HOBOKEN FALL/WINTER 2013/14
John Sayles HOBOKEN’S LEGENDARY AUTEUR STOP! CROSSWALK CRISIS s SUPER BOWL HERO s FROZEN HOBOKEN s BINGO! s INSIDE ERIE LACKAWANNA
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CONTENTS 07030
16
FEATURES COVER 16 LEGENDARY AUTEUR Director John Sayles Cover photo by Ric Kallaher 22 ERIE LACKAWANNA Sights unseen 28 STOP! Crosswalk crisis 30 SUPER BOWL VETERAN Carlos Perez 32 SPORTS GEAR The place to go
DEPARTMENTS
36 BINGO! Gen Y scores
10 CONTRIBUTORS 12 EDITOR’S LETTER 35 DATES What’s goin’ on 40 WORKING OUT WITH— Mari Rivera
22
44 ARCHIVES AND ARTIFACTS Frozen Hoboken
46 WEST SIDE STORY Volunteer Ambulance Corps 52 HOW WE LIVE House Proud 64 EMERGING HOBOKEN Stay Puft Marshmallow Man 66 HOW WE WORK Small businesses 71 VANISHING HOBOKEN A look at a Hoboken institution 72 WATERING HOLES Louise and Jerry’s 74 EATERIES Court Street 78 07030 DISH Restaurant listings
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MOVING TO NEW N EW HEIGHTS HEIGHTS New N ew S State-of-the-Art t a ttee - o f - t h e - A rrtt H Hoboken o b o k e n Office O f f ice aatt 2200 00 W Washington a s h i n g t o n Street S t r ee t A f t er five After f i ve years year s ooff ssuccess ucces s aatt 7799 H Hudson uds on S Street, t ree t, t , Halstead H al s t ead P Property r oper t y m moving ovi v ng tto o a nnew ew sspace pace tthree hree times t imes iits t s pprevious r ev ious ssize i e aand iz nd iideally deall y llocated oca t ed oonn tthe he b bustling us t liling ccorner or ner ooff 22nd nd aand nd W Washington as h i n g t o n S Street. t r ee t . W With i t h ov oover er 33800 800 ssquare quare ffeet, ee t , tthis his llocation o ca t i o n w will ill bbee completely compl ple t el y renovated renova t ed aass a sstate-of-the-art t a t e - o f-t he -ar t rreal eal eestate s t a t e ooffice f f ice ffeaturing ea t u r i n g rroom oom ffor or 5500 ag aagents ggeen t s aand nd a sstorefront t or ef e ffrr on t eentrance n tr t r ance cconsisting oonnsis t ing ooff tthe he mo m most ooss t iinnovative nnova t i ve bbrokerage r ookker age ttools ools aavailable. vaililable.
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All information is from sources deemed reliable but is subject to errors, omissions, changes in price, prior sale or withdrawal without notice. N Noo representation is made as to the accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footages are approximate and all information should be confirmed by customer customer.. All rights to content, photographs and graphics reserved to Broker Broker..
HOBOKEN
FA L L & W I N T E R 2 0 1 3 / 1 4 Vo l u m e 2 • N u m b e r 2 Published every Spring & Fall A Publication of The Hudson Reporter
PUBLISHERS Lucha Malato, David Unger EDITOR IN CHIEF Kate Rounds GRAPHICS STAFF Terri Saulino Bish Lisa M. Cuthbert Alyssa Bredin Mike Mitolo Pasquale Spina Patricia Verano COPYEDITING Christopher Zinsli ADVERTISING MANAGER Tish Kraszyk SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Toni Anne Calderone Ron Kraszyk ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Joseph Calderone Jay Slansky
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CIRCULATION MANAGER Roberto Lopez CIRCULATION Luis Vasquez ACCOUNTING Christine Caraballo
07030 Hoboken is published by the Hudson Reporter Associates, L.P., 1400 Washington St., Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, (201) 798-7800, Fax (201) 798-0018. Email 07030@hudsonreporter.com. Subscriptions are $10 per year, $25 for overseas, single copies are $7.50 each, multiple copy discounts are available. VISA/MC/AMEX accepted. Subscription information should be sent to 07030 Hoboken Subscriptions, 1400 Washington St., Hoboken, NJ 07030. Not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or other unsolicited materials. Copyright ©2013/14, Hudson Reporter Associates L.P. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited.
07030 Hoboken is a publication of The Hudson Reporter Associates, L.P. 1400 Washington Street, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030 phone 201.798.7800 • fax 201.798.0018
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e-mail: 07030@hudsonreporter.com 07030hoboken.com
CONTRIBUTORS 07030
SARI ARLENE PHALON BALDAS
ARLENE PHALON BALDASSARI has worked as an actress, for a literary agency and book publisher, and in the restaurant industry. She lives in Hoboken with her husband Mike and daughter Sophie. LANA ROSE DIAZ
TERRI SAULINO BISH Is a graphic designer, digital artist, and photographer. Her work has appeared in many publications, including Best of Photography. Her art currently includes digital paintings and photos that can be viewed at tbishphoto.com. ALYSSA BREDIN is a graphic artist and photographer who graduated from Saint Peter’s University in Jersey City with a degree in graphic arts. Her work can be seen at tbishphoto.com. JIM HAGUE
TERRI SAULINO BIS H
DEAN DeCHIARO is a Hudson County native who covers Hoboken for the Hudson Reporter Association. He became a journalist because his friends all went into law and business, and he figured they’d be worth keeping an eye on. LANA ROSE DIAZ is a freelance writer, Jersey girl, and paramour of concrete and trees. A graduate of Lehigh University and former staff writer for The Hudson Reporter, she lives, works, and plays in her beloved Jersey City. For more info, visit lanarosediaz.com.
ALYSSA BREDIN
VICTOR M. RODR IGUEZ
JIM HAGUE is a Jersey City native, who landed a job with the Hudson Dispatch in 1986. He has been the sports columnist for the Hudson Reporter Associates for the last 21 years. VICTOR M. RODRIGUEZ has studied publication design, photography, and graphic design. “I’ve been fascinated by photography for 18 years,” he says. One of his jobs as a construction project manager is to photograph job sites.
DEAN DeCHIARO
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PETER TEHOMILIC
PETER TEHOMILIC is a photographer who works in the tri-state area. He lives in Queens and loves to come to the Jersey side to bike the riverside trails with his family.
I have a successful career I’m in a loving relationship I have financial stability I contribute to my community I feel satisfied
Are you satisfied? Outwardly, it often appears people have accomplished goals and achievements in life. We can examine the fruit of their hard work and ambition and conclude that they have everything they need to be satisfied. But often times they are void of feeling satisfied, and that is what continually drives them to achieve more. Satisfaction in life is always just out of reach no matter how hard they work, or how successful they become. No longer driven by success, there is a new goal…to feel complete. So the question remains. Are you satisfied? Stop spinning your wheels and come find out the truth about the only one who satisfies. “A man may have enough of the world to sink him, but he can never have enough to satisfy him.” -Thomas Brooks
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EDITOR'S LETTER 07030
COLD COMFORT Unless you’ve been living in that burrow right along with the groundhogs, you know that February 2, 2014, is a lot more than Groundhog Day. That, of course, is the day that the Super Bowl will be played right here at the Meadowlands. Hoboken has some celebrations planned, including a curling demonstration. And in this issue sports writer Jim Hague profiles Carlos Perez, a Hoboken native who played in Super Bowl XXXIX. In “Working Out With,” we chat with Maricela Rivera—the woman who is behind the wheel of the snowplow that keeps our Hoboken streets snow-free. In other winter news, according to the Farmers’ Almanac it will be very cold and snowy this year from early to midDecember and early to mid-February, which of course includes the Super Bowl. But if you want to see some really cold weather, take a look at the pictures in this issue, which show Hoboken winters in the mid-1800s. I am thrilled that we were finally able to land an interview with the great film director John Sayles, who has been living in Hoboken since the 1970s. Don’t miss Arlene Phalon Baldassari’s in-depth cover story. Lifestyle magazines are all about the many great things that are happening in any given town. But in this issue we offer a cautionary tale. Drivers and pedestrians in our city are at an angry impasse that could turn tragic. Read Dean DeChiaro’s observations on our dangerous crosswalks. Bingo is making a comeback. Lana Rose Diaz takes a look at the younger crowd who are enjoying bar bingo around the city—not a bad thing to do on a chilly winter evening. There’s much more in this issue, and we also want to hear from you. Email us at 07030@hudsonreporter.com or find us on Facebook and help us cover our town.
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John Sayles —Our Auteur Next Door No voice in film has been more unremittingly committed to telling intimate, character-driven stories about people than that of John Sayles BY ARLENE PHALON BALDASSARI
W
ay back, when I told a hipster friend that I was moving to Hoboken, he raised an eyebrow and said,
“Well, they have good Italian delis. And I hear John Sayles lives there.” This was in the pre-Google days, and the idea that the iconic film director would choose to live in the mile-square city
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across the river sounded like an urban legend which lent Hoboken an air of pioneering bohemianism and artistic street cred. Even before independent film was considered a genre, Sayles’s
movies such as Eight Men Out, Matewan, and The Brother from Another Planet garnered high praise from critics and raked in awards, if not blockbuster grosses. As the genre picked up steam,
WRITER/DIRECTOR JOHN SAYLES ON LOCATION IN BOHOL, PHILIPPINES FILMING AMIGO. PHOTOS BY MARY CYBULSKI Sayles led the way with such films as City of Hope, Lone Star, Passion Fish, and Amigo. Hardly reclusive and hard to miss at six-foot-four, Sayles isn’t about Hollywoodstyle self-promotion. Rather, he focuses on telling stories that interest him. We caught up with him as he was promoting his latest feature, Go for Sisters, which will premiere in New York and Los Angeles this November. The movie, shot in L.A. and Mexico, features two estranged childhood friends whose lives intersect again as recovering addict and parole officer. Anyone with a browser knows that the original independent auteur has been living and working in the same
Hoboken rowhouse that he and his partner, Maggie Renzi, bought in 1979, while working on their first movie, Return of the Secaucus Seven.
“
It was a fertile time for Sayles. His first novel, Pride of the Bimbos, about a dwarf who is a traveling baseball player dressed in drag, had been published in 1975
one called me and said you should take this long short story and make it into a novel and we’ll at least read it.” Sayles was laid off from the
Right around when we were making our first movie, we moved into Hoboken.” – John Sayles
“We’ve been here since, God, I think we’ve owned this house for 35 years,” Sayles says. “Right around when we were making our first movie, we moved into Hoboken. The waterfront was a mess, but the rest of the city was nice. It was old Italian families and Puerto Rican neighborhoods and some people from India, a very livable kind of city.”
when he was only 25. “Yeah, I didn’t know at the time how lucky I was, but I’d been working in factories and hospitals and just kind of minimum-wage jobs and I got a union job as a meatpacker in a sausage factory in Boston. I had been sending short stories out to magazines and … the Atlantic Monthly also had a book publishing arm, and some-
sausage factory and got $85 a week for 21 weeks on unemployment, his first and only grant for the arts. During that time, he wrote his first novel. Despite critical success, the book didn’t make him rich. “I once figured out, with the typing, I was still making minimum wage,” he says. “It was an advance of $2,500—that was about $1.10 an hour.”
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His second book, Union Dues, followed in 1975. Sayles was acting in a theater company in New Hampshire
and needed someone to sell the book. “A friend of mine played poker with this guy John Sterling, an author’s
agent. Basically, he called me up and said, ‘Hey do you want an agent?’ And he said, ‘The deal is, my agency has a
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deal with a Hollywood agency so that, if I sell it, your book will automatically be a property that those people will try to sell as a movie.’ I said, ‘It won’t make a movie, it would make a terrible movie … but go ahead.’” That connection started Sayles’s screenwriting career, notably for Roger Corman on such genre movies as Piranha and The Howling. “When people say, ‘How do I get into the movie business?’ I say, ‘I wrote two novels and a short-story collection and got them published,’ and their hearts kind of fall. It seems kind of daunting to do that. It’s so much harder to get something published today. This was 1975.” The settings, characters, and themes of Sayles’s movies are wildly different— from colonialism in the Philippines and an ancient Irish folktale to coming-ofage and coming-out stories. “I think a lot of that just comes out of interest,” he says. “Different things interest me, and people say, ‘Oh, why don’t you make another baseball movie?’ and I say, ‘Well maybe in 10 years or something like that, but once you’ve made a baseball movie I feel like I’ve done that, for awhile anyway, and what else am I interested in, what haven’t I done? What haven’t I seen onscreen? I’ve always thought, ‘What do I see around me in the world, what story that I know is worth telling that I haven’t seen before?’” Sayles has been praised for his “ability to slip deeply into each culture” he portrays and for his impeccable ear for dialog. Many thought that much of Secaucus Seven—which refers to the Chicago Seven and was shot in one weekend at a house in New Hampshire— was improvised, but it was meticulously scripted. The story of how Sayles made the movie as an audition piece, using $60,000 of his earnings from the genre scripts, is the
stuff of cinematic legend. This may be Sayles’s best-known movie. The star-studded Hollywood film The Big Chill has long been rumored to be based on Secaucus Seven. As a writer of novels, films, and plays, Sayles says, “I usually have a feeling of, this is the perfect medium to do something in, but sometimes it changes.” Most people think of Sayles as a director.
But, he says, “I think ‘storyteller’ finally is the way I feel about it. In movies, the way I make a living to this day is as a screenwriter for hire. Often my movies are self-financed from the money I make as a screenwriter. When you’re writing a screenplay, you’re just writing the blueprint, but you’re not the guy who finishes the story. … It’s a very collaborative medium … and if
John Shoots New Jersey
07030: Have you shot any of your films in New Jersey? JS: We shot most of Baby It’s You in New Jersey; it was set in Trenton. Our office was actually in Hoboken, down on Observer Highway in an old meatpacking plant that’s been turned into offices and condos since then. 07030: You can’t meatpacking…
get
away
from
the
JS: Yeah, exactly! We shot out at Upsala College in East Orange. Ninety percent of that movie was shot in Jersey. And we shot over at Stevens College a little bit. It was a fraternity house and the floor was warped from beer. There were so many standing puddles of beer there that the floor had warped. 07030: Another one, shot in Fort Lee and Hoboken, is Lianna. Kate, the editor of 07030, told me that Lianna is one of her favorite movies of all time. She cannot get over how a straight man could intuit that moment when a woman looks in the mirror and acknowledges to herself, “I am a lesbian.” She says that just about everyone she knows has experienced that moment. JS: You know, it’s interesting, I think I was able to do it because it’s about a woman having her first experience. And I felt that that’s as far as I can imagine, and at the time there wasn’t really queer cinema. There were very few gay women who were able to make movies about their own lives. And so I think directors who have come after me, who are gay women, have been able to go deeper into the community, like The L Word and stuff like that. I could basically kind of talk about couples I knew who were breaking up, so this is as much about that phenomenon of all of a sudden being 36 and back on the relationship market and trying to find a job. And how it would be that a woman wouldn’t get custody of her kids. What would cause that? And at the time, announcing that you were gay might make a judge say, “Well you’re an unfit mother so your husband gets the kids.” 07030: You shot the Springsteen video, Glory Days, partly at Maxwell’s in Hoboken, and you got permission from a reluctant Springsteen to use his songs in Baby It’s You.
JOHN SAYLES WITH DANNY GLOVER IN HONEYDRIPPER. TOP: DANNY GLOVER. PHOTOS BY JIM SHELDON
JS: We shot two rock videos for Bruce Springsteen here. Born in the USA, we shot most of that in Jersey as well. —07030 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
19
you’re the writer/director/editor, which is what I am on my own features, you’re much more the author than you are if you’re just the screenwriter.” Sayles’s work as a screenwriter for hire is sometimes credited (The Spiderwick Chronicles) and sometimes not (Apollo 13). An early Sayles script titled Night Skies was the basis for what eventually became Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extraterrestrial. Sayles has about four unproduced screenplays and a few ideas for future projects. “It took me 11 years to get
BABY IT’S YOU. Eight Men Out made,” he says. “You start saying, ‘Oh, 11 to 15 years, I’m going to be really old if it takes that long.’ So I’m a little less ambitious with the things I write now, if they seem like they’re totally un-fundable. With this new one, Go for Sisters that’s going to come out in November, that’s very, very low budget, under a million. That was one where—it’s never really happened to me before—I wrote basically because I knew three actors I was dying to work with, Edward Olmos, Yolanda Ross, and LisaGay Hamilton, who was the only one I’d worked with before.” Sayles’s director’s eye and instinct for storytelling make him a great observer of the changes in Hoboken over the years. He reflects, “Well, now we have
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two or three Starbucks and all of those condos going up. …. Most old Hoboken people just kind of shake their heads. I think a lot of them actually like the changes, truly. I think the only thing that has gotten worse about Hoboken has been the parking. It was always bad, but now it’s close to impossible. At one time, I think it was the most densely populated city in America because it’s only a mile square, and when buildings go up, and they used to be rowhouses—which were one family—and now they’re three apartments, and when each one of
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Set the Table, Carve a Turkey, Make a Memory.
those have a car—there is just not enough room.” But he also sees positive changes: “The nice thing is that the river has been reclaimed. I run on that river road, Frank Sinatra Drive they call it, sometimes, and it used to be Bethlehem Steel that was defunct and I think there was toxic waste there, and you know, basically ruins. Now they’ve really made it kind of park-like and people really use the river. The ferries weren’t working when I first came here; that’s been a great thing. At rush hour last night, we took the ferry in. In the summer it’s really beautiful.”—07030
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MAIN HALLWAY
HOBOKEN’S HALLOWED
ruins
In the 20th century, before the Holland Tunnel and the PATH trains dominated trans-Hudson travel, ferries ruled, and the architectural grandeur of the Erie Lackawanna Terminal is proof. Today, large sections of the terminal are long abandoned. Though the paint is chipped and the floors are dusty, their sheer majesty remains.
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PHOTOS BY TBISHPHOTO
BY DEAN DeCHIARO
T
housands of commuters pass through Hoboken Terminal every day. For a long time, I was one of them. I’d walk from the light rail station on the south end, past the 17 train tracks of New Jersey Transit, stairwells leading to the PATH, and out onto River Street. For most people, in 2013, those are the elements that make up “Hoboken Terminal.” But that’s a relatively new way of thinking about it. For a long time it was the Erie Lackawanna Railroad and Ferry Terminal. As you walk along the river toward the terminal,
you can’t help but wonder what’s in all those areas closed off to the public, and what’s up in the balcony overlooking the newly refurbished ferry slips. Recently, I got a chance to tour sections of the terminal that were closed off to the public years ago, including the gargantuan old ferry terminal waiting room and some of the old ticketing rooms. Bill Smith, a senior spokesman for NJ Transit, was my guide, and told me that in the mid-20th century, the terminal saw about twice as much traffic as it does today. The majority of those people took the ferry, which makes sense, though today ferries are the odd man out.
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FERRY SLIPS
What we now think of as Hoboken Terminal is really just a small sliver of the entire structure, and much of it, like the PATH and the light rail, are additions. The old terminal’s main concourse, directly above and behind the New Jersey Transit waiting room, looks to be the length of two football fields with ceilings that are easily 50 feet tall. There are three sets of enormous skylights—one has the original stained glass—and remnants of chandeliers that hung from above. The floor, covered in a layer of thick dust, is a geometric mosaic of myriad small tiles. The gorgeous masonry is in chunks, many of the windows are broken, and the intricate molding is damaged. But the place has a beautiful vagrant feel that might be lost in a restoration, no matter how faithful that restoration might be. In one sense, the waiting room is already a restoration. Built in 1907, today’s terminal, officially called the Erie Lackawanna Railroad and Ferry Terminal by the New Jersey and National Register of Historic Places, replaced one that burned to the ground between Aug. 8 and 10, 1905. The fire also claimed two ferries and the famous Duke’s House tavern and restaurant. The 1907 terminal was built with more fire-resistant materials. In rebuilding the terminal, the people at the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Company, which owned the site, made it stronger and more stunning than its weaker predecessor, with molded copper decorations, Tiffany skylights, and a gilded clock. Like many of the transportation hubs built around the same time, such as Grand Central Terminal across the river, it was designed in the Beaux-arts style synonymous with 19th century Paris. And that’s not the terminal’s only French connection. Its bronze facade is clothed in the same copper used on the Statue of Liberty. The train station’s waiting room, which has been majestically renovated, transports you to another era. In fact, parts of Julie and Julia were shot here, with Meryl Streep and Jane Lynch waiting in their 1940s outfits for a train to come in.
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OFFICE ABOVE PATH
WAITING ROOM
LONG HALLWAY
On the eastern side of the concourse, you can step out on the balcony above the terminal’s original ferry slips and watch thousands of ferry riders on their rush-hour commute. Ferry service was suspended sometime in the mid-20th century, and while service was restored in 1989, these original slips didn’t reopen until 2011, the first time in recent history that the old and new sections of the terminal were in operation at the same time. You have to wonder what the future of the concourse will be. It’s too spectacular a treasure to ignore, but plans are still in the idea phase. John Leon, NJ Transit’s senior director for government and community relations, has said there’s been discussion about using it as a community space in conjunction with NJT’s massive Observer Highway Redevelopment Plan. But the plan isn’t finalized and talks with the city are ongoing. New York City has its abandoned but beautifully adorned subway stations. Detroit has entire neighborhoods of forgotten theaters and hotels. Hoboken Terminal is in better shape than these. But it will take a massive restoration to return it to its former glory.—07030
EXIT
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STOP
I WAS WAITING TO CROSS THE STREET…
or Go?
Drivers and pedestrians do a dance of death on the crosswalk BY DEAN DeCHIARO PHOTOS BY TBISHPHOTO
T
he octagonal red STOP signs at intersections in the United States conform to the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals. We share the same design with a number of nations, including Argentina, Belarus, China, Iran, and Mongolia: On foot or on fuel, you STOP. But what about those wobbly signs in the middle of the crosswalk that say, “State Law, Stop for (the pathetic little stick figure) on crosswalk”? Hoboken pedestrians claim that drivers just blow through without even stopping, and Hoboken drivers claim
that pedestrians do the same, texting and talking with an outsized sense of entitlement and an undersized sense of mortality. There are around 40 of these signs— known as stop-for-pedestrian signs—in Hoboken, and they began popping up in 2010. Pedestrians crossing Hoboken streets with these special stop signs didn’t mind talking about their experiences. “Sometimes I will stand at the corner as three or four cars pass, and none of them stop to let me go,” said a nanny crossing First Street at the intersection with Jackson Street—one of the busiest cross-town corridors. She didn’t want to
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give her name because of her employment, but she said that drivers, especially during rush hour, seem to take little notice of the signs. “I guess they’re not really stop signs, so it’s OK?” she asked. The point of the signs, according to the head of Hoboken Department of Parking and Transportation, John Morgan, is to alert motorists that they must stop for people in the crosswalk, as opposed to a traditional stop sign, which simply tells the driver they must stop before entering the intersection. There are fines of up to $230 for both motorists and pedestrians guilty of ignoring these signs and barreling into
the crosswalk, which shows that lawmakers are as concerned with pedestrians breaking the law as they are with motorists. In an admittedly unscientific survey I conducted, motorists usually stop only for the “real” stop signs that adhere to the Vienna Convention. Do the stop-for-pedestrian signs work? In a 15-minute period on a late-summer Thursday morning, at the crosswalk on Hudson Street, across from Hoboken Terminal, a little fewer than 100 pedestrians crossed the street. About 50 crossed with no cars in sight, and close to 25 crossed when a car stopped for them, but the remainder either waited for one or multiple cars to pass, or ran across the street ahead of oncoming traffic. The terminal area sees more foot traffic than any other part of town, but the proportions were about the same uptown, on the west side, and near Hoboken High School, all areas of heavy pedestrian traffic. At Third and Jackson, there’s a pedestrian sign smack dab in the middle of high-density apartment buildings and a popular mini strip mall across the street. The signs are there, at least partially, to keep pedestrian traffic moving. But during rush hour, is it more dangerous having the signs than not having them? There’s one of these signs outside the Hudson Tea Building on Washington Street, where residents must cross in order to access the rest of town. You hear plenty of horns on Washington. Sometimes drivers are honking at one brazen guy who’s late for a meeting who has rushed into the crosswalk without looking. But all too often it’s texters, runners, and readers simply not paying attention. Not surprisingly, Hoboken drivers who have just broken the law aren’t interested in giving interviews. They have no idea that the person waving them down like a lunatic is a journalist, and they’re not slowing down for anyone who doesn’t have lights and a siren. But one motorist, who did not want his name used, did agree to talk. He called the relationship between Hoboken’s drivers and walkers “adversarial.” “I think pedestrians have become a bit obnoxious, to be honest,” he said. “They take the signs for granted and assume
everyone’s going to stop, but that’s not how it works. I could be 10 feet away from the intersection, going the speed limit, with a car behind me so I can’t stop quickly enough, and they think just because that sign’s there, they can go.” Originally from out of town, the driver said he’d never seen anything like Hoboken before. “My whole life, I’ve never felt like, as a driver, it’s me against the pedestrians,” he said. “But that’s kind of how it feels here.” As a kid, I walked from Hoboken Terminal to my elementary school on Third and Garden Streets every day, and often in a hurry. I rarely waited for the light, often ignored the crosswalk, and when I got a cell phone, I probably didn’t look up to see where I was going all that often. As an adult, I commute to Hoboken every day by car, driving from the southern end to my office on 14th Street. I use Jackson Street, then Clinton, and then Bloomfield to get uptown, a route specially designed to bypass as much pedestrian traffic as possible. I’m as guilty as the next guy of blowing through the “pedestrian-friendly” stop signs from time to time, but I find it useful to think about the type of pedestrian I used to be, and the grief I probably caused hundreds of drivers over the years. The saga of the “pedestrian-friendly” stop signs points up the potentially dangerous divide between those who drive in Hoboken, and those who walk. At the end of the day, drivers should probably deal with the fact that pedestrians often do not abide by the rules of the road—if only because it’s not the pedestrians who are driving the Escalades.—07030 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
29
CARLOS PEREZ
Hoboken’s
Hero From the Dominican Republic to Hoboken to living the dream STORY AND PHOTOS BY JIM HAGUE
T
o the students at P.S. 24 in Jersey City, he’s known as Mr. Perez, the strict dean of discipline. The rest of the time, he’s recognized as Pastor Perez, the ecumenical and inspirational lead minister of the Church of God of Prophecy in Newark. But to sports fans in the area, he’s still Carlos Perez, the Hoboken High School graduate who went on to be a star wide receiver at the
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University of Florida and eventually was part of the Philadelphia Eagles team that lost in Super Bowl XXXIX to the New England Patriots, 24-21, on Feb. 6, 2005. When Perez arrived in Hoboken from his native Dominican Republic at the age of 9, he didn’t have a clue what the sport of football was. “I was a baseball player in the Dominican, like everyone else,” Perez said. “I didn’t even know what a football was. Baseball was all that we played.”
Perez played baseball when he came to the United States and didn’t play organized football until he enrolled at Hoboken, where he was introduced to the sport by another Red Wing legend, Tyrell Dortch, the eventual Michigan State player who is perhaps the best running back to ever play at Hoboken. “Tyrell was the one who taught me the game,” Perez said. “I didn’t understand it at all. I just liked to run, so I used to get the ball and run. Tyrell would tell me not to let anyone catch me.”
The two friends were the most fleet of foot of the Red Wings. “I used to race Tyrell and I beat him all the time,” Perez laughed. While Perez didn’t become a running back like his buddy, then-coach Ed Stinson felt that playing wide receiver would be more beneficial to Perez and the team. “At first, I wanted to be a running back,” Perez said. “I used to watch Barry Sanders and Emmitt Smith and want to be like them. But I had no concept of hitting the hole. A lot of what I did was just raw and wild. But I could catch the ball. I did a lot of body catching back then. Coach Stinson was running workouts on Saturday mornings and he singled me out as someone who could catch the ball.” On their own, the coach and player worked on developing Perez as a receiver. “He would stand five yards away from me and launch the ball right at me,” Perez said. “That’s how I learned to catch with my hands. I started the next season as a receiver. I was upset when Coach Stinson moved me from running back, but I guess he saw something in me.” Perez helped Hoboken win two NJSIAA Group III state championships, in 1998 and 1999, earning All-State honors in the process. He signed a national letter of intent to go to the University of Florida. “To be honest, I appreciate that all a lot more now,” Perez said. “I didn’t realize the significance of winning state championships, being All-State and going to a big school like Florida. Until I got to Florida, I didn’t realize how great it was. I realized it was a privilege and an honor. I was still learning the game in college.” Perez had a fine career at Florida, catching 108 passes for more than 1,000 yards and scoring 11 touchdowns. He helped the Gators to two Southeast Conference championships and a win in the Orange Bowl. After Florida, Perez thought he was going to be drafted by an NFL team. “During the draft, I was getting a lot of calls from teams, but I didn’t understand the process,” Perez said. “I got a call the second day of the draft from the [Washington] Redskins saying that they were going to take me in the fifth round.” But that didn’t happen. Perez was slowed by a quad injury during the NFL Draft Combine, so that may have hurt his chances of being selected.
