New Jersey

22
Dec
2024

Northern Lights over NJ Photos

Seeing the aurora has long been on my bucket list. It still is. I want to go somewhere in the far north and see it. However, thanks to some serious geomagnetic storms and clear skies, my wish was partially granted when they appeared over New Jersey. We drove out to rural Burlington County away from the light pollution of home and saw some faint northern lights. They were strong enough to notice with the naked eye and were very visible to my phone’s camera. I didn’t bring my real camera along since I was just shooting from the car along the road and a tripod wasn’t feasible. Enjoy the Northern lights by viewing my photos here.

Posted by Michael in Photography, Site Updates, 0 comments
19
Dec
2024

Renault Winery Tour Photos

I’ve been to Renault Winery before but we thought it would be fun to take a tour of the winery and learn about its history. It turned out to be a really fascinating experience. I had no idea exactly how historic the property was! We had a really good guide who showed us the massive building. Even though wine is no longer produced there and it’s largely become an event venue, I’m glad to see the latest owners are still interested in preserving the history of the place too. Explore with me by view my photos here.

Posted by Michael in Photography, Site Updates, 0 comments
16
Dec
2024

Swedesboro, New Jersey Photos

Swedesboro is a local town (borough, technically) that I’ve been to and through a million times, but I’ve never stopped to explore. There’s a lot of history there. After learning about the Swedish history of Delaware during and after our sail on the Kalmar Nyckel (see those photos here), it only seemed fitting to check out the extension of that story on the NJ side of the river. Walk through Swedesboro with me in my photos here.

Posted by Michael in Photography, Site Updates, 0 comments
13
Dec
2024

Woodstown Central Railroad Photos

While looking for day trips around South Jersey, we found the Woodstown Central Railroad. It’s a tourist train that runs through Southern Gloucester County. Despite not necessarily being big train buffs, we always seem to wind up on trains since they’re a relaxing way to spend a day seeing some scenery that we might not otherwise see. Plus, this one is close to home. Go along for the ride with my photos here.

Posted by Michael in Photography, Site Updates, 0 comments
14
Jul
2021

Review: Charlie’s Crepes – Merchantville NJ

We discovered Charlie at the Collingswood Farmer’s Market where he serves up his crepes from a cart. After tasting them, we knew we needed to go try his shop. Since we started visiting him after the pandemic began, we’ve only done curbside takeout so far, but I definitely foresee us sitting in the cozy little outdoor seating area surrounded by his wife, Lisa’s flower gardens enjoying a meal in the near future. Why do we drive 30 minutes to get crepes when there are closer places we could go? Because they’re delicious, of course! He has a great variety of crepes (both savory and sweet) and constantly changing specials. My personal favorite is the smoked salmon. It’s made with brie cheese, pickled red onion and capers. We’ve tried quite a few others also and have yet to find one we didn’t like.
We’ll be back many more times to see what new creations Charlie comes up with. I’m sure they’ll all feature fresh and tasty ingredients.
Posted by Michael in Reviews
14
Jul
2021

Review: Thai Terrace – Washington Twp NJ

I will gladly admit that I am a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to Thai food. I almost always order Pad Thai. That might seem boring, but I like the dish and it’s a good way to compare restaurants. Thai Terrace is one of the best I’ve had. The only complaint I have is that sometimes the spiciness is a little inconsistent. However, I’m willing to chalk that up to varying depending upon who’s cooking on a given day. They have four levels of spiciness. I usually go with #2, medium. It’s usually within my range of spice tolerance.

We also order typically a lot of appetizers. They have some really good ones. The pork dumplings are delicious. The chicken satay is incredibly tender. They also have one called Thai Shrimp Green Wrap that’s really unique and tasty. It consists of shrimp, peanuts, coconut, sweet chili sauce, lime, scallions, ginger and red onions in a lettuce wrap. It seems like a lot of ingredients but they all combine incredibly well.

We occasionally try new local Thai restaurants as we discover them, but we always seem to wind up back at Thai Terrace. The atmosphere in the restaurant is quiet and peaceful; the owners and their staff are really friendly and the food never disappoints.

