Hurricane Sandy

What's Open in Matawan and Aberdeen?

Looking for groceries, to get out of the house, or a hot meal? Check our list of businesses that are open in the area. If you know of a business not on our list, make sure to add it.

Hurricane Sandy have left numerous businesses in the dark since Monday night, but a few have managed to keep their doors with generators. Here is a list of businesses that Patch noticed were open in spite of the power outages. If you would like more information or the phone number of the business, click their name in the list below. Groceries Food Activities Liquor Stores Other Services Help us make sure this list is as up-to-date as possible. If a business has since shut down due to lack of gas or have since regained power and reopened, please leave a comment below with detailed information for your neighbors.

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Hurricane Sandy

Monmouth Residents Hit the Stores for Hurricane Sandy Prep

Stores are bustling with customers looking for water, flashlights, batteries and generators

The pre-hurricane shopping spree has begun. Area residents are buzzing up and down the aisles of local stores, in search of bottled water, non-perishable foods and generators as Hurricane Sandy tracks toward Monmouth County. Old Bridge neighbors Teal Baughan and Melisa Takacs took a trip to ShopRite of Aberdeen Friday afternoon to prepare for the storm. Last year during Tropical Storm Irene, their neighborhood managed to maintain power, however the pair are taking the better-safe-than-sorry approach. "I'm having trouble finding a generator, although I'm not sure I want to spend the money," