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CONTENTS JCM
COVER 22 ON THE MOVE Dancing with the Stars Cover Image by Megan Maloy
FEATURES 12 FINDING MR. RIGHT Bachelor Blues
16 PROJECT RUNWAY Designer makes Waves
24 CARIBBEAN MUNCHIES Chef Claude Lewis
26 HOMETOWN HOPS 902 Brewing Company
12
28 BLOCKBUSTER BACKDROPS On Location in JC
DEPARTMENTS 6 OUR STAFF 8 EDITOR’S LETTER 10 CONTRIBUTORS 20 POINT AND SHOOT It’s a Grand Old Flag
30 HOW WE LIVE Johnston Avenue
32 DOWN MEMORY LANE Automat Kitchen
32
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Whoever your heart beats for, our hearts beat for you. A full range of top quality cardiac care in Hudson County. Jersey City Medical Center has a passion for heart health. As Hudson County’s only full-service heart hospital, our premier cardiovascular physicians use innovative technologies to diagnose and treat the entire range of cardiovascular diseases. In partnership with Rutgers Health, our medical teams provide the highest quality critical and surgical cardiac care, and we offer access to sophisticated cardiac research and clinical trials. As part of our dedication to every heart in our community, we’ll continue healing, enhancing and investing in Hudson County, so we can all live better, happier and healthier. Learn more at rwjbh.org/HudsonCounty
We’ve taken every precaution to keep you safe. So if you’ve put off any medical care due to COVID-19, please don’t delay it any longer.
EDITOR’S LETTER 07030
When the going gets tough, the tough go on TV. Make no mistake, we live in a star-studded city. Where to begin? We could start with Chef Claude Lewis, a Food Network Chop winner, who opened his own restaurant, Freetown Road Project, in Journal Square. Or how about Jersey City lawyer Kristin Hopkins who made it onto the Bachelorette to vie for the first Black Bachelor? Or Fashion designer Tyler Neasloney who really made waves when he appeared on Project Runway? In this issue, you’ll find out what happened. Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you know that Jersey’s own Queen Latifah is starring in the Equalizer, much of which was shot here in town. We’ll show you where. But not everything’s happening onscreen. If you’re not of a certain age, you might not know what an automat is, but Jersey City now has one at Newport Tower. Check out this high-tech reincarnation of a 1940s favorite. That beautiful dancer on the cover is a member of Nimbus Dance, which has a splendid new space. Whether it’s beer, ballet, or hatchet-throwing in the Heights, we’ve got a lot to share with you offscreen and onsite. Spring has sprung.
8 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
Photo by Marie Papp
Star Studded City
MARILYN BAER
VICTOR M. RODRIGUEZ
MAXIM RYAZANSKY
MARILYN BAER
grew up in Hoboken and currently lives in Jersey City. She studied journalism at Ohio Wesleyan University and is now a staff writer for the Hoboken Reporter.
VICTOR M. RODRIGUEZ
has studied publication design, photography, and graphic arts. “I’ve been fascinated by photography for almost 20 years,” he says.
MAX RYAZANSKY
is a photographer whose work has been exhibited in galleries and published worldwide. A recent transplant to Bayonne, he spends his spare time trying to figure out the best pizza place in town.
TARA RYAZANSKY
J C M CONTRIBUTORS
is a writer who moved from Brooklyn to Bayonne. She works as a blogger for Nameberry.com and spends her spare time fixing up her new (to her) 100-year-old home.
10 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
TARA RYAZANSKY
TERRI SAULINO BISH
is the art director for The Hudson Reporter’s award-winning magazines and newspapers. Her work includes capturing many of the iconic photos featured in print and online across Hudson County.
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Kristin Hopkins
Mr. Right How a Jersey City lawyer loved and lost on “The Bachelor”
F
inding love in the time of COVID-19 can be tough. “I tried the apps at the beginning of quarantine,” says Kristin Hopkins. “They’re really not my vibe at all.” But she is open to being set up. Hopkins’s mom was watching “Good Morning America” when they announced that Matt James was chosen to be the first Black leading man on the reality TV show, “The Bachelor” after 25 seasons. The decision came after fans petitioned ABC to feature a Black leading man. Hopkins got a call from her mom.
