two Roots Steakhouses — one in Summit, one in Morristown — wanted to open a Roots in Bergen County, specifically in Ridgewood. “It took us eight years to find the right location with a liquor license,” said Grant Halliday, director of operations for Harvest Restaurants. Why Ridgewood? “We like a downtown setting,” Halliday said. “The town is unique in Bergen County in that it has a vibrant downtown setting.”

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/food-and-dining-news/dining-news/now-open-roots-steakhouse-in-ridgewood-1.1054576#sthash.LfhubNoc.dpuf

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Smoked salmon is this chef’s niche

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Smoked salmon is this chef’s niche

JULY 20, 2014    LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY, JULY 20, 2014, 1:43 PM
BY ELISA UNG
RECORD COLUMNIST
THE RECORD

This summer, we’ll be spotlighting locally produced foods and drinks that have caught the attention of North Jersey’s chefs, bartenders and other tastemakers.

Where it’s on the menu

Moveable Feast provided this list of the local restaurants, caterers and clubs that serve its smoked salmon and other fish:

Alpine Country Club

Bareli’s, Secaucus

Bottagra, Hawthorne

Chakra, Paramus

Chef’s Table, Franklin Lakes

Fiesta Banquet, Wood-Ridge

The Elan, Lodi

The Graycliff, Moonachie

Latour, Ridgewood

Le Jardin, Edgewater

The Park Steakhouse, Park Ridge

Park West Tavern, Ridgewood

Rudy’s Inflight Catering, Teterboro

Village Green, Ridgewood


Alain Quirin has always been intrigued by how fresh-from-the-sea salmon can be transformed into the thin, silky, smoky slices that are twirled into canapés and draped onto buffet trays.

When the French-born chef ran the kitchen at the Greenwich Village restaurant Raoul’s, he often could be found spending afternoons on an outdoor terrace, tending to a few fillets of salmon in a small smoker, which he piled with ice to keep it from getting too hot.

“It was kind of like a game for me,” Quirin said. “It was interesting to go from A to Z on something that normally you just open a package.”

And eventually, he and his wife, Denise, turned that game into a family business. Their Moveable Feast, whose headquarters is in a Moonachie industrial complex, cold-smokes 5,000 pounds of buttery salmon a week, and customers say its quality is unrivaled.

“It’s just so much fresher,” said Chris Waters, executive chef of The Elan catering hall in Lodi, who serves platters of smoked salmon and also uses it in an avocado salad with apples and red onion. “You can smell the smoke as soon as you open the package. It takes over the room. People turn their heads.”

At Village Green in Ridgewood, chef-owner Kevin Portscher layers the salmon over warm potato pancakes, garnished with onions, capers and dill crème fraîche. “I couldn’t make it better myself — that’s why I buy it from him,” Portscher said. “There’s no chemicals, no crazy flavors. It’s fish, salt, hickory smoke. That’s the way they’ve been doing it for hundreds of years.”

Adds another Ridgewood chef, Michael Latour, who occasionally uses the fish in specials: “Some salmon can be a little too slimy. His technique is drier.”

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/food-and-dining-news/food-news/the-deans-of-smoked-salmon-1.1054271#sthash.Uh9A5QQR.dpuf

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ROLLING PIN ACADEMY

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ROLLING PIN ACADEMY

Tammy Dunwoody
Owner
The Art of Cake
email:  artofcake@gmail.com
201-483-9176
Ridgewood, NJ  07450
John Aramian
Producer
Peasant Chef TV

ROLLING PIN ACADEMY

The Rolling Pin Academy is owned by Tammy Dunwoody and John Aramian and located in the town of Ridgewood, New Jersey.    Tammy, pastry chef and owner of The Art of Cake  has been featured on The Martha Stewart Show and Cupcake Wars.  John is a talented chef and Producer of Peasant Chef TV.  Together their desire to share their combined culinary talents led to the opening of the academy.

The Rolling Pin Academy camps, classes and birthday parties are a fun activity for kids and adults of all ages, and a great way to learn about the basics of cooking, baking and decorating.   .

Cooking Camp

Our young cooking camp chefs learn to prepare Pasta, Pizza, Burritos, Tacos, Wings, Mac & Cheese, Nachos, crepes, apple enchiladas, and more! Time will be spent on safety rules for working in a kitchen, healthy food facts, and kitchen clean up.  Campers will be eating the items they make, bring home daily samplings, and receive an apron and recipe booklet on the last day of camp.

