When I received an invitation to come to a grand opening of a Kyushu, a new Sushi/Sake bar restaurant opening in Wallington, I was a bit hesitant at first because quite frankly, I didn’t know where Wallington was. (I apologize to all the fine people and establishments in Wallington.) Curious and eager to find out more about this area, I did a quick search of their location and was happy to find that it is the perfect spot for anyone heading to an event anywhere around the Meadowlands or Izod Center.
You’ll be happy to know that there was ample parking available on the street, at least on the night we were there. The bar/lounge area had a happy crowd enjoying cocktails, a lovely room with booths and in the back a sushi bar with 2 chefs busily preparing their many beautiful dishes. We sat and were immediately served some excellent sake in wooden boxes. We toasted to their success (sans the clink) sipped and watched the chefs do what they do best.
I’ve never eaten sushi like this, the quality of the fish, the combinations, the right balance of crunch and incredible sauces all added up to an unforgettable experience. I for one, was not a lover of raw fish. All that has changed. We tried only one cooked dish of shrimp , noodles and veggies and even that was served with a light not too sweet or salty broth. Excellent! The pictures tell a better story. I have tried to describe what every roll and dish was. See for yourself here….
Kyoshu is fun and has a hip vibe. The cocktails are amazing. Make this a destination for a great nite of sushi, sashimi, Japanese tapas, teriyaki, tempura, noodle dishes served with a smile by an amazing staff.
Thank you to Victor the manager and Jason the owner for this invitation. I give this place 5 stars and my friends that joined me agree. I for one, can’t wait to go back. The menu is extensive and not expensive!!
Kyushu, Exceptional Japanese cuisine and Sake bar Like them On Facebook
209 Paterson Ave, Wallington, NJ
LauriLee has been passionate about food her whole life. She spent many years in the travel business and always enjoyed dining out at many ethnic restaurants here and abroad. She is a self motivated foodie who has been cooking for over 30 years. Her recipes are based on fruits, vegetables, herbs, vinegars, various healthy oils, citrus , seafood and organic chicken and turkey. LauriLee also cooks for her daughter who is a Vegan, so we can look forward to some healthy vegan/vegetarian dishes from her kitchen. To learn more about LauriLee’s cooking classes and personal chef service, visit her website at LauriLeesHealthyCooking.net and Like her page on Facebook for great recipes and cooking tips.
Disclosure: Food and beverages were provided to all media attendees free of charge. All opinions and ideas for this post are my own. No reviews or mentions are ever promised in exchange for invitations to dine at any establishment.
Whadda ya know, we’re not just Pork Roll, Egg and Cheese and Disco Fries here in New Jersey. “Good Food America with Nathan Lyon” on Veria Living featured Asbury Park’s own 
This Saturday, August 25th at 9pm ET, Nathan will take a look inside 
Saint Sebastian’s Italian Feast, Wednesday – Sunday, August 26th. Montclair, NJ. The 5 day event features a wide variety of fine Italian foods such as zeppole, sausage and pepper and cheese steak sandwiches, oven brick pizza and all the Feast favorites. Plenty of rides for the kids and adults as well as games, novelties, nightly entertainment will include the talents of local Italian favorites, Tommy Scala and award winning Sinatra idol, Eric DeLauroe. There will also be a 50/50 raffle. 
Buffalo’s 2012 Spicy Wing Challenge, Saturday, August 25th at 3pm. Buffalo’s Chicken Shack, Wood Ridge, NJ. They’re back and the challenge is expected to be bigger, better and if you can believe it, Hotter this year. As always, they issue the challenge to those that can both stand the heat and eat some wings. Winning is just as easy this year as it’s been every other year, just eat more than person next to you! Click for registration and details.
Chili Cooks Against Cancer, Saturday, August 25th from 11am-6pm. West Windsor. The ICS Sanctioned contest includes three chili categories – Red Chili, Verde (green) Chili and Salsa ICS Sanctioned contest includes three chili categories – Red Chili, Verde (green) Chili and Salsa. Chili Lovers? Come out and taste Chili or volunteer to be a judge, either way you’ll have a wonderful time. Kids Activities and Live Entertainment as well as beer! Click for details.
