Redefining vegan cuisine to such a degree that guests will have no need to define or label it beyond calling it purely great food, Smith, a hospitality, marketing, and design firm enlivening Asbury Park, announces the opening of Goldie’s today. With an incredible menu, awe-inspiring design, and innovative cocktails – it is the very first vegan restaurants with a liquor license in New Jersey – Goldie’s is soon to attract diners from all over, vegans or non-vegans alike.
Smith is passionate about Goldie’s ability to underscore and augment Asbury Park’s appeal. With its bewitching charm, eclectic, and easy-going population, and of course, history of live music strumming along the oceanside town, Asbury Park is thriving. Joining the historically acclaimed stages and live music halls like The Stone Pony and Asbury Lanes, are new jazz clubs, unique public art spaces like Showroom Cinema and the Shore Institute of Contemporary Arts, a custom jean bar, vintage stores, and skate and surf shops. In the way of dining, Smith also owns Porta which was just recently deemed “Excellent” by The New York Times for its take on Neapolitan pizza and rocking good time, Brickwall, with its comfort food and extensive beer list, The Annex, a favorite local bar, and the upcoming Pascal & Sabine.
“Goldie’s is bound to draw guests who are looking for a complete dining experience, one that is not only entirely different from other vegan restaurants, but from any space guests will have seen. It is a restaurant where the meat-eater truly enjoys a vegan meal; the vegan no longer needs to make dietary amends, and everyone enjoys the pleasures of food,” says Mark Hinchliffe, a Smith creative strategist and project manager.
Goldie’s design transports guests into another realm–one that is at once shimmering and earthly. Upon entering, the eyes immediately fixate on a textured sculpture, made of woven basket reed, undulating across the ceiling. It’s hard to peel the eyes downward, but the bar calls, which is equally stunning and was handcrafted by Luke Crossman, locally known for his master carpentry in everything from furniture to surfboards. Crafted from poplar, the bar’s curves are inspired by the late modern and post-modern architects Alvar Aalto and Enric Miralles. Crossman also custom created the ethereally shaped swivel bar stools from poplar. Beautifully juxtaposing this are mod white tables and chairs with deep metallic gold cushions. Goldie’s seats a total of 66 guests – the table seating accommodates 40 guests; 16 bar seats are devoted to dining; 10 bar seats are devoted to imbibing only.
The talented Grace Crossman created Goldie’s elegant vegan menu. Crossman is a New Jersey native who cut her teeth in Manhattan kitchens before creating Porta’s hit menu. She is excited to now helm both the kitchens of Porta and Goldie’s and was thrilled at taking on the task of re-imagining vegan cuisine. The menu moves from Small Plates to Salads to Plates to Desserts and is complemented by organic and biodynamic wines, vegan beers and creative cocktails like the rhubarb with rhubarb syrup, spiced earl grey tea, and buffalo trace bourbon, the cucumber with cucumber purée, muddled lemon, celery bitters with bluecoat gin, and the blueberry shrub with grapefruit cordial, muddled cucumber and silver gekkeikan sake.
