For Your Consideration

The New York Times' New Jersey section restaurant review dished out an "Excellent" to newcomer Restaurant Latour in Hardyston. If you're looking for a place for a very special occasion and you're tired of Highlawn Pavilion, it sounds really good. Oh, and apparently they have a 20,000 bottle wine cellar.

Thanks to Rajeev, I have started reading blog A Hamburger Today. I am now overwhelmed with an urge to go to the Shake Shack. Also, the reviewer headed over the river to New Jersey to try out White Manna and White Mana (the Hackensack one gets an excellent review).

And did you know that IKEA sells good cheap coffee? I had no clue. Phil was kind enough to share today.

And on an unrelated note, I actually got to catch a replay of This American Life yesterday - it was a repeat from last year about the private sector in Iraq - Nancy Updike interviewed dozens of people and it was a fascinating piece. I love Nancy because she occasionally gets worked up when dealing with her subjects. For instance, Hank, who is a private security guy in Baghdad, talks about not wanting to change Iraqis, but he disapproves of the male Iraqi custom of holding hands with a friend in public. He'll needle his Iraqi co-workers and pals about it. Nancy got pissed at him and yelled "Jesus Christ! Leave them alone!" Hank asked her, "Don't you think it's wrong that they hold hands?" "No! I think it's nice! Just leave them be!" she snapped. She did not get worked up with the security guard who talked a co-worker into letting his wife go out in public without a burka. Listen to it here.