Inkanto: New Peruvian Restaurant Opening Soon in Hazlet

A new Peruvian restaurant is supposed to have its grand opening soon on Route 35 in Hazlet. I saw workers outside the front of the place today, so maybe it will be soon. The answering machine message sounds optimistic but isn't offering a date.

Check out the article in The Patch from back in June. I'm not sure what the delays are, but probably a few hangups with permits.

It won't be the easiest place to get to from Cliffwood Beach. If you take Route 35 South, you'll have to make the jug handle at Bethany Road and come back Route 35 North. The restaurant stands alone across from TGI Fridays in the place where Spirits used to be. Pass Hazlet Plaza then the place that used to be Dino's Fishery. It's on your right just after that. If you get to Yesterday's, you've gone too far.

Watch Chowhound and Yelp for clues to its actual opening.

Local Dates to Remember - September/October 2014

Mark the following dates in your calendar:

• Aberdeen Day - 13 Sep 2014
• Old Bridge Day - 20 Sep 2014
• Matawan Day - 11 Oct 2014 (rain date 12 Oct 2014)
• Keyport Screamin' Country Jamboree - 11-12 Oct 2014

Salt Water Day in Old Bridge and the Spanish American Festival in Keyport took place yesterday. Salt Water Day was able to return after the boardwalk, damaged in Superstorm Sandy, was repaired.

History: Cat 'n Fiddle, Cliffwood Beach (1927 - 1969)

The Cat 'n Fiddle Restaurant opened on a boardwalk on the Raritan Bay not long after the Cliffwood Beach community was first developed. It provided food, drink and entertainment by the shore for over thirty years. It was destroyed by a hurricane and was never rebuilt. Below are a selection of articles from The Matawan Journal marking its history.

The 1 Jul 1927 edition of The Matawan Journal had two small advertisements for the Cat 'n Fiddle placed throughout the paper, seven in all.  One recommended "When dancing at the Cliffwood Beach Casino, dine at the new seafood restaurant and cafeteria 'The Cat 'n Fiddle,' on the boardwalk. Reasonable prices." Another announced the new place and recommended the shore dinner at $1.50. It also named the music group playing on Sunday evening 3 July as the "famous Marimba Band from Central America, now the talk of New York."

The 28 Jun 1935 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 1 col 4) included a small ad referring to the Cat 'n Fiddle as "Jersey's smartest rendezvous." The ad invited customers to "dine and dance on the water's edge. Perfect dinners 55 cents. Cocktails 25 cents, served on Cocktail Porch overlooking the sea. Dancing Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The Owens Brothers Orchestra from 7 pm to 1 am." An ad on page 9 announced, "Richard Jennings, manager of the Cat 'n Fiddle, will again supervise the service. Several bridge luncheons have been scheduled for this week. Each Friday, Saturday and Sunday evening a dance orchestra appears."

The 29 Jun 1944 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 1, col 8) included a small advertisement for the Cat 'n Fiddle, which would reopen under new management on 30 Jun 1944. "Choice liquors and food at reasonable prices. No cover. No minimum. No tax."

The 14 Jun 1951 edition of The Matawan Journal contained a public notice by the following persons, as representatives of the Krieg Corporation, doing business as the Cat 'n Fiddle, who were seeking a liquor license in Matawan Township: William E Webster, Jr, President, 1250 Shore Concourse, Cliffwood Beach, NJ; R Edgerton Webster, Vice President, Jamesburg, NJ; Isabel F Webster, Secretary-Treasurer, 1250 Shore Concourse, Cliffwood Beach, NJ; and Cliffwood Beach Amusements, Inc, Cliffwood Beach, NJ.

