Tag: Dinner With Bob

For a new restaurant to get noticed in Red Bank, which already has a large number of eateries, it has to be special. And if it’s Italian, the competition is even greater as there is no shortage of that type of cuisine in the area.

The menu at Saffron, a recently opened restaurant on Front Street in Red Bank, states that it offers “Modern Indian Dining,” which begs the question, what is “modern” Indian dining or cuisine, as opposed to traditional Indian cuisine?

Stepping through a foliage-covered trellis, we left the busy center of Sea Bright outside and entered a hidden, enclosed outdoor garden space with trees, shrubs, hanging lighting and live music, which provided a serene escape into a world of its own.

“Big Mike” Metzner, executive chef at Restaurant Nicholas for many years, decided he wanted a different approach to his career feeding people.

When Sprig restaurant opened in December 2022 it faced a number of challenges, not the least of which was its location in the Consumer Centre in West Long Branch, best known for The Home Depot and Dick’s Sporting Goods. It’s hard to take a fine dining destination seriously in a location like that, but it nevertheless developed a loyal following for its very good food.

Ongoing construction on Bay Avenue in Highlands has made visiting the restaurants there a bit of a challenge lately, but to avoid this area and miss out on a dinner at Fresh would be a mistake.

The building at the corner of East River Road and Black Point Road in Rumson has been home to various restaurants for decades.

It is reassuring to see that not only are a good number of new restaurants opening in the Two River area but also that the incredible piece of property once home to Fort Monmouth is being repurposed in inventive ways. 

It was a foggy, damp Thursday night and most of First Avenue in Atlantic Highlands was winding down at the end of the day, but when we opened the door to Strada, a self-proclaimed pizzeria/bar, a party was in full swing.

If you want to try something different from your usual go-to restaurant, you can take a culinary journey to India, thanks to the fairly new Mauka Indian Cuisine in Eatontown.