New Jersey

The first thing that throws people off is the pickle. Not a jar on a shelf, not a…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 29

A cappuccino in a cave. A latte beside a wall of tropical plants. A lazy cat blinking at…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 29

A few steps off Old River Road, the lighting drops, the walls turn rough and sculptural, and suddenly…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 29

The first clue that New Jersey’s small towns take food seriously is that you can spend a morning…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 29

The first thing you notice is not a giant sign or some polished, made-for-social-media storefront. It is the…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 29

There is a particular kind of New Jersey confidence that comes from eating a paper-thin tavern pie at…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 29

Smoke first, napkins second. That is the order of events at The BBQ Pit in Hackettstown, where brisket…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 28

The hot dog in New Jersey is rarely just a hot dog. It is a ripper with a…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 28

The first thing you notice at Bagliani’s isn’t a gimmick or a neon sign. It’s the kind of…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 28

By the time most people are debating beach fries versus boardwalk pizza, somebody in New Jersey is already…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 28

The first thing that hits you at Jimmy’s is not some carefully engineered “vibe.” It is the feeling…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 28

At some point, every steak lover in New Jersey learns the same lesson: the places serving the most…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 28

The first thing that gets you is the window. Not the whole cathedral, not even the twin towers,…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 28

At some New Jersey hotels, the creakiest thing in the room is not the radiator, the oldest thing…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 28

A plate of pancakes lands on the table, and a propeller plane starts rolling past the patio like…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 27

There is a very specific kind of New Jersey summer dinner that starts with sandy ankles, a parking…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 27

There’s a particular kind of confidence in a pizza shop that sits inside a farmers market, keeps a…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 27

A ghost village where cranberries once ruled. A glacial lake without the whine of jet skis. A mountain…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 27

A cannonball came through this house nearly 250 years ago, and the wall still tells on it. Not…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 27

A train station parking lot is not where most people expect to find one of Central Jersey’s most…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 27

The first clue that New Jersey does cozy better than it gets credit for is this: in one…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 27

The first thing that gets you is the machinery. Not a replica, not a tidy “inspired by” setup,…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 26

There is a particular kind of confidence in a Chinese restaurant that has no need to reinvent itself…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 26

The first thing you notice is how little room there is. Summit Diner is not one of those…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 26

Somewhere between your first spoonful of arroz rojo and the moment you realize you are absolutely going back…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 26

You know a town is doing something right when the main drag looks like it was arranged by…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 26

A proper New Jersey cheesesteak crawl can take you from a century-old city bar with a poppy-seed roll…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 26

The first clue is the smell. Before you’re even thinking about parking, there’s that unmistakable barbecue signal in…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 26

May in New Jersey is when dinner plans start feeling a little more ambitious. You want the table…

By Duncan Edwards · Apr 26