The 26 May 1955 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 1 col 5) ran an article announcing the opening of The Cat 'n Fiddle for the summer season. "Ray and his Jazz Bandits will be featured this summer at The Cat 'n Fiddle, in Cliffwood Beach, which will open this coming Saturday. Frank Cerranty will be at the bar and also will be manager of the establishment. The Cat 'n Fiddle is located on the Raritan Bay beachfront and it has been in operation for 25 years. It is owned by Morrisey and Walker, and is one mile from the Pirate Ship. There is a large parking area and reasonable prices will prevail for snacks and refreshments." The large ad above appeared on page 13.

The 15 Sep 1960 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 1 col 3) provided the following excerpted reporting on damage caused by Hurricane Donna at Cliffwood Beach on Monday 12 September.

"Bayfront areas of Matawan Township took a battering from Hurricane Donna, especially in sections bordering Matawan Creek and in portions of Cliffwood Beach. During the worst of the hurricane, water was nine to 10 feet deep in the streets of Cliffwood Bench, police reported.

Damage in the beach area was estimated at more than $150,000. Ten families were evacuated from the waterfront area to the Cliffwood Fire House. Flooding in Cliffwood Beach reached all the way back to Greenwood Ave.

The storm lashed bay waters completely covered the roofs of the 180 unit colony of seacots* facing the bay at Cliffwood Beach and crashed through the rear of the Cat 'n Fiddle Restaurant, splitting the building in two. Police were stationed at the restaurant after looting was reported."

* The Seacot Village in Cliffwood Beach in Matawan Township

A seacot was a small summer rental, presumably an abbreviation for "seaside cottage." Helen Henderson shows a photograph of a "cozy seacot" and provides some information on rental prices, etc, on page 87 of her book "Around Matawan and Aberdeen."

An article in the 12 Aug 1948 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 5) mentions the death of a renter by heart attack at the Cliffwood Beach Seacot Colony.

The 6 May 1965 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 1) published the rates for seacots to hook up to the Cliffwood water supply for the season. Units with one water tap paid $8.80/season; it was $17.50 for units with three taps; and renters paid $7.30 for an outside shower.

-------------------------------------------

The Cat 'n Fiddle was destroyed by fire in December 1963, according to an article in the 16 Dec 1963 edition of The Red Bank Register.

The 2 Jul 1964 edition of The Matawan Journal reported the opening of the Cat 'n Fiddle for the season on 2 Jul 1964. The restaurant was apparently rebuilt after the December 1963 fire.

The 27 Jan 1966 edition of The Matawan Journal, which reported on a Nor'easter that struck the area on Sunday 23 Jan 1966, mentioned the Cat 'n Fiddle and seacots in a photo caption on the front page. The captionn read, in part:

"Driven by gale force northeasterly winds Sunday, waters of Raritan Bay overflowed the banks of Matawan Creek, flooding marinas and fishing stations along the way. The Cliffwood Beach section of Matawan Township was hard hit as water swept by the Seacot Colony, Cat 'N Fiddle Restaurant, and the Cliffwood Beach Pool. One woman, wife of the caretaker at the pool, had to be rescued by first aid men equipped with a boat. . . ."

The 10 Aug 1967 edition and 24 Aug 1967 edition of The Matawan Journal (pp 2 and 10, resp) contained an advertisement for the Cat 'n Fiddle, which was under new management. Hours were daily noon to 1 am; Saturday 10 am to 1 am. The Harry Thomas Review, featuring Eileen Walsh, was appearing on Fridays and Saturdays.

The 4 Jul 1968 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 12) contained an ad for the Cat 'n Fiddle, which was promoting dancing and entertainment on weekends. Pat and Joe were the hosts.

The 31 Oct 1968 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 16) reports on an investigation of fraud against the owners of the Cat 'n Fiddle.

ABC Sets Hearing For Area Tavern

A hearing will be held Nov. 4 in Newark offices of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control into charges against the Kreig Corp., owners of the Cat 'N Fiddle in Cliffwood Beach, of giving false information on a liquor license application.

