UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAMS New this year: 8-week sessions Business Administration (BSBA) Accounting, Marketing, Management or Healthcare Management Criminal Justice (BA) Elementary Education (BA) Professional Studies (BPS) Nursing (RN to BSN) Public Policy (BS in Urban Studies or / AAS in Public Policy)
GRADUATE BUSINESS Master of Business Administration (MBA) Master of Science in Accountancy Dual MBA/MS in Accountancy
GRADUATE EDUCATION Doctor of Education: Educational Leadership Master of Arts in Education: Educational Leadership, Reading, Special Education, School Counseling, Teaching Professional Education Certifications: Supervisor, Teaching, School Business Administrator, Middle School Mathematics, Teacher of Students with Disabilities, Director of School Counseling Services, Professional/Associate Counselor
GRADUATE CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Undergraduate and Graduate degree programs for busy adults. Business, Education, Criminal Justice, Nursing, on convenient schedules with classroom and online learning available. Campuses in Jersey City
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Master of Arts in Criminal Justice Administration
GRADUATE NURSING Doctor of Nursing Practice: Advance Practice Role (Direct or Clinical), Nurse Executive/Administrative Role (Indirect or Non-Clinical) Master of Science in Nursing: Adult Nurse Practitioner, Case Management/Nurse Administration Post Master’s Certificate: Adult Nurse Practitioner RN to MSN Bridge Program
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Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
3
4 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
PHOTOGRAPHY: HAMILTON SQUARE CONDOMINIUM JANUARY 25, 2012. EVAN JOSEPH
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CONTENTS JCM
FEATURES
18
COVER 18 THE LOBSTER TRAP 26 HOW WE LIVE COVER PHOTO BY EVAN JOSEPH
40 GARDEN STATE SUPPLYING FARMERS’ MARKETS
54 TRASH TALK GARBAGE DETAIL
64 MOVIE MANIACS INDIE FILMMAKERS
DEPARTMENTS 12 CONTRIBUTORS
54
14 EDITOR’S LETTER 16 EMERGING JERSEY CITY 22 PEOPLE POWER K-9 UNIT
34 HOW WE WORK SMALL BUSINESSES
47 EDUCATION USE YOUR INSIDE VOICE!
58 NICHE BARCADE
61 HOODS MCGINLEY SQUARE
68
62 SPORTS CORNER CRICKET
68 THE STUDIO EVAN JOSEPH
70 DATES 73 THE ARTS GALLERY LISTINGS 73 VANISHING JERSEY CITY DINING OUT 74 EDWARD’S STEAK HOUSE 76 RESTAURANT LISTINGS 8 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
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Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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Jersey MAGAZINE
CITY
SPRING & SUMMER 2012 Vo l u m e 9 • N u m b e r 1 Published every Spring & Fall A Publication of The Hudson Reporter
PUBLISHERS Lucha Malato, David Unger EDITOR IN CHIEF Kate Rounds ART DIRECTOR Jennifer Martiak GRAPHICS STAFF Terriann Saulino Bish, Lisa Cuthbert, Mike Mitolo, Pasquale Spina COPYEDITING Christopher Zinsli ADVERTISING MANAGER Tish Kraszyk SALES STAFF Joseph Calderone, Toni Anne Calderone, Ron Kraszyk, Jay Slansky CIRCULATION MANAGER Roberto Lopez CIRCULATION Luis Vasquez ACCOUNTING Christine Caraballo
Jersey City Magazine is published two times a year by the Hudson Reporter Associates, L.P., 1400 Washington St., Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, (201) 798-7800, Fax (201) 798-0018. Email jcmag@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 JCMagazine Subscriptions, 1400 Washington St., Hoboken, NJ 07030. Not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or other unsolicited materials. Copyright ©2012, Hudson Reporter Associates L.P. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited.
Jersey City Magazine 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 e-mail: jcmag@hudsonreporter.com jerseycitymagazine.com
10 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
LAUREN BARBAGALLO is a freelance writer. Since 2008, she’s lived in Hamilton Park with her husband Vassily, her daughters Carolena, and Nico, and her cat, Webster. She can be reached at lcbarbagallo@yahoo.com.
TERRIANN SAULINO BISH began her career as a graphic designer more than 15 years ago. She not only creates images but captures them with her camera. Her work has appeared in many publications including Best of Photography 2006 & 2007. She currently works for the Hudson Reporter. tbishphoto.com.
LAUREN BARBAGALLO
ALYSSA BREDIN is a graphic arts major at Saint Peter’s College, Jersey City. She hopes to pursue a career in photography. Her work can be seen at tbishphoto.com.
LANA ROSE DIAZ
TERRIANN SAULINO BISH
ALYSSA BREDIN
is a former staff writer for The Hudson Reporter. She graduated from Lehigh University with a BS in business and economics and completed graduate work in political science. A Jersey girl with a love for community development and nature, she is also a poet and spoken-word artist.
JOSH GERRITSEN is a portrait and editorial photographer. Since graduating from Skidmore College, he’s photographed across Southeast Asia, Mongolia, and Russia. He’s lived on a sailboat at Liberty Landing. joshgerritsen.com
ANDREW HANENBERG began documenting his rock climbing trips throughout the country while in college. After a residence at the Maine Media Workshop, he worked with the industries’ top photographers. He is dedicated to creating inspiring portraits that depict real-life stories. Find more at www.awhphoto.com.
LANA ROSE DIAZ
EVAN JOSEPH is one of the premier architectural photographers in the metro area. He loves coming home to the charming buildings and fascinating people of Jersey City.
ANNE MARUSIC is a freelance writer and publicist who has called the Jersey City waterfront home for the past five years. Look for her on the boardwalk chasing her sons, Nicholas and Alan.
ANDREW HANENBERG
JOSH GERRITSEN
AMANDA STAAB is a recent graduate of Columbia University’s Journalism School. A New Jersey native, she currently lives in Hoboken with her husband and daughter.
TRICIA TIRELLA is a freelance writer and Jersey City native. A former award-winning staff writer for The Hudson Reporter, her story “Hudson County Built Out” received 2nd place in the N.J. chapter of The Society of Professional Journalist’s Wilson Barto Award for First-Year Reporters. She enjoys photography and ski patrolling during the winter.
EVAN JOSEPH JENNIFER MERRICK MARTIAK is art director for the Hudson Reporter Newspapers, which includes 07030, Explore and Jersey City Magazine. She has worked for the company for 17 years. Her work has won annual state awards throughout her career. Though her design credits are eclectic, fashion print is her passion.
TRICIA TIRELLA ANNE MARUSIC
AMANDA STAAB
12 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
Plan a ‘Staycation’ Here in Your Own Backyard ... Shop, Dine, Stay and Enjoy Jersey City! ,UQV` HSS [OL LHZ` HMMVYKHISL M\U ÄSSLK [OPUNZ [OH[ OH]L THKL 1LYZL` *P[` [OL WYLTPLY KLZ[PUH[PVU MVY ]PZP[VYZ MYVT HSS HYV\UK [OL ^VYSK
Shop Stretch your hard-earned dollars in the Jersey City Urban Enterprise Zone. Look for the UEZ signs all around town: • Pay NO sales tax on clothing and shoes • Pay just 3.5% (half the normal tax)* on fashion accessories, appliances, electronics, furniture and home furnishings, toys, books and so much more!
Dine
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Fare to suit every palate and every budget at our restaurants, cafés and diners!
See Historic sites, Liberty Science Center, the Statue of Liberty, and Ellis Island!
Stay
Treat yourself to a ‘staycation’ at one of our world-class hotels!
Jersey City Economic Development Corporation )\PSKPUN )\ZPULZZLZ )\PSKPUN 3P]LZ
Visit www.DestinationJerseyCity.com for news and events. For more information, visit www.jcedc.org or call 201.333.7797 Paid for by the Jersey City Urban Enterprise Zone Program
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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PHOTO BY MARIE PAPP
EDITOR'S LETTER JCM
CANINES, CRUSTACEANS— AND CRICKETS? Full disclosure: We weren’t planning on running a story about those gorgeous dogs in the K-9 unit that you see on pages 22-24. We actually had a certain prominent homo sapien in mind for the People Power department, but alas, his plate was full, so to speak. The next best thing? Man’s best friend, photographed in these pages by Terriann Saulino Bish and Alyssa Bredin. Going from the sublime to the ridiculous, or more precisely, from canines to crustaceans, we decided to look at one of summer’s biggest treats—the lobster. If you’re wondering where that big boiled one on your plate came from and need guidance on how to eat it, you’ve come to the right place. And crickets? Not the insect variety, but the game. You may have noticed folks playing cricket in Liberty State Park and Lincoln Park. Get the lowdown on that mysterious sport. If garbage is your thing, check out Josh Gerritsen’s beautiful images of the trucks, the trash, and the garbage guys who haunt the night on our Jersey City streets. There’s lots more in this issue, but we’re also delighted to introduce you to a new publication that will carry on the Jersey City Magazine brand—07030. This magazine will do for Hoboken what JC Mag has done for Jersey City over the years. Expect the same fine reporting, writing, and photography that you’ve come to enjoy right here. These sister cities have much in common, and we know that readers and residents of these two great towns enjoy each other’s restaurants, night life, shopping, and recreation. Look for 07030 to debut in late spring. —JCM
14 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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EMERGING JC JCM
Knowing Their Names PHOTO BY KATE ROUNDS
The controversial 9/11 memorial in Liberty State Park has now come to fruition. Many residents had objected to its size and the fact that it would block what it was intended to memorialize: The site of the Twin Towers across the river. I took in the memorial on a warm winter afternoon; there were many visitors shooting pictures, reading the names etched onto the walls, and generally enjoying the day and communing with their fellow visitors. In 1982, when sculptor Maya Lin designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall to include the names of 58,195 soldiers who died in that war, the monument made history. For once, the dead were not symbols or emblems or amorphous casualties. They were real people. Liberty State Park’s Empty Sky memorial lists the names of all 746 New Jersey residents who were killed on 9/11/2001. Whether you oppose or support the memorial, it’s worth knowing who it memorializes.—Kate Rounds
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Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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LOBSTER STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE • With a twisting motion, gently pull off the legs. Save them. There’s meat inside! • With a gentle twisting motion, tear off the claws at the first joint. • Gently remove the loose part of the claw. There is meat inside. • Using a nutcracker, break off the tip of the large section of claw. • With your forefinger, push the meat from the tip of the claw out the larger open end. • Grasp the tail with one hand and the back with the other. Twist to separate the two sections. The tail has small flippers, which are edible. • Insert your fingers into the end with the flippers to push the tail meat out intact, which should not be eaten. • Peel off the top of the tail to reveal and remove the green digestive tract. • The hard shell of the lobster has small chunks of meat. • The hard shell of the female also holds roe, which is edible.
Courtesy the Gulf of Maine Research Institute
18 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
Th e
Lo bster Trap It looks delicious, but where did it come from and how do you eat the damned thing?
