Orange NJ

Born and raised in Orange New Jersey John J. McLaughlin jr. served as the postmaster and city commissioner for over 20 years. He and his wife raised their 7 children in Orange down the street from where he grew up, on East Clark Place. He was so dedicated to Orange and his work. When he passed away in 1983 the township of Orange decided to rename East Clark Place to McLaughlin Place to honor all of his hard work and dedication. I was fortunate enough to be able to visit McLaughlin Place this past weekend and see where my father grew up. Although I never got to meet my grandfather I know that this street sign in Orange, and his name plate from his office which hangs in my house, hang in his honor. 

Pulaski Barbeque

This friday, my friend Gabby Hamilton and I went to Pulaski Barbeque. We were feeling particularly Portuguese and wanted some good barbeque chicken. Though there are good places closer to us such as the Burnet Barbeque (which my family used to own), and Rei de Manivela in Hillside, nothing compares to Pulaski Barbeque in Newark. At night it is always busy with families in the dining room and on the weekends there is a line out the door for take-out. Because we went right after school on a friday, take out was quick! For only $12 you get a whole chicken (which they make right there as you can see in the picture), your choice of rice (yellow or white), and a load of fries. Trust me, all my life I've encountered portuguese barbeque and Pulaski does it right! They also make other foods such as ribs and steak. I REALLY recommend paying a visit to Pulaski's, you won't be disappointed. Altogether, places like this make up what New Jersey is to me. I spent a lot of time in Newark throughout my childhood and have shared many
laughs over lunches and dinners in places like these. Don't
forget, it's good but you have to pace yourself cause you'll be full really quick like Gabby was.

NERO'S GRILLE

Nero's Grille is an American steakhouse located in Lvingston New Jersey that has been around for 40 years. This weekend I went there to enjoy a family dinner with my grandparents. It is an ideal restaurant  for family functions, easily accessible for everyone. Not only is it a very homey restaurant but the food is excellent. The menu has options for everyone from simple mac and cheese to a nice steak dinner or several different chicken dishes. The restaurant can accommodate large parties in any of their three dining rooms or on their patio weather permitting. It is also a nice place for adults to come and share a drink with a few friends or try a nice bottle of wine from their outstanding wine list. Not only is it a perfect place for a sunday night dinner but as seen in the photos above they also do take out so you can enjoy the delicious food in the comfort of your own home. It is a major advantage to be able to go out for a great meal right around the corner from home. 

Rainbow Diner

Recently this weekend Tori and I went down the shore to a place which is like home to me. Rainbow Diner is a place that I have been going to since I was a little girl. It is located on Route 70. This diner is known for making orders twice the size of a normal size portion. Usually when I go there I get their pancakes, which are the size of a dinner plate. Trust me if you go there you must get them! Their menu constantly is growing, every time I go there it gets harder and harder to choose what to eat! It has also been recently remodeled and modernized; as its way of trying to keep up with the styles of the new diners. This diner is  in the path of most beaches and is a very popular place for locals. The next time you go down the shore this is definitely a place you should visit!

This past weekend, Toni and I took a road trip down the shore. We went to Jenkinson's Pier in Point Pleasant. Ever since I was a kid, my family and I took frequent trips down to visit the boardwalk. Jenkinson's quickly became my favorite New Jersey amusement. From great rides to great food, the boardwalk has it all. A day can quickly be filled with either playing games along the boardwalk, eating a variety of foods, or going on thrilling rides. Games one can find along the boardwalk range from dart throwing games, to shooting hoops, to water gun games, to leap frog, to ring toss. Food that's found along the boardwalk can be pizza, french fries, Kohr's ice cream (my personal favorite),  funnel cake, zeppoles, italian ices, salt water taffy, candy apples, and fudge. Rides found at Jenk's range from small roller coasters to train rides, to riding in the back of alligators, to merry go rounds. As a child, I would always ride in the back of the alligator named Victoria. She was my favorite because we shared a name. The first picture posted is of a sign for Jenkinson's Boardwalk. The second picture is along the boardwalk displaying certain food stands and games. The third picture is of me enjoying my favorite ice cream in the entire world, Kohr's chocolate and vanilla swirl ice cream with rainbow sprinkles. Yum. 

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The Jersey Gardens

I went to the Jersey Gardens at Elizabeth with my family this weekend. The place is huge (probably need 24 hours for everything). I heard that the Jersey Gardens is New Jersey's largest outlet mall with over 200 stores under one roof. There were tons of people in the food court, and many groups of teenagers walking around the mall. Compare to the Short Hills mall, there were a lot of Latins, African-Americans, and foreigners at the mall. What once was the perfect mall, filled with cheap items and always empty rocking chairs, has now turned touristy. The mall is located approximately seven minutes from Newark International Airport. Thus, I saw some shuttles from Newark airport that bring groups of tourists to the mall. If you have a chance to visit the Jersey Gardens, don't expect international names like Coach, Burberry, Gucci, etc but if your priority is to get good deals with relatively big names like Brooks Brothers, Levi's, Gap, etc, you will enjoy yourself.