Community News: Hudson Restaurant Week launches, Razza on TV, Liberty Prime expands happy hour

Jersey City

• Hudson Restaurant Week begins Monday, 7/23 with 47 restaurants offering lunch and dinner deals throughout Hudson County and it will run through Friday, 8/3. 
• Congratulations to Razza on being featured in new Netflix show Somebody Feed Phil for their excellent pizza including seasonal favorite, the corn pizza. 
• Departed Soles was voted 3rd Best Gluten-Free beer in the USA Today Reader's Choice competition. 

Community News: Charity Bartender Drag-A-Thon, Angel Azul Celebrates 20 Years, Rose Wine Dinner & More

Before we begin with our more local Community News, I wanted to mention the current human rights crisis of children being separated from their parents at our borders which is nothing short of an atrocity. These are events happening in our greater national community which are contradictory to any kind of morality I can personally imagine and flat-out shameful. I urge you to take some time to learn more and I'm including a link (via Slate) to the best round-up I found of ways you can help, be it though donating time, money, or knowledge.

Now back to our regular Community News programming:

Jersey City

• Join burlesque performer and censorship fighter Lillian Bustle and Pet Shop for Jersey City's first ever Charity Bartender Drag-A-Thon! Held this Thursday, 6/21 beginning at 9pm, all donations will go towards the Trevor Project. 
• Project: Eats is back this weekend, 6/23-6/24, for it's 5th Annual Festival, celebrating food, drinks, and fun. Stay tuned for more info!
• As part of the festivities, take advantage of FastBoy Delivery's Project:Eats special, where from now through 6/24, you can get free delivery with code PROJECTEATS18 when you check out. 

Weekend Round-Up: Sweetberry Bowls Grand Opening, Famous Food Market, and More

Happy Weekend, Jersey City! It's gearing up to be sunny and hot all weekend and there are lots of ways to enjoy it, both indoors and out:

Photo from Sweetberry Bowls

Sweetberry Bowls Grand Opening, 179 Newark Ave:
Join Sweetberry Bowls known for their super fruit smoothie bowls and salads, this Saturday for their Grand Opening celebration. They'll be opening at 8am and the first 50 people to visit will get a free bowl.

Community News: Paisano's Opening Jersey City Outpost, FM Reopens as Live Music Venue, and more.

Jersey City

Photo from The Hudson Kitchen

• If you're interested in starting your own food business, join The Hudson Kitchen and Hudson Community College for a one day Food Business Bootcamp, created specifically for new entrepeneurs and food startups. The class will cover everything from state regulations to how to make a business plan to pricing for profitability. Tickets are $225 but use code 50OFF to receive a $50 discount. 

Weekend Events: $1 coffee at Grind, Departed Soles' Oktoberfest, Smith Wine Festival, & more

Friday, Sept. 29th

• Swing by the Grind Shop to celebrate National Coffee Day with $1 small drip coffee.

• Kick off the fall season with Oktoberfest at Departed Soles. They'll be releasing their very first lager, Helles Island and they'll have custom, limited edition steins available in the tasting room to give it a proper Oktoberfest tasting. They're also releasing Kimberly, a milkshake IPA.

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

Jersey City

• The Midnight Market Family Day was delayed because of weather. The new date will be July 29th. 
• Congratulations to Departed Soles on celebrating two years of distribution and all their accomplishments over the past two years.
• The Grind Shop will be hosting a special brunch with Chef Eliott at The Baker Building on 6/25 from 1-4pm for $40/person
• South House will be running a beer garden at this year's 4th of July Freedom and Fireworks Festival at Liberty State Park. 

Community News

Jersey City

• Bone In Food has launched a new website with updated menu options including vegetarian choices and more personalized delivery times. 
• Departed Soles is hard at work on a new line of gluten-free craft beers using malted gluten-free grains so keep an eye out for news on their progress.
• Cocoa Bakery has released their Easter menu which includes cakes, tarts, cookies, pies, and cream puffs, all available now for pre-order. 
• Downtown Yogurt has introduced a new Cookie Counter and they're carrying Milk Sugar Love cookies to pair with your yogurt. Milk Sugar Love pints and ice cream sandwiches are now also available at Van Hook Cheese. 

