Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Owner Lisa Murray hopes to find another space in South Orange but will keep the business alive online for the time being.
In business at its West South Orange Avenue location since March 2007, Mia Cose Bella—which sells jewelry, fine art, pottery, glassware and more—will close its doors to customers on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Owner Lisa Murray says she intends to keep the business going online and through private house parties. Ultimately, she'd like to find a new space in South Orange—either on her own or sharing with another business. Her decision to close the current location came down to several factors, including the drop-off in foot traffic on West South Orange Avenue since The Orange Tree and, most recently, Commuter Comics closed. While it might not be obvious that her shop would have a synergy with a comic book store, she's noticed a slow-down on Saturday …
40.746393
-74.260003
Mia Cose Bella
8 W South Orange Ave
/articles/mia-cose-bella-to-close-this-month
5446
/locations/280752
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Shuttered in late December due to numerous health code violations, the new owners will have to demonstrate compliance before being given the green light by the Village to reopen.
Though Frank's Trattoria has had red Health Department placards announcing its embargoed status on its door since Dec. 29, when the eatery was ordered to close for health code violations, passersby may have noticed activity within in the past few weeks. That's because two new owners purchased the restaurant and have been making changes to the space. However, they failed to inform the Village that they had bought the property and were working without a use permit, according to Health Officer John Festa, who spoke about the status of Frank's at a Board of Trustee budget workshop on Tuesday. "They basically bought Frank's problems," he said. Though interior renovations had been embarked upon, a stop-work order has since been issued, and the …
40.74042
-74.263721
Frank's Trattoria
329 Valley St
/articles/franks-trattoria-under-new-ownership
5139
/locations/276135
Zayda's defies the odds to thrive, while other authentic delis have closed their doors.
On a gray Tuesday, with snow on the ground and more in the forecast, Zayda's is bustling. A deliveryman backs a truck into the narrow driveway. Inside the Irvington Avenue store, employees slice pastrami, stack it on rye with Russian dressing and coleslaw, and plate the sandwiches three deep. Behind the deli counter, notes reading "turkey for 90" compete for attention with a sandwich menu some six feet long. Owner Andrew Halper takes a phone call, hands a visiting salesman his business card and sneaks a taste of a steaming pastrami. "When the employees see the ends are missing," he explains, "they say, 'Andrew was here.' " Just another day at the deli? Maybe, but for "Save the Deli," a book and blog by David Sax. Writer and food lover …
40.740854
-74.252845
Zayda's Kosher Meats Deli & Catering
309 Irvington Ave
/articles/a-jewish-deli-defies-odds-and-endures-in-so
5335
/locations/275206
Friday, February 12, 2010
Bilingual Buds began in a Wyoming Avenue basement and now offers classes in Beijing.
Only five years have passed since its birth, but Sharon Huang's baby has moved out. Bilingual Buds, a school that teaches Mandarin Chinese and, as of this year, Spanish, began in the basement of Huang's Wyoming Avenue home in February of 2005. Huang, then a new mother holding an MBA from Wharton, read about the cognitive benefits of studying a second language from birth. Since her family background is Taiwanese, Huang was drawn to the idea of teaching Mandarin to her children. From that idea, a school was born. The mission of Bilingual Buds is to prepare children to "be global citizens who are intellectually curious, culturally aware, and linguistically capable." It bills itself as the first immersion program for children ages 1 through …
Elaine Braff shares her Valentine’s Day tips with Patch.
With Valentine's Day a mere two days away, Elaine Braff, a South Orange "expressive therapist" who uses modalities such as art, dance and role playing and specializes in couples therapy, has been quite busy. "Valentine's Day can be an upsetting occasion for some couples because they have lost that loving feeling for each other," said Braff, who has been practicing therapy for over 30 years. "With the current economic recession and the loss of jobs, people are feeling insecure and anxious." Not the ideal combination for couples looking to maintain the spark in their marriage while juggling a job search and family responsibilities. Braff knows a thing or two about the struggles that many couples experience. After 18 years of marriage and two…
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
An offering from the nearby pizzeria is dubbed best thin-crust by the Star-Ledger's Pizza Patrol.