“I was so upset about not getting drafted,” Perez said. “I cried all day.” His emotions changed a day later. “The day after the draft, I got a phone call from the Eagles, saying that they wanted to sign me,” Perez said. “I dried my tears, went to church and said to God, ‘Maybe this is the way life is supposed to be.’ I thought maybe this is what God wanted.” Perez signed with the Eagles in April 2004 and went to training camp with the club. He was among the same receiving corps as Terrell Owens,
yet another championship ring. “Two from Hoboken, two from Florida, the Orange Bowl, the NFC Championship with the Eagles and the World Bowl,” Perez said. In 2005, Perez went to training camp with the idea of earning a spot on the Eagles’ roster. “I was in the best shape ever, working out with my personal trainer Louie Turso,” Perez said. “I led the team in receptions in the preseason. I caught a 33-yard touchdown pass against the Ravens. I thought I was locked in, but
Perez helped Hoboken win two NJSIAA Group III state championships, in 1998 and 1999, earning All-State honors in the process . Freddie Mitchell, and Todd Pinkston. Eventually, Perez was placed on the practice squad, but remained an active member of the team in practices and workouts. “I learned a lot from those guys and gained a lot of respect,” Perez said. Sure enough, in his first year in the NFL, Perez was able to go to the Super Bowl against the Patriots in Jacksonville. “It was an amazing experience,” Perez said. “I was in awe. There were so many famous people around. I met Will Smith and Alicia Keys. It was surreal. I remember being on the field and hearing the National Anthem. I remember thinking that people never get a chance to be on the field, and here I am, a little guy from the Dominican Republic and Hoboken, on the field for the Super Bowl. I was super blessed. Now, I can appreciate that more.” Perez still has the ID tags he wore during Super Bowl week and treasures the jersey he wore. “There was nothing like it,” Perez said. “Much like my entire football life, God put me in position to win a championship. I never knew what it was like to be on a losing team. I went from Hoboken and winning state championships to Florida and winning the SEC and the Orange Bowl. Now, I go to the NFL and my team goes to the Super Bowl. That’s a blessing.” Although the Eagles lost, Perez cherishes those days. After the Super Bowl, the Eagles sent Perez to Amsterdam to play in the nowdefunct World League. Sure enough, Amsterdam won the World Bowl, with Perez a key figure in the win. He earned
after the preseason, the Eagles released me.” Perez tried to catch on with the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills, but to no avail. He ended up playing for the Philadelphia Soul of the Arena Football League, the team owned by rocker Jon Bon Jovi, but retired after one season. Perez returned to Hoboken, got the teaching gig in Jersey City, and became an assistant coach at Ferris and later Union City High School for seven years. “Coaching did a lot for me,” Perez said. “I figured it was God’s will for me to give back, and I accepted his will.” Perez had to resign his coaching position because of his commitments as a pastor. He’s held the position of Pastor at the Church of God of Prophecy since March. “I learned that you have to enjoy the moment in everything in life,” Perez said. “You don’t think about it much at the time, but you have to remember everything about the moment, because you never know. I had a dream and was able to live it out. There are a lot of kids from Hoboken, from Jersey City, from Hudson County who have those dreams. Every kid who puts on a uniform has that dream of being in a Super Bowl. I was blessed to be there.” Perez was asked if he is excited that the upcoming Super Bowl will be played six miles away from his hometown in MetLife Stadium in February. “It’s going to be amazing,” Perez said. “When I experienced the Super Bowl, there was a lot of excitement in Jacksonville. I can’t imagine the buzz it will have here. It’s going to be amazing, and if the Giants make it, it will be totally bananas. I can’t wait.”—07030
07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
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The Go-to Spot for
SPORTS GEAR It’s a family tradition and a mile-square institution BY LANA ROSE DIAZ PHOTOS BY TBISHPHOTO
EVAN & DAN
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B
asketball shorts? Football helmet? Hockey stick? It’s that time of year. At the start of every new sports season, you can find kids, parents, and coaches at the go-to spot in Hudson County for all your sporting needs—uniforms, sportswear, sneakers, cleats, balls, bats, gloves, pucks, rackets, protective gear, and equipment of all kinds. And it’s not Modell’s.
DAN DeCONGELIO
This nearly 70-year-old Hoboken institution is a kaleidoscope of high-school colors, smelling of new leather, and smacking of old-school. Started in 1946 by two brothers-in-law, Pete Stanich and Ray Cerrito, Stan’s Sports Center was their joint venture when they came home from military service. Stanich used the first four letters of his last name to christen the business, and a Hoboken institution was born. As a child growing up in Hoboken, Dan DeCongelio hung out at Stan’s on Washington Street—“the avenue”—where kids picked up a new baseball glove or checked out the latest matchbox cars. But by the age of 15, Dan was no longer just hanging out. Recruited by Ray Cerrito, he began laying the foundation for what would one day be part of his own family’s legacy as well. Young Dan became part of the Stan’s family in the early 1970s. A couple of years later he would graduate from Hoboken High School and go on to college at Jersey City State College, now NJCU, but he still came
back to Stan’s every Saturday to do the payroll. “I loved it,” Dan says. “It was a part of me.” Even when he earned his accounting degree and landed a job, Saturdays were reserved for his “family” at Stan’s. Ray Cerrito eventually took over the business from Pete Stanich, and what Ray really wanted was for Dan to work fulltime, an arrangement Dan said he would be interested in only if he could have a stake in the business when Ray retired. Ray struck the deal in the way most deals were struck in those times. “I left my job on a handshake,” Dan says. “I took my chances, but he was the type of guy that a handshake went a long way.” Just a few years later, the time came to pass the baton. In 1996, Dan became the owner of the institution that gave him his start. And his beloved mentor? He became his employee for the hefty price of $1 per year or a hot dog from Biggie’s.
Until his death, Ray was a true mentor to Dan DeCongelio. Soon another young man could be found hanging out at Stan’s: Dan’s son. When Dan Jr. was off from school, he was shooting baskets in the basement of the sports center or playing wiffle ball with the workers. He followed a similar path as that of his father—working weekends at Stan’s even after he had gone away to college and to work at a bank. Two years later he invited his father to dinner to have a conversation not much different than the one Ray and Dan Sr. had years earlier. “I’d been around it for so long growing up,” Dan Jr. says. “I just knew that this was the right fit for me.” The father-and-son duo has maintained exemplary customer service while stocking a diverse inventory that rivals—or in some cases exceeds—that in the big chain stores. Within four months of returning to Stan’s with his newfound experience in the banking business, Dan Jr. revamped the store’s
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DAN, TODD, EVAN, AND LOU
website, created a social-media campaign, and instituted online shopping. “We’ve got all these likes all of a sudden,” Dan Sr. says. Indeed, Stan’s had a lot of “likes,” long before the advent of Facebook. Outfitting recreation and highschool teams from Hoboken to Harrison, Stan’s has a longstanding connection with many communities in Hudson and Bergen counties. If you walk into the store now— which is bedecked in Hoboken red and white—you won’t find matchbox cars and boxes of sports equipment strewn about as in earlier times.
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As Hoboken has evolved, so has Stan’s. It now carries a lot of “Hoboken” products like hoodies and t-shirts. And though the aisles have been made baby-stroller friendly, you can still come in and pick up a baseball glove—just like in the good ol’ days. “Everything changes over the years,” Dan Sr. says, “But you still have your sense of community.”— 07030 Stan’s Sports Center 528 Washington St. (201)798-4466 stanssportsctr.com
D AT E S Want your event listed? Please email us at 07030@hudsonreporter.com and put “07030 calendar listings” in the subject line.
ONGOING Downtown Farmer’s Market, Washington St. b/w Newark St. and Observer Hwy, 3 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through November 19. Hoboken Ski Club Meetings, Willie McBride’s Pub, 616 Grand St., hobokenskiclub.com. Held every Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. All are welcome.
Underground Comedy Club, Room 84, 84 Washington St., room84hoboken.com. 8 p.m. Local, NJ, and NYC comics as seen on Letterman, Conan, Comedy Central, MTV and more. Hosted by Craig Mahoney. Free. Hoboken Gallery Walk, various locations, hobokengallerywalk.com. 2 p.m. – 6 p.m. Third Sunday of every month. Galleries and art spaces
around Hoboken participate with special events and receptions highlighting the work of local, regional, and international artists. Uptown Storytime at the Museum, Hoboken Historical Museum, 1301 Hudson St., (201) 656-2240, hoboken museum.org. First and Third Thursdays at 10 a.m. Librarian Penny Metsch shares stories with children ages 2 to 5 years and their caregivers.
Thursday Guitar Circle, Symposia Bookstore, 510 Washington St., (201) 963-0909, symposia.us. 8:30 p.m. Beginners welcome. Art Along the Fence, 11th & Hudson heading east along Sinatra Dr. and Washington St. b/w 14th and 15th, hobokennj.org. 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. Outdoor mural project featuring work from 20 local artists.
Hoboken: One Year After Sandy, Hoboken Historical Museum, 1301 Hudson St., (201) 656-2240, hoboken useum.org. A wide range of content from oral histories to videos will be on exhibit through July 6. Teen Events at the Library, Hoboken Library, 500 Park Ave., (201) 420-2348, hoboken.bccls.org. Digital photography on Mondays, Dungeons and Dragons on Tuesdays, Mixed Media/Collage Workshop see page 51
07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
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NOT JUST YOUR GRANDMA’S BINGO ANYMORE The classic game of chance has changed BY LANA ROSE DIAZ PHOTOS BY KATE ROUNDS
O
ver the rallying cry of “Blitzkrieg Bop” and the undeniable crunch of cheesy nachos, the call is made: “B9…B9.” At Black Bear Bar & Grill, patrons are enjoying a pint of their favorite brew with one hand and clutching a bingo board with the other. It’s Wednesday night in Hoboken. And that means bingo. But while there’s a spinning wheel of balls and plenty of prizes to be had, it’s certainly not your grandma’s bingo. The atmosphere is cacophonous—you won’t hear any “hushing” from your fellow players here—and the only bluehaired gals to be found in the joint are sporting a mohawk.
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For 29-year-old Jodi Hart, bingo at the Black Bear has been a tradition since she moved to Hoboken a few months ago. And, she says, it’s a great opportunity to shake up the typical week of barhopping and billiards. “It’s a fun thing to do on a Wednesday night,” she says. She stumbled on the event by chance after walking into Black Bear one night for a drink, but after a round of bingo with the bartender, she was hooked. Good music and a winning board on her first try didn’t hurt either. She now comes back weekly, eagerly recruiting friends to come out with her for a chance at the “big” prizes and a uniquely enjoyable night out. And she’s not alone. A young Hoboken clientele has caught on to the idea and breathed new life into the concept of “bingo nights.”
Other bingo venues have come and gone, but Black Bear is said to be the most popular and longest-running bingo joint—it’s been going strong for more than five years with Hoboken resident Joe Testa at the helm of bingomania. Joe, a professionally trained actor, spends the rest of his week as an employee of Black Bear serving tables. But on Wednesday nights he is part bingo caller, part DJ, and allaround party starter. He attributes the success of bingo night at the bar and grill to the great vibe, great food, and great specials that are offered on those nights (you can get a 25-ounce mug of Stella and five sliders of your choice for just $9.99). Aside from the gastronomical benefits, there’s perhaps a bit of other magic at work too. That booming radio-announcer voice over the loudspeaker is, quite literally, “theatrically trained.” Which is exactly what they are attracting at the Hoboken location—well-known for occupying the site of the legendary Clam Broth House. On a good night, about 20 young men and women try their hand at bingo. “It’s guys and gals, friends hanging out,” Ferrante says. “They sit at the bar, watch sports, and join in bingo or they sit at the tables. Other bars have trivia. We have bingo.” Manager Steve Ranuro says that the $5 martinis are always a draw. They also have $3 Blue Moons, $2 drafts, $4 house wines, and a happy hour at 10 p.m. A DJ plays music and an mc announces the games. Patrons play for t-shirts, Biggies gift cards, and grand prizes with baskets of martini glasses and shakers.
Joe went to school for theater, and the pizzazz he brings from that experience is undeniable. He sets the stage for the night with music (mostly classic rock and memorable ’90s tunes) and as the night goes on, his lively attitude helps more customers loosen up and get in the game. When asked if he may be part of the reason bingo has been so successful at Black Bear, he replies with a smile, “I hope I bring a little something to it.” Biggies has been hosting bingo night for about a year—on Tuesdays from 8-11 p.m. Manager Michael Ferrante says they started it based on the success of bingo night at the Biggies on Route 17. “There was a good turnout of young kids in their twenties,” he says.
