Room With A View

hm--I wonder what happened to the feelgood "beez knees" and all of thier do-goodery--I guess the foul additudes sent them packing back to "upper". Good Luck! Restaurants are floundering in this bad economy~even the highly rated ones in NYC, Im afraid. ENJOY!

...oops--I meant to type THIER bad additudes. What nasty people, working with children no less! Must be nice to be married to money~ah the entitlement

What the hell is Cynd1 talking about?

yeah Grover, I was wondering the same thing...I think Cynd1 was thinking about a kids school type place on Walnut St. What that has to do with this new restaurant, I have no idea either.

What Cynd1 is trying to say makes perfect sense, you just have to connect the dots...Cynd1 is obviously upset because beez knees has a foul attitude and is nasty and is no longer in downtown Montclair and since the economy is doing so poorly and restaurants are floundering in this bad economy and Cynd1 isn't married to money, she no longer has a place near her home where she can go to learn how to spell words like "THEIR." ENJOY!

Susan Pinkwater founded a place called beez knees, a cafe that had art classes and other stuff for kids (stay at home moms could stop by for a latte and stick junior in an "enrichment class"). Cyndi1 seems to have some pent up resentment towards the owners.

...on a positive note, I hope that Uptown is good. I am not particularly fond of most of restaurants in the Upper Mtc village. Looking forward to something new!

I hope Uptown is good for lunch. I really don't care if the it's in Upper Montclair or Downtown, this town needs as many restaurant options as possible! I will travel for good food! In case you haven't checked out Jackie's Grillette, you should. The food is good. The ordering at the counter is a little confusing, but I think worth the effort. Happy eating!

YES-the owners were quite nasty--kind of like complainer puss. I guess if the worst thing I do is make a mis-spelling-SO be it!!!! THE Beez Knees venture as it was lasted under a year and they high tailed it out saying they were continuing on with thier "humanitarianism". Apparently, they "changed thier focus". AS I said--unless you are spectacular--retaurant is NOT the way to go it in this economy. Pretty much--Beez Knees amounted to kids running from back to front of the space as it was--screaming thier heads off, and yes, parents having lattes in the back, uninvolved. Very interesting concept. They took a stab at "art"--then holding kids parties--then BYE bye

its simple - if they have good food, ok service it will work...they have a great location. If they have bad, inconsistant food and puss faces it will fail, fast.

grand opening, grand closing..

True, true....service and quality speaks for itself. Not just bored housewives with disposable income, thinking they are geniuses because of some past blip on the resume 10 years ago, a huge ego and a bad additude.

BUH bye

use in montclair eweribody is a food expert

use in montclair eweribody is a food expert

This town has so much to offer, why do people need to use neutral open forums like Baristanet, which is created to help us explore, to vent their personal, and frankly, uninteresting problems. This is not a platform to air petty personal issues. Cynd1 needs to deal directly with the people with whom she has issues, like an adult, instead of involving the whole town, because we don’t care. We are not here for that . We are excited to have a new place to eat and should be discussing the food, décor, experience…not our personal jealousies about whether we like the owners or if they are “married to money”. Cynd1 needs to get a life and let the rest of us keep and use this as a safe ground in which we can share our experiences of our community.

ummm have you seen all the comments on baristanet, they usually have nothing but petty attacks. Good luck with changing it though - i can't agree more.

Haha, check out the Cuban Pete's board if you think Baristanet isn't about airing petty personal issues with the owner of a restaurant while ignoring the food. :)

Back on topic, I think the concept of the new place sounds promising.

Two friends of mine ate at Uptown today. I guess it finally opened. They had lunch there and said it was great. They said the menu is sort o French/contemporary (whatever that means), but they said everything was good and fresh and exactly what upper Montclair needs. Salads and fresh soups and sandwiches. They even make an authentic Croque Monsieur and fresh lentil salad, which I am going to try tomorrow. My inner Francophile is salivating..

jane1, maybe you yourself are a bored housewife. Sorry--Just blabbing a little about the people behind the business. People can pretend to be whatever~but I like to know where/who my money is really going to. There are several business in town I love to spend my money in/at--because the people are truely good people--I've spoken to them, some I am presonal friends with and they arent bullshitters, fakes, and full of themselves. Trust me, I have a wonderful fufilling life--no jealousies there--just discust. You know who you are, you know what you've done. There are a few choice business owners who dont really care about the community, but pay lip service to it.

