Burgers and Pasta In Hoboken

Antique Bar and Bakery

122 Willow Avenue

Hoboken NJ 07030

201-683-70028

www.antiquebarandbakery.com

Listed as one of the best burgers in NYC by Eater and in Hoboken on Yelp* and Reddit, we thought we should give the Antique Bar and Bakery a try.  We had 5 pm reservations on a Tuesday night, something that was optional the night we were there.  They currently have outdoor seating - you should REALLY consider it will eliminate some of the problems I experienced; for the endurance of the lack of attention to detail, you are on your own.

Rating Overview:     ★ ★ ★ ★

Food Quality	★ ★ ★ ★ ★		FOH Service	★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Food Quantity	★ ★ ★ ★ ★		Food Service	★ ★
Food Preparation	★ ★ ★ ★ ★		Ambiance	NONE
Food Presentation	★ ★ ★ ★

Notes

We arrived about 10 minutes before the kitchen opened at 5 pm, the dining room was empty, and we were seated right away.  The first thing we noticed we the lack of light;

indoor seating is perfect if you think it is acceptable to pull out
your phone and use the flashlight to read the menu. 

Next, the music was blaring making communication between diners and waitstaff at best painful.  We asked about turning down the music and were essentially told “nothing can be done  - that is the way it always is.” (about an hour later, the volume WAS turned down … maybe someone else more directly insisted that they be able to actually hear the other people at their table).

Using the menu as an ear trumpet,

I think I heard the waiter introduce himself and he felt the need to rank his favorites of the specialty cocktails without commentary on flavor profiles.  That was as helpful as if he explained his favorite sodas were Mountain Dew, Pepsi, Red Bull, Strawberry Fanta, and Mr. Pibb.  Looking at the specialty cocktails on the menu, it is evident that the mixologist owns stock in Domino Sugar - simple syrup is their go-to ingredient -  so the previous sugary soda analogy is pretty spot on. 

It was so hard to hear his insights over the music, he might have been telling me his Super Bowl picks. 

When my “All the Way” showed up, it had a straw that appeared to be designed for a Las Vegas Yard Cocktail Glass almost tipping over the glass with its massive length.  I am sure the bartender has a knife, but apparently, is not trained or caring to pay attention to detail or presentation.

We placed our order and were led to order the Bread Pudding at the beginning with everything else - like you would a souffle.

We started with the “PLANTAIN N'DUJA CROQUETTES w/ Plantain, Fresh Mozzarella, N'Duja Sausage, toasted mint, oregano, & orange.”  It was pretty good and made excellent with the pickled peppers and the aioli.  We asked for the last croquette and the aioli to be packed to go. The assistant waiter brought a box AND A LITTLE CUP for the aioli!  We got to pack it ourselves in the dark.  Of course, that is when the entrees arrived making the table a little crowded as we juggled packing to-go boxes, dirty dishes, and the arriving entrees.

For the entrees, we had the LASAGNA EDGES w/ Burnt butter mushrooms, hard herbs & cheese toast.   The Edges were great, they were cheesy rotini.  The mushrooms were full of earthy umami.  The cheese on the bread might have been a bit too much cheese for an already cheesey entree.

We also had the ANTIQUE RIB-EYE BURGER - Marinated dry-age rib-eye topped with Special Sauce, Homemade Pickles, Smoked Cheddar Cheese on a Kaiser Roll served w/ Worcestershire Fries. [NJ.com highlights their birria burger, but the menu did not list that, or at least in the dark, it was not apparent]

Can you FIND the burger?

A small detail that would have passed if all other details had not been garishly flaunted, but I assumed the Burger was the star of my entree, but placing it on the table with the fries and pickles prominently front and center made me question the confidence of the chef in their ability to cook a burger correctly.  No need to worry, the Burger was cooked to perfection.

By now, about 5:30-5:40, three other parties had been seated in our area:  All used their flashlights to read the menu.  This is about the time the music was turned to a reasonable volume, so I was able to overhear the waiter (while at the next table) again rank his favorite sugary cocktails and explain that if they did not order the Bread Pudding in advance, it could take 20 or more minutes when they did actually order it.

Another table needs the basic of light to read the menu

We DID order the Bread Pudding up front, so it was in the works when we again boxed our own leftovers.

The Bread Pudding was amazing.  Imagine in Close Encounter if Richard Dryfus used Bread Pudding instead of mashed potatoes. 

The top was dry and crisp.  The interior was warm and had a creamy semi-solid consistency.  The whole thing was dusted with sugar and served with a ramekin of warm Tuaca (spiced brandy) Caramel Sauce.  Unfortunately, the bottom was charred to a hard inedible crust - fortunately, the burnt flavor did NOT permeate the whole dish.  One might think that having made this a few times previously, the procedure would have been perfected.

To end the evening, the actual waiter brought us a to-go box for the remaining bread pudding, without the thought that we would need a container for the Tuaca Caramel Sauce… I went and got that from the kitchen myself - again, a lack of thought and attention to detail.

To review:  Eat outside in a quiet, well-lit protected area if you can.  Service and attention to service-related detail are probably as good as you can expect in most independent restaurants without a corporate-mandated indoctrination and training program.  Most importantly, The food taste and preparation are excellent.