Zack Melker: Toscano
He runs a prime steakhouse that’s also a haven for primo pastas. Our chef-anointed honor this month goes to the proprietor of a destination for both in Bordentown. As his fan notes, he “is the real deal.”
Time for Takeout
Wintertime, and the living might not be so easy. But looking back over the last year of eating out, we’ve come upon many restaurants in our Garden State that have turned takeout into an art form. Today we recall a dozen that do it right and might help us get through another mean season.
Jersey Girl Cheese
The cheesemaker to the country’s reigning pizzaiolo is Sal Pisani, who makes the very best fresh and aged cheeses in the Italian tradition at a small dairy farm in Sussex County.
Simply Jerk Jamaican Grill
Fans of the much-missed Green Grotto in New Brunswick take note: Eleith and Newell White are serving forth their famous shrimp curry, and more, at this take-out/dine-in strip-mall spot.
Get Your Culinary Hugs Here: 12-20-21
Need the warm embrace a pot pie offers? Or a plate of sumptuous pasta? Looking for the ease of kick-starter ingredients? Maybe a spread both delicious and nutritious? Find them all in the top tastes of the past two weeks.
Dip, Anyone?
A true peasant wife spread, inspired by one eaten in Tunisia many years ago, finds its way to the table today. Nutritious and delicious, thanks to carrots, almonds, chickpeas, chipotle and crushed red peppers doing a dance, it’s one to remember when resolution time rolls around.
Frenchtown Inn
For decades a fine-dining destination in a prime Delaware River town, the family-owned inn is awash in options for foods either cleverly chill or agelessly sophisticated and settings that sport a water view or clubby conviviality.
Hunterdon Land Trust Farmers’ Market
Situated on the historic Dvoor property, this now-year-round market is home to a prestigious lineup of farmers and food vendors. Stock up this Sunday – Dec. 19 – and all winter long.
Make Someone Hoppy
A bottle or three of that special Garden State micro under the tree will prompt the beer lover on your gift list to grin like a kid on Christmas morning. Santa Shawn has several selections for you to consider.
Tsujita, Santouka, Omusubi Gombei
The food court inside Mitsuwa, the Japanese marketplace in a Hudson-hugging borough in Bergen County, offers a river view as well as a collection of quality eateries sporting savories or sweets. Consider three that’ll do right for lunch, dinner or snack time, fueling both shoppers and mealtime drop-ins.
Count on Beans
Wonderful flying solo and wonderful in partnerships, legumes in their dried form are a year-round staple. Pizza Beans? Greens-’n’-Beans? Let them be just the start of a new season of bean cookery.
Mitsuwa
A thrilling and practical place to gather foodstuffs year-round, and especially at holiday time, this emporium for Japanese edibles in Edgewater is a prime inspiration for the Smart Shop column. Eat at its food court, shop in its vast marketplace and be merry.