Old school, one-of-a-kind awesome restaurant in New Jersey
My friend and I have a tradition every holiday season. We go up north on the Parkway and meet some other friends at a special place.
I've missed the last couple of years due to illnesses but nothing was going to stop me this year. The place is about an hour and a half (without traffic) from my house, but well worth the ride for this once-in-a-while treat. If I lived closer, it would be a weekly thing!
If you're a fan of old-school places that just aren't around anymore, with great food and a unique atmosphere, you have to get The Belmont Tavern in Belleville.
It's been around for over fifty years and not a whole lot has changed in that time. The menu is limited but what they serve is more than enough to satisfy anyone who has a real New Jersey palate and appetite.
What to order at The Belmont Tavern
There were six of us and we just had one of the guys order a bunch of stuff family-style.
They are famous for their chicken savoy, pork francese, shrimp beeps and cavatelli with pot cheese.
Their salads come family style, very simple but simply delicious. Around the holidays the place is packed. We went at 5 o'clock (that's when they open) on a Wednesday and it was mobbed.
When you're in there among the throngs of typical Jersey types, you can't help but feel happy. The atmosphere is one of a kind.
When Clint Eastwood was filming "Jersey Boys" in the area a few years back, his crew wanted an authentic Jersey joint and they went to the Belmont Tavern, of course.
The walls are lined with famous Jersey folks who've dined there throughout the years. The restaurant and kitchen are run by Annette and her daughter Kim.
Two of the hardest working sweetest women in the world. The bar is owned separately by someone else. It's a unique arrangement, but it is a unique place you just have to put on your Jersey dining bucket list.
It's on Bloomfield Ave. Between Belmont Ave. and Heckel St. in Bellville.
They've made one of their signature dishes world famous. You have to try the Chicken Savoy.
It's like stepping back in time just walking into the place.
It's always busy but especially around the holidays.
If you want coffee, it's served one way, espresso family style.
The walls are lined with pictures of New Jersey luminaries.
Notice our picture is above Bill Spadea's...as it should be.
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Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Dennis Malloy only.
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