Searching for new hope in New Hope
words and photos by Robert Kingsland
I visited New Hope Pennsylvania and Lambertville New Jersey in October of 2020 in the throws of the Pandemic. We had never really heard that word ‘Covid’ until January of 2020 nor the word “Lockdown” .
We were put under incredible restriction and for months lived in cocoons, fits and starts of work, death. We were behind “30 days to stop the spread” which turned into 30 more which turned into 2 years.
It was an incredible time but we pushed forward and found a way. We stopped being social. Sunday supper was off the table. We created cocoons with family and friends. We masked. We sanitized. We built barriers of plexiglass. We built restaurants in the streets and created Piazas where cars once roamed. It was a dizzying journey.
By October of 2020 we had as a people, adapted and we created a path to human interactions. Sort of. Bars, clubs. Movie theatres, salons were still shuttered but we were moving in the right direction in some areas.
Restaurants and stores were given opening guidance. We couldn’t sit inside the restaurants, but we could sit outside. We couldn’t have that many people in our shops, but we could stand in line 6 feet apart and we could walk outside in group with masks. We were even allowed to be maskless outdoor when eating or drinking! Flights were resuming at a very limited capacity and businesses were doing their best to reopen.
Which is why my Friend and I who were living in a cocoon in Wanamassa New Jersey, decided to ‘Get out of Dodge’ and venture on that beautiful October day to New Hope. A day that gave me a lot of hope for the future and the holiday season in 2020.
In fact, the holidays were good. We had small family gatherings and gatherings with friends and some planes started to fly. And by the New Year of 2021 we saw a path to forward to some road of normalcy.
.
We ushered in 2021 and near Valentine’s Day, things did begin to spring. Business was slowly coming back, we had weathered at that point what we all believed was the worst of the Covid Death surge and by the middle of 2021, business was surging.
In fact, by October, the restaurants were seeing a huge upswing in weddings, large group reservations, bridal showers and patrons! All the beautiful things we put off during the Surge of 2020, was being planned for the end of 2021. You felt energy. We all felt movement forward.
And then, a curve ball came at us once again.
Thanksgiving was on the horizon and what looked like a normal holiday season after 18 months of toil and tribulation. We all wanted to go home, to visit family, to see people we had not seen in years. We wanted to celebrate the holidays with our friends and business colleagues and get back to celebrating birthdays, Christmas and New Years.
We were going to introduce parents to their grandkids born under the Covid days of isolation. Planes were flying at 75% and after more than 18 months of following protocols we wanted to see the eyes of our family and friends we had not seen. And then a new word appeared: Omicron.
With the new word floating around we needed to get tests but we couldn’t get tests, lines were around the corner and what limited tests there were began to confirm we were again in the midst of a new wave and it spread like wildfire.
Many restaurants were on track to equal 2019 Event sales in the 4th Quarter of 2021 only to see cancellation after cancellation beginning the first week of December. Deja Vu, Right? Like March 2020, business fell of the cliff.
In fact, many restaurants and other businesses had to shutter their doors as their staff members became ill with Covid and guests and shoppers were back home and shopping on-line. How do you operate when you have no idea if you will have staff in the morning or you risk your entire staff getting sick just getting to work.
But, this time we were ready and to the goverments credit, lockdowns were not reimposed. Instead, we forged our own path at home and in our businesses.
What is an underrated strength of humans is our ability to adapt and restaurant folk and business leaders, who were dealt one challenge after another learned new ways to forge forward.
We made quick decisions. Went Take out, went more limited shifts. We also closed for a small periods. We kept doing temperature checks of our team and created lines of communication so team members could easily get shifts covered if they had some of the symptoms. We bought our own stash of home tests to ensure our restaurants could keep moving forward
We were not going to let this wave dampen our hope. We shuttered doors of our own will and opened doors once we had a plan that fit our business.
So it was quite intriguing to be invited to a celebratory birthday in no other place than New Hope where I had tasted my first breathe of hope in October 2020.
Off we went to the historic Logan Inn in the heart of New Hope Pennsylvania for the Birthday bash of the year
It was a beautiful February morning with a chance for a ‘clipper’ during the afternoon. We hit the road literally at the 2 year anniversary of the start of the Pandemic. We drove through Trenton along the tributaries that become the Delaware River with 90’s tunes blaring; the sunroof open to sunshine cruising to a festive weekend of friends and freedom. I had not sat at a table in a restaurant with 12 friends since March 2020. It was so exciting.
New Hope and Lambertsville are Revolutionary War Era towns joined by a bridge over the Delaware River.