PHOTOS BY ANDREW HANENBERG
At this time of year, lots of folks look forward to a menu item that epitomizes summer—whole boiled lobster. Of course you can get a lobster any time, but there’s something about that big red crustacean that calls to mind sandy beaches, salty air, and eating al fresco at your favorite seaside restaurant. If your only touchstone for the lobster experience is Woody Allen’s legendary encounter with the live variety in Annie Hall, then you have a lot to learn about nephropidae. OK, the waiter has just brought your hot boiled lobster and obligingly slipped behind your chair to tie your bib around your neck—eating this thing can be a little messy. Sometimes this bib will be a big, garish affair with a red border and a giant red lobster in the middle. Other times it will be two elegant white linen napkins. Your entree exudes the aroma of its briny home, as well as the fresh lemon and melted butter that are always at its side. Check out your cutlery. Instead of the usual, you’ll find a Lilliputian fork and a nutcracker. It’s time to begin. To help us with the visuals of this gastronomical experience, we’ve called on the folks at Puccini’s Restaurant & Catering at 1064 Westside Ave., who opened their doors to photographer Andrew Hanenberg. Pasquale Iengo is the chef responsible for preparing the delectable shellfish seen on these pages, and Natale Rescigno is manager and maitre d’. If you go to Puccini’s for your lobster, Iengo will split it in half in the kitchen with a big knife, but not all chefs are so helpful. Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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The waiter, like a wine steward, then shows you the lobster for your approval before he sets it down. The customers “never send it back,” Rescigno says. At Puccini’s they go for the linen napkins, not the customized lobster bibs. If the lobster arrives whole, as it does in many restaurants, Rescigno advises ripping it open with your hands, starting with the head, all the way down to the tail. The nutcracker is for cracking open the claws. Everybody, including the folks at Puccini’s, agree that the best lobster comes from Maine. In the sidebar on page 18, the Gulf of Maine Research Institute offers step-by-step guidance on how to eat a lobster. Lobsters can be caught on the Jersey shore, and there are even lobster buoys around the Statue of Liberty, but if you’re eating lobster in Jersey City, it probably comes from Maine by truckers who deliver it to local wholesalers. Puccini’s gets its lobster from a number of local wholesales, including Hunts Point in the Bronx. Hunts Point is where the South Street Seaport’s famed Fulton Fish Market moved in 2005. It’s common knowledge that lobster meat can go bad quickly, which is why lobsters have to be cooked live, the peculiar aspect of lobster preparation that was giving Woody Allen so much angst. Puccini’s picks about 15 to 20 lobsters from each wholesaler; the lobsters, which are kept in tanks, weigh in at about 2 1/2 pounds apiece. They can’t be transported to the restaurant on ice because they will freeze to death. Instead they are packed in seaweed and wet newspapers in waxed boxes. But the expectant diner doesn’t see all that, or the chef ’s expert dispatching of his popular dinner entrée. What the customer sees is a brightly colored, aromatic delicacy that’s worth the work it takes to get it into your mouth. “Most people eat lobster during the summer,” Rescigno says. “It’s a popular item, and we always sell out.” —Kate Rounds CHEF PASQUALE IENGO
20 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
PEOPLE POWER JCM
22 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
PEOPLE POWER JCM
Nose
Job The dogs of the K-9 Unit sniff out trouble
(L-R.) OFFICER GEORGE CRISPINA WITH ASTRO, OFFICER BOB FARLEY WITH JOKER. PHOTOS BY TERRIANN SAULINO BISH AND ALYSSA BREDIN.
You may have noticed that this story about dogs is in the “People Power” section. That’s because these noble creatures who nab criminals, sniff out bombs and drugs, and rescue humans are as close to people as any non-human can be. Chimps may be our nearest relative but dogs are our most loyal friends. Spend a few hours with Joker, Lucky, and Astro, and you’ll agree. They are all male German shepherds—smart, obedient, and eager. We were lucky to have a warm, sunny winter day when we met them and their handlers at Exchange Place. The handlers are Jersey City police officers attached to the K-9 Unit. They each have a police SUV clearly marked K-9 Unit, and you could hear the dogs barking inside. Photographer Terriann Saulino Bish, assisted by her daughter Alyssa Bredin, took the beautiful pictures you see on these pages. Everyone knows that you never approach a working dog, though it’s tempting to pet them. On this photo shoot we were allowed to pet them but the dogs were a bit jumpy. As smart as they are, they couldn’t quite get a handle on the situation. It seemed to them as Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012•
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OFFICER CHET MECKA WITH LUCKY.
if they were on the job, but there was nothing to sniff out and no “actor” to apprehend (the police term for a perpetrator). Officer Bob Farley is paired with Joker, a sable; Officer Chet Mecka is paired with Lucky, who is black; and Officer George Crispina is paired with Astro, who is black and brown. The dogs live with their officers for the obvious reason that living together enhances the bond between man and animal. Mecka tells a scary tale about the bond between man and dog. Lucky’s specialty is sniffing out bombs and chasing down criminals. Mecka was in a warehouse and thought that Lucky was at his side. He called “Here Lucky” before he realized that Lucky was on the second floor. Hearing his trusted human call his name, Lucky jumped over the railing, landing one floor down. He wasn’t hurt, but it was a poignant reminder that these dogs will risk injury and even death to do their jobs and to protect their human partners. Joker is a drug sniffer who has been taught to distinguish the scents of about eight different drug odors, including pot, hash, and cocaine. “He’s aggressive when he finds something,” Farley says. “He’ll bite and scratch.” But Joker, like all the working dogs, knows when he’s at home and when’s he’s on the job. “I have a wife and two children who treat him like a pet, but they are not allowed to walk him because he is trained to protect me.” The dogs are so attached to their handlers that they are retired when the officer retires. There’s no way that they could be paired with a different officer. Farley says it is OK to ask an officer if you can pet the dog. If the dog is not on the job, you can sometimes get a hug. Astro has not been trained to sniff drugs. His specialty is officer safety, sniffing explosives, and tracking. Crispina recalls a particularly successful track when he and Astro were on the trail of a robber who was reportedly hiding in a cemetery on Tonnelle Avenue. Fortyfive minutes after everyone had left the scene, Astro found the robber hiding under the porch of a nearby house. All the officers said that the dogs were part of the family and that the love was mutual. “He’s my shadow,” says Crispina. “He wants to go out and do work. His whole life revolves around working with me. There’s no greater feeling than having a K-9 partner.”—Kate Rounds
24 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
High quality health care, close to home. Our mission and vision Bayonne Medical Center is a fully accredited, acute-care hospital located in Hudson County, NJ. Caring for the people of Bayonne and our neighboring communities is our most important mission. We are a growing, thriving institution with cutting edge technology, comprehensive patient resources and outstanding facilities.
Our team Hundreds of affiliated physicians are part of our award winning medical staff, representing a wide variety of specialties. The doctors, nurses and professionals of Bayonne Medical Center are recognized leaders in health care.
Our departments and services include: • Bariatric Surgery • Behavioral Health • Cardiac Care • Cardiac Catheterization Lab • Diabetes Education/Support • Emergency Room • Family Health Center • Gastrointestinal Endoscopy • Lab Services
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HOW WE LIVE JCM
Living Fabulously with Young Kids OGDEN AVENUE
26 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
HOW WE LIVE JCM
ds
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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"PAID FOR BY OR IN PART BY THE JERSEY CITY URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE PROGRAM"
live HOW WE
PHOTOS BY EVAN JOSEPH
OGDEN AVENUE Darius Plavinskas bought the building in 2000 and now lives here with his wife, Tine Pahl, a developmental psychologist at NYU School of Medicine, and their two sons, ages five and 14. Plavinskas is an artist and contractor who owns the Manhattan-based Darius Design and Build. The single-family house, which was built around 1890, has three floors; tenants occupy the first floor. It’s located near Fisk Park, and, Pahl says, “You can glimpse Manhattan from the roof deck.”
28 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
HAMILTON SQUARE
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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HOW WE LIVE JCM
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30 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
Plavinskas built it up from the original footprint, incorporating modern elements into the original shell. “My husband did all the work himself, adding to the front, back, and top,” Pahl says. Now there are four bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, and an open area with kitchen, living room, and dining room. Plavinskas has shown his work at the Distillery Gallery & Artspace, which is right around the corner from their house. “We like living in this part of Jersey City,” Pahl says. “It’s a diverse neighborhood, not yet gentrified, with immigrants, artists, a good edgy mix.”
HAMILTON SQUARE Joshua and Olga Engroff bought two apartments in Hamilton Square and made them into one large home, where they live with their two kids, ages two and four. For seven years they’d been living in Liberty Towers on the waterfront, but it was time to get more room for their growing family. “The owners of the building have an architect who helped us put together a plan,” says Olga, who is a graphic designer specializing
NEW YORK AVENUE
HOW WE LIVE JCM
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HOW WE LIVE JCM in branding and web design. Many of the photographs on the walls were taken by Joshua, who runs a mobile advertising company. Olga’s friend, Juliette Vassilkioti, the “Orchid Diva,” supplied the orchid arrangements for the photo shoot. The space features a lot of closet space, two bathrooms, a large living room, large master bedroom, and separate bedrooms for the kids overlooking Hamilton Square Park. “I love the apartment,” Olga says. “We built it from scratch, and I did everything I wanted to do. It’s definitely very modern with a lot of windows and a lot of light, with bright accents like a bright red door.” The Engroffs love Jersey City. “It’s a great community and very child friendly,” Olga says. “It’s an amazing area, near schools and close to the city but safer for kids. We’re very happy.”
NEW YORK AVENUE Seven years ago Frank Matullo bought the building, which features 2,500 square feet on the ground floor, opening onto the sidewalk. Matullo needed the space for his business. He supplies party planners, event coordinators, and store window designers with specialty décor, signage, and props. Upstairs there are three bedrooms in a loft-like space, where Matullo lives with his wife Kellie and their two kids, ages four and seven. Before they moved in there was a metal worker living there. “Slowly we’re renovating to our tastes,” Matullo says. “We’re eliminating big, heavy metalwork and wrought iron railings and bringing in wood.” He describes their tastes as eclectic. “It comes down to the piece, whatever it is,” Matullo says. “We like everything we find, pull together, or make for the home. It all works together for us.” Kellie, who used to work as a writer for Dow Jones, has now “jumped onboard and is helping the business grow and getting stuff done,” Matullo says. “I feel like we and a few others are pioneers, helping to revive and do better for the neighborhood,” Matullo says. “Things are working out great since we moved up here. We’ve really enjoyed living here. Jersey City is a great place. We love to jump in and be a part of all the stuff that happens.”—JCM Interviews by Kate Rounds
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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HOW WE WORK JCM
GINA WESTBAY (L.) AND LAURA SUGRUE
HOW SWEET IT IS 204 Washington St. (201) 435-2062
work HOW WE
BY ANNE MARUSIC PHOTOS BY JOSH GERRITSEN
Co-owners of How Sweet It Is, Laura Sugrue and her sister, Gina Westbay, along with their husbands, Jimmy and John, believe the personal touch they bring to their orders makes all the difference in their family business. To that end, they make sure that everybody who enters leaves the store with a smile. Their old-fashioned shop specializes in made-to-order gift baskets and goody bags, balloon bouquets for parties, as well as a large variety of high-end chocolate and candy, nuts and trail mix, and dried fruit and bulk candy, sold by the pound. Hot products this year include spicy mango, kiwi, and strawberry dried fruit as well as nostalgic favorites such as candy cigarettes and wax whips. Last winter, the team planned to expand its business to include a bakeshop that will serve goodies such as cakes, cannolis, and cappuccino. “Our Paulus Hook residents and customers are so generous and kind, it is our greatest pleasure to serve them and see them come back and visit,” says Laura. “There is a positive energy in this neighborhood.”
34 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
HOW WE WORK JCM
SUPER BUY-RITE
ADITHYA BATHENA
With more than 30,000 square feet of retail space, Jersey City’s Super Buy-Rite is the largest retail liquor store in New Jersey. Its size and financial strength (there are 46 franchises in the state) allow them to purchase at low prices, passing the savings along to the customer. Super Buy-Rite’s product line includes thousands of wine and spirits selections as well as an extensive cigar collection. Not to mention its 54 beer coolers on site. The store’s selections include products from every continent. On the outside, Super Buy-Rite may resemble a big box retail store, but once you enter the doors, it provides small-shop advice and guidance through its knowledgeable staff. They take special orders and will bend over backwards to find a product for their customers. Bill Hoffman is the primary buyer, with more than 30 years of experience in the business. Owner Adithya Bathena grew up in the business, starting at the ripe young age of 10. Bathena says, “Price, service, and selection are the reasons that folks enter our store and quickly become repeat customers.”
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012•
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"PAID FOR BY OR IN PART BY THE JERSEY CITY URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE PROGRAM"
575 Manilla Ave. (201) 238-1200
HOW WE WORK JCM
ANTHONY ARMAGNO
ARMAGNO AGENCY 553 Jersey Ave. (201) 659-7101 Whether you’re looking for a contemporary condo or historic brownstone, Armagno Agency, a 24-year-old real estate agency with specialties in rentals, sales relocations, and real estate management, offers a wide variety of homes to choose from. Whether you’re looking for your first apartment, buying your first home, or purchasing an investment property, the team wants everyone who walks through their door to be 100 percent satisfied. Its motto is, “Our reputation is everything.” On staff to assist new and experienced buyers is a group of knowledgeable and experienced associates who were all born and raised in Jersey City. They share a vested interest in the Jersey City community. Because the market can be turbulent, the staff updates its listings daily. Says owner Anthony Armagno, “The most rewarding part of my job is when one of our many clients approaches me and tells me how happy they were with our service. There is no greater compliment that I could receive.”