At the Black Bear, patrons also play for prizes, but if you want to rack up the big bucks, do it the old-fashioned way— at church. Hoboken’s Our Lady of Grace Church, for example, hosts bingo games and a lunch cafe every Saturday at noon in its school hall. Apparently you can pocket hundreds of dollars on a Saturday afternoon. But at the Black Bear, plenty of other valuable treasures can be had, and it gets better as the night goes on—everything from gift cards and restaurant gift certificates to sports equipment and tickets to various events, including Yankees games. But don’t let what seems like Black Bear’s lackadaisical approach to bingo fool you. According to Jodi, the nights can get competitive, especially among the regulars. On one bingo 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
37
night, she was found jokingly seething at her barstool neighbor, Dan, for quickly winning twice in a row. Dan Di Iorio, 28, is a resident of Jersey City and comes to bingo nights once or twice a month to relax after work. In one night alone he racked up a fun little prize package, which included sunglasses, beads, a beer glass, a $25 gift certificate to Black Bear, and other loot. It’s always free to play at Black Bear, where the festivities start around 7:30 p.m. and the games and drink specials continue throughout the night. But if you can’t show up at 7:30 on the dot, never fear. There’s always plenty of time between games to grab a beer and a bingo card.—07030
RESOURCES Black Bear Bar & Grill 205 Washington St. (201) 656-5511 Our Lady of Grace Church 400 Willow Ave. (bingo games held at school hall on 5th and Willow) (201) 659-0369 Biggies 36-42 Newark St. (201) 710-5520
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SPRING 2014 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
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Working Out With—
KATE (LEFT) AND MARI
Maricela Rivera
If
we have a snowy winter, chances are Maricela (Mari) Rivera will be behind the wheel of the snow plow. Rivera is fleet manager for all city vehicles and works in the Parking Utilities Department. She is uniquely qualified for the job. She started out in Parking Enforcement, moved up to motor-broom operator and street-sweeper driver, and finally fleet manager. Her duties include scheduling vehicle maintenance and supervising the mechanics. One of those mechanics is her father. “I learned how to fix cars from my dad,” Rivera says. Rivera is a Hoboken native. She and her husband have two children, a boy and girl, ages 12 and 14. Rivera likes being out on the snowy Hoboken streets. “Out there you’re your own boss,” she says. “I love the snow plow. A lot of people think it’s a man’s job, and when they see a female, they’re in shock. Sometimes it’s hard when cars are parked improperly, and you use judgment to make sure you don’t hit the car. Other than that it’s not hard to drive a little Ford F-350 pickup.”
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PHOTOS BY TBISHPHOTO 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
41
When I talked to Rivera, snow was the last thing on her mind. It was the tail end of summer, and she was revving up for her favorite workout: softball. The season for the Hoboken City Divas starts in September, after the kids relinquish the Little League field. Rivera, who has been playing softball since she was seven and coaches her own kids, attended NJCU for a year and a half on a softball scholarship. She generally pitches but has also caught and played short and second. She’s played for Jersey City’s Benito’s Gals, which is part of the fast-pitch Jersey City Women’s League. In the Hoboken Women’s League for Recreation, Rivera pitches “arch” style. Rivera is no slouch at the plate either. She’s been doing cardio and strength workouts and has been hitting doubles and triples in practices. At five-foot-six, she is powerfully built and has a lot of power at the plate. Whether it’s plowing or playing, Rivera loves what she’s doing. “I have fun playing sports,” she says. “It’s not about winning or losing. It’s about having fun and getting a workout at the same time.”—Kate Rounds
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FIRST AND BLOOMFIELD STREETS, SOUTHWEST CORNER, 1888
BLIZZARD OF 1888, WASHINGTON STREET, LOOKING NORTH FROM FOURTH STREET
DOWNTOWN HOBOKEN, POSSIBLY LOOKING NORTH FROM THIRD STREET, LIKELY AFTER THE BLIZZARD OF 1888
VIEW FROM THE RIVER SHOWING CASTLE POINT, RIVER WALK NEAR THE FOOT OF 10TH STREET, C. 1880s
One hundred and twenty-five years ago, Hoboken was a colder town
T
hese photographs from the Hoboken Public Library Historic Photography Collection were taken in the 1880s. Some of the photos were donated to the Free Public Library by the Elysian Camera Club 1933. If you’re thinking that things looked snowier, colder, and icier back then, you’re right. Dr. Alan Blumberg, director of the Center for Maritime Systems at Stevens Institute of Technology, says, “There is a lot of evidence that the climate is getting warmer and warmer.” If you believe in climate change, that’s no surprise. “The snow and coldness were normal back then,” he says. “And now the warmth is abnormal. There are fewer cold days, and winters will get milder in the future.” The river itself, he says, which is saltier downriver than upriver, may never have frozen completely. “It freezes near the banks first because the river moves faster in the middle,” Blumberg says, “and there is more freezing as you go upriver because it’s harder to freeze salt water than fresh water.” —Kate Rounds
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ARCHIVES AND ARTIFACTS 07030
RIVER WALK
CLINTON STREET BETWEEN THIRD AND FOURTH STREETS, FEB. 9, 1899
FIRST AND BLOOMFIELD STREETS, SOUTHWEST CORNER, BEHIND CITY HALL, 1888
STEVENS INSTITUTE, HUDSON SQUARE PARK, FIFTH AND HUDSON, LOOKING NORTH FROM FOURTH STREET, BLIZZARD OF 1888 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
45
The Volunteer Ambulance Corps..
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WEST SIDE STORY 07030
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Those brave first responders aren’t in it for the money STORY AND PHOTOS BY KATE ROUNDS
W
hen Hoboken High School’s Emergency Response Team course was disbanded at the beginning of the school year, it shed light on the work of one of Hoboken’s most important institutions: the Hoboken Volunteer Ambulance Corps. These students were certified as first responders and emergency medical technicians (EMTs), who assisted the corps in answering 911 calls around the city. While the loss of the program was heartbreaking for the students involved, nothing can dim the brilliant work of our ambulance corps. Ambulances—like fire trucks—are probably the most valued vehicles in town, but a lot of folks may not know that that ambulance speeding through the Hoboken streets to save a cardiac-arrest victim is staffed entirely by volunteers. While the Hoboken Volunteer Ambulance Corps, which was established in February of 1971, provides the emergency medical services for the city of Hoboken. “We don’t get paid, and we don’t bill,” says Thomas Molta, president of the corps. “We are a volunteer organization that provides to the city for free.” Molta, who has been president for 21 years, joined the corps when he was only 16. The corps has 188 members and three life-support ambulances. Becoming an EMT who rides in the ambulance is a rigorous process. Applicants take a 220-hour course to be certified for hands-on patient care. A minimum of two and a maximum of four ride in the ambulance. The driver needs specialized defensive-driving instruction to become a Certified Emergency Vehicle Operator. Molta has spent his working life in the business of helping people. He retired from the Hoboken Fire Department as a captain.
WEST SIDE STORY 07030 Ambulance corps volunteers are a diverse group. “They come from all different walks of life,” Molta says. “Doctors, nurses, electricians, Wall Street lawyers…” The age range is 16 to the early 70s; they are required to work four shifts per month. The ratio of male to female is two to one male, and you have to be able to lift a 165-pound person onto a stretcher. Molta has an encyclopedic memory for fires—even those that occurred before his tenure at the corps. “The Pinta Hotel fire on April 30, 1982; we lost 14 people in one building,” he recalls. “In January 1979 at 131 Clinton St., 21 kids were killed in a fire. It was a huge loss of life in a fivestory tenement building.” Since he joined the corps in 1980 he’s seen his share of disasters. “All the fatal fires in Hoboken—multiplefatality fires,” he says. “There was a major one at 1200 Washington St. in 1981 where 12 people died. There were multiple injuries and fatalities. These people were on fire and jumping out windows.”
“
We don’t get paid, and we don’t bill.” – Thomas Molta
He said the corps was on hand for the first World Trade Center bombing in February of 1993. “We treated 165 people in Hoboken who came over on the ferries and PATH train or on buses,” he says. Eight years later, on Sept. 11, 2001, the corps treated more than 2,000 people. The less spectacular events are no less important to the volunteers in the ambulance corps. Molta says, “We have had multiple storms, blizzards, nor’easters, and train derailments.” The ambulance has been on the scene during hazmat incidents. On Oct. 4, 2002, there was a chemical leak at the Cognis Corporation at 1301 Jefferson. “Chemicals were releasing acid, and we stood by on that one,” Molta says. “For any emergency that occurs in the city, we are the service provider,” 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
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WEST SIDE STORY 07030 DEVELOPING E FOUNDATION FOR A LIFETIME OF SC OOL SUCCESS!
Family Owned & Operated since 1972
www.AppleMontessorischools.com 201-963-4949
HOBOKEN
Unique Phonics Reading Program t Hands on Math Curriculum Foreign Language/Music t Fastrackids taught on Smart Board Full days 7am-7:00pm t 3 or 5 Half Days t 6 weeks – 6 years
Molta says. “A few years ago a helicopter and a plane collided over the Hudson, and we were there during the post- 9-11 blackout in the northeast corridor.� Various injuries and disasters affect EMTs in different ways. “For me it’s kids,� Molta says. “Personally I hate hearing when it’s kids who get injured or sick. They have a special place in my heart. For some, it’s the elderly—when my mom passed away from Alzheimer’s, it touched me. Everybody’s different.� But not everybody is cut out to be an EMT—that man or woman who courageously answers the call, not knowing what injury, illness, or accident he or she might have to face. A person can meet all the qualifications for being an EMT but still not be right for the job. “They might see someone really banged up or bleeding and freak out, and say, ‘This isn’t for me,’� Molta says. There is no dishonor in knowing that you can’t hack the work. The important thing, Molta says, is to acknowledge it and not jeopardize the lives of the crew or the victims. Molta says that good-hearted people are drawn to the work because it is unpaid, and they can give back to the community. “They have to be compassionate and willing to learn and adapt,� he says. “A situation can change from normal to really bad in a split second. They have to think fast and be quick on their feet.—07030
TIME TO ADVERTISE
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from page 35
on Thursdays, and Game Time on Fridays. For times and more information, call or visit website. Yoga Wednesdays, Symposia Bookstore, 510 Washington St., (201) 963-0909, symposia.us. 7 p.m. Weekly yoga practice taught by certified instructor. Preregistration required. $5.
