A few weeks ago on a rainy, chilly night I made a trip to Cuba. Well, A Little Bit of Cuba in the Mount Corner Shopping Center in Freehold. Sandra and Jay Lopez, owners and husband-wife team of this treasure of a restaurant, are as bubbly as they come. Jay, a native of Cuba, opened this 75-seat restaurant last March. While he proudly speaks about his dishes, Sandra energizes the restaurant with her smile and stories of how it all began and what their restaurant is all about.
Biting into a new food for the first time is always an emotional experience for me: a mix of taste sensations, environmental cues, and emotional, gut reaction to the food– which explains why my first bite of the Taco Truck’s Carnitas Michoacan sandwich sent my taste buds reeling, my eyes widening, and my heart sinking. In the deep flavor of braised pork, the late kick of smokey chipotle heat, and the light, sweet flavors of onions, avocado, and jalepeno, I knew that I would now have to eat this sandwich on (at least) a weekly basis. With a sadness for the future of my wallet, I knew a food craving–no, addiction–was born.
Heidi Raker Goldstein is our Bergen county regional editor. A locavore, cooking enthusiast, publicist and mother of three junior gourmands, Heidi is equally comfy in greasy spoons and high-end restaurants. When not visiting local farmers markets and farm stands in Bergen and Rockland counties, this New England native, former Manhattanite and Bergen county resident is busy running her PR and green marketing agency, Raker Goldstein & Co., buying food, planning menus, cooking food, writing about food or simply eating. To reach Heidi, email her at heidi@rakergoldstein.com.
In Hoboken, the roar of twenty-somethings can be mighty—on the hunt for booze and fun on Friday nights or crowding into cafes for eggs, sausage, and hazy memories on Saturday mornings. And Hoboken businesses listen and deliver, offering up late-night specials and mid-day deals for their target audience.
Here’s a quick money saving tip for you as the weekend approaches. You can purchase $50 gift certificates to Monmouth and Ocean County restaurants for only $25. Tomorrow, The Melting Pot in Red Bank will be offering half priced $50 gift certificates. Just follow this link.
If people are shying away from dining out and staying home because of the lousy economy, you wouldn’t know it at The Cabin in Freehold. When Peter and I pulled into the parking lot, I was a bit concerned. I can’t remember the last time I saw so many cars in the parking lot of a restaurant, and, you see, I am not good at waiting. I do not, can not, wait for a table for more than 10 minutes. Those people at Outback Steakhouse always amaze me with their vibrating whosie whatsies (I almost called them vibrators, but thought that might conjure up a strange image) standing in the entrance waiting and waiting for chain restaurant food. When I used to go to Outback, I was the one who would zip past the line and eat at the bar or turn around and heads somewhere else.
Biting into a new food for the first time is always an emotional experience for me: a mix of taste sensations, environmental cues, and emotional, gut reaction to the food– which explains why my first bite of the Taco Truck’s Carnitas Michoacan sandwich sent my taste buds reeling, my eyes widening, and my heart sinking. In the deep flavor of braised pork, the late kick of smokey chipotle heat, and the light, sweet flavors of onions, avocado, and jalepeno, I knew that I would now have to eat this sandwich on (at least) a weekly basis. With a sadness for the future of my wallet, I knew a food craving–no, addiction–was born.
Heidi Raker Goldstein
In Hoboken, the roar of twenty-somethings can be mighty—on the hunt for booze and fun on Friday nights or crowding into cafes for eggs, sausage, and hazy memories on Saturday mornings. And Hoboken businesses listen and deliver, offering up late-night specials and mid-day deals for their target audience.
Here’s a quick money saving tip for you as the weekend approaches. You can purchase $50 gift certificates to Monmouth and Ocean County restaurants for only $25. Tomorrow, The Melting Pot in Red Bank will be offering half priced $50 gift certificates. 
