By Sally Deering

 

Carpe Diem’s dining room features comfy chairs with a real working fireplace

On Hobokenâ€s west side right around 14th Street, the neighborhood continues to reinvent itself from industrial no manâ€s land to a thriving residential neighborhood with apartment complexes, daycares, dry cleaners, even a big chain supermarket. Still, it wouldnâ€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.

Carpe Diem on 14^th & Grand is in the hub of Hobokenâ€s 14^th street west side neighborhood, a corner pub with a plain exterior that hides a really nice wood-lined bar with a dining room that has a fireplace and a cozy upstairs pub room for private parties. Carpe Diem serves craft beers and a cuisine co-owner Joe Jones describes as “continental comfort food”.

The bistro opened in July 2006, an “American Dream” for owners Jones and Billy Oâ€Hara, two cousins who went into business together here in the states after growing up in Limerick, Ireland. Oâ€Hara came to the U.S. first and inspired Jones to join him. .

“Each time Billy came back to Ireland to visit, he would tell me ‘I think the states would be good for youâ€,” Jones says. “I got a Green Card in the lottery system. I was here for three months and loved it.”

After planting roots here, Jones teamed up with Oâ€Hara and the two cousins opened Carpe Diem.

If youâ€re grabbing a bite at the bar or in the cozy dining room with the fireplace, Carpe Diemâ€s continental cuisine reconstructs comfort foods and ramps them up a notch. For starters, you might try the Pasties which are seasoned Angus beef and potatoes stuffed in a braided puff pastry ($9); or the Southwestern Chicken Rolls with chipotle dip; Spicy Steak Bits tossed in a sweet soy sauce with jalapeno peppers; and the Coconut Shrimp with sweet chili sauce ($9-$14).

Soups include Hearty Chicken; and a Mushroom soup ($7); and for salads there are several choices including the Goat Cheese & Pear salad with mixed greens, walnuts, raisins, dried cherries, cranberries, brie cheese and carrots ($13).

Burgers & Sandwiches include Mini Burgers, you get four; Pulled Pork; Grilled Steak; and a Veggie Mash ($10-$14). Main Dishes include Fish & Chips; Shepherdâ€s Pie; NY Strip; Braised Short Ribs; and a Veggie Risotto ($14-$27).

On Tues, March 17 – St. Patrickâ€s Day – Carpe Diem will be serving a traditional Irish menu, so you can be sure thereâ€ll be plenty of corned beef on hand.  On a recent Monday, Corned Beef Egg Rolls, and Shepherdâ€s Pie Cake were offered as specials.

The menu also features a section of craft and name-brand beers on tap and bottled, and a list of sexy cocktails like the Skinny Margarita with agave nectar, orange, cucumber and mint; the Blue Jersey cocktail with muddled blueberries and lemons and blueberry vodka; and the Gatsby Seven with Tanqueray gin, apple juice and apple brandy.

Thereâ€s an extensive beer and wine list, too, and if youâ€re not sure what to drink with the Shepherdâ€s Pie or NY Strip you ordered, thereâ€s a suggested pairing of either wine or beer right next to the dishâ€s listing on the menu.

“Those are just beer or wine suggestions,” Jones says. “Iâ€m not a beer or wine guru, but sometimes people look for suggestions.”

Carpe Diem has a really nice upstairs room for private parties with bar and tables & chairs that line the walls, giving lots of room for dancing and mingling. And with spring just days away, outdoor dining soon resumes with tables and chairs all along the sidewalk.

A popular pub & restaurant, Carpe Diem, which means “seize the day” in Latin, was a term made popular from its use in the Matt Damon & Ben Affleck film DEAD POETâ€S SOCIETY.

“The name has nothing to do with the movie,” Jones says, clarifying the misconception “We just liked the name. If you look at the walls, theyâ€re covered with pictures of people from all walks of life that we believe have seized the day in their lifetime.”

Yes, Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong is on the wall, along with Marilyn Monroe, Amelia Earhart and countless more.  The owners posted this explanation on Carpe Diemâ€s website: “Carpe Diem Pub & Restaurant celebrates life and those bold enough to live it to the fullest. The phrase, roughly translated as ‘seizing the dayâ€, means eating, drinking and making merry for tomorrow.”

If you go:

Carpe Diem Pub & Restaurant

1405 Grand St, Hoboken

(201) 792-0050; www.carpediemhoboken.com

Hours: Mon-Thurs, 4 pm-2 am; Fri 4 pm-3 am; Sat 11 am-3 am; and Sun 11 am – 2 am

Brunch: Sat, Sun, 11 am to 3 pm; Tues, Mar. 17, St. Patrickâ€s Day: 11 am – 2 am

The post Carpe Diem in Hoboken brings the Neighborhood back to the Bar first appeared on River View Observer.

