When a museum in Bologna, Italy, is built to pay homage to gelato, you know that’s one special treat. But there’s no need to travel there for a taste of the centuries-old ice cream-like dessert when you have chef Robert Bennett (see step 3) of Classic Cake to whip up a batch of tiramisu gelato for you. – Mary Price

Ingredients:

• 2 cups lowfat or non-fat milk
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup non-fat dry milk
• 8 egg yolks
• 1 cup of fat-free half-and-half
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup mascarpone
• Ladyfingers
• Strong brewed chilled coffee

By this point in the summer, roadside farm markets and the yield of many home gardens include an aubergine-hued vegetable: eggplant. One of the more popular vegetables in the world, eggplant is a staple of Italian cooking and the base for many delicious recipes.

Selecting a good eggplant is easy. Stick with smaller, immature eggplants, which tend to be less bitter and won’t require degorging or salting to leach out the bitterness. Also make sure your eggplant is smooth-skinned and firm, and avoid any with soft or brown spots.

To store eggplant, pick a cool, dry place and use your eggplant within a day or two of purchase. If you store an eggplant in the refrigerator, place it in a plastic bag. If you plan to cook it the same day you buy it, leave it out at room temperature. – Mary Price

I don’t hail from a culture known for its culinary prowess, like Italy for instance.
I am one part Irish and one part German. Trust me — no one has ever asked me for my Irish soda bread recipe or my Old World sauerbraten.

But all around me this summer, people are trading basil and Roma tomatoes from their gardens and I just got an invite to a traditional Italian Sunday supper – on a Saturday. (I said yes by the way.)

So I’ll just have to live with the notion that “my’’ people can take credit for the best parades and kindergarten, and that everyone loves Italian cuisine.

That said, this issue is devoted to everything Italian. From gelato by chef Robert Bennett at
Classic Cake in Cherry Hill to a peach Bellini stirred by my new friend, Giuseppe Celano, owner
of Italian Affair in Glassboro. Learn about olive oil, eggplant and soave (summer white wine)
or skip the vino and pick a beer to accompany your favorite Italian dish. Or skip dinner and
nosh on homemade cookies from Maria’s Mom’s Italian Cookie Cupboard in Marlton.
It’s all good and it’s all in here.

Chow, Mary

P.S. Happy 1st Birthday JERSEY EATS! We are celebrating the magazine’s birthday from
5:30 to 8 p.m. Monday, Aug. 13 at The Mansion, Kresson and Evesham roads in Voorhees.
Help us celebrate with food and fun. Tickets are $5 and are available at the door. For information
on exhibiting your food- or drink-related business, call (856) 486-2583.

By Beth D’Addono

South Jerseyans love to dine al fresco in the summertime. And when the back yard becomes so-so, it’s time to head to the city. Whether it’s soaking up the sun on Rittenhouse Square or enjoying a starlit repast in hipster ’hoods like Old City and South Street, we clamor for sidewalk cafes and luxuriate in outdoor grazing. Here’s a look at top spots for fresh-air feasting, organized by neighborhood, so you can stroll to the restaurant that suits you best.

Old City
Restaurants in this energetic historic district, which stretches from Walnut to Vine streets and Front to Sixth streets, spill out onto the brick sidewalks with dining options of all sorts.

POSITANO COAST
212 Walnut St.
(215) 238-0499
www.positanocoast.net

The breezy terrace overlooking historic Old City is just one reason to head to Lamberti’s Positano Coast. Another is the sexy open air Sopra Lounge, with its cushy couches and gauzy white curtains billowing in the breeze. Sip a signature lemon drop martini and sample chef Pippo Lamberti’s fresh Italian dishes, from savory pastas to crudo, Italy’s answer to sushi.

CITY TAVERN
38 Second St.
(215) 413-1443
www.citytavern.com

For truly revolutionary dining, this authentic Colonial restaurant in Society Hill even serves George Washington’s own beer recipe on tap. A leafy enclosed rear garden is the spot for cocktails or a taste of chef/proprietor Walter Staib’s specialties, like a savory seafood salad tossed with crabmeat, shrimp and house smoked salmon and garden greens, or fresh Pennsylvania brook trout, pan seared with brown butter, capers and lemon. Family friendly, City Tavern is in the middle of all the historic attractions and a great place for a reprieve from sightseeing.