The ABC alleges the stock of the corporation is held by three New York state residents. Corporate
officers insist the stock is in the hands of New Jersey residents as stated on its June 5, 1968 license application.

The 23 Jan 1969 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 1) announced the state's revocation of the Kreig Corp's liquor license to operate the Cat 'n Fiddle due to the fraud charges.

 Details of the demolition of the bar and seacot colony have yet to be found.

UPDATED to add an image of the Dec 1963 Red Bank Register article, some details about seacots, details from the Jan 1966 Nor'easter article, news of new ownership in Aug 1967, and word of fraud charges in Oct 1968 that led to the revocation of the liquor license in Jan 1969.

History: Old Hotel Building, Matawan (1875 - 1919)

The "Old Hotel Building" at 127 Main Street in Matawan had multiple spaces for commercial tenants. The current building at this address (above) may be the original; it remains a multiple tenant building.

Below is a sampling of the Old Hotel Building's tenants from the archives of The Matawan Journal between 1875 and 1919. Each item referred to the Old Hotel Building connection. More research is warranted.

Mealio & Sickels Co, Grocers (Source: 8 Jan 1876 edition of The Matawan Journal)

Sidney Walling has begun the work of making ready to remove his harness business to the store once occupied by Mealio & Sickels in the old hotel building. He has painted the front and is making other changes.  (Source: 21 Feb 1880 edition of The Matawan Journal)

Joseph Radl, harness business, replaced George Pfeifer and his barber shop. (Source: 5 May 1883 edition of The Matawan Journal)

Frank A Miller, harness shop (Source: 19 Sep 1891 edition of The Matawan Journal)

The Edward Farry Supply Company (Source: 19 Jan 1899 edition of The Matawan Journal)

Charles J Matz, custom tailor (Ads appeared between 14 Mar 1901 - 29 Jan 1903)

White & Bennett (Alonzo White, Jr & Ashley K Bennett), plumbing and heating (19 Mar 1903 -  3 Dec 1903)

Alonzo White Jr was in business alone, offering sanitary plumbing and heating services (Ads appeared from 1 Dec 1904 - 5 Apr 1906)

"Jacob Garber has taken the store and rooms in the old Hotel Building lately occupied by Charles J Matz and will continue his shoe repairing business there." (Source: 6 May 1909 edition of The Matawan Journal, pg 5 col 1)

W A Fountain, real estate agent and insurance broker (Source: 16 Sep 1909)

"Edward Healey opened a grocery store in the old Hotel Building on Main Street last Saturday. Harold Conover is clerking for Mr Healey out of school hours." (Source: 8 Mar 1917 edition of The Matawan Journal)

"The store formerly occupied by Alonzo White in the old hotel building is being renovated for Alexander Jacobs of Keyport, who expects to open a fruit and vegetable market there the first of August." (Source: 24 Jul 1919 edition of The Matawan Journal) Alexander Jacobs's father, Abram Jacobs, was in the wholesale and retail fruit and vegetable markets in Keyport and Matawan. Alexander was in charge of his father's Matawan business. (Source: 18 Sep 1919 edition of The Matawan Journal. This article announced Alexander's marriage at City Hall in New York earlier in the month.)

2012 Manna House Fashion Show Rescheduled for January 2013

Manna House is holding its 2012 Fashion Show on Saturday 26 January 2013 from 11 am to 3 pm at The Addison Park on Route 35 North in Cliffwood. These annual festivities, which include a luncheon and auction, were previously scheduled for early November but had to be postponed due to Hurricane Sandy.

I hope you'll consider supporting Manna House as it passes 25 years of service to homeless women and children in our area. Tickets for this benefit are $56.00 per person. Full tables of 10-12 persons can be reserved. You can find more details on Facebook and make reservations at the Manna House website.

The Addison Park is a beautifully appointed banquet facility (the completely renovated former location of the Garden Manor and,before that, the Fountain Casino) situated just north of Cliffwood Avenue at the intersection of Route 35 and County Road.

