You can knock us down, but we’ll get right back up!
In true Jersey fashion, the mayor of Tenafly knows the Garden State never plays second fiddle to New York—even if his town’s newest A-list resident, the rapper Cardi B, recently told fans she was moving to the Empire State when, in reality, she was packing her bags for New Jersey.
“New York, New Jersey…I don’t consider [Cardi’s remark] any sort of slight,” Tenafly Mayor Mark Zinna tells New Jersey Monthly. “It’s the greater New York City metropolitan area.”
Cardi, who was born and raised in the Bronx, announced to fans this fall that she’d purchased a home in her native New York, posting a photo and details of the swanky pad on Instagram. “Me and my husband have always dreamed of having a crib in NY, and we have decided to add to our portfolio of homes, along with Atlanta and LA,” she wrote on Instagram. “Now having a home in NY, I can have get togethers with my family all the time!!
But the New York Post later revealed that Cardi’s pad was actually a $5.85 million, nine-bedroom mansion across the Hudson in Tenafly, which includes amenities like an elevator, a saltwater pool, a tennis court, a movie theater and a gym.
Dis or not, Cardi, 29, is clearly a fan of the Bergen County town, located less than 15 miles from Manhattan. As for what Cardi should put on her Tenafly to-do list, Zinna recommends the 400-acre Nature Center—which she and hubby Offset can explore with their two young kids—and an “excellent” restaurant scene that includes spots like Tenafly Kosher Deli, which Zinna says serves “fantastic pastrami sandwiches,” and Axia Taverna, a date-night favorite for Zinna and his wife.
Zinna says he plans to reach out to the celebrity couple, like he does all new residents.
Hopefully Cardi and Offset, 30, will find happiness in New Jersey. The rappers have been married since 2017 but have had their share of relationship troubles over the years after he was accused of cheating. Cardi filed for divorce in September 2020, though she called off the divorce filing just two months later.
The stars are parents to a 3-year-old daughter named Kulture and a 4-month-old son, whose name the couple has not yet revealed to the world.
New Jersey Monthly has reached out to Cardi’s team for comment.