Grape Stomping Festival, Sunday, August 26th from 12pm-5pm. Renault Winery in Egg Harbor City will host this fun event. Enjoy wonderful food including their “world famous sausage & peppers” and more, beer and wine, crafters, entertainment, activities for kids and of course grape stomping where you get to meet Lucy! 
BBQ & Craft Beer Festival, Saturday & Sunday, September 1st & 2nd. Monmouth Park. Ribs, pulled pork, brisket – it’s all back and better than ever, served up by some of the Garden State’s best BBQ joints. In addition, cool off with a cold one in the beer garden. 
Hoboken Italian Festival, Thursday – Sunday, September 6th – 9th. This is the 85th year of the feast in Hoboken. The origin of the feast dates back over 800 years in Molfetta, Italy. The procession through the streets is how we honor that tradition. Enjoy the feast fun! The vendors, the entertainment and the procession, but the real highlight of the feast has to be our famous fireworks. 
Seafood in Seaside Festival, Sunday, September 9th from 10am – 7pm. Grant Ave, Seaside Heights. Mouth watering seafood specialties from local restaurants. They will be serving a variety of seafood, such as, sushi, clams, shrimp, calamari, crab cakes, seafood kabobs, and blackened scallops just to give you a sampling of what will be offered. The festival features all day musical entertainment from bands such as local favorite, Shorty Long. Shoppers will be able to browse artists and crafters merchandise and a flea market with over 80 vendors.
Living Social’s Craft Beer & Food Truck Festival, Saturday, September 15th. Brooklyn, NY. I don’t normally post NY events but this one is big and for a great cause! Unlimited 5-ounce tastings of craft beer, top-notch food trucks, DJ dance party, art, games, and more—all at Skylight One Hanson. A portion of all proceeds will go to benefit 
Atlantic City Seafood Festival, Saturday & Sunday, September 15th & 16th. A two day extravaganza of fun, food and entertainment celebrating the treasures of the Atlantic Ocean while highlighting our sea side city. The festival will offer event goers the opportunity to treat their taste buds to a large variety of dishes prepared by area restaurants and culinary personalities. Click for more details.
A Night on the Navesink: A Flavour Summer Soiree, Thursday, August 16th from 6pm-9pm. Red Bank Flavour with JP Barry Hospitality, Inc will host this event at the Molly Pitcher Inn (88 Riverside Ave, Red Bank) to benefit the Lunch Break and the Red Bank Middle School Athletics Foundation. The evening will include more than 20 Red Bank eateries, as well as wine tastings, libations, and craft-beer selections from New Jersey breweries. Tickets are $40 in advance, or $50 at the door. For tickets, 
hMag Lackawanna Music Festival, Saturday, August 18th. Pier A in Hoboken. Sponsored by Ben & Jerry’s (we can only hope they bring ice cream). The event will be hosted by MTV’s Matt Pinfield and will feature the headliner band Tokyo Police Club. Other bands will include Vacationer, Shinobi Ninja, Body Language, Lights Resolve, We Barbarians, The Nightmare, River Band. Pilsener Haus will also be providing a Biergarten at the event as well. The music portion of the event is free but people are required to RSVP.
Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off, Saturday & Sunday, August 18th & 19th from 12pm-5pm. Monmouth Park. Shore Chefs compete for the best crab cake award and the coveted People’s Choice Award. Taste fare from your favorite local restaurants. Crab cakes, fried catfish, and clam chowder bread bowls are just a few of the favorites. 
Have you voted for your favorite NJ Crab Cake yet? Here are some of the tantalizing entries and a little bit about the innovative Chefs and Restaurants behind the recipes.
