RED BANK: JJ’S ORGANIC, FUN AND FAMILIAR

Chalkboards list menu options at JJ’s Organic Grill ordering station. Below: waffle sticks. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)

By SUSAN ERICSON

The Dugo family is betting that certified organic, non-GMO is the future of fast food, and so far, so good: their month-old Red Bank restaurant, JJ’s Organic Grill, is already becoming a popular choice for foodies.

Healthier alternatives for breakfast, lunch and dinner in a relaxed, no frills environment is what you’ll find here in the former Sicilia space, at the corner of Broad Street and Peters Place.

September 1, 2017 - 3:01 pm | Comments ()

WHAT’S FOR LUNCH? GLOBAL CONCEPTS

Global Eatery’s mix-and-match international choices include Mexican enchiladas, Korean beef in a cabbage wrap and Italian meatballs. Below, a customer fixes a salad to go. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)

By SUSAN ERICSON

042616globaleatery4 With a focus on office workers and schoolkids in downtown Red Bank, Mark Arabadjis has gone global.

Araabadjis closed the Sicilia Café on Broad Street late last year, less than six months after he bought it, and has now opened Global Eatery in its place.
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April 29, 2016 - 11:35 am | Comments ()

SHREWSBURY: NAME THAT HOME-STYLE MEAL

A dish known as “Carl’s Hankerin’ Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes and Peas and Carrots” from My Sister’s Kitchen, where Michelle Paone, below, is co-owner and baker. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)

By SUSAN ERICSON

When Michelle Paone rented the space next door to her New Outlook Salon in Shrewsbury some months back, the idea was that it would house a catering business, with her sister working as the chef.

Family obligations on her sister’s side led to the deal falling through at the last minute, however, leaving Paone partner-less. But then Rich Lopazanski, a “fabulous cook” and Paone’s husband’s best friend since elementary school, stepped into the role of chef, clearing the way for the opening of My Sister’s Kitchen about two months ago.

The sister may not have stuck, but the name did – just like the old-school, stick-to-your-ribs meals the kitchen now produces six days a week.

March 18, 2015 - 1:17 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: MOM CAN’T “COOK LITTLE”

Rocky’s Barbershop. Barber: Michelle Rago. Chair: Anonymous (she played hooky). (Photo by Jim Willis. Click to enlarge)

To get a sense of how folks around the greater Red Bank Green will be celebrating Thanksgiving this week, PieHole checked in with a few area barbers and hair stylists. Here’s number four in the series.

November 27, 2013 - 6:26 am | Comments ()

RED BANK: WORKING, GIVING, GIVING THANKS

Dequanne Gibson waits for an open chair at Rigo’s Barbershop on Shrewsbury Ave. (Photo by Jim Willis. Click to enlarge)

By JIM WILLIS

Rigo’s Barbershop, Shrewsbury Ave.

Dequanne Gibson, Red Bank. “I’m working on Thanksgiving, but when I’m done, I’ll go home and eat with my family. We eat turkey. My mom’s a pretty good cook. We’ll have turkey, sweet potatoes, stuffing – a lot of stuffing. We’ll have apple pie for dessert and some ice cream.”

November 26, 2013 - 12:15 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: MEMORIES OF MOM ON T-DAY

2Dye4 Salon. Chair: Katherine Plosica, Stylist/Owner: Crystal Diebold. (Photo by Jim Willis. Click to enlarge)

To get a sense of how folks around the greater Red Bank Green will be celebrating Thanksgiving next week, PieHole checked in with a few area barbers and hair stylists. Here’s number two in the series.

2Dye4 Salon, Monmouth Street, Red Bank

Katherine Plosica, in the chair: I’m going to my brother’s house in Pine Beach. He does all the cooking and makes a fabulous turkey. We have a lot of fun. All the cousins get to play; all the kids get together. We have about 15 people.

November 22, 2013 - 3:20 pm | Comments ()

RED BANK: WHERE THEY’LL EAT ON T-DAY

You don’t need a PhD in sociology – or a masters in journalism – to know that the best and most scientific demographic sampling takes place in barbershops.

