A view of Broadwalk at lunchtime last October. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank merchants and residents pressed officials with concerns regarding a third season of Broadwalk at a community forum Wednesday night.
With less than a month to go before a disruptive streetscape makeover project wraps up, they called for efforts to address litter, traffic, speeding on residential streets and more.
Rosemary Minear wished Andy Citarella well Tuesday morning. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
After 121 years of operation, one of Red Bank’s oldest retail businesses plans to close next month.
The end for Citarella’s Meats & Deli continues the rapid disappearance of once-common neighborhood butcher shops and grocers.
Retractable bollards were installed on Mechanic Street near Broad Street Wednesday. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
See UPDATE below
By JOHN T. WARD
A messy, overdue and over-budget makeover of upper Broad Street in Red Bank is expected to conclude in late July, acting borough Administrator Darren McConnell said Wednesday.
The project, which began last November, marked a milestone with the installation this week of retractable hydraulic bollards that will enable quick closure of the street to vehicular traffic.
Still to be determined is when the Broadwalk dining promenade will return for a third, if abbreviated, season.
The return the Red Bank Classic 5K after a two-year pandemic hiatus brought out a motley mix of nearly 1,100 runners, wheelchair racers, walkers, muscle flexers and two jogglers Saturday.
Check out redbankgreen’s photos below to see if you recognize any.
Luis Hurta at the newly opened Once Bitten Donuts on Broad Street. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Need donuts? A vintage camera? Soul-soothing crystals, toys or housewares? Late spring has brought a bouquet of new businesses offering these goodies and more in downtown Red Bank.
Read all about them in this cusp-of-summer edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn.
Red Tank Brewing owner John Arcara speaking at Wednesday’s council session. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
The Red Bank council voted Wednesday to boost the fees charged to restaurants to maintain tables in parking spaces converted to streateries.
The action followed claims by two business owners that the hike was onerous.
Borough workers created a streatery outside Bombay River and Tacoholics restaurants on Broad Street in July, 2020. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
At the Red Bank council’s first in-person session in more than two years last week, a lone member failed to advance a pandemic-era fix said to be favored by two merchant organizations: street eateries.
Juanito’s Charcoal Grill features outdoor seating with colorful murals on either side. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
It was going to be a laundromat. Think: droning appliances, fluorescent lighting and the cloying scent of fabric softener perfuming a stretch of Shrewsbury Avenue in Red Bank.
Luckily for Red Bank-area lovers of food and immersive atmosphere, Juan Torres changed his plans. And on Saturday, the serial entrepreneur will debut his newest creation: Juanito’s Charcoal Grill, a restaurant that’s a volcanic eruption of colors, aromas and flavors, inside and out.
The Dublin House Pub’s plan called for the enclosure of the existing porch and balconies. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s Dublin House Pub should be allowed to make cosmetic changes previously rejected by the borough Historic Preservation Commission, the zoning board ruled Thursday night.
Soul Focus plans to open a 7,300-square-foot wellness center on the first floor of 73 Broad Street. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
An art gallery/podcast studio, a toy store, a camera shop, a pet-treats retailer, a sizable wellness center…
Downtown Red Bank may see the debut of those businesses and more in coming months, based on a flurry of approvals by the borough planning office in recent weeks. Read all about them in this edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn.
Lunch Break Executive Director Gwen Love, above, welcomed more than 100 guests as the Red Bank social services nonprofit kicked off a $12 million expansion of its Red Bank home Thursday.
Sweetest Sin owner Angela Courtney is doubling the size of her lingerie boutique on White Street. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
With their eyes on growth, four established Red Bank businesses are seizing opportunities to expand their presence downtown, redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn has learned.
Among them are three retailers who have found ways to survive online shopping, the coronavirus pandemic and other challenges that have crushed so many in their sector.
A view of the first-floor dining area at Centrada Cocina. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
In this long-overdue edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn, we’ve got news of three new restaurants in downtown Red Bank, plus an update on a much-anticipated donut shop.
And for those who enjoy a bit of body art: a new tat studio.
(Press release from Soup Kitchen 411)
It wasn’t the first time they’ve collaborated to feed community members, but on the mild April Monday morning, the smell of delicious meals was almost unparalleled. The vegetarian sandwiches featured roasted red pepper hummus with lettuce tomatoes and cabbage, while the meat sandwiches had just about any and every type of meat carnivores crave—ham with mustard aioli, monterey jack cheese, mixed greens, tomatoes; turkey/pastrami with creamy horseradish, monterey cheese, lettuce tomatoes; grilled chicken with roasted red peppers, basil aioli and arugula, all in hearty ciabatta bread.
A shot from the 2015 edition of the event. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank won’t be hosting the annual International Beer, Wine & Food Festival scheduled for May 15 because of “left-over Covid issues,” the event’s organizer said Tuesday.
Danny Murphy, owner of Danny’s Steakhouse, behind the bar Monday. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
From the moment it opened in Red Bank in 1969, what’s now known as Danny’s Steakhouse has been the alter ego of its creator.
By next month, however, restaurateur Danny Murphy will have begun “transitioning out” of the Bridge Avenue establishment he’s run and lived above for more than half a century.
Downtown Investors plans to demolish the house at 26 Wallace Street for parking. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Members of Red Bank’s Historic Preservation Commission split Wednesday night over its next steps regarding a developer’s plan to demolish a century house for parking.
The HPC also approved remodeling plans for a building at a key downtown intersection after the owner revised plans that were rejected a month ago.
After being mothballed for two years by the COVID-19 pandemic, two events that bring in thousands of visitors to Red Bank are slated to return this summer.
The Red Bank Classic 5K and the New Jersey Symphony concert in Marine Park are among events filling up a calendar wiped clean in 2020 and only partly refilled in 2021.
Denholtz Properties is adding the parking lot at 133 Broad Street to its portfolio, which already includes the office building at 137-139 Broad, at right. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A privately owned downtown Red Bank parking lot that all but screams for development is about to get a new owner, redbankgreen has learned: the borough’s busiest builder. Read More
The Dublin House Pub’s plan called for the enclosure of an existing porch and balconies. (Rendering by Michael Savarese Associates. Click to enlarge.)
See UPDATE below
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s Historic Preservation Commission nixed proposed makeovers of two downtown buildings as inappropriate Wednesday night.
A third plan, to give a corner building a “midcentury modern” look, sailed to approval.
Denholtz Properties plans to redo the existing building at Broad Street and Reckless Place. (Rendering by Rotwein + Blake. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Buildings at two high-visibility corners in downtown Red Bank would get makeovers under plans scheduled for review this week by the Historic Preservation Commission.
Here’s what’s on deck.
Mi Lupita’s Kitchen has opened at 78 Bridge Avenue. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s busy restaurant scene has two new entrants bringing traditions both cultural and familial to the table.
Read all about them, as well as a new smoke shop, in this edition of redbankgreen‘s Retail Churn.
Closed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Walt Street Pub in Red Bank has new owners.
Or, at least, the building does.
What’s Going On Here? Read on…
Lunch Break Board President Philip Antoon and Family Promise of Monmouth County Board President Jessica Stepanski sign ceremonial document incorporating Family Promise into the Lunch Break network of programs. (Photo courtesy of Lunch Break. Click to enlarge.)
Press release Lunch Break
Addressing the systemic problem of homelessness in Monmouth County has long been on Lunch Break’s radar. Community members without adequate housing have sought the resource center’s help with life’s basic necessities, among them, shelter.
The name will change, but after a brief shutdown, fans of Temple Gourmet Chinese restaurant in Red Bank can again enjoy their favorite dishes there.