What’s one of Princeton’s high-end restaurants doing on Hidden Trenton? Mediterra is a pricey restaurant where a single entree can easily set you back $20-$35, and it’s customary to order some starters and at least a few glasses of wine (each priced above $10). Sure, their Mediterranean cuisine (with both Italian and Spanish specialties) is delicious–but it’s hardly hidden, and it’s certainly not a bargain.
But walk into the restaurant on a Monday-Thursday between 4:30pm-6:30 (or better yet, after 9PM), and bypass the hostess for the large communal tables to your right. There, you’ll be greeted with a “tavern menu,” featuring a delightful array of tapas. And during those wonderful hours, all of those tapas are only $2 each. After 9PM, many of their wines (typically priced between $10-$15) are only $7 per glass. It’s a terrific deal, and well worth a visit if you happen to be in Princeton at the right moment.
Dedicated Hidden Trenton readers have known for years about our enthusiasm for Papa’s Tomato Pies, a Chambersburg icon that recently joined the Italian flight to the suburbs (you can now find them in Robbinsville, NJ). But…much like the branches of the famed DeLorenzo’s Tomato Pie family, Dom (great-grandson of the original Papas founder) has finally founded his own independent branch of Papa’s Tomato Pies. And he’s picked a most unusual location–inside the cafe and food court of a Risoldi’s supermarket.
The modest shop is run by Abdul, an Afghan native who has had restaurants in Pennsylvania for the last 30 years. He previously operated his Jahan across the street, in what is now a tobacco shop, he later moved to Langhorne, and now he’s back. It’s a clean but very casual place, and in my visits they’ve seemed to cater to a reasonably large take-out crowd. There are a handful of stools by the window and maybe 6 small tables that seat 3-4. In the back, underneath a giant TV that is on too often and too loud is a traditional floor rug and pillows. You order at the counter, but if you’re eating in, Abdul or one of his relatives will bring out your meal for you and bus the table appropriately. Sure, the plates have chips in them and the atmosphere couldn’t be more casual. But once you take a bite, you won’t care.
Just a short drive from Trenton, in the middle of the Princeton University campus, you’ll find the Princeton University Art Museum. Like many University-affiliated art museums, it’s boasts an intimate (but broadly representative) collection of some of history’s top artists from around the world. Scholars and students use it for research, but it’s open to the public, and absolutely worth a visit.
Are you craving celeriac or fantasizing for fresh fava? Then walk over the bridge to the Morrisville Garden Farm Market, the cheapest place (nearly) in town for non-local fresh produce. Directly over the Calhoun Street Bridge in Morrisville, this place is so close to Trenton it might as well be part of the city. And it offers fruit and vegetables at prices that put the Trenton grocery stores to shame.
It’s only a thirty minute drive from Trenton to this tiny vegetarian restaurant in Bucks County, PA. The decor is unimpressive, but the place is packed (on a recent Saturday we were unable to get a reservation until 8:45pm). Why? This joint has some of the best vegetarian food in the greater Philadelphia and Trenton areas. This is hearty, rib-sticking vegetarian cuisine, and it’s absolutely worth the trip.
Set in an unassuming shopping complex just a few blocks away from historic downtown New Hope, this casual restaurant is a vegetarian’s heaven, and an omnivore’s delight. With a 100% vegan menu (that means nothing that had a mother, and no dairy or eggs either!), Sprig &Vine offers a wide-ranging menu of gourmet delights, and for prices far superior to what you would find for comparable food in NYC or Philly.
Trenton Social is the sort of hip, slightly upscale bar and restaurant that attracts a diverse crowd of Trenton’s movers and shakers. White, black, straight, gay, artists, artisans, performers, brokers and bankers… you’ll find them all hanging out at Trenton Social having a good time.
Looking for fresh, organic, local vegetables and fruits? Honey Brook Organic Farm, located in nearby Pennington in the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Reserve, is the oldest organic farm in New Jersey, founded in 1991. And they DELIVER TO TRENTON, dropping off boxes of “shares” weekly at a home in the Mill Hill section, where (if you live in Trenton) you can pick it up easily.
Let’s face it, there’s not a lot of great breakfast in Trenton. Sure there are some diners and other assorted options, but finding a place that goes beyond the breakfast basics (eggs, pancakes, omelettes, bacon) is rare. That’s what makes Cafe 72 unique. Despite it’s casual luncheonette atmosphere and bargain prices, it is aiming to higher culinary heights (if not always achieving them). What are we talking about? Think Belgian waffles filled with sun-dried figs and topped with blueberry chutney and cannoli cream, “cajun” shrimp and grits with onions and an egg, or portobello mushroom towers with sliced tomato, poached eggs, provolone, and basil hollandaise (pictured here). The menu is supplemented by a variety of specials; on a recent visit we sampled the fresh ricotta donuts with blueberry chutney (and boy were they fresh).
The Farmer’s Market is located just over the border from Trenton in Lawrence (though with a Trenton postal address), and is located near Trenton’s Polish enclave. It’s truly a first-rate farmer’s market, with nine produce venders, three butchers, several bakeries, an Amish market, several restaurants and a plethora of antique, craft, and gift stores. It is also a terrific value, particularly if you purchase 2nd quality produce (sometimes slightly bruised or just misshapen) which is offered by many of the vendors at an enormous discount.
