Duck in a bar?

Leah and I just had a rather bizarre dining experience. About a month ago a new bar & grill, Buskers, opened up close to where we live in Hoboken. We meant to try out their food but only got around to do it tonight. So we went in there after watching Timeline in the cinema across the river at the Battery Park City.

First, let me set the background. From the outside, this bar & grill place looks just like any bar/pub in Hoboken. Trendy, new, pretends to be Irish, etc. So we were not expecting high class dining and we were in casual clothes. We were very surprised when we sat down and looked at the menu.

The menu was not what one would expect from a typical bar & grill. Rather, it is more fitting in middle to top of the range restaurants in Manhattan (try Dylan Prime if you ever want to have a baseline for comparison). It has veal chop, lamb shanks, fillet mignon, and duck, with the prices to match. So immediately I was skeptical as the decor (bar & grill setting?) and the service (friendly neighborhood staff?) do not matches the menu and the price. My thought was that it was either going to be bloody good food, or more likely, the restaurant was just trying to be fancy with the menu and charge for it.

Turned out that the food was absolutely fantastic! My braised duck breast was spotted on with great sweet potatoes. Leah’s veal chop was tender and moist. Just the way it supposed to be. The desserts were great too with my special creme brulee with mocha cameral just sweet enough but not overpowering.

At the end of the meal, I don’t feel guilty to tip generously but on the other hand, I do. The decor and the service (we had to ask for bread?) does not match the price but the quality of the food in the end definitely makes up for it. Very schizophrenic experience but a restaurant that I definitely would return.