About three months ago, the team behind Heirloom At The St. Laurent—a top NJ restaurant spearheaded by dynamic hospitality duo Chef David Viana and Neilly Robinson—announced that they would be “resetting the table at The St. Laurent.”
Heirloom, which was located inside of boutique Asbury Park hotel The St. Laurent, stacked up its share of accolades in the nearly three years it was open. A two-time member of our best restaurants list, Heirloom At The St. Laurent remains one of the few restaurants I have comprehensively reviewed twice.
I first visited for dinner in 2022, just a few months after opening. The second review in 2024—an unplanned act—born from what was one of my most memorable meals of last year. In its two-and-a-half years, I was far from the only diner to shower the restaurant with praise.
Despite this, Heirloom (not to be confused with the team’s flagship restaurant, Heirloom Kitchen in Old Bridge) was just a stepping stone for Robinson and Viana, who are seemingly building a Central Jersey restaurant empire. In Heirloom’s departure from The St. Laurent comes Judy’s, the team’s first official foray into the competitive scene of Italian-American dining. But, Judy’s has a trick up their sleeve—a trait that, to my knowledge, is the first of its kind in New Jersey. A trait that makes Judy’s a distinctly “New Jersey” restaurant.
Judy’s is doing Italian-American food with a distinguished Jewish flair—a concept inspired by the restaurant’s namesake, and Robinson’s mother, Judy Rosenblum. “A Jewish Woman (who thinks she’s Italian)” reads the inside of Judy’s menu. Pictures of THE Judy herself scatter across the walls of the dining room, and a martini named “The Judy” can be ordered BFM-style, AKA “big f******g martini,” just how Judy likes it.
This inspiration culminates in a meal that’s just that: a poised marriage of Jewish and Italian-American flavors.
A tuna crudo is given the Reuben treatment. Thin slices of raw tuna are blanketed over a chopped tartare of rye breadcrumbs, raisins, onion and jalapeno ketchup. Bundles of dill and sharp pickled celery stud the top. It’s a vibrantly colored presentation, which eats like—get this—a Reuben! Perplexing and delicious, it’s a dish that you can’t stop digging into once your fork hits the plate. It teases your mind in the best way possible, placing you somewhere between a high-end coastal restaurant and a busy Jewish deli. Perhaps that’s exactly where you are.
Repeat after me: I will order Judy’s Famous Matzo Ball Soup. Got it?
Rich, amber chicken broth is poured tableside over blanched mirepoix and fresh dill. Two matzo balls bathe in the center of the bowl. Judy’s matzo balls teeter the line of delicate and dense thanks to a secret ingredient: ricotta. It brings both structure and flavor, and obviously, the matzo balls will always be the star of the show. However, don’t glance past the rich chicken broth, which is intensely flavored while retaining its clarity—a feat that is easier said than done. It’s a broth with texture, coating your palate with each slurp. Like any soup worth its weight, you’ll be left with a gulp or two of broth once the solid components are consumed. Don’t you dare waste it.
A thick, mahogany-colored latke hides a fluffy potato interior, served with shaved apple and silky smooth sour cream. In Judy’s fashion, it’s doused in fragrant extra virgin olive oil.
It wouldn’t be Jersey Italian without fried calamari. Rings and tentacles of squid are breaded and fried to a golden-brown crisp. The breading is fragrant and seasoned with plenty of dried herbs. Of course, bright marinara sauce is served on the side for dipping, but Judy’s also opts to plate the crispy calamari atop a bed of floral citrus marmalade. Because marmalade uses the entirety of the fruit, this creates a flavor base that perfumes the whole dish with a citrus aroma as the hot calamari heats up the jammy citrus preserves.
It’s both familiar and foreign. Deviating slightly from the red sauce classic, a touch of coltish panache brings this dish into a realm of its own. Still, there is plenty of nostalgia to be experienced in a plate of crispy fried calamari.
