RED BANK: CHEF TAKES OVER AT TEMPLE
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.
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.
A court order resulted in the closing of Temple Gourmet Chinese restaurant in Red Bank last week.
Abutting restaurant setups at the north end of Broad Street have created an atmosphere that’s drawing customers away from other restaurants, some owners say. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
[See CORRECTION below]
By JOHN T. WARD
Is a north-south divide developing on Broad Street in Red Bank?
Owners of some businesses located just south of the month-old Broadwalk street plaza say they’re being unfairly cut out of a boom in downtown visitors.
Reopening after almost three months to the day after they were ordered shut down in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, Red Bank restaurants drew numerous diners to their outdoor tables Monday night.
“It’s like normal – almost,” said Charlie Lyristis, co-owner of Bistro, on Broad Street, above. At right: a note left at tables for customers of Pazzo, on West Front Street.
See additional photos as restaurants resumed with sit-down, outdoor-only service under order of Governor Phil Murphy below.
A lawsuit claims the redevelopment plan for the White Street parking lot ignores the town’s Master Plan. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Would-be developers in downtown Red Bank will no longer have to pay fees for failing to provide enough parking, following action by the borough council Wednesday night.
But progress toward a public garage on White Street — a partial solution to what many business owners consider a parking crisis — may have hit a legal speed bump.
Chicken with broccoli and Kung Pao chicken, two dishes on the lunch menu at Temple Gourmet Chinese. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
Lunchtime seems to be a tough draw for Red Bank’s dine-in restaurants. While customers might find it difficult to get a table in the evening, some eateries do what they can in the form of specials to attract afternoon clients.
So when a member of the Red Bank Lunch Meet group suggested a meeting at Temple Gourmet Chinese on Broad Street, throwing in the incentive of an $11 price point, PieHole was intrigued.
The first-ever Red Bank Mayor’s Charity Ball brought together three ex-mayors, the current one and some 250 of their friends at the Oyster Point Hotel Friday night. Among those in attendance: former Councilwoman Sharon Lee and restaurateur Victor Kuo, above, and Pastor John Lock, with Mayor Pasquale Menna, at right.
Proceeds from the $125-per-head event were earmarked for the Red Bank Public Library and the Parker Family Health Center.
redbankgreen grabbed dozens of photos during the cocktail hour overlooking our beautiful Navesink River. Click the “read more” to see who else was there. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
Victor Kuo’s Temple Gourmet Chinese won approval Monday night to take over half the storefront used by Jonathan Salon, which has consolidated into lesser space. (Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Barely more than a year after Victor Kuo gambled that Red Bank needed a linen-napkin, gourmet Chinese restaurant, he’s found himself overwhelmed by the reception.
On Saturday nights, the wait for a table at Temple Gourmet Chinese, on Broad Street, can be more than an hour long. “We’re turning 20, 30 people away on weekends,” a slightly astonished Kuo tells redbankgreen.
So with sales exceeding his forecasts, Kuo is already busting out, nearly doubling the size of his restaurant and shopping around for the ticket to yet another level on the dining-out ladder: a liquor license.