Food: ****
Staff: ****
Ambiance: ****
Experience: ****
Overall Rating: 4 out of 5
Address: 31 Race St, Frenchtown, NJ 08825
Website: http://www.thenationalhotelnj.com
Phone #: (908) 996-3200
The National Hotel is a great restaurant in the middle of Frenchtown, just around the corner from my first review, Cocina Del Sol. From the second you walk into the hotel, you are immediately greeted by one of the several employees at the main desk. Faye and I were led into the dining room and given the choice of where we would like to sit. In fact, your table is the one that is in the bottom left corner of the photo here. The restaurant is on the bottom floor of a historic hotel, and the walls are lined with photos depicting the history of the hotel and town. It's hard not to be impressed with the ambiance of the restaurant. My only question was the concerning the music playing. While the dining room is fairly formal and elegant, the music was a bit modern for my tastes (in this environment).
Ever since Faye and I had moved to Frenchtown, we had been meaning to eat here, so today we went to celebrate her birthday. I had always assumed that the restaurant would be too expensive, but once we got there and took a closer look at the menu, we realized that there is a nice mix of dishes that range in price for the poor teachers and the high rollers. Once we grabbed our seats, the waitress was immediately at our table taking our drink orders, and she was amazing throughout the whole meal (other than the long wait for her to pick up our bill).
The entire experience was everything we could have wanted for her birthday, and the food was awesome!
The menu was easy to read and full of a variety of options. We ended up ordering appetizers and entrees. Faye opted to go with 2 of the Small Plate options, and I was a standard, stereotypical male and went with a soup and a burger. To begin, Faye ordered the Batata Vada. I was able to steal a bite, and it was really similar to an Indian dish I ate in Parsippany when Faye and I lived in north Jersey. It's basically a Fried Potato Ball with a Spicy Mango Pickle and a Sweet Mango Chutney. Each order comes with 3 of the Potato Balls served on a bed of greens. The contrast of the sweet and spicy flavors added a great touch to the Chickpea battered, fried potatoes. The potatoes were crispy on the outside and still moist on the inside. Don't get me wrong though, this is not simply a meatball shaped french fry. This dish is a great way to start a meal, and the seasonings and different mangos are more reminiscent of Indian cuisine and the common, American side dish. This dish is one that you mush order, and it is a perfect representation of the finesse and love that the chef has for his food.
As for my appetizer, I went with the seasonal soup (much to Faye's surprise). Tonight, it was an Oxtail, Black Bean, and Corn soup. I'm apparently pretty boring when it comes to ordering "strange" food, but as soon as the waitress told me about the dish, I knew that I had to try it. Although it doesn't look highly appetizing at first glance, I have to say that this was one of the best soups that I have ever had. The texture was a bit grainy (the beans had been broken and the insides ran throughout the broth, although that may have been intentional), but the flavor was outstanding! It was both smoky and filling, and believe it or not, it was filled with oxtail meat. Unlike some of the lobster bisques that I have had throughout my life, which only have a piece of two of actual lobster meat, this soup probably had about a 1/4 lb. of meat, almost enough to have some in every bite. It was served with warm dinner rolls to soak up the broth, and I found myself making faux open-faced oxtail french dip sandwiches with them. I cannot recommend this soup more!
For dinner, Faye had the much larger Spicy Tuna with Lotus Chips small plate. While it is a bit pricier, it was well worth the money (and filling too). The Tuna is dressed in a spicy Wasabi Mayo sauce and served in a makeshift cucumber bowl. The Lotus Chips were basically potato chips, cut from lotus blossoms and fried, but they held up if you wanted to use them to eat the tuna. As for the tuna, it is, as advertised, Sashimi-grade tuna and cut into decent-sized chunks. Do not be fooled by its being called a "small plate." Faye was more than content with the dish as her entree, and she loved the freshness of it. In fact, rather than being simply a decretive garnish, she actually ate and recommends eating the greens beneath the tuna.
Now, for the main event, I ordered "The National Burger." While it may seem like a standard burger, topped with lettuce, tomato, and onion, it was much more than that. The bun was definitely fresh baked, and the burger was cooked to perfection. It is rare that I actually receive the medium burger that I order, but this one was spot on! Not too bloody, but still a good deal of pink. My only complaint was the the burger may not have rested long enough. There were some juices on the plate that began to soak into the bottom of the bun, but since it was a fresh baked roll (which actually had a little snap to it when you bit in), it was not much of an issue. On top of the burger, which was a decent 1/3 of a lb. if I had to guess, I would say there were about 2 lbs. worth of fresh cut french fries. They were a nice mix between soft and crispy, and I didn't even come close to finishing all of them. If you order this burger, it will not blow you away as a fine dining experience, but you won't have any complaints about it either. The ingredients are obviously fresh, and you couldn't ask for much more out of your basic burger.
The National Hotel has some higher dollar dishes as well, including a 1 lb. lamb shank or rib eye steak, and based on what I saw today, you can't really go wrong in this restaurant. My overall experience was what I expected based on the restaurant's reputation. We were well-cared for by the staff, the food was much better than average, and my wife and I had a great time. If you get the chance to stop by the National Hotel Restaurant, you won't be disappointed. Please don't make the same mistake that I did, that the restaurant was too expensive to try. You need to give this food a taste! You will not be disappointed in the least!