JOURNAL SQUARE SURGICAL CENTER 550 Newark Ave., Suite 308 (201) 988-2386 Journal Square Surgical Center (JSSC) offers the ultimate in convenience and quality to patients in Jersey City and surrounding communities. JSSC is a leading ambulatory surgery facility, dedicated to providing same-day surgery with the highest quality of patient care in the following specialties: family, internal and chiropractic medicine, physical therapy, gynecology, podiatry, gastroenterology, orthopedics, pain management, spine care, ENT, general surgery, as well as maxillofacial, breast, hand, and cosmetic surgery. Its cutting-edge
36 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
HOW WE WORK JCM
DR. SID SHARMA technology includes digital patient records, electronic prescriptions, Internet appointments, and in-house testing which allows the patient the convenience of going to one location. Dr. Sid Sharma, podiatric surgeon at Journal Square Surgical Center, also directs an independent practice at the same location. At age 30, he has made a name for himself in the medical community. “We provide complete foot and ankle care, including surgical and non-surgical treatments,” he says. Sharma, like the other professionals at JSSC, performs complex surgeries by using minimally invasive techniques. The use of tiny cameras and patient’s own blood platelets injected at the site of the injury prevents complicated surgery and improves recovery time.
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Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012•
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HOW WE WORK JCM
JIM CAULFIELD
K9DERGARTEN 173 Newark Ave. (201) 435-8700 K9dergarten is proud to offer the highest quality dog care with a variety of services, including daycare, luxurious boarding, smooth transportation, as well as high-quality walking, grooming, and training services. The team at K9dergarten believes that through constant innovation, it can continue to create the highest standard every dog deserves, both day and night. Whether you’re browsing in its stylish boutique, or watching your furry family member playing with friends, you’ll know your canine companion is in a safe and joyful place. Not only does K9dergarten give outstanding care to each and every dog, it also gives outstanding care to its human clients. K9dergarten’s owner Jim Caulfield explains it best: “We invite the customers to join our family,” he says. “Our lobby is filled with cheer, and our playgrounds are filled with play. K9dergarten is at its best when tails are wagging and people are smiling. That is our commitment to providing the best care for our best friends.”
38 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
JOSEPHINE PAIGE
PINCH-HITTER 245 Van Vorst St. (201) 618-0278 Through her home-based company, Pinch-Hitter, a professional organizing and personal-assistant service, Josephine Paige provides exceptional customer service for residential, business, and relocation clients. “Today, we live in a very fast-paced and demanding world that can easily spin out of control,” says Paige. “I help my clients regain control of their lives, whether it takes the form of organizing their finances or their closet.” Paige provides order, support, and structure to help her clients meet their goals, no matter how big or small. “The look of happiness and relief on my clients’ faces after we complete a job is instant gratification and payment in itself,” Paige says. She half-jokes she is a closet psychologist and social worker and says that providing emotional support goes hand in hand with organizational help. She analyzes each client’s needs and sets up a system, teaching them how to manage the project on their own so they can move ahead. Fees are by the hour with discounts for seniors and new parents. Her clients agree that the gift of an organized life is priceless.
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40 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
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42 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
On hand to pick me up was Dale Davis, owner of Stony Hill Farm in Chester. If you’re expecting a guy in a pickup, wearing a dorky CAT hat, jeans, boots, and a work shirt, forget it. Dale drove up in a medium-sized SUV, wearing regular, watch-football-on-TV-on-the-weekend clothes. He’s a big guy who acts more like a businessman than a farmer. His wife, their two sons, daughter, and daughter-in-law help him run the farm. He’s constantly on the cell with the kids, answering questions, usually about how to price various items. The Davis clan supplies the farmers’ market at the Grove Street PATH, Sussex Street, Newport Mall, Hamilton Park, Journal Square, and Paulus Hook, as well as Hoboken and Hell’s Kitchen in New York. In all, they supply about 25 markets in Jersey and New York. The “buy local/eat fresh” phenomenon is fueling the farmers’ market industry. But “there are too many markets,” Davis says. “Every town has a farmers’ market.” Farming, he says, “is labor intensive and expenses are high.” During the corn season, farm hands are up at 6 a.m. to get sweet corn fresh to the market on that day. And there is a lot of equipment, including a bunch of pickups and tractors.
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WWW.KENNEDYDANCERS.ORG The Davises lease 99 acres of farmland. The spread looks the way you might expect a Jersey farm to look. It’s not like the Midwest or West with miles and miles of flat, geometrically divided land. It’s a bit rugged, the fields hilly; it’s what some folks used to call a truck farm. There are orchards of peaches and apples, as well as rows of tomatoes, spinach, strawberries, Brussels sprouts, onions, peppers, beans, cabbages, cauliflower, squash, okra, shallots, flowers, and more. Woodchuck and deer sometimes breach the fences that were meant to keep them out. In the fall hundreds of people a day come to pick their own apples, leaving unusable apples strewn along the ground. Stony Hill is a highly diversified organization. In addition to the farm, the family operates Stony Hill Gardens and Greenhouses and Stony Hill Farm Market, which features activities for kids, including a picnic area, corn maze, Miner Max’s Secret of the Lost Mine, Noah’s Ark, pumpkin picking, hayrides, pie tastings, and educational speakers. The farmers’ market offers cider doughnuts and specialty foods, in addition to the usual fruits and vegetables.
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44 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
When Davis is out in the fields, picking a beautiful cauliflower or pepper, he shows his real farming stripes. He says he loves “watching things grow,” and he “appreciates the farmers’ markets,” meaning all us city folk who know a good tomato when we see one. Farmers are always complaining about the weather, Davis says. And indeed, the weather was really bugging George Asprocolas when I talked to him toward the end of October. He owns Asprocolas Acres in Millstone, Monmouth County. During the season he does 22 farmers’ markets a week, including the Van Vorst Park market. “The rains hit us hard,” he told me, “and everything is two feet under water.” It was a rainy August, with Hurricane Irene hitting on the 28th. Some 27 inches of rain fell in August, September, and October. Asprocolas suggested I wait until spring for a visit. Central Valley Farm is a family-owned outfit in Hunterdon County that serves the Van Vorst Park market. Ed Huff is a third-generation farmer. They broke ground for the farm in 1946, and Huff ’s sons represent the fourth generation. Up until about five years ago, Central Valley was a dairy farm, producing milk, butter, and cheese. Then it started growing produce as well.
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“More people understand good fresh food rather than processed,” Huff says, “and that has helped us out.” The Huffs grow spring greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, and zucchini, among other things on their 125-acre farm. “We specialize in heirloom tomatoes. We have winter squash and winter greens and everything in between. “We only bring what’s in season and what’s local,” Huff says. “We’re not buying produce from suppliers and remarketing. We only sell what we grow.” And what they raise. They also have a flock of chickens, which produce fresh eggs for the city farmers’ markets. Ort Farms in Long Valley supplies the Grove Street and Journal Square markets. Fifty percent of its business is farmers’ markets, and the rest comes from a produce stand at the farm. The family has been farming since 1916, when Ort’s grandfather started the business. Now family members and others do the selling. “I’m the farmer,” Ort says. “I don’t get off the farm. I do a lot of growing and irrigating and picking and taking care of produce.” But he appreciates the selling and buying at the city markets. “There’s more of a commitment now to buying stuff from farmers,” he says. “People are learning to support family farmers and the farmers themselves directly.” His daughter, Nicole, 23, represents the new generation of farmers. A recent college grad who majored in management, she sees “new opportunities in agriculture and agritourism.” The new opportunities include such things as hosting birthday parties on the farm, but old-fashioned marketing of produce can be a hard row to hoe. “We’re competing with the prices in grocery stores and Wal-Mart that buy in quantities at discount, but then again, the quality is not as good,” she says. People who have access to farmers’ markets and can afford to pay the higher prices will take high quality over low price. Community Supported Agriculture is another concept that’s taking root, according to Nicole. Under this system, customers pay a weekly fee up front to a farmer for 25 weeks of produce. “Every week a box of produce is delivered,” Nicole explains. “You don’t get to choose. You take what’s growing at the time. The customer promises to themselves that they will have local produce every week and supports local farms.” For Jersey farms, it’s all in the family. “With other businesses, kids go to college and then get a job in the corporate
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world,” Nicole says. “In farming you see a lot more kids following in their parents’ footsteps. You might not get a 401(k) but it’s more rewarding in the end.”—JCM
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46 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
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Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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EDUCATION JCM
(L.) WATERFRONT MONTESSORI (R.) STEVENS COOPERATIVE
There’s so much to discover when you first move to Jersey City. I arrived shortly after finding I was pregnant with my first child. I had close friends here and my husband worked downtown, so we happily settled in Hamilton Park. While I readied for the baby, I drafted many to-do lists, and “Look into JC schools” topped every one. Slowly, I managed to gather bits of information from message boards or from parents I’d met in the park, but it was information overload: Too many options, too many deadlines, not enough time. All of a sudden, it was time. My daughter was preschool age and I had no idea what to do. As a stay-at-home mom, I’d been lucky not to need daycare. But what was the difference between daycare and preschool anyway? Aren’t there crazy waiting lists? And how old does your kid have to be to start preschool? Should you go public or private? Three years later—and with a lot of help— I’ve managed to get my daughter enrolled and thriving in one of Jersey City’s many excellent preschools. Here’s an overview of the options:
SIX WEEKS TO THREE YEARS: DAYCARE AND EARLY PRESCHOOL Most daycare facilities take kids starting at six weeks, while preschools—whether public or private—typically take kids around age
48 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
EDUCATION JCM
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three. Daycare centers are open fulltime and year round, with extended hours to accommodate working parents. Preschools follow an academic year and often adhere to a specific curriculum (like Montessori or Bank Street, for example). However, many facilities are now housing daycare and preschool services under one roof, says Diana Perales, a social worker, education consultant, and psychotherapist. Families are moving to Jersey City with very young children and the “preschools are expanding their programs to meet the needs of these families,” says Perales. At the same time, childcare centers that follow a traditional daycare model are establishing themselves as schools, offering programs right up to kindergarten. Perales offers part-time programs for kids 18-36 months (early preschool, she calls it) through Jersey City Parenting, a parenting and family resource center near Van Vorst Park.
THREE TO FIVE YEARS: PRESCHOOL Most children enter preschool at somewhere between ages three and four. There are private and public options with a distinct set of guidelines for each. The number of strollers in the streets is an indication that more and more families are deciding to stay put. As a result, the number of private preschools in Jersey City has Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
49
EDUCATION JCM
WATERFRONT MONTESSORI
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tripled, according to Perales. While they differ in size, scope, and educational offerings, most traditional preschools follow similar enrollment guidelines:
WHEN TO APPLY For most schools, the first step is arranging a tour or attending an open house. These typically occur between November and January, with applications for most schools due no later than January. Some schools have rolling admissions, while others review all applications at once. Be sure to determine the practices of your preferred schools well in advance. Acceptance, waitlist, and non-admittance letters usually go out in March.
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50 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
Karen Westman, head of school at Waterfront Montessori, describes the school/family match as a “marriage of sorts. You live with the school for a few years, so you don’t want to start your selection process [too late].” And what are schools looking for in their prospective partnering with families? “Parents who know their children and what’s best for them,” she says. Perales suggests that you ask yourself. “What kind of kid do I have? One who wants to sit at a table and do art or a kid who needs to run
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EDUCATION JCM
OLC SCHOOL/LITTLE HARBOR ACADEMY
around a lot?” Ask about the daily routine. Do they go outside? Don’t go with just convenience or reputation. Nancy Rossi, director of admissions and high school guidance at Stevens Cooperative School, suggests that you “Visit each school during the school day, not just an open house. … Think about what it would feel like to be a parent there or for your child to be a student.” Anna Mae Stefanelli, president of The OLC School (Our Lady of Czestochowa) and its sister preschool, Little Harbor Academy (LHA), suggests you look inward, too. “Parents should ask themselves, ‘What’s important to me? What do I have to have and what am I willing to negotiate?’ Get to know your options and do your homework.” OLC/LHA is a faithbased school that embraces and celebrates the diverse cultures and religions that make up Jersey City. Your family may place a premium on curriculum. But both Perales and Rossi note that research shows that the most beneficial aspect of preschool is socialization. Rossi advises thinking about schools at least 18 months to two years prior to admission. That said, “Parents should not get too stressed about the process,” she says. “There are lots of options and spaces for everyone, and everything always works out.” Westman agrees and suggests nervous parents relax. “Be yourself,” she says. At the end of the day, the decision has to feel right. For your family, that decision may be public preschool.