NOVEMBER 2 Robert Rogers Puppet Theater, Hoboken Library, 500 Park Ave., (201) 420-2348, hoboken.bccls.org. 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Special presentation of Pennywhistle and the Magic Balloon for the whole family.
13 Senior Day at the Library, Hoboken Library, 500 Park
Ave., (201) 420-2348, hoboken.bccls.org. 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Event includes free lunch, a musical performance, giveaways, and more.
16 Hop Chocolate, various locations, hobokengrace.com. Starting at Choc O Pain, 157 First St. at 10:30 a.m. Join a tour of Hoboken’s finest hot chocolate with Hoboken Grace. Parent and Me Mask Making, Hoboken Library, 500 Park Ave., (201) 420-2348, hoboken.bccls.org. 2 p.m. 3- and 4-year-olds make African masks. Limited space.
DECEMBER Holiday Banding Concert, Date and Location TBA, (201) 4202207, hobokennj.org. Doors
open at 6:30 p.m., music starts at 7 p.m.
3 Holiday Tree Lighting, City Hall, 94 Washington St., (201) 4202207, hobokennj.org.
AFTERSCHOOL ENRICHMENT PRESCHOOL CLASSES SCHOOL BREAK CAMPS BIRTHDAY PARTIES FIELD TRIPS
Introducing . . . www.Bricks4KidzHoboken.com
7
201-747-7070 720 Monroe Street, Floor 5, Suite E505 Hoboken
The Gingerbread Boy, Hoboken Library, 500 Park Ave., (201) 420-2348, hoboken.bccls.org. 1 p.m. and 2:15 p.m. A wonderful retelling of the old folk tale presented by Jean Rosolino.
7&8 City Hall Holiday Craft Fair, City Hall, 94 Washington St., (201) 420-2207, hobokennj.org. see page 62
Where Future Scholars Have Been Nurtured Since 2002
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HOW WE LIVE 07030
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RELAXING WITH MY STEINWAY B
J B G jillbiggsgroup
80 PARK STREET
THINKING OF BUYING OR SELLING? Who you work with MATTERS!
BY PETER TRABERMAN PHOTOS BY VICTOR M. RODRIGUEZ
I
am a real-estate agent with Hudson Place Realty. I first saw my apartment when showing it to a client who was looking for an unusual space in Hoboken. While I wasn’t in the market to buy a place, my first thought when entering the apartment was that it was the perfect space for my needs. My client passed on the place. Shortly after that, the owners of my ground-floor rental put it up for sale, and I was suddenly in need of a new place. Luckily, the condo at 80 Park was still available, and I made my move. Many features spoke to me—the high ceilings, the south and east exposures that let in tons of light, and the wide-open loftlike space. Open and airy, the space contains a living room and a dining area, with
At the Jill Biggs group we love what we do and it shows! So far this year we have closed 50 million dollars in home sales. Isn’t it time to put us to work for you? mail jillkbiggs@gmail.com / web thejillbiggsgroup.com cell 973.495.6038 / office 201.798.3300 direct 201.533.3073 Jill Biggs, Coldwell Banker © 2013 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. Coldwell Banker® is a registered trademark licensed to Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Owned and Operated by NRT LLC.
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HOW WE LIVE 07030
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enough room to house the Steinway B grand piano, which has been in my family for more than 40 years. When I launch into a Brahms Intermezzo or a Chopin Nocturne I can feel the stress of the workaday world just melt away. Recently I expanded into electronic music. Directly off the living room is a small office area that I have converted into my studio, tucked away so that the wires and equipment don’t take over the living room. A story is attached to almost every rug, piece of furniture, painting, and tchotchke in the apartment. The Room & Board rug in my living room was a Craigslist find. Other pieces like the dining-room mirror and art deco brass floor lamp are antiques I found on the North Fork of Long Island or the Hudson Valley. My parents’ Saarinen womb chair—an original from the ’50s—is temporarily covered with a funky patchwork quilt. I have a collection of abstract landscape watercolors from several New Jersey artists. A copy of “Trumpet” by an artist on eBay who recreates Basquiat paintings by hand hangs in the music studio as a source of inspiration. I also cherish the sensuous Icart print that hung for many years above my Grandmother Henrietta’s
Custom Framing Since 1983 DOWNTOWN HOBOKEN
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1108 WASHINGTON ST., 201.942.9220 www.rightanglehoboken.com
07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
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desk and the watercolor of pears that was painted by my mother. I love entertaining in this apartment. An accomplished cook, I like trying out new recipes. For the traditional Jewish holidays I recreate my Grandmother Goldie’s recipes. The family agrees that I have come as close as possible to the real thing. I love serving dinner on my parents’ mid-century china pattern (Rosenthal Sunburst designed by Raymond Loewy). I also love to mix in pieces I inherited from both my grandmother and great Aunt Lorraine’s china. As a real-estate agent, I try to find just the right place for each of my clients, and in my case—I think I did a great job.
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HUDSON STREET BY KATE ROUNDS PHOTOS BY PETER TEHOMILIC
F
or Chris and Denise Geck, the words “dream house” are not a fantasy. “If I could live anywhere, this would be it,” Chris says. “This is my pick.” That said, Denise had to drag him off the couch where he was watching a football game to see it. “We weren’t even looking,” Chris says. “It was a Sunday, I was watching football. Denise dragged me off the couch and said, ‘You have to see this place.’ It was perfect.” Like a lot of college grads, Chris, who is a Cedar Grove native, landed in Hoboken soon after college. This was in the late ’90s. “I moved to Hoboken with a friend,” Chris says. “We were supposed to move to Manhattan—we were on the waiting list for a rentcontrolled apartment. But I liked it
so much in Hoboken I decided to stay. I was young. There was a lot to do. I could drive down to the shore. I didn’t feel trapped here—in the city you are confined to a neighborhood. But I could go into Manhattan. I felt comfortable in Hoboken. It was the best of both worlds.” Chris and Denise first met at the Shore, and they married three years ago. At that point, it made sense to buy a place. “I like old buildings, I loved big old haunted houses,” Chris says. Right away he saw the charm of the front steps and the entryway, which was upgraded with fresh paint, wood stain, and carpeting. The four flights of stairs have wide landings. This was important for their coon hound, Leila. “We had to see if it was doable for her,” Chris says. “We took her over there, and she was cool with it.” The most distinctive feature of the large living area is the
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CHRIS AND DENISE GECK
t I g n i t t Pu
u o Y r o F r e h t e g A l l To
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original wood horizontal beams. They had been hidden by a drop ceiling but now are beautifully displayed against the white of the cathedral ceiling. “The architect moved them for effect,” Chris says. Another distinctive feature is the natural soapstone sink and soapstone countertops. “A lot of people oil it,” Chris says. “We just left it alone.” The Gecks completely renovated the old tiled kitchen, opening it up to the main living area and to views of Elysian Park. Being married and a homeowner has only increased Chris’s love of Hoboken. “We don’t have to have any plan,” he says. “We go out and take long walks with the dog. We’re regulars at Leo’s. Hoboken is changing. A lot of people are having kids and sticking around.” —07030
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from page 51
9 – 24 Through a Child’s Eyes, Issyra Gallery, 313 First St., hobokenafricanartgallery.com. Art exhibit featuring work from children ages 3 to 18 years old.
JANUARY 4 Prokoflev’s Peter and the Wolf, Hoboken Library, 500 Park Ave., (201) 420-2348, hoboken.bccls.org. 2 p.m. Performed by the Phoenix Woodwind Quintet.
FEBRUARY 1 Hang Bang Ya Horse, Hoboken Library, 500 Park Ave., (201) 420-2348, hoboken.bccls.org. 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Special presentation by Chinese Theatre Works for the Lunar New Year.
MARCH Hoboken Irish Festival, Details TBA, City Hall, (201) 420-2207, hobokennj.org. Hoboken Grace Easter Egg Hunt, Details TBA, hobokengrace.com.
1 Amazing Eric Magic Show, Hoboken Library, 500 Park Ave., (201) 420-2348, hoboken.bccls.org. 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. A family friendly show to make everyone magically happy.
APRIL 5 Nature Show, Hoboken Library, 500 Park Ave., (201) 420-2348, hoboken.bccls.org. 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Naturalist Steve Woyce brings real live turtles and tortoises to teach children about habits and habitats.
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ADVERTISE HERE SPRING/SUMMER 2014 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
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EMERGING HOBOKEN PHOTO BY DEAN DeCHIARO
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BUSINESSES MAKE HOBOKEN WORK
How We
WORK INTERVIEWS BY KATE ROUNDS PHOTOS BY ALYSSA BREDIN
SHERI AND ANTHONY ALIMONDA
7 FINE ARTS 922 Bloomfield St. (732) 299-5488 7FineArts.com PaintwithSheri.com Sheri Alimonda is the Nike of visual artists. “Just do it” is the motivating force behind her life and work, and she firmly believes that everyone else can just do it, too—paint, that is. After doing time in Brooklyn and central Jersey, Alimonda settled in Hoboken, where’s she’s lived for the last 10 years. “Hoboken has a community feeling to it that I have never had anywhere else,” she says. “This town has so much life to it and is so willing to help and work with people.” For a number of years Alimonda was bringing up two daughters on her own, which meant she couldn’t devote her career entirely to art. “Then, I met somebody,” she says, “and we got married the weekend the hurricane blew through. The company I was working for blew away with it, and my husband said that this
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was a good opportunity for me to go back to doing what I want to do.” Specifically, painting portraits and murals. But she doesn’t just paint, she teaches—both commercially and as a volunteer in schools. “I am thrilled with the level my students have achieved,” she says. “Teaching is a different type of reward from commission work. I can share what I love with others.” She also lectures on art for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, Celebrity Cruise Ships, and Oriental Lines, and has painted live at the Museum of TV and Radio in Beverly Hills. Last summer, she filmed a segment for the TV show In Her Shoes, in which she inspires others to paint. “I don’t consider myself to have a lot of talent,” she says. “I’m a classically trained fine artist who uses the same techniques as the Old Masters, but I’m not Michelangelo.” She says people look at her work and say that they could never do that. “But I challenge them,” she says. “If they are not thrilled, I’ll give them a money-back guarantee. That’s how confident I am.”