“She was like, ‘Oh Kristin, he’s fine, he’s cute, you should definitely look into it.’” Hopkins Googled James, and she liked what she saw. “He’s 6-foot-5. He’s employed. He’s attractive. All of the boxes are being checked off here,” Hopkins says. Plus Mom already approved. “I was like, ‘Let’s see what happens’.” A friend of hers, who’s a longtime fan of the show, submitted Hopkins’s application, and the casting process began. That’s when Hopkins, who had never seen the show, decided to watch a couple of episodes.
12 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
And the Rest is History She realized that she isn’t the typical contestant. It’s not uncommon for contestants to have job descriptions like Social Media Participant or Aspiring Dolphin Trainer, but Hopkins is an attorney for a Manhattan firm. “That was something that I thought about during the casting process,” she says. “I’m an attorney. Will people think that I’m not professional because I went on this show? But then I started to realize that I’m going on the show to find love, and if they see that as unprofessional then I don’t want to work for that person. I just tried to be who I am, and I don’t think that I’m
an unprofessional person. I don’t think anything that I did was unprofessional, and I don’t think the show is that way. As long as you carry yourself well then you’ll be okay.” Hopkins joined the most diverse cast of women that the show has ever featured.
Reflective of America “I would not have applied if it weren’t a Black man who was the bachelor,” Hopkins says. “That’s just my preference for men. I was very excited about this opportunity because it’s the first time that they have a Black bachelor. Obviously, that comes with a more diverse cast than ‘The Bachelor’ normally has. I was very excited to be able
to share a more diverse love onscreen. That’s not something that you normally see. I hope that ‘The Bachelor’ continues to cast diverse contestants. I think that America’s changing. When I go out to a bar, and I’m trying to see if I’ll meet a guy there’s tons of people in the bar to choose from, not just Black, not just white, there’s everyone. I think that a dating pool should be reflective of America.” Hopkins’s love story with Matt James lasted only three episodes.
Trouble in Paradise All the love stories this season are overshadowed by online photos that surfaced after filming. One of Hopkins’s fellow contestants, Rachael Kirkconnell, who is white, was called out for social media “likes” that included images of the Confederate flag, and photos of her donning a hoop skirt at an Old South party. Hopkins was called out online for her past behavior, but for much better reasons.
A college classmate tweeted that Hopkins had helped her when a man latched on to her at a party and tried to follow her home. Hopkins recalls the experience: “My college had an alumni event. I don’t think the guy who was trying to hit on my friend even went to my school. I think he saw a ton of people hanging around and just came over and started trying to talk to us. It was weird vibes the entire
time. I was like, ‘Girl you can stop talking to him. There’s no need to keep talking to this man.’ As we were about to leave, he started following us to the subway. My friend lived in Brooklyn. and I was on the Lower East Side, so I was like, ‘You know what, I’m just going to ride with you to your apartment.’” Hopkins had been assaulted on the subway in the past when a person kicked her, and no one intervened.
Matt James Key Art | ABC
“Being on the train can really be scary,” she says.
The Final Curtain As the season nears its finale, it’s clear that Kirkconnell has caught James’s attention. The show’s host and producer Chris Harrison spoke out on Kirkconnell’s behalf in an interview with Rachel Lindsay, the first Black bachelorette who found love on the show in 2017. Lindsay is now a TV host on “Extra.” Harrison came under fire for the way he spoke to Lindsay. “Who is Rachel Lindsay, and who is Chris Harrison, and who is whatever woke police person out there, who are you?” Harrison asked during the “Extra” interview where he said that Kirkconnell deserved “grace” for her actions instead of demands for an explanation. “It was hard to hear some of the things that were expressed by Chris Harrison,” Hopkins says. “It was hard for me to watch, especially as a
ABC |Craig Sjodin
Top row: Chelsea, Sarah, Alicia, MJ, Sydney, Illeana, Emani, Magi, Serena C., Kaili, Mari, Rachael, Casandra, Lauren, Khaylah, Corrinne Bottom row: Alana, Abigail, Carolyn, Marylynn, Kimberly, Kristin, Kit, Bri, Matt James, Jessenia, Serena P., Anna, Kati Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021 • 13
Kristin Hopkins ABC |Craig Sjodin
the love story she imagined when she signed up. “It was not what I was expecting for sure, but I think that what has happened has highlighted a bunch of systemic issues within the franchise that needed to be fixed. Just putting contestants of color in the cast is not enough. You need to make those changes within the franchise itself to truly have a fair process,” which means hiring more diverse editors and producers. Hopkins says she is hesitant to continue with the franchise, which typically casts former contestants in future shows. “I would like to see some changes before considering ‘Bachelor in Paradise.’ I wouldn’t want to show my love story where it won’t be handled with care.”