PUBLIC PRE-K Public preschool is available, at no cost, to all residents of Jersey City, but deciphering the system and figuring out when and where to apply can be daunting. Courtenay Mercer knows this firsthand. A part-time city planner and mother to daughter Tennyson, Mercer is the school’s organizer for JC Moms, a very active meetup group of moms with kids under the age of 5. Mercer organizes pre-k information sessions and has solicited the help of Board of Education Associate Superintendent Pat Bryant. Here is the essential information every parent should know:
HOW TO REGISTER FOR PUBLIC PRE-K BY AGE For pre-k 3: Child must be 3 by Oct. 1 For pre-k 4: Child must be 4 by Oct. 1
52 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
EDUCATION JCM
BY AREA Some school districts don’t offer a preschool program, which means that your child will be sent to another preschool nearby. Whether or not your district has a preschool, your first step is to register in person at your home district. To find your home district, call the early childhood education office of the Jersey City Board of Education (JCBOE) or visit the JCBOE website. You will also need to confirm the dates for registering (typically, they fall in May) and what you need to bring with you. Your child must accompany you to registration, along with an original copy of his or her birth certificate, a record of the child’s immunizations, and a current utility or telephone bill as proof of residence. To accommodate the overflow, the city contracts pre-k services to private childcare centers. To secure a spot at a contracted center, call that center directly. This process begins on March 1. Visit the JCBOE website for details, including information on dual-language programs. If application overload gets you down, remember it’s preschool—a time for you and your kids to have fun!—JCM
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RESOURCES JCBOE Early Childhood Office (201) 915-6078 jcboe.org Patricia Bryant, director, early childhood department, JCBOE (201) 915-6045 OLC/The Little Harbor Academy (LHA) 248 Luis Munoz Marin Blvd. (201) 434-2405 olcschool.org/littleharboracademy.org www.meetup.com/jerseycitymoms Diana Perales, LSCW Education Consulting Services (201) 688-0797 themommytherapist.com jcparenting.com (Education consulting, workshops, and child-oriented programs) Stevens Cooperative School 301 Garden St., Hoboken (201) 792-3688 100 River Drive, Jersey City (201) 626-4020 stevenscoop.org Waterfront Montessori 150 Warren St. Suite 108 (201) 333-5600 waterfrontmontessori.com Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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Tras h
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A night on the town with Waste Management
54 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
PHOTOS BY JOSH GERRITSEN
MAYBE YOU HAVE TO BE AN INSOMNIAC, BUT I’M USUALLY AWAKE WHEN THE SANITATION GUYS STOP outside my door to pick up the garbage. The house shakes as the truck idles on the street. Sometimes I’ve forgotten to put out the trash barrels and I run to catch the truck. The men are always courteous and silent. They used to collect garbage during the day. Though it is much more efficient at night without traffic, you have to be careful not to disturb the populace. I have enormous respect for these men. The work is hard. In mid-November on a clear, cold Thursday night, photographer Josh Gerritsen and I trailed the garbage detail. When I approached Josh about doing the shoot, he jumped at the chance. I was thrilled to find another garbagephile. Any photographer can make the Grand Canyon look beautiful, but Josh managed to capture the abstract artistry and innate elegance—of garbage. WE STARTED AT WASTE MANAGEMENT HEADQUARTERS ON MCCARTER HIGHWAY IN NEWARK. THE grueling shift starts at 10 p.m. and ends AT 6 a.m. Though cold is bad, all the guys agree that rain is worse and were glad for the clear night. Each shift has a driver and two lifters. To become a driver—the prized slot—you have to take both a written and practical test. On our shift Carlos Aquino was the driver, and Fredy Cedeno and Carlos Catalan were the lifters. We were lucky. We rode behind the truck with Jersey City Incinerator Authority inspector Carmine Scoco, a quarter-century veteran. Not only is he a garbage aficionado, he is a skilled negotiator of the back roads that wend their way through the marshlands and mystical geometry of tanks and stacks and smoke funnels and erector-set bridges that lead from Newark to Jersey City. We met up with the truck on the westernmost point of Monmouth Street. Tonight the mission was paper recycling, and at the very first stop we faced a veritable mountain of flattened cardboard and other paper refuse. The lifters ride perilously on the outside of the truck, jumping off gracefully at each stop. Effortlessly, they heave the stuff into the maws of the truck, which chew it up like a big mechanical dragon. If you’re wondering, as I did, if the truck can handle all this “paper” in one shift, it can’t. The guys have to make at least one trip to the dump before finishing the shift. The stuff is dumped at Galaxy Recycling on New York Avenue in Jersey City. WHERE DOES THE GARBAGE END UP? AT LANDFILLS IN OHIO AND PENNSYLVANIA, ACCORDING TO JCIA CEO Oren Dabney, who says they collect 100,000 tons of solid-waste garbage a year, 12,000 tons of “mixed paper,” and 6,500 tons of “comingled,” which means those bottles and cans we carefully separate out for recycling. Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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A total of 27 trucks a night are on duty to collect this massive amount of refuse. Ever wonder why that huge television or nasty old mattress or big wooden dresser has been sitting on the sidewalk for days on end? You need to “call the authority and schedule an appointment” for them to pick up that kind of stuff, Dabney says. The same goes for “e-waste,” which is computers and other hardware and appliances. If you want to work the garbage detail, the JCIA does not discriminate. There are no height or weight requirements, and in fact one of the guys on our shift, Fredy Cedeno, was really small but he was also very strong and agile. Women are usually not lifters, but they do drive the trucks. Driver Carlos Aquino likes the job. “I have fun with the guys,” he says, “and I know I am doing a good job for the company and the city.” For the garbage guys, it’s all in a night’s work.—Kate Rounds
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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NICHE JCM
PHOTOS BY JOSH GERRITSEN
An Arcade of Anti qu iti es Barcade brings vintage video games to the scene BY TRICIA TIRELLA
Connoisseurs of craft beers and arcade games have found a home at Barcade, which serves up vintage video games with a beer garden vibe. Barcade, which opened on Newark Avenue in April 2011, doesn’t just attract obscure-games geeks, but offers a community meeting place for not-so-savvy video game players as well. The games-challenged can enjoy an East Coast-brewed beer while their friends play Ms. Pac Man. The game of choice for a few friends in my circle is Tetris, which often draws a line, but there are many more. “I love the Barcade!” says regular Donna Schwichtenberg. “I can play Tetris, drink a Hefeweizen, and get laundry quarters all in the same place.” The space, which was formerly a bank, is bigger than most downtown bars, with long wooden tables and high ceilings. Lining the walls are about 30 vintage video games, including classics like Donkey Kong, and many arcane games, such as a cockpit version of Star Wars and Tapper, a game that involves pouring beer. Some players claim that the games are rigged, but co-owner Paul Kermizian says that all the games are on factory settings and are just more difficult than those produced in the 1990s and later.
58 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
I’m often “killed off ” long before my opponent, which gives me lots of time to try the 25 rotating draft and cask American craft beers. They include local favorites like Brooklyn Brewery, Chelsea Brewing, and Sixpoint Craft Ales, as well as Long Trail Brewing Co. and Dogfish Head. While Barcade offers a full bar, there are no commercial beers. The food goes well with beer and games: sandwiches with pickles and chips, deviled eggs, and something called “pickled hop shoots.” Kermizian and four friends own the Jersey City Barcade, in addition to one in Philadelphia and one in Brooklyn, where they also own a bowling alley called the Gutter. Much of their time is spent repairing the games’ computer boards, seeking out rare video games, or finding those that patrons have requested. “The newest game in here is 20 years old,” says Kermizian. “Most of these games were not meant to be in an arcade for 30 years.” If you’re into bar crawls, video gamer competitions, or trying a new brew, Barcade is for you.—JCM
60 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
HOODS JCM
“
FACTORY SMOKE AND LAUGHTER. FIERCE RACES AROUND THE BLOCK. RINGALEEVIO IN THE NIGHT. THROUGH THE REDOLENCE OF DECAY, THE WARM PERSISTENT REEK OF LIFE.—“THE GHOSTS OF JERSEY CITY” (1967), LILLIAN MORRISON
McGinley Square Resurgence
”
McGinley Square is like the wallflower at the prom—we didn’t notice her until she started dancing with the football captain. In the last 25 years, the square had become a bit rundown, a nondescript neighborhood with vinyl-clothed row houses, retail dinosaurs and corner bars, and the Jersey City Armory lording over it all like a medieval castle. Since last summer, however, when plans to redevelop the area surfaced, McGinley Square has been much in the news. The McGinley Square East Redevelopment Plan, as it is known, calls for new residential construction, offices, new retail space, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, theaters, museums, and art galleries, as well as parking to handle the influx of people. At first the beast of eminent domain threatened to snuff out the project, but once that dragon had been slain, the community calmed down and a revised plan was unanimously approved by the City Council last fall. By recognizing McGinley Square East as an area “in need of rehabilitation,” development could proceed. VINCENT PANTOZZI’S FAMILY HAS been living in the area since the 1930s. A community gadfly, Pantozzi is well-known for trying to clean up the urine-stained steps of the armory. He feels two ways about the proposed redevelopment of his beloved hood. Quoting a journalist from the Italian weekly Il Progresso, Pantozzi says the neighborhood has become “tired of life.” Bottom line? “I hope the redevelopment will bring some hope here,” he says. PANTOZZI CITES URBAN DEVELOPMENT GURUS WHO say that if you don’t see anybody on the streets at night, redevelopment is a failure. “Neighborhoods are the backbone of the city. It’s not just brick and mortar. It’s the life of the people.” IN THE FALL/WINTER 2011/2012 ISSUE OF Jersey City Magazine, we talked to Saint Peter’s College President Eugene J. Cornacchia about the project. Corvus, designated developer of McGinley Square East, had worked with Saint Peter’s on its new student center. The college is expanding its campus and controls a large tract of land included in the McGinley Square East project. Cornacchia envisions “a college neighborhood with little parks and walking areas.”
