Eat & Drink
The 40 Best Restaurants in New Jersey
The Garden State's dining scene has it all—from incredible Italian food to amazing Asian fare, French cuisine and more.
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Readers Choose Their Favorite NJ Restaurants of 2024
The winners of New Jersey Monthly's 41st annual Jersey Choice Restaurant Poll.
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Forget Napa Valley! NJ Wines Are Better Than You Think
In the last 10 years, New Jersey wines have improved so dramatically that they're now being compared to California vintages.
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Yes, Chef! New Jersey Cooking Classes Are in Hot Demand
Want to spice up date night? Sharpen your knife skills? Channel your inner Carmy from The Bear? These local classes and schools will make you a better cook.
Most Recent in Eat & Drink
"This appetizer is on the menu in spring, when fresh wild ramps and baby leeks are available from Chester County, Pennsylvania," says Mimi Wood, executive chef of The Washington Inn in Cape May. "It is a classic Spanish combination of wood-grilled smoky leeks and a slightly spicy, garlicky, smoky red pepper sauce." ...
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I like this recipe for crab cakes because there are no bread crumb fillers,” says executive chef David Drake of Alice’s in Lake Hopatcong. “I also like to use Maine crabmeat, which is often the meat from Peekytoe crabs, rather than the usual Dungeness or Blue crabs. Maine crabmeat is flaky, not lumpy. This is a perfect spring/summer dish--the hot, crunchy crab complements the cool and crunchy jicama. Add a glass of refreshing Spanish wine—like Albariño.”...
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Pillsbury Bake-Off winner Sue Compton's million dollar recipe....
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"Grilled quail reminds me of when my family used to go to Portugal and rent a villa and cook on a little habachi grill," says David C. Felton, executive chef of Ninety Acres at Natirar. "One time me and my dad came back from the market with 2 kilo of quail and shrimp for a family of five!! It was enough food for three days, but a great memory."...
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Baker Sue Compton created a dessert called "Mini Ice Cream Cookie Cups" and won $1 million dollars...find out how she did it. ...
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Some say no, yet most pastry chefs are women. Here’s why....
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"Rhubarb soup is a simple, easy way to get spring into a dessert," says David C. Felton, executive chef of Ninety Acres at Natirar park in Peapack-Gladstone. "Rhubarb is at its peak right now in Jersey and has a wonderful tart flavor that lends itself to basic preparations. This recipe is a take on pavlova, a classic dessert of fruit, whipped cream and meringues."...
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This chicken dish is designed to be approachable to every customer in our dining room," says Anthony Bucco, executive chef of Uproot in Warren. "It's my nod to comfort food, One truly finds the elegance of this dish in its simplicity. The trick is to articulate the individual parts to create one amazing entrée.”...
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I love peas, all types--sugar snaps, snow peas, English peas, black-eyed peas, cow peas, you name it,” says David C. Felton, executive chef of the Ninety Acres restaurant at the Natirar resort in Peapack-Gladstone. “I like to eat them raw, sautéed, in salads, pastas, pot pies, mashed, as soup--I could go on and on. I think you get the idea I love peas, and for this recipe wanted to highlight a simple way to cook them.”...
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Shortbread is definitely a throwback to times past,” says Mark Farro, sous chef in charge of pastry at Uproot in Warren. “We focus more on the accoutrements and less on the shortbread itself. The freshness and sweetness of the berries comes forward on the palate to balance the natural levels of acidity in the fruit. This dessert will not burden you with unnecessary calories. However, it will satisfy your sweet tooth.”...
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From solar arrays to composting, a number of Jersey restaurants are reducing their carbon footprint....
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But she’s renowned for growing the hottest peppers under the sun, right here in Central Jersey....
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The pork is a play on the Vietnamese Banh Mi,” says Anthony Bucco, executive chef of uproot in Warren. “Mark Farro, my sous chef, and I spent quite a few days in New York City during the build-out for Uproot, buying equipment, flatware, and glassware. We spent a decent amount of time at Michael Huynh's restaurant, Baoguette. First, because it's spectacular, and second because it's cheap! The Uproot sandwich is our interpretation of a classic, sans paté, but with all the full flavor."...
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“These meatballs were inspired by my professional experience and by my interpretation of a family recipe--I have a Sicilian grandma,” explains Anthony Bucco, executive chef of Uproot in Warren. "I like them as a bar snack here at the restaurant because they are fried fresh, so they have texture (crispy outside, tender middle) -- in addition to having a salt content conducive to drinking! The flavor profile is unique and the flavors build as you chew. Bar food tends to be monochromatic, not the case with these! This is one of the few dishes on the menu that transcends season; they are featured year round at uproot.” ...
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This is one of the classics of traditional French cooking," says executive chef Dominique Filoni of Avenue in Long Branch. "Beef bourguignon is one of many examples of a peasant dish being slowly refined into haute cuisine. Most likely the particular method of slowly simmering the beef in wine originated as a means of tenderizing cuts of meat that would have been too tough to cook any other way."...
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Cassoulet is one of the great classics of French cooking, of which there are three regional variations," says Dominique Filoni, executive chef of Avenue in Long Branch. "Over time, the differences between them have become blurred and their ingredients debated. Lamb or mutton, for instance, is often added to this version. The crust is also contentious, with traditionalists insisting that it should be broken into the stew seven times during cooking. This version is Cassoulet Toulousain or Cassoulet de Toulouse, made with pork meat, sausage and duck confit.”...
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A new book, Eating With the Enemy: How I Waged Peace With North Korea From My BBQ Shack in Hackensack, is a juicy read. ...
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Did you know New Jersey is the fourth largest asparagus producer in the country? And every stalk is picked by hand....
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"This is definitely a late winter type of dish," says Chris Albrecht, executive chef of Eno Terra in Kingston. "I particularly like the celery root purée that is the base of the dish and the richness of the lentils. We have a wood burning grill, which gives a nice smoky flavor to the tuna, but any grill will get you part of the way there."...
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"This dish has gotten a lot of positive feedback from our guests and on on our Facebook page," says Chris Albrecht, executive chef of Eno Terra in Kingston. "It takes a lot of prep time, but the reward is fantastic. You're taking the best of the risotto world and presenting it in a way that is very pleasing and easily shared. You can make this days ahead of time, fry them slightly ahead, and reheat them in the oven." ...
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