HOW WE WORK 07030
NORBERTO BOGARD
CLARIOND GALLERY Monroe Center 720 Monroe St., C-402 (201) 253-0053 clariondgallery.com This unique gallery, which opened in June, specializes in Latin American art. It was founded by Jose Clariond. Though Clariond grew up in Manhattan he was surrounded by the works of Latin American artists—including Jose Maria Velasco, Rufino Tamayo, and Remedios Varo—thanks to his father, a successful steel entrepreneur in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Gallery Director Norberto Bogard was born in Mexico and has been living in Weehawken for six years. During a 10-year stint at Bloomberg News, he worked on a show that aired in Latin American countries, but before that he edited art and culture magazines in Mexico. “I was always linked to the art world and always wanted to be involved with artists,” Bogard says. “When Mr. Clariond offered me the director position in Hoboken, I accepted immediately. It’s the perfect job.”
The first year, the gallery will concentrate on paintings before branching out into sculpture. “We will focus on finding Latin American artists—from Latin America or the United States—with talent and originality,” Bogard says. “We will track all the trending styles in art.” The gallery has six shows planned for the 2013-2014 season, including an exhibit of the work of the Mexican artist Alejandrina Herrera. “He is an amazing talent,” Bogard says. “We are really proud to showcase his work.” The exhibit will run through Dec. 15. “When we scouted for places, including Brooklyn and Long Island City, we found that this beautiful, historic city was the right one,” Bogard says. “We are really proud to be part of the dynamic Hoboken art force.” In fact, he connected with Mexican friend and artist Santiago Cohen when he read about him in the spring/summer 2013 issue of 07030. “He’s coming to the opening of our next exhibition,” Bogard says. It’s all about connecting. “We are working with all the galleries in the city to bring more visitors to all of them,” Bogard says. “Hoboken may be the new Soho or Chelsea—a real art destination.”
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HOW WE WORK 07030
ZACHARY GREEN
PRINCETON STAINED GLASS COMPANY 931 Madison St. (201) 217-1771 princetonstainedglass.com We’re not talking Chartres Cathedral here. What we are talking about is modern, relevant custom-made stained glass for the twenty-first century. The artisan is Zachary Green, who’s been creating beautiful works in Hoboken for about 10 years. Folks either see his stuff online or find their way to his studio. “Ninety-nine percent is custom stained glass,” he says. “They’re looking for something specific, and I make it to order. I mostly make flat stained-glass windows, twodimension panels, picture frames, mirrors, glass etchings, and sidelights.” Sidelights are those vertical stained-glass panels that you often see on either side of the front door on a Hoboken brownstone. And one more thing: funerary boxes. That’s right, the container into which you put Uncle Anthony’s ashes. “I’ve also framed a lot of wedding invitations,” Green quickly adds.
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I was drawn to a Green piece which had been hanging in Jersey City’s Victory Hall during one of the Jersey City Studio Tours. It depicted one of my favorite Jersey City landmarks: the Pulaski Skyway. We featured this piece in our spring/summer 2009 Jersey City Magazine story on industrial artistry. “People seeking stained glass love their spaces,” Green says. “They’re in love with buildings and their homes. They really love them. Same with restaurants and offices spaces across the board.” Green loves Hoboken. “The town has served me well,” he says. “I love about 50 different restaurants. It’s a world unto itself. Everything you need is here.” Green has endured a few setbacks to get where he is today. He survived the blizzard of 2003 while living on a chilly boat in Jersey City. He had a studio at 111 First Street in Jersey City, which was torn down in 2007. And his Hoboken studio was just about destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. “I rebuilt here,” he says. “I feel so blessed to still be here. There is something about this year in this town that is now special. It was insanely impactful and devastating. I was knocked down but not out.”
HOW WE WORK 07030
JIM MASTRO
GUITAR BAR 160 First St. (201) 222-0915 guitarbar.com
GUITAR BAR JR. 203 11th St. (201) 222-6877 guitarbarjr.com No, you can’t order a pint at the Guitar Bar, but owner Jim Mastro says that lots of folks call up to ask if there is a happy hour. No happy hour but plenty of happy hours playing, viewing, and learning about vintage guitars. Mastro, who first moved to Hoboken in 1980 when he was 18, opened the store in 1996. A professional guitarist himself, he’s toured and played in New York and was a member of the Bongos Band, a Maxwell’s staple. His was one of the first bands to play at the legendary music bar. Like any market, the guitar market ebbs and flows with the
financial tides. The valuable ones? “Electric guitars from the ’50s and ’60s,” Mastro says. “In 2008, a 1959 Gibson Les Paul sold for $400,000.” Alas, that was not in the Guitar Bar’s inventory. Many of its instruments sell for $10,000 to $15,000. The value of an instrument, Mastro says, depends on “how original the piece is. Has it been doctored? It’s like a painting. If it’s been touched up, it affects its value.” Being owned by a celebrity does not necessarily increase the value. “Unless Jimi Hendrix played it,” Mastro says. And that has to be authenticated. But most folks are not on musical Mount Olympus. Mastro says they come in for amplifiers, drum, horn, and woodwind accessories, violins, mandolins, repairs—and lessons. “We’re very service oriented,” Mastro says. “Hoboken has a lot of young families now. We’re an old-fashioned store, and you have to be aware of what’s going on and keep up—there’s a nice demand for group lessons for little kids.” Guitar Bar Jr. is geared to smaller children. “You can tell by the way a kid holds a ukulele if he’s going to be a little rock and roller,” Mastro says. “The guitar is a great, cool instrument. It’s very portable, and you can accompany yourself and be a one-man band.”
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HOW WE WORK 07030
ELISA JIMENEZ
INFINITY CLINICAL LABORATORIES 217 Willow Ave. (201) 710-5155 myinfinitylabs.com Phlebotomists are the vampires of the medical field. Their job is to draw blood so that we all can be tested for such things as cholesterol levels and anemia. This service is a mainstay of Infinity Clinical Laboratories. The company has a main office in Newark with New Jersey satellite labs in Hoboken, Union City, North Bergen, Sewell, Somers Point, Galloway, Kearny, Clifton, and Teaneck, as well as five in Pennsylvania and four slated for Maryland. Phlebotomist Elisa Jimenez is a trained biochemist who has been in the business for 10 years. “We do clinical blood work for sugar, cholesterol, whole panel lipids, anemia, and kidney function,” she says. Apparently, a lot of folks in town need clinical tests. “We are very busy,” she says. “We do very well.” Jimenez likes the fact that her work is in Hoboken. Her teenage son was born here. “I like the city,” she says, noting the good medical facilities, including acupuncture, as well as
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the fun things. “The town has everything—food, bars, restaurants, the river walk, the marina, and beautiful views of the city.” Infinity is privately owned by Phillip Biondello and two partners. Biondello says they chose Hoboken because it had a lot of doctors but not many labs. “We are a complete fullservice lab,” he says. “We test blood, urine, sputum, and tissue. If we can’t do it in this lab we send it out to a reference lab, but we do 95 percent in-house.” But Infinity also works with labs that do specialty testing that deals with the stomach, heart, lungs, and genetics. “We have a lot of specialty and esoteric lab partners,” Biondello says. Infinity accepts all insurance plans, and patients who do not have insurance get a price break. “We have a very, very reasonable discounted fee schedule,” he says. Infinity, because it is small, prides itself on customer service. “We have human beings who answer the phones— no recordings—and electronic health and medical records,” Biondello says. “We can interface with any doctor.” Among the three of them, the Infinity partners have 60 years of lab experience.
VANISHING HOBOKEN PHOTO BY DEAN DeCHIARO
A LAST LOOK AT THE OLD MAXWELL’S SEND YOUR VANISHING HOBOKEN PHOTOS TO 07030@HUDSONREPORTER.COM. BE SURE TO WRITE “VANISHING” IN THE SUBJECT LINE.
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ANTHONY ROMANO
T
echnically, a watering hole is a place you go to drink— not to graze or snack or feast on grass-fed beef. And this charming, old-style bar is just that—a place to meet old or new friends for a drink at the bar. You won’t find a menu here or even a bag of chips. What you will find is a friendly, welcoming drinking establishment with a much-used pool table in the back. I went on a Monday around Happy Hour, and the bar was comfortably abuzz with a group of regulars who clearly knew and liked one another. And it’s a surprisingly diverse crowd. There was an advertising executive, an anesthesiologist, and finance folks. Terms like “trading investments” and “hedges” hovered above the buzz. The bar is owned by Anthony “Stick” Romano, a retired
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police captain and member of the Hudson County Board of Freeholders. The bar has been in his family for more than five decades. The late Louise and Jerry are his aunt and uncle. Oh, and about that food? Don’t worry. If you want to snack or have a full-fledged dinner, it’s perfectly acceptable to bring food into the bar. And local eateries will deliver. Romano says that Aunt Louise used to cook for her special customers. And Romano will provide food for charity events and other special occasions. The bar is adorned with classic bar paraphernalia, such as beer and sports logos, movie stills, American flags, 8x10 glossies of various celebs, and vintage cigarette ads. But Louise and Jerry’s has what other bars don’t: wonderful pictures of the old bar and members of the Romano family, including Aunt Louise and Uncle Jerry.
WATERING HOLES 07030
Louise & Jerry’s 329 Washington St. (201) 656-9698
PHOTOS BY TBISHPHOTO
Romano says he thinks of the bar as a kind of Cheers “with various backgrounds and ages. Anyone can come here and feel welcome.” But you can’t take the cop out of the cop. “We serve and protect,” Romano says. “You still have to take care of people. No disrespect of women—women don’t have to worry about being groped—no fights, no arguments over religion or politics.” The bar has a pool, dart, and softball league, live bands, and a very popular jukebox. Romano says Louise and Jerry’s has “bit off” business from the old Maxwell’s. Paco, who was the chef at Maxwell’s, is a Louise and Jerry’s regular. “I always hang out here,” he says. “It’s been home for me since 1991. It’s like family.” He’s drinking Grey Goose and Budweiser from a can. Romano says folks come into the bar after church and before weddings. “On Christmas Eve, we can’t even close,” he says. The bar has a big TV and a list of “Freaky Beers.” Summing up his beloved family establishment, Romano says, “It’s an iconic institution.”—Kate Rounds 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
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PHOTOS BY TERRI SAULINO BISH
C
ourt Street has made a name for itself as the go-to place for elegant cuisine. This was my first visit, and I hope it will be the first of many. But I won’t always be eating in the white-tablecloth dining room: The bar is big and beautiful, and a lot of folks on this early Wednesday
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evening were eating there, enjoying an after-work drink, chatting with friends, or watching TV. There were four flatscreens, one with broadcast news, one with cable news, one with the Yankees and—my favorite—one with the Williams sisters trouncing their opponents at the U.S. Open.