F R AN K SALERNO IS A JERSEY CITY lifer who lived in McGinley Square from 1944 to 1985. A retired postal worker, he now lives “on the Boulevard.” He says, “McGinley Square is convenient for everyone. Every bus goes to McGinley Square. And development will make it even better. Anything new in the city is a plus.” AND WHAT ARE THOSE PLUSES? “NEW HOUSING and new stores will make work for people,” Salerno says. “There are plans for restaurants, bowling alleys, and entertainment.” Lillian Morrison, the poet cited above, was a Jersey City native who loved her town. The new McGinley Square may have its up sides and down sides, but it sounds like it will still have the “warm persistent reek of life.”—Kate Rounds Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012•
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SPORTS CORNER JCM
NEW JERSEY CITY CRICKET CLUB PHOTO BY BHAVESH PATEL
Bowling and Batting CRICKETERS RECAPTURE THEIR ROOTS IN LINCOLN PARK BY AMANDA STAAB
Spread out on an oval field under the stars at Lincoln Park, members of the New Jersey City Cricket Club spend their summer nights practicing a game many of them learned as children. “It was the only game that I played during my childhood,” says Dhaval Patel, club president and team captain. And he missed it
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when he emigrated from India at age 19. “Cricket is almost like a religion in India,” says Patel, who is now 30 and an information technology professional. Patel was part of a group of friends who started the club with an impromptu game in the parking lot at Laurel Hill County Park in
SPORTS CORNER JCM
Secaucus. Someone happened to have a ball and bat in the trunk of a car, says Patel, “and we said, ‘Let’s start.’” That night, the friends played until the park closed, but a few weeks later, the group grew into a team. “People kept joining,” says Patel. Team members decided they needed more space, so they moved their game to Lincoln Park. Now the club has 20 members ranging in age from 20 to 35, but Patel says they are always looking for new players. “If you play good cricket, you can join our team,” he says. The team started in a softball league but has since advanced to a hardball league. Now the members participate in the Cricket League of New Jersey, composed of about 50 teams from all over the state, as well as the New Jersey Cricket Association, where they made it to the final game last year. Both leagues follow the official rules of the International Cricket Council. The team practices once or twice on weeknights during cricket season, usually from April to October. In Jersey City, Patel says his team might play until November or whenever the temperature drops below 50 degrees. They start after work or school and practice long past sundown. “Sometimes, the park ranger people have to come tell us to leave,” says Patel. League games and unofficial tournaments take place on the weekends, but unfortunately, says Patel, not everyone on the team can play. In cricket games, there are two teams of 11 players. Much like in baseball, there’s a batter (two, in fact, called the striker and the non-striker), a bowler (like a pitcher), and a wicket-keeper (essentially, the catcher). The bowler throws the ball to the batter who tries to hit the ball so that each batter (standing at separate ends of the 22-yard-long central field area called the pitch) has time to run to the other end. If both batters make it to the crease of the pitch, a run has been scored. Each team is trying to score the most
runs. The batter is out if a fielder catches the ball, just as in baseball, or if the bowler manages to hit the wicket (a wooden post behind the batter like home plate) when throwing the ball to the batter. One major difference is crucial to the length of the game. While baseball games are determined by innings, cricket games are determined by bowls. In the long version of cricket, each team receives 240 bowls, which can make the game last six to seven hours. But during short games, each team gets just 120 bowls, cutting the length of the game in half. Patel says he prefers the shorter version because it’s more exciting. “It has more action,” he says. “Because it’s a shorter game, you want to score the most you can in the time frame you have.” Patel says he doesn’t know much about baseball, but he does watch it once in a while. He admits he’s more of a football fan but wouldn’t mind trying baseball. “I am sort of a good bowler,” says Patel, “so I would like to throw some pitches and see how it goes.” There are no U.S.-born players on his team, but Patel says he knows cricket is becoming more popular in the United States because he sees it happening locally. “These days, I can’t even keep up with how many teams we have in Jersey City,” he says. Sometimes, his team even has trouble finding an open field in Lincoln Park. “We have to get there early,” says Patel. Otherwise, the pitch that the department of public works made for them last season might be taken. Despite the occasional inconvenience, Patel says playing cricket in Jersey City is still better than playing it in India. “We didn’t have that much open space,” says Patel. But playing in Lincoln Park is a pleasure, he says. “It feels like home, and it feels good.”—JCM
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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Movi e
maniacs
JC’S INDIE FILM SCENE BY LAUREN BARBAGALLO
Our town’s indie filmmakers are a diverse bunch who are telling unique and compelling stories—some fact, some fiction. Here’s a look at a few members of this creative community who call Jersey City home.
STEPHANIE DANIELS AND MARK SMITH Long-time Paulus Hook residents, they are a husband-andwife team. Daniels is an Emmy-award-winning pro-
ducer who worked for major cable channels (USA, Syfy) and was creative director for now-defunct TRIO, and Smith is an in-demand director of photography for TV and film. A decade ago, they launched o7 Films, a full-service film company that they operate out of the ground floor of their 1865 brownstone. Now, cable companies come to them to bring documentary projects to life. o7 Films also produces its own docs and short films. Favorite recent
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CLOCKWISE: MEGHNA DAMANI, JOHN T. TRIGONIS, STEPHANIE DANIELS AND PETE SEEGER. PHOTO BY MARK SMITH
PHOTO BY TATSURO NISHIMURA
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BILL SORVINO projects include “Worlds of Sound: The Ballad of Folkways” for the Smithsonian Channel, which tells the story of deceased record label founder Moses Asch, revealed through first-person accounts of people like Pete Seeger. The hours Daniels spent on the phone with him were “a personal highlight of my life.” “Talking through Walls” was a PBS documentary about a New Jersey Muslim community’s attempt to build a mosque in the aftermath of 9/11. And then there’s “Finding Amelia,” a story for the Discovery Channel that the duo created with the The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery, which examines new evidence that could uncover what happened to the famous aviator. Is there a common thread that links their projects? “First person and great characters,” say Daniels and Smith, avoiding voiceover and letting their subjects speak for themselves. The two are active in Jersey City. Daniels sits on the board of the Historic Paulus Hook Association as parks chair. They also produced a commercial for last year’s Board of Education candidates Suzanne Mack, Marvin Adames, and Carol Harrison Arnold.
MEGHNA DAMANI As a practicing Buddhist, Newport resident Meghna Damani believes in karma, that your own actions are responsible for your suffering. You have an opportunity, she believes, to remove your suffering by doing good. She asked herself, “How can I take my pain and create something useful and beautiful?” From this quest, a filmmaker emerged. Damani arrived from Mumbai in 2002 with an H4 (dependent spouse) visa, unable to work legally despite her background in marketing, journalism, and modeling. Depending on her husband for money and connections left Damani feeling isolated and depressed. One day she decided to share her story in the hope of helping other women in her situation. She had never held a camera before, but she took a one-week film editing class at the New School for Social Research in New York and made the documentary film “Hearts Suspended,” in which she and other South Asian women share their experiences of being in this country without the right to earn money. Damani went on to complete the documentary film program at the New School and has spent the past three years filming a new
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project. “Many of our friends are moving back to India to have babies,” she says. “It makes me wonder, why are we here, what is our purpose in life and what are we all looking for?” She’s also busy writing and running a support group for South Asian women in Jersey City. Damani’s belief in karma has played out in her own life. The day after she picked up her camera, her green card arrived in the mail. Now she’s working full throttle on her film career.
JOHN T. TRIGONIS If you ever hang out at the Warehouse Café in the Powerhouse Arts District, then you most likely recognize filmmaker John Trigonis. The Weehawken native, who now lives in the Heights, is a regular at the café where his girlfriend and sometime-collaborator, Marinell Montales, works. You can often see him there working on his poetry; he’s been writing for 20 years, and in 2007 was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. That is, when he’s not working as an adjunct professor at several universities (including NJCU, where he teaches writing) or writing, editing, and directing his short films. His latest short film, “Cerise,” the story of a former spelling bee champ who grows up to be haunted by the word that took him down, reflects his real-life obsession with the written word. Trigonis and Montales brought it to the Cannes Film Festival for the Court Metrages, a networking opportunity for directors to present their short films. To get the film made, Trigonis relied on a team of friends and collaborators, as well as strangers. He raised a significant amount of money by soliciting sponsors online at IndieGoGo.com. He’s now writing a how-to guide on crowdfunding for other DIY filmmakers that should be released in late 2012. Like Damani, Trigonis’s artistic life was borne out of an a-ha moment. It came about through a tae-kwon-do class at NJCU, where he was an undergrad. He’d always been a shy kid, “but that class taught me how to let go, how to yell and to express myself,” Trigonis says. He went on to found NJCU’s poetry club and has been writing and putting projects together ever since. He shot all of “Cerise” in Jersey City, as well as a recent music video for folk singer Pepper Coat. The Warehouse Café, too,
SAM BOROWSKI
LEON GAST
shows up often in Trigonis’s work. “I love Jersey City,” he says. “Ever since I moved here it’s become a huge part of my growth.”
BILL SORVINO AND SAM BOROWSKI Jersey City native Bill Sorvino grew up on Glenwood Avenue, close to the Landmark Loew’s Jersey Theatre in Journal Square. Years later, he would come back to this theater for the opening night of the inaugural Golden Door International Film Festival, which he created to celebrate two of his biggest passions—movies and his hometown. “I love Jersey City,” he says. “I want to bring together old Jersey City and new and think that with this festival, maybe I’ve done that.” Sam Borowski directed the festival’s opening night movie “Nightclub.” Borowski hails from Staten Island, but he often took members of his family to the movies in Jersey City and feels as if it’s his “adopted hometown.” His film, which is the story of a bunch of University of Southern California students who convert a retirement home into a nightclub, won most major awards at the festival. Sorvino made a cameo appearance in the film, in which his uncle, actor Paul Sorvino, starred alongside Ernest Borgnine, Sally Kellerman, Natasha Lyonne, and Mickey Rooney. Both Paul Sorvino and Leon Gast received lifetime achievement awards at the festival. Unlike his uncle, Bill caught the acting bug a little later in life. While his last name can certainly help open doors, Bill studied for years at the William Esper Studio in New York and built his resume working on independent films. This year he starts work on three feature-length projects and has big plans for this year’s film festival, hoping to bring in more workshops and seminars. “It’s not just a celebration of great films,” says Sorvino, “but a celebration of the great community of Jersey City as well.”
LEON GAST On a cold January morning, Jersey City native Leon Gast is getting ready to leave his home in Woodstock, NY, and head into Manhattan with his film crew. The director is hard at work on his new documentary on the Filipino boxing champion Manny Pacquiao. Gast, a devout follower of the sport, will be meeting with the former New York State boxing commissioner, a head and trauma specialist, and a trial lawyer as he seeks out the “connect-
ing scenes” he needs to finish this film. He’s been working on it since October of 2010, following Pacquiao as he trains in L.A. and works back home in the Phillipines, where he is a congressman. What he needs, Gast says, is a powerful ending to “this film that I want to be about so many things.” Pacquiao is, he says, “a great guy, the kind of guy who never says no to anyone.” Sounds like Gast himself. The Academy Award winning director was the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Golden Door Film Festival, and was, says Bill Sorvino, “so open and low-key and available to people and filmmakers who wanted to speak with him.” While Gast is anxious to move on to his next film (likely a documentary on rock promoter Bill Graham and the Fillmores), he also wants to keep filming as much of Pacquiao as he can, in advance of his hugely anticipated fight with Floyd Mayweather, slated for sometime this year. He hopes to deliver the final product to Sundance at the end of the year. In 1996, “When We Were Kings” won the Best Documentary Feature at the Academy Awards. “Anyone who works in film or writes, they imagine it,” he says. The movie, about the “Rumble in The Jungle” heavyweight championship fight between Muhammad Ali and George Forman that took place in Zaire in 1974, was held up for more than 20 years due to legal and licensing disagreements. When he was just starting out in the industry, Gast would be crafting “his acceptance speech in my head, and I would be sure to thank my mother in Jersey City.” When his time did come, Gast forgot to thank everyone, but he did shake Ali’s hand before he went to the podium, and before Ali and Foreman would come and join him onstage. To this day, he and Ali remain close. When we spoke, Gast and his wife had just returned from Ali’s 70th birthday party in Kentucky, which was also a fundraiser for the Muhammad Ali Center. Gast made a special film for the event. At Sundance in 2010, fellow documentarian Morgan Spurlock presented Gast with the Best Director of a Documentary Film Award for “Smash His Camera,” the story of paparazzo and infamous Jackie O stalker Ron Galella. When he accepted the award, he thanked his wife, three children, producers, and editor. There are plans for more music and boxing documentaries, and most likely, more speeches as well.—JCM
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
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THE STUDIO JCM
PHOTOS COURTESY OF EVAN JOSEPH
Evan
Joseph
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EVAN JOSEPH AND EXAMPLES OF HIS WORK Talk about being in the right place at the right time. The digital revolution exploded on the photography scene just as Evan Joseph was primed to take advantage of it. But he’d paid his dues. From the age of 13 he’d been cutting his teeth on old-fashioned film photography. “My uncle Paul gave me a terrific professional camera for my bar mitzvah,” Joseph relates. “It was a completely mechanical camera without any bells and whistles and no auto focus.” It was a great way to master the technical aspects of his craft. He worked on his high school newspaper, learning how to shoot, publish, and develop in a dark room. At Vassar he majored in studio art, basically painting and drawing. “That was my primary talent as a kid,” he says. “I absolutely could not play baseball.” Whether it’s painting, drawing, or photography, Joseph has always been a perfectionist. “If I make a portrait, it looks just like you,” he says. “I have to get it all right. As a painter, sculptor, or draftsman, I was always interested in realism. I understand and completely appreciate abstract art, but my thing is realism.” Which lends itself to the high-end interiors and architectural photography that he specializes in and that you see in this issue’s “How We Live” section. Joseph, who is now 41, went on to get a Masters degree in interactive telecommunications at NYU. Translation: digital media. “I graduated into the dot-com boom,” he says. He went to school with a bunch of geeks who were building robots. Compared to them he wasn’t technical, but “I was always interested in what the technical could do to the creative part,” he says. “By necessity I had to learn this stuff, and I was never that interested in developer solutions.” After graduating from NYU, he went right into doing interior design shoots for real estate clients. “I was a photographer starting out in New York, and I thought that was the image I needed to maintain,” he says. “I didn’t want anything to do with New Jersey and couldn’t be talked into it.” Or so he thought. He and his wife were going to have a baby, he had artist friends over here, and one thing led to another. “I couldn’t believe that we could afford to buy a house here, just 10 minutes from Manhattan,” he says. They chose a Victorian row house in the Hilltop section with a lot of original details. But it needed a lot of work. “There was an African gray parrot in the living room that had been abandoned,” Joseph says. “It said ‘Ola!’” (The real estate agent found it a loving home.). Now, he and his wife, who is a writer, have settled into JC, with two kids, ages 5 and 6—and a thriving photography business. When Joseph was in grad school more than a decade ago, he wrote a story for Popular Photography magazine called “Welcome to the Digital Age.” He was on to something.—Kate Rounds Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012•
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DATES
space.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Family-friendly drum circle. $5 suggested donation, bring your own drum.
