A massive traffic jam ruined our night out so we detoured for a dozen Jersey oysters

WORTH THE DETOUR: 100 Steps Kitchen + Raw Bar on Centennial Avenue in Cranford once was known as 100 Steps Supper Club + Raw Bar, as the awning still indicates. Web site: Great seafood closer than the shore.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- I hate driving.

I hate bumping up or down slowly along my pockmarked, frequently patched block in Hackensack's Fairmount section, a street that has been neglected for more than 30 years. 

I hate driving over the rough, potholed and patched  streets in Teaneck and Englewood, and I especially hate the traffic on the Garden State Parkway and the New Jersey Turnpike, our two major toll roads.

On Friday night, my wife and I left an hour and a half to drive the 53 miles or so to a Red Bank restaurant, where we had a 6 p.m. reservation.

We also planned to see a play at Two River Theater.

We never made it, detouring instead to 100 Steps Kitchen + Raw Bar, a BYO in Cranford, for a dinner of New Jersey oysters and scallops, and skate wing with crunchy grilled asparagus. 

Traffic was backed up on the parkway for more than 8 miles, according to digital signs, and we were averaging barely 20 mph when we gave up, called the Red Bank restaurant to cancel our reservation, and took the exit for Cranford.

High taxes, low roads

New Jersey's streets, roads and highways are in terrible shape -- this in a state with some of the highest local property taxes in the nation.

The Garden State Parkway is long overdue for an expansion in northern New Jersey -- 5 lanes in each direction would be great.

And what can you say about streets in Hackensack, Teaneck and Englewood in Bergen County except that they are in horrible condition, especially those maintained by the county, and could use far more turn lanes.

County owned streets

Bergen County owns tens of millions of dollars in tax-exempt property in Hackensack -- shifting the burden to homeowners like me -- yet arrogant officials maintain stretches of county owned Summit Avenue and Prospect Avenue at third-world standards.

Cedar Lane in Teaneck also is poorly maintained by the county, with potholes and rough patches that rock even a heavy luxury car like mine.

And in Hackensack, the lack of turn lanes on Passaic Street, a major thoroughfare, and Summit Avenue is just criminal, causing driver frustration and aggravating air pollution as cars pile up behind turning vehicles.

Thanks for nothing, Bergen County.

Read: On my 2017 visit to 100 Steps,

 I had a dozen Cape May Salts

HALF-SHELL GAME: During Happy Hour, all oysters from the raw bar are half price, so I ordered 6 Tucker's Island from Little Egg Harbor and 6 Rose Cove from Barnegat (total of $20.50). Those were my consolation prizes after my server told me there were no Cape May Salts from Delaware Bay, the plump oyster I enjoyed on my previous visit in 2017. 

HOLD THE CREAM: My entree, a pan-seared Skate Wing, was listed on the menu with a side of potato dumplings in a cream sauce. To cut down on the fat, I ordered a side of crunchy asparagus ($33).

NEW JERSEY SCALLOPS: My wife loved her three large sea scallops ($37), but was hungry when we got home. I regret not ordering the special salad, Jersey Peach with Arugula.

EARLY BIRDS: Only a few other tables were occupied when we arrived at the restaurant without a reservation. We were seated immediately.

FREE PARKING: A parking lot on the corner is free.

THE DRIVE HOME: My wife took this photo of traffic on the northbound Garden State Parkway, where the toll road narrows from 5 lanes to 4. Cars exiting to Route 280 lined up in an exit lane and one travel lane, slowing everyone. Traffic going south appears to be as congested as it was when we gave up and detoured to Cranford.

N.J. State Police are issuing more tickets for speeding, careless driving on highways

The end of major construction projects that slowed traffic on the New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway has been cited to explain why the state police are issuing more speeding and careless driving tickets. This 2012 photo is from Wikimedia Commons.

Editor's note: Drivers who speed, tailgate or weave through slower traffic are a major quality of life issue as the state's roads become increasingly congested, but the problem is ignored by the news media.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- You're more likely to be stopped for speeding or careless driving on New Jersey's major toll roads than you were just a few years ago.

Data for 2017 show the New Jersey State Police have begun to reverse a dramatic decline in the number of speeding and careless driving summonses issued on the turnpike and parkway -- the state's busiest roads -- between 2010 and 2015.

Troop D, which patrols the New Jersey Turnpike, issued 9,981 speeding summonses in 2017, compared to 8,861 in 2015, Lt. Ted Schafer, a state police spokesman, said today.