Hometown Barhopping
woman, and a Black woman at that. I have had that happen before where a white male was bulldozing over everything that I said and wouldn’t let me get a word in and wasn’t understanding my perspective. It was very upsetting to see how adamantly he was defending Rachael’s behavior.”
Backlash After the interview received backlash Harrison apologized via Instagram for “speaking in a manner that perpetuates racism” and for the tone he used with Lindsay. Days later, Harrison revealed that he would step away from his “The Bachelor” hosting duties. It was announced
that football player and writer of “Uncomfortable Conversations with A Black Man,” Emmanuel Acho will be Harrison’s temporary replacement. Hopkins and some of her castmates released this anonymously authored statement on social media: “We are the women of ‘Bachelor Season 25.’ Twenty-five women who identify as BIPOC were cast on this historic season that was meant to represent change. “We are deeply disappointed and want to make it clear that we denounce any defense of racism. Any defense of racist behavior denies the lived and continued experiences of BIPOC individuals. These experiences are not to be
14 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
exploited or tokenized. “Rachel Lindsay continues to advocate with ‘grace’ for individuals who identify as BIPOC within this franchise. Just because she is speaking the loudest, doesn’t mean she is alone. We stand with her, we hear her, and we advocate for change alongside her.”
We are Family “It was really amazing to see how everyone came together to post that statement,” Hopkins says. “I certainly felt like maybe I’m the only one that’s offended by this interview, but no, mostly everyone in our cast was. To see everyone come together and post the statement, it made me feel like I was in a family.” For Hopkins, it wasn’t
“Yes, I am still single,” she says, and she’s ready to mingle in Jersey City. When she was first introduced on the show, she spoke about her love of rooftop bars. Which spot was she talking about? “There’s RoofTop at Exchange Place,” she says. “I like going there. There are so many people here. You can go to bars and the waterfront. The Ashford, Porta, all of those places I hit up when it’s warm. I enjoy that there is that culture over on that street.” That street is the Newark Avenue pedestrian plaza. “Before COVID it was always popping,” she says. “Me and my friends would go down there and just hang out and pop from bar to bar to bar. It was just a really great place to meet and connect with people and hang out after work. I will definitely be back when COVID is over.”—JCM
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Gowns, Galas,
and Gossip A Jersey City fashion designer makes waves on the Runway By Tara Ryazansky Photos courtesy of Project Runway and Tyler Neasloney
A
fashion designer stands on the runway next to a dress that he’s created, a fitted shift with a ruffle at the front, made of upcycled materials from Goodwill. Judges sit before him critiquing the look: a famous fashion designer, a magazine editor, and a supermodel who says that she would never wear the dress. “Not even to dinner with the Kushners’?” the fashion designer asks. He’s Jersey City’s own Tyler Neasloney. It’s a record-scratch moment. The supermodel, Karlie Kloss, is married to Josh Kushner, Jared’s brother. Tyler’s comment, and Kloss’s meme-worthy facial expression, went viral when the show aired on Project Runway in 2020. “I never thought that would make the final edit,” says Tyler, who works on his clothing line from his downtown Jersey City live/ work space where he lives with partner, Jacob Hudnut, municipal prosecutor who’s running for city council. “Karlie is an executive producer, so she had the final say,” Tyler says. The moment aired. Tyler was voted off the show that day. Kloss, who had rarely addressed her marriage publicly, was pressured to do just that.
In the Public Eye Tyler was dealing with a lot of internet attention of his own. “I got so many comments and DMs from people all over the world saying how mean the comment was, or I was just pissed she didn’t like my outfit,” Tyler says. “But it definitely wasn’t, ‘Oh you said something mean about my outfit, well, I’m going to say something mean to you.’ It was just a shoot from the hip kind of fact.”
16 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
Tyler Neasloney
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021 • 17
Whatever it was made for good reality TV. It made Kloss into a meme. It opened a conversation about where she stood politically. “They allowed her to go on Watch What Happens Live and explain herself, so I think leaving that comment in was a longgame decision for the PR strategy,” Tyler says. “She’s gotten flack for her association with that family, and down the road, it would be a chance for her to go on another platform and explain herself. She’s been very vocal this past year about voting for Biden and campaigning for Biden. It certainly teed her up to address the issue. Whether people were convinced is another question I will not weigh in on.”