New venture marks McLoone’s tenth restaurant

The post McLoone’s Restaurants Announces a Spring 2014 Opening of “Pier House” in Hoboken, NJ first appeared on River View Observer.

Walk into Liberty Bar & Grill and you know immediately youâ€ve landed in a sports bar with the 26 TVs lining the walls and hanging over the large circular bar in the middle of the room. There are cozy booths for couples and parties of four, and high-top tables and chairs for girls and guys who want to get together for some serious flirting.
Owner Dawn Kaplan opened Liberty Bar & Grill in 1998 and it wasnâ€t until she had some guests in from Pittsburg that Liberty discovered its identity as a Sports Bar, she says.
“I had some guys from Pittsburg that came to Hoboken and wanted to start a Steelers Club and they would come in and watch the Steelers,” Kaplan says. “Thatâ€s what prompted us to become a sports bar. So many Steelers fans came in; we just kept it as a sports bar.”

Sports and bars seem to go together and thatâ€s why thereâ€s a TV everywhere you look. The walls are also adorned with pictures of entertainment icons like Marilyn Monroe, The Beatles, and Hobokenâ€s favorite son, Frank Sinatra.
Libertyâ€s menu features a terrific offering of Appetizers, Sandwiches, Wraps, Salads, Burgers, Entrees, Pizza and a Brunch Menu that includes Breakfast Burritos, Omelets and Specials like Eggs Benedict, Pancakes and French Toast. Libertyâ€s drink menu offers fine wines and an extensive martini and frozen drink list.
On a recent visit, I tried the Chavo Wrap which is grilled chicken, avocado, bacon, Pico de Gallo, and ranch aioli. It was absolutely delicious and well-priced at $10.50. I also tried the 3 Cheese Mac & Cheese served with chips, which is a total bargain at $7. The mac & cheese was so creamy and cheesy and out of this world yummy. The chips were homemade – crunchy and flavorful.

Thereâ€s a great burger selection and the Power Burger which comes with an egg on top, is very popular, Kaplan says. Liberty gets its burger meat locally from the butcher Truglioâ€s around the corner. The salads are great, too, and Kaplan says the Chicken Avocado Salad keeps customers coming back for more.
“We have good healthy dishes,” Kaplan says. “We make everything homemade and to order. We have recipes that are staples that have been passed down through the years like the Cajun Wrap, the Chavo Wrap and the Executive Sandwich which is marinated hanger steak, provolone, onion and horseradish sauce.”
Liberty Bar & Grill Sports Bar seats about 70 inside and now that spring has arrived, guests can also sit outside on the patio. And during the week there are drink specials:
• Mon: $5 Martinis
• Tues: $10 pitchers of beer
• Wed: Corona and Sangria Specials
• Thurs: All night Happy Hour

During most sporting events, Liberty runs specials like $3 Pabst Blue Ribbon beers; $3 Southern Comfort drinks or shots; and $3 Domestic Drafts. The Specialty Drink Menu has some terrific offerings like the “Hot Mess” which is Southern Comfort, Cranberry Juice, Lime and Lemon; and the Dirty Snowball – Stoli Vanilla vodka, Hazelnut and Crème de Cacao served in a chocolate-rimmed glass.

One of the best deals in Hudson, Liberty Bar & Grill Sports Lounge offers parents a real treat. When a parent or guardian brings in their child (under 6 years-old) and orders an adult meal, the children eats free. Thereâ€s even a special menu for the youngsters.
“We have more of a laid back crowd because weâ€re located uptown,” Kaplan says, “and there are a lot of families and kids here. Thatâ€s who moves in up here and thatâ€s who stays up here – a lot of kids and new moms. We want to get the families in here.”

On the weekends, Liberty Bar & Grill Sports Lounge serves brunch from 10 am to 4 pm which is a great way to spend a Saturday or Sunday afternoon.
“Just tell ‘em to come on down,” Kaplan says. “The outdoor patioâ€s open and thereâ€s a beautiful view of the Empire State Building from our patio.”

If you go:
Liberty Bar & Grill, Sports Lounge
61 14th Street
Hoboken, NJ07030
(201) 222-6322
www.libertybar.com

The post Give Me Liberty! Liberty Bar & Grill Sports Lounge – 26 TVs and Great Food first appeared on River View Observer.

 

Arthur’s Tavern Serves Delmonico Steaks with Old Hoboken Charm

by Sally Deering

 In a town where almost every doorway on Washington Street leads to an eatery, Arthur’s Tavern on the corner of 3^rd Street stands out as a Hoboken treasure – a throwback to the way the town looked back in the day with prices that are more than reasonable (a Delmonico hamburger for $5.95) and steaks and sides as yummy and comforting as your favorite dish on grandma’s table.
 
