What Our Editors Are Eating and Drinking Right Now

Soft-serve ice cream at Kubo Coffee and Creamery in Nutley, New Jersey

Purple ube soft-serve ice cream at Kubo Coffee and Creamery in Nutley. Photo: Courtesy of Kubo Coffee and Creamery

The editors at New Jersey Monthly do a lot of eating and drinking around the Garden State. We’re always trying new restaurants and bars, revisiting old-school favorites and tasting Jersey-produced products.

So, each month we round up some of our favorite recent meals, dishes, cocktails and items made right here in New Jersey. Here’s what we’re loving right now.

Kubo Coffee and Creamery, Nutley

For a twist on the usual soft serve ice cream, check out Kubo Coffee and Creamery in Nutley. This delightful Filipino café serves boba, coffee, pastries and more—but the beautiful, purple ube soft-serve ice cream is my favorite. Ube is a purple yam known for its unique flavor, and is a popular ingredient in Philippine cuisine. —Jacqueline Mroz

Knife and Fork Inn, Atlantic City

Come for the three-course, $20.50 prix-fixe lunch at the Knife and Fork Inn. An Atlantic City institution since 1912, it started out as a private men’s club that defied prohibition laws and hosted notables like Nucky Johnson and Frank Sinatra. Today, its Friday-only midday deal—reservations are recommended—offers choices like the signature Caesar salad, crabcake sandwich, cheesesteak and fish and chips, plus dessert! —Deborah P. Carter

Chocolatine, Denville and Morris Plains

In addition to the generous, flaky cruffins (croissant-muffin hybrids dusted in plain or cinnamon sugar), the pocket-sized treats at French pastry shop Chocolatine—in Denville and Morris Plains—are especially delightful. Try the beignet-inspired donuts, plump with raspberry or chocolate-hazelnut filling; macarons in a rainbow of tantalizing flavors; or, my personal favorite, the canelés, chewy, rum-infused marvels with gently custardy interiors. —Jennifer Finn