Home-style Cooking, Family Fun and 30 TVs Tuned to Sports!

By Sally Deering

 Whether you want to take the family out for some delicious home-style Italian cooking or you’re a sports fan itching to see your favorite team on a large screen TV while munching mouth-watering Buffalo wings, The Big Apple Sports Palace in Bayonne has it all – 30 Large Screen TVs, shuffleboard, pool, a Sopranos pinball machine and fabulous food at affordable prices.

Vinny Bottino and his wife, Elaine opened The Big Apple in 1976 and in 1989, their son Vinny and his wife Toni took over, expanded the space and put in a kitchen, much to the delight of their regulars. Now known as the Big Apple Sports Palace, families can enjoy home-style Italian cooking and sports fans can watch their favorite games broadcast from 30 TVs including a digital projection screen.
 
“It was a neighborhood place, one room, and my father-in-law Vinny had rock and roll bands on the weekends, local people playing music,” Toni says. “We never changed the bar, but we changed the walls and floors and put a kitchen in the back. Now it’s a neighborhood place for people to have a great meal and a good time.”
 
In 2000, the Bottinos expanded next door and made it into a dining room with an outdoor Tiki bar that features a pool table and TV broadcasts of every Yankees, Devils and Giants game, even championship boxing. 
 
“Once the Yankees and Mets are out of baseball, the season’s pretty much over,” Toni says. “But there’s always next year.”
 
Regardless of what team’s playing, it’s the food at The Big Apple that attracts customers and turns them into regulars, like the Specialty Pizzas – Taco Pizza, Shrimp Scampi Pizza and Philly Cheese Steak Pizza ($15 each,) and the Wraps: Veggie, Chili ($5 each,) Chicken Fajita, Steak Murphy ($6 each.) The dinner menu features Chicken in a Basket ($8,) Shrimp in a Basket ($9,) Chicken Marsala ($11.95) and Shrimp Francaise ($14.95.) And then there are the taste-bud popping appetizers like Fried Mushrooms ($5,) Fried Calamari ($9,) and for all you wing-lovers, the big and juicy Buffalo kind (10 for $5; 25 for $10.) Everything tastes great especially with The Big Apple’s extensive list of draft and bottled beers, frosty cold and ready to quench every beer-lover’s thirst.  

 “I have a big menu,” Toni says.

 And those prices can’t be beat especially in today’s economy where everybody’s stretching their dollars and taking the family out for a meal and a good time can take a big bite out of your wallet.

 “You can take your family to our restaurant, feed them, have drinks and not pay a hundred bucks,” Toni says. “And when you buy ten pizza pies, you get one free. We’ve been doing that since we opened. It’s a thank-you to our loyal regulars.”

The Big Apple also has a loyal staff.

“I have people who have worked for me for ten to eighteen years,” Toni says. “That’s a pretty good record. My best friend Debbie Mattiello, she’s been here 18 years, My brother- in-law Mark works here and, of course, my husband Vinny. It’s a family business.”

The Big Apple offers off-site catering for wedding receptions, corporate events, bridal and baby showers and caters on-site parties, too. Toni and the crew revamped the menu last year to include a selection of wraps and salads for those who like to eat light and every day The Big Apple’s menu includes lunch specials.

“You have to constantly change and bring new ideas in and that’s what we try to do,” Toni says.

 

The Big Apple Sports Palace

412-414 Broadway

Bayonne

201-858-1075

Kitchen is open 11 am to midnight; bar opens at 11 am and closes 2 am on weekdays; 3 am on weekends

For more information, visit their website at www.Bigapplesportspalace.com

The post The Big Apple Sports Palace, Bayonne, New Jersey first appeared on River View Observer.

 NFL CHEERLEADERS

source: rr.com

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Photo source Bing.com -Getty

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 in  Cablevision Service Area

 MSG Varsity is kicking off a new contest open to all high schools in the Cablevision service area, MSG Varsity’s Mascot Dash to the Desk. Mascot Dash to the Desk offers schools the opportunity to submit a photo of their school mascot online at msgvarsity.com from April 14^–21 to be eligible for the grand prize – a brand new mascot costume for their high school (worth up to $6,000) and a guest appearance by the school’s mascot on MSG Varsity’s signature daily sports show, High School SportsDesk, on Cablevision’s iO TV (Channel 14).

 From the submissions, a maximum of 80 schools will be selected to compete in the contest. Over five weeks, the mascots will compete in “heats” for weekly prizes. Online voting will determine the 20 finalists that will go on to compete in the final sprint to win the grand prize. Online voting will also determine the Mascot Dash to the Desk Champion. The grand prize, 2^nd & 3^rd place winners will be announced on June 6^th.

 “Based on the success of our first contest School Spirit Mania, we wanted to find another interactive way for high school students to showcase their school spirit,” said Philip Summers, VP Marketing for MSG Varsity. “And a mascot race was the answer. We’re looking forward to getting the Dash to the Desk started to find out which school mascot will be voted champion and be receiving a make-over.”

 For more information on Dash to the Desk and to see the weekly prize packages please go to www.msgvarsity.com.

 

MSG Varsity includes a multi-platform suite of services, made up of a 24/7 television network that airs on Cablevision’s iO TV service, channel 14; a comprehensive online destination, msgvarsity.com; and a groundbreaking interactive service, channel 614 – all spotlighting extracurricular activities and events at local high schools. 

