Starting From Scratch

Tavern 5 offers local flavor in a family atmosphere.

BY DEBBIE WALSH

The design for Tavern 5’s sign on Newark-Pompton Turnpike contains a hidden message that sets the table for what’s inside: A family-owned restaurant where neighbors become friends and feel like kin.

For years, the Pompton Plains dining spot was known as Gilly’s Restaurant. The Carbone family purchased the restaurant in 2015 and, after extensive renovations, opened Tavern 5’s doors in June 2016. Their goal was to create a comfortable dining experience where patrons would feel at home.

“We knew we had a great town here, and we are all about this town along with family,” says Debbie Carbone. “We wanted to make the restaurant a warm place to come—almost family-casual, nothing too fancy.”

Once the Tavern 5 sign appeared, the restaurant’s name became a subject of customer curiosity. Some assumed Tavern 5 was one of five taverns. But the name actually derives from 5C’s Landscaping, a business that Carbone’s husband, John, started with his equally enterprising four young brothers when they were just in middle school. Five Carbones added up to five Cs.

“We were all over the place with names,” says Debbie Carbone. “We had a whiteboard with a thousand ideas on it. The one thing we knew for sure: We wanted the name to have meaning.”

The secret in the sign? If you look closely at the “5,” you’ll notice it largely comprises a backwards “C.” Family business savvy—developed from an early age—had led to the start of more family businesses, which made the first-time opening of a restaurant less intimidating.

Connecting With Customers

The family also considered multiple options with renovations. They initially thought they’d make minimal, cosmetic changes, Carbone says—a nip here and a tuck there. But once plans got underway, they decided to start from scratch.

Now a comfortable blend of old and modern design elements, such as Edison lighting fixtures and exposed brick walls, lend the interior a rustic, industrial vibe. An inviting bar area provides a perfect place to meet up with neighbors or catch a game on TV.

The Carbones connect with the community beyond Tavern 5’s walls as well. Fans at a Pequannock ball game might find Tavern 5 sponsoring their team, and the restaurant participates in community initiatives such as fundraisers supporting local school programs.

Its combination of local roots, community engagement and a great dining experience has led Tavern 5 to cultivate a loyal customer base.

When COVID-19 closed doors for a multitude of New Jersey restaurants, Tavern 5 survived because of its close ties to patrons and ability to adapt. Takeout orders kept the business cooking. Innovations like family meals and to-go cocktails proved popular with homebound folks living in Pequannock and nearby towns.

Always-popular outdoor dining at Tavern 5 remained sought-after when pandemic restrictions eased. People venturing out once again took advantage of open-air dining features such as a tent installed in the lushly landscaped outdoor area that provided shade and shelter when weather was not ideal.

A Just-Right Menu

Still, an attractive atmosphere won’t keep customers returning unless the dining package includes top-notch food and service. Carbone describes Tavern 5’s cuisine as seasonal American fare. Customer favorites include the T5 burger, T5 wings, stone-fired pizzas and a signature pork chop entrée.

The restaurant aims to please. When a revised, change-of-pace menu left out the restaurant’s popular arancini, management heard about it from customers, and the delicious appetizer of fried, stuffed rice balls made a rapid return.

“We’re not aiming to be that fancy, special-occasion restaurant that you only go to once in a great while because you do not want to spend that kind of money all the time,” says Carbone. “We have customers who come here multiple times a week.”

The restaurant’s carefully curated menu is small enough not to overwhelm but large enough to accommodate a variety of tastes. Meals are prepared using handselected ingredients but are not overly complicated.

Tavern 5’s longtime chef continues cooking up appetizing lunches and dinners, while many of the tavern’s staff have been there from the start and are an important part of the restaurant’s recipe for success. Carbone oversees operations to ensure that daily efforts match the family’s vision of making Tavern 5 a friendly place where people come to dine, gather and socialize. “We wanted a warm, cozy place where you are treated like our own,” she says, “a place you love to come to for lunch or dinner.”

Debbie Walsh has 30 years of experience writing for local newspapers, including Suburban Trends and other North Jersey Media Group publications.