Want your event listed? Please email us at jcmag@hudsonreporter.com and put “calendar listings” in the subject line.
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ONGOING Creative Gro ve, Grove Street PATH plaza, (201) 547-6921, cityofjersey city.com. Meeting place, market, and art experiment. Every Friday from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. through Dec. 28, except Aug. 31. Free. Grassroots Community Sp ace, 54 Coles St., (201) 500-5483, grassrootscom munityspace.com. Various arts workshops, fitness events, business classes, tech help, Mommy and Me, etc. Held weekly and monthly. I n t h e D a r k E x h i b i t i o n, Liberty Science Center. May 28 through Sept 3. Explore cool, dark, and mysterious ecosystems; learn more about nocturnal animals, shade-loving plants, and enjoy hands-on activities and amazing dioramas. Free with paid admission. Hudson Pride Co nne cti on s Ce n t er, 32 Jones St., (201) 963-4779, hudsonpride.org. LGBT community meetings and events held throughout the year. Annual festival and flag raising in August to be announced. JC Slam, 54 Coles St. 9 p.m. sign-up, 10 p.m. start. Weekly poetry slam series held every Friday. JC Slam is a certified member of Poetry Slam Inc. $5 admission, $3 with a student ID. Live music at The Warehouse Cafe, 140 Bay St., (201) 420-8882, thewarehousejc.com. Country and folk music every Sunday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Jazz every other Saturday alternating with Saturday DJ Brunch every other Saturday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
O p e n M i c We d n e s d a y s, Boca Grande, 564 Washington Blvd., (201) 626-6646. 8:30 p.m. Weekly open mic welcoming all genres. No cover charge.
APRIL 1 N ot Yo Mama’s A p r i l Fools’ Fa i r, LITM, 140 Newark Ave., (201) 536-5557, notyomamasaffairs.com. Noon to 5 p.m. Twenty high-end crafters on hand for a chance to purchase one-of-a-kind items. Free. M a c b e t h, West Side Theater, 285 West Side Ave., (201) 200-2390, ascnj.org. 3 p.m. Actors Shakespeare Company’s final performance of one of Shakespeare’s most brutal and cynical stories.
3 LITM’s 100th Art Show, LITM, 140 Newark Ave., (201) 536-5557, litm.com. Art opening featuring the paintings of Gail Boykewich.
5 The Art House, Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. Five-minute open mic series for poets, actors, comics, and musicians. 8 p.m. $5 admission.
12 Korean Artists Group E x h i b i t i o n R e c e p t i o n, City Hall Rotunda, (201) 547-6921, cityofjersey city.com. 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
13 C o m m u n i t y R h y t h m, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., (201) 500-5483, grassrootscommunity
S a t u r d a y N i g h t S t a n d u p, The Attic Ensemble, 83 Wayne St., (201) 4139200, info@atticensemble.org, atticensemble.org. 9 p.m. The 5th Annual Saturday Night Standup, a comedy fundraiser. OTC Jazz Night, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., grassrootscommunity space.com. 9 p.m. to midnight. “On the Cusp New Music” presents a night of jazz music with various performers. $10 suggested donation.
20 B r e n n a n C o f f e e H o u s e, 583 Newark Ave., (800) 542-7894. 7:30 p.m. Jimmy Webb plays and show concludes with an open mic. Sign-up sheet at the box office.
20-22 E a r t h D a y C e l e b r a t i o n, Liberty Science Center, 222 Jersey City Blvd., (201) 200-1000, lsc.org. Meet live animals from every continent, check out the Trash Timeline activity, or plant your own sunflower in a homemade pot. All activities are suitable for ages 6+ and are free with paid admission while supplies last.
20-29 Blood and Oil, The Attic Ensemble, 83 Wayne St., (201) 413-9200, info@atticensemble.org, atticensemble.org. A new dark comedy, written and directed by Billy Mitchell.
21 JC’s Most Eligible, Art House Productions, Free. Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. An entertaining night of date auctions and performances to benefit Art House Productions’ play, premiering in June 2012.
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A t t i c J u n i o r S e r i e s, The Attic Ensemble, 83 Wayne St., (201) 413-9200, atticensemble.org, info@atticensemble.org. Final show of the kids series, VILLAIN: DeBLANKS, a fill-in-theblanks mystery. $5 for kids, free for parents and guardians. E a r t h D a y a t L S P, Liberty State Park, (201) 915-3418, folsp.org. Celebrate Earth Day at Liberty State Park. Events to be announced.
26 U p t o w n C r e w O p e n M i c, Moore’s Lounge, 189 Monticello Ave., info@uptowncrew.org. 8 p.m. sign-up. Poetry, music, readings, spoken word, comedy, dance, and more. $5 admission.
28 The Laugh To u r, Art House Productions, Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. 7 p.m. mixer, 8 p.m. show. Comedy Central’s Kyle Grooms launches The Laugh Tour’s second hilarious year. $15 advance purchase, $20 at the door. thelaughtour.com
MAY 1 E x p l o r i n g Fa e r i e L a n d s , LITM, 140 Newark Ave., (201) 536-5557, litm.com. A group art exhibition delving into myths, legends, and fairy tales.
3 The Art House, Hamilton Square, Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. Five-minute open mic series for poets, actors, comics, and musicians. 8 p.m. $5 admission.
5 “Sabor Latino” Cinco de Mayo, Grove Street PATH Plaza, (201) 500-5483. Noon to 5 p.m. South American-themed celebra-
tion featuring Latin music, dancers, and live percussion.
10, 12, & 13 Beauty and the Beast, J r., Art House Productions Theaterspace, Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. Thursday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 7 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Advance purchase recommended. $12 adults, $8 youth (under 18). $15 at the door.
11 C o m m u n i t y R h y t h m, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., (201) 500-5483, grassroots communityspace.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Familyfriendly drum circle. $5 suggested donation, bring your own drum.
12 Newport annual 10,000 r a c e, 100 Newport Town Square Place, newport10k.com. Annual 10k race along the waterfront with cash prizes. Registration at 7 a.m., race start at 8:30 a.m. Pa r k s & C r a f t s, Van Vorst Park, notyomamajc@gmail.com, notyomamasaffairs.com. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Not Yo Mama’s Craft Fair teams up with local parks for a citywide series featuring crafty vendors.
17 OTC Jazz Night, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., grassrootscommunity space.com. 9 p.m. to midnight. “On the Cusp New Music” presents a night of jazz music with various performers. $10 suggested donation.
18 B r e n n a n C o f f e e H o u s e, 583 Newark Ave., (800) 542-7894. 7:30 p.m. Chuck Brodsky plays and show concludes with an open mic. Sign-up sheet at the box office.
Hudson County LGBT p r i d e f e s t i val, Exchange Place, Waterfront Plaza, (201) 963-4779, noon8 p.m. hudsonpride.org
19 Ever ything Jersey City Fe s t i va l, Central Avenue. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. A 10-block festival featuring four stages of family fun and free music and entertainment. Rain or shine.
20 All The Wo r l d ’s A Stage, Congregation B’nai Jacob, 176 West Side Ave., (201) 200-2390, ascnj.org. 1:30 p.m. Actors Shakespeare Company presents a one-hour Shakespeare Sampler of canon favorites.
24 U p t o w n C r e w O p e n M i c, Moore’s Lounge, 189 Monticello Ave, info@uptowncrew.org. 8 p.m. sign-up. Poetry, music, readings, spoken word, comedy, dance, and more. $5 admission.
JUNE 1 The Te m p e s t, 285 West Side Ave., (201) 200-2390, ascnj.org. Dates and times of Actors Shakespeare Company June performance of “The Tempest” to be announced. JC Frida ys, citywide, (201) 915-9911, jcfridays.com. Art, performances, music, film, and JC Fridays’ business discounts. Presented by Art House Productions. All day. Free.
7-10 Annual Mainstage P r o d u c t i o n, Art House Productions, Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. June 7-9 at 8 p.m., June 10 at 2 p.m. $18 general admission, $15 students/seniors.
8 C o m m u n i t y R h y t h m, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., (201) 500-5483, grassrootscommunity space.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Family-friendly drum circle. $5 suggested donation, bring your own drum.
13 G r o o v e o n G r o v e, Grove Street PATH Plaza, (201) 500-5483, grooveongrove.com. Sirelo Entertainment takes over the outdoor weekly music series, “Groove on Grove” (held on Wednesdays throughout the summer) to bring a global vibe and a good time for all.
14-16 Annual Mainstage P r o d u c t i o n, Art House Productions, Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. 8 p.m. $18 general admission, $15 students/seniors.
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P h i l i p p i n e F l a g R a i s i n g, City Hall, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
OTC Jazz Night, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., grassrootscommunity space.com. 9 p.m. to midnight. “On the Cusp New Music” presents a night of jazz music with various performers. $10 suggested donation.
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Robert Piersanti Art Opening, LITM, 140 Newark Ave., (201) 536-5557, litm.com. Celebrated local artist Robert Piersanti brings his bright, bold style for a solo exhibition of brand new works.
Art House Summer B l o w o u t, Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. 8 p.m. to midnight. Celebrating the close of Art House’s 11th season of arts programming with
karaoke, Twister, summer fashion, and reverie. $5. 4th Annual Not Yo M a m a ’s B l o w o u t B a s h, Provost Street (between Second and Bay in the Powerhouse District), notyomamajc@gmail.com, notyomamasaffairs.com. Craft fair.
24 Philippine American F r i e n d s h i p D a y Pa r a d e & Fe s t i va l, Lincoln Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 7 p.m.
28 U p t o w n C r e w O p e n M i c, Moore’s Lounge, 189 Monticello Ave, info@uptowncrew.org. 8 p.m. sign-up. Poetry, music, readings, spoken word, comedy, dance, and more. $5 admission.
JULY 1
7 Eg y pti an Fe s t i va l, Journal Square, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.
10 S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBA.
12 Jazz For Lunch, J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Free outdoor concert. S u m m e r D a n c e Fe s t , J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Free dance performances and classes.
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Pa r k s & C r a f t s, Riverview Park, notyomamajc@gmail.com, notyomamasaffairs.com. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Not Yo Mama’s Craft Fair teams up with local parks for a citywide series featuring crafty vendors.
3 A b s t r a c t T h o u g h t s, LITM, 140 Newark Ave., (201) 536-5557, litm.com. A group exhibition bringing together a variety of styles of contemporary abstract work.
MLK Hub Concerts, MLK HUB, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Every Friday enjoy free performances at the hub. Performers TBA.
15 S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBZA
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J u l y 4 t h c e l e b r a t i o n s, citywide, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. Details to be announced.
S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBA.
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C o m m u n i t y R h y t h m, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., (201) 500-5483, grassrootscommunity space.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Family-friendly drum circle. $5 suggested donation, bring your own drum.
Jazz For Lunch, J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Free outdoor concert. S u m m e r D a n c e Fe s t , J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place,
(201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Free dance performances and classes. OTC Jazz Night, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., grassrootscommunity space.com. 9 p.m. to midnight. “On the Cusp New Music” presents a night of jazz music with various performers. $10 suggested donation.
20 M L K H u b C o n c e r t s, MLK HUB, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Every Friday enjoy free performances at the hub. Performers TBA.
22 S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBA.
24 S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBA.
26 Jazz For Lunch, J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Free outdoor concert. S u m m e r D a n c e Fe s t , J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Free dance performances and classes. U p t o w n C r e w O p e n M i c, Moore’s Lounge, 189 Monticello Ave, info@uptowncrew.org. 8 p.m. sign-up. Poetry, music, readings, spoken word, comedy, dance, and more. $5 admission.