PIZZICATO
3rd & Market streets
(215) 629-5527
www.pizzicatoristorante.com

Watch the action from Pizzicato’s sidewalk café while you enjoy the flavors of a casual Italian trattoria. Shareable salads and homemade pastas (try the exotic mushroom tagliatelle) are a good option, or try the king salmon over crabmeat risotto.

South Street
The “hippest street in town” stretches from the Delaware to University City, but most of the action is between Front and Seventh streets.

BEAU MONDE
624 S. Sixth St.
(215)592-0656
creperie-beaumonde.com

Philadelphia’s original Breton creperie, offering feather-light square crepes stuffed with sweet and savory delights, is just off South Street, with an outside porch area and large flip-out windows that invite the street carnival inside.

REX 1516
1516 South St.
(267) 319-1366
rex1516.com
Alabama-born chef Regis Jansen channels Southern hospitality on a plate at this warm and welcoming new South Street restaurant, with its wall of front windows open onto the scene and a handful of sidewalk tables. The fig bruschetta with goat cheese is delish, or tuck into one of the best (house-ground) burgers in town and roast chicken with gravy like you wish your mama made.

VILLAGE BELLE
757 Front St.
(215)551-2200
www.thevillagebelle.com

This Queen Village Italian/ Northern Mediterranean eatery from CIA trained chef Louis Campanaro (remember him from Olive?) dishes up bold flavors and eye-popping presentations. You’ll love the crispy artichokes and spaghetti with crab gravy. The truffle parmigiano fries should be illegal.

JAMAICAN JERK HUT
1436 South St.
(215) 545-8644
jajerkhut.com

For a tropical island experience, head to this locally owned BYOB Jamaican eatery, where you can sample fiery jerk chicken on a secluded back veranda with a dressed-down vacation vibe. If the setting seems familiar, you may have seen it as a location for the locally filmed flick “In Her Shoes.”

Waterfront
Busy Columbus Boulevard, punctuated by the Ben Franklin Bridge to the north and Walt Whitman Bridge to the south, embraces Penn’s Landing and a lively scene of nightspots and outdoor venues

KEATING’S RIVER GRILL TERRACE
AT THE HYATT REGENCY
201 N. Columbus Blvd.
(215) 928-1234
keatingsrivergrill.com

This vibrant outdoor lounge space offers a creative tapas menu (try the tenderloin sliders and housemade hummus flights) with a view of the Delaware River.

BONGO BAR AT MOSHULU
401 S. Columbus Blvd.
(215) 923.2500
www.moshulu.com

Head topside aboard this century-old sailing ship for a killer view of the sparkling Delaware and the Ben Franklin Bridge. Sample steaks, Kobe burgers and chicken grilled on the six-foot-long barbecue, and quench your thirst with tropical libations.

Midtown Village/Washington Square
Midtown Village is an artsy mix of boutiques, cafes, gay-owned businesses and lofts between 12th and Broad streets and Chestnut and Pine streets. Washington Square, the name of one of five original parks laid out by William Penn, extends toward the river on Walnut Street between 11th and Seventh streets.

MERCATO
1216 Spruce Street
(215) 985-BYOB www.MercatoBYOB.com

Open for lunch and dinner, this cash-only BYOB features two walls of windows that open onto bustling Spruce Street. Mercato Chef de Cuisine Christina Wilson is known for her market-fresh ingredients, house-made pastas, varied olive oils and charcuterie. A few to try – the same dishes are available in smaller portions (and $) at lunch – lobster and shrimp pasta and truffled wild mushroom panini with grilled asparagus.

RAW SUSHI
& SAKE LOUNGE
1225 Sansom Street
(215) 238-1903
www.rawlounge.net

Located in the historic Stetson building, Raw serves up creative, modern takes on traditional Asian fare, along with inspired maki and pristine sashimi. An outdoor courtyard, tucked away from the street, is the place to retreat from the bustling Midtown Village neighborhood scene.

