Quick Bite: City Rub Smokehouse

City Rub Smokehouse
Newark
118 Stockton Street
862-237-7528

Open: Lunch and dinner, daily

Price: $$

Style: In the southeast corner of the Ironbound, about a mile from the hot spots of Ferry Street, City Rub serves upscale Southern cuisine in a lounge-like atmosphere, with sports on flat screens and weekend live music.

The Scoop: Brazilian-born owner Olivia Borges, 37, started in the restaurant business 15 years ago as a dishwasher and worked her way up. She opened City Rub, her first restaurant, in October 2016. “I wanted to give a different flavor to the Ironbound section,” she says.

The Menu: Smoky flavor is the star, as in the sausage sampler, ribs (pictured), pulled pork and poultry. All are tender, even the turkey breast. Mains come with fluffy white rice and one side (smoky potato salad, barbecue beans or City Salad with beets, quinoa and cherry tomatoes). Good seafood dishes include shrimp and grits; spicy tuna tartare; grilled oysters with micro arugula salad and chipotle vinaigrette; and camarao na moranga, a traditional Brazilian dish with shrimp, butternut squash and saffron.

Heads Up: The cocktail list proposes fun food pairings, such as Memphis-style ribs with an Apple Shine Tea (made with apple pie moonshine and elderflower liqueur) or smoked beef risotto with a Cool Cumber martini. City Rub has its own large parking lot.