Hatch 44 Café
Welcome to the exact-right café for today: Andrea Perez’s latest incarnation of her breakfast-brunch-lunch spot in a town with a core of culinary enterprises that is drawing the kinds of diners this energetic entrepreneur had in mind when she wrote her menu and designed her space.
Auld Acquaintances: 12-19-22
And so as the year draws to a close, a fivesome of dishes that may have worn out their welcomes elsewhere rise to new levels. Don’t you love a nice surprise?
Monkfish
If you’re short a fish for a proper Feast of Seven Fishes dinner, think local and think seasonal. Right now is the time for the big, brawny bottom-feeder often dubbed “poor man’s lobster.” Ella experiments and reports.
Q-BA
A restaurant-lounge in the city that’s closing in on its 150th anniversary touts Cuban classics and sometimes puts a spin on the norm to elevate a dish to downright special.
Doughnut Royalty
Hanukkah’s crowning confection takes center stage at Erie Coffeeshop & Bakery in Rutherford, as chef-owner Renee Faris and her team mark the holiday with a special bake of sufganiyot.
Dvaraka
Snack to it! It’s the littler dishes that count for major flavor at a college town South Asian storefront where there’s a short-and-spiced-right lineup of quick bites.
Spinach Quiche
That big steak you’re eating during a celebratory dinner? And that heaping side you couldn’t resist? Take a doggie bag of the unfinished steak and do not leave behind its classic companion of creamed spinach. Sue’s got a plan for the perfect follow-up supper.
Cinnamon Dreams
Keep your pantry stocked with this indispensable spice and use it with purposeful abandon.
Brasserie Memere
This is where you’ll want to be one night this holiday season, with your nearest and dearest – those who value conviviality with a touch of luxe.
The Homer Sandwich
It’s worth any odyssey to partake of the signature breakfast sandwich at the Califon General Store. Trust Kate Munning, who makes sure her morning jog finds its just reward.
Mugsy’s Mercantile
Zero for nine? Not a great batting average at a newcomer in a Shore hub where there is definite demand for the kind of food its experienced chef ought to know how to deliver.
Favorites, Amped
You eat something anticipating happiness and love and the exhilaration that comes from experiencing the meeting of humans and nature in the kitchen. When expectations are exceeded, bliss-eating occurs.