New Jersey

The smell shows up before the sign really does. Step onto Easton Avenue in New Brunswick and, somewhere…

By Duncan Edwards · May 31

There is a moment in New Jersey, right after sunset, when familiar places start acting a little strange.…

By Duncan Edwards · May 31

A swan-shaped paddle boat drifts across Orange Reservoir while, just up the road, a train whistle cuts through…

By Duncan Edwards · May 31

A proper Jersey hoagie does not arrive politely. It lands on the counter wrapped tight in paper, a…

By Duncan Edwards · May 31

At 8 a.m. in Clifton, you can walk into Rutt’s Hut and order a deep-fried hot dog before…

By Duncan Edwards · May 31

The first giveaway is the color. Not the gray-green pond water you half-expect after a hot Jersey week,…

By Duncan Edwards · May 31

A bald eagle named Uno lives just off White Bridge Road in Millington, and that is already enough…

By Duncan Edwards · May 31

A waterfall thunders behind old brick mill buildings in Paterson, giraffes graze a short drive from Cape May…

By Duncan Edwards · May 31

A wooden bear sits near Monmouth Road with the calm confidence of a bouncer who has seen every…

By Duncan Edwards · May 30

A barred owl blinking from an aviary. A wolf lifting its head before the whole pack answers. A…

By Duncan Edwards · May 30

A trucking depot driveway is not where you expect to run into a bridge from the 1730s. Yet…

By Duncan Edwards · May 30

The first clue is usually the cheese. Not the polite sprinkle on top, but the molten, slightly browned…

By Duncan Edwards · May 30

A black cat in a Point Pleasant Beach shop window has a funny way of rearranging your afternoon.…

By Duncan Edwards · May 30

A waterfall thunders behind brick mill buildings in Paterson. Ancient cliffs rise over the Hudson with Manhattan glittering…

By Duncan Edwards · May 30

On Route 46 in Warren County, cars roll past a state facility that looks, at first glance, like…

By Duncan Edwards · May 30

A giant glass bottle glowing in Millville. A former tobacco warehouse humming with artists in Jersey City. A…

By Duncan Edwards · May 30

One of the best meals in Manalapan starts in the most New Jersey way possible: pulling off Route…

By Duncan Edwards · May 29

There is a very specific kind of New Jersey family hike where nobody asks, “Are we there yet?”…

By Duncan Edwards · May 29

The first warning sign is the smell of warm pretzel dough sneaking through the doorway before you even…

By Duncan Edwards · May 29

A proper New Jersey hot dog run can take you from a no-frills counter by the PATH train…

By Duncan Edwards · May 29

The glow hits Broad Avenue before the food does. One minute, you are on a familiar Palisades Park…

By Duncan Edwards · May 29

The best New Jersey family road trip might start with skyline selfies in Jersey City and end with…

By Duncan Edwards · May 29

A mastodon skeleton stands on the second floor of a Rutgers building like it has been waiting patiently…

By Duncan Edwards · May 29

A copper fleche over Newark, a hand-wound clock in Shrewsbury, a chapel pulpit brought from France, and an…

By Duncan Edwards · May 29

There’s a brick-pathed garden in Port Murray where basil is not just basil. It can be lemony, spicy,…

By Duncan Edwards · May 28

The best New Jersey weekend trips often begin with a very specific decision: antique store or river walk,…

By Duncan Edwards · May 28

There is a full-size Volkswagen bus inside Brownstone Pancake Factory in Brick, and somehow, that is not even…

By Duncan Edwards · May 28

The best Jersey seafood meals rarely announce themselves with white tablecloths. More often, they start with a paper…

By Duncan Edwards · May 28

A giant cookie painted on a building is not exactly subtle, but that is part of the fun.…

By Duncan Edwards · May 28