Sunday February 12, 2012SUBSCRIBE
New Jersey Monthly Magazine
Middletown

9/11 Memorials: Part One

A list of 9/11 Memorials in West Orange, Pennsauken, South River, Middletown, Stirling, Allendale and Lyndhurst. more

Cool Kid, Hot Start

Middletown native James van Riemsdyk skates to a quick start in the National Hockey League. more

His Heart Belongs to Jersey

Anchorman Brian Williams is as comfortable hosting Saturday Night Live as he is interviewing world leaders for NBC Nightly News. An avowed Springsteen fanatic, car nut, and adrenaline junkie, the Middletown native still clings to his Garden State roots. more

Best of Jersey: Good Eating

It's a Family Affair

From the Rubble

Fromagerie

In The Heat Of The Night

I learned TWO things while working in a restaurant kitchen: First, you need about two solid days to prepare a decent suckling pig. Second, it’s hard work, with grueling hours. You couldn’t pay me enough to do it for a living. But for three nights it doesn’t take much arm-twisting to get me into an apron and in front of a blazing grill. Open kitchens let you watch the flames and the fanfare from your table. You might see sauté pans jiggling above the stove, foot-long pasta dangling from tongs, and the head chef creating such a scene you wonder who’s getting fired next. Still, you can’t fully grasp the life of a kitchen unless you’re part of it. Then you discover that some chefs unwind before the dinner rush with a game of Frisbee in the parking lot. Or that another one winces when someone orders a burger for dinner. Or that some chefs verge on tears on a bad night, when customers complain and dishes get sent back to the kitchen. I discovered this, and much more, while visiting the kitchens of three top New Jersey restaurants. Two brave chefs even put me to work. more

Leap of Faith

Leap of Faith