Say you’re going to a costume party, maybe for Halloween. Sure, you can go to one of the big-box party stores or the pop-up Halloween shops. You can buy the 500th Elsa costume (from Disney’s Frozen) that they’ve sold that week, and look just like everyone else as you glide around in your scratchy, cheap, … Continue reading Couture Costumes
(Covid Update Dec 2021 – in business) In the 1980’s, sculptor J. Seward Johnson created a plan for a contemporary sculpture museum in Hamilton, NJ. He purchased the land that had housed the NJ State Fairgrounds, and by the 1990’s “The Grounds for Sculpture” was a thriving public indoor/outdoor art museum. In 2000, Johnson opened … Continue reading Artful Dining
Trentonians Peter Hobday and Tom Moyer have always had impeccable taste in art, home goods, and collectibles. So when they opened their own shop in nearby Bordentown, Trentonians flocked down to visit them and purchase gifts and home decor (and to have their art framed by Tom). Shoppe 202 is an eclectic storefront, filled with … Continue reading Singular Shopping
In 2010, Mercer County merged 5 separate parks into the “Mercer Meadows, a 1,619 acre utopian park for walking, cycling, and wildlife observation. Primarily consisting of acres upon acres of wildflower meadows, it’s a beautiful place for an easy stroll or a relatively flat ride through some very pretty terrain. The heart of Mercer Meadows is … Continue reading Pole Tree Pasture
I work in a pretty big office, and folks are always bringing in leftovers, sweets, and sundry confections to leave in the kitchenette. It is sometimes a challenge to resist temptation, but I do pretty well. That all changed a few months ago, when brown cardboard boxes started showing up with intoxicating baked goods: sticky … Continue reading Just Peachy
If you need to get out of town quickly, there’s nothing like having a convenient airport. Trenton is blessed to have our own “hidden airport,” the Trenton Mercer Airport, just a 15 minute drive from downtown. Sure, it’s essentially a bus terminal with planes, but it’s a great deal and a terrific way to save … Continue reading Discount Departure
Several weeks ago, I stepped into Championship Sports Bar and Grill (“No Sports, No Grill“) for a drink. I noticed behind the cash register were two large containers of an intoxicating-looking green liquor. “Is it absinth?” I queried Griffin, my bartender. “No,” he replied, “It is pickle juice. Trenton artisanal pickle juice.” Of course, this was an … Continue reading In a Pickle… or a Jam
It is good to have somewhere to take a date. You probably want something not too stuffy and formal, but not too relaxed either. The food should be very good, even a little fancy, yet offer a variety of options for any palate. And probably, since you are aiming to impress, you might consider some … Continue reading Date Night Delicacies
Sometimes, you need to escape to something over-priced, pretentious, and utterly scrumptious. And on those days, you’d better get in the car and go to Brick Farm Market.
Brick Farm Market is located in the Malek Chevrolet Building (a 1930’s brick auto-repair shop) in the center of Hopewell. It is about a 30 minute drive from Trenton. A beautifully renovated establishment, they are part farm market (from their sister farm, Double Brook Farm), part bakery, part coffee shop, part butcher, part cheese shop, and part deli. It’s a little bit like walking into the cafe shop of a Whole Foods, only the food is superior, the ambiance is nicer, and the prices are (believe it or not) slightly higher. Is it worth it? Occasionally.
Randy Ellis is best known in the Trenton area as “Randy Now,” the infamous talent booker, promoter, DJ, and bouncer of City Gardens. In the 1980’s and ’90’s, he booked talent such as REM, Green Day, Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails, Iggy Pop, and The Ramones into this popular Trenton rock and roll establishment. (Jon Stewart … Continue reading A Hoarder’s Rock-and-Roll Cave
Sometimes, you run out of ground sumac, or find yourself desperately seeking that shallot-salt you know you had stashed in the back of the cupboard. When that happens, you can always see if Trenton’s Broad Street Imports is open–but if it isn’t you’ll find yourself driving up to Princeton to visit Savory Spice Shop. Savory … Continue reading ‘Tis the Season(ing)
There is ice cream worth making a drive for. There is ice cream worth eating in the winter. And then there is ice cream worth shoving your firstborn child out of the way so that you can get the final spoonful. Princeton’s The Bent Spoon is all of the above.