Then and Now On the show, Kloss said, “I’m sure I’m not the only person in this country who does not necessarily agree with their family on politics.” Tyler counters, “But it’s not just your silly uncle with the offbeat opinions who comes around every Thanksgiving. These are influential people she’s related to by marriage, and as we’ve seen over the past month, their actions and words can have very serious consequences.” But that was then. “It’s weird looking back at that viral moment,” Tyler says. “Post-inauguration, I’ll see the word Kushner, and I think there are better days ahead and more productive avenues for me.” One is the Ali Forney Center, where Tyler works. “We’re the nation’s largest provider of housing and services for homeless LGBTQ youth, ages 16-24,” he says. “I lead our special events, including fundraising galas. It’s a small team, and I wear many hats, but it’s immensely rewarding.”
Meme to Money He’s used his sudden fame to sell T-shirts printed with Not even to dinner with the Kushners? He gives half the proceeds to AFC. “It was awesome to take the energy around that viral moment and direct it to something that impacted many homeless young people in New York City,” he says. Tyler had another moment during his stint on Project Runway that perhaps should have gotten more attention than his Kushner moment. He was the first designer on the show to work with a nonbinary model, DD Smith. On meeting Smith, Tyler asked, “What are your pronouns?” They are such an
awesome model. They have been the breakout star of all models all season.” “Working at AFC, that’s one of the first things we ask when meeting a new client or staff member,” Tyler says. “A lot of people are very timid to do that for fear of offending someone. The reality is that many trans or gender nonconforming folks appreciate the respect you show by asking their pronouns.
Threads Tyler identifies as he/him but explores gender through drag, which inspired him to hone the sewing skills he learned watching his mom quilt and make clothes in Wyoming where he grew up. He started making Halloween costumes, then custom costumes for other performers. That grew into a clothing line. “My drag persona is very refined,” Tyler says. “Her name is Kimberly Onassis, so she’s a first lady or something like that.” Through drag he is his own fashion muse. “My aesthetic is very polished. I don’t excel in streetwear. It’s gowns, appropriate for galas or red carpets.” Kimberly Onassis would look great in the famous Runway outfit. “I spent a lot of time thinking about that outfit and whether it was bad or good,” Tyler says. “I still don’t think it was that bad,” adding that on Project Runway, “I got to geek out with people about fabric choices and all the boring stuff that they don’t show in the competition. That was the most fun, to have people to talk to about what I love most.”
Home Sewn “Jersey City has such an amazing network of creative people,” Tyler says. “There’s room to explore your design philosophy in a way that’s a bit removed from the craziness of the New York scene.” His advice to young designers being critiqued? “Consider the source because you will get criticism from people who have dedicated their lives to the art or fashion world,” he says. “But as we’ve learned in the age of social media, you also get criticism from the troll down the street.” He’s not shy about paraphrasing Shakespeare: “Stay true to yourself even if the whole world is telling you how awful or awesome whatever you made is. What matters is that it’s a reflection of you and your creativity and your process.”—JCM
18 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
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It’s a 20 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
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By Megan Maloy
A NEW HOME for Nimbus A space for
cultural exchange By Marilyn Baer
N
imbus Dance started as a small group of dancers in cramped church basements in 2005. Now one of the city’s largest art nonprofit organizations, it has officially moved into a brand-new state-of-theart facility in Jersey City’s Power-house Arts District. The new facility houses Nimbus’s professional dance company, school of dance, performing arts presentations, visual arts programs, and office headquarters. The new 15,000-squarefoot Nimbus Arts Center at the Lively is a dream come true for founder and Artistic
Director Samuel Potts. “It has been an odyssey,” he said. “From being scrappy and making the best out of the options we had available to this; it is truly a transformational moment for Nimbus and the arts in Jersey City.”
Basement to Big Time Potts founded Nimbus as a small group of dancers, producing low-budget performances in libraries and church basements. During its journey, the multifaceted nonprofit has become one of the largest contemporary dance organizations in New Jersey, offering an award-winning
22 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
school of dance with arts education programs for thousands of kids each year. The new facility at 329 Warren Street wears its heart on its façade, where artist Nate Frizzell has created a three-story mural of two dancers draped in red fabric surrounded by butterflies. Inside, rotating exhibits feature local artists and photographers like Megan Maloy and Joe Velez. An exhibit at Firmament Gallery and Boutique is bathed in natural light through 30-foot floor-toceiling windows.
