Where do you go in Montclair on a Saturday night for a good beer and a bite to eat? Tierney's and Egan's are usually mobbed.
We had just finished watching a Montclair Hight Varsity Hockey game with friends and wanted to grab a quick bite. Nothing in Montclair piqued our interest, so we decided to head over to Zinburger in Clifton.
Well we did have some very good beer and some great food, but forget about missing the mobbed part. At 8:30 there was a "45 minute" wait that turned into an hour. It may have been longer if Diana had not been bugging the inexperienced hostess.
Nevertheless, we got some draft beer at the bar and found a corner with a little ledge where we could stand and talk until our table was available. Once we sat the service was for the most part great and the food good.
There several other drafts, PBR, Stella, Guiness, Coors & Bud Light etc. and about another dozen by the bottle. They were out of the beer we really wanted Magic Hat # 9 Almost Pale Ale. But we liked we got so were happy. Actually there are 18 wines by glass, and 17 beer selections with 8 of these on tap.
You can find recommended food pairings for their wines on the website but not on the menu that I saw. Wines seem to be priced by what they think the market will bear for example the Santa Christina – Sangiovese which you can buy in the store for around $10, they sell by the glass at $5 and bottle $20. That is not so bad. The Terlato-Chapoutier – Shiraz/ Viognier, however, usually sells for around $18, but is $12 by the glass and $45 by the bottle.
The best values are probably in the $6 glass/$24 bottle group, Wine List Personally I love d’ Arenberg “Stump Jump” – G.S.M. Blend and Tangent, Pinot Grigio (Gris) is good. And of course the Ravenswood Zen of Zin – Zinfandel is always a crowd pleaser.
The room is massive, open, cavernous, although fortunately it does not get too loud. There are huge murals of grazing cows, and milk bottle chandeliers.
Once we sat down the service was pretty spot on. As we enjoyed another round of drinks and the amazing double truffle oil fries and the sweet potato fries. I was impressed to see the food coming out with great speed and efficiency. If there were four burgers arriving at a table two servers would bring them out so that they all arrived at the same time. This is the mark of a well run restaurant.
However, when our dinner for four arrived three sandwiches came out together but the salad that the Diana ordered seemed to have gotten lost and we had to send our server off to fetch it. I will say that the service staff are genuinely friendly and attentive.
While she was waiting for her salad, Diana got a big bite of my juicy burger which she evidently liked. I had ordered the namesake Zinburger
which is topped with Manchego Cheese, Zinfandel Braised Onions & Mayo. Very tasty meat, the toppings were good. The brioche style roll was just OK to my taste.
There are a number of specialty burgers that go for $10. The Kobe Burger, which I plan to try is $14. You can get a basic burger for $8 and build your own for an additional $1.25 for each of the 17 additional toppings you can choose from. Fries are just 5 bucks. The 4 salads run from $8 to $13. All in all good quality for a very reasonable price. Menu
Nancy ordered the Ahi Sandwich Asian Slaw, Avocado & Tamari Soy Glaze– $13 Look at the size of that slab of tuna. Diana had the Seared Ahi Salad* – $13 with Chopped Greens, Avocado, Cashews & Ginger Miso Vinaigrette. Both these dishes were delicious.
Read More Here:
Off the Broiler, Tommy Eats, Yelp
Promenade Shops at Clifton
850 State Route 3, #105
Clifton, NJ 07012
Phone: 973.272.1492
11am to 10pm Sunday - Thursday
11am to 11pm Friday - Saturday
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