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M L K H u b C o n c e r t s, MLK HUB, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Every Friday enjoy free performances at the hub. Performers to be announced.
P u e r t o R i c a n Fe s t i v a l & Pa r a d e, location and time to be announced.
29 S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBA.
31 S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBA.
AUGUST 1 G r o o v e o n G r o v e, Grove Street PATH Plaza, (201) 500-5483, grooveongrove.com. Sirelo Entertainment takes over the outdoor weekly music series, “Groove on Grove” (held on Wednesdays throughout the summer) to bring a global vibe and a good time for all.
2 Jazz For Lunch, J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Free outdoor concert. S u m m e r D a n c e Fe s t , J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Free dance performances and classes.
3 M L K H u b C o n c e r t s, MLK HUB, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Every Friday enjoy free performances at the hub. Performers TBA.
S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 5 to 7 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBA.
6 The Art House, Hamilton Square, Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. Five-minute open mic series for poets, actors, comics, and musicians. 8 p.m. $5 admission.
7 S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBA. K a y t H e s t e r A r t O p e n i n g, LITM, 140 Newark Ave., (201) 536-5557, litm.com. Bold compositions and strong lines create “paintings” that are actually entirely created with hand-torn masking tape.
9 Jazz For Lunch, J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Free outdoor concert. S u m m e r D a n c e Fe s t , J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Free dance performances and classes.
10 MLK Hub Concerts, MLK HUB, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Every Friday enjoy free performances at the hub. Performers to be announced.
C o m m u n i t y R h y t h m, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., (201) 500-5483, grassrootscommunity space.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Family-friendly drum circle. $5 suggested donation, bring your own drum.
12 E c u a d o r i a n Fe s t i v a l , Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 10 p.m. S u m m e r f e s t C o n c e r t, Liberty State Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Free music all summer long. Musicians TBA.
16 Jazz For Lunch, J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Free outdoor concert. OTC Jazz Night, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., grassrootscommunity space.com. 9 p.m. to midnight. “On the Cusp New Music” presents a night of jazz music with various performers. $10 suggested donation.
17 M L K H u b C o n c e r t s, MLK HUB, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Every Friday enjoy free performances at the hub. Performers TBA.
23 Jazz For Lunch, J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Free outdoor concert. U p t o w n C r e w O p e n M i c, Moore’s Lounge, 189 Monticello Ave, info@uptowncrew.org. 8 p.m. sign-up. Poetry, music, readings, spoken word, comedy, dance, and more. $5 admission.
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24 M L K H u b C o n c e r t s, MLK HUB, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Every Friday enjoy free performances at the hub. Performers TBA.
26 P o l i s h Fe s t i v a l , Washington Street between Sussex and Grand Streets, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.
30 Jazz For Lunch, J. Owen Grundy Pier at Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Free outdoor concert.
SEPTEMBER 4 Dreams of Flight, LITM, 140 Newark Ave., (201) 536-5557, litm.com. A group exhibition exploring the recurring theme of flight in artwork.
7 JC Fridays, citywide, (201) 915-9911, jcfridays.com. Art, performances, music, film, and JC Fridays’ business discounts. Presented by Art House Productions. All day. Free.
8 Pa r k s & C r a f t s, Van Vorst Park, notyomamajc@gmail.com, notyomamasaffairs.com. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Not Yo Mama’s Craft Fair teams up with local parks for a citywide series featuring crafty vendors.
11 9/11 Memorial Ceremon y, foot of Grand Street at 9/11 Memorial, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. TBA.
14 C o m m u n i t y R h y t h m, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., (201) 500-5483, grassrootscommunity
space.com. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Family-friendly drum circle. $5 suggested donation, bring your own drum.
15 The Laugh To u r, Art House Productions, Hamilton Square, 1 McWilliams Place, sixth floor, (201) 915-9911, arthouseproductions.org. 7 p.m. mixer, 8 p.m. show. $15 advance purchase, $20 at the door. thelaughtour.com
20 OTC Jazz Night, Grassroots Community Space, 54 Coles St., grassrootscommunity space.com. 9 p.m. to midnight. “On the Cusp New Music” presents a night of jazz music with various performers. $10 suggested donation.
22 B o o k Fe s t i v a l w i t h J C P u b l i c L i b r a r y, Van Vorst Park, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
23 Newport annual half m a r a t h o n, 100 Newport Town Square Place, newporthalfmarathon.com. Annual race for charity along the waterfront. 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Race time 8:30 a.m. Pre-register at runners-high.com
27 U p t o w n C r e w O p e n M i c, Moore’s Lounge, 189 Monticello Ave, info@uptowncrew.org. 8 p.m. sign-up. Poetry, music, readings, spoken word, comedy, dance, and more. $5 admission.
29 I r i s h Fe s t i va l, Exchange Place, (201) 547-6921, cityofjerseycity.com. 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
THE ARTS Call ahead or look online for schedules 18 Erie Galler y, 18 Erie St., (201) 369-7000, balancehair.com/18_erie_gallery/18_erie_gallery.htm
58 galler y, 58 Coles St., fifty8.com. 140 Galler y, 140 Bay St., (908) 296-7679, myspace.com/140gallery. 919 Galler y, 150 Bay St., (201) 779-6929, 919gallery.com. A b a t o n G a r a g e, 100 Gifford Ave., abatongarage.com. By appointment. A c t o r s S h a k e s p e a r e C o m p a n y, West Side Theater, New Jersey City University, 285 West Side Ave., Box office: (201) 200-2390, ascnj.org. A f r o - A m e r i c a n H i s t o r i c a l S o c i e t y M u s e u m, 1841 Kennedy Blvd., Top floor, (201) 547-5262. A RTBUILDERS, 193 Montgomery St., (201) 433-2682. Arts on the Hu ds on, 282 Barrow St., (201) 451-4862, webspawner.com/users/grigur. The Attic Ensemble, The Barrow Mansion, 83 Wayne St., (201) 413-9200, atticensemble.org. Beth DiCara Ceramics Studio, 11 Monitor St., (201) 388-7323, eveningstarstudio.net. The Brennan Galler y, Justice William Brennan Court House, 583 Newark Ave., (800) 542-7894, visithudson.org. T h e B r u n s w i c k W i n d o w, 158 Brunswick St., (201) 978-8939, brunswickwindow@rogersayre.com. C u r i o u s M a t t e r, 272 Fifth St., (201) 659-5771, curiousmatter.blogspot.com F i s h W i t h B r a i d s, 521 Jersey Ave., (201) 451-4294, fishwithbraids.blogspot.com. Gallerie Hudson, 197 Newark Ave., (201) 434-1010, galleriehudson.net. T h e G a l l e r y S p a c e a t G r a c e C h u r c h V a n Vo r s t , 39 Erie St., (201) 659-2211, gracevanvorst.org. Harold B. Lemmerman Galler y, New Jersey City University, Hepburn Hall, Room 323, 2039 Kennedy Blvd., (201) 200-3246, njcu.edu/dept/art/galleries. Jersey City Dance Academy, 107 West Side Ave., (201) 435-8943, jerseycitydanceacademy.com. Jersey City Museum, 350 Montgomery St., (201) 413-0303, jerseycitymuseum.org. Jo hn M eagher Rotu nd a Ga ller y, City Hall, 280 Grove St., (201) 547-6921, jcnj.org. Ke a ro n-He mpen stall Galler y, 536 Bergen Ave., (201) 333-8855, khgallery.com. The Kennedy Dancers, I n c ., 79 Central Ave., (201) 659-2190, kennedydancers.org. The Landmark Loew’s Jersey Theatre, 54 Journal Square, (201) 798-6055, loewsjersey.org.
Lex Leonard Galler y, 143 Christopher Columbus Dr., Suite 2, lexleonardgallery.com. M ana Fi ne Arts E xh ib itio n Sp ace, 227 Coles St., (800) 330-9659, manafinearts.com. N Y / N J A c a d e m y o f C e r a m i c A r t, 279 Pine St., (201) 432-9315, nynjceramics.com. P r o A r t, 344 Grove St., (201) 736-7057, proartsjerseycity.org. The Upstairs Art Galler y, I n c ., 896 Bergen Ave., (201) 963-6444. V i s u a l A r t s B u i l d i n g G a l l e r y, New Jersey City University, 100 Culver Ave., (201) 200-3246, njcu.edu/dept/art/galleries. W i n d o w s o n C o l u m b u s, Christopher Columbus Dr. near Washington St., (201) 736-7057.
JERSEY CITY PHOTO BY KATE ROUNDS A BROKEN PAY PHONE AT THE NEWPORT/PAVONIA LIGHT RAIL STOP SEND YOUR VANISHING JERSEY CITY PHOTOS TO JCMAG@ HUDSONREPORTER.COM. BE SURE TO WRITE “VANISHING” IN THE SUBJECT LINE.
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PHOTOS BY JENNIFER MERRICK MARTIAK
Edwards Steak house Full disclosure: When art director Jennifer Merrick Martiak and I had dinner at Edward’s Steak House, we took no responsibility for our actions. Owner and executive chef Daniel de la Vega chose everything in what turned out to be an elegant nine-course meal. A word about “elegant.” The food was truly of the first order, but the atmosphere in this popular neighborhood bistro is comfortable and down-to-earth. The bar was alive with convivial regulars, it’s OK to dress down, and staff couldn’t be more welcoming. We were served by Amy and Juan Carlos. General manager and beverage manager Tom Harris made sure we were offered the most appropriate wines. Whether you are a wine connoisseur or want to learn about wine pairings, this is the place to come. Dan started by removing the bread and butter from the table—you can’t fill up on bread if you’re going to go the distance. First course, a light, savory mussel soup with saffron broth. The first two courses were served with Fumé Blanc, a crisp dry Ferrari-Carano California wine. Next up was a cold seafood assortment, served on a huge metal tripod of crushed ice. It included clams, Beausoleil oysters from New Brunswick (Canada), kumamoto oysters, Indonesian crabmeat, seared ahi tuna, smoked salmon, and three sauces—a classic cocktail sauce, a Dijon mustard sauce, and mignonette, with red wine vinegar, shallots, honey, cilantro, cracked black peppercorns and chipotle. Even if you are not accustomed to eating from the raw bar, you should try this selection. All the shellfish was fresh and cool without a hint of “fishiness.” This was followed by a platter of jumbo lump crab cake with cilantro tartar sauce, thickly sliced grilled Applewood smoked bacon, escargot served in a pastry shell with garlic burgundy butter, and baked clams with breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley, basil, and lemon. Enter a new wine, a 2007 Muga Rioja, a dry, light red wine that goes well with seafood. Not one, but two salads followed. The roasted beet salad with napoleon of diced crimson and golden beets with goat cheese and mache lettuce in a sherry shallot vinaigrette with pistachio nuts came in a tidy, perfectly molded cylinder shape. A small mixed green salad featured walnuts, citrus, feta cheese, and red onion. On to the fish du jour—fresh halibut, delicately cooked with lemon, served with Indian cous cous, asparagus, and shitake mushrooms. This was paired with a Belle Glos pinot noir from California, a fruity wine that goes well with fish. Even though Dan suggested that half our fish entrée be wrapped up for lunch the next day, there was more: a porterhouse steak for two—a 42-ounce sirloin and filet mignon on the bone, sliced with homemade au jus—served with sides of creamed spinach and
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roast garlic mashed potato. Unbelievably, this came with broiled South African lobster tails served with drawn butter and fresh string beans. This was paired with a Silver Oak cabernet sauvignon. For the dessert course we moved from the upstairs dining room to the bar room; jazz musician Danny Bacher holds forth in this casual supper-club space. You may remember him from our last issue in which we profiled the “lounge lizards” of JC. This night he was accompanied on vocals with Dan’s niece, Nina Siegel, an up-and-comer who is starting to make a name for herself in New York. Oh, and about those desserts—a triple chocolate cake and a carrot/cheese cake separated by a mélange of mint-laced fruits, including raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries. And two beautiful, frothy cappuccinos. Dan has a great back story. He went from being a commodities trader on Wall Street to doing the thing he loves best: cooking, entertaining, and making people feel at home.—Kate Rounds Edward’s Steak House 239 Marin Blvd. (201) 761-0000 edwardssteakhouse.com
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BAJA/HOBOKEN "PAID FOR BY OR IN PART BY THE JERSEY CITY URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE PROGRAM"
104 14th Street (201) 653-0610 www.bajamexicancuisine.com
BAJA/JERSEY CITY
117 Montgomery Street (201) 915-0062 www.bajamexicancuisine.com
Baja offers a new experience in charbroiled Tex-Mex specialties. With the best mojitos and margaritas around and Happy Hour every day, it’s a fun place with a happening bar. Private parties of up to 60 can be accommodated in Jersey City.