Catalyst for Change Buy some craft items from local makers on the boutique side of things or see a show in the new 150-seat black
box theater. World class dancers have graced the stage with virtual performances like “To Ascend: The Power of the Female Dancer” choreographed by Potts and performed by Principal Ballerina Sarah Lane of the American Ballet Theater alongside women from Nimbus Dance. Through its interwoven platforms of professional company, school, arts, and community outreach, Nimbus envisions dance and the arts as channels for equity, community development, and transformative cultural exchange. “With the Nimbus Arts Center we will be able to put the spotlight, not just on Nimbus’s own work but Jersey City artists by providing a space for artists to work and create in collaboration
By Megan Maloy
By Joe Velez
with our community. “It’s going to impact our youth, it’s going to impact our sense of unity, and it’s going to give a voice to people who haven’t had the opportunity to showcase their perspective and their artistic work.” Now you can add live performances to your postCOVID dreams.—JCM
By Megan Maloy
By Megan Maloy
A hometown chef feeds the soul By Marilyn Baer Photos courtesy of Freetown Road Project
Chef Claude Lewis
W
hen Jersey City native Chef Claude Lewis went off to college, he had dreams of working in animation, studying special effects and motion graphics. But the kitchens he worked in all his life never stopped beckoning. “Food was so familiar to me from jobs I held in school as a dishwasher and a helper to being at home in the kitchen,” Lewis said. “Now, fast forward, and I’m opening a restaurant in the town I grew up in.” If you’re a fan of cooking competition shows like me, the name Claude Lewis might sound familiar. In 2019, Lewis, then the Executive Chef at Porta, competed and won Food Networks Chopped, turning gefilte fish and margarita cotton candy into a West Indian fish stew. Winning the show gave Lewis a national stage to showcase the food he loved and the momentum to finally open a place of his own.
An Eatery of his Own Freetown Road Project opened in Journal Square at 640 Newark Avenue in December 2019 and pays homage to Lewis’s West Indian heritage.
Caribbean Munchies Family Ties The cozy spot features exposed brick walls, potted palm trees, and wooden family style tables with mismatched chairs surrounded by cushioned booths that evoke the welcoming sense of home and family it was inspired by. The name is rooted in family coming from a combination of the Antigua towns where Lewis’s parents are from. Freetown Road Village, where his father is from, and Old Road Village, where his mother is from. The menu is a modern take on West Indian food or what Lewis calls “Caribbean munchies” or “Caribbean soul food” reminiscent of the food he grew up eating and likes to eat.
24 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
“While I was young, growing up in Jersey City my parents worked multiple jobs to allow my brothers and sisters and I to go to catholic school instead of public school,” Lewis said. “My father worked three jobs in kitchens and always brought food home, and my mother is a really great home cook who went to school in Antigua to cook as well. All my inspiration for my food comes from them.” Lewis serves up everything from beef patties, oxtail, and curry chicken, to craveable roti and triga you’ll end up falling in love with. “When you open a restaurant, the food is supposed to mean something to you,” said Lewis. “That’s when it tastes the best.”
there are all of these people in need. When everyone is struggling, people who didn’t have before are in even worse conditions now. I feel blessed to be able to help.” Lewis works with local organizations and churches to help feed those in need and operated as apart time soup kitchen early on in the pandemic. He now works with his sister Claudia Wheeler of The Salt Foundation to help community members in need. The foundation works with grocery stores and food suppliers to collect food that would go to waste and then distribute it to those who are food insecure. “We try to do everything that we can,” Lewis said. “That little extra help can go a long way. We all survive and grow as a society together.” Freetown Road Project offers delicious dine in, pickup, and delivery options Tuesday through Sunday. For more information go to http://www. freetownroadprojectnj.com/home.–JCM
But realizing the dream of opening his own place hasn’t been without its hurdles as the pandemic spread across the area impacting all areas of business and life as we know it for over a year. For Lewis and his team at Freetown Road Project that hasn’t meant just adhering to COVID-19 protocols and state guidelines but emphasizing the need to help others in the community who go without food.