We have a minimum cooking camp size of 4 campers and a maximum of 8 campers.  We reserve the right to cancel camp if the minimum number of campers is not met.

Cake Camp

Our fondant cake campers learn to read recipes, measure and mix ingredients and fill and crumb coat a cake.  They will work with fondant icing, make decorations, and cover and decorate an edible 7″ cake and decorate a two tiered “dummy cake” (made from styrofoam)  to take home.   Campers will also learn to decorate cupcakes during our cupcake decorating competition and lear n to use chocolate molds and melted chocolate to make decorations for cakes, cupcake and party favors.  Campers bring home daily treats and receive an apron on the last day of camp.

We have a minimum cake camp size of 8 campers and a maximum of 12.  We reserve the right to cancel camp if the minimum number of campers is not met.

Cost of Cooking or Cake Camp:  $300.00

Dates & Times:  Monday – Thursday  9:00 – 12:00 or 1:00 – 4:00

July 7- 10             July 14-17               July 21-24            July 28-31

August 4-7              August 11-14

Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church

155 Linwood Avenue

Ridgewood, New Jersey

CAMPS FILL UP QUICKLY SO PLEASE REGISTER EARLY!

Please call 201-483-9176 or email us at artofcake@gmail.com

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The Stop & Shop in Ridgewood to close during renovations

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The Stop & Shop in Ridgewood to close during renovations

JULY 10, 2014    LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, JULY 10, 2014, 3:18 PM
BY BY LIZ WELLINGHORST
STAFF WRITER

The Stop & Shop in Ridgewood is temporarily closing its doors for a five to six-week renovation, which began on Thursday.

According to Kenny Demchak, assistant store manager, the entire store will be remodeled over the summer, although the floor layout will remain the same.

“We will be adding new floors, redoing shelves and fixtures, adding new signs and expanding our natural and organic food section,” said Demchak.

The second floor pharmacy and liquor store will remain open for customers throughout the renovation, with new store hours for those departments changing during the remodeling.

Parking on the Stop & Shop grounds will be prohibited and strictly enforced throughout the renovation, except for patrons shopping at the pharmacy and liquor store.

An exact date on when Stop & Shop will reopen its doors remains uncertain.

“If all goes according to plan, we hope to reopen by Labor Day and before school begins,” said Demchak. “We will keep customers notified of our reopening by posting updates on our website and with signs in our Ridgewood store windows.”

New pharmacy and liquor store hours are as follows: Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 3 p.m.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/business/ridgewood-supermarket-to-close-during-renovations-1.1049477#sthash.j9MQSTIL.dpuf

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Restaurant review: The Park West Tavern

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Restaurant review:The Park West Tavern
July 11, 2014    Last updated: Friday, July 11, 2014, 1:12 PM
By Elisa Ung
The Record

Surprise! Some of Ridgewood’s most satisfying fine-dining fare can now be found in a place that calls itself a tavern.

The Park West Tavern is a place where you can expect more that just a bucket of Buffalo wings with your beer.

OK, maybe it’s not a total surprise. When Park West Tavern opened three years ago, serving up its flavorful burgers with house-made ketchup, it was clear that it was not your average bar. The owners, who are also behind the well-regarded Park Steakhouse in Park Ridge, thought Ridgewood needed a restaurant with an upscale but still laid-back atmosphere, a benchmark bar and a familiar American menu with chef touches: I rated it 2.5 stars.

Park West Tavern ***

30 Oak St., Ridgewood
201-445-5400
parkwesttavern.com

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/food-and-dining-news/restaurant-reviews/beer-with-a-haute-chaser-1.1049906#sthash.U4RKX3aT.dpuf

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Farmer’s Market Opens Today Sunday, June 22, 2014

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Farmer’s Market Opens Today Sunday, June 22, 2014

Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce sponsors the Farmer’s Market, held every Sunday from June 22 to November 2, 2014 from 9AM to 3PM. Rain or Shine.
West Side of NJ Transit Train Station, Ridgewood NJ

14 years of great NJ Farm fresh food.Everyone is back for another great year.

Two NJ Farmers delicious baker, pickles, jams, mozzarella

Enjoy New Jersey’s own corn, tomatoes, blueberries, strawberries and baked goods! Further information from the Ridgewood Chamber – 201/445- 2600

Fresh every week. Join us every Sunday, 9-3pm on the westside of the NJ Transit Ridgewood train station.

see you there…bring the family.