EATERIES 07030
If you go to the bar, take a minute to look at the pictures on the walls. There are a lot of black-and-white photos of celebs when they were young—really young. Could that be Bill Clinton when he was about 10? One of the great things that has happened to urban dining is that no matter how pleasant the surroundings or how extraordinary the food, the ambience and attire are often casual. A young man stood in the doorway, wearing a T-shirt and shorts. He turned to his girlfriend, who was wearing a dress, and said, “I’m not dressed right for this place.” Not true. Just about anything goes. The staff was in shorts, one patron was wearing a red T-shirt with “Coke” emblazoned on
the front, and a guy at the bar was wearing a seersucker suit. We were seated in the dining room with windows that look out on Court Street, arguably the most charming street in town—a cobblestoned alley with old brownstones, the whole scene seemingly untouched by the twenty-first century. It’s a perfect place to take a walk after dinner. Waiting for us at the table was a small bread basket with a fresh, sliced baguette, butter, and an exquisite olive paste. Our server, Ariel, turned out to be a fantastic artist, in addition to an efficient waiter. Everything at Court Street looks like a work of art and tastes superb, but she helped us select things that were especially colorful. 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
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EATERIES 07030
Take the pomegranate Cosmo, a cocktail made with ocean organic vodka, pomegranate juice, a splash of Cointreau, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice. It was a subtle pink with a slice of lime gripping the edge of the martini glass. It was a dichotomous combination of pretty but robust. We started with a tri-color salad of endive, arugula, and radicchio with strawberries, figs, mandarin oranges, goat cheese, and raspberry dressing. What’s great about this is the sweet/tart combination of the fruit and the endive. Other appetizers included oyster Rockefeller, clams casino, and stuffed mushroom with crabmeat; sliced Portobello sautéed with shrimp, red wine, and shallots, topped with
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melted mozzarella; fresh peach and avocado salad; and beef carpaccio. For the entrée, I chose the filet of halibut from a really extensive list of specials. It was sautéed with garlic, tomatoes, green olives, capers, and white wine. I grew up on the Massachusetts coast, and halibut has always been a favorite. This was light and fresh beyond belief. It had no fishy tang, and the sauce enhanced the flavor rather than hiding it. It came with zucchini and pureed carrots, and I chose mashed potatoes, though you could also order almost any other style of potatoes or wild rice.
Court Street 61 Sixth St. (201) 795-4515 courtstreet.com
EATERIES 07030
Other specials included soft shell crabs, flat iron steak, filet of pork, braised lamb shank, sautéed quail, and grilled swordfish. Terri ordered from the regular menu. She chose sea scallops broiled with lemon. It came with the same vegetable combo as mine, and she ordered the wild rice, which came molded like an upside-down cup. She is a sea-scallop aficionado and pronounced them exquisite. Ariel jumped right in when it came to dessert, selecting the profiterole but suggesting the addition of strawberries and blueberries to enhance not just the taste, but the color! For those who are not conversant in profiteroles, they are an absolutely scrumptious combination of cream puffs
with vanilla ice cream, hot fudge sauce, and whipped cream. Wednesday just happened to be Lobsterfest night. All around us were bright red crustaceans, steaming with the briny scent of the sea. The prices at Court Street are surprisingly reasonable. That two-pound lobster will take you for about $30, but everything else is about $20 and under. Visit Court Street’s website for other special events, such as wine-tastings and Prime Rib Night. We visited Court Street on the most beautiful late-summer day you can imagine—bright sun, blue skies, perfect for tennis and baseball. But I can also imagine Court Street on a cold winter evening—cozy and inviting with a welcoming staff and food that warms and satisfies.—Kate Rounds 07030 HOBOKEN — FALL & WINTER 2013/14 •
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104 14th Street (201) 653-0610 bajamexicancuisine.com Baja offers a new experience in char-broiled Tex-Mex specialties. With mojitos and margaritas fin abundance and Happy Hour every day, it’s a fun place with a happening bar.
BIGGIE’S
36-42 Newark St. (201) 710-5520 BiggiesClamBar.Com At the former site of the legendary Clam Broth House, just seconds away from the PATH train, Biggie’s brings its own history and tradition to its new downtown locale.It has the
same menu that has been enjoyed in our Carlstadt location, 22 beers on tap and 20 televisions. Biggie’s is ready to serve a new set of Hobokenites with a fun, casual, and quality dining experience.
www.bajamexicancuisine.com
Offering a new experience in Charbroiled Tex-Mex specialties... And with the best Mojitos and Margaritas around and Happy Hour every day, it’s truly a fun place with a happening bar! Baja 104 Fourteenth Street, Hoboken 201-653-0610
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CARPE DIEM
1405 Grand St. (201) 792-0050 carpediemhoboken.com Carpe Diem offers a relaxed and inviting setting to enjoy a choice meal, refreshing brew, cheer on your favorite team, or just catch up with friends. Cozy on up to the fireplace in our rustic dining
DISH 07030 room or enjoy al fresco dining on our sidewalk patio. For special occasions, we have an upstairs private party room. Celtic-inspired fare, coupled with our wide selection of craft beers and wines makes for a no-ordinary-pub experience. You may come in as a stranger but you will leave as a friend.
EDWARD’S STEAK HOUSE
239 Marin Blvd. Jersey City (201) 761-0000 edwardssteakhouse.com Edward’s Steak House offers steak, seafood, and other sumptuous fare with an elegant bistro flare. Tucked into a historic townhouse in downtown Jersey City, Edward’s is comfortably upscale. The menu includes all the classic steaks and chops—aged prime sirloin, porterhouse, filet mignon, and more. You’ll enjoy the atmosphere whether you’re celebrating a special occasion or stopping by for a steak sandwich at the bar.
GANACHE
1500 Hudson St. (201) 792-2003 cafeganache.com At Ganache you’ll find a wide range of coffees— from a hot, fresh American brew to every style and flavor of espresso. Relax with your coffee and a breakfast pastry or bagel, and then come back for lunch and select from a healthy menu of sandwiches. We also have desserts, gelato, and gift baskets. Best of all, we offer free WiFi if you want to do some work while enjoying a meal or snack at Ganache.
HAVANA CAFÉ AND LOUNGE 32 Newark St. (201) 216-1766 Enjoy authentic Cuban food for lunch, dinner, and brunch Saturdays Sundays. All food is made to order.
HEALTHY FOR LIFE GRILL
150- 14th Street (201) 683-8554 healthyforlifegrill.com Healthy For Life brings healthy food, reasonable prices and superior service together to provide the total solution for the health-conscious consumer without sacrificing great taste and freshness. The food is selected and prepared to include a balance of vitamins, minerals, fiber, fats, and carbohydrates. A variety of drinks, protein shakes, and juice blends are offered.
KOMEGASHI
103 Montgomery Street Jersey City (201) 433-4567 komegashi.com Located in Jersey City’s financial district, Komegashi offers fresh, well-presented sushi along with traditional Japanese favorites and an extensive selection of fresh shellfish. Locals and visitors from around the world find
this a perfect spot to dine in casual elegance. Open seven days.
KOMEGASHI TOO
99 Pavonia Ave. Newport Financial Center Jersey City (201) 533-8888 komegashi.com Komegashi too offers an authentic Japanese dining experience with a spectacular view of the New York Skyline. The menu includes perfectly prepared sushi and sashimi, kaiseki, teriyaki, and tempura. Located on the river at Newport Financial Center, Komegashi too is open seven days.
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LEO’S GRANDEVOUS
200 Grand St. (201) 659-9467 leosgrandevous.com Since 1939, this Hoboken landmark has been tantalizing guests with old school Italian standards and contemporary specials. A variety of pasta, fresh fish, veal, and chicken dishes keeps the emphasis on great taste and homey charm. You haven’t been to Hoboken until you have eaten at Leo’s!!
MATT & MEERA
618 Washington St. (201) 683-9431 mattandmeera.com East meets Hoboken at Matt & Meera, where you’ll find popular cuisine with an Indian flair. BYOBs are welcome. At Matt & Meera, you can grab a quick lunch in the middle of a busy day, get together with friends and unwind over a selection of our small plates, or reconnect with family while enjoying a meal from our Tandoori grill. On the weekend enjoy a leisurely brunch.
THE RESTAURANTS AT NEWPORT
J.C. Waterfront District newportnj.com Overlooking the Hudson River and the Manhattan skyline is the most diverse dining destination on the New Jersey Gold Coast—The Restaurants at Newport. Located among the luxury apartments and office towers in the Newport section, The Restaurants at Newport include 12 fine establishments: Komegashi too, Dorrian’s, Raaz, Cosi, Confucius, Bertucci’s, Babo, Fire and Oak, Boca Grande Cantina, Michael Anthony’s, Skylark on the Hudson, and Loradella’s.
HOBOKEN
ADVERTISE WITH US NEXT ISSUE: SPRING 2014
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SATIS BISTRO
212 Washington Street (201) 435.5151 satisbistro.com Tucked away in the Paulus Hook neighborhood, Satis is Jersey’s City’s best-kept dining secret. Satis is a foodie haven with a fantastic wine bar that serves dinner daily and brunch on weekends. The cuisine is modern European with an emphasis on French, Italian, and Spanish specialties. Menu changes are made seasonally, and specials are run weekly. Reservations are recommended.
SULLIVAN’S
600 Washington Street (201) 420-9849 Sullivan’s Bar & Grill has a neighborhood-bar vibe and excellent food. These qualities have made it a Hoboken staple. Stop by and enjoy a pint.
WILLIE MCBRIDE’S
616 Grand Street (201) 610-1522 williemcbrides.com The front bar is very large with open fireplaces, stone floors, and memorabilia imported from Ireland. A balcony overlooks the front bar. With a stage and sound system, the establishment hosts bands from all over the tri-state area that perform Friday and Saturday nights. 28 HD large screens and numerous TVs play sporting events. There are also a pool table and dart boards. A full menu with Irish and American specialties at reasonable prices is offered. A private-party room is available for gatherings for up to 350, with private bar. Free shuttle service on Friday and Saturday. HOBOKEN
NEXT ISSUE:
SPRING 2014
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BAR & GRILL
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We’ve moved!
We recently moved to a new location to better serve you. Come visit us at our new location. 5 Marine View Plaza Suite #402 Hoboken, NJ 07030 201-714-5640
Information is accurate as of date of printing and is subject to change without notice. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage is a division of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. Š 2013 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. NMLSR ID 399801. AS997665 Expires 12/2013