Foodie fave:
Japanese market makes a New Jersey road trip a tasty experience.
New Jersey wasn’t necessarily high on my list of desired travel destinations, but recently I saw food writers that I admire and follow on social networks heading to Jersey to check out this Japanese food market that’s half grocery, half prepared authentic street foods, and I knew I had to work it into a road trip. The Mitsuwa Marketplace is full of Japanese treats that you may not get in many other places. We started our road trip journey in Philadelphia, and decided on Red Bank as a layover stop on the way to Edgewater to see the market before moving on. Little did we know that Red Bank would be one of our favorite destinations on this trip and some of the best food we’ve ever had.
Where to Stay
I found this gem in Red Bank, the Molly Pitcher Inn (88 Riverside Ave.), and it was perfect. They had a pool overlooking the marina; it was scorching hot when we were there, so a refreshing dip was a must. They had a restaurant on the property, but we read about this place called Buona Sera with great reviews, so we decided to drive into town.
Where to Eat
We made a late reservation at Buona Sera (50 Maple Ave.) to give us time to recharge after the drive from Philly. We left a little early before dinner to scope out anything we wanted to check out the next day. There were cobblestone roads with twinkling bulbs hanging overhead, shedding light on boutique store fronts and locals taking a stroll. The shore is a destination for so many, but I wanted a small-town feel with great food by the water that was less of a party area. When we arrived for dinner, we were seated at it two top outside. We ordered a variety of dishes to split and have leftovers for a quick brunch on the road the next day. The pesto and creamy burrata pizza was loaded with peppery arugula. The crust was thin and cracker like, so it held up nicely to the pesto and creamy cheese. We washed it down with some cocktails; I enjoyed the Aperol spritz. The lobster
bisque was silky, with lobster blended into it along with huge chunks of lobster claws. There were other dishes, as well, and was so stuffed from trying them all.
What to Do
The next morning we browsed a couple shops in town before heading to Edgewater to finally visit the source of our New Jersey trip, the Mitsuwa Marketplace (595 River Road, Edgewater).
Overlooking the Hudson River with skyline views of New York City, this Japanese supermarket sells everything from cosmetics and beauty supplies to traditional Japanese groceries, candies and ingredients. If you’re an adventurous eater, this market is extremely fun. I’ve read a lot about Japanese street food and I’ve always wanted to try things like musubi and taiyaki cakes, but haven’t had the opportunity to do so until visiting Edgewater.
As we walked up to the market around lunchtime, and there was a huge line of people waiting outside. However, the line moved quickly, despite them limiting the number of people who can be in the market at one time. Once inside, we had the freedom to discover items and order your food without people crowding around you.
Vendors
Oishinbo sells a variety of taiyaki cakes with red bean paste or green tea custard. If you have your heart set on trying the fish-shaped cake filled with sweet red bean paste, be sure to call in advance to order; I tried to order on site, but was told there was a two-hour wait, which we couldn’t justify at the time. I decided to try the green tea custard cake instead, which was good, but a little too grassy tasting for my liking. I know I would’ve preferred the red bean paste and that’s probably why there was such a wait.
The donuts from mochimochi KAI SWEETS were, hands-down, the best doughnuts I have had in my life. They were so chewy, doughy, and full of delicious flavor. The strawberry was by far my favorite, followed by black sesame, then matcha (a type of green tea). In addition to the doughnuts were other treats. The macarons were like works of art, drawing from popular characters like Pokemon and Yoda, animals like pandas and fictional creatures like unicorns.
If you were looking for something more substantial, there were stations serving boa buns, ramen bowls, and tempura bowls; for the last in this list, check out Tendon Hannosuke which had an amazing shrimp tempura and vegetable bowl.
I went over to Minamoto Kitchoan to grab some beautiful mochi to try, as we didn’t have a way to keep the mochi in the freezer section of the grocery cold on our trip. The mochi we tried were stuffed with sweet red bean paste (or a mix with that paste) and wrapped in rice cakes and various flavors, including the Kusa Mochi, Mame Daifuku, Kuri Daifuku and a Sakura mochi.