Bill Spadea tours one of the great small towns of NJ

We're bringing our podcast, Common Ground, around the state to highlight the many outstanding local communities and small businesses that make New Jersey great. Our most recent stop was in Kenilworth.

What a great town in Union County. A strong downtown, plenty of restaurants, and a dedicated police force keeping the streets safe.

Our tour started at the Chat & Griddle where owner Frank Rizzo makes some of the best breakfast sandwiches in New Jersey.

And in Kenilworth, it's not a pork roll, egg, and cheese. It's a Taylor Ham, egg and cheese.

The next stop was Ava's Kitchen and Bar, where the staff opened their doors to our podcast crew and served some of the best beer in town.

They are known for their tequila bar, many high-end and hidden gems behind the bar. One of the great things about the place is that they are using organic, stone-ground flour to make their pizzas.

Manager Rob Ramirez was more than happy to show us around. No seed oils at Ava's.

It was great to speak with the Chief of Police, Fred Soos, and Bubbles and Baskets owner Tahra Wright during the broadcast. We were also joined by the town's Democrat Mayor Linda Karlovich. It's important that the conversation transcends party lines if we are going to rebuild this state from the Murphy disaster.

After the broadcast, we met up with the owners, Nick and Joe, and team members Frank and Mike at the town's top deli, Massimo.

The last stop was BelleGente Salon where we met owner Erica and her top-shelf staff.

All around, a great day in Kenilworth.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own.

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