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Ridgewood resident and international restaurateur Drew Nieporent returns to his roots

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Ridgewood resident and international restaurateur Drew Nieporent returns to his roots

JUNE 15, 2014    LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY, JUNE 15, 2014, 10:21 AM
BY ELISA UNG

A new sign just went up in the window of 239 W. Broadway in Tribeca: Bâtard. The dining news website Eater.com quickly placed Bâtard at the top of its list of the hottest Manhattan establishments of the moment – declaring: “This is the restaurant that all the critics and fine dining lovers will be checking out this summer.”

But there are still other reasons why we all might care about this particular address and this new restaurant: The man behind it is not only a longtime Ridgewood resident, he also helped shape the American dining scene.

It was 1985 when restaurateur Drew Nieporent, then 29, opened his first restaurant, Montrachet, in a converted woodworking shop at that Broadway address. It was a highly pioneering move – most obviously in the neighborhood he chose, referred to in one review as an “alien ZIP code.”

The vision was also novel: a restaurant known not for its silver domes on plates and formal service but for a comfortable, genial atmosphere, even though this was no casual bistro. It had a $16 prix-fixe menu and no dress code (Nieporent was fond of asking guests to simply cover their feet and genitals).

Its executive chef was a then-unknown named David Bouley; the restaurant was quickly awarded a rare three stars from The New York Times.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/food-and-dining-news/dining-news/the-man-who-changed-fine-dining-1.1035518#sthash.s40kQ7QI.dpuf

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Ridgewood Farmers Market is Back

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Ridgewood Farmers Market is Bac

Sun, June 22, 2014 – Sun, November 02, 2014
Time: 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
West Side of NJ Transit Train Station, Ridgewood NJ14 years of great NJ Farm fresh food.
Everyone is back for another great year.

Two NJ Farmers
delicious baker, pickles, jams, mozzarella

Fresh every week.
Join us every Sunday, 9-3pm on the westside of the NJ Transit Ridgewood train station.

call for more information 201-445-2600.
see you there…bring the family.

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Taste of Ridgewood Sunday, June 08, 2014

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Taste of Ridgewood Sunday, June 08, 2014

Time: 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Memorial Park at Van Nest Square & E. Ridgewood Av, Ridgewood NJ 07450

Join us for the Annual
Taste of Ridgewood
Sunday, June 8 2014
Memorial Park at
Van Neste Square/E. Ridgewood Ave.
1-4pm
over 25 restaurants having delicious tastings,
there will be a cash Beer Garden,
Take 4 Band, playing for your pleasure.
Kids activities
Bring the family

All tickets bought at the entrances of the park.
no rain date.

For more details, please call us at 201-445-2600 or email info@ridgewoodchamber.com www.experienceridgewood.com

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Who’s afraid of GMOs? Let’s serve up science without scare stories and eat without fear

Pocketbook Pressures

Who’s afraid of GMOs? Let’s serve up science without scare stories and eat without fear
By John Stossel
Published May 28, 2014
FoxNews.com

It’s easy to scare people about what’s in their food, but the danger is almost never real. And the fear itself kills.

Take the panic over genetically modified organisms, or GMOs. Ninety percent of all corn grown in America is genetically modified now. That means it grew from a seed that scientists altered by playing with its genes. The new genes may make corn grow faster, or they may make it less appetizing to bugs so farmers can use fewer pesticides.

We didn’t even know what genes were when we first created new strains of plants and animals. There’s no reason to believe modern methods of altering genes are any more dangerous.

This upsets some people. GMOs are “unnatural,” they say. A scene from the movie “Seeds of Death” warns that eating GMOs “causes holes in the GI tract” and “causes multiple organ system failure.”

The restaurant chain Chipotle, which prides itself on using organic ingredients, produces videos suggesting that industrial agriculture is evil, including a comedic Web series called “Farmed and Dangerous” about an evil agricultural feed company that threatens to kill its opponents and whose products cause cows to explode.

Michael Hansen of Consumer Reports sounds almost as frightening when he talks about GMOs. On my Fox Business show, “Stossel,” he says, “It’s called insertional mutagenesis … you can’t control where you’re inserting that genetic information; it can have different effects depending on the location.”

Jon Entine of the Genetic Literacy Project responds: “We’ve eaten about 7 trillion meals in the 18 years since GMOs first came on the market. There’s not one documented instance of someone getting so much as a sniffle.”