(Covid Update Dec 2021 – in business) Cafe Antonio is really two restaurants. Step left when you walk inside, and you’ll be taken to a charming (if a little chintzy) old-style red-sauce Italian restaurant with formal service. Step right, and you’ll enter a plain and unembellished pizza parlor, where you order at the counter. Depending … Continue reading A Restaurant Divided
We have never been to Guatemala, though living in Trenton it often feels like Guatemela has come to us. After all, this city has the 6th largest Guatemalan population in the U.S., according to the most recent census. If you’re lucky enough to live in Trenton these days, you’re used to seeing Guatemalan bakeries, which … Continue reading Cakes across the city
When a friend told us that we had to go to Ewing and order the “Falafel Pie” at Little Moe’s Pizza and Grill, we were skeptical. Perhaps we were imagining it wrong–thinking this would be a regular pizza (red sauce and cheese) dotted with falafel as though it were sausage. Or perhaps the falafel would be sliced … Continue reading Franken-Pie
If you like to drink your coffee in a hip, buzzing cafe, then you may need to head over to Princeton. There, you’ll find one of our favorite coffee shops, Small World Coffee. Small World is a Princeton fixture (in fact, there are actually two of them, one on Nassau and one on Witherspoon, though … Continue reading It’s a Small World
Trenton (and its surrounding environs) has a lot of terrific places to get food, from the in-town grocery stores (Food Bazaar and Supreme) to the official Trenton Farmers Market (technically not in Trenton) and the many many many specialty vendors. But it remains a town with so-called “food deserts” (places that lack access to fresh … Continue reading Greening the Parking Lot
Imagine if there were an Italian restaurant, perhaps in Trenton’s old Chambersburg neighborhood, and it were frozen in time for 30 years. There’d still be the same linoleum on the floor, the same wood paneling and fading wallpaper, the same staff, the same food, the same pictures on the wall, and the same people patronizing … Continue reading Nostal-Chick (and Nello’s)
Once upon a time, Trenton housed a very well-regarded Bagel Shop on South Broad Street, run by the entrepreneurial TC Nelson (now the proprietor of Trenton Social). Since the closing of that shop in 2003, downtown Trenton has been bagel-less. Sure, you can get bagels at one of any number of Dunkin’ Donuts franchises–but those … Continue reading The Bagels Are Back
In the 1800’s, America relied upon canals (and the towpaths that ran alongside them) as a vital link in our transportation infrastructure. Until they were made obsolete by the rise of the railroad, canals provided one of the best ways to move goods (in our region that was often coal) from one area to another.
Two historical canals flank the Delaware River, and each has been turned into a state park (Pennsylvania’s Delaware Canal State Park and NJ’s Delaware & Raritan Canal State Park). They have gravel towpaths along the entire way, making for easy and beautiful cycling (provided you are on a mountain bike or hybrid–it will be harder on a road bike). That’s 130 miles of canal towpath, all intersecting in Trenton or Morrisville. It’s an utterly incredible local resource. My favorite trip is this lovely ride from Trenton/Morrisville to Lambertville/New Hope and back. The ride can be about 33 miles long, or about half that if you cross at Washington Crossing State Park instead of continuing all the way.
I was taking an Uber ride home from the Trenton Train Station with a very sweet driver who said he was originally from Pakistan. I asked if he had tried Shan’s Restaurant in Trenton, and he said it was a favorite. But had I tried Afghan Kabob and Grill, he asked? And with that, I knew I had a tasty trip ahead.
It is hard to find a good source for Asian ingredients around the city of Trenton. For years, I’d been driving up to the Asian Food Market in Plainsboro, which is a traffic-filled ride along Route 1. It’s a market with an impressive selection, but poor service and a not-so-clean environment. So when I stumbled upon H Mart in Levittown, PA, I was delighted. It’s closer, cleaner, and features a surprisingly decent Korean food court style restaurant inside of it. A true find.
When people think of organized sports in Trenton, I’m sure many think of the Trenton Thunder (a highly successful minor league franchise) or the various sports teams that have attempted to occupy the arena (indoor football, hockey, etc). You probably don’t think of polo, however. Well that’s about to change. Only instead of polo played on horses by British royalty, this is Trenton-style polo. Played on bicycles by dudes (and ladies) from the local bar.
Situated on the far edge of Nassau Street in downtown Princeton, you’ll find a new store–Arlee’s Raw Blends. It’s a vegan cold-pressed organic raw juice company that also offers other health-conscious snacks (dehydrated raw mango and pineapple, raw kale salads, etc). It’s a pricy treat, but the quality is superb and the business was founded … Continue reading Organic Juices That Deliver
This is a charming (and generally easy) 6 mile ride which begins at Mercer County’s South Riverwalk Park (which sits above the Route 29 tunnel), goes through Trenton’s oft-forgotten Marine Terminal Park, through the Abbott Marshlands along a orphaned section of the Delaware and Raritan Canal trail, and all the way to downtown Bordentown. It’s a really charming ride, and it’s flat as can be for almost anyone. Plus, if you start in Trenton, you end up in Bordentown where you can get a nice bit of lunch before you cycle home.