"Hot, very hot," murmurs a server, handing a stack of pizza boxes to a waiting customer. On a gray weekday in January, the parking lot at Star Tavern is full, and cars are waiting. Inside, every table is taken. Diners include nearby office workers, a painting crew, parents with small children and several tables of patrons who describe themselves as "the happily retired." Near the open kitchen, a line of people wait for takeout. "This is nothing," says Janelle Lewis, a South Orange resident. Working in sales, she admits to scheduling her midday calls around the Star. She also comes on the weekends when, she says, "That line is out the door." Maybe locals heard the news; the Star-Ledger's Munchmobile Pizza Patrol selected Star Tavern, at 400…
40.78337
-74.2258
400 High St, Orange, NJ
Star Tavern
/articles/prize-winning-pizza-at-oranges-star-tavern
/locations/266906
Friday, January 29, 2010
Valley Arts and HANDS collaborate to open a new restaurant.
When the businesses closed in the late 1920s and took with them Orange's designation as hat-maker to the world, the factories remained. Between Orange's Highland Station and South Orange's Mountain Station, narrow streets are lined with homes, businesses that once served the hatters, and, now, a restaurant that is a collaboration of Housing and Neighborhood Development Services, Inc. (HANDS) and Valley Arts. Hat City Kitchen is open, serving food, drinks and a steady diet of art and music. At the corner of Valley and Forest streets, in the shadow of Our Lady of the Valley Church, Hat City Kitchen is an old building with a new vibe. Previously Ricci's in the Valley, the 1890s building has long served as a restaurant. Hat City Kitchen, which…
40.765971
-74.248431
459 Valley St, Orange, NJ
/articles/oranges-hat-city-offers-food-drink-and-music
/locations/247583
How a South Orange personal trainer whipped her own life into shape.
South Orange resident Monica Mangan, a personal trainer and owner of Buff Fitness, is not afraid to push her clients to work their hardest. However, the person she has continually pushed to the limit has been herself. As a child, Mangan, now 44, always had a passion for exercise and fitness. "I had a very athletic background and in addition to being an avid athlete as a kid, I helped pay my way through college coaching figure skating," said Mangan, who grew up in Syracuse, N.Y. Post college, she worked in advertising until having her first son, now 19. After he was born, she decided to get back into coaching skating part time. The family moved to Maplewood when Mangan was pregnant with twins. After the twins were born, Mangan sought a way …
40.740355
-74.263771
Buff Fitness Studio
331 Valley St
/articles/one-buff-mother
11407
/locations/239571
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Claudinette Jean has converted her home furnishing business into a drop-off location for desperately needed donations of supplies and funds.
When the recent earthquake hit Haiti, Claudinette Jean, owner of Fusha Home Accents knew just what to do. She placed the store's stock of unique items in storage and opened her doors as a central drop-off location for materials donations. Jean is working with her musician husband Wyclef Jean and the Yele Foundation. "We started the day after the quake" she told Patch. "Actually in less than 24 hours. We're collecting everything here. After we receive it, volunteers go through the donations, sort useful items into groups and then re-box everything properly for shipping. Then we truck everything to storage units." Patricia Fontaine, Fusha's office manager, is now working with volunteers and managing the donation process. She told Patch that…
40.746019
-74.259661
Fusha Home Accents
6 S Orange Ave
/articles/fusha-works-with-wyclef-jeans-yele-foundation-for-haiti-relief
6800
/locations/239382
Saturday, January 23, 2010
A man posing as a salesman is attempting to sell calendar advertisements by claiming an affiliation with Seton Hall and men's basketball coach Bobby Gonzalez.
Main Street South Orange is circulating the following alert, sent out by Seton Hall: It has come to our attention that a salesman from "American Youth Corps, Inc." or "Student Relations, Inc." from Delray Beach, Florida is soliciting support for calendar advertisements from local churches and businesses door to door within South Orange. The salesman is claiming that he and "American Youth Corps, Inc." or "Student Relations, Inc." are associated with Seton Hall University and men's basketball coach Bobby Gonzalez. Please be aware that Seton Hall University and Coach Gonzalez do not have a contract or arrangement with this salesman and/or either of these companies and they are not authorized to act on our behalf. We wanted to alert you to "…
Ooooh Marcia, made me hungry just reading about it. I want a knish NOW! more ›