These are towns rich in history and architecture that glimmer as bright as when they were built in the 1600 and 1700’s when they were big towns in the Revolution that formed this country.
Now, these towns of history, where the buildings built during the birth of our nation, are filled with the beauty of modern craftsmen, antique dealers, Yoga and Pilates centers and beautiful eateries. These towns are historic but the Hipness factor is just as big.
Like my first trip in October, the air was pure, the streets were alive and the people we met were instantly likeable. What made this trip different: Masks Or the lack of them. With the easing of Omicron we have seen the easing of restrictions on masks in the outdoors and within buildings. Many states moved quicker than others with New Jersey and Pennsylvania having lifted mask mandates. In NYC you still needed that mask. In these states: see ya!
We now see eyes and teeth at the same time. We see the smiles that go with the bright eyes and you feel this beautiful sense that community and camraderie are overtaking masking and isolation. The Valets and Inn Keepers welcomed us with open arms and once we settled down, we began our celebration to friends and life.
Some of us went on a short shopping walk then happy hour while others relaxed but as the evening enveloped us we were all ready for the big birthday bash. We were dining at Ferry + Main by Landmark at the Logan Inn.
It is quite beautiful with two bars, one more focused on Scotches and bourbons and a large central bar with soaring windows a grand open kitchen and a giant fireplace. It is modern but blends into this very historic building. There is even a cigar room and a gigantic billiard room below the restaurant.
The food is very good matched by a great selection of hand stirred cocktails, champagnes and wines. It’s been a long time since I sat festively with 12 friends by a fireplace and ordered a Dirty Tito’s Martini, Shaken Hard with 3 olives. Perhaps it was the beauty of ordering my first Dirty Tito’s in years or the festive nature of the evening but number 2 was ordered very quickly!
From beautifully prepared Charchuterie, Appetizers including Steak Tartare and entrees including roast Duck, our dinner was amazing. The room was filled to the brim. All the bars open. The smoke rising from the Open kitchen and the cascade of laughter filling the 30 foot high room. What a beautiful night. A night of fun and of newfound hope.
Our next day started a little later than expected, we did after all go out to a bar after dinner. Some of our party joined the continental Breakfast others explored the New Hope Ferry Market (me!).
The market is located directly across from the Logan Inn and it is a beautiful food court featuring very gourmet foods that are real and very very good.
I have been on an incredible life changing jouney rediscovering food. I start everday with a 12 ounce puree of celery juice and I love only ice coffee.
I’ve also gone gluten free and follow the Fod-Map Map. The hardest part of the day is breakfast for me as I Loved grilled cheese with bacon on Portuguese rolls. Or the New Jersey star Pork Roll and American Cheese. My favorite of course a salt bagel double toasted with cream cheese sliced Salmon, capers and greens.
Friends ask if I miss these foods. Yes I do But, the way I feel makes me no longer want them but finding something close to them, is amazing.
As you enter the Ferry Market, SkyRoast Coffee boldy proclaims the best Coffee in New Hope and I have to say, it’s some of the best coffee I’ve drunk in many years. (I like to French Press my own, so to find coffee that tastes like coffee is not an easy task). I was happy. I knew I could at the least have a good coffee to soothe my Tito’s hangover. I wandered through the market and found paradise!
I’m an avid drinker of Celery Juice. It’s the first thing that goes into my gut each morning. When I travel, I assume it will be hard to find and I don’t stress if I miss a day or two.
Well, never fear. My super delicious coffee in hand I see the Little Radish menu including Gluten-free bagels and Celery Juice!(www.littleradishkitchen.com).
I was so surprised that I could get my cherished Celery Juice and get a Gluten Free bagel! The owner was delightful. The celery juice perfect and the gluten free bagel with lox and cream cheese and baby greens was the perfect antidote to my 2 very Dirty Tito’s Martini’s! I definitely could now Shop!
And off we went! As we roamed the streets, we were greeted by warm smiles. You could hear the laughs. The exclamations of excited chatter and the exuberance of being with each other.
There were no limits on how many could enter the shops as there were in October of 2020 and you could feel the excitement of the shop owners and their guests. What is interesting, is New Hope is very much a shopping area of crafts, jewlery and clothing that are hand picked and hand made. It is high end without the attitude!
Lambertville on the other hand is dominated by Galleries and Antique Stores. It’s a very interesting dichotomy that makes each of these towns very unique. They both, however, have a large amount of restaurants and pubs. You can’t get bored and there is something for everyone.