OK Cynd1 sounds crazy - not just Angelina Jolie crazy, either: Bjork crazy......

cynd1 is ruining the chances of this place having an honest thread going here...everyone ignore her puhleeaze and just review the place, people, food etc. Shes a a little nuts yes but no more so than anyone who writes about half the other places in town:)

is there a menu online that i can view?

Grove--THANKS for the compliment! My friend actually used to work for Bjork in the early 90's and I had the pleasure of meeting her several times. IT was just a rant about people who claim to be so "concious" about the "community" and are simply only out to make a fast buck. Nothing wrong with that, I guess--but if people have thier heads up thier ass and are nasty-I will not shop/eat in those establishments. THERE are WAYYY too many places where people are actually NICE and neighborly and kind to waste time among "elitist" but clueless suburban-ites...especially when the economy sucks--a little kindness, common courtesy goes a long way.

We went to Uptown last night and it was wonderful! The decor is gorgeous, very warm and inviting. The staff was wonderful, very polite and knowledgeable. The food was delicious, we all ordered different things and it was all really tasty! I can't wait to try breakfast and lunch too!

We went to Uptown last night and it was delicious! The decor is warm and inviting and the staff was so friendly and knowledgeable. The food was delicious, we all ordered different things and everything was really good! Mmmmm, ginger cheesecake...I can't wait to go back and try out breakfast and lunch!!!

I have to disagree with JMM. My husband and I had dinner there last night as well, and while the owners and staff were lovely, we were less than impressed with the food. My beet salad with walnut encrusted goat cheese was very tasty, but my chicken entree (with vidalia onions and tomatos) was overcooked and really pretty awful tasting. My husband said the mussels and the steak he ordered were not great either. The couple seated to our right were less than impressed as well (they ordered the steak and the other chicken dish on the menu). Uptown also had a major problem with the ventilation system, and the resturant was constantly filled with smoke from the kitchen, to the point where my eyes were watering. That being said, I also know it was Uptown's first night serving dinner, so I think one can easily chalk it up to normal opening night issues. I will certainly try it again in a few weeks. But I do get the sense that it will fare better as a breakfast/lunch place.

I will have to agree with JMM. I had dinner there tonight and the food was great. My husband has the steak au poivre, which he loved, and I had a spicy Fra Diablo over a spaghetti squash, which was incredible. There were mussels, clams, scallops and shrimp all cooked perfectly. We shared the lentil salad, which made me think we were in Paris and a creamy mushroom soup. We ended up talking with the couple next to us (the seats are close but comfortable) and they loved their food too. They said they had lunch there and came back for dinner. I can’t wait to try the brunch. Everyone I so excited to finally have a place to eat in Uptown Montclair!

you cant beat Raymonds breakfast and lunch with a STICK..!!! The best overall~and the owner and staff are very courteous, kind and knowlegable..!!!! No need to go anywhere else~!

just a consideration...stop comparing every restaurant to raymonds, i agree its very good but have you ever heard of variety. Cynd1 your a little more lulu than i think you give yourself credit for.Enjoy your life and food choices, and let others enjoy his/hers. I have been told the food was ok to good...thats good enough for me to want to try it.

Went to Uptown for lunch yesterday. I really liked the decor, very nice, crisp & clean. I got the club which was served with a side salad, it was great! My husband got an omlette, he liked it also. They just need to work on the side door opening and closing, bringing in super cold air right next to where people are sitting and eating... I'll be back to try dinner soon.

nooo nooo toad-ally, toad-ally...we eat at Corso 98, Zuchettes, Eagans, Indigo Smoke, etc etc. VERY open minded. I was just ranting about past experiences with the current now owners of this establishment. TO each his own. Being in wholesale sales, and having several friends in town and elsewhere (Westfield, NYC) that own small stores, restaurants...I just know there is a way to act and a way not to act. Hopefully, this new incarnation is different in how they deal with neighbors and the like.
PS--I also wonder--JMM, Jane1, and montclairjane sound like the same person! THATS why reviews formt his site arent always "the ones to follow". Wait till Mr. Zagat stops by. You have a year till new new guide comes out....