The tables decked out in red-checkered tablecloths first catch your attention as soon as you walk in the door. Then you notice the stained-glass lamps hanging from the hammered-tin ceiling. Add to that the mouth-watering aroma of sizzling Delmonico steaks and you immediately relax a little, ready to settle in for some hearty and delicious fare.

“We only serve Delmonico steaks,” General Manager Sami Nacer says. “The meat is good quality and always fresh.”
 
The Delmonico’s come in three sizes:  24-ounce ($23.95) 48-ounce ($40.95) and for the light eater, the Junior Sirloin ($17.95.)The menu has BBQ Ribs ($17.95) a Petit Sirloin & Shrimp dish ($18.95) and for sandwiches, there’s the hot pastrami ($6.95) and, of course, the burger ($5.95) made from the same Delmonico beef with a choice of cheeses (a few cents extra.) A standout on the menu, a sandwich that’s a throwback to when Hoboken drew more sailors than yuppies, is the Liverwurst & Onion ($6.50.) Where else can you order a liverwurst and onion sandwich? That in itself is worth a trip to this rustic Hoboken landmark.

All these wonderful ingredients – the atmosphere, the food, even the red-checkered tablecloths are the handiwork of Arthur McGreevy, a restaurateur  who opened his first Arthur’s Tavern in  Morris Plains in 1957.  (McGreevy also owns the St. Moritz in Sparta, New Jersey.) A regular of old-time establishments – the Tavern Restaurant in Newark and Ma Flynn’s in Whippany – McGreevy combined his memories of those neighborhood eateries and brought it all home to Hoboken to open Arthur’s Tavern in1985, where customers travel from as far as California to savor one of the house steaks.
 
The restaurant is bigger than it looks from the outside. There are three main dining rooms and two bars, including a sports bar in the back with three TVs on the wall. The two upstairs dining rooms are ideal for parties. The larger room decked out like the first floor dining room with rows of tables with red-checkered tablecloths and hanging stained glass lamps is ideal for corporate holiday parties and birthday celebrations; the smaller, elegant room is perfect for gatherings like baby showers and anniversaries. No matter what room you decide to book your party, the atmosphere will have that old Hoboken charm and those delicious Delmonico’s to satisfy the guests.
 
But what if you’re looking for something a little lighter than sirloin?

The local Hoboken community has changed since Arthur’s Tavern first opened its doors in 1985. Back then, the kitchen served 1,000 steaks on a Saturday night. But these days, although the restaurant’s family clientele has not changed, there have been more requests for lighter fare and Arthur’s Tavern co-owner, Arthur’s daughter Alyce plans to make some additions to the menu in an effort to reach those lighter-eaters who may want more options than a tuna sandwich.

“We’re going to add some great salads and seafood dishes,” Alyce McGreevy says. “Watch for those new additions before the holidays begin.”
 
But don’t worry, the steaks will always be on the menu, Alyce says. That’s one tradition she will never change.
 
“Arthur’s Tavern offers the best value for the best steaks,” Alyce says. “That was very important to my father and it’s important to me. My daughter Alyse-Marie and I are carrying out my father’s legacy. This was his dream.”
 
Arthur’s Tavern

237 Washington Street & 3rd

Hoboken, NJ

201-656-5009

Open for lunch & dinner 7 days a week

Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas

The post Restaurant VIEWS-The Best Steaks in Town -Hoboken first appeared on River View Observer.

Sun. Oct. 3rd 11am to 6pm Washington St. -Observer Highway to 7th St.

There was over 300 Artists, Crafters, Photographers, Local Businesses, Restaurants, Food Vendors & more
With 3 Stages of live music Special features include Fine artists are located between 2nd & 3rd St., so if you are an art collector, this is the place to be. Oil paintings, watercolors, acrylics, sculpture, mixed media, etc. 

See more photos

Special features include
Fine artists are located between 2nd & 3rd St., so if you are an art collector, this is the place to be. Oil paintings, watercolors, acrylics, sculpture, mixed media, etc.
Childrenâ€s area on 3rd street with rides, games, creative activities, puppet show, face painting,
clowns, balloons, live performances and much, much more:
Crafters display / sell handmade: pottery, metalwork, wood items, furniture, blown & fused glass, quilts, household items made from recycled materials, cementware, batik clothing, hand painted furniture, candles, jewelry, dried florals, soaps & lotions and much more
Food: Lots of great food throughout the fair. Hoboken restaurants will set up street cafes offering an eclectic variety of international foods such as: Thai, Indian, Greek, French, Mexican, Cajun and Italian
Sponsors
PATH, Port Authority of NY & NJ;
The Hoboken Reporter & The Hudson Current
and Stevens Institute of Technology

Located just 3 blocks from all public transportation:
PATH, NJ Transit Trains & buses, NY Waterway Ferries & the Hudson Bergen Lightrail

The post Events -Hoboken Art and Music Festival October 3rd, 2010 first appeared on River View Observer.

