30 Best NJ Restaurants In 2020: New NJ Monthly Rankings

NEW JERSEY — Let's face it, 2020 has been a very difficult year for restaurants in New Jersey.

Shut down. Limited seating. Shifting to takeout service. In spite of those challenges, the state's dining continues to be some of the finest in the nation.

New Jersey Monthly, whose lists have become the go-to source for many in the way they capture the essence of the state's fine food establishments, has released its newest collection of the state's 30 best new restaurants, and they can be found throughout the Garden State (see list below).

New Jersey Monthly, in its newest release, noted the challenges the state's restaurants have faced that have led to some closing down and said it was retaining many of its choices from 2019. Read more: 30 Best Restaurants in New Jersey 2019: New NJ Monthly Rankings

There are some newcomers on the list, however. Below are some of the restaurants that are in Patch towns that readers may want to check out:

Aarzu, Freehold: Traditional Indian dishes have been modernized by chefs Shravan Shetty and Dayanand Shetty (they're not related), such as avocado mango bhel, which adds colorful mango and avocado to a traditional Mumbai dish of puffed rice, or duck paratha tacos that use flatbreads instead of tortillas.

Chez Catherine, Westfield: The modern French cuisine continues to be a draw for the longstanding destination. They adapted to the outdoor dining with the benefit of a covered parking area, and indoors, they upgraded the ventilation system. The menu has seen tweaks, including swapping out foie gras with a thin-sliced steak tartare with tabasco-worcestershire mayo sauce.

Mistral, Princeton: They shut down for two months and reopened in time for Mother's Day, with nearly as many takeout meals as patrons they would have seated for the holiday. New Jersey Monthly notes the menu is one that "will keep your receptors occupied," with dishes such as a pan-roasted, smoked duck breast with "an intense duck jus, creamed cabbage, marinated beets, duck-liver sausage and rye spaetzle."

Nicholas Barrel & Roost, Red Bank: The Route 35 eatery has been on the New Jersey Monthly list since the magazine's first in 2007. The restaurant transformed into a family-friendly space a couple of years ago, and continues to adapt while remaining a benchmark for fine dining.

Poached Pear Bistro, Point Pleasant Beach: The menu of New American continued to draw customers during the shutdown, and its signature meals and nightly specials have kept business coming for when limited indoor dining resumed.

Read New Jersey Monthly's full list here.

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