I'm curious to hear what it's like for brunch. I drove by on the way back from church, around 1 p.m., and saw the place was packed.

OK Cynd1, we understand that you have a beef with the owners. Now let's move on.

POINT taken...it was just a bad one. Hopefully they've learned and moved on as well. Time will tell. Just be careful who you give your money to in this town!!!

so anyone except cuckoo cynd1 have any news on brunch or breakfast at this place-do they have a website, a menu online anything??

ooo crazy crazy!!! I like to have good neighbors and deal with people who arent a-holes, self proclaimed geniuses, and nasty!! WOW I guess I AM a novelty..."oddball". I also sweep the street in front of where I live, MYSELF. YEP--real crazy.

Barista- Can you stop Cynd1 from posting anymore on this page?

Anyone who is depending on Zagat for anything other than a restaurant's phone number, address or web page doesn't know much about restaurants.

..so whom are you depending on--friends of the owners of local resturants posting phony "reviews"~?
I dont trust that. I trust my own taste obviously~what I like is what I like. IT doesnt have to have all kinds of hype surrounding it...but I do have a good friend that moved here from Italy who has a great place in NYC thats been written up-good reviews~hes given me good tips and I also know someone who owns a seafood distributorship whose opinion I trust on eating out locally and in NYC. Time out is also OK~but the local biddy's--I dont really hold much stock in their opinion..~about ANYTHING~~sorry.

..im also curious about--what have I said that infuriates anyone~? IS it because I said I sweep~~MYSELF~~?? OOH the horrors!!! OR that I haev an opinion that differs from the soccer mom contingent~?

Mandy939, I'm with you. Enough already.

i also agree someone block her quick before she implodes, shes ruining this thread- can someone please tell me how the f'in brunch and breakfast is. Cynd1 shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

I ate here yesterday for lunch. I saw the omlettes and breakfast stuff and it looked very good. My girlfriend and I had lunch items instead. She had the crabcake sandwich and said it was good. Seemed like a decent amount of crab meat. I ordered the turkey club and was pretty unhappy. The quality of turkey wasn't even the best stuff you can buy at shoprite. The bread was untoasted(rule number one of making a club, toast the bread). The sandwich was served on a plate. No garnish, no pickle, no nothing. Then I asked the waiter if the sandwich came with fries, he replied "I don't know." I said I would like them on the side. I figuered it would be a simple substitution for the salad that the woman in the next table had with her club. I recieved no salad and a plate with 8 ridiculously greasy french fries on them. I was also charged full price for the sandwich(no salad on the side) plus an extra 4 dollars for the crappy fries. Overall staff needs to be trained, breakfast looks good, lunch not so much, dinner menu looks like a pretty interesting mix of Italian and French.

..happy soccer moms--? You got your rave review. I was in a clent meeting so it wasnt a fake-y as with past posts!!

Hey Cynd...who the heck are you to call people you don't know soccer moms? And what's a clent?

Let's keep it to food, and not personalities. Thank you --
the management.

Sorry Liz, I couldn't help myself. I'll stop now.

I must disagree with thebump. I ordered the turkey club as well. The bread was toasted, the turkey was excellent, the fries were delicious and not greasy, and the service was accommodating. No garnish or pickle tho, I didn't really mind though...never thought that was standard. Everyone else in my party, five in all, was very pleased with the food and service. The decor is beautiful as well; it has a great SoHo feel with a beautiful view of the church. Great food, great service, interesting menu. Breakfast and dinner look best, but lunch is nothing to sneeze at.

And cynd1 please stop. You are ruining this thread while making a mockery of baristanet and yourself.

Making a mockery of baristanet? Ha! Have you read any of the comments here for other restaurants?

LOL!

Take a look at Cuban Pete's for some light reading...

This is a place for shills and people with a grudge. I assume you are the former and cynd1 is the latter.

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