• Craig LaBan says the meals he had at Swedesboro, NJ’s Tavro Thirteen were “very good,” but not what he’s “come to expect” from Terrence Feury, who he adds is “easily among the region’s best” chefs. Feury’s seafood dishes make the trek to South Jersey “worth the visit”; swordfish served over squash puree with pumpkin seeds was “meltingly moist,” and seared cod with parsley and potato chips “provided the perfect flake-and-crunch contrast to the funky pairing of soft, potatoey salt cod brandade.” But where those dishes succeed, other don’t. Mackerel cooked inside cardamom leaves lost its “trademark swagger” to steam, and the deboned, and cooked sous-vide chicken wings at the bar were “not worth the fuss.” Though he gave the restaurant just two bells, he ends on a promising note, stating there’s “nothing on this menu that master Feury can’t tune up to his usual excellence.” [Inquirer]
• At Zeppoli, James Beard semifinalist and Vetri protege, Joey Baldino, turns out “honest little thrills, impressive execution and a smattering of the exotic,” which Adam Erace assures us makes the place “the best restaurant in South Jersey.” Rabbit “braised in oregano-scented tomato sauce till slipping off the bone,” an “epic” Sicilian antipasto, and “simple spaghetti in garlic, oil and baby eels” are af ew of the dishes he says make it so. [Courier-Post]