TRIA
12th & Spruce St.
(215)629-9200
triacafe.com

Love this groovy wine bar and cheese lounge in Midtown Village, which features a lively outdoor café perfect for sipping. Enjoy boutique beers, wine and small plates, which include artisan cheeses sourced from Murray’s Cheese Chop in New York.

TALULA’S GARDEN
210 W. Washington Square
(215) 592-7787 talulasgarden.com

Tucked away off verdant Washington Square, TG is an oasis of seasonal fresh flavors (love the rhubarb Muscovy Duck Breast with beluga lentils) and wild greenery, all set in an outdoor living room lounge you’ll never want to leave. A collaboration between Starr restaurants and Aimee Olexy of Talula’s Table in the western ’burbs.

University City
Long defined by its anchor campuses of the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University, this West Philly ’hood is bounded by the Schuylkill River, 50th Street, Woodland Avenue and Spring Garden Street.

WHITE DOG CAFE
3420 Sansom Street
(215) 386-9224
whitedog.com/university-city.html

This Victorian brownstone in the heart of U of P has long been a bastion of eclectic, contemporary American cuisine and social activism. Dine out front in the seasonal streetscape café, enjoying tasty dishes that emphasize seasonal freshness and sustainable ingredients. Try the Meadow Run spring lamb served with chickpeas and heirloom tomatoes.

ZOCALO
3600 Lancaster Ave.
(215) 895-0139
zocalophilly.com

Enjoy authentic regional dishes from central and southern Mexico at this University City fave. Relax at a table on the shaded side patio and munch on crab stuffed empanadas and traditional Pescado Veracruzano, tilapia simmered in a savory sauce of roasted tomatoes, green olives, capers and jalapenos, onion and herbs.

Parkway District
Home to the city’s finest cultural institutions that dot the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, this neighborhood is also the place for dining on the Schuylkill.

CAPRICCIO AT CAFÉ CRET
16th St. and the Ben Franklin Parkway
(215) 735-9797
www.capricciocafe.com

The perfect spot for a coffee or a grab-and-go light bite before an afternoon of museum-going, Café Cret – pronounced “Cray,” and named for the French architect who designed the Parkway – features a scattering of café tables under red umbrellas in a sunny urban setting. Choose from a variety of well-priced paninis, salads and yummy baked goods.

WATER WORKS RESTAURANT & LOUNGE
640 Water Works Dr.
(215) 236-9000
www.thewaterworksrestaurant.com

Located behind the Philadelphia Art Museum, the view from the 200-seat riverfront veranda is unbeatable, overlooking Boathouse Row and the Schuylkill River. Sample Greek-inspired dishes including the honey mint rack of lamb, and a tender octopus salad.

Center City/Rittenhouse
Philly’s poshest neighborhood fans out from Rittenhouse Square, a landscaped patch of green at 18th and Walnut streets surrounded by higfh-end shops, cafes and residences.

TWENTY MANNING GRILL
261 S. 20th St.
(215)731-0900
twentymanning.com

Sit a spell along the wrap-around sidewalk café at this contemporary restaurant much loved for chef Kiong Banh’s seasonal and Asian-inspired menu and its lively bar scene. Try the pork potstickers then tuck into one of the best burgers in the city. Overhead misters keep the scene cool on hot days.

THE PLAZA CAFÉ
AT TABLE 31
1701 JFK Blvd.
(215)567-7111
www.table-31.com/the-plaza.html

Against burbling fountains in the shadow of the city’s newest and highest skyscraper, the Plaza Café delivers satisfying treats like Nicoise salad and a pulled pork sandwich with fontina cheese, served under a handsome pergola. Don’t miss the awesome video wall in the Comcast lobby – definitely worth a gawk.

CONTINENTAL MID-TOWN
1801 Chestnut St.
(215) 567-1800
www.continentalmidtown.com

Nibble on global tapas at this hipster hangout, popular for its leafy roof deck lounge in the shadow of the city’s skyscrapers. A few tasty dishes include the lobster mac’n cheese, crispy calamari salad and Thai lettuce wraps. Sip from a menu of fun signature cocktails like the Buzz Aldrin – a shake of Tang, peach vodka and triple sec

PARC BRASSERIE
227 S. 18th St.
215-545-2262
www.parc-restaurant.com

Located on gorgeous Rittenhouse Square, Parc offers 80 outdoor café seats across from the park, a magnet for shoppers, local residents and their canine companions. Expect a Parisian experience, from the salad Lyonnaise bathed in warm bacon vinaigrette and topped with a poached egg, to the seafood-rich bouillabaisse scented with a hint of Pernod.

