Red Bank Restaurant Week Features Healthy Options

By Christina Johnson
RED BANK – For the first time, diners taking part in Red Bank Restaurant Week will be offered more than a break on their bill. Every one of 24 sit-down restaurants is putting forth one menu item that epitomizes their top choice for healthy eating.
The dishes, branded with “Good For You From Riverview” have been given an official stamp of approval from River view Medical Center’s Food and Nutrition Services. The downtown Red Bank-based hospital is sponsoring the November Restaurant Week, which will be the second one to promote the local dining scene this year.
“We see a lot of lean, healthy dishes,” said Riverview Clinical Nutrition Manager Meaghin Svenson, R.D., who helped review the healthy options. She applauded a slew of enticing salmon dishes, presented in different ways, such as with caper salsa, grilled, with Dijon cream, with baby Arugula, with fingerling potatoes. “It seems like there’s a lot of vegetarian options as well, like a shrimp sandwich, a quinoa pilaf-Portobello skewer, chopped salad with seasonal vegetables,” she said.
The healthy dish is just one the options available on the menus, priced at the restaurant’s choice of $20, $25 and $30. The dishes include an appetizer, entrée and dessert. Tax, gratuity and beverage is not included.

There are more than 100 places to eat in Red Bank, and about half of them are full-fledged restaurants, says Red Bank RiverCenter’s James Scavone. Eating out in Red Bank is becoming ever more popular, particularly as the Count Basie and Two River Theater attracts people to town, looking for a night out.
Locals have been noticing more New York license plates in the downtown. It’s not surprising, said Scavone, who oversees the RiverCenter website. “New York is our number one market for website traffic,” he said. RiverCenter has been focusing some of its promotional efforts to Staten Island residents, to complement its efforts to alert local diners with a banner strung across Broad Street, and promotional advertising fliers tucked into restaurant bill folios.
Parking is available and free after 6 p.m. Visit RedBank.org for more information.
Participating Red Bank Restaurants include:

• Danny’s Steakhouse $30
• The Chowda House $25
• Carlos O’Connors $20
• The Downtown $25
• Front St Trattoria $30
• Pearl at The Oyster Point Hotel $30
• San Remo Italian Cuisine $30
• Earth Pizza $20
• The Belmonte $30
• Hansel ‘n Griddle $20
• Siam Garden $25
• ChikyBoom Cuban and Tapas Eatery $25
• The Robinson Ale House $30
• La Pastaria $30
• Gaetano’s $30
• Catch $30
• Gotham $30
• Temple Gourmet Chinese $30
• Toki Japanese Cuisine $25
• Molly Pitcher Inn $30
• Dish $30
• Buona Sera $30
• Runa Peruvian Cuisine $30 –Closed Monday
• Char Steakhouse $30