VIA 45, RED BANK
With antique furniture, bookshelves filled with cookbooks, charming pictures on the wall, mismatched tables and tableware, and colorful pitchers on a sideboard, we felt as if we were dining at a friend’s house. Via 45 is charming, the food is fresh tasting, flavorful and enthralling; the service attentive. The handwritten menu changes daily.
A salad with romaine, avocado, bacon, tomato and blue cheese dressing was a refreshing light starter. Meaty mussels were served in a white-wine broth containing chickpeas and slices of garlic—we could not stop dipping our bread into it. Another recommended app was an entrée-size portion (that was shared) of rigatoni pasta with asparagus, crabmeat and cherry tomatoes. Chickpeas found their way into a colorful and beautifully plated vegetarian entrée with sweet, roasted carrots, grilled asparagus, string beans, yellow and green zucchini and a herbed-rice flecked with red pepper. The portion was tremendous and I shared with Lowell, who ordered a tender, crunchy, crusted pork Milanese topped with arugula, onion and cherry tomato salad. For a light entrée opt for the lovely sautéed trout topped with shrimp cooked in olive oil and lemon.
Rigatoni pasta with asparagus, crabmeat and cherry tomatoes.
Desserts were just as distinctive. A raspberry sorbet was cloaked in chocolate and reminded us of a bombe. Tart lemon chiffon pudding with citrus-apple compote was lively, and the accompanying small brownie bite was so chocolaty that we wished it was bigger and not just a bite.
Be sure to check out the bathroom, which is down a long hall lined with mismatched mirrors. There is a Buddha here holding money. I asked co-owner chef Claudette Herring, “Has anyone has ever taken money from the Buddha?” She said, “Some days there is nothing and all of a sudden everyone is putting in dollar bills, probably making wishes. Every so often someone takes the money but I feel that whoever takes it, needs the money.”
Buddha in the bathroom with pennies.
Via 45 is a gem. The dinnerware and furniture may be mismatched but the cuisine is harmonious.
Mussels with chickpeas in a white-wine broth.
Photos courtesy of Lowell Saferstein
Via 45
45 Broad Street
Red Bank
732-450-9945
BYO
DINING DEALS
HAVEN, EDGEWATER
Happy Hour is held in the lounge at Haven Restaurant and Bar, 2 Main St (for GPS, put 45 River Road), Edgewater Harbor, Edgewater (201-943-1900) Monday through Friday from 5 to 7 PM; $5 beers, $6 skinny cocktails, $7 wines by the glass and $9 food specials.
STEAKHOUSE 85, NEW BRUNSWICK
On Sunday nights bottles of wine are half price at Steakhouse 85, 85 Church St, New Brunswick (732-247-8585).
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