Review The Crown Room

Peter Salzman

The only person who wouldn't like this place is a stuck up daddy's princess. Super friendly staff, relaxed "dive bar" atmosphere without the dive bar "crud", nice ambiance. Great drinks. Bartenders are way friendly and accommodating. The alcoholic milkshakes are to die for... basically, an adult version of Mr. Softee. Boozy Shakes -+=-=-=-=-=-=+- My God... these are heavenly. This is what adult ice cream should be! Please, give me more! Hofer: A+ The Cinnamon Gods smile upon us. Alcoholic ice cream "Red Hots" candy. Cake Cake Cake: A+ The Cake Gods smile upon us. Alcoholic cake batter. Triple Chocolate (I think that's the name): A+ The Chocolate Gods smile upon us. Alcoholic deep, dark Godiva chocolate. It could've been the most chocolaty chocolate I've ever tasted in my life. Food -+=+- Truffle Tater Tots: A These were masterful. The tater tots were cooked so that the outside skin was crispy but the inside potato was soft and oniony. It pairs really well with the gooey fontina cheese + bacon (but honestly, what *wouldn't* go well with bacon?) It comes in a cast iron skillet which makes the dish as attractive as it is delicious. I wouldn't get this dish to go -- eat it here, otherwise the tater tots would probably get soggy in the sauce (or if you must, perhaps get the sauce on the side). Pigs in a Blanket: A These are, I believe, made here. Pigs in a blanket is usually a cylindrical dough with a cocktail frankfurter in the center. These are more like ... a soft, airy flaky biscuit with the texture of a croissant with a frankfurter in the center. They were scrumptuous. I think it was perhaps slightly oily, otherwise, I would've given this an A+. Classic Sliders: A+ I'm usually disappointed by sliders, but they're done correctly here. Usually sliders are too big or have too high bread-to-meat ratio. These are truly are wonderful. Small and constructed perfectly, tasty meat. They reminded me of the street food from Dominican Republic (but even better!) The cheddar is real cheddar. The onions are well-caramelized. BTW, most restaurants simply cook onions... this is how you know a good restaurant from a bad one... a good restaurant knows how to caramelize onions. You do it sloooowly. You can speed up the process by introducing a bit of sugar, but that only works to a point. These onions were delicious. It tastes like they were cooked in wine?!? I'm not sure, but they had a very unique (and very delicious) quality to them. Loaded Fries: A+ Like the tater tots, the fries were fried so that they outside was crispy and crunchy, and the insides were soft and fluffy. These might have been the BEST loaded fries I've ever eaten. No fooling. My mom, who is a very harsh food critic said the same thing (I was flabbergasted when she mentioned it, and I full-heartedly agree with her!) EXCELLENT!!! Love your bacon! The Burger: A See what I wrote for the Classic Sliders. Most of what I wrote applies. I would probably go for the sliders over the burger because I prefer the size, but the burger is still an A in its own right. Chorizo Nachos: B- I didn't care for them, sadly. The cheese wasn't right. It seemed like fake cheddar, and there wasn't enough sour cream. Some garlicky guacamole and choice ingredients like marinated artichoke hearts / beans would gone a long way. And a different cheese (and more of it). Every bar is allowed to have its dud, but it's sad that the dud dish was nachos because it's such an easy dish to make awesome.

Review The Crown Room - Bayside