Outdoor Dining

[sgschef]

Good morning.

Tomorrow evening (Saturday) a group of 4 would like to dine outside somewhere within 30 minutes of Westfield--but not in Westfield. Any type of food is fine (as long as it is wonderful!) but we would like a patio or garden, not on the sidewalk in front. Thank you for any recommendations.

[tommy]

doesn't Stage House Inn have an outdoor patio?

[Curlz]

Nice outdoor patio at the Stirling Inn/Hotel (?)--food isn't necessarily over the top, but it was tasty, and it's a really nice setting...

[Rosie]

Trattoria Fresco, Caldwell

Café Matisse--Rutherford

Frog and the Peach—New Brunswick

Highlawn Pavilion--call to confirm

Huntley Taverne - Summit call to confirm

Trap Rock Brewery - Berkley Heights-- call to confirm

[menton1]

Don't know much about it, but Soho 33 in Madison has a patio-- Just squeezes in to your 30-minute criterion, but many of the recommendations here are over 1 hour away from Westfield;

Mulberry Street in Montclair had a great patio in the back with live jazz, but I believe they have succumbed to economics and closed down.

Probably Huntley or Trap Rock are your best choices... (Same management)

Edited August 27, 2004 by menton1 (log)

[ghostrider]

Someone mentioned outdoor dining at Greek Delights in Montclair. Dunno if it's sidewalk or patio. Nor do I know where Westfield is.

[Curlz]

Westfield is in Union Cty, across Rt. 22. A lovely town with plenty of decent restaurants, but for them to go further than Summit, it's more than 30 minutes.

[ghostrider]

Of course I don't know where Summit is either.

I just never seem to have a reason to go further south than Montclair.

Don't mind me, I'll get me map & figger it out.

[JohnnyH]

Don't know much about it, but Soho 33 in Madison has a patio-- Just squeezes in to your 30-minute criterion, but many of the recommendations here are over 1 hour away from Westfield;

Don't bother -- nothing the least bit special here...

[Curlz]

I just never seem to have a reason to go further south than Montclair.

We gotta get you a new compass, ghost--Montclair is WEST of you, not south!!

Edit: It's only south in that it's ACROSS Route 3. Heehee

Edited August 27, 2004 by Curlz (log)

[ghostrider]

Edit: It's only south in that it's ACROSS Route 3. Heehee

Precisely!

I was going to specify southwest, but then I realized that I do find reasons to head west of Montclair, but not south, so I decided that south was more accurate.

I can usually add "except to go to concerts at PNC," but this has been a bad year for me in that regard.

[tommy]

oddly, my impression is that route 3 runs east/west. while i know that's not the case, i always think of things in terms of north or south of route 3, just as curlz suggests. and montclair to my mind is surely SW of rutherford...although it's really due west, which is confusing me. i don't want to talk about this anymore.

[ghostrider]

oddly, my impression is that route 3 runs east/west. while i know that's not the case, i always think of things in terms of north or south of route 3, just as curlz suggests. and montclair to my mind is surely SW of rutherford...although it's really due west, which is confusing me. i don't want to talk about this anymore.

It's that big curve to the north that Rt. 3 makes some miles west of here. Screws up everything.

Actually, you're right, Montclair really is due west. That just blew my mind. Well that's pretty easy to do these days.

[tommy]

It's that big curve to the north that Rt. 3 makes some miles west of here. Screws up everything.

Actually, you're right, Montclair really is due west. That just blew my mind. Well that's pretty easy to do these days.

i'm with you. i think the important thing to note here is that you have to go south to get to it because of the way the roads are set up: by the time you get out to valley rd, you gots to go south. so it's officially south. i feel much better now.

[Curlz]

Clarification...

Lyndhurst (where I am) is on the SOUTH side of Rt. 3 from where Ghostrider is (Rutherford). Montclair is unquestionably WEST of both of us. I was busting him b/c he said south, so I assumed that was because to get to Montclair, he'd have to cross Rt.3. Everyone with me now?

--Lewis. or Clark.

