A big welcome to the Class of 2018! By now, the majority of you have either settled into the meal plan, are burning through your Duckbills, or have adjusted to feeding yourself, also known as a combination of irresponsible food choices and mostly eating out. While a good portion of you have explored the tremendous food options available within our small, vibrant city, about 800 of you are just beginning the grand experiment of Hoboken’s culinary delights.
It’s said that when dealing with too many choices, making a decision becomes almost impossible- that’s where I come in. My name is Sean Dirscherl, I’m a 4/5 Civil Engineering Major, and I have been a great explorer of Hoboken’s many restaurants, pubs, diners, and cafes in the past few years. So, as you start to venture down to Hoboken, let Cuisine Corner be your guide to the best specials and delicacies Hoboken has to offer!
To open up the fall semester, I decided to revert to an oldie but goodie: Arthur’s Tavern, located at the corner of 3rd and Washington. While the black and white striped awning and dim lighting leave you wondering when Michael Corleone is coming back from the bathroom to take care of Sollozzo and McCluskey, the restaurant is anything but outdated or resting on its laurels. With unique and incredible foods and one of the best budget dinner specials the city has to offer, Arthur’s is a great first stop on any food tour of Hoboken.
Like I said, the restaurant has kind of a throw-back, classic steakhouse décor. Wood everywhere, checkered tablecloths, and lighting that makes you curse the sun as you depart remind you of Arthur’s place as one of Hoboken’s culinary landmarks. There is some outdoor seating if you come early for dinner, but sitting inside is truly a treat; the front room has a more traditional feel, but if you came with a crowd or want to catch up on sports, the back room will have everything you could possibly want.
Any good meal at Arthur’s starts with some of their appetizers. Regardless of budget, the garlic bread is a must-order. While most restaurants will start with butter and garlic in making a simple garlic bread, Arthur’s goes a step further by covering the finished loaf with a helping of parmesan cheese; the effect is stunning. As put by my dinner-mate, “The struggle between clean hands and shoveling garlic bread into my face is all too real.” Other prominent appetizers include the French Onion soup, which comes smothered in cheese in its own little crock, and the nachos, which, while untasted, looked promising as they walked by us on their way to another table.
Now, on to the broke college student special that makes a steakhouse like Arthur’s instantly accessible to even the most frugal. On Mondays, Arthur’s offers a “Build-a-Burger” dinner special for $7 which includes a burger with cheese (from cheddar to bleu) and 2 toppings, which include bacon, mushrooms, caramelized onions, and hot peppers (as an aside, I’ve only seen this happen once, but you can use one of the toppings as a second cheese). A personal favorite is the bleu cheese with bacon and caramelized onions, but to each their own. Regardless of toppings choice, the burgers are always filling, juicy, and smothered in whichever cheese and toppings you desire.
However, Arthur’s is significantly more than just burgers. While their menu is a bit sparser than you would find at most restaurants (hardly a knock, considering my earlier adage regarding a multitude of choice), they have a solid variety of salads, steaks, sandwiches, and seafood that leave any restaurant goer waddling out the door. If there were one drawback to their menu, it would be that their offering of vegetarian-friendly options isn’t spectacular; certainly not a problem to a meatetarian such as myself, but Arthur’s is certainly the kind of restaurant where eating meat is a requisite.
Arthur’s Tavern is one of those restaurants that seems immune to the times; while Hoboken becomes more upscale, trendy, and influenced by yuppie culture, Arthur’s stands as an increasingly rare vestige of that old-school dining experience. Accessible to wallets both fat and thin, Arthur’s will leave you plenty satisfied and ready to tackle all that Hoboken has to offer the palette!
Pro Tip: When the waitress comes to get your drink orders, ask if she can bring out pickles for the table; trust me!
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