We liked The Claremont Tavern, Bernardsville, NJ

Is this man happy? Yea I think so. We met up with my brother and wife, Kathy, at The Claremont Tavern in Bernardsville. Had a great dinner.

I've passed by this place a couple of times and it always looked very inviting. Just the kind of tavern I love. When we decided to meet up here I actually looked at the reviews and got a little nervous. Happily the issues they had last year have all been resolved.

I would go for a better selection of draft beers, I am fussy about that. Overall we were very pleased..

Started off with some appetizers.

Ecuadorian Shrimp Cocktail ‘Martini’ which is a regular shrimp cocktail, made special with avocado, cucumber and a citrus tomato marinade. Most of the menu items are creative enhancement of familiar dishes. I could drink the marinade with vodka. It was delicious. On the side they served popped corn. A new twist on "popcorn shrimp."

Before we go on, let me just say that I have my Jersey critic hat on and that perspective is a lot kinder than if I'm writing about restaunts in NY or other cities. That is, Claremont Tavern is not as exceptional as say Yardbird Southern Table a restaurant in Miami Beach we just reviewed. That being said we did enjoy Claremont a lot, definitely above average for NJ.

Next was the Wing Trio (3 of each wing) which you can get with your favorite sauce or all three. Selection is Wasabi, Chipotle Bourbon BBQ, or Maytag Bleu Cheese dipping sauce. They are served with a Mirepoix Shot. We tried all three, I liked the BBQ the best.

We also had the Dip Duo & Breads which is nice grilled flatbreads & focaccia sticks served with roasted garlic & red pepper hummus. It also comes with crumbled feta cheese and a vine ripe tomato & fresh basil bruschetta.

Through the meal we had a few beers, we liked the Evil Eye IPA the best.

For our entree we had Claremont's very good burger, 10 ounces of juicy black angus ground sirloin on a tasty brioche roll. Comes with the very good house-made creamy chipotle ketchup. They should sell it by the bottle, it's that good. Also garnished with a couple of their hand cut red onion rings that are dipped in the select draft beer of the day.

It is served a la carte or for a few bucks you can add a ‘Short Side’ to your burger. The choices are hand cut tavern, asiago steak, sweet potato or all natural yucca fries; there is also fried green beans or mixed greens offered. Like I said, interesting.

There are 6 varities of beef burgers and 3 non-beef varities.

I had the Fish & Chips, fresh and tasty Atlantic Cod what are draft battered with one of select draft beers of the day. Served with fresh cut roast garlic & asiago fries and onion ring garnish, and ‘pickled’ tartar sauce. This dish was so good I brought some home and had it for lunch today.

When it came time for deserts we noticed that the menu said "Desserts meant to be shared" So we ordered just two, one would have been enough for four people.

Dessert

We could not resist the stout float with cocoa syrup an adult style ‘root beer float’ made with slightly bitter beer, cocoa syrup & chocolate ice cream, touch of kahlua & cream.