Caesar Salad

It was a Tuesday night, and there was still a 45-minute wait to sit down for dinner at the Pub. Parties of two, three and four lounged in the restaurant's entranceway and bar area, listening for their names over the hostess' loudspeaker. Although I'd passed the Pub on my way to Cherry Hill a million times, this was the first time I'd ventured into its cavernous interior, which has remained virtually unchanged since the family-owned restaurant opened in 1951. However, it will be changing ownership in about four to five weeks, and the new owners have pledged to keep the concept the same, says current owner Gary Perez.

Border crossings are generally associated with countries, not restaurants. Except at Alamo Grill, in the Franklin Mills mall, where 20-ounce margaritas and an 18-ounce signature T-bone steak round out a Southwestern-style menu. The kitchen here is shared by the neighboring Elephant & Castle Pub Restaurant. "By combining them together," explains Cindee Kohagen, a corporate spokeswoman, "we get bigger square footage. " The concept also allows for combined purchasing power. Though there is one kitchen, and the restaurants share freezers and other kitchen facilities, each has its own food line.

The ruffles on Alfio Gaglianese's pink shirt fan gracefully over the lapels of his dark tuxedo jacket. Pink cuffs peek out - just the proper length - from the sleeves. He could be a flamenco dancer, but he is instead talking about his custom-made Caesar salad bowl and how it has a life span of about 25,000 salads. "It takes about five years or so for me to make that many salads," he says. "After that, the bottom of the bowl develops a hole and you can't use it. Sometimes I used to try plugging them, but it's best to get new ones.

I don't know what I was expecting from a racetrack restaurant called the Clubhouse. Maybe something with some atmosphere, something clubby? What we found at Garden State Park was something akin to a multi-tiered warehouse. Zero ambiance; with the notable exception of the racing field that stretches out beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows. But for racing devotees, or those looking for an exciting night out, the Clubhouse is a great place for enjoying the races as well as a reasonably good meal.

Daily News food critics got so fed up with the wimpy hot dogs and short-pour beers at Veterans Stadium concession counters that they decided on their latest visit to check out its swanky Stadium Restaurant. The crescent-shaped 400-level dining room is where fans go when they hope to put on the Ritz at the Vet. But the visit proved only that no matter where you go, decent food at a fair price isn't on the menu from Ogden Entertainment Services, the Veterans Stadium caterer.

It was a smoky Saturday night at Cafe Noelle, a seven-month-new restaurant in the charming historic town of Medford. Since the restaurant is mostly nonsmoking, the hazy air that greeted us as soon as we walked in for a recent dinner seemed odd. The hostess, Debra Holmes, who owns the restaurant with her husband Tom, explained that when the kitchen gets smokin', there's a haze in the restaurant. Nothing a little ventilation couldn't disperse - which somebody figured out a little later in the evening.

Most neighborhood taverns are known mostly for their convenience and convivial crowd, not necessarily for the food, although some make a name for themselves with exceptional chicken wings or homemade pizza. Even though Devone's Family Tavern & Restaurant on Black Horse Pike in Williamstown is a local watering hole where "everyone knows your name," its main claim to fame is, surprisingly enough, the food. Devone's burgers are something of a local legend because of their size and price.

Dinner was finished, and the summer night air settled over the lawn like a calm sea. "Life is not about the laundry," philosophized Gail Foster, one of the zodiac Cancers celebrating their midsummer births on the lawn of Christopher D'Amanda's converted farmhouse in Chestnut Hill. Fireflies punctuated her Champagne toast. Four of the 15 attending the informal birthday party were born in July, under the sign of the crab. As Cancers, they are said to be sensitive, moody, protective and emotional.

Restaurants with gimmicks always have an edge when it comes to dining out with children. Benihana with its knife-juggling chefs, or the Melting Pot, where you cook your own fondue at the table, are good choices for squirmy kids. So is Alfio's, if you order the Caesar salad. Alfio Gaglianese is to salad-making what Kerri Strug is to gymnastics. He operates tableside with a wooden bowl the size of a baby bath. There is some juggling, some joking, some magic-making. (Where'd the lemon go?

John Corrado is an architect. Khaled Hassan is a civil engineer. Michael Santoro is a computer analyst. So what could these three have in common? One, they're brothers-in-law. Two, the trio own and operate Ristorante Ottimo, a new, serene Italian dining place on 16th Street between Walnut and Locust. What possessed employed professionals to take leave of their jobs and jump into the restaurant business? "All three of us have restaurant experience," says Hassan. "We all worked in restaurants while we were going to school.