Brewery Thirty-Three & Blue Monkey Tavern

Peace, Love, and Beer is the motto for this local Riverton Brewery called Brewery Thirty-Three, where locals go for fresh, quality independent craft beer in NJ.

 The Brewery is located at 601 Lippincott Ave., Riverton, NJ www.craftbrewery33.com. This brewery uses fresh local ingredients from local farmers and suppliers to bring you the best craft beer in the state. 

   The place is family-friendly, the staff is fantastic, and the selection is limited, but there are more new craft beers to come in the near future. They also provide food truck vendors from different restaurants, live music from local musicians, and an outdoor seating area, and it's right near the River Line platform if one wants to avoid driving.

My next stop is Merchantville, NJ, to The Blue Monkey Tavern, recommended by my unique, fun friend Lynn Nash. It is a beautifully renovated historic property with a mahogany bar serving delicious food and a fantastic craft beer selection from local craft beer venues. Blue Monkey is at 2 S Center Street Merchantville, NJ, bluemonkeytavern.com. They also have an outdoor dining area for special events such as live music, BBQ, etc. 

    As for the food at The Blue Monkey, they consist of pub-style dishes like you get in any tavern. For example, for appetizers: Coconut shrimp with sweet chili sauce (very delicious, I might add) and Ahi Tuna Kebab served with cayenne mayo. For Entrees: My friend Lynn Nash had the Iberian Fantasia, which is shrimp, scallops, and sausage with vodka in a spicy tomato, white wine, and cream sauce over angel hair pasta, and yours truly had Chicken Bella Bucca, which is chicken breast stuffed with prosciutto and fresh mozzarella in a Madeira wine sauce on top of sauteed spinach. It was excellent. 

  You can also choose beverages, such as craft beers from local breweries, cocktails, and your usual coffee and soda. As for desserts, well, we didn't have any because, of course, we were full, lol. But the desserts consist of a delicious homemade Ricotta cheesecake with raspberry sauce and whipped cream, Pot De Creme: Creamy Chocolate Custard with whipped cream, Brownie with vanilla Ice cream, and Butter Toffee Cake, a mini bunt cake served warm and topped with whipped cream. 

The Blue Monkey is a fantastic restaurant, and I recommend this place for lunch and dinner. Bring the family, friends, date, or guys/girls' night out.

  Well, my Jersey peeps, I hope you enjoyed today's read. Make sure you check out more blog-worthy posts next time, and until then, enjoy life and have fun. 

JerzyP 🚗🍷🍺🍴🍻

 

OBA Mediterranean Grill

 4 of my dearest friends and I returned to downtown Collingswood for dinner last night for a unique Turkish flavor experience. OBA Mediterranean Grill restaurant is located at 563 Haddon Ave. Collingswood, NJ: www.obagrillnj.com. Formerly Centanni Pizza and Italian Grill, OBA has a family-friendly environment; the food is top-notch, freshly prepared by experienced and passionate chefs, and you can't go wrong with their desserts. 

      Their menu is fantastic for starters; they gave us olive oil with fresh olives to dip our Lavash (puff bread), Rustic Hummus, and a lovely cheese platter. The main course was lamb shish, lamb chops, and shrimp casserole.   For dessert, you have your choice of Kadayif, a sweet pastry made of shredded wheat, chopped nuts, and honey syrup, Kunefe a shredded wheat layered with melted cheese in between and soaked with syrup, and chocolate soufflé with ice cream.

  The restaurant is a BYOB, and the staff is lovely. They make sure you have an excellent dining experience.         

 The chef also makes a cutely fresh fruit plate of oranges, apples, and strawberries.

It's a must-go for family and friends for lunch and dinner. You won't regret it!

Where will I go next for my day trip adventure???  Only time will tell. 

Enjoy life, New Jersey peeps,

Jerzy P🚗🍷🍴

Tribute : A final fling with Forgtten Boardwalk Brewery

  Like the song from Boyz to Men, "It's so hard to say goodbye," as of February 29th, Forgotten Boardwalk Brewery will say goodbye to Cherry Hill for good. FB (not Facebook) had been a Cherry Hill woman-owned institution for 10 years in fine craft brews, located at 1940 Olney Ave Ste 100, Cherry Hill, NJ.  It's a tiny microbrewery with amiable staff and a fun atmosphere of a mini-Asbury Park carnival feel of Arcade games like Skee-Ball, Pac-Man, and many others.  The place was once owned by Flying Fish Brewery back in 1995. They moved to Somerdale, NJ, in 2012. By the end of this month, FB has lost its lease to another company next door. The property owner doesn't want to negotiate with FB owner Jamie Queli. So, in January, FB posted a sad letter on all social media platforms that sent everyone into a tailspin!  This was the post they sent via Facebook, Instagram, etc.:

     But if you want to say your final goodbyes to FB, they have a few more events up their sleeve, like yesterday's Cake Over, which includes dessert-flavored craft beers like Fireball, Blueberry Pancake, Peach Pie Crumble, Apple Turnover, Vanilla Nutella, S'mores and Cinnabon.  I loved all three beers myself, and I'm returning next Sunday. 

                                                    

   To the Staff of Forgotten Boardwalk, we will miss you terribly, and I wish you all move to a new, bigger, and better location and keep creating new and exciting brews for everyone to enjoy for years to come. So long you WILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN!! 

JerzyP 🍻🍻🍺

Happy 2024 / il Fiore Restaurant

       Hello, and Happy New Year to all my NJ peeps! I hope everyone is doing well and had a great New Year's Eve with friends and loved ones partying, dinners, or not going out. As for yours, I've spent time with 4 of my dearest friends in Collingswood, NJ, at this beautiful Italian restaurant called il Fiore, 693-695 Haddon Ave, Collingswood, NJ 08018. ilfiorerestaurant.com 

     This BYOB restaurant can be crowded on specific holidays like Valentine's Day, New Year's Eve, etc., with a 4-course menu, and the staff is entirely on their toes without spilling a plate. Props to them!  As for the menu, OMG, the food is incredible. I recommend the Osso Buco. This dish is fall off a bone fork tender veal dish with mashed potatoes and vegetables.   

   Stop by il Fiore for lunch or dinner if you are ever in Collingswood to run errands or shop. You won't regret one thing. 

          

    So, let's see where this New Year takes me, and again, Happy New Year!!

 Safe travels,

 JerzyP 💚🚗