Staff: ****
Ambiance: ****
Experience: ****
Overall Rating: 4 out of 5
Address: 31 Race St, Frenchtown, NJ 08825
Website: http://www.thenationalhotelnj.com
Phone #: (908) 996-3200
The National Hotel is a great restaurant in the middle of Frenchtown, just around the corner from my first review, Cocina Del Sol. From the second you walk into the hotel, you are immediately greeted by one of the several employees at the main desk. Faye and I were led into the dining room and given the choice of where we would like to sit. In fact, your table is the one that is in the bottom left corner of the photo here. The restaurant is on the bottom floor of a historic hotel, and the walls are lined with photos depicting the history of the hotel and town. It's hard not to be impressed with the ambiance of the restaurant. My only question was the concerning the music playing. While the dining room is fairly formal and elegant, the music was a bit modern for my tastes (in this environment).
Ever since Faye and I had moved to Frenchtown, we had been meaning to eat here, so today we went to celebrate her birthday. I had always assumed that the restaurant would be too expensive, but once we got there and took a closer look at the menu, we realized that there is a nice mix of dishes that range in price for the poor teachers and the high rollers. Once we grabbed our seats, the waitress was immediately at our table taking our drink orders, and she was amazing throughout the whole meal (other than the long wait for her to pick up our bill).
The entire experience was everything we could have wanted for her birthday, and the food was awesome!
The menu was easy to read and full of a variety of options. We ended up ordering appetizers and entrees. Faye opted to go with 2 of the Small Plate options, and I was a standard, stereotypical male and went with a soup and a burger. To begin, Faye ordered the Batata Vada. I was able to steal a bite, and it was really similar to an Indian dish I ate in Parsippany when Faye and I lived in north Jersey. It's basically a Fried Potato Ball with a Spicy Mango Pickle and a Sweet Mango Chutney. Each order comes with 3 of the Potato Balls served on a bed of greens. The contrast of the sweet and spicy flavors added a great touch to the Chickpea battered, fried potatoes. The potatoes were crispy on the outside and still moist on the inside. Don't get me wrong though, this is not simply a meatball shaped french fry. This dish is a great way to start a meal, and the seasonings and different mangos are more reminiscent of Indian cuisine and the common, American side dish. This dish is one that you mush order, and it is a perfect representation of the finesse and love that the chef has for his food.
As for my appetizer, I went with the seasonal soup (much to Faye's surprise). Tonight, it was an Oxtail, Black Bean, and Corn soup. I'm apparently pretty boring when it comes to ordering "strange" food, but as soon as the waitress told me about the dish, I knew that I had to try it. Although it doesn't look highly appetizing at first glance, I have to say that this was one of the best soups that I have ever had. The texture was a bit grainy (the beans had been broken and the insides ran throughout the broth, although that may have been intentional), but the flavor was outstanding! It was both smoky and filling, and believe it or not, it was filled with oxtail meat. Unlike some of the lobster bisques that I have had throughout my life, which only have a piece of two of actual lobster meat, this soup probably had about a 1/4 lb. of meat, almost enough to have some in every bite. It was served with warm dinner rolls to soak up the broth, and I found myself making faux open-faced oxtail french dip sandwiches with them. I cannot recommend this soup more!
For dinner, Faye had the much larger Spicy Tuna with Lotus Chips small plate. While it is a bit pricier, it was well worth the money (and filling too). The Tuna is dressed in a spicy Wasabi Mayo sauce and served in a makeshift cucumber bowl. The Lotus Chips were basically potato chips, cut from lotus blossoms and fried, but they held up if you wanted to use them to eat the tuna. As for the tuna, it is, as advertised, Sashimi-grade tuna and cut into decent-sized chunks. Do not be fooled by its being called a "small plate." Faye was more than content with the dish as her entree, and she loved the freshness of it. In fact, rather than being simply a decretive garnish, she actually ate and recommends eating the greens beneath the tuna.
Now, for the main event, I ordered "The National Burger." While it may seem like a standard burger, topped with lettuce, tomato, and onion, it was much more than that. The bun was definitely fresh baked, and the burger was cooked to perfection. It is rare that I actually receive the medium burger that I order, but this one was spot on! Not too bloody, but still a good deal of pink. My only complaint was the the burger may not have rested long enough. There were some juices on the plate that began to soak into the bottom of the bun, but since it was a fresh baked roll (which actually had a little snap to it when you bit in), it was not much of an issue. On top of the burger, which was a decent 1/3 of a lb. if I had to guess, I would say there were about 2 lbs. worth of fresh cut french fries. They were a nice mix between soft and crispy, and I didn't even come close to finishing all of them. If you order this burger, it will not blow you away as a fine dining experience, but you won't have any complaints about it either. The ingredients are obviously fresh, and you couldn't ask for much more out of your basic burger.
The National Hotel has some higher dollar dishes as well, including a 1 lb. lamb shank or rib eye steak, and based on what I saw today, you can't really go wrong in this restaurant. My overall experience was what I expected based on the restaurant's reputation. We were well-cared for by the staff, the food was much better than average, and my wife and I had a great time. If you get the chance to stop by the National Hotel Restaurant, you won't be disappointed. Please don't make the same mistake that I did, that the restaurant was too expensive to try. You need to give this food a taste! You will not be disappointed in the least!