ROUGE
206 S. 18th Street
(215) 732-6622
www.rouge98.com

As gorgeous as Rouge is on the inside, it’s the bistro’s outdoor seating that gets the most attention. Aristocats and kittens down flutes of champagne and caviar after dark — by day, power lunching is at its zenith. The kitchen offers creative twists on New American classics, including a dynamite grilled swordfish with basil and a white wine mussel broth. Be careful not to trip on the poodles.

The authentic Italian eatery treats diners like family
By Janet Leonardi

CASA CAROLLO BAR & GRILLE,
200 Route 73 North, Marlton (856)797-9966 or www.casacarollos.com

For generation upon generation, Italians everywhere have embraced the essence of “la famiglia,” that warm blending of family, love and food.

The Carollo family, the owner/operators of Casa Carollo Bar & Grille in Marlton, are carrying on that tradition proudly.

Offering diners a casual, relaxed atmosphere, Casa Carollo is a neighborhood favorite even in a crowded restaurant landscape filled with choices.

“My father was born in Sicily,” says Charlie Carollo of his father, Vincenzo, the restaurant’s founder and head chef. “He came to America in the 1970s and worked his way up in kitchens of Italian family restaurants until finally opening Casa Carollo in 1996. Those kitchen experiences not only taught him important skills, but also many great Italian family recipes.”

The younger Carollo, who manages the restaurant, says the restaurant is a labor of love and a true family affair.

“Both my parents, my two sisters and my brother work here with me. Our mutual goal is to make our customers happy as soon as they walk through our doors to dine with us.”

It’s apparent the Carollos are doing just that. Carollo points out that many loyal customers have been frequenting the restaurant for years: “Most tell us they keep coming back for our homemade sauces, especially the vodka blush, spicy fra diavolo and marsala.” 

But Casa Carollo, open for lunch, dinner, takeout and catering, offers more than the usual pastas and sauces. Casa Carollo’s antipasti menu includes calamari fritti, lightly breaded, fried calamari; Bruschetta drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and heaped with fresh tomato, basil and onions; and mussels topped with your choice of marinara, fra diavolo or olive oil and garlic.

Soups include Vincenzo’s Pastina de Pollo, scratch-made from his secret recipe of roasted chicken, broth, carrots and pastina.

Pasta Vincenzo, a savory combination of pasta, clams, shrimp, mushrooms and tomatoes in light marinara sauce; and Pasta Principessa, sautéed asparagus, diced tomatoes, pasta and lump crabmeat topped with fresh mozzarella and tossed in white wine sauce, are two of the pasta specialties.

Carnivores will go for the New York Strip Alla Carollo, a trimmed 16-ounce steak with sliced portabella mushrooms and jumbo lump crabmeat in a demi-glacé; and vitello and pollo Tuscany, veal and chicken cutlets sautéed with green peppers, mushrooms, plum tomatoes, garlic and onions and served in a light marinara sauce. Casa Carollo also offers a selection of family and personal size pizzas as well as tempting desserts. “Our tiramisu, cheesecake and cannoli are all homemade,” Carollo says.

The restaurant boasts a casual main dining room, a small banquet room and a private dining area that can seat up to 35 guests. There’s live entertainment on the weekends, including comedy shows on Fridays and Saturdays, followed by DJs and local bands.

Jose Garces expands his empire to Atlantic City’s Revel

It was a gorgeous Monday afternoon in early spring as Jose Garces tooled down the Atlantic City Expressway seemingly without a care in the world. In just a few hours, the 31-year-old chef, who owns seven restaurant concepts in Philadelphia alone, would preside over the opening of Amada, the Boardwalk branch of his signature Philadelphia dining room. The new Amada anchors a prime spot with breathtaking ocean views just off the casino floor in Revel, the $2.4 billion lifestyle and destination resort that had its soft opening April.