Community News

• Congratulations to Pet Shop for their write-up on BestofNJ.com
• Sam a.m. has changed their supper clubs to a once a month event and they're now accepting reservations for their Thursday, August 11th event. 
• Congratulations to Bucket & Bay and Gia's Gelato, both listed as some of NJ's best gelato on NJ.com
• Via Jersey Digs, Hoboken's 1 Republik will be taking over the current space occupied by Rainbow on Newark Ave. 

Community News

• Congratulations to Liberty State Park on its 40th birthday. To celebrate, they'll be having a Bring Your Own Picnic celebration with cake, lemonade, and flags on Tuesday, 6/14 beginning at 5pm. 
• Congratulations to Bucket + Bay for their feature in New Jersey Monthly.
• Departed Soles is celebrating their first anniversary on Thursday, 6/16 with extended tasting room hours and the launch of a new beer, The Polish Goodbye. 
• Iron Monkey is hosting a Meet the Brewer night with Yards Brewing Co. this Thursday, 6/16 beginning at 7pm.
• Ozu Foods has restricted raw fish dishes to eat-in and take-out only during the summer months. 

Community News

• Congratulations to Just Beclaws who celebrated their one year anniversary this weekend. 
• Both Hamilton Pork and The Hamilton Inn are now hiring. 
• Congratulations to Martha's who celebrated their Grand Opening/Ribbon-Cutting last week. 
• As a reminder, Third & Vine is hosting their first winemaker dinner on Wednesday 5/18 with two Spanish winemakers. Tickets should be reserved ahead of time, $65/person.

Community News

• Congratulations to Departed Soles Brewing Co. for taking the bronze at the World Beer Cup this weekend with the gluten-free A Dark Night. 
• On Wednesday, May 18th, Third & Vine is hosting their first wine dinner featuring two Spanish winemakers for $65/person
• Congratulations to Taqueria Viva Mexico for being named on NJ.com's list of 20 Great Authentic Mexican restaurants in Jersey City. 
• Gusto Latino will be closed on Sundays for the summer. 
• Congratulations to The Archer and Dullboy for being named as two of the best cocktail bars in New Jersey by NJ Spotlight. 

Community News

• The Jersey City Brew Club has rescheduled their annual brewery bus trip after it was cancelled because of weather and tickets are currently on sale. They'll be visiting Newburgh, Mill House, and Defiant Brewery.
• Sam a.m. has introduced a new spring menu. 
• Congratulations to Jersey Girls Food Tours for their mention in Gold Coast magazine.
• Cocoa Bakery has started offering foccacia sandwiches.
• Congratulations to Departed Soles for being the first brewery to be featured in Fuse's new digital series, "Beer Rx".

Community News

• Congratulations to David Drake of Greene Hook and Light Horse Tavern for the two write-ups the restaurant received last week, one from The Village Voice and one from NJ Monthly.
• This Wednesday, Departed Soles is debuting their Winter Seasonal, Naughty (list) By Nature during the Tasting Room's Opening Hours from 2pm-7pm
• Busy Bee Organics will be at the Grove Street Farmer's Market tomorrow and they are also offering free holiday delivery.
• Milk Sugar Love has special holiday hours for the week.

Departed Soles

Departed Soles, Jersey City's first brewery, has been hard at work this summer, distributing their gluten-free beer to bars around the city, developing and tweaking recipes, and (the best part for us) opening the tasting room.

Community News

• Milk Sugar Love is bringing back the Pint Club! And the final summer sundae, a collaboration with Thirty Acres, is now on offer every weekend in September.
• Sam A.M. announced their three day supper club menu for the week.
• Art House is hosting a Fall Spectacular next Saturday with food trucks, live music, beer tasting, and a cake baking contest.
• Dark Side of the Moo is hiring.
• Carvao BBQ was featured in The Jersey Journal.
  

Weekend Events

Jersey City is feeling very multi-cultural this weekend so get out there and enjoy it!

Today is the Journal Square Green Market with Bang Me Bakery, Taproot Organics, Stella's Empanadas, & more. This market seems like it's growing by the week, so make sure to check it out.

La Festa Italiana will continue every night through Sunday with music, games, 50/50, bull-riding (!) and lots and lots of food.

After water damage from a fire in the upper floors of their building shut them down, Taqueria Viva Mexico is opening back up today!

Departed Soles Brewing Company will be opening its doors on Friday from from 4-7pm and Saturday from 12-5pm for taste tests of some of their pilot kegs.

Departed Soles Kickstarter

Departed Soles, the first craft brewery coming to Jersey City, has launched a kickstarter to help with funding as they close in on the final steps of opening up the brewery.