Archive for the ‘Going Out’ Category

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Galicja is a pleasant, typical local bar with an eclectic clientèle that happens to serve draft pints of Pilsner Urquell, a really good Czech beer, for $2. On Friday evenings, free with the purchase of a beer, the owner puts out an incredible buffet of home made food.

PD’s is a small neighborhood bar, with a pool table and a few TV sets tuned to sports, that does a lot of things right. The owner, Clayton Rice, does the cooking, and it’s simple, fresh, and well executed. Don’t expect anything fancy in terms of decor or food, but if you want a good burger or a Philly steak sandwich (not to mention wings or a salad), you could do a lot worse than PD’s.

The society supports regular showings of movies during the year (usually at Cafe Ole). It also sponsors a number of film festivals: the Trenton Film Festival, the Not Quite Legal Festival (for teens), and a foreign festival.

It’s rare in the US to find a bar that delivers this combination of casual comfort and community connectedness. But the Mill Hill Saloon is one of the rare exceptions. Especially if you live in Mill Hill or Trenton Ferry, or work on South Broad, you can enter almost any night of the week and recognize a friend or neighbor. They’ll introduce you to their drinking buddies, and pretty soon there’s a bunch of you jabbering away about the news, the neighborhood, or whatever.

Every month, on the second Friday night of the month, there’s a mini party centered on Warren Street, between Lafayette and Front Streets. This is the center of the downtown revitalization area, and the Trenton2Nite events have contributed to this revival.

Café Olé – 126 S Warren St,Trenton, NJ (609) 396-2233
(Directions) (Website)
Just ’cause there’s no Starbucks in Trenton, doesn’t mean you can’t get a good double espresso short. That’s because Café Olé, one of the pioneers of the Warren street revitalization area, is firmly established, and serves a full range of espresso, cappuccinos, lattes, etc.

Café [...]

Some of the best guitar players who’ve ever lived show up a few times a year in Trenton. They perform in an intimate setting on stage at the Patriot’s Theatre in the War Memorial.

A city museum that’s actually interesting? Yes, if it’s the “Ellarslie” museum, located in a converted 19th century mansion in the middle of Cadwalader Park (a slightly faded masterpiece designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, better know for his other design: Central Park).

The “State Street Project” is the umbrella name for the programs at Passage Theatre that work with inner-city Trenton youth. It’s a huge part of what Passage does, much of it behind the scenes. When they mount a public production, RUN, don’t walk to your phone and reserve seats (they’re always inexpensive, and often free). Everything they do is worth seeing by kids and adults alike.

Few people outside of their loyal audience, and true theatre congnescenti, recognize that one of the best professional theaters in New Jersey makes its home in Trenton, and has done for more than 23 years.