 

About MSG Varsity

MSG Varsity is a multi-platform suite of services comprised of: a 24/7 television network, a comprehensive online destination, and a groundbreaking interactive service, all dedicated to high school sports, academics and activities happening throughout the tri-state area.  Content for these services includes MSG Varsity’s professionally produced programming as well as content created by the high schools themselves.  Working in partnership with MSG Varsity, students and faculty are given extraordinary access to curriculum and training in multimedia creation and distribution, empowering them to become active participants in telling their school’s stories.  MSG Varsity is a Cablevision exclusive service not available to satellite or phone company TV subscribers and reaches three million households throughout the New York market.  For more information, please visit www.msgvarsity.com.

 

 

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The post DOES YOUR HIGH SCHOOL MASCOT HAVE WHAT IT TAKES?ENTER MSG VARSITY’S MASCOT DASH TO THE DESK NOW first appeared on River View Observer.

 BETHPAGE, N.Y., February 16, 2010 — MSG Varsity is kicking off Playoff Month with a special online event – School Spirit Mania. School Spirit Mania is an opportunity for students to display their school spirit through an online photo contest, where students, teachers, administrators, parents and fans select the winners through online voting. Photos can be submitted by logging onto MSGVarsity.com anytime between February 10^th and midnight on February 28^th and uploading an image that shows us what school spirit is all about.  

 Once all of the images have been reviewed, MSG Varsity experts will narrow the list down to the first round of finalists and post the opening brackets March 8^th on MSGVarsity.com. Online voting by round will take place between March 8^th and April 5^th – until only the top two photos remain.  The School Spirit Mania Champion will be announced Tuesday, April 6^th at 7pm on High School SportDesk, Cablevision’s iO TV (Channel 14). 

 “As we enter Playoff Month, we wanted to give high school students the chance to showcase their school spirit in a fun and interactive way,” commented Philip Summers, VP Marketing for MSG Varsity.  “We’re looking forward to seeing all the creative entries and finding out who the viewers pick as Spirit Mania Champion.”

 

The winning school gets to choose their grand prize – a customized indoor or outdoor Daktronics digital scoreboard or a Club Car trainer utility vehicle wrapped in school colors.  Prizes will also be awarded to all 64 finalists in contention to be the School Spirit Mania Champion.

 

For more information on School Spirit Mania go to www.msgvarsity.com.

 

 

 

 

About MSG Varsity

MSG Varsity is a multi-platform suite of services comprised of: a 24/7 television network, a comprehensive online destination, and a groundbreaking interactive service, all dedicated to high school sports, academics and activities happening throughout the tri-state area.  Content for these services includes MSG Varsity’s professionally produced programming as well as content created by the high schools themselves.  Working in partnership with MSG Varsity, students and faculty are given extraordinary access to curriculum and training in multimedia creation and distribution, empowering them to become active participants in telling their school’s stories.  MSG Varsity is a Cablevision exclusive service not available to satellite or phone company TV subscribers and reaches three million households throughout the New York market.  For more information, please visit www.msgvarsity.com.

 

About Cablevision

Cablevision Systems Corporation is one of the nation’s leading telecommunications, media and entertainment companies. In addition to its Optimum-branded cable, Internet, and voice offerings, the company owns and operates News 12 Networks, MSG Varsity and Newsday Media Group.  Cablevision’s assets also include Rainbow Media Holdings LLC and its programming and entertainment businesses, AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel, WE tv and IFC Entertainment, as well as Clearview Cinemas.  Additional information about Cablevision is available on the Web at www.cablevision.com.

 

 

The post MSG VARSITY HAS SPIRIT, YES WE DO, WE HAVE SPIRIT…HOW ABOUT YOU? first appeared on River View Observer.

The following exclusive photo’s were taken by Steve Mack for the River View Observer.

All photos by Steveamack.com

If  you ever attended Giant Stadium for a Giants game, a concert with your favorite artists, a marching band competition you will appreciate these photos of New Jersey’s beloved stadium being torn down.

 

The post Pictorial of Giants Stadium Being Torn Down first appeared on River View Observer.

Former NBA player John Celestand has come back to his New Jersey roots, as a Garden State basketball play-by-play announcer for MSG Varsity. Celestand (on right) is pictured with fellow sports producer Lou Brogno.

 

BETHPAGE, N.Y., January 25, 2010 – John Celestand, former NBA player and member of the Los Angeles Lakers’ championship team in 2000, has come back to his New Jersey roots, as a Garden State basketball play-by-play announcer for MSG Varsity.

 Celestand, an alumnus of Piscataway High School, helped lead the Chiefs to two consecutive County Championships. He went on to play at Villanova University scoring, 227 points in 124 career games from 1995-99. He was drafted in the second round of the 1999 NBA Draft by the Lakers.

 On his new role at MSG Varsity, Celestand said, “Not every kid can play in the NBA or in college. But how about being the announcer that gets to say a kid’s name for the first time? It’s phenomal and I am very excited to be a part of this.”

 About MSG Varsity

MSG Varsity is a multi-platform suite of services comprised of: a 24/7 television network, a comprehensive online destination, and a groundbreaking interactive service, all dedicated to high school sports, academics and activities happening throughout the tri-state area.  Content for these services includes MSG Varsity’s professionally produced programming as well as content created by the high schools themselves.  Working in partnership with MSG Varsity, students and faculty are given extraordinary access to curriculum and training in multimedia creation and distribution, empowering them to become active participants in telling their school’s stories.  MSG Varsity is a Cablevision exclusive service not available to satellite or phone company TV subscribers and reaches three million households throughout the New York market.  For more information, please visit www.msgvarsity.com.

The post Former NBA Player John Celestand Joins MSG Varsity first appeared on River View Observer.