‘JG’ Steak Supremo, which is skirt steak, refried beans, avocado, Mexican crema, and salsa roja, with a frozen pomegranate margarita and nachos.

It’s a process Garces would repeat three times, because he’s opened three restaurants at Revel: Amada, Village Whiskey and Destrito Cantino with its adjacent Guapos taco truck.

Yet the 2009 winner of the TV Food Network’s “Next Iron Chef” competition said he was “completely excited” about opening Amada and didn’t feel the least bit of stress. Garces apparently never got the memo that says opening a restaurant might be one of the business world’s riskiest and most stressful investments. “No stress whatsoever, I am just so relaxed, you have no idea,” Garces said. But he quickly noted this wasn’t his first time in the culinary bullring. 

In fact, he’s been through the restaurant debut drill 15 times since he opened his first dining room, Amada, in 2005. Garces said competing on and winning “Next Iron Chef” was a much bigger challenge because he was on his own. “Garces Restaurant Group is a well-oiled machine that has been built to do this,” he explained. That’s what made the process of opening three restaurants at Revel at basically the same time so effortless. That, plus a few “flawless” nights when Garces invited family and friends into the dining room preceding the opening of Amada to help break in the kitchen and the wait staff.

‘A home game’

Garces had only owned Amada in Philadelphia for about two years — and wasn’t even considering “Next Iron Chef” — when the company assembling Revel’s restaurants asked if he’d consider joining the team of outside chefs who would develop dining rooms there. Amada was Garces’ first choice for Revel, and within a few months of agreeing to join the lineup, the plans for Amada were essentially complete. That’s when he began thinking about additional dining options.

“We thought we had diverse enough concepts that if we did three things, they wouldn’t compete with one another,” he explained.

So Village Whiskey, which specializes in great burgers and bar food washed down with top-shelf whiskey, bourbon, scotch and more, was added, and so were Destrito and the taco truck.

Garces easily has the inside track when it comes to regional appeal. His restaurants have become so identified with Philadelphia that people tend to forget he’s only been part of the Delaware Valley food scene for seven years.

“We definitely think it’s a home game for us,” he said of setting up shop at Revel. “We know that the Philadelphia market likes to come down to the shore, and they love to go to Atlantic City. And when they get (to Revel), they’re going to find our concepts and find that familiarity that sometimes makes people feel good when they’re dining out.”

Garces said he was stunned when he was finally able to walk into Revel and see the space that had been allocated for Amada, which is about eight stories above the beach with floor-to-ceiling windows.

“My heart just raced with excitement and anticipation of what the finished design could look like in that space,” he said. “When we crank up Amada’s ambiance, with the tapas menu and the Spanish music, it’s going to be a world-class restaurant. It’s on another level, that’s for sure.”

Tried and true

Garces was born in Chicago to Ecuadorian parents and got his earliest kitchen training from his paternal grandmother. He was drawn to Spanish cuisine and studied under some great Spanish chefs in America and in Spain before opening the original Amada in Philadelphia. The two words he uses to guide him in the kitchen are “authentic” and “innovative,” he said, and he’s always looking for ways to pair different ingredients and cooking techniques.

When he took the Revel plunge, Garces decided to capitalize on the success he already enjoyed in Philadelphia rather than reinvent the wheel. He created Boardwalk versions of three of his most successful and popular places just 50 miles away.

“I think it’s a cliché, but why fix it if it isn’t broken?” he asked. “We put out a good product in Philadelphia. There’s a lot of work that goes into a concept to get it perfect, sometimes it takes years, so to be able to just bring the great things that we do in Philly and then enhance it with a great design and a great location made a lot of sense for us.”

He did tweak the menus for his Atlantic City dining rooms, though, to take advantage of the spaciousness of his new surroundings.

“I actually enhanced our menus quite a bit knowing that we have a little more space, more of a palate to work with,” he said. “For instance, the kitchen line in Amada is like no other kitchen line I’ve ever worked on. It’s built for power, so we were able to add a lot of steaks and chops and imported Spanish cuts, like Iberian skirt steak. At Village Whiskey, we added a raw bar, which I didn’t have an opportunity to do in Philadelphia because our kitchen is so tight.”

