New Jersey Local Eats
A food-filled day trip to the Garden State
Jokes aside, the Garden State has Manhattan beat spades-down when it comes to U-pick farms. So follow our guide to an itinerary of blueberry plunder. And when you get home, save the jam making for another day; instead, whip up our exclusive recipe for blueberry-honey fool in 20 minutes flat.
1. White Rose System Visit Rich Belfer at his small, steel diner for a road snack with no equal–a "complete" Taylor Ham (the de facto state sandwich of New Jersey), which includes bologna-like pork roll, an egg, cheese and chunks of home fries–all piled on a hard roll ($4.50). 1301 E. Elizabeth Ave., Linden, NJ; 908-486-9651
2. Emery's Organic Blueberry Farm Pull into this dusty farm ready to pick. You'll be directed to whichever field has the ripest fruit ($2.50 a pound) after being told that "grazing like cows is not acceptable." When you pay, grab some "Jersey Blues" iced tea for the road. 346 Long Swamp Rd., New Egypt, NJ; 609-758-8514 or emerysfarm.com
3. De Lorenzo Tomato Pies After some hard picking, step into this converted row house for some of the best Jersey pizza. Order a large plain tomato pie ($14), then, on the drive to Princeton, look for roadside stands (such as Cherry Grove Farm) sagging under the weight of fresh vegetables. 530 Hudson St., Trenton, NJ; 609-695-9534
4. Small World Coffee and The Bent Spoon To refuel before heading home, pick up an iced coffee ($1.95) and scoops of sweet corn and crème fraîche ice cream ($4). 14 Witherspoon St., Princeton, NJ; 609-924-4377 ext. 2 or smallworldcoffee.com 35 Palmer Sq. W., Princeton, NJ; 609-924-2368 or thebentspoon.com