Above Restaurant & Bar
Avenue Bistro Pub
BoulevardFive72
Caffe Aldo Lamberti
Chakra: Visit Chakra in Paramus where Chef/Owner Thomas Ciszak presents great New American Cuisine in a dramatic, sensual setting. His classic European style and gracious hospitality set the scene for a truly memorable experience. His food has won raves from critics at The Record, New Jersey Monthly, and The Star-Ledger! Chakra is an oasis from the ordinary. The Entry: Horseradish Crusted Crab Cake: snow pea shoots, mustard seed vinaigrette
FISH Restaurant in Asbury Park: Located in Asbury Park’s Post Building, one of the region’s most beautiful and historic structures built in 1885, FISH has quickly attracted the attention of both local and regional audiences. Seeking unmatched quality, superior service and can’t-wait-to-return dining experiences. FISH offers a creative menu featuring the freshest seafood and seasonal, sustainable and locally grown foods. The Entry: Jumbo Lump Crabcake: Spicy Remoulade, Mache Salad
Ice House Restaurant and Bar in Wildwood: Entering our fourth season, Ice House Restaurant and Bar is emerging as the option of choice for “down the shore” dining and relaxing. The Dining Room is the perfect choice for parties of all sizes and ages, serving only the freshest seafood and finest steaks in a comfortable and contemporary setting. Our Ice House Deck is a great alternative if you’re only in the mood for appetizers and/or a sandwich while enjoying a “cool” cocktail and the spectacular view overlooking Otten’s Harbor. The Entry: “Ice House Crab Cake: Classic jumbo lump crab cakes with corn relish and served with traditional tartar sauce.”
Fort Lee native Christopher Holland grew up with so many Asian friends that Korean BBQ and Shabu Shabu shaped his palette as much as the influences of his Italian/Irish background. Holland developed a penchant for exotic Eastern flavors that prominently figure into his culinary artistry today. As Head Chef of Session Bistro, the year old boutique restaurant in Maywood adjacent to the Maywood Train Station Museum, Holland imbues nearly every dish with subtle and sometimes more pronounced nods to the flavors of his youth. The son of a chef who insisted Holland “at least take a bite” of new preparations, Holland embraced his father’s admonitions and later used this openness to new taste experiences to shape his palette and orientation in the service of combining flavors, styles and textures. While Holland’s parents divorced when he was young, he and his father bonded over food and remain close. (Holland’s father Thomas, affectionately known as Pops, retired his toque after decades in the restaurant business, but still assists on occasion at Session.)
Before I get into the food, a bit on the restaurant’s ambience. It’s an intimate space that holds about 45 guests. It was recently renovated to remove the sushi bar and drab interior left over by its previous tenants, which were deli owners. With a warm red jewel tone accent wall bedecked with a few dozen clocks (from Holland’s personal collection) and plenty of windows, minimal decor, much of the restaurant’s charm comes from the warmth of Troy and the wait staff. A new partner, Louie Marquez, adds a welcome feminine touch to the restaurant’s outside seating area with a trickling water fall and potted herbs. Add to the mix live music (when I visited, a jazz duet played standards and abstract melodies) and you have a hip vibe. Combine that with Holland’s craftsmanship, and you really get something to swoon over.
Bangkok Mussels ($8.95) are plump, juicy and briny in a delicate green curry beurre blanc, served alongside deep fried pita planks which act as tasty sauce-soaking vehicles. Chorizo Scampi ($11.95) are beautifully cooked jumbo shrimp in a garlic and chorizo beurre blanc with chorizo cracklings strewn about, rendered down bits we fought over.
Pulled Pork Tempura (10.95) is as delicate as it is decadent, a pillow of crispy, airy beer batter encasing tender, richly flavored pork. Bahn Mi style coleslaw lends brightness and acidity while Holland’s homemade bacon BBQ sauce brings a sweet, sultry warmth to a perfect dish. Holland’s bacon BBQ sauce should be bottled and sold as a accent sauce, not something you’d want to slather on chicken or ribs, but carefully add to protein you want to elevate to a sweet, tangy, elegant level. This sensuous sauce starts with five pounds of bacon, which is rendered down for the base of the sauce. I could go on about the sauce, but you get the picture. Serious flavors and plenty of restraint make Holland’s sauces and dishes work so well. Spices peek and beckon, but never over-power.
Shrimp and Grits ($20.95) is a homey, soulful dish that deeply satisfies. Holland sautés jumbo shrimp and finishes them with a chorizo cream sauce. Served with NJ corn he grates and cooks down with cream to resemble a lush polenta, this is a smooth, buttery, rich foundation to enjoy the well-seasoned shrimp against.
A transformation has taken place at the Applebee’s at 1057 Route 46 East. Step inside this Parsippany restaurant and you’ll spot it immediately: huge floor-to-ceiling photo collages featuring local high school students and other stars from the community are the centerpiece of a fully remodeled interior.