Garces hasn’t gotten much feedback from his Food Network colleagues on his ambitious plans for three restaurants at Revel, although he suspects some of them think he’s a couple of pancakes short of a full stack.

Chef Jose Garces’ new restaurant Village Whiskey in Atlantic City.

“Some of them may have their doubts,” he said with a chuckle. “But when I initially looked at the concept and design of what Revel wanted to build, I was ecstatic,” he said.

“I thought if they can pull this off, it’ll be a one-of-a-kind project that will be, bar none, one of the biggest attractions on the East Coast. So for me (the decision) was a no-brainer.”

The next decision is how to wash down all this great food. Sure, there is beer, which goes great with steamers. Try to stay away from light beers, which aren’t really beer and certainly aren’t good enough for this all-American holiday. But summer ales and wheat beers do have the flavor to stand up to a multi-course clambake.

Still, I prefer wines with this holiday meal and as with Thanksgiving, another all-American holiday, I stick to American wines. Wine is now made in every state in the union so if you can’t find something you like, you just aren’t looking hard enough.

I usually start the clambake with a sampling of raw clams and oysters. The key is to find a supplier who can sell you really fresh clams and oysters. You will also need someone at the party who is adept at opening the little buggers without slicing his hand open. It turns out that the knife should not be sharp, which is the mistake many make and is why so many accidents occur. Also, the choice of sauce is very important when making the wine pairing. I prefer just a little squeeze of fresh lemon juice. It brings out the all the flavors and doesn’t hide any. I know there are the Tabasco folks out there; sorry, but Tabasco and wine don’t mix. Cocktail sauce is fine but just a dab will do you. Otherwise all flavors are hidden under the horseradish. 

The wine? I love sparkling wine at this point in the meal. Whether it’s from California, Washington, the Finger Lakes of New York, or a Brut from New Jersey, sparkling wine has acidity and bubbles that create a taste sensation. Heck, champagne and oysters were a staple in old movies for decades.

Don’t like sparkling wine? Then I would get a dry Riesling from either the Finger Lakes – my favorite is from Dr. Konstantine Frank Winery – or from New Jersey. I would suggest the Alba Vineyards Riesling. Both have beautiful acidity, a minerality that matches that of the shellfish, and a fruit-and-spice finish for added enjoyment.

Steamers are great with a Sauvignon blanc or a Chenin blanc. My house Sauvignon is the Rodney Strong Charlotte’s Home, $12.99. Crisp, clean, and quaffable. Many people don’t know Chenin Blanc but Pine Ridge in Napa makes a beautiful Chenin for $13.99 that compliments steamers incredibly well.

I usually have a course of clams casino made on the grill for the Fourth. To complement the dish’s bacon and a little spice, try reaching for a dry rose. These wines are great for summer grilling, and have some of the flavors of red wine without the heaviness and tannin. Try an Oregon Rose if you can find one but if not, try the Etude Caneros Rose made from the Pinot Noir grape or the Sofia Monterey Rose. Both are $15.99 and are refreshing, fruity and delicious.

For the finale, there is lobster. Whether you steam it, boil it or grill it, stay away from oaky wines. Oak kills the flavor of shellfish. I would reach for one of the Chardonnays out there – they’re often called naked, which really means no oak. Estancia in California makes a no-oak Chardonnay for $9.99 with aromas of fruit, vanilla and butter cream. Perfect. Or stay local and try the Natali Vineyards Chardonnay from Cape May. It explodes with citrus and green apple aromas, and will make you realize that every penny you spent on that lobster was worth it.

The traditional July Fourth clambake is a simple pleasure but oh-so-good with the addition of a few well chosen wines.

Both summer residents of Sea Isle City in Cape May County, they started looking for the perfect place near their summer homes. Although Bruce had a thriving medical practice in Huntingdon Valley Pa., and Art operated a marina in Key West Fla., they wanted a new challenge in their lives. As luck would have it, they happened on a property in Cape May Courthouse that already had a vineyard on it. It had been planted in 2002 by another dreamer, Joe Yuzzi. Yuzzi was a former agronomist with Cornell University and had meticulously planted Cabernet, Chardonnay, Merlot, Chambourcin and Pinot Grigio vines on his 7.5-acre property. His dream of a winery never came true but Bruce and Art picked up where he left off. They purchased the property in 2007 and built a winery production building and then with their passion running amok, decided to also renovate the 1846 farmhouse on the property. Bruce felt that the vineyard location would produce grapes of extremely high quality and Art thought the farmhouse would make a gorgeous bed and breakfast. It turns out that they were both right and Jessie Creek Winery and the Inn at Jessie Creek were born.