Crown Fried Chicken is the dive that you expect it to be–or maybe even more so. There are two greasy tables in the corner, but most of the traffic here is take-out. The interior is dominated by a massive menu that wraps around the entire counter–and doesn’t mention falafel at all. (Eventually we did see a small sign in a far corner of the room that mentioned the falafel, but only after we’d eaten.) If you know to ask for it, they’ll happily dish up some falafel for you–and it’s pretty darn good.
Trenton is the home of tomato pie. So why would Hidden Trenton bother covering an out-of-town pizza place that doesn’t serve tomato pie? Because Osteria Procaccini offers something you can’t get anywhere in town–artisanal Neapolitan-Style pizzas using locally sourced organic ingredients, gourmet salads, and service that can’t be beat. It isn’t a Trenton tomato pie, but it’s absolutely worth a a visit.
Sayen House & Gardens is a charming estate and botanical garden located in Hamilton, NJ. While the house is now used primarily for weddings, the grounds are open to all and make for a delightful stroll on a nice day. The estate was created in 1912, when Frederick Sayen, owner of the nearby Mercer Rubber … Continue reading Stop and Smell the Flowers
I loved art class in 3rd grade–I enjoyed sketching and painting under the gentle guidance of a friendly teacher. But somehow in adulthood, I haven’t given myself as many opportunities to make visual art as I’d like. Now that’s changing, with Art Chill Night at Championship Sports Bar & Grill. Every Monday night at 8pm, this … Continue reading Drinking While Drawing
There are many great ways to tour the hidden parts of Trenton. Everyone loves the Mill Hill House Tour, or the tours sponsored by The Contemporary Victorian Townhouse Museum. And of course, we’re particularly fond of our own self-guided tour of the battles of Princeton and Trenton. But one of my favorite new ways to take in … Continue reading Social Cycling
On May 16, 2015, we’ll be joining the Trenton Council of Civic Associations for a “small plate” restaurant crawl through Chambersburg, sampling the best of the Latino Revival, as well as some of the area’s wondrous Italian food and richly flavored Jamaican cuisine. Each of the twelve restaurants we will visit will be serving a special menu of appetizer sized small plates (for $3-$5), featuring the best of their menu. Tickets to the event are $10/adult at the day of the event, and $7 in advance (kids under 12 can get a free ticket with the purchase of an adult ticket–and uniformed police, fire, EMS, and Dept of Corrections officers will also be given free tickets). Tickets will give you parking assistance, a guidebook and map of the restaurants, and access to those special small plates. You can explore on your own or travel as a group, and you can visit the restaurants for lunch and dinner anytime between 11AM-8PM. Any profits from ticket sales will be donated to a local charity. If you haven’t tried gooey pupusas, pillowy sopes and huaraches, fragrant callaloo, and luscious Trenton guacamole, this is your chance. It’s not your momma’s Italian food (except here, which is exactly your momma’s Italian food!).
Six years ago, a group of volunteers from Princeton Freewheelers Bike Club got together and started the Trenton Bike Exchange, which collects and refurbishes donated used bicycles, selling them at affordable prices (to serve low and moderate income families), and raising funds for the Boys and Girls Club of Trenton & Mercer County. The shop is run entirely by volunteers and by student interns in the Club’s Job-Ready program. It’s a great cause, but it’s also a great place to get an inexpensive bike.
Good Thai food is worth a drive. And you’ll be happy to drive to Ploy Siam, a breath-taking Thai restaurant in Robbinsville, NJ (quite close to the new Papa’s Tomato Pies location), about 15 minutes from downtown Trenton. Inside this unprepossessing strip mall restaurant you’ll find an oasis of relaxation and elegance. The restaurant’s decor is simply stunning; nicely trimmed walls with elegant art surround a central skylight which shines down on a small fountain leading to an orchid-lined stream. If you sit in the center of the restaurant (and I’d encourage you to do so), it’s like stepping into an elegant botanical garden with a Thai theme. Only instead of admiring the horticultural delights, you’ll be savoring the authentic flavors of Thailand.
Located right on the border of Trenton and Hamilton, Olde Liberty Tavern is a basic dive bar, but with Trenton-style prices which makes it a bargain for central New Jersey.
For years, Princeton’s high-end restaurants were stuffy affairs with old-fashioned menus; they were hardly worth the trip and certainly not worth the price. That all changed with the opening of Agricola, Princeton’s venture into the farm-to-table movement. A partnership with Great Road Farm (a 112 acre farm in Skillman, NJ), Agricola offers an ever-changing, inventive gourmet menu using fresh, seasonal ingredients. With formal service in a relaxed atmosphere, this is the perfect place for a dinner before the theater in Princeton, or a nice date. Or, if you’d like something more casual, their bar area is a spectacular addition to the Princeton options.
