Red Bank library director Elizabeth McDermott indulges her craving at Sogo Sushi. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
World traveler-turned-Red Bank Public Library director Elizabeth McDermott has a weekly itch that she scratches at Sogo Sushi on Monmouth Street: a bento box.
“It’s like comfort food to me,” says McDermott, whose previous job as a software consultant for Oracle took her all over the globe.
An iconic French dessert, a profiterole at O Bistro is what we crave. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
Ringing in 2017 in Paris with a view of the Eiffel Tower sounds romantic, if not so practical.
But Francophiles on the Greater Green can hoist a glass of (BYOB) Champagne at O Bistro Francaise in Red Bank while dipping a spoon into the best chocolate sauce in New Jersey.
More →
Kristin and John Pallonetti at the Inbetween Café for breakfast. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
With a due date of Christmas Eve, parents-to-be Kristin and John Pallonetti have a lot more to look forward to than their next meal.
Still, when those cravings kick in, the Fair Haven couple respond, often heading into Red Bank for custom omelets at the Inbetween Café.
More →
August Culbert stops by the Danish Café for lunch, coffee and a danish for dessert. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
“It wouldn’t be the Danish Café without danish,” says August Culbert, a 25-year-old Fair Haven resident and owner of Apogee Technology Services, a Red Bank information technology business.
“The coffee is the best here, and they offer free refills,” says Culbert, who’s been a regular since about 2013 and has “tried everything on the menu.” But it’s the “soft, flaky European-style pastry” of the Danish’s danish that Culbert says he finds particularly appealing.
PieHole catches Jen Rubino pre-bite at Jamian’s Food and Drink. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
Jamian’s Food and Drink gets testy on Tuesday nights as brainiacs and know-it-alls vie for points at a trivia contest that fills the Red Bank bar to capacity.
Jen Rubino, a 43-year-old borough resident and Italian teacher, has been showing up with her team from the beginning of the weekly showdown two years ago. Is it the camaraderie, the challenge — or maybe a craving for her favorite pizza that brings her out every week?
More →
Irish soda bread scones from Alice’s Kitchen in Sea Bright. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
When 23-year-old Shauna Harten gets a craving, it’s likely to be for Irish soda bread scones. And not just scones like those her mother used to make, but the genuine article.
When the Sea Bright resident was studying hospitality at Florida International University, she’d have her mom ship them down to her, she tells PieHole.
“My roommates really liked them, too,” she said. “They looked forward to the delivery almost as much as I did.”
More →
Side orders from Jr’s: bacon burger cheese fries and sweet potato fries. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
What do when you’re in the middle of a hot, late-night game of Magic: the Gathering and the munchies hit you?
There aren’t a lot of after-hours choices on the Greater Green, but gamers like Connor Murphy-Smith have gotten into the habit of ordering online from Jr’s in Red Bank to quell their cravings, whether they’re at home or playing at Hobbymasters in Red Bank or the Comic Crypt in Shrewsbury.
Natalie Cozzati takes a bite of the breakfast sandwich she craves. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
“Do I like pork roll?” Red Bank graphic designer and owner of NMC Design Studio Natalie Cozzati rhetorically asks PieHole. “Am I from Jersey? I’ve got to have my pork roll fix. Gotta satisfy that craving.”
Cozzati is not alone in her uniquely Jersey desire. At the Red Bank Farmers’ Market every Sunday this time of year, you’ll find plenty of customers queuing up at Johnny’s Pork Roll truck, patiently waiting to grab their sandwiches.
And don’t call it Taylor Ham, say Cozzati and others in line in the Galleria parking lot.
More →
Katie Katzgrau satisfies her craving for pumpkin at Rook in Red Bank. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
What are you craving these days? PieHole‘s asking for a new, occasional feature called Cravings, which we see as a way of shining a quick spotlight on gotta-have culinary yearnings — and, of course, ways to satisfy them right here on the Greater Red Bank Green.
In this one, with pumpkin-flavored everything showing up even before the tree leaves begin turning our world gold and orange, we chat with a woman who dreams of pumpkin flavor all year long.
More →
A fried sweet apple burrito covered in two sauces and ice cream. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
Seasonal changes can induce all sorts of fresh cravings, and with September screaming “apple season,” PieHole stumbles on a dessert so tasty, and in such an unlikely place, that sharing our bonanza is all we can do.
Read on to see where you can feast on this crave-able cinnamon-scented apple burrito.
More →