Given all the fear from media and activists, you might be surprised to learn that most serious scientists agree with him. “There have been about 2,000 studies,” says Entine, and “there is no evidence of human harm in a major peer-reviewed journal.”

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/05/28/who-afraid-gmos-let-serve-up-science-without-scare-stories-and-eat-without-fear/

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Coffee With the Chef: Lisa Mayisoglu of Lisa’s Mediterranean Cuisine, Ridgewood

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Photo by Selma S.

Coffee With the Chef: Lisa Mayisoglu of Lisa’s Mediterranean Cuisine, Ridgewood

APRIL 23, 2014    LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2014, 12:16 PM
THE RECORD

Lisa’s Mediterranean Cuisine, Ridgewood

In 1985, Lisa Mayisoglu left Ankara with her family and started working in restaurants. Seven years ago, she opened her first Lisa’s Turkish Kitchen in Ridgewood. Her husband died a year later, leaving her to care for their three children alone. Two years ago, with the help of her sister, the 46-year-old chef moved locations and renamed her place Lisa’s Mediterranean Cuisine. The restaurant received three out of four stars from this newspaper. Here, Mayisoglu discusses why Turkish cuisine is good for you, her love for desserts and how she stays thin.

The most difficult dish to make: The dumplings ($18). It’s time-consuming. It’s a little dumpling stuffed with lamb and seasoning, but everything is done from scratch. We never buy anything from the outside. The Turkish kitchen is the most difficult to cook in, ’cause everything is done by hand. I know a lot of restaurants say that, but I know myself that it’s true here.

I make my own: Stock, tomato sauce, tahini, cacik [yogurt mixed with cucumber and seasonings], thick Turkish pita bread. A lot of customers take the bread home.

Turkish cuisine is … Unique. It’s very healthy. It’s Mediterranean. We cook with a lot of nuts, a lot of tomatoes, cucumbers. It doesn’t have a lot of creamy sauces, butter.

Advice for diners: Be happy.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/food-and-dining-news/coffee-with-the-chef-lisa-mayisoglu-of-lisa-s-mediterranean-cuisine-ridgewood-1.1000985#sthash.4l17AmXV.dpuf

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Restaurant review: Cravings Tapas Bistro in Ridgewood

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Restaurant review: Cravings Tapas Bistro in Ridgewood

MARCH 21, 2014    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, MARCH 21, 2014, 5:47 PM
BY ELISA UNG
THE RECORD

I admit I was skeptical about Ridgewood’s newest dinner spot, Cravings Tapas Bistro. First of all, the name “Cravings” makes me think of a mall food-court stand that sells limp salads and soft-serve ice cream. Second, Cravings’ menu can come across as wildly unfocused. Do you want hummus or Mexican street corn? Ricotta gnocchi or a cheesesteak empanada? Tuna tartare or eggplant Parmesan?

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/food-and-dining-news/restaurant-reviews/a-party-for-the-senses-exciting-new-restaurant-mixes-cuisines-with-fun-1.747301#sthash.C2SJDkCG.dpuf

Cravings Tapas Bistro in Ridgewood
8 Wilsey Square, Ridgewood, NJ 07450
(201) 857-8533

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Record Restaurant mini-review rates Wasabi 3 stars out of 4

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Record Restaurant mini-review rates Wasabi  3 stars out of 4

FRIDAY MARCH 7, 2014, 3:25 PM
THE RECORD

Authentic Japanese cuisine, including absolutely fresh sushi and sashimi, fully cooked Japanese specialties like tempura and teriyaki. Prices: Appetizers $5 to $16 , entrées $14 to $48. Hours: Lunch noon to 2:30 p.m., dinner 5 to 10 p.m. Monday to Thursday; lunch noon to 2:30 p.m., dinner 5 to 10:30 p.m. Friday; noon to 10:30 p.m. Saturday; noon to 9:30 p.m. Sunday. Liquor, wine: BYO. Noise level: Can be a little noisy on a busy, hectic night but certainly bearable, even then. Credit cards: AE, D, DC, MC, V. Reservations: Recommended, especially on weekends. Accommodations for children: Highchairs, booster seats. Dress: Casual. Early-bird specials or deals: No. Takeout: Yes. Parking: Street and small private lot. Reviewed: July 26, 2013. • 848 E. Ridgewood Ave., Ridgewood; 201-493-7575.

– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/food_dining/249039611_Restaurant_mini-review__Wasabi______.html#sthash.yCXA02sP.dpuf