Tasserts Outside
Tasserts, in Florham Park, opened its doors in 2003. Not a derivative of ‘desserts’, Tasserts is a combination of ‘Natassia’, the chef’s daughter, and ‘Robert’, his father, the unassuming restaurant in a suburban strip mall, is a Morris County gem that shines bright.
The room is trendy, a bit retro and comfortable with its high-back banquettes and dimly-lit atmosphere.
The wait staff is friendly, gracious and effective, and is quick to offer advice about the “New American” seasonal menu.
New Jersey-born chef, Michael Lapinski, creates an outstanding Manhattan-caliber menu . Dinner begins with freshly-baked rolls, right out of the restaurant’s brick oven. Yes, these are simple rolls, but they are absolutely perfect in every way. The only downfall of having one, or three, of them is that it might interfere with the fact that the rest of the food to come is also outstanding.
Winning starters are the tuna Carpaccio – fresh fish with great flavor, the flatbread pizza – baked to perfection in the brick oven and fit for sharing, and the lobster cake – nice rendition of its sister, the crab cake .
Tasting Plate
As far as entrees are concerned, an interesting way to explore chef Lapinski’s menu is to opt for the three-course plates, where diners select three entrees from the menu which are then served as tasting portions on a plate. Great option for those who can’t commit to just one entree. On a recent visit, I chose the lamb, short ribs and the scallops and was very pleased with each dish.
Overall, Tasserts serves up great New American food and interesting preparations. Note that this restaurant is a BYOB, so bring an exciting wine to pair with the creative food served at Tasserts.
176 Columbia Turnpike
Florham Park, NJ 07932
Tel: 973-822-3712
BYOB sounds awesome but do they still charge a corking fee?
Cheers!
In the 5 years I’ve lived in NJ (wonderful for tons of BYOBs), I’ve been charged a $10 corking fee once.