WEEHAWKEN N.J. The owners of New York City’s renowned Soho Grand and Tribeca Grand hotels have extended their reach across the Hudson River in hopes of finding a fine-dining market in Weehawken, N.J.
Situated on the waterfront adjacent to a Sheraton Hotel that Grand Hospitality has managed for five years, Harbor Bar & Brasserie offers a modern American interpretation of a traditional French brasserie.
Grand Hospitality is a division of Hartz Mountain Industries, which is based in Secaucus, N.J. Hartz is a private owner and operator of commercial real estate across the United States, including 200 buildings in the New York/New Jersey area. Harbor Bar is its first free-standing restaurant.
Nick Ciccone, corporate chef for Grand Hospitality, developed the menu for Harbor Bar with food stylist Chloe Osborne. "The food is not over composed," Ciccone said. "There are big flavors but the presentation is simple."
The restaurant is open early for breakfast, via an express counter dubbed the Coffee Bar. Menu options include espresso, gourmet coffees and teas, an assortment of freshly baked pastries, freshly squeezed juices, fruit salad with mint, toast with stewed fruit compote, as well as steel-cut oatmeal and ricotta pancakes.
After breakfast, the Coffee Bar transforms into a dessert station providing a variety of cakes, tarts, cheese and fruit.
The 292-seat main dining room's menu features appetizers, salads, sandwiches, pasta, pizza and entrees. Some of the popular choices include the arugula and goat cheese salad with hazelnut, grapefruit, balsamic and olive oil; fried calamari with peppers and jalapenos; braised short rib; spicy tuna burger; and New York Strip Steak. The menu also features such "American staples" as hamburgers, Soho Grand mac and cheese, chicken pot pie, Caesar salad, artichoke dip, succotash, lobster roll, chowder and club sandwiches. Entrée prices range from $11 to $27.
"This is the first time we've opened a stand-alone restaurant," said Tony Fant, president and chief operating officer of Grand Hospitality. "Having spent most of our time in New York, our hotels there are really more lounge oriented. New York is a very different setting than New Jersey. In Weehawken, we built around the hotel. Right away we recognized that there's a very large amount of patrons who frequent that waterfront. So not only do we have hotel guests dining at Harbor Bar, but neighborhood patrons as well."
The restaurant also offers a private dining room that seats up to 80 guests.
When Harbor Bar & Brasserie open last October, Fant moved some of his senior management from New York to the new venture, including an executive chef, the food and beverage director and various catering staff.
"I established a foundation with individuals in New York and then I hired individuals in the local area," Fant said. "Getting from New York to New Jersey is very difficult to do every day. So we wanted people to be local. So we got people with solid experience and trained them to our standards."
Fant said one of the biggest challenges in opening Harbor Bar was establishing the name in Weehawken. "We're a big indie hotel group in New York," he said. "In Weehawken we have to make ourselves known. We had to strongly market the brand. It's not like our NYC hotels which are known globally."
Fant said the company did a lot of advertising in transit stations and direct marketing. It also advertised in local papers and magazines.
Just as essential as having the right menu is having the right conceptual design, Fant said. He designed Harbor Bar from floor to ceiling.
"I concepted the restaurant in terms of what it was – I looked at the location and the primary purpose of the restaurant, which was to create a first-class dining experience," Fant said. "In addition, we had to have continuous service for hotel guests. So the concept that came to my mind was a brasserie. It allows customers to have eggs in the afternoon and steak late-night if that's what they choose."
Fant also said that being on the river impacted his design in terms of the color schemes. Harbor Bar features a lot of earthy tones and blues.
"Our style in New York is the same as our style at Harbor Bar," Fant said. "It's simple. That's just our style. It's very understated and doesn't try to hard. We employ wood tables, wood floors and banquettes. The lighting was recessed into the ceiling but created in a way so every person would be receiving the same amount of the light. Every person glows."