Good Karma Cafe and Harper’s Table
A good neighborhood joint is a valuable asset to a community. Does yours have one? We evaluate a couple, for better and for worse.
Mid-Summer Treats 07-31-23
Get yer peanuts, peaches, ‘bap, burrito with salmon, and a confection that billows with subtle sweetness right now, while they’re exactly right for eating. They’re all favorites from the fortnight immediately past.
The Savory Side of Peaches
Crumbles, pies and parfaits are fine. So is eating a ripe, juicy peach out of hand. But New Jersey’s favorite summertime stone fruit has potential beyond obvious sweet treats.
Tommy Pollio, The Pasta Shop
The newest inductee into TPW’s elite chef-picks-chef club of top toques in the Garden State proved his mettle as a teen and never stopped playing it forward in the kitchen. Today at his self-described “neighborhood restaurant” in Denville, Tommy Pollio takes the philosophy of Italian cuisine and applies it to local ingredients and deeply rooted heritage.
Jalapeno and Cilantro Grill
Way to go at a modest storefront that serves all-day breakfast? Cherry-pick the chef’s own takes from the Tex-Mex genre and experience sincerity supported by well-honed technical skills.
Café Bubamara
It’s a hub and an oasis within the Botany Village neighborhood, a European-style café with foods of the Balkans at its core. Magically and mystically, it’s also a place where you can connect and disconnect.
Ceviche and Friends
It’s an independent lass, this citrus juice-“cooked” fish dish, happy on its own. But it’s also cheerful in the company of add-ins as well as amenable to big bowls of table mates.
Ceviche
It’s the seafood dish that lets you keep your cool when summer’s at its sticky-thickest. What makes it ever so right, now and always? Its fans weigh in.
Maison Bleue Bistro
Act II from the Jardin folks is a more casually attired petit bijou that weaves pinpointed Garden State ingredients into the often-taut fabric of French classics. Adam assesses the scene.
Far From Summer’s Madding Crowds
Don’t let the dog days of summer make you growl with frustration about foraging for eats through the masses. Head where the others don’t – and play it culinarily wise.
Yubu-Yubu
High alert: Sophie Lin’s takes on the Korean classic of yubuchobap at the food court inside the Lotte supermarket are intriguing, flat-out fun and ultimately irresistible.
Smoke & Water
Smokiness is what brings soul and satisfaction to four of this round’s favorite eats. And then there’s the hydrator dish, to wash it all down.