The OX Row Incident

Within about a two week period, OX Restaurant, an upscale dining facility on Newark, in business for about two years, closed, and Atomic Wings, a takeout chicken wing joint on the same block, opened.

I haven’t eaten in either and although I do sometimes write about food here, I haven’t reviewed a restaurant and don’t plan to do so now. The closing of an upscale, and the opening of a downscale, seemed to me a demise of what I heard some people wanted, transforming Newark Avenue into a Restaurant Row.

I’m sure the economic recession was a big factor in the closing of the OX, but I don’t think it was the only one. That area—Newark Avenue and the general vicinity around the Grove Street PATH station—doesn’t seem to lend itself to upscale, expensive dining. I think that Jersey City residents, old and new, appreciate good food as much as anyone else. But Newark Avenue, particularly that portion of it, is really a thruway. Not in the highway sense, but in the way people pass through on their way to either work or home. Many residents see Newark Avenue constantly, so maybe they need a break if they are going to spring for above average dining. The two nicer places, both of which have been there longer, are Skinners Loft and LTMO, are mainly bars that serve food. I haven’t been to the latter, but I occasionally go to Skinners Loft, which is owned by the former owner of the Hamilton Ale House. It’s a good bar and the cuisine is basically re-imagined pub grub and not overly priced. The other food establishments, of which there are many, are generally takeout places. I’m not an expert on these matters, and there’s a Thai place that seems to have a following, but it seems that Newark Avenue is not a boulevard for night life. Does anybody really believe streetscaping will change that?

Years ago, I had this local newspaper gig in Bergen County. I would write a long review, than a shorter review of a restaurant. These were not opinion pieces. I was not a critic. They were basically promotional pieces, a kind of reportage of what was served, price points, etc. The longer piece appeared first—the paper was a weekly—and then the shorter piece appeared alongside other shorter pieces on other restaurant for several issues after. The shorter pieces were basically a single paragraph. The restaurants paid for this privilege. An ad by the restaurant in the newspaper was always involved. In the business, it is called an advertorial. I never even went to most of the ones I wrote about. There were a lot of expensive places participating, and most of them, the vast majority, were restaurants in different towns, some even in different counties, a fair distance, at least a 30 minute drive, from the towns the newspaper covered.

The publisher, who sold the ads, told me. “When people want to go out to eat, they want to go out, they want to leave where they live if they are going to spend money to eat.”

At least not yet, and I doubt anytime in the near future, Jersey City is not a destination. Its population may be rising, and the median income is likewise higher, but that doesn’t mean that they are going to be paying top prices for dinner within walking distance of their homes. Taverns, take-out and diners obviously fall into a different category, inexpensive, too tired to cook places. If you’re too tired to cook, you’re too tired to travel and too tired to enjoy an expensive meal. I enjoy expensive gourmet dining maybe once a month or so, with friends or on a date situation, but it is almost always in Manhattan. I love Jersey City but let’s not forget one of its biggest appeals, proximity and access to NYC.

Newark Avenue not being a destination, and Jersey City not being New York City, may not be the only explanation, however. The local restaurants here, reasonably priced quality meals, are few and far between. There is a dearth, unlike Hoboken, which has tons of great places to eat that do not cost an arm and a leg. Maybe OX couldn’t get the right balance to fill the gaping need. But there may be a more intangible reason as well. A friend of mine, who has lived here for more than 20 years but not a native, pointed out that “Hoboken has a restaurant culture. People will regularly go out to eat. There are places on Washington Avenue and places off that beaten path. Here, it’s just not part of the culture.”

Jersey City’s Restaurant Row? Maybe it shouldn’t be on Newark, and proprietors will have to figure out the right formula of cuisine, price, service and atmosphere. Maybe, stop thinking Row.