Community News: Bucket & Bay Gelato Class, Bread & Spoon at P&K, Mutzfest in Hoboken

Jersey City

Photo from Bread & Spoon

• Bread & Spoon has started selling their gluten-free peanut butter chocolate chip cookies at P&K Market. 
• ME Casa has started offering $7.99 delivery and take-out lunch specials every Monday through Friday from 11am-3:30pm. 
• Bucket & Bay is holding a Gelato-Making Masterclass on 1/25 focusing on speakeasy flavors like gelato infused with oak, smoke, and other liquors. Tickets are $95 each. 

Juice Basin Opening Today

Juice Basin is launching the soft open of their new Jersey City location at 336 Second Street today.

Departed Soles Fundraising for Hurricane Harvey Recovery

On this week's Community News, I listed some organizations to donate to and ways to help in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Harvey and now there are also some local ways you can help. 

Photo from Departed Soles

Departed Soles is launching their new gluten-free New Jersey Ninja tonight and for every sale of packaged goods (cans and growler fills of any of the available beers), $1 will go to hurricane recovery efforts. New Jersey Ninja is a unique beer, a light blonde ale made with New Jersey honey, organic green tea, and 100% malted, gluten-free grains. There will be several other gluten-free and definitely not gluten-free options available. 

Community News

• Congratulations to Modcup for their feature in Fresh Cup Magazine, discussing how they started and the challenges of running a mobile operation. 
• Park & Sixth has created a new back bar in their space and revamped the cocktail menu. 
• Dark Side of the Moo expanded their offerings this week and are now offering gluten-free burger rolls and alligator empanadas and have started carrying Baonanas at the store. 
• A new Indian restaurant, Spice Club, has opened at 789 Newark Avenue, taking over the former Masala space.
• Congratulations to Hamilton Pork on their three star review and write-up in NJ Monthly.
  

Thanksgiving 2016

Thanksgiving is getting closer and Jersey City has a lot of options to help you celebrate. Here are some ideas on where to get all your essential Thanksgiving supplies, what to do, and where to go if you're not cooking.

Community News

• Per Erin DeLaney, a new deli on Summit Ave called Grub Mutz will open on Tuesday after having had their soft open over the weekend. 
• Koro Koro and their new food truck will now be at the Hamilton Park Farmer's Market every Wednesday from 3pm-7:30pm.
• Ozu Foods will be closed this Tuesday and Wednesday, but will be launching lunch service shortly after that in Mid-November. 

Graze and Braise Launches Menu Plan

Graze and Braise recently announced they're launching a new weekly meal plan available for delivery.

Courtesy of Graze and Braise

Get to Know JC Eater: Lorna

Welcome to "Get to Know JC Eater" where every week I post a profile of a local resident who wants to share where and what they love to eat in Jersey City.  This site is meant to be useful to the community so what better way to do that then involve the community itself? If you'd like to be featured, please leave a comment below or email me directly.

This week's JC Eater is a local home renovation specialist and nacho expert. 

Cafe Batata

Cafe Batata, 382 Second Street, opened about two months ago with a Brazilian menu focusing on Batata Suíça, a stuffed Swiss-Brazilian potato pancake. They also offer other Brazilian specialties like various croquettes (I tried the plain chicken - slightly dry but great flavor), pao de queijo (light, airy cheese breads that they do an excellent job with here), and brigadeiro (Brazilian chocolate truffles).

Graze and Braise Launches Spring Menu

Local paleo delivery service Graze and Braise is launching their new spring menu tomorrow.
The updated menu features more salads and a couple of lighter entree options in preparation for spring and warmer weather.

Chilltown Kitchen Cooks Up Something Special

Chilltown Kitchen has put out the menu for this month's supper club and by popular demand, they will be serving an entirely vegan and gluten-free menu.

Save LSP Picnic (and where to stock up!)

This Friday, join the family behind E. Tittlemouse and Co. for a picnic in Liberty State Park! The goal of the picnic - which is a casual get-together, not an organized event- is to help raise awareness about the importance of saving LSP from development and privatization. The idea is to have anybody who's interested show up between 1pm and sundown to enjoy their own picnic, have some food, have some fun, and just enjoy the park, showing their support.

To help get you in the mood, I've compiled a list of picnic best bets from around Jersey City, nothing that needs to be kept cold, warmed up, or requires major preparation:

Nine Bar Cafe

After several months undergoing renovations and setting up, Nine Bar Cafe opened up quietly at 18 Erie Street, not long before their neighbor Carrino Provisions, and quickly became one of the more popular coffee destinations in town.

The proprietor, Stefania Cocozza, hails from Rome and her passion for quality Italian coffee is well-translated here. It's quickly become part of my weekend routine over the past few months and I highly recommend you make it part of yours.

The espresso based drinks are really what you're after here. The regular coffee is good, but the espresso is the star of the show, ideally to be drunk in-store. However, as it's almost always crowded, taking it to go is fairly unavoidable. Preferably with a pastry or two.

Community News

• Congratulations to The Kitchen for their great review in the Star-Ledger.
• Congratulations to 9 Bar Cafe, modcup, Smith & Chang, Brewshot, Dames, and Legal Grounds for being named as Best Coffeehouses in North NJ by NJMonthly.
• The Journal Square CSA is now open for early-bird registration and they've added some new options this year. 
• Busy Bee Organics is looking for part-time helpers interested in growing with the company.

Organic Cafe LOLO Opens

When JuiceWell on Jersey Ave (between Columbus and Newark) closed a few months ago, they promised another juice company was going to move in, but for a long time, it didn't seem like much was happening. Until this past Sunday when I walked by, noticed people in the store, and a menu outside.

Pasta Dal Cuore Opening Tomorrow

After dealing with some unexpected inspection and permit delays, I'm happy to announce that Pasta Dal Cuore, 527 Jersey Avenue, is opening (EDIT) tomorrow (Wednesday, 11/4) at 10 a.m., selling fresh pastas and daily specials like vegetarian, meat, and cheese raviolis and gnocchi.

Elena Cartagena, the owner of Pasta Dal Cuore, is a graduate from the FCI Italian program where she first began to form the idea of her own specialty pasta shop. After working around New York (including a stint at Eataly) and then traveling through Italy for six months to gain inspiration and knowledge, Elena decided to make that idea a reality by opening up a shop in Jersey City where she grew up and has long resided.