Posted by Michael in Reviews
21
Mar
2021

South Jersey Christmas Lights Photos

I’ve finally gotten around to posting the few photos I have from this last Christmas. In a normal non-COVID year, we would spend Christmas week visiting with friends and family, cooking big meals at my house, meeting them at restaurants, going to Christmas shows, traveling to their houses, etc. Of course, thanks to the pandemic, none of that was in the cards. So, we did something we haven’t done in a long time. We researched some of the most wildly decorated homes in the area and drove around to look at them. From a small home in Hi-Nella to a compound in Hammonton, we found a high tech digital light display, an entire street that goes way overboard with lawn decor, and more. It was a fun way to spend a few socially distant evenings. There’s even a video! Take a look at the photos and video here.

Posted by Michael in Photography, Site Updates
20
Mar
2021

Review: The Avocado Mexican Grill – Runnemede NJ

I’m always on the lookout for good Mexican food and will happily drive a long distance to get the good stuff. When I noticed that a new Mexican place had opened close to home, I had to check it out right away. With the COVID pandemic limiting us to only getting takeout, close is a good thing. Their menu includes all of the standards, so we ordered a bunch of stuff to make our own sampler. Yeah, we’d have a lot leftover, but if it’s good, who cares!
When I say the standards, I mean tamales, enchiladas, chiles rellenos and few other items. Sure, they have a lot more than this on the menu, but if they can make these items well, they can probably win me over. Well, they certainly won me over and I have a new go-to place for Mexican food! ALL of the dishes that we ordered were some of the best I’ve had anywhere. I can’t wait to go back and pick up some of their steak dishes.
I look forward to the day when it’s safe to start eating out at restaurants again because Avocado Mexican Grill will be on my list of places to go. However, their great food and close proximity to home means I’ll be ordering curbside pickup many more times between now and then! Plus, despite only interacting with the staff on the phone and at the car window, they were incredibly friendly and helpful.
Posted by Michael in Reviews
26
Jan
2020

Review: Monarch Diner – Glassboro NJ

Monarch Diner is the latest restaurant opened by the former owners of Lamp Post Diner in Gloucester Township. Lamp Post was one of my long time favorite diners but it has gone down hill since it was sold. So, I’m thrilled to see the old owners back again with Monarch. The menu is even very much the same. It’s a bright and clean diner with friendly staff that serves up a ton of standard diner fare with some unique dishes thrown in for good measure. My personal favorite, a carryover from the glory days of Lamp Post, is the “mile-high meatloaf.” It consists of slices of meatloaf layered with mashed potatoes, cheddar cheese, onion straws and barbecue sauce. It’s so nice to again be able to get this dish made as it should be!


Of course, as any diner should, they do their baking on premises and serve breakfast all day. The only downside is that they’re not open 24 hours. Lamp Post isn’t either though, so this is not a surprise.


I anticipate that this diner will do great in my old college stomping ground of Glassboro and I’m glad it’s still not far too from home for me since I’ve already been back few times.

Posted by Michael in Reviews
26
Jan
2020

Review: Cinder Bar – Monroe Twp NJ

I’ve been to the original East Greenwich Township location of Cinder Bar numerous times but I’m thrilled to see that they now have a second location because I assume this means they are doing well and, selfishly, it’s closer to home for me. This new location has the same great menu as the original. My favorites are their small plates because they have quite a unique variety and I’m always a sucker for good appetizers/small plates. We typically just order a large selection of them and share. The hardest part is deciding which ones to get because you can only eat so much in one sitting yet they all sound so good. If I had to pick just one, I’d probably suggest the short rib poutine. 


I tend to go to both locations at lunchtime, so we get soft drinks, but the fact that they have 200 whiskeys plus four house made cellos certainly is impressive and a good motivation to go for dinner sometime.


They have a section of the restaurant that can be opened to the outdoors in warm weather months. When we were there on a slightly snowy January day, the windows/roof panels were obviously closed and we sat near the cozy fireplace as we ate off a table built of reclaimed lumber from the historic Philadelphia Broad Street Station. Good food, a cozy atmosphere and some local history… you can’t ask for much more than that!

Posted by Michael in Reviews