Saturday, May 11, 2013
Xunta to feature Spanish chef Gonzalo Fernandez.
The former chef of Tapastry in Montclair has been hired by the owners of a new tapas restaurant opening in Caldwell later this spring. Prior to Church Street's Tapastry, which is now closed, Gonzalo Fernandez was the chef at Xunta in the East Village for 15 years. The new Bloomfield Avenue restaurant will go by the same name. Co-owners are Alfonso Meneses and Carmen Mendez. Located in the former spot of Pasione de Mexico, Xunta, pronounced "SHOON-TA," will serve tapas and feature live Flamenco music, Mendez said. The 50-seat restaurant at 392 Bloomfield Ave. is expected to open in late spring. Read about Xunta Tapas Bar in the East Village in New York Magazine and The New York Times for a taste of what's to come. Did you ever try …
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
This will be the second Montclair South End Business Improvement District assembly.
- GOVERNMENT
-
Tuesday, May 7
A 4th Ward commuinty meeting will be held Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Montclair Fire Department Headquarters, at 1 Pine St. Fourth Ward Councilor Renee Baskerville invites community and business member to discuss the east gateway and South End Village revitalization effort. The meeting is open to the public. This will be the second South End Business Improvement District meeting. It will focus on working with the community toward finding creative and innovative ways to revitalize the area. Artists and other creative-minded residents are encouraged to join the team effort to promote the arts as a driving revitalization force in Montclair's South End.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
A news outlet is reporting Rutherford officials are contemplating offering liquor licenses citywide during the Super Bowl in February 2014. Would this work in Montclair?
In a town with hundreds of restaurants and eateries to choose from, one thing Montclair lacks is liquor licenses. But as Super Bowl XLVIII at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford approaches, a nearby city is pondering a move to lift the ban on liquor licenses for two weeks in February 2014 for the big game, according to NorthJersey.com. Think of this as an informal survey and vote below whether you think it’s a good idea to allow restaurants throughout Montclair to serve you a glass of beer or wine for a short period in February 2014 — if local officials could do it. While there are only a handful of liquor licenses in Montclair, most restaurants are BYOB and cater to customers bringing their own wine or beer. And it is a familiar sight…
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Owners Cheryl and Greg Spinelli of the well known Spanish eatery on Church Street closed closed the business this weekend.
- BUSINESS
-
Tuesday, March 26
Sunday was bittersweet for a Church Street restaurant which closed its doors for good at the end of the night. Wayne Robbin's highlighted the farewell party for Tapastry Restaurant in his latest "Inside Montclair" video. The colorful and well known Spanish restaurant has been a staple on Montclair's famous street for nine years. The evening featured live music by Studio 12/Open Mic and, of course, good food. Robbins also interviewed owners Cheryl and Greg Spinelli. "It's time to turn another page," said Greg Spinelli, "but we are certainly going to miss all our friends here on Church Street." Spinelli said the restaurant is moving down the street to the teen hangout Chill, located at 310 Bloomfield Ave., where Cherly and he will run a …
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Agree with the list? Disagree? What does your list look like?
- BUSINESS
-
Tuesday, February 26
Websites like Yelp! have empowered the everyday eater to become their local neighborhood's New York Times food critic, praising and damning behind the anonymity of a computer screen. Some peeved restaurateurs have argued Yelp! is little more than a "forum for the uninformed," a digitally-savvy clan of unsophisticated palates with little-to-no culinary education. True or not, the reviews listed on the website unquestionably impact popular perception. Will you dine at a place one newspaper critic gave a dazzling review to if the same restaurant was scorned by the unwashed masses? Maybe. Maybe not. So how does the average joe review the multitude of restaurants in Montclair? Based on Yelp!'s star ranking, we count down the highest rated …
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Excellent restaurant choices are recommended for Readers' Choice poll.
From one end of Essex County to the other, diners can get a great sushi meal wherever they go. Patch readers weighed in last week and chose their favorite sushi restaurants. The results were as follows: In Montclair, Dai Kichi tops the list for readers’ favorite sushi in town, followed by Toro and then Nori. Dai Kichi at 608 Valley Road in Upper Montclair offers authentic Japanese food and sushi with a classic Japanese ambiance. There is a sushi bar and accommodations for a large group with reservations. The place is great for couples and families and the restaurant now boasts a liquor license.Nori is on Bloomfield Avenue and Toro Sushi in Upper Montclair Plaza. Sakura in Millburn scooped up the top spot in Patch's poll for the best sushi …
Friday, March 30, 2012
A look at a special recipe
Wayne Robbins of Inside Montclair has produced a few video profiles of local restaurants to help celebrate the last few days of Restaurant Week. This segment features Leone's, located at 19 South Park Street, where owner Michael Leone has his chef put together a special dish: a margherita pizza with tomato, basil, fresh homemade mozzarella—and, yes, with a very unique margherita sauce. Last chance—Restaurant Week in Montclair will be ending this weekend, so get out there, and enjoy some of the best culinary delights in town.
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
And a new clothing store as well!
Everyone knows that the restaurant scene in Montclair is as unpredictable as a toddler on ice skates. But what can be predicted with some certainty today is that at least three new restaurants—all very different—will be opening in Montclair within the next few weeks. First on the list is Kei Kabob at 401 Bloomfield Avenue, a Persian restaurant that will specialize in kebabs. "Items will be low fat and healthy," said owner Ashkan Khalaj, who worked in the restaurant business in Iran. Kei Kabob, which hopes to open by Friday, March 23, is located next to Spice II, a Thai restaurant, which is located next to Satish Palace, an Indian restaurant. This ethnic enclave is right across the street from Acappello, a relatively new Italian …
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Putting charity back on the table
What could be better than an array of fabulous food choices—and a very good cause? Not much! The Rotary Club of Montclair has announced dates for the 2012 Taste of Montclair and Restaurant Week. The Taste of Montclair is on Monday, March 19. This event will kick off Restaurant Week, which will begin the very next day, March 20 through April 1, 2012. These are two events not to be missed, for so many reasons. Montclair Restaurant Week has raised almost $15,000 for the township's three largest food charities over the last two years. The event helps the needy, celebrates one of Montclair's greatest resources—its wonderful restaurants that are enjoyed by customers from northern NJ and beyond. The financial success of the venture has been …
Monday, March 5, 2012
A dining immersion at all of Zod Arifai's restaurants.
Imagine! One chef, one week, and thirty-one courses. Zod Arifai, the fascinating, rocker-turned-chef, invited me to dine at his restaurants, Blu, Next Door, and daryl—a Tour de Zod, if you will. The dining experience left me, in a word: seduced. In the afterglow, one question remained: how does this untrained culinary genius do it? “I don’t think anyone taught me how to cook.” Zod says, with a lingering European accent. “There were influences in my life. My mother’s cooking was very simple, but it was always very delicious.” Zod’s cuisine, which he describes as “pure, unmasked food,” is largely due to the local purity of Zod’s homeland—a small countryside town in Albania, where everything he ate as a youth was a product of the land. “We …
Tom McGurk
3:02 pm on Monday, May 6, 2013
What a ridiculous idea. Pub owners pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for the privilege of owning a liquor license in Montclair. Now we want everyone to be able to cash in because of the big game? You either own a liquor license 365 or you don't. more ›