P.S. Moral of the story? One can dine outdoors when you have a decent compass. Or Mapquest.

Edited August 28, 2004 by Curlz (log)

[ghostrider]

Clarification...

Lyndhurst (where I am) is on the SOUTH side of Rt. 3 from where Ghostrider is (Rutherford). Montclair is unquestionably WEST of both of us. I was busting him b/c he said south, so I assumed that was because to get to Montclair, he'd have to cross Rt.3. Everyone with me now?

--Lewis. or Clark.

P.S. Moral of the story? One can dine outdoors when you have a decent compass. Or Mapquest.

Actually you're on the southwest side of Rt. 3 from me.

Montclair is so much bigger than either R'ford or L'hurst that it is unquestionably west of both of us.

I realized that my confusion stems from this regional map I've had for decades which has Manhattan absolutely vertical on the page, whereas in reality the isle of Manhattan is skewed NE/SW. If you look at that map & don't look at the N/S indicator, Rt. 3 indeed appears to run straight E/W. My mental image of the area is so tied to that map, it's hopeless to change it at this point.

That's my excuse & I'm sticking to it.

[hitmanoo]

I just thought I'd float this thread back up towards the top now that the weather is finally taking a turn for the better.

SUMMER IS UPON US!!!

I was thinking of taking a trek either to Summit or Madison for today to take advantate of this nice weather. I know that both towns have some outdoor dining options as well as a "town center" area where sunday strollers can walk about in the fine weather, check out some local shops, and get some eats.

Anybody have some fresh ideas for this summer?

[Curlz]

Hitmanoo, you're probably out and about already, but if not, there is a place on the main street in Madison across from Shanghai Jazz--I think it's called Soho 33 or something like that; haven't been in 2 years, but they used to serve some terrific salads, and you can sit outside. A 100% casual and family friendly option is Firehouse Pizza on Central Avenue; they have a great patio.

Don't know if Shanghai Jazz has outdoor seating or not, but they serve some excellent food too.

[hitmanoo]

Hitmanoo, you're probably out and about already, but if not, there is a place on the main street in Madison across from Shanghai Jazz--I think it's called Soho 33 or something like that; haven't been in 2 years, but they used to serve some terrific salads, and you can sit outside.  A 100% casual and family friendly option is Firehouse Pizza on Central Avenue; they have a great patio.

Don't know if Shanghai Jazz has outdoor seating or not, but they serve some excellent food too.

←

I saw Shanghai Jazz this afternoon. Is it just me or when you're thinking of Shanghai, you're not thinking of jazz, and vice versa... I'll be sure to check this place out in more detail next time. I wasn't sure what to make of it, so I kind of missed my chance today. What kind of food do they serve?

Neither Shanghai Jazz nor Soho 33 had any outdoor seating. We wondered about Madison for awhile before my wife decided that she wanted to head over to Summit.

We ate at the Broadway Cafe. Standard food, but we'd gotten a little hungry, and to be honest we didn't see many appealing outdoor options. The priority of today was to be outside, as opposed to finding great food. To be honest, I'm still full from the Crawfish Festival yesterday.

[Rosie]

This is an old list that I have so please send me any corrections. Updated 6/24/05

Dining Outdoors

A & B Bakery & Café, Ridgewood

After Athens—Rutherford

Amarone, Teaneck

Andiamo, Haworth

Arthur’s Landing Weehawken

Assembly, Englewood Cliffs

Basilico - Millburn

Beantowne Gourmet Inc, Allendale.

Bella Luna, 703 Belmar Plaza, Belmar, Bernards Inn—Bernardsville

Bistro Ole—Asbury Park

Blue Moon, Englewood

Brandl—Belmar

Cafe Angelique, Tenafly

Cafe Matisse, Belmar

Café Matisse--Rutherford

Chart House –Weehawken

Church St. Café, Montclair

Colligan’s Stockton Inn—Stockton

Confucius Asian Bistro—Jersey City

El Meson, Freehold

Elm Street Cafe - Westfield

Flirt, Allendale.

