Rhonda and I rolled up to New Brunswick to steal Aaron from his fraternity “learning” this weekend during Parents Weekend. We stayed over two nights in place of our usual trip to Rehoboth Beach, DE, in November, which we’ve been doing for years, punctuated by mandatory quarantine during COVID.

Back in my day, this would have been called “homecoming,” but I guess Parents Weekend fits the bill more, as you can’t assume it’s for alumni only. Aaron reported that the football game tickets were sold out, which was fine with me; we don’t watch football normally.

Friday October 17th

Rhonda and I took a long and languid drive up Route 206, which is an old connector for travelers between South Jersey and Trenton (and parts north). I traveled it many many times from multiple back seats in my youth to visit family: my mom hails from Trenton, and my dad, Milford, by way of the Bronx. Our family, writ large, lived in a band from Trenton to Milford, with frequent visits to Flemington. It’s for this reason that I’ve never considered myself a native of these parts.

Friday’s plan was Stokelan Estates Winery, picking up Aaron, grabbing dinner, and then checking in at the hotel.

Stokelan Estates Winery

I’ve been keen to get here since we found the place on one of our trips to central Jersey, but the only time we stopped before, it was closed. I read good things about their rosé, of which they have two for sale: the Myra 2023 and the 2024. We tried the 2023; it’s billed as lighter than the 2023, but the Chambourcin grape fetched my fancy. (The 2024 is made with Merlot.) I’m happy to report that we stopped on the way home, as well, and tried both the 2024 Myra as well as their unoaked Catspaw Chardonnay.

The 2023, which we tried on Friday, is a nice dry rosé, crisp but with a very berry nose. We ordered the pumpkin goat cheese with bread and the no-utensils required charcuterie board (a phrase I’m loathe to utter unironically). On Friday, en route to Rutgers, we sat outside in the crisp fall weather, noshing and sipping.

Frog and the Peach

Aaron had a fraternity event Friday, but we had time for dinner out before his obligation, and we took the chance to try the Frog and the Peach. Aaron noted a couple of weeks ago that they had bone marrow on the menu, which I take as a declaration of seriousness.

Rhonda and I had the Black Manhattan, which had Averna as an ingredient. It was inky black and delicious. We all enjoyed our dinners; Rhonda and Aaron both had the duck breast, while I went for the prosciutto-wrapped monkfish. Rhonda and I split a dessert, dropped Aaron off for the fraternity event, and headed back to the room for a reprise of My Big Fat Greek Weeding while I downloaded my cameras’ pics to my iPad.

Saturday

I am a traveler who plans his days around meals. Dinner would feature Le Malt Lounge, which I expected would be the show-stopper night out on this trip. We planned to hoof around Rutgers, hit a mall for some shopping (we’re eighties kids, me and Rhonda), and then dinner. Perhaps most adorably, I mentioned to Aaron that our room featured a sofa sleeper, and he remarked that he could stay over. I readily agreed, and he still wanted to do so as we wrapped up dinner. We were so happy to have him join us.

New Brunswick

We picked up Aaron just before noon and strolled (marched? Have you seen me walk?) to the Zimmerli Art Museum for a tour. I took a bunch of pics with both cameras, fodder for a future post.

We then walked up into town, checking the spirit wear at both the Barnes and Noble and Scarlet Fever. Downtown was jammed with parents just like us. We grabbed some drinks at Efes, where Aaron previously tried his first Turkish coffee, and wandered around a bit before having Indian buffet for lunch.

We lit out for the Menlo Park Mall thereafter, and raided the Old Navy there. We ogled the iPhone Air at the Apple Store, and Aaron and I fell in love with the AirPods Max on display, which I think will certainly be on Aaron’s Christmas list. I loved the sound but don’t think I’d use them. But Aaron? He’ll plug right into them.

We had dinner at Le Malt Lounge, which was not at all what I expected it to be, but the food was excellent, and the service pretty good. I had some deviled eggs and a pork chop, both of which were great. Aaron had the pork chop as well, but his was drier than mine. The wine was much more affordable than the Frog and the Peach, and the Manhattan, while more traditional, was excellent. We skipped desert and rolled back to the room after–all three of us.

Sunday

Sunday of course featured checkout, and another teary farewell, but we had a divey bagel experience on the way back to Aaron’s dorm from the hotel. We got Aaron back to the dorm, helped him carry some necessities and new clothes back up to the room, and said our goodbyes

Rhonda and I hit Stokelan again on the ride home, and then it was a long wait for grocery pickup at ShopRite, featuring yours truly going full Karen and asking to speak to the manager. Nice reintroduction to reality; talk about Sunday Scaries.

At Stokelan, we tried the 2024 Myra, which remains crisp and dry, with a tart fruit bite. I’d lean towards the 2024 if someone pressed me for a recommendation. We also tried the Catspaw Chardonnay, which is an unoaked version of the varietal. It’s got a salty minerality that I really loved, but a touch of richness that I’d look for in an oaked Chardonnay. Really good.

We tried the Tuscan vineyard platter this afternoon, which has a trio of spreads, some salami, olives, and pita. Rhonda detected some cumin in the hummus, which I’ll have to add to my recipe.

While wining and dining at Stokelan, we agreed to cancel our November Philly overnight (an excuse to eat at Monks Café) and head back up to New Brunswick. I have an Ethiopian recommendation from a colleague, and of course, it’s a chance to try something else at Stokelan.

And best of all? We get to visit Aaron again, before the holidays.

I have more pics and will write up some more granular posts this week if time permits. Thanks as always for stopping by.