Now is a good time to talk cocktails. The drink menu at Judy’s is spearheaded by Ricardo Rodriguez, who is no stranger to developing shockingly good cocktail programs. At Lita (and sister bar La Otra) Rodriguez’s cocktails have been praised for their creativity while remaining completely approachable. The story is quite the same at Judy’s. Clarified gin gimlets are flavored with tomato, basil and dry vermouth. Deemed the Garden Gimlet, it hides a vibrant Elysium of flavors behind its deceiving crystal-clear outfit.
Grappa (clear grape brandy) and dark rum come together in the Olive Oil Sour, which is rounded out with honey, thyme and marsala wine. An alluring cocktail on its own, but the addition of an olive oil wash adds both mouth feel and fragrance. A true treat of a beverage—plus, a good way to force two lesser-ordered ingredients in grappa and marsala on diners.
I was especially eager to see what Chef Viana, Executive Chef Mike Smithling and Chef De Cuisine Elio Lapaix had up their sleeve for pastas. I was elated to see that the pasta section on Judy’s menu, though small, brought variety and out-of-the-box thinking to the plate. I knew I had to give the Trottole a try—a spiral-shaped dry pasta sauced in a ragu inspired by Philly’s other famous sandwich: The Philly Roast Pork.
A Philly Roast Pork is a thing of beauty. A chewy seeded roll stuffed with tender roast pork, long hots, bitter broccoli rabe and sharp provolone to bring it all together. A key trait of a good pork sandwich is how wet it is—it needs to be soaked in roast pork jus if you ask me. So, this comes off as a bit of a challenge on the surface. The team first has to replicate a hard-to-nail sandwich (that is engulfed in stubborn opinion) and then take that authentic template and transform it into pasta.
Here’s what it looks like: braised and roasted pork shoulder—broken down into a ragu—studded with long hots and chopped broccoli rabe. Each morsel of pasta coated in this unctuous combination of flavors. On top, toasted breadcrumbs for crunch and an aerated provolone espuma, which cascades over the top and slowly melts into the pasta as it sits. It’s funky. It evolves. Most importantly? It tastes like a f*****g roast pork sandwich! Absolutely mesmerizing.
The other pasta I sprung for is the definition of “out there.” Let’s point our attention back to the ethos of Judy’s: a Jewish woman who thinks she’s Italian. Okay, got it? Because this might be the strongest example of that on the menu. The Chicken and Broccoli Gnudi is directly inspired by the Jewish-American tradition of ordering Chinese food on Christmas. This playful custom is emphatically New Jersey/New York, where the Jewish diaspora is concentrated and the Chinese takeout is superior to the rest of the country. So, when Chinese spots are open on Christmas—a day when everything else is closed—of course, this is the logical endpoint. If you know, you know. So to speak.
Viana explained to me that chicken and broccoli is his go-to when ordering Chinese, so he wanted to find a way to fit it into the menu since it went along with the larger theme. What he settled on is a hybrid stir-fry-pasta combination. Delicate tidbits of ricotta gnudi are pan-seared crispy on each side and then stir-fried along with velveted chicken, broccoli, celery and finished with a spoonful of chili crisp. This is an exciting dish—invoking a friskiness that is often avoided in Italian or Italian-adjacent menus. Traditionally speaking, chicken is almost never seen in pasta, but Judy’s isn’t about following rules. Instead, they make their own rules, and I welcome it.
Large format and single entrees are plentiful. I went with the North Jersey classic Chicken Savoy—an homage to the famous dish birthed at The Belmont Tavern in Belleville, NJ. At The Belmont, chicken is roasted in parts and served with a zingy, vinegar-laden chicken jus. At Judy’s, they roast an in-tact half chicken, but the rest of the makeup is more-or-less the same.