Frog and the Peach—New Brunswick

Garlic Rose Bistro—Madison

Gazelle, Ridgewood

Gerrino--Hoboken

Hamilton's Grill--Lambertville

Highlawn Pavilion

Hoboken—most of the restaurants there

Ho-Ho-Kus Inn, Ho-Ho-Kus

Hunt Club—Summit

Huntley Taverne, Summit

Il Michelangelo—Boonton Township

Il Piccolo forno, Long Branch

Il Porto—Jefferson

Ip's and Tiny's --Jefferson

It's Greek to Me, Englewood and Ridgewood

Jefferson House --Jefferson

Jefferson, Hoboken

Joseph's - Glen Ridge

Juno's--Edgewater

Lalezar, Montclair

Lambertville--most restauarnts

Latour, Ridgewood

Le Petit France, Red Bank

Liberty House—Jersey City

Long Valley Pub and Brewery—Long Valley

Lory’s Lakeside—Farrington Lake

Madison Bar and Grill—Hoboken

Malee, Ridgewood

Mama Tucci Italian Bistro—Madison

Manon - Lambertville

Marcello’s—Ridgewood

Marcello's at the Station, Ridgewood

Mason Street Pub--Jefferson

McLoone’s Pier House—Long Branch

Mediterra—Princeton

Melt, Jersey City

Metropolitan Cafe, Freehold

Mezzaluna, Allendale.

Milan - Pinebrook

Moonstruck, Asbury Park

Off The Hook, Highlands

Old Bay-- New Brunswick

Osaka, Red Bank

O'Sullivans --Jefferson-- Papillon—Nutley

Panevino, Rt 10, Livingston

Papillon, Nutley.

Parkhills, Allenhurst

Pasta e Pollo, Ridgewood

Pat’s Cafe

Pazzo Pazzo—Morristown

Porter House—Montvale

Porto Leggero—jersey City

Rafferty’s-- New Brunswick

Rat’s—Hamilton

Raymond's, Montclair

Robongi Japan—Hoboken

Rooneys Crab House, Long Branch

Rosina’s Café Ristorante and Bar—Bound Brook

Ruth Chris Steak House—Weehawken

Ruth Chris--Weehawken

Sea Gulls Nest, Sandy Hook

Sir John’s—North Brunswick

Solaia Englewood

Stage House Inn –Scotch Plains

Stage Left—New Brunswick

Sushi Lounge—Hoboken

Sweet Waters Steak House—Westfield

Thai Chef. Englewood

Thai Chef—Montclair

Thirsty Moose--Jefferson

Trap Rock Brewery - Berkley Heights

Trattoria Corrado, Rutherford

Trattoria Fratelli, Ridgewood

Tre Piani—Princeton Junction

Village Green, Ridgewood

Village saloon - sparta/jefferson

Wild Ginger—Englewood

Windansea—Lake Hopatcong

Windlass--Lake Hopatcong

Zarole, Ridgewood

Zoe's by the Lake, Sparta

[Curlz]

I agree that Shanghai Jazz is an unusual concept--but they serve some terrific food, and the owners really do care about jazz, so they bring in excellent musicians and singers. If I'm not mistaken, info about the history of the restaurant mentions that jazz is/was big in Shanghai and I do recall that the owners had a direct connection, having grown up around both the food and the music. I've been there about half a dozen times, and although it's expensive for Chinese food, I always enjoy myself and the meals.

I'm surprised that Soho 33 didn't have tables out in front today--maybe it was TOO hot?

[Kim WB]

As you listed Hoboken, you might also want to list lambertville..almost all have a patio. garden or sidewalk seating.

[ghostrider]

Trattoria Corrado, on Station Sq in Rutherford, has several sidewalk tables now.

[suzilightning]

add Zoe's by the Lake in Sparta which is now by a lake again

i don't think it's ready yet but Warehouse Grill in Jefferson is making a patio dining space.

course right now it is pouring like crazy and thundering and lightning so you may want to rethink that

[cibo susci]

The Jefferson in Hoboken. Cafe in front and garden in the back.