BOX ASIAN BISTRO
CONFUCIUS ASIAN BISTRO
Think inside the BOX at our unique restaurant, which features the most popular dishes of Southeast Asia, such as Korean barbeque short ribs, Malaysian curry noodles, Sichuan shredded beef, sushi, mango duck, Chilean sea bass, and more. Experience this journey in our softly lit dining room, where great food meets great prices.
Confucius Asian Bistro is a perfect mix of ambiance, excellence, friendly service, delicious food served with an attractive presentation, large portions, and affordability. Stop in for lunch and take advantage of the specials or for dinner to experience a tasty meal in a serene environment.
176 Newark Avenue (201) 432-1670 www.boxjc.com
558 Washington Boulevard (201) 386-8898 www.abcpos.com/confuciusbistro
EDWARD’S STEAK HOUSE 239 Marin Boulevard (201) 761-0000 www.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.
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HELEN’S PIZZA
183 Newark Avenue (201) 435-1507 www.helens-pizza.com
Helen’s Pizza, a family owned restaurant, has been serving downtown Jersey City since 1968. Using only the finest ingredients they provide customers with the best tasting pizza, dinners, sandwiches, salads, and now a wide selection of homemade desserts. They have earned their reputation for the best pizza in town. Come taste the difference at Helen’s Pizza. Open seven days: Mon. – Sat. 11 a.m.- 11 p.m. Sun. 3-11 p.m. "PAID FOR BY OR IN PART BY THE JERSEY CITY URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE PROGRAM"
KOMEGASHI
103 Montgomery Street (201) 433-4567 www.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.
The Griffin Hath Cometh
FOOD
DRINK
"PAID FOR BY OR IN PART BY THE JERSEY CITY URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE PROGRAM"
IRISH AMERICAN PUB FOOD 15 DOMESTIC • IMPORT CRAFT • DRAFT BEERS 8 LARGE SCREEN TVs OUTDOOR BEER GRADEN INTERNET JUKE BOX 35 SEATS AT THE BAR
TAVERN PJ RYAN’S TAVERN • 292 BARROW ST. • JC 201.333.8752 • PJRYANSJC.COM
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Michael Anthony’s WATERFRONT RESTAURANT
DINING OUT JCM INTRODUCING EXECUTIVE CHEF BRYAN GREGG
CALL
tel 201 798 1798 OPEN 7 DAYS
On Pier Parking Courtesy Validated Parking (in Westin Hotel Garage)
www.mar-jc.com 502 WASHINGTON BLVD., JERSEY CITY
Patio Bar with Spectacular Views of Manhattan Live Entertainment Large Banquet Party Hall Can Accomodate all Functions
(AT THE NEWPORT MARINA PIER)
KOMEGASHI TOO "PAID FOR BY OR IN PART BY THE JERSEY CITY URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE PROGRAM"
99 Pavonia Ave. Newport Financial Center (201) 533-8888 www.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.
LA CONGUITA
351 Grove Street (one block from the Grove Street PATH) (201) 435-6770 www.laconguita.com
Asian Bistro . Sushi Bar . Full Bar Service 176 Newark Ave. Downtown Jersey City
A
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Next to municipal parking 2 blk from Grove St. PATH Station Tel: 201-432-1670
Open 7 days BOXJC.COM
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La Conguita restaurant opened in 1980. The small space held only seven tables and a small counter but soon became a neighborhood favorite with its authentic Latin food. Since then the restaurant has grown and looks a lot different but the food is the same. La Conguita continues to serve good food in big portions for low prices—simple but flavorful.
DINING OUT JCM
MICHAEL ANTHONY’S 520 Washington Blvd. (201) 798-1798 www.mar-jc.com
From the moment you step into Michael Anthony’s you can’t help but be impressed by the nautically inspired décor. High ceilings, boat-shaped bar, ten-foot sails for the indoor and outdoor bars, and waterfall walls separating the banquet room and restaurant enhance your fine Italian dining experience. Enjoy a cordial on the deck overlooking the spectacular Manhattan skyline. Join us for happy hour, dinner, or a private social event.
MORE
281 Grove Street (201) 309-0571 www.morejc.com
Visit the newest addition to the Grove Street scene, offering a wide selection of Thai and Japanese offerings, and more. Whether you stop by for a meal or take one to go, the experience will be satisfying. more is located across the street from City Hall.
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Edward’s S
T E A K
H
O U S E
LOCATED IN HISTORIC DOWNTOWN
239 MARIN BOULEVARD, JERSEY CITY
PARKING AVAILABLE CALL FOR RESERVATIONS 201.761.0000
www.edwardssteakhouse.com
NJ MONTHLY Top 25 Restaurants in NJ CRITICS CHOICE for Best Steakhouse
THE POINTE AT PORT LIBERTE’
2 Chapel Avenue (201) 985-9854 www.thepointerestaurant.com "PAID FOR BY OR IN PART BY THE JERSEY CITY URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE PROGRAM"
Drink up the ambience along with your favorite cocktail while indulging yourself with the great cuisine of this fine waterfront restaurant. This popular Jersey City eatery boasts unobstructed views of downtown Manhattan and The Statue of Liberty and offers outdoor dining in warm weather. Call about our Sunday brunches and private parties. Open seven days for lunch and dinner.
PJ RYAN’S
292 Barrow St. (201) 333-8752 www.pjryansjc.com
One of Jersey City’s newest hot spots, P.J. Ryan’s is the place to go for satisfying comfort food, great entertainment, and a fun atmosphere. For a laid-back experience, kick back with a beer and a burger while playing on an Internet jukebox or watching the game on TV.
PUCCINI’S RESTAURANT AND CATERING 1064 West Side Avenue (201) 432-4111 www.puccinisrestaurant.com
Excellent food, gracious service, and the elegant surroundings at Puccini’s are all you need for a perfect evening out. Chef Pasquale Iengo, a Naples native, creates authentic Italian dishes the way they were
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meant to be served and offers an impressive wine list to complement your meal. Expert catering is also available in two exquisitely appointed and expanded banquet halls, a perfect setting for your wedding or special event. Puccini’s Restaurant is open for lunch and dinner Tuesday through Friday and for dinner Saturday and Sunday.
THE RESTAURANTS AT NEWPORT J.C. Waterfront District www.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 of Jersey City, The Restaurants at Newport include 14 fine establishments: Komegashi too, Dorrian’s Red Hand, Raaz, Cosi, Starbucks, Hudson Café, Confucius, Bertucci’s, Azucar, Babo, Fire and Oak, Boca Grande Cantina, Michael Anthony’s, Skylark on the Hudson and Loradella’s, which is coming soon.
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RITA & JOE’S ITALIAN RESTAURANT 142 Broadway (201) 451-3606 www.ritaandjoes.com.
through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday, from 9:30 a. m. to 5 p.m. Free parking.
SAWADEE
A Jersey City favorite, Rita and Joe’s is the next best thing to Mama’s Italian cooking. This family-run restaurant serves delectable homemade dishes served in the comfort of a cozy and intimate dining room. On- and off premises catering are available.
SALUMERIA ERCOLANO 1072 Westside Avenue (201) 434-4604
Jersey City’s newest and most talked about Italian deli and market is brought to you by Chef Pasquale, who has delivered top quality to Puccini’s for more than 27 years. With a fresh menu that changes daily, Salumeria Ercolano offers delicious sandwiches, panninis, wraps, and salads along with daily, fresh-fresh mozzarella, and desserts. Whether you eat in or take it home, you owe it to yourself to make this your next stop for lunch or a take-home dinner. Quality catering for all occasions is available. Open Monday
137 Newark Avenue (201) 433-0888 www.sawadeejc.com
Offering exceptional Thai cuisine, Sawadee is a dining experience that will please both the eye and palate! Enjoy lunch, dinner, or a refreshing cocktail in an inviting atmosphere. Sawadee is conveniently located just steps from the Grove Street PATH.
SKINNER’S LOFT 146 Newark Avenue (201) 915-0600. www.skinnersloft.com
This long-awaited restaurant was created by the former owners of the popular Hamilton Park Ale House. A chic, loft-style eatery, it features a warm, spacious interior with exposed brick walls, high ceilings, and total attention to detail. It’s a perfect spot to enjoy a cocktail and a fine meal.
SKY THAI
62 Morris Street www.skyjc.com
"PAID FOR BY OR IN PART BY THE JERSEY CITY URBAN ENTERPRISE ZONE PROGRAM"
This new Jersey City eatery near Exchange Place serves traditional Thai cuisine in a warm and beautiful atmosphere. Enjoy a cocktail before dinner and get ready for an authentic Asian feast.
s ’ n e l e H PIZZA
Owned Family 1968 Since
OPEN 7 DAYS 11AM-11PM SUNDAY 3PM-11PM
FAST DELIVERY MIN. $15 FOR DELIVERY .75 DELIVERY FEE
183 NEWARK AVENUE, JC CALL OR ORDER ONLINE WWW.HELENSPIZZA.NET
201-451-3606
201.435.1507
82 • Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012
RESTAURANTS AT NEWPORT
Fine dining rises to new heights Enjoy some of the most popular dining in the area, The Restaurants at Newport Located on Jersey City’s Hudson River Waterfront, opposite Manhattan’s breathtaking skyline. From fresh seafood to Japanese delicacies, pub-style bar food, traditional Italian classics, and more... everyone can experience an incredible array of restaurant choices.
99 Town Square Place 201-533-8888 komegashi.com
97 Town Square Place 201-610-9766 starbucks.com
564 Washington Blvd. 201-626-6646 bocagrandenj.com
485 Washington Blvd. 201-610-9610 southcitygrill.com
70 Town Square Place 201-533-8989 skylarkonthehudson.com
558 Washington Blvd. 201-386-8898
535 Washington Blvd. 201-963-0533 cosi.com
555 Washington Blvd. 201-626-6660 dorrians.com
502 Washington Blvd. 201-798-1798 michaelanthonynj.com
126 River Drive Coming Soon!
560 Washington Blvd. 201-222-8088 bertuccis.com
495 Washington Blvd. 201-222-0090 azucarcubancuisine.com
1 River Court 201-626-6006
537 Washington Blvd. 201-533-0111 raaz.us
newportnj.com | newportrentalsnj.com
Jersey CITY Magazine ~ SPRING & SUMMER 2012 •
83
JERSEY CITY’S NEWEST
SALUMERIA ERCOLANO ITALIAN DELI
Puccini’s Restaurant & Catering
SANDWICHES • PANINI WRAPS • SALADS FRESH FILLED CANNOLI ESPRESSO • CAPPUCCINO
Hot, Fresh and Flavorful Menu Changes Daily
Mouthwatering Mozzarella Made Fresh Daily
CATERING FOR ALL OCCASIONS 1072 WESTSIDE AVENUE (Next to Puccini’s Restaurant) JERSEY CITY (201) 434-4604 FAX: (201) 434-4945 Free Parking • Major Credit Cards Accepted Open Mon.-Fri. 9AM-6PM Sat. 9:30AM-5PM • Sun. Closed Gift Certificates Available
Celebrating 27 Years of fine dining and catering, Puccini's has all the elements to make any celebration, special occasion or social event a spectacular success!
Recognized as one of Hudson County's most illustrious catering facilities with a reputation for Quality, Ambiance & Service.
Noted for it's satisfying traditional Italian cuisine, Puccini's uses only the finest ingredients — many of which are imported from Italy. In addition to our two banquet rooms, Puccini's is open for lunch & dinner Tuesday — Friday and for dinner on Saturday & Sunday.
www.puccinisrestaurant.com 1064 WESTSIDE AVENUE, JERSEY CITY • 201 432-4111 Ample Valet Parking • Gift Certificates Available Major Credit Cards Accepted
CONVENIENTLY LOCATED CLOSE TO NEW YORK CITY AND MAJOR NEW JERSEY HIGHWAYS.