After walking a few miles, we needed to eat and yes, we needed some libations. What better than a lunch at an Old Irish Tavern called ‘The Dubliner’. They feature a beautiful bar, historic windows and really friendly staff. They had a guitarist in the back and Guinness being poured the right way at the bar.
It is a place where in minutes the conversation goes from your inner circle to everyone at the bar. The food, perfect, the drinks better. The friends we made, best! We could have stayed all day, but we had many other streets in New Hope to wander and some of us were heading to the 2 pm Show at the Bucks County Playhouse featuring a one man show with Rob McGuire.
This playhouse is very famous and gets legions of Broadway and Cinematic stars. Built as a Grist Mill in 1790, the sight was saved from demolition in the 1930’s and turned into a local community theatre. The list of major stars are eye popping. Robert Redford, George Segal, Audra McDonald and Zero Mostel have graced the stage. While I didn’t go to the show, it’s amazing to be in this vibrancy with so many choices of things to do.
We all of course, took an evening siesta as we booked a 9 pm table at a restaurant called Salt House. Our Twelve had dwindled now to 4 as those with kids had to get home.
The Salt House was highly recommended by all at the Dubliner. It is a unique place amongst hundred of unique places.
The building was built in 1775 of stone. It is intimate. The tables are few but breathtaking.
You reserve a table and literally pay an upfront deposit for dinner.
We wanted the table by the fireplace and to get this we had to pay for 2 extra seats. We did it and boy was it worth it. As was the food, the ambience and the sheer character of the restaurant. It was filled with starry eyed travelers like our party and many locals at the bar. The food was delicious and the Chef was very open to accomodating my Fod-Map and Gluten Free needs.
Our second evening in Logan Inn was coming to a close and we headed back for a night cap and to get ready to check out. In the morning I had to pick up these incredible lamps from a store at the foot of the bridge on the New Hope Side.
Both the Artists Studio and this shop of glass wonders are must stops when roaming the streets of New Hope.
With our bags packed expertly in the trunk, we headed over the bridge for an afternoon of brunch and shopping. It was the warmest February day and the streets were filled with laughter and giggles and earnest conversations.
Our first stop was a beautiful crafts shop called Foxy Red and in it I found the perfect thank you gift for a neighbor who was feeding my family of cats. Her little boys helped out and I wanted to buy them something for their hard work.
We entered this Foxy Red (www.foxyreds.com) and it was in here that it all came to light how remarkable people are. How Hope is really around us and the future will only get brighter.
Everyone was gabbing with each other as bright rays of light streamed throughout the shop filled with beautiful treasures.
I learned about ‘Collagen from within’ as the store owner wrapped my gift and my friends chatted with others to find our brunch destination.
These two twin towns on the Delaware is where the heart of America began to beat. Where the first steps of realizing freedom versus dreaming about it were realized. In these cobblestone streets and alleys, people like those in these shops, stood up and fought the American Revolutionary war.
In this journey, I was excited to see how New Hope would change with ordinances lifted and life scrapping its way back to human life. In that beautiful shop with my gift being wrapped and restaurant recommendations flying from every direction, I felt Hope! A new sense of optimism and affirmation that we people really are quite incredible.
But Brunch beckoned… And off we went to find Under the Moon.
This charming bistro had a wrap around porch and the temperatures were beginning to rise under the bright sun. Charming doesn’t capture the rustic beauty of this restaurant with original floors and beautiful fireplaces. The staff, while a bit overwhelmed with the crush of people on this 60 degree President’s Day were still super smooth, friendly and accommodating and the food was good. The drinks were better. I had smokey MezcalTini and an expertly made Pomegranate Gin Collins.
We then strolled through Lambertville. An incredible mix of eateries, Galleries, Antique shops that range the gamut from Big and expensive to places you only think exist in a book.
Shops filled with art and some things that someone once loved and someone may again or maybe not. From dolls that could star in Annabelle 2 to statues carved from single pieces of wood and paintings only a mother would love.
After roaming a myriad of galleries, we didn’t want this inspired weekend to end but we decided to head for a departing glass of wine at the Lambertville Station. A restaurant we have all enjoyed on previous visits that is located at the foot of the Green bridge and has history on its side.
We all left Lambertville New Jersey and New Hope Pennsylvania with big smiles, warm hearts and hope. All of us, have journeyed through the unknown for two years and we still don’t know for certain what is around the corner.
But fear is being replaced with optimism and a can-do spirit. And Hope is all around us. Come on Corner, we are ready for you!