It’s served simply on a plate that’s coated with a layer of vinegar jus. The chicken is a glistening golden-brown and even charred black in parts. Belmont’s recipe is a secret, but super fans like myself know it involves a garlic and Pecorino mixture, which is brushed on the skin at some point during the cooking. This creates a salty and fatty exterior that is the perfect culprit for sharp red wine vinegar to cut right through. It’s an outstanding dish at the birthplace, and Judy’s did an equally outstanding job paying tribute.
Because the chicken is served solo, I recommend ordering some sides. You can’t go wrong with crispy, schmaltz-roasted potatoes, a side of spaghetti, escarole and beans or roasted oyster mushrooms in marsala sauce. If you’re like me, you get all of the above—and you build a plate that has a bit of everything. Just like when you’re at Grandma’s.
What’s for dessert? A layered carrot cake with a scoop of bright-orange carrot sorbet, or a built-to-order tiramisu with malted coffee gelato are sure to do the trick, and each stick to the hyper-NJ theme in their own way. The desserts come from the imaginative Shante Dorsett, who is also the Pastry Chef at sister restaurant Heirloom Kitchen. The carrot cake being almost cartoonish in appearance, with its perfect layers, separated by cream cheese mousse borders. It is a delicious and tasteful tribute to the diner classic.
However, Judy’s has another dessert that’s a must-order, and it comes in the form of—drum roll—a cocktail. While everyone else is wasting their time on Espresso Martinis (something Judy’s does offer a great version of), the cool kids are ordering the soon-to-be-famous Leave The Gun, Take The Cannoli. The drink is essentially a liquified cannoli, and it is without a doubt the best dessert cocktail I have ever had. Judy’s takes the whey leftover from their homemade ricotta and freezes it in pucks. They then shave the frozen whey in a hand-crank Swan ice shaver, which produces a light and fluffy textured ice, perfect for cocktails.
The shaved ricotta ice is loaded into cocktail coupes, dressed with a vodka, creme de cacao and Frangelico mixture tableside and then finished with a healthy shaving of dark chocolate. It’s sweet and nutty, with a pronounced bite. It really does drink as advertised—just like a cannoli.
After (or before) your meal is a great time to check out the attached cocktail lounge, Harry’s. Its low-key digs scream moody chic, but like Judy’s, the cocktails are otherworldly. Including a non-alcoholic cocktail list that is anything but an afterthought. Seriously, I had a tropical mango soda that went through the same tedious clarification process as much of the other full-bodied cocktails, and the Burnt Lemon Collins was tremendously delicious and refreshing—what I would call “crushable.”
Beyond the tantalizing food and impossibly good cocktails is a team that is stacked with talent and a thirst for real hospitality. This is where a good restaurant turns great. Judy’s (and Harry’s) staff is talented and happy to be there, like our server, Suzanne, who always brings the heat with impeccable service. Wine Director Nicole Gastro is committed to guiding you through the list, which is varied and accessible, and Manager Michael “Mortadella” Barreto goes around to every table with passion, showing you exactly why this is the place he was meant to be. Like the other restaurants in the group, Director of Ops Danny McGill ties everything together with ease.
Add all of this up, and you get a restaurant that is firing on all cylinders. Save your bemoans of “another Italian restaurant???” because Judy’s is different. The concept is entirely unique, infusing a level of Jewish culture into the menu that I have personally not seen before. Jewish deli classics meet elevated crudos—pasta finds an unlikely partner in Chinese takeout. Some dishes pay homage to New York Italian, while others circle around Philly. But, center to it all is New Jersey—and Judy’s looks to honor that.
In Heirloom’s absence comes something even better. Like Judy herself, Judy’s is New Jersey personified—a perfect salutation to the state we call home.
Peter Candia is the Food + Drink Editor at New Jersey Digest. A graduate of The Culinary Institute of America, Peter found a passion for writing midway through school and never looked back. He is a former line cook, server and bartender at top-rated restaurants in the tri-state area. In addition to food, Peter enjoys politics, music, sports and anything New Jersey.
