The Princeton food scene refreshes its palate for 2024 with a reflective roundup of everything that kept on moving in, out, and along.
What Stayed?
Maman, 43 Hulfish Street (Palmer Square)
Maman, on Hulfish Street, offers a sunny ambiance in which to sit and enjoy a cup of coffee, pastries, and sandwiches. (Photo by Isabelle Namnoum)
Wander down to Maman (stylized “maman”), a downtown French-inspired bakery and café, for coffee, tea, pastries, sandwiches, quiches, and other light bites.
The forest matcha at Maman. (Photo by Isabelle Namnoum)
This cozy Palmer Square storefront at 43 Hulfish Street opened in November 2022 as the company’s 24th location; now, they serve up seasonal beverages like the frozen forest matcha latte and holiday hazelnut cappuccino with a truly festive flair.
Hours: Mondays through Fridays, 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Weekends, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Kitchen closes at 4 p.m. daily. 609-285-2974 or mamannyc.com/locations/princeton.
Nassau Diner, 82 Nassau Street
The Nassau Diner pays “homage to American comfort food with a contemporary twist” by incorporating both classic and international elements in its bold brunch menu. Nassau Diner debuted in October 2022 as the latest addition to the lineup at Genesis Hospitality Group, the Hamilton-headquartered company that owns Proof Pizza, Bread Boutique, Chez Alice Patisserie, the Peacock Inn, and other Princeton restaurants.
Hours: Daily from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. 609-493-0132 or nassaudiner.com.
MTea Sushi & Dessert, 86 Nassau Street
MTea Sushi & Dessert has proven a popular spot for milk, fruit, and boba teas, as well as sushi rolls and desserts. (Photo Courtesy of MTea Princeton)
MTea Sushi & Dessert opened on November 11, 2022, serving exactly what its name promises, but with a freshness-forward approach to its menu of fruit, milk, and other boba teas, sushi rolls, poke bowls, and cakes.
Manuever your way down the corridor past a tantalizing dessert case, the counter where you order, and the chefs preparing food to find MTea's secret weapon—extra, sunny seating at its outside back patio—to unwind in a hidden gem of a place.
Hours: Daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. 848-668-3296 or mteaprinceton.com.
Thai Delight, 180 Nassau Street
What was formerly known as Lil Thai Pin, the smaller, more casual sister restaurant from the owners of Thai Pin in Lawrence, has rebranded as Thai Delight with new leadership but many of the same staff. Thai Delight continues to offer the tantalizing tastes of Thailand through both counter-service dine-in and takeout for lunch and dinner.
Hours: Mondays to Fridays, 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 11:30 to 10 p.m. 609-279-9000.
What Opened?
Maruichi Japanese Food & Deli is now open in the former Panera space on Nassau Street.
Maruichi Japanese Food & Deli, 136 Nassau Street
Despite its iconic status as a college-oriented town, Princeton went without a downtown grocery store for years before Maruichi Japanese Food & Deli opened in March 2023, combining the best of a specialty retailer and supermarket at the Nassau Street space once home to Panera Bread.
Maruichi Japanese Food & Deli offers a wide range of instant noodles, along with other items ranging from fresh produce to baked goods and prepared sushi.
This one-stop shop stocks a plethora of fresh, prepared, and frozen foods, but a major highlight is the grab-and-go section with handmade onigiri, a stuffed triangular rice ball wrapped in nori, as well as sushi and bento boxes.
No matter what time of day you're looking for a new favorite food or a last-minute addition to a recipe, Maruichi is a bustling hub for ready-made meals, snacks, baked goods, tea, noodles, fruits, vegetables, matcha, soups, condiments, and more.
For a full overview of the selection and frequent sales at Maruichi, read the U.S. 1 News story “Let’s Try . . . Maruichi Japanese Food & Deli” from May 24, 2023.
Hours: Daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. 609-285-2976, facebook.com/maruichiprinceton, or maruichius.net.
Aspendos Mediterranean Cuisine, 182 Nassau Street
Aspendos Mediterranean Cuisine, located at 182 Nassau Street, first opened its doors in October of last year. The restaurant takes its name from the ancient Greco-Roman city of Aspendos, located in what is now southern Turkey and famous for its preserved 2nd century theater.
Aspendos Mediterranean Cuisine is a new Turkish-inspired eatery with menu items like this dish of grilled mushrooms, potato purée, and crunchy leeks in a glazed truffle dressing. (Photo Courtesy of Ersin Yilmaz)
Aspendos marks sibling owners Bilal and Celal Bodur's fourth foray into the culinary world, with the brother restaurateurs using their more than 20 years of food industry experience to create a Mediterranean menu honoring Turkish culinary traditions.
The Aspendos website, aspendoscuisine.com/menu, features fare like Anatolia-style hummus with beef pastrami, crispy octopus with roasted eggplant spread, fresh salads, and main entrees. Plant-based Princetonians can even opt for a grilled mushroom entree, which features a mashed potato puree and crispy leeks in a glazed truffle dressing, or a vegetarian kebab.
There are also oven-baked options like the pontus flat bread, served with “traditional Koloti cheese, ground beef and dry egg yolk zest on top,” a Mediterranean take on a margarita pizza, and a rib flatbread with smoked ribs, mashed potatoes, and a peanut powder jus sauce.
Hours: Daily, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. 609-423-2811 or aspendoscuisine.com.
Starbucks, 301 N. Harrison Street, Princeton Shopping Center
The staple Seattle coffee chain expanded from its sole downtown spot at 100 Nassau Street to a second location just a short distance away in the Princeton Shopping Center.
Hours: Daily from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. princetonshoppingcenter.com/retailer/starbucks.
