Roasted Salmon, a new addition to Rita and Joe’s Menu
Salmon Cappelletti
Seasonings are Key to Great Flavors
By Sally Deering
Nestled in Jersey City’s Marion Section, west of Journal Square, Rita & Joe’s Italian Restaurant has been serving customers since 1985 when owners Rita and Joe Pane turned a “beer and shots†bar into a popular neighborhood eatery
Isabelle Pane and Rita PaneChef Stephen McCall of Rita and Joe’s
Fast forward to 2015. Rita & Joe’s celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, but instead of relying on the old standbys, Isabel “Izzy†Pane (Rita’s daughter-in-law) has made some changes to keep up with the changing times. She brought on Chef Stephen McCall, a 1999 graduate of the New York Restaurant School who, along with Izzy, has revamped Rita & Joe’s menu with a contemporary take on tradition. Rita’s signature dishes like Eggplant and Chicken Parmigiana are still offered, but Chef Stephen has created some new dishes flavored with carefully chosen seasonings and using all fresh ingredients. You won’t find store-bought pastas at this restaurant; everything is made fresh and to order. Continue reading Rita and Joe’s Traditional Italian Cuisine with Contemporary Flair→
Owner Luis Morilla Smokes & Seasons BBQ with Latin Flavors and Texas Style
Honoring his late Son’s love of BBQ, Morilla turns Grief to Sustenance
Â
By Sally Deering
Situated in the middle of Palisade Avenue on 51st Street in West New York, Louie’s BBQ Pit serves ribs, chicken, brisket and pulled pork smoked and barbecued in owner Luis Morilla’s secret seasonings. Morilla opened his eatery just five weeks ago and his take-out has already taken off.
 Luis Morilla, Owner of Louie’s BBQ Pit in West New York, with his Texas style barbecued chickensThe late Louis Morilla
Louie’s BBQ Pit has a simple menu that packs a wallop of smokin’ flavor in its dishes. It features Pork and Beef Ribs, Chicken, Brisket and Pulled Pork – smoked, seasoned and barbecued Texas style. There’s a Whole Chicken with Rice and Beans, a Full Rack of Pork Ribs with Rice and Beans; Beef Ribs with Rice and Beans; and Pulled Pork, Chicken & Brisket Sandwiches. Customers can order Family Meals like a Whole Chicken, 6 Pork Ribs and Rice and Beans combo; and a Full Rack of Pork Ribs with Rice and Beans.
On Friday, May 29, Jersey City Mayor Steven M. Fulop cut the ribbon at the Grand Opening of Raval Tapas Bar & Cocktail Lounge on Newark Avenue in Jersey City.
Jersey City’s “Restaurant Row†starts at Grove Street and moves west along Newark Avenue where bistros offer foods of many cultures. Now, there’s a new kid on the block – Raval Tapas Bar & Cocktail Lounge – where guests are invited to enjoy flavors of Spain.
Executive Chef Michael Fiorianti and Restaurant Development Group’s Geza Gulas, Michael Garcia and Andy Siegel, owners of Raval.
Raval Tapas Bar & Cocktail Lounge recently opened on Newark Avenue with Jersey City Mayor Steven M. Fulop cutting the ribbon at a Grand Opening ceremony and friends gathering for champagne and finger foods to welcome Raval to the neighborhood. Cuisine from Spain is the latest concept from the owners, the Restaurant Development Group (RDG), which also owns the Lucky 7 Tavern, and Satis Bistro in Jersey City.
Carpe Diem’s dining room features comfy chairs with a real working fireplace
On Hoboken’s west side right around 14th Street, the neighborhood continues to reinvent itself from industrial no man’s land to a thriving residential neighborhood with apartment complexes, daycares, dry cleaners, even a big chain supermarket. Still, it wouldn’t be a real Jersey neighborhood without a local pub where the food is tasty, the beer flows cold from the tap, and you can belly up to the bar to share a pint with your neighbor. Continue reading Carpe Diem in Hoboken brings the Neighborhood back to the Bar→
If you’re a falafel fan read on, because when it comes to a tasty falafel in a pita pocket no one beats Ibby’s Falafel in Jersey City where owner Adnan Kwara serves his own special recipe for the chickpea concoction that is dizzyingly delicious.