So to get a sense of how folks around the greater Red Bank Green would be celebrating Thanksgiving this year, PieHole, redbankgreen‘s food page, checked in with a few area barbers and hair stylists – and the people in their chairs – to find out what’s for dinner and where.

This is the first entry in a series of quick bites we’re calling ‘Morsels.’ Check them out today and in coming days at PieHole.

November 21, 2013 - 9:00 am | Comments ()

RED BANK: GETTING READY TO GOBBLE @ GUS’S

Carl Bowles in the chair at Gus’s Barbershop in Red Bank as barber Augusta Carter works the trimmer. (Photo by Jim Willis. Click to enlarge)

By JIM WILLIS

You don’t need a PhD in sociology – or even a BA in journalism – to know that the best and most scientific demographic sampling takes place in barbershops.

So to get a sense of how folks around the greater Red Bank Green will be celebrating Thanksgiving next week, PieHole, redbankgreen‘s food page, checked in with a few area barbers and hair stylists – and the people in their chairs – to find out what’s for dinner on T-Day.

This is the first entry in a series of quick bites we’re calling ‘Morsels.’ Watch for more in coming days at PieHole.

Gus’s Barbershop, Shrewsbury Avenue, Red Bank.

Carl Bowles, in the chair: We have a family get-together in Tinton Falls. My four brothers and four sisters and my dad, my dad’s 83 and still with us. Maybe another dozen or so grandkids around.

November 21, 2013 - 8:56 am | Comments ()

SEA BRIGHT TO TAKE IT BACK TO THE BEACH

‘Mount Sandy’ and the small mountain of storm debris are gone from the beach, where Sea Brighters will gather on October 29. (Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

How does one mark the anniversary of a once-in-a-lifetime storm that destroyed one’s home or business?

In Sea Bright, residents and merchants will note the year-ago devastation of Hurricane Sandy on October 29 with a quiet potluck dinner and a bonfire on the beach to demonstrate their own resilience and determination to recover, recreation director Kathy Morris tells redbankgreen.

“It’s going to be very low-key,” Morris said, “just a place for us to meet, greet and chat.”

October 1, 2013 - 3:00 pm | Comments ()

FAIR HAVEN: MEATBALL MAN ROLLS AGAIN

Angelo DePonti, above and below, oversees the cooking for the Fair Haven Fire Department’s annual spaghetti dinner, scheduled for Saturday night. (Photos by Joe Fisher. Click to enlarge)

By JOE FISHER

Theres a special ingredient the Fair Haven Fire Department rolls out to ensure success at its annual spaghetti dinner fund raiser. Its not in the meat. Its not in the sauce. And its not in the bread.

It is Angelo DePonti and his way with meatballs.

I learned to make meatballs from my mother and father, said DePonti, 83, a lifelong Red Bank resident. As a kid, I used to watch them cook every Sunday. I was born to cook. I love to watch people eat my food. I havent got a recipe for my meatballs, I just know how much to put in by the smell, by the feel

DePonti, a retired Garden State Parkway maintenance worker, is a social member of the Fair Haven Fire Department. For the past 60 years, he’s also volunteered with Red Banks Union Hose Company where his son, Steve, and his two grandchildren, Steve Jr. and Matt, also serve.

In preparation for this year’s spaghetti dinner, scheduled for Saturday, DePonti was in the Fair Haven firehouse kitchen Thursday night preparing the meatballs with a crew of helpers.

March 1, 2013 - 7:08 am | Comments ()

CHEESE: IT’S WHAT’S FOR… SUPPER?

In conversation on a sweltering day a few weeks back, Steve Catania, owner of The Cheese Cave on Monmouth Street in Red Bank, casually mentioned what a nice, light, summer dinner cheese makes.

Really? Cheese for dinner, redbankgreen asked?

August 24, 2011 - 11:03 am | Comments ()