Fiddleheads Restaurant marks 10-year milestone

• Restaurant owners embrace reputation of being area's top New American bistro
• Fiddleheads Restaurant plans to reintroduce itself to its ever-evolving neighborhood
• "Shore Things" and "JamesBurger Station" features add to eclectic, flavorful menu

JAMESBURG – When it came time to commemorate the 10th year of Dan Davis and Brian Blatz putting their savory stamp of culinary excellence on the local community under their ownership, state officials had no reservations.

A framed resolution, drafted on behalf of the state Senate and General Assembly, was granted on July 17 to Davis, executive chef, and Blatz, general manager by Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson Coleman and Assemblyman Reed Gusciora, who also enjoyed lunch at Fiddleheads Restaurant following the presentation.

The event also was attended by Town Council members Daria Ludas and Sandy Sussman.

"To be acknowledged by public officials is such a big thing for us because it is a testament to all of the connections we have made over the years," said Blatz. "They acknowledge all of our hard work and to say we are worthy of such a thing was really kind of mind-blowing," he said.

"We are proud we have made so many connections with so many people that it culminated in this way. We have cast a wide net and are happy to say that we have a network of people that support us, root for us and that cares about us. We have touched a lot of people and a lot of people have touched us," he noted.

Located downtown at 27 East Railroad Ave., Fiddleheads has entered its 23rd year, but Davis and Blatz took over the restaurant in 2004.

The highly rated BYOB New American gourmet establishment highlights the artwork of East Brunswick's Medha Kulkarni and North Brunswick resident Prachi Nambiar, the photography of Jennifer Wiessner of Maine (an East Brunswick native), as well as handcrafted wood toys from Green Mountain Toys in Vermont.

While Industry M.com magazine recently named its Steak Diane as one of the top six dishes in the state of New Jersey, Blatz reported that two new menu offerings — "Shore Things" and "JamesBurger Station — are also making a splash with customers.

Regarding "Shore Things," which offers nightly seafood specials like Bourbon-Glazed Australian Sea Bass, Blatz said, "We really do an excellent job with fish, and know how to cook it just right."

The "JamesBurger Station" menu features specialty hamburgers that are named after Amtrak train routes around the country such as The Missouri River Runner and The Pennsylvanian, which are available at lunch and Sunday brunch. This theme plays on the restaurant's location along the railroad tracks which run through the center of the borough.

"We always focus on a few things and do it really well," said Blatz, noting that Chef Michael Cavanaugh of Freehold, a veteran of the culinary industry, has been with them for six years.

"We also offer a Sunday brunch, which is a sit-down service, as well as an innovative lunch menu," he said. "People look for a really great experience without spending a lot of money. Part of what sets us apart is our personalized connection with our customers. We are not trying to be New Brunswick or Red Bank."

A pop & pop restaurant with a fresh vision

Taking over ownership of Fiddleheads Restaurant was serendipitous for Davis, a native of Montana, and Blatz, an East Brunswick native.

"We had been to Fiddleheads before and were looking to make a life change," explained Blatz. "We envisioned having a small restaurant to run ourselves in the local area and it just happened to be for sale."

Transforming Fiddleheads into the restaurant it is today was what Blatz described as a true metamorphosis.

"Over the span of 10 years, we have been modifying it one year at a time," he said, describing the establishment as a bistro with an art gallery setting that is "upscale casual, and a quirky place not to be defined as a specific restaurant like "Italian" or "French."

"It's American cuisine with a lot of European influence. We offer an array of things in a way that you never know exactly what you are going to get," noted Blatz.

"People enjoy the offbeat nature here, and what sets us apart is that we are independently owned whereas a lot of places are chain restaurants. We are traditional "Pop and Pop restaurant that is part of its community," he said.

"At the root of it, for us, is that we know our customers personally. We strive to give the best performance and happiest experience possible," he added "People associate the restaurant with us. We honor their choices and are grateful for their business."

So many people have been an indelible part of the Fiddleheads family that the restaurant's website even features a special "in memoriam" page that honors customers and friends who have passed on.

Having garnered a number "Best of the Best" distinctions by readers of The Home News Tribune under the categories of "Sunday Brunch," "Fine Dining" and "Business Lunch," Fiddleheads' menu offerings take customers' palates on unexpected and indescribable journeys.

"A lot of great meats, fishes and sauces that you won't find in many other places," said Blatz when describing the menu.

"We put foods together that normally don't go together. There is something on our menu for almost everyone. We have earned our customers' trust from a food perspective," he explained, adding that the BYO aspect of the restaurant not only attracts a lot of customers, but holds the restaurant accountable on many levels, including the fact that "our food speaks for itself."

The future flavor of Fiddleheads

As times and tastes change, Blatz and Davis intend to appeal to the evolving demographic they say is changing in their neighborhood.

"We plan to reintroduce ourselves to the neighborhood," said Blatz. "We used to be known as a gourmet restaurant, and we are now considered a bistro, a title that we have embraced."

Even though the restaurant maintains a large email list, high social media profile and its name recognition is high, there still are some in the community who are unfamiliar with the bounty the bistro has to offer.

"It is the personal touch to us that means so much," he said, "and we want to cast our net a little bit wider. There are newer, evolving areas of the neighborhood that need to know more about us."

"We give the best of ourselves and think of our restaurant as a community in and of itself. We are where people go when they want to go somewhere a little special, no chain restaurants and no crowds," he concluded.

Fiddleheads also plugs into the community by hosting opera nights, artist receptions, Super Bowl and March Madness games on Facebook, and by offering a wild-game menu twice a year.

Fiddleheads Restaurant is located at 27 E. Railroad Ave. (Route 522). Reservations are recommended and may be made by calling 732-521-0878. The restaurant is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Lunch hours are 11:30 a.m.to 2:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. Dinner is served 5 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday, 5 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 4 to 8 p.m. on Sunday.

For more information about Fiddleheads Restaurant, visit www.FiddleheadsJamesburg.com or www.Facebook.com/FiddleheadsJamesburg.