 

HOBOKEN, NJ (December 2009) – Chris Onieal, owner of Onieal’s in Hoboken, NJ and a member of the New Jersey Restaurant Association (NJRA), is one of thousands of restaurant owners who say the limited tax deductibility of business meal expenses is eating into their profits.

            Onieal and others are driving a national movement to restore tax deductibility for business meals and entertainment to its former level. In 1986, Congress reduced the allowable tax deduction from 100 percent to 80 percent. Congress further reduced the deduction to 50 percent in 1993.

The “reduction in the deduction” has hurt businesses nationwide – particularly small businesses and the people they employ.

“It’s amazing that almost every other business expense including travel, gifts for clients and hotels are fully deductible and business meals are not.  The business meal should be treated as a legitimate business expense also,” noted Onieal.  “With today’s economy, face-to-face client meetings are more important than ever.  Plus, those business luncheons translate into job creation in the restaurant industry.”

However, legislation introduced earlier this year by Representative Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) would increase the federal tax deduction for business meals from 50 percent to 80 percent. The move would augment business meal sales by $6 billion annually and power an $18 billion boost to the U.S. economy, according to research by the National Restaurant Association.

In New Jersey, restaurants and hospitality companies represent the largest private-sector employer in the state. Industry observers emphasize the critical connection between President’s Obama’s current initiatives to create new jobs and the beneficial impact the tax law change would have on reducing unemployment here and across the country.

 “No other single piece of legislation would have the positive effect that this bill, HR 3333, would have on the New Jersey, the regional and the national restaurant industry – particularly from a job-creation standpoint,” said Deborah Dowdell, president of the NJRA.

“NJRA applauds this proposed legislation not only because it would improve restaurant sales, but also because it would directly benefit small-business owners and their employees, many of whom are part-time workers who have lost employment opportunities because of the negative impact of the deductibility restrictions,” Dowdell added.

Studies have shown that two-thirds of the companies that claim the business meal tax deduction are small-business owners, who tend to use restaurants as “conference rooms” for conducting business with customers and prospects. Consequently, the tax deduction has historically benefited small enterprises, which rely on it to help them from both a marketing and customer relations standpoint.

Jamie Hoyos, of the Manhattan Steak House and 2010 chairman-elect of the NJRA added, “The reduction in business meal tax deductions has clearly had a negative ripple effect on businesses in New Jersey and across the country. To increase the percentage of deductibility to its former level would have a similar ripple effect – but in a dramatically positive way.”

The NJRA believes restaurants will continue to face serious financial challenges in the year ahead.  “Despite the fact that we’re sensing an imminent upturn in the economy, restaurants will still contend with onerous market conditions in 2010. Increasing the business meal tax deduction will go a long way to helping the restaurant industry, as well as other sectors of the economy –  like business travel and tourism industries – which also rely on the tax deduction,” continued Dowdell.

            When looking at jobs creation and the impact that jobs in the restaurant industry have had on society, nearly one-half of all adults have worked in the restaurant industry at some point during their lives while 32% of all adults got their first job experience in a restaurant. America’s eating-and-drinking places employ more minority managers than any other industry.  One-quarter of restaurants are owned by women, 15% by Asian-Americans, 8% by Hispanic- Americans and 4% by African-Americans.         

“Restoring business meals deductibility will benefit all segments of the industry from casual to fine dining, and will be beneficial to urban revitalization that relies so heavily on the labor intensive-job creating restaurant industry that employs so many first time job holders, teenagers and entrepreneurs looking to transition to new careers by starting their own businesses,” noted Dowdell. 

The NJRA represents owners and operators of full-service restaurants, catering facilities, taverns and pubs, brew pubs, diner restaurants, hotel restaurants, coffee shops, limited and quick service restaurants, institutional feeders, delis, pizzerias, country clubs, culinary students and schools.  Today, the New Jersey restaurant and hospitality industry includes 23,000 eating and drinking establishments with over 300,000 employees – making restaurant and hospitality the largest private-sector employer in New Jersey.  Visit www.njra.org.

The post NEW JERSEY RESTAURANT ASSOCIATION AND LOCAL RESTAURATEURS RALLY BEHIND PROPOSED INCREASE IN BUSINESS MEAL TAX DEDUCTION first appeared on River View Observer.