Pretty in Peppermint
Raita, a condiment indispensable in India, gets an extra dose of the loveliest of mints to make it even more versatile at the table. Whip it up today and use it all week long.
The Circle
A destination that started out as a curiosity on the trend-spotting trail is growing into a restaurant where folks now gather to catch the pulse of Garden State ingredients tended to with imagination and sometimes daring. Much, much works well; a couple of dishes don’t hit their marks. But the farmhouse is assuredly home to a pair of confident chefs who care.
The New Locals
Curd & Cleaver and Pennyrose Coffee Co., around-the-corner neighbors in Newton, are independently owned and proud to display local pride and heritage by serving up what locals and visitors want to eat.
Sebastian’s Schnitzel Haus
For more than 30 years, cheerful, hearty German-American food has been the calling card and draw at this roadhouse heavily populated by Hummels, dolls and beer steins. It’s old-fashioned in other ways, too – cash only, menus encased in plastic, checks written in long hand – and that’s A-OK by all who belly up to the brats.
Old Favorites, New Looks
Pasta, meatballs, rice, chicken and a mini version of a familiar fruit each get new life from culinary pros determined to lift them up from roles typical and perhaps a bit tired. Each of our five favorites from the two weeks just past brings zing to our tables.
In the Greens
The bounty of the new season is verdant and versatile – and it’s ready to be cooked. Not overcooked, mind you. But stir-fried into one of the quickest, most nutritious meals around.
Poy’s Kitchen
Sporting mostly Thai, with a side of Lao-style dishes, this storefront in the county seat of Sussex County is helmed by a chef with some serious chops. Take a flier on the less available cuisine and be rewarded with mindful cookery.
Kiwiberries
Uncommon and uncommonly refreshing in a zesty-sweet way, this vine-grown fruit is now being cultivated by a handful of Garden State farmers. One bite is all it takes to make a fan.
Espo’s
Nowhere does the flag saluting the red, white and green in the Garden State wave more deliciously that at this mainstay in a Somerset County borough long steeped in Italian-American traditions. Here, it’s always Sunday Gravy time.
Apple Stew-Stuffed Honeynuts
It’s a supper that’s a happy collision of early fall ingredients and is customizable for vegans, vegetarians and carnivores. It makes the most of two universally loved staples and requires no techniques that necessitate completion of a cooking school course. Ready, set, eat.
Jade’s
From a roost in a small borough in Sussex County, a couple who made a name for themselves at a chicken-centric spot in the county seat serve hearty self-styled Afro-Latin fare that does more than toe-dip into seafood and waffles.
Saja & Shawarma
Not just a shawarma standout, this newcomer to the best Main Street of Eastern Mediterranean eateries in the U.S. also sports beatific broasted chicken and savory crepes overstuffed with juicy meats. It’s the Triple Crown winner for cookery you’d otherwise need a passport and plane flights to experience.