2012 Cross of Glory Christmas Tree Lighting and Carol Sing

 Cross of Glory Lutheran Church plans to hold its fifth annual Christmas Tree Lighting and Carol Sing on Sunday 9 December 2012 at 5 pm. The congregation welcome friends, family and neighbors to attend. Revelers are invited into Fellowship Hall after the 30-foot tree is lit and songs have been sung to enjoy home baked sweets and pastries as well as refreshments provided every year by Delicious Orchards.

Cross of Glory Lutheran, located at 95 Cambridge Drive in Aberdeen, was founded in 1964 and is part of the New Jersey Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It is led by Rev. Gary E. Costa. With the support of over 300 members, the church runs a nursery school, stocks and supports the Matawan food pantry and provides other services to residents of Aberdeen and neighboring towns.

Mediterranean Chateau Opens in Matawan

Mediterranean Chateau finally opened on 16 Nov 2012 in the old Charlie Brown's Restaurant location on Route 79 in Matawan. I plan to drop by in coming weeks.

UPDATE 2 Dec 2012: The restaurant's Facebook page includes a series of images of their menu. The main dish categories are Fish ($17-21), Shellfish ($16-28, with a $14 vegetarian paella), and Meats ($14-34).

Matawan Day 2012 - Saturday 13 October

Matawan Day and Food Festival is being held today, Saturday 13 October 2012, from 1 pm to 6 pm along Main Street in downtown Matawan, NJ. The Matawan-Aberdeen Chamber of Commerce says the event is hosted by the Moyers Insurance Agency in conjunction with the Matawan Recreation Department.

See Matawan-Aberdeen Patch for additional details. The Borough website, including its Recreation Department page, provides no promotional information about the event.

Restaurant Inspections, Monmouth County Health Department

The Monmouth County Health Department attended Aberdeen Day yesterday. I hope you had a chance to visit their booth. The Health Department conducts routine inspections of restaurants in the county (except where a municipality has its own health department - Colts Neck, Freehold Township, Manalapan, Long Branch and Middletown) and posts derogatory results at their website until the violations are fixed and the place is fully inspected (without prior notice) at a later date.

Only the most egregious conditions earn an UNSATISFACTORY rating, according to the county's definition:

“Unsatisfactory”: Whenever a retail food establishment is operating in violation of this chapter, with one or more violations that constitute gross insanitary or unsafe conditions, which pose an imminent health hazard, the health authority shall issue an unsatisfactory evaluation. The health authority shall immediately request the person in charge to voluntarily cease operation until it is shown on reinspection that conditions which warrant an unsatisfactory evaluation no longer exists. The health authority shall institute necessary measures provided by law to assure that the establishment does not prepare or serve food until the establishment is reevaluated. These measures may include embargo, condemnation and injunctive relief.

Most violations earn the CONDITIONAL SATISFACTORY rating, which is also derogatory, just not to the degree of UNSATISFACTORY.

“Conditionally Satisfactory”: At the time of the inspection the establishment was found not to be operating in substantial compliance with this chapter and was in violation of one or more provisions of this chapter. Due to the nature of these violations, a reinspection shall be scheduled. The reinspection shall be conducted at an unannounced time. A full inspection shall be conducted. Opportunity for reinspection shall be offered within a reasonable time and shall be determined by the nature of the violation.

I encourage you to check from time to time to see if restaurants you frequent have come to the county's attention.

Aberdeen Day 2012 - Sat 22 Sept, Noon to 4 pm at MRHS

Plan to attend Aberdeen Day. It will be held this Saturday from noon to 4 pm at Matawan Regional High School, which for newcomers is situated on Atlantic Avenue between the train station and Church Street/Bethany Road. Matawan-Aberdeen Patch wrote an article about the event back in August.

Bring the kids. Get something to eat. Check out the vendors and social organizations. Salute the troops. Meet a politician. See your neighbors. Celebrate Aberdeen, New Jersey!