Best friends Art Reale and Bruce Morrison in their vineyard.

But all this dreaming took an incredible amount of work. Art and Bruce painted, tiled, wallpapered, and drywalled. Little did they know that the biggest challenge was yet to come. Once the winery was complete and the farmhouse was perfect, they received their certificate of occupancy in late 2010. This was great timing because the vintage of 2010 had produced grapes of incredible quality. The wines were fermenting and producing aromas that made Bruce recall the wineries he had visited in Napa just a few years earlier. The plan was to open the tasting room in the spring of 2011 and start selling their wine. But sometimes things don’t go as planned. Due to a legislative fight about shipping between the New Jersey wineries and the New Jersey Liquor Control Board, the New Jersey Alcohol Beverage Control in Trenton decided not to grant any winery licenses until the situation had been resolved. The ABC is responsible for the regulation, renewal, issuing and enforcement of liquor licenses. The legislative mess wasn’t straightened out until this past January. So Art and Bruce had to sit on all their wine for more than a year which meant no money coming in but plenty of money going out. They were literally thinking that they might go under before they even opened.

All that is history now. They opened their tasting room for the first time April 14th and as Art tells it, the public loved the place. I drove down to visit just a few days later and was given the grand tour. The B&B is gorgeous with beautifully appointed rooms, plush bedding and unlike many B&Bs, the bathrooms are modern and spacious. Art does the cooking, as that is his real passion, and he puts out a breakfast for his guests that he says is big and satisfying. The tasting room and the winery facility are very attractive and inviting. There is a banquet room for small weddings and other functions which should get a lot of use soon. Art and Bruce make the wine together and currently offer a Chardonnay, Chambourcin, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Pinot Grigio.

I have often tasted the first offerings of a new winery and sometimes it is obvious that the winemaking process is still in the infancy stage with a few mishaps occurring. This was not the case at Jessie Creek. All the wines were well made, showed very pretty fruit aromas and were very clean and fault free. I started with was the Chardonnay, which was really beautiful. Aromas of green apple and Bartlett pear balanced the medium toast American oak, making it a very round and enjoyable wine. The Chambourcin I sampled next had cherry and black pepper aromaswhich made me wish Bruce had poured a little more in my glass. The Merlot and Cabernet were both excellent, each showing good tannin structure and pure clean fruit aromas. I must have been having too much fun with Art and Bruce because I can’t remember the Pinot Grigio at all but I can tell you that Jessie Creek is another great addition to the joys of living in Southern Jersey. As Art told me, “I just want people to come down, taste some good wine, and enjoy themselves.” Well said.

Dr. Pavlis is a Rutgers Extension agent and member of the Garden State Wine Growers Association.

I ordered a short-rib sandwich topped with sauteed greens and caramelized onions served on a toasted baguette. The meat was slow cooked for 12 hours, which made it just melt in your mouth. The sauteed greens and onions gave the sandwich great contrast between bitter and sweet. The meal cost $10.25 with a side of hand-cut fries and homemade iced tea.

TRENO
223 Haddon Ave. (856) 833-9233
Hours: Open 4 p.m. Monday-Saturday; noon Sunday

Chef Todd Fuller is amazing. Every day he comes up with specials that go with the vast wine and beer selections. I went for a personal brick-oven pizza made from scratch with mozzarella cheese an roasted tomatoes, and a side of pesto made from basil. The pie was topped with olive oil. It all left my taste buds wanting more. With an iced tea, lunch was $10. A must if you haven’t been.

