Arepa Pizza & Market
Focus on the cachapas, the arepas and the empanadas and let yourself be taken in by a monster sandwich called The Pepito. Then it’ll be obvious to you why the name of this corner storefront must be changed.
Cold-weather Comforts: 1-22-24
Sweet potatoes, peaches, The Pepito, plump shrimp wontons and puffy beans and cod are the stars of the eating shows of the two weeks just past. Review here, then plan to consume.
The Layered Look
We dress in layers at this time of year and there’s wisdom, not to mention waves of flavors, in cooking that way, too. A dish of cacio e pepe beans, pesto and roasted onions offers a blueprint for stylish simplicity.
Tang Maru
Korean comforts stir the senses at a welcoming stalwart where groups both novice and well-schooled convene. Let Kiera be your guide to a range of its must-try specialties.
Taverna 54
There’s a really big show going on at this restaurant and bar imbedded in a residential neighborhood in Hunterdon County’s largest river town. But its best dishes are less about spectacle and more about sincere expressions of ingredients.
Salted Cod in Brandade
When the fish that changed the world is reconstituted, whipped with potato and jazzed with roasted garlic, its comforts know no bounds. When the resulting spread is stuffed into roasted mini peppers, its fans span from single-digit to senior in age.
Lady and the Shallot
Inside the Trenton Farmers’ Market is a breakfast-lunch spot where healthy gets a heaping helping of fun and the Mary Poppins duo in charge don’t need a spoonful of sugar to make it happen.
Wonton Guy
Hong Kong street foods are at the heart of this modest storefront where much time is taken early in the day to make by hand shrimp wontons, dumplings and a winsome tomato sauce that can arrive at your table soon after you do.
Winter Fresh: 1-8-24
The official Jersey Fresh seasonality chart may give short-shrift to our four-season farmers in these winter months, but you don’t have to. Their crops, and some top-notch right-for-now specialty foods, show what’s peak at this brrrr time of year.
Chicken: It’s What’s for Dinner
Is there any aroma more heavenly in winter than that of a roasting bird? Only a bird that’s also been spatchcocked, smothered with a custom paste and set to drool over a stew of vegetables. Come and take a sniff of Kiera’s oven magic.
Ay Caramba
A Mexican seafood specialist rouses familiar fishes and combines elements from myriad Latin cuisines in a setting that invites convivial communal dining. It’s the first dine-card must of the new year.
Our Future
It’s that time of year when prognosticators prodded by the media tell us what we’ll be eating and drinking in the 12 months ahead. But instead of letting others tell us what will be on our tables, why don’t we take control of our own dining destiny?