Careless  driving summonses issued on the turnpike totaled 6,234 in 2017, compared to 5,702 in 2015, he said.

Troop E, which patrols the Garden State Parkway, issued 9,021 speeding summonses in 2017 or 3,435 more than the 5,586 issued in 2015.

Careless driving summonses issued on the parkway totaled 5,857 in 2017, compared to 5,610 in 2015.

2010 to 2015

In November 2015, I reported in Eye on The Record that the decline in the number of speeding tickets issued on the turnpike was especially stark -- 9,950 up to that point in 2015, compared to 18,193 in 2010.

On the parkway, 6,543 speeding summonses had been issued in the first 11 months or so of 2015, compared to 9,669 in 2010. See: 

Speeding tickets declined dramatically in 2010-15

At the time, the state police defended their record, explaining their main objective is to reduce the number of fatal accidents on the state's busiest roads.

Fatal accidents on the parkway had dropped to 7 at that point in 2015, compared to 25 in 2010 and 31 in 2005.

On the turnpike, which is used by both cars and big trucks, there had been 19 fatal accidents in 2015, compared to 13 in 2010 and 23 in 2005.

Eating out in Cranford: 100 Steps Supper Club + Raw Bar certainly worth the drive

At 100 Steps Supper Club + Raw Bar in Cranford, Cape May Salts, raised in Delaware Bay, are smaller but just as delicious as the Gulf Oysters I enjoyed on a trip to New Orleans in April.

We shared a whole Idaho River Trout with crispy skin, another highlight of our dinner at 100 Steps.

But rush-hour traffic on the Garden State Parkway will have you biting your nails

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

CRANFORD -- One of the best seafood restaurants in New Jersey isn't anywhere near the shore.

Still, I've never been a fan of driving 20 miles or more to eat out no matter how good a restaurant is.

So, when we had to visit this Union County town to finish applying for TSA Precheck on Thursday, I made a dinner reservation at 100 Steps Supper Club + Raw Bar.

I attended an oyster and wine festival under a tent in 100 Steps' parking lot in September 2015, and this was my first time back.

Rush-hour traffic on the Garden State Parkway was a nightmare; the 26-mile trip to the IdentoGo office took more than an hour, and me and my wife were late for our appointments.

Still, we got to 100 Steps 30 minutes early, allowing us to take advantage of happy hour, when freshly shucked oysters are half price.

First oyster festival in Cranford

A dozen Cape May Salt Oysters were reduced to $21 from $42 during happy hour (4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays to Fridays, until 5:30 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays). These New Jersey oysters live up to their description on the menu: sweet, buttery and smooth, though I'd add mildly salty to that.

We also shared an outstanding appetizer special: A plump Soft Shell Crab over bok choy, tzatziki and kohlrabi -- drizzled with an apple-cider reduction.

Great salads, too

I made quick work of a dozen Cape May Salt Oysters as my wife cringed, but both of us really enjoyed a special appetizer, a plump Soft Shell Crab with a crunchy exterior ($16).

Then, each of us took a breather with salad: 

Arugula with baby beets, shaved carrot and spiced sunflower seeds in a coriander vinaigrette, and Kale with roasted walnuts, dried dates and aged gouda in the same dressing instead of the buttermilk ranch listed on the menu ($12 each).

We finished by sharing a whole Idaho River Trout a La Plancha with French green beans, kohlrabi and capers, and asked the kitchen to hold the citrus brown butter sauce ($35).

Our delicious seafood dinner took about 1 hour and 15 minutes, and my only regret is that I didn't bring any wine.

Hot Parker House Rolls with garlic and salt are complimentary, but seconds are $1.50 each.

The restaurant's Arugula Salad.

The dining room and oyster bar.

The check came in this dish.

Andrea and Jim Carbine opened 100 Steps Supper Club + Raw Bar in 2013 -- literally 100 steps from their Cranford bistro, A Toute Heure. New owners took over 100 Steps recently, and now, the couple have sold the bistro after operating it for 10 years. NJ.com said A Toute Heure was at the "forefront of New Jersey's farm-to-table movement."

  

Details

100 Steps Supper Club + Oyster Bar, 215 Centennial Ave., Cranford; 1-908-276-0153. Dinner only. Closed Mondays.

BYO, free parking in lots or behind restaurant.

Website: Always Seasonal, Always Fresh

For TSA Precheck, 5 years of expedited security screening at airports is $85 (no need to remove shoes, laptop, liquids and so forth). 

You also can pay with 10,000 United Airlines frequent flier miles.