McDonald's Restaurant Middletown (1963)

The 19 Sep 1963 edition of The Matawan Journal (pg 12) included this ad for McDonald's restaurant on Route 35 just north of Five Corners in Middletown. The ad promoted french fries. "You never had 'em so good."

History: Car vs Horse; Red Bank Candyman Forced Into Ditch (1908)

The 6 Aug 1908 edition of The Matawan Journal reported that John L Hubbard, the Red Bank candyman, had been forced off the Middletown Turnpike and into a ditch by a big touring car. Hubbard's wagon came over on top of him, pinning the man underneath until some folks came along and freed him. Hubbard had noted the license plate number of the vehicle and planned to sue for damages, including the cost of the several days he was laid up recuperating from his injuries.

Off the Beaten Path

The Matawan-Aberdeen Public Library has the ninth edition of "Off The Beaten Path - New Jersey: A Guide to Unique Places," by Kay and Bill Scheller. They've been publishing this work for seventeen years. Bill was born in Paterson but the couple currently live in Vermont.

The Schellers divide the state into five regions and provide over 30 pages to each, identifying and describing their favorite spots for touring, dining, and lodging. Perhaps the book will give you some unique ideas of places to visit in the state before summer ends? Or maybe you want to begin to plan some fall day trips?

Our area fell under the Central Lowlands portion of Central New Jersey. Local spots featured in the book include the Freneau Gravesite (pg 94), Big Ed's Barbeque (pg 95), the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans' Memorial (pg 93), Nicholas restaurant (pg 94), and the Monmouth Museum (pg 93) at Brookdale College. Longstreet Farm at Holmdel Park gets an Other Attractions mention (pg 100) but no description. We have no worthy lodgings in our entire area (pp 97-98) -- take note, local chambers.

If I were picking local eateries, I might have mentioned Drew's Bistro and/or Nemo's in Keyport as worth exploring. I would have put Nicholas restaurant in the Shore section of the book, if I included it at all. It seems a bit too exclusive for a book like this, IMHO.  I might have included the Cliffwood Beach seawall, which is certainly off the beaten path yet provides a nice view of Raritan Bay and Keyport harbor.

As for local historical sites, Matawan and Keyport have some work to do. Matawan needs to put some serious flesh on plans for the shark attacks anniversary in 2016. And Keyport has the makings of a fine mariners and seaplane museum. If either municipality or chamber makes progress before the next edition of this book, maybe we'd get more than a paragraph?

This paperback resides in the New Books section of the library, inside the door and along the wall. It bears Dewey code 917.49 Sc.

Livotti's Old World Market, Aberdeen

We bought some fresh fruits, vegetables and meats on Saturday afternoon at Livotti's Old World Market on Route 34 in Aberdeen. A nice shop.

Dairy case

Fruits

and vegetables

Deli department

Espresso bar

Salad Sweepstakes Leads Many to Toss Privacy to the Wind

My grocery store salad-in-a-bag came with a coupon this week that included a code number that I could use to enter a sweepstakes through Facebook. It seemed harmless until I checked it out. Turned out I would have to install their dedicated application and share my Facebook information with the salad company. About 50,000 people had already loaded the app, apparently unconcerned about salad people rummaging through their personal communications. I decided I didn't really need a $40,000 trip for four to New York City.

Samaha's 2012 - Opening June 20th

Samaha's Market on Lloyd Road in Aberdeen opens for the season on Wednesday 20 June 2012.

Subway Comes to Cliffwood!

Subway Store #54945 will be opening soon at 315 Highway 35 in the A&P Shopping Center in Cliffwood.

UPDATE (29 Jun 2012): The storefront has a Subway banner hanging across the window but the place is still completely empty. No doubt one day the corporate folks will arrive and set it up. These things tend to take a while.