Adnan Kwara owner of Ibby’ s Falafel with his brother Firas
Syrian-born and New York City-raised, Kwara started making falafels back when he was a kid helping out in his uncle’s Greenwich Village eatery. He learned the business and when he grew up, Kwara opened his own falafel shop in the Heights section of Jersey City back in the mid-1990s. After a few months, Kwara moved his business to a storefront across from Jersey City Hall and in the 20 years since, Ibby’s Falafel has become a popular fixture in downtown Jersey City’s landscape. Continue reading Pita Perfect – Ibby’s Falafel, a Jersey City Gem on Grove Street→
Barge Inn Restaurant corner of 3rd and Monmouth in Downtown, Jersey City
WHAT JERSEY CITY RESTAURANTS USED TO BE
By Sally Deering
 Few Jersey City restaurants look like they did back in the day; and very few were around in the 1960s like The Barge Inn restaurant a little jewel in Jersey City’s crown. The Barge Inn serves Italian cuisine made from recipes handed down through generations. That’s why the food is so delicious – it’s authentic.
Owners “Bitsy and Linda Paldino with Chef Joey Marti
Owners Linda and Peter “Bitsy†Paldino run the restaurant which Linda’s dad John Marto opened in 1969. Linda remembers when Anne Polaro, sister to former Jersey City Mayor Anthony Cucci painted the murals depicting Italian scenes on the restaurant’s walls.
“Mayor Cucci was a friend of my dad’s,†Linda says. “I watched her do them; it took her two weeks.â€
 Downtown Jersey City can now boast a new jewel in its crown, a gem of a restaurant glistening on the waterfront like a pearled onion garnishing a NY Strip.
 Taphaus biergarten opened just a couple months ago at the eastern end of 2nd Street in Jersey City; you can’t get any closer than this to one of the most beautiful views of the New York Skyline and particularly the Freedom Tower. No dark corners in this eatery; instead, its family style tables in a large dining area and bar, and a menu of classic comfort food reconstructed by Chef Chris Nirschel. Continue reading The Culinary Bad Boy Ten Ingredients with Chef Chris Nirschel of Taphaus biergarten in Jersey City  →
 Like Sinatra, Maxwell’s Tavern is synonymous with Hoboken and goes back to the 1940s when the city was more working class and employees at the Maxwell House coffee plant would stop in for a brew and a bite. Although the bar looks very much like it did back in the day, General Manager Jay Donnelly says new changes came with the new owners back in March. You can now enter right on Washington Street (instead of using the side door on 11th) and there’s some beautiful art work throughout the bar area that flows all the way through to the back room where bands and other acts perform. The menu has changed, too.
 Whether grabbing a slice in the busy pizzeria on Central Ave or joining friends for a sit-down lunch or dinner in the dining room in back, Renato’s Pizza Masters in Jersey City offers the casual gourmet a delicious Italian experience.
 In the Central Avenue storefront customers line up for Renato’s classic pizzas and subs, and on a recent cold afternoon, the Pasta Fajioli and Escarole with White Bean soups were extremely popular. In the back dining room, which seats 55 very comfortably, the atmosphere is relaxed, open and classy with tables covered in white linen and white butcher-block paper and extremely attentive waiters stationed close by to give customers their best service.
A lifestyle and entertainment publication serving the Jersey City, Hoboken, Bayonne, Weehawken, West New York, North Bergen, Cliffside Park, Edgewater, Secaucus and Guttenberg Waterfront Communities
 Few Jersey City restaurants look like they did back in the day; and very few were around in the 1960s like The Barge Inn restaurant a little jewel in Jersey City’s crown. The Barge Inn serves Italian cuisine made from recipes handed down through generations. That’s why the food is so delicious – it’s authentic.
gem of a restaurant glistening on the waterfront like a pearled onion garnishing a NY Strip.
 Taphaus biergarten opened just a couple months ago at the eastern end of 2nd Street in Jersey City; you can’t get any closer than this to one of the most beautiful views of the New York Skyline and particularly the Freedom Tower. No dark corners in this eatery; instead, its family style tables in a large dining area and bar, and a menu of classic comfort food reconstructed by Chef Chris Nirschel. 
Like Sinatra, Maxwell’s Tavern is synonymous with Hoboken and goes back to the 1940s when the city was more working class and employees at the Maxwell House coffee plant would stop in for a brew and a bite. Although the bar looks very much like it did back in the day, General Manager Jay Donnelly says new changes came with the new owners back in March. You can now enter right on Washington Street (instead of using the side door on 11th) and there’s some beautiful art work throughout the bar area that flows all the way through to the back room where bands and other acts perform. The menu has changed, too.
 Whether grabbing a slice in the busy pizzeria on Central Ave or joining friends for a sit-down lunch or dinner in the dining room in back, Renato’s Pizza Masters in Jersey City offers the casual gourmet a delicious Italian experience.
 In the Central Avenue storefront customers line up for Renato’s classic pizzas and subs, and on a recent cold afternoon, the Pasta Fajioli and Escarole with White Bean soups were extremely popular. In the back dining room, which seats 55 very comfortably, the atmosphere is relaxed, open and classy with tables covered in white linen and white butcher-block paper and extremely attentive waiters stationed close by to give customers their best service.