Tip Your Hat to Hat City Food

Everyone has been talking about Hat City Kitchen, 459 Valley St. I first heard of it on Facebook. With the help of Hands, Inc., a local non-profit, Hat City was opened last year as part of the revitalization of the Valley Arts District in West Orange and Orange. The establishment will help develop the district, with its profits going back into the community. I love the concept and have been meaning to visit to help the restaurant make money.

The plan was to go for dinner Saturday night around 7 and it didn't occur to me to make reservations. At around four in the afternoon, I spoke to a woman who promised to squeeze us in and reminded me to make reservations at least a week in advance in the future.

We reached the building and wondered about parking until we noticed a sign directing everyone to a church lot diagonally across the restaurant.

We entered into a very hip-looking room. On the right was the bar with stools and I could see a small stage with a microphone as a band was setting up for the evening. There were people sitting at the bar enjoying a drink. We were led to the main dining room in the back. Surprisingly, it was not very crowded since we were expecting a room full of people. This room was understated and very casual.

We started with cocktails, beer and sangria. We looked through the drink menu and decided on ordering a bottle of wine with dinner. My sangria was flavorful but too sweet for my taste. It was served with marinated fruit on the side.

The hat city salad came first ($6). Baby greens were served with granny smith apples and toasted pecans drizzled with champagne vinaigrette. The salad was overly dressed and everyone couldn't help but pucker their mouths as a result. 

I ordered the baked macaroni and cheese with a Parmesan crust ($5) and the lemony hot buttered mushrooms ($4) for my daughter. The pasta was delicious, with just the right amount of cheese and creaminess. The Parmesan crust was nutty and golden brown. The mushrooms were tangy with the lemon juice and rich with the butter. I prefer my mushrooms sliced and not whole. I feel the whole mushrooms retain too much water while cooking and taste watery.

There is no kids' menu, but there are a few options under the appetizer category like the Angus burger sliders. There also is a side's section consisting of cornbread, fries, mac 'n cheese, creamed spinach, etc. 

Soon dinner came our way and we opened a reasonably priced bottle of red wine. Placed in front of me was the barbecue pulled pork on a brioche roll served with homemade fries and coleslaw ($9). I love eating sandwiches on brioche — it is rich, sweet and matched the pulled pork well. The barbecue sauce was tangy with a hint of sweetness. The meat melted in my mouth, just how the waiter described.

Next came the righteous 10 oz. Angus burger ($10). It was also served on a brioche roll with several options of toppings, including cheese, sautéed onions and bacon. It was a large, rather bland burger that was hard to bite in to. I make my burger patties with salt and pepper (including other spices) — something a lot of establishments fail to do. Salt and pepper are needed to bring out the delicious taste of the Angus beef used in this dish. The fries were a different matter — they were seasoned perfectly. They were crunchy on the outside and soft and creamy on the inside. No burger is complete without good fries — and this one did not disappoint.

A huge platter of classic jambalaya ($17) came next. It was creamy with a great tang from the tomato sauce. It was well seasoned and the andouille sausage had a serious kick.

The blackened salmon ($18) joined the table. It was cooked in a brown sugar mustard sauce, which I guess is a way of saying honey mustard sauce. The salmon was cooked well, although the edges were a tad over done. 

For dessert, we chose vanilla ice cream ($5) and a vanilla bean bread pudding ($7). I am not a big fan of bread puddings, but this one was delicious. I especially enjoyed the hot buttered rum caramel sauce.

We were happy with the dishes and didn't mind the 20 percent gratuity added on to our bill, considering the profits are going to a good cause.

Next time, I plan on coming a bit later in the evening and sitting in the bar area to enjoy live music.

Rating: OOO (three oranges)