Giving Back “The pandemic, in my opinion, has made a lot of people realize a lot of different things that people kind of hazed over before in their daily routine,” Lewis said. “It’s allowed us to understand and see
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021 • 25
brewing buddies By Marilyn Baer Photos courtesy of 902 Brewing Company
L
ooking at it you would never guess that the industrial tap room and brewery of 902 Brewing Company began with a three-gallon home brewing kit and chance meeting down the shore. Friends and founders of the Jersey City based brewery, Colby Janisch and Don Vogt met in 2007 when they were roommates at a Belmar beach house during a summer getaway. Several years later they decided to go into business together. “My parents got me a home brew kit for Christmas right after college, Janisch said. “I already drank beer, and I had a bunch of fun making it. The home brew hobby grew into a business. It’s been wild.” After winning several home brewing competitions, the duo decided to make a real go of it, with Janisch focusing on production and CPA Vogt handling the financial and accounting side of things, not to mention helping with “quality control, the tasting aspect.” Vogt recalled, “He needed help with a couple of things, and I jokingly said ‘people pay me a lot of money for this,’ and he asked if I wanted to get involved. It’s been almost 10 years now that we’ve been in business together, and we are still friends. It’s great fun to drink together and work together. Our kids are even the same age.”
Beer Building 902 Brewing Company, named after the Washington Street apartment building where Janisch first started home brewing, spent several years searching for a permanent home, working as a “gypsy brewer,” brewing beer in someone else’s venue using their equipment. “A ton of places fell through,” Janisch said. “It’s a very time heavy process. You have to get approvals from the state and local approvals.” After looking in Hoboken, Union City, and Edgewater, Vogt and Janisch found a property in Jersey City, Vogt’s hometown.
The warehouse at 101 Pacific Avenue needed work to say the least. “When we first looked at it, the roof was caved in, and it was boarded up,” Janisch said. “It was just a dilapidated warehouse and wasn’t safe to go inside really.” But that didn’t stop the two from signing a lease in 2018. The 6,000-square-foot space has now been completely renovated. The space pays homage to the surrounding neighborhood, keeping a rustic industrial feel with exposed cinderblocks and beams.
Dads on Duty The taproom is filled with picnic tables and a 25-foot bar made by Janisch’s dad and uncle. Vogt’s father helped too, painting the boards behind the bar. It is truly a family affair with some of Vogt’s cousins working the taproom and Janisch’s brother performing live music on Saturday nights. 902 Brewing Company offers a breath of fresh air with a rooftop where customers can get a glimpse of the New York City skyline. After a lot of work, in March 2020, 902 Brewing Company officially opened just two days before the state went into lockdown due to the pandemic. “It was an interesting 48 hours,” Vogt said. “Everything was changing on the fly.” The pandemic caused other problems. As the brewery pivoted to adhere to state guidelines and continue operating, keg sales plummeted as bars closed, and canning skyrocketed causing an industrywide shortage of aluminum cans.
Going with the Flow The friends navigated the uncharted waters and even helped the community
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by partnering with Corgi Distillery to make hand sanitizer and participating in the All Together initiative. Spearheaded by Brooklyn’s Other Half Brewing, the group raised money for local hospitality industries. Recently, the brewery released a new amber ale, Hurley, Hoops, & Hops, to celebrate the legendary coach Bob Hurley. A portion of the proceeds were donated to the Hurley Family Foundation which runs a free basketball clinic for Jersey City kids. Now 902 Brewing Company is open for business and looking forward to finally having a grand opening when safe to do so.
Belly up to the Bar Stop by and take a tour of the operation to learn how the craft beers are made or relax in the taproom which offers 16 lines of beer from pilsners to stouts not to mention kombucha and hard seltzers.
Don Vogt (L) and Colby Janisch.
BEFORE
AFTER
BEFORE
AFTER
Popular brews include the Chilltown Crusher, a light and crisp pilsner perfect for a summer sip, and Juicy City, a New England Hazy IPA with amarillo, citra, stone fruit, and tropical citrus flavors. Food trucks are also back on the scene offering a variety of choice eats for those who come by. Cheers to what will certainly be a Jersey City staple for years to come. To learn more about 902 Brewing Company or to find a list of retailers in the area, go to http://902brewing.com/ welcome. —JCM
A glimpse of the New York City skyline from the rooftop.
Backdrop for a JC on the Silver Screen
The Kitchen Step (L) and Grand Street. Photos by Max Ryazansky By Marilyn Baer
M
ost people know Jersey City is one of the most diverse cities in the country. It’s a melting pot of cultures and artistic expression making it a perfect backdrop to set the scene of more than one award winning motion picture or Emmy worthy series.
