Free food. Good, free food. Good, free, Greek food. It sounds too good to be true, but on a damp August evening in downtown Montclair, it was reality. On August 24, Greek Taverna’s second annual “Greek Night” drew a crowd of more than 1,100 hungry guests, many of whom waited upwards of 90 minutes in line for a few minutes at the generous buffet.
This two hundred and forty acre farm in Readington Township is home to approximately 150 Bison and is the only one of its kind here in New Jersey. Owner, Erick Doyle, and his family bought the state owned land at auction in 1995.
The name Amanti Vino or “wine lovers” doesn’t even begin to hint at the passion that helped formulate this establishment, and sustains its continued growth. This was another great assignment that I was excited to cover for Jersey Bites.
The Bloomfield Avenue location of Elevation Burger celebrates a year in Montclair this week, and is the first of its kind in the Garden State. When Jersey Bites stopped in for a visit, we were treated to a tour from co-owner Matt Jerkovich, who emphasized that there’s truth behind the tagline: “Ingredients Matter.”
Sitting here with the windows open enjoying the soft, cool breeze wafting through my kitchen, I can almost forget the stifling heat and humidity of last weekend, almost. Aside from the dog days of summer that surely await us, August is still one of my favorite months. Not because we only have one more month before school starts (thank God) or that the ocean is finally warm enough for me to dip a toe in, it’s because all of those lovely seedlings so many of us tenderly catered to in June and July are finally showing us the love we toiled for. Tomatoes are turning red, cucumbers are ripening on the vine almost faster than we can eat them, peppers are ready for picking and all those beautiful herbs are just begging to take every dish to the next level. Just a simple tomato bruschetta this time of year practically brings tears to my eyes. Fresh basil, warm tomatoes right from the garden, a little fresh garlic and good olive oil and I’m in Jersey Fresh heaven.
What’s in a name? The newest addition to Montclair’s buzzing food community is called Chef’s Lab, but it sure doesn’t feel like a lab. In fact, the inviting space feels more like downtown-loft-meets-Jamie-Oliver’s-Food-Revolution-kitchen.
When does summer start? For some, it’s the first time it’s warm enough to wear flip-flops. For others, it’s the last day of school. And for a few, it’s the official summer solstice date, June 21. For me, though, it’s the first time I hit my local farmers market.
When I heard from a friend that Table 8 in Montclair was absolutely divine, I also made the assumption that I would never get to try it. Many of my friends corroborated saying things like, “Oh I’ve heard great things but I can never get a reservation.” Unfortunately, my husband and I are 7:30 diners – not quite early bird and not the 9pm European type – we’re “the most popular time of the evening in America type.” So, five days before a scheduled date with friends, I went on Opentable.com with fingers crossed, thinking only positive thoughts, and guess what? We got lucky! I was given a choice of 6pm (what?! My kids will still be up when I get home – no way!!) or 8:15. I grabbed the 8:15 and figured we can still escape from the house at 7 and find something to do. When I received a confirmation call the day before, I was resolutely relieved…
Sushi is one of those things people tend to love or hate (or refuse to try…I’m working on them). Put me in the love corner: I heart the stuff. While I’m not the world’s most adventurous sushi eater, I do dive deeper than the California roll—no disrespect to Cali roll devotees of the world—and over time I’ve discovered the joys of several accompanying menu items such as age tofu and seaweed salad.
Free food. Good, free food. Good, free, Greek food. It sounds too good to be true, but on a damp August evening in downtown Montclair, it was reality. On August 24, Greek Taverna’s second annual “Greek Night” drew a crowd of more than 1,100 hungry guests, many of whom waited upwards of 90 minutes in line for a few minutes at the generous buffet.
The name Amanti Vino or “wine lovers” doesn’t even begin to hint at the passion that helped formulate this establishment, and sustains its continued growth. This was another great assignment that I was excited to cover for Jersey Bites.
The Bloomfield Avenue location of Elevation Burger celebrates a year in Montclair this week, and is the first of its kind in the Garden State. When Jersey Bites stopped in for a visit, we were treated to a tour from co-owner Matt Jerkovich, who emphasized that there’s truth behind the tagline: “Ingredients Matter.”
Sushi is one of those things people tend to love or hate (or refuse to try…I’m working on them). Put me in the love corner: I heart the stuff. While I’m not the world’s most adventurous sushi eater, I do dive deeper than the California roll—no disrespect to Cali roll devotees of the world—and over time I’ve discovered the joys of several accompanying menu items such as age tofu and seaweed salad.