Pastiamo Pasta Bar & Cafe, 301 N. Harrison Street, Princeton Shopping Center
The latest addition to the Princeton Shopping Center is Pastiamo Pasta Bar & Cafe, which held its soft opening on November 27 and promises “a taste of Italy” with a familiar face at its helm.
Pastiamo’s owner is Francesca Casapietra, better known as the Italian half of Le Kiosk Princeton at the Carnevale Plaza, 255 Nassau Street, which serves up fast-paced food from focaccia flatbreads to crepes in a unique fusion of Italian and French cuisine. Casapietra was born in Genoa, Italy, and runs Le Kiosk with co-owner Michel Spencer, who brings his French influences to the pair's blend of European eats.
At Pastiamo, Casapietra is now expanding into the Princeton Shopping Center with a pick-your-own menu for the perfect personalized pasta experience.
Customers can choose a pasta and sauce from the handwritten menu board, which includes fresh options like ravioli, gnocchi, and tagliatelle, staple dry varieties like spaghetti, bucatini, and mezze penne, and less common options like trofie, a thin twisted pasta, and elicoidali, which has a rigatoni-like tubular shape.
There are nine sauces currently offered on a regular basis, such as pesto, walnut, puttanesca, cacio e pepe, carbonara, little neck clams, butter and sage, ragu, and all’arrabbiata.
Pastiamo plans to offer rotating menu items, from a chef's special sauce to dishes like the purple cauliflower carbonara featured on the restaurant's Instagram.
At the moment, all orders are placed at the counter, where an array of mouth-watering focaccias and Italian pastries beckon to be purchased. Casapietra said that she looks to expand the hours in 2024 after they recruit and train more crew, but she also hopes to hire servers to wait tables.
Hours: Mondays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. princetonshoppingcenter.com/retailer/pastiamo or instagram.com/pastiamopastabarprinceton.
Sakrid Coffee Roasters, 300 Witherspoon Street
Sakrid Coffee Roasters’ first Princeton storefront opened at the corner of Nassau and Chambers streets in 2019 with the understanding that little joys in life like espresso are sacred. The coffeehouse’s second location, which opened on Witherspoon Street in October, is situated in the former building of the Princeton Packet newspaper.
Sakrid Coffee celebrated the grand opening of its second location in the former Princeton Packet building at 300 Witherspoon Street. (Photo by Bianca Visual)
The Witherspoon site was originally intended to be both a cafe and a roasting facility, but the latter fell through when Princeton’s Zoning Board rejected the company’s application on the grounds that they could not approve a manufacturing operation in a commercial district.
Hours: Mondays through Saturdays, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. sakridcoffee.com/princeton-witherspoon-st.
What Closed?
Ani Ramen / Mochinut, 140 Nassau Street
Ani Ramen at 140 Nassau Street may have partnered with trendy doughnut chain Mochinut to double its appeal as a noodle restaurant serving the latter's desserts, but the dual location closed its doors in less than a year.
According to a November 15 Daily Princetonian article by Ethan Caldwell and Amy Ciceu, both establishments were "in violation of numerous public health protocols designed to prevent foodborne illnesses" and "had several risk factors that posed a danger to public health," prompting their sudden closure.
La La Lobster, 63 Palmer Square West
La La Lobster's Princeton storefront opened in February 2022 at 63 Palmer Square West with fresh “wild-caught” seafood options like lobster and shrimp rolls, tacos, and gluten-free rice bowls, as well as macaroni and cheese, grilled cheese, soups, dips, and more.
As of press time, the La La Lobster in Princeton is marked as “permanently closed” on the restaurant’s Google page. The franchise has other locations in Yardley and Doylestown, Pennsylvania, as well as a shop in Cape May, New Jersey, with crustacean-focused fare.
Shangshi, Princeton Shopping Center
Shanghai Park Restaurant in the Princeton Shopping Center was beloved in Princeton, but after undergoing renovations and a possible change in ownership, the food, according to Google reviews, dropped in quality. Similarly, Shangshi [stylized as Shangshi (International Global Dining)] opened as the site’s “new management” during its debut sometime in 2022.
Shangshi offered Cantonese specialties rather than the former’s traditionally Shanghainese menu, but despite the new faces, Shangshi never completed its transformation and closed unceremoniously during 2023, with its exterior still displaying the name “Shanghai Park.”
Ramen Stop, 244 Nassau Street
Tonkatsu ramen at the Ramen Stop in Princeton. (Staff photo by Joe Emanski)
Japanese restaurant Ramen Stop (stylized “RAMEN STOP by Nagomi”) closed in 2022. The “Nagomi” in its title refers to the popular Japanese restaurant Ramen Nagomi, which has locations in the Quakerbridge Mall, Freehold, and New Brunswick.
Ramen Stop was intended as a "premium fast-casual" version of Ramen Nagomi, but all locations have since closed, with the final Ramen Stop reopening as Ramen Nagomi Easton.
Positive Vybz Island Grill, 182 Nassau Street
Positive Vybz Island Grill, a Jamaican-Caribbean restaurant that was originally located in Somerset, moved to Princeton for a July 2021 opening but shuttered the following year. In its place is the aforementioned Aspendos Mediterranean Cuisine.
What's to Come?
To say the town has been “buzzing” to visit Triumph Brewing Company’s new home in the former Princeton Post Office in Palmer Square would be an understatement.
Although Triumph initially announced the brew pub would reopen in 2023 after closing its successful Princeton location at 138 Nassau Street, the site remains under development.
According to its new Instagram page, instagram.com/triumph_postoffice, owner Adam Rechnitz shared that it was hiring back in June; that same month, the Princeton Design Guild released a video installing custom banquettes at the site.
For more updates, see the Triumph page on the Princeton Design Guild website, pdguild.com.