Just last year residents were abuzz when Queen Latifah could be spotted filming scenes of the action-packed series The Equalizer which tells the story of ex-CIA operative Robyn McCall, a woman who helps desperate people in need of justice. Queen Latifah was born in Newark, grew up in East Orange, and went to school in Irvington. As an adult,
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she lived for a time in Jersey City’s Dixon Mills and had an office in a renovated firehouse on Morgan Street. Eagle eyed Jersey City residents spotted local destinations in the very first Equalizer episode, which aired after the Super Bowl on CBS. Queen Latifah and her onscreen daughter Delilah, played by Laya DeLeon Hayes, walk down the 500 block of Jersey Avenue. The duo stops near the parklet of Kitchen Step to window shop for a dress at a nearby boutique. Their home, which they share with her aunt Viola ‘Vi’
Marsette, played by Lorraine Toussaint, sits on Gifford Avenue.
On Location in JC Comic book villains have also come to town. The award-winning film Joker starring Joaquin Phoenix in the title role turned Jersey City into Gotham when the William J Brennan Courthouse on Newark Avenue was transformed into Wayne Hall. In 2018, extras from the area donned clown masks and face paint while holding signs at a faux rally by the courthouse steps lined with prop police cars and barricades.
Home on Gifford Avenue. Photo by Max Ryazansky
Liberty State Park. Photo by Victor M. Rodriguez
Liberty State Park Photo by Victor M. Rodriguez
Before Liberty State Park became a public park in1972 all-time classic The Godfather directed by Francis Ford Coppola was filmed in the then-abandoned marshland. Framed by tall grass and Lady Liberty in the distance, characters Peter Clemenza, Rocco Lampone, and Paulie Gatto stop briefly while running errands. Lampone takes the opportunity to gun down Gatto for betraying the mafia. It’s then that the famous line “Leave the gun, take the cannoli” is uttered by Clemenza as Gatto lies slumped against the steering wheel.
Action!
William J. Brennan Courthouse. Photo by Max Ryazansky While brilliant mathematician John Nash never called Jersey City home, the Oscarwinning 2001 film A Beautiful Mind was partially filmed in Paulus Hook. In the biographical drama directed by Ron Howard, Russell Crowe and Jennifer Connolly were filmed in the interior of a three-story brick building near Paulus Hook Park on Grand Street which
served as the backdrop of the Nash’s home.
Urban and Open While Jersey City is often used as an alternative to filming in New York City or another big city, its green spaces are popular locales, particularly Liberty State Park along the waterfront.
If you’re unfamiliar with the three-hour mafia movie (where have you been?) then perhaps you would have recognized the park from the hilarious sci-fi action flick Men in Black. In the 1997 film, Agents K and J, played by Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith, stop a couple driving through the park on Morris Pesin Drive. While pulled over, Agent J helps a pregnant alien give birth, tangled in tentacles. The Netflix series Seven Seconds is set in Jersey City, starting off with a death in Liberty State Park. The promotional poster for the series shows a woman in the park with the Statue of Liberty in the background.
Photos by Maxim Ryazansky
These are just a few of the famous scenes filmed on location here in Jersey City. The list goes on with more movies and shows than could fit in the pages of this magazine. More are yet to come with the announcement of two new film studios: Caven Point Studios, which will be built near Pacific Avenue in the Canal Crossing area of Jersey City, and Industry Go on Burma Road. Both are slated to have three sound stages for filming large productions.—JCM
Painting of Frank Sinatra by Ian Sullivan
By Kate Rounds Photos Courtesy of 295J and Dominique Ramirez
Johnston Avenue
F
ull disclosure. I’ve lived the Bergen/Lafayette neighborhood for, jeez, it must be 17 years now. So, yes, I’ve seen a lot of changes. When I lived on a boat in Liberty Harbor Marina, I used to run in this neighborhood and would think, when my boat sinks, which it eventually did, this is a community I’d like to live in. It wasn’t overpriced. It had pleasant, single-family homes with driveways, and many of those families had lived here for generations. Its history embraced the Lenne Lenape, General Lafayette, and the Underground Railroad. Some of you will remember the artist colony, known as 111 First Street, which was torn down in 2007. 30 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
Many of those artists, displaced from their live/work spaces, found a hospitable community and affordable homes in the Bergen/Lafayette section. Artists and old-timers shared the bodegas and laundromats, and dollar stores. Not surprisingly, Realtors, developers, and savvy home hunters started to uncover our best-kept secret. Bars and restaurants and cafes appeared on Communipaw Avenue. Baker Building Apartments went up on Suydam Street, and on the north end of Monitor, condo buildings rose from vacant lots one after the other. Enter 295J, a very cool rental building that opened in March, 2020. Dominique Ramirez is happy she discovered it. “I moved from the Upper East Side, New York City, where I was born and raised,” she says. “This is my first time ever living outside of Manhattan!” She and her boyfriend, Matt Francolino, moved to 295 Johnston Avenue in August, 2020. “We fell in love with 295J for all that the building offers, from the apartment and beautiful décor, to the amenities. My boyfriend fell in love with the gym, and I loved having the pool in the summer.