LA GUADALUPANA
150 Haddon Ave. (856) 858-1414
Hours: 10 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday

Lunch here was like a trip to Mexico. Children running around while the Spanish-language TV network Telemundo played in the background made it even more authentic. I ordered two tacos and sopes. A pile of homemade chips with refried beans and cheese came with very good but spicy salsa. My first taco was filled with roasted chicken and tossed in a verde sauce topped with cilantro and cheese; the other was beef tossed in a spicy salsa topped with cheese. The sopes — pork with sour cream, lettuce, cheese and salsa on a tortilla — were my favorite. All for under $10.

AUNT BERTA’S KITCHEN
639 White Horse Pike (in neighboring Oaklyn) (856) 858-7009
Hours: 11a.m.-9 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 11:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Sunday

I love this place — for $8.95 you get two meats and two sides. I opted for fried chicken and ribs with mac ‘n’ cheese and black-eyed peas over rice. The fried chicken was perfectly cooked with little to no seasoning (Aunt Berta told me less is better). The ribs are cooked in homemade
barbecue sauce for eight hours, then seared to lock in the taste. The mac ‘n’ cheese was creamy and the pasta was cooked perfectly. The black-eyed peas topped off my lunch with homemade sweet tea that washed it all down. Lunch was $10.30 in total. Aunt Berta has been in business for 14 years and has daily lunch and dinner specials.

POUR HOUSE
124 Haddon Ave. (856) 869-4600
Hours: 11a.m.-2 a.m. Monday-Saturday; 11:30 a.m.-midnight Sunday

My lunch was the Tuesday special — a house burger and beer for $10. Chef Todd Fuller from Treno does the menu for the Pour House (both are part of the PJ Whelihan’s chain). My burger was topped with Vermont cheddar cheese with caramelized onions. I picked a local beer that went well with my burger. If you like oysters, go to the Pour House on Wednesdays for the “buck a shuck” special. More than 100 beers to choose from and a great wine list make the Pour House a popular spot.

– By Ann Marie Askin & Mark Eberle, who enjoy sharing meals — and their opinions about them — throughout South Jersey.

Claim to fame: Chef/owner of Tortilla Press in Collingswood and Tortilla Press
Cantina, Merchantville.
Zodiac sign: Libra
Favorite movie: “Pecker” (from offbeat director John Waters)
Favorite TV show: “Mad Men”
Favorite food: Tamales. So much time and attention goes into making them,
and you can taste it in every mouthful.
Favorite pastime: Just relaxing. Preferably by a pool or the ocean with a book – something I never get the chance to do these days.

JE: Was your mother a good cook?
MS: Oh, that’s such an understatement. I learned my love of cooking from her; the desire to make something perfect and well seasoned. Her cakes were known all over. Her Swiss steak falls off the fork. Her tomato sauce is the only one my very Italian wife will eat.

JE: Who would make a better date: Giada De Laurentiis or Rachael Ray?
MS: I have the perfect wife … why would I pick one of them?

JE: What was your worst kitchen accident?
MS: The time I worked as executive chef at a hotel, we were getting ready to serve prime rib at a banquet … only to discover the ovens hadn’t been turned on and the meat was raw. We raced to heat up water in pots all over and then threw the prime rib in to parcook; a definite heart-attack moment. I sent out more hors d’oeuvres to buy time.

JE: If you weren’t a chef, what would you be?
MS: That’s a brain-stopping question. I have no idea. I never considered any other option – cooking just seemed to be what I always wanted. But I can answer it another way: If I wasn’t a chef I’d be sleeping, relaxing and have total peace of mind!

JE: You’re stranded on a desert island. What food can’t you live without?
MS: Avocados. I’ll give up civilization but not guacamole. 

JE: What’s your favorite word?
MS: Epazote!

JE: What would you do if you had a time machine?
MS: I wouldn’t go back … but forward. I’d like to visit the world in 20 to 30 years to see how it all turns out.

JE: Do you like Jerry or Tom?
MS: Jerry.

JE: If you could speak to one type of animal, what would it be?
MS: Dogs!

JE: What was the best thing before sliced bread?
MS: Wine. Hands down. Any kind.

JE: What are you famous for?
MS: Our chipotle peanut BBQ pork was named by the U.S. Peanut Council as the best entrée of the year.

JE: Do you speak with your dog/pet?
MS: Oh, sure. We have three rescue dogs and any given day I’m saying something like, “Please move over. Please get down. Please let me have some room on the bed.”