UPDATE: (19 Aug 2012): The construction crew has been busy the past week or so at the new Subway location in Cliffwood. There is a dumpster in the parking lot and I noticed lights on inside today. The Subway website says the store will be opening soon. I'll bet it will be really soon. Take a note Subway: your zip code there is 07721, not 07747, as it says on your website. The Cliffwood Post Office (07721) is in the same parking lot with you.

Seabreeze Fishery, Hazlet

I just noticed this evening that the Seabreeze Fishery has replaced Dino's Fishery on Route 35 in Hazlet. It's apparently been open a few weeks. There's been a bit of discussion on Yelp, but my favorite Chowhound hasn't noticed the new place as of this writing, only the closing of Dino's so far.

If you visit and have some constructive observations, feel free to add a comment here.

Mediterranean Chateau to Replace Charlie Brown's in Matawan

The Asbury Park Press for 22 Feb 2012, page B3, includes an article that says that Charlie Brown's will soon become a Portuguese restaurant called Mediterranean Chateau. It is slated to open in a few weeks. The transfer of Charlie Brown's liquor license and plenary retail consumption license was approved at the Tuesday evening meeting of Matawan Borough Council.

The corporation is owned by Jose Barreiro of Sayreville.  Barreiro co-founded the successful Ria Bar Restaurant and Bar in South River in 1987. Check out the many awards and favorable reviews at the Ria Bar's news and events page.

UPDATE (23 July 2012): Mediterranean Chateau is tentatively set to open in mid-August or early September.

UPDATE (1 August 2012): I drove by yesterday and saw a stucco contractor working on the facade of the place. Definitely moving along but it looks like a few more weeks to go.

UPDATE (7 August 2012): Photo - Still under construction but nearly done.

UPDATE (24 November 2012) The restaurant finally opened on 16 November. There is a Facebook page but no webpage that I can find. See my recent article for link.

History: Nellie Maxwell and Syndicated Feature "The Kitchen Cabinet," 1920

The latest in 1920's women's fashion appeared in Nellie Maxwell's The Kitchen Cabinet, a nationally syndicated feature found in The Matawan Journal. For example, in her article "Fabrics to Fit Summer Time", which appeared on page 7 of the 27 May 1920 edition, Ms Maxwell praised the then-current trend in summer dresses to use lace bodices and simple skirts instead of previous years' designs that applied velvet and other heavy materials that were uncomfortable to wear in the heat of summer.

The feature contained advertisements targeted at women, including

• Lydia E Pinkham's Vegetable Compound, a remedy for fainting spells caused by The Change of Life.
• Bell-ans for Indigestion - 6 Bell-ans, Hot Water, Sure Relief
• Stove Repair Corporation, sales and service, Newark, NJ
• Fletcher's Castoria, that famous old remedy for infants and children.

And the ladies had to endure a series of what someone apparently thought were humorous pieces for women, like this brief exchange labeled Film Fun:

• "I see you advertise for a ticket seller and ask that ladies weighing more than 200 pounds.kindly do not apply."
• "Yes."
• "Isn't that discrimination?"
• "No; merely common sense. Any lady shaping up larger than that could not get into my glass cage."

Sarasota History Alive has a 1913 edition of The Kitchen Cabinet with recipes.

The Fulton History website has an image of page 8 of the 28 Nov 1930 edition of The Cold Springs Recorder. It provides this background information on Ms Maxwell.

For two years Miss Maxwell was engaged in domestic science extension work for the state agricultural colleges of Iowa and Nebraska. In that work she was called upon to give wives advice on how to plan their household work so they could do it more easily and satisfactorily than it had been done before.
 

Then Miss Maxwell became a lecturer, and demonstrator at the numerous institutes which are held under the auspices of the University of Wisconsin. She has been a frequent contributor on household subjects to the publications of the university, and with her co-worker she prepared the Women's Bulletin for Wisconsin women, ten thousand copies of which are distributed annually.