Painting of Polo Players by Kito Mbianjo
Shea
Library
Gym
Lobby
Not to mention the friendliness of everyone in the building, and that they are very dog friendly.” Dominque and Matt have a dog named Shea. (The couple met while working for the Mets.) Convenience was another plus. “Being so close to the light rail is spectacular,” Dominique says. “I get to my office in 30 minutes. We also loved the fact that we are perfectly located next to Liberty State Park. 295J checked every single box.” They’ve also gotten to know the town. “Jersey City is such a unique and beautiful city,” Dominique says. “We love finding new restaurants and dog parks. Being so close to New York City is really nice, but I have found that I’d rather spend my weekends taking Citi Bikes in Liberty State Park or hop on the light rail to grab drinks near Grove Street with friends.” Welcome to the neighborhood!—JCM Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021 • 31
A Blast from
the Past
Stroll down memory lane with
AUTOMAT KITCHEN By Marilyn Baer Photos courtesy of the Automat Kitchen American dining institution officially returned this year with the opening of Automat Kitchen, the reinvention of the famed automat. For millennials like myself, unfamiliar with the tradition, the automat was a type of fast-food restaurant where simple premade foods and drinks were served via vending machines. Originating in Berlin in 1895, they became popular in the United States after the first one opened in Philadelphia in 1902. The automat was an iconic image of the 1940s and ‘50s, with men in suits and fedoras and women in hats and gloves—many of them famous—slipping nickels into the machines and receiving a chicken dinner or slice of pie. By the1990s, the automat became virtually extinct with most of the ones operated by Horn & Hardart in New York City turned into Burger Kings.
An
32 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
Automat Redux Now, new life has been breathed into the once popular concept, but this is anything but your grandmother’s automat. Automat Kitchen, in the Newport Center Tower at 525 Washington Boulevard, has a chef-curated menu of modern comfort food classics and a technology-driven contactless experience that fits the needs of contemporary diners. It modernizes the original concept with a fully contactless, touchless process using custom hardware and patented software to make ordering and pickup seamless. Instead of dropping a nickel into a slot for a premade turkey sandwich on a lunch tray, Automat Kitchen offers technology driven convenience without sacrificing quality. Unlike the old automat, all dishes are made to order to ensure freshness. Customers can order in advance on their phones, online, or at the location by scanning a QR code to connect to the menu and ordering system.
If those options don’t work for you, kiosk screens are also available where hungry diners can place their orders without interacting with a single soul. Once an order is placed, guests receive a unique code via text to unlock their individual lockers when the order is ready, or they can schedule a specific time for locker pickup. Behind the glass touchscreen locker door awaits delicious curated meals from a menu of reimagined modern takes on comfort food, for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021 • 33
Updated Retro Order the Pastrami Reuben Flatbread for an update of the classic New York City deli favorite, or warm your insides with some Midwestern home cooking like the retrofitted Frito pie, the Frito Pie Burrito, or, most iconic of all, the Chicken Pot Pie with vegetables, puff pastry, and a rich and creamy gravy. You won’t want to blow off your vegies when you can choose from flavorful small plates like the Spiced Roasted Cauliflower with turmeric, garam masala, sweet potato, and cilantro or Roasted Spaghetti Squash in marinara with spinach and parmesan. Dinner options include Massaman Curry Pot Roast with sweet potato, cauliflower, and carrots, a full Chicken Dinner which comes with half a rotisserie chicken, black beans, brown rice, and spicy sofrito sauce, or Atlantic Salmon with miso roasted broccoli and ancient grains. Forgot to eat breakfast before the busy day ahead? Start the morning off with one of several breakfast options like The Hulkster, a vegan smoothie made with kale, avocado, green apples, spinach, and spirulina or opt for a delicious guilty pleasure like the Waffle Sandwich made with sausage, scrambled eggs, and maple syrup. No matter what you choose, your stomach and your spirit will thank you for your trip back to the future.—JCM
34 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING | SUMMER 2021
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