Skip to content

A town square for an unsquare town

redbankgreen

Standing for the vitality of Red Bank, its community, and the fun we have together.

RED BANK: SAN REMO CLOSES IN ON MOVE

The transformation of the former Little Kraut restaurant has been underway for three years. Chef and ower Giovanni Boudour, below, in his new kitchen. (Photo by Robert Kern. Click to enlarge)

By ROBERT KERN

After nearly three years of planning and construction, Abdellah “Giovanni” Boudour says he looks forward to swapping a hard hat for his chef’s toque when San Remo restaurant finally opens next month in Red Bank.

Since buying the building at the corner of Oakland Street and Bridge Avenue in 2010, Boudour has split his time between overseeing the renovations and running the kitchen at the San Remo’s current location, on Newman Springs Road in Shrewsbury.

During that time he dealt with zoning processes and building permits to renovate the site from what was the Oakbridge Tavern – and, for decades before that, the Little Kraut – into his dream of a casual restaurant offering “fine dining at decent prices.”

Boudour tells redbankgreen he was not expecting to do such an extensive renovation. But turning the upstairs residence, where former owner Dieter Bornemann lived, into a banquet room required far more changes than he planned at first.

Plus, to give the building the Italianate feel he wanted meant extensive changes to the entryways and the first floor.
The latest delay, though, was Superstorm Sandy.

“My workers were called to other jobs, emergency jobs,” Boudour explained. “It was understandable, but it set the opening back again.”

Now, though, with inspections done, Boudour sees the end in site for a “big splash” of a grand opening on July 3.

“If the work is finished before that, I will open,” he said, “but July 3 will be really special.”

Boudour, who trained in kitchens in France and Italy before coming to the United States, will continue to offer the same style of food that he called “Mediterranean, but creative, not traditional.” He explained that the menu depends on what he finds fresh that day.

“All meals are made fresh to order,” he said. “What’s on the menu can depend on what’s in the market and purchased that day.”

Or something new that comes across his prep table, like a jalapeño gelato. It’s too strong for a dessert, according to Boudour, but it could work in an arugula salad with some fresh fruit.

Boudour said his clientele have come to expect that kind of creativity and variety, and they can expect it to continue when “I welcome them to my new home.”

With the Italianate décor and exterior, Mediterranean cuisine and creative menu choices, Boudour said it will be like experiencing a restaurant like Rome or Venice in Red Bank.

“All that’s missing is the canal,” he said.

Remember: Nothing makes a Red Bank friend happier than to hear "I saw you on Red Bank Green!"
Partyline
THEY’RE BACK!
Ospreys returned to the skies over Red Bank this week for the first time since they migrated to warmer climes in late fall. With temperature ...
SPRING IS SPRUNG
RED BANK: Spring 2024 arrives on the Greater Red Bank Green with the vernal equinox at 11:06 p.m. Tuesday.
RED BANK’S FINEST – AND NEWEST
Red Bank Police Officer Eliot Ramos was sworn in as the force’s newest patrolman Thursday, and if you’re doing a double take thinkin ...
EASTER EGG MAYHEM AT THE PARK
An errant whistle spurred an unexpectedly early start to the Spring Egg Hunt on Sunday, which had been scheduled to begin at eggsactly 11am ...
PRESEASON DOCKWORK
RED BANK: With winter winding down, marina gets ready for boating season with some dockwork on our beautiful Navesink River.
CORNED BEEF AND DISCO FRIES?
It’s Friday, and smart Lent-observing Leprechauns know the pot of gold at the end of Red Bank’s rainbow is actually the deliciou ...
SURFBOARD DITCHED
It’s a violation of etiquette in surfing to ditch your board.  (it could hit another surfer and hurt them). But someone appears to ha ...
ELSIE, TAKE ME WITH YOU!
Soaked by pouring rain with the temperature hovering in the low 40’s, this sign in the window of Elsie’s Subs on Monmouth Street ...
WALK THIS WAY
PARTYLINE: Before-and-afters of a sidewalk cleanup on West Street.
SOGGY NOTION
RED BANK: Breezeway sculpture captured the mood downtown as heavy rains fell Saturday morning.
HOME DELIVERY
RED BANK: After a subdivision, an instant house rises on a new Catherine Street lot.
COMMUNITY PROFILES
For Black History Month, Red Bank's Community Engagement and Equity Advisory Committee has been running a series of local profiles on Facebo ...
HEARTY FAREWELL FOR HARDY
RED BANK: Council to honor DPU supervisor Rich Hardy, who retired recently after almost 39 years of keeping things running.
HOMEBOUND? READ ON…
RED BANK: Can't get to the public library? It's now offering free delivery and pickups for homebound borough residents.
TAMING A BEAST OF A WEEK
RED BANK: After the second snowfall of the week, a borough family finds the perfect use for it – a Godzilla snow sculpture.
RED BANK: LIBRARY CLOSED, BUT THE HILL’S OPEN
RED BANK: Though the library was closed by a snowstorm, kids got to enjoy the riverfront property's steep slope Tuesday.
LIGHT(HOUSE) MAKEOVER
This year, getting ready for spring means a midwinter makeover for Strollo's Lighthouse in Red Bank.
TODAY: LOCAL PUPPY COMPETES ON ANIMAL PLANET’S “PUPPY BOWL”
Red Bank’s very own rescue puppy, Biscuit, is set to compete in Animal Planet’s Puppy Bowl this Sunday, February 11, at 2 PM. Th ...
WHAT? NO redbankgreen NEWSLETTER?
Apologies to redbankgreen newsletter subscribers: the daily email hasn’t gone out for two days because of technical issues.
RED BANK: TIRED OF SKEETERS?
RED BANK: Tired of mosquito bites every summer? Monmouth County has a free program to help eliminate skeeter breeding grounds.