“Main Ingredient” is back on Main Avenue, but in a new location- this time with spacious seating, and a parking lot!
The store is going back to its culinary roots with a return to Main Avenue to be a restaurant again, after a stint in Seasons Clifton as the supermarket’s deli takeout counter.
Passaic residents may remember Main Ingredient’s earlier incarnation, pre-Seasons, in a small storefront on Main and Van Houten. It had a small fridge display for takeout, a couple of tiny tables in a narrow space, and no dedicated parking on a busy retail block.
On May 19, owner Moishe Goldberg reopened his business along similar lines with a family-style restaurant. But this time, he’s in a much bigger space five blocks down from the original location, next to a Jewish bookstore.
“This new approach to the restaurant gives me the ability to reach my customers and give them what they’ve been asking for,” Goldberg said. “There was a need for a family style meat restaurant in town where people can sit down to eat.”
With full seating and restaurant-style decor, a parking lot, a wall-to-wall fridge display for Shabbos takeout and to-go meals, baked goods made fresh in-house and sushi, you can see that he’s been listening closely to what the neighborhood has been talking about and wishing for.
After the soft opening two weeks ago, Goldberg is happy with the response so far. “We’ve already had husbands and wives coming in to eat, parents bringing their kids for dinner. I placed the restaurant up front and the takeout farther back so that it has a real restaurant ambiance and you can feel like you’re really eating out in a nice place for dinner.”
Goldberg shared that he intends to make the space available to host simchas on Shabbos. There are no similar options in the area currently (other than shul kiddush halls and private homes) and he believes there is a need. He envisions the space as a great place to host a sheva brachos or bar mitzvah lunch for a medium-sized crowd.
Goldberg intends to split the store’s business about 50/50 between the takeout and sit-down parts of the business, plus continuing to do catering for events. He has big plans for expanding the menu, including adding a full line of burgers, specialty sandwiches and meat dishes.
Main Ingredient also has an in-house smoker and they are selling their own smoked brisket and pastrami.
The most popular section of the new Main Ingredient so far has been the baked goods- the fresh-baked challah, cakes, cinnamon buns and cookies sold out right away. Goldberg used to work as a baker and he said he’s glad that his personal favorite part of the food business is a hit.
“I am so happy this opened- it’s a great location, within easy walking distance for so many young families in the community. Now I finally feel like I have a local place to take my family out for dinner,” said one local resident stopping by the restaurant for the first time.
“My goal is to be the best family restaurant in town and to serve the community with affordable pricing and good quality food,” said Goldberg.
By Leah Gottheim