If you’re looking for a friendly diner to have a leisurely breakfast in downtown Trenton, look no further than Sunrise Luncheonette. This modest cafe has humble decor and decent food, but its chief selling point is the relaxed atmosphere. Step inside, and you’ll instantly feel like you’re a regular returning to a favorite joint, welcomed by the owner and greeted by your (new) friends.
If Roots has a guiding philosophy in their cuisine, it seems to be delicious, elegant, comfort. They serve food you want to eat, cooked to perfection and served exquisitely. Their ramen warms the soul, the vegetarian version served with a spectacularly poached egg, soft and pliable white with an oozing yolk, filling the bowl with tongue-coating richness. The dim sum and greens are astonishing little bowls of flavor and delight–with care and precision even in the plating of the smallest items. We’ve sampled many of the noodles (including the street noodles, the drunken noodle, and the pad thai) and they are superb. The sushi is served with perfectly seasoned rice and elegant care. The soups are rich and belly-warming, with waves of flavor that wash over your tongue. Even the house-made kimchi is astonishing. The only disappointments so far have been in the dim sum section of the menu–we loved the Shanghai buns, but the bean curd and vegetable dumplings were only middling, as were the soup dumplings (good, but we expect more layers in the flavor of a soup dumpling).
In continuous operation since 1921, Cohen’s is a delightfully old-fashioned business that is thriving. Within 500 feet of its original storefront, which was on 179 S. Broad), the shop is located in a squat and drab building near the courthouse. Off-street, private parking is available right off of South Broad. It’s a bleak exterior, but the moment you step inside you’ll be surrounded by elegance, cleanliness, and a peaceful energy. Cohen’s expert tailors (co-owners of the business) will quickly find out what you need, measure you, and spend all the time you in the world trying on various styles and options. They want to get your fit right, and they give you their full attention. Once you’re suited up, they’ll package everything up for you and have it ready for you to pick up a day or two later. If you are renting, you can pick it up in advance of your event, and return it to them shortly after it’s done.
In the heart of Lawrenceville (about 15 minutes from downtown Trenton), you’ll find WildFlour, an utterly charming bakery/cafe. Set in a beautiful old house, the bakery features a small service area for ordering pastries, cookies, breads, cakes, scones, etc, as well as a simply gorgeous cafe dining area, tastefully decorated and with beautiful natural light. They have everything that you could possibly want from a bakery (from gorgeous cakes to brazilian cheese puffs), and the cafe boasts a menu of crepes, salads, and sandwiches that’ll make you feel like you’re in Paris. What’s the catch? Everything, absolutely everything, is 100% gluten-free (and vegetarian).
But here’s the trick… depending on what you order, you might not notice that it’s gluten-free. I would put their danishes, cookies, cinnamon rolls, and knishes (oh, the knishes!) against any other bakery’s–they are simply among the best I’ve ever had. The danishes are flaky and decadent, I particularly recommend the nutella danish which is so lush it ought to be illegal. The cookies have just the right blend of browned crumble and buttery softness. The cinnamon rolls are unforgettable, delightfully dense, not too sweet, and with a nutty caramelization on top. And the knishes… you will swoon over these knishes! Light and airy, they are the perfect bite with an exquisite flavor that’ll transport you to a bygone era. They come in two flavors (potato and spinach with caramelized onion) and are only served on weekends or by special order.
The revived Warren Street–Trenton’s own “restaurant row”– used to host a wonderful coffee shop, Cafe Ole. This year, Cafe Ole shut down their walk-in restaurant, functioning solely as a catering business now. Ever since that closing, we’ve been lacking a place to go for a quiet morning cup of coffee downtown–somewhere that wasn’t a diner or a restaurant, but had a coffee shop feel to it. Now there’s a new kid on the block, the E. Front Cafe. Technically not on Warren Street, E. Front Cafe is is right around the corner (appropriately on East Front Street). The cafe provides a humble and cozy coffee shop vibe, a welcome respite from the hustle and bustle of downtown life. With a remarkably friendly staff, and an eclectic menu at “Trenton prices” (i.e., significantly less inexpensive than comparable joints in our neighboring towns), it’s a welcome addition to the Warren Street family.
E Front Street 2The best thing about E. Front Cafe is the atmosphere. It’s an quirky mix of tables and booths and odd little trays on wheels, along with scattered phrases written on the walls, a giant American flag, and a hand-written menu on white board. But there’s something delightful about it, and if you find yourself sitting by the window, you’ll enjoy your breakfast or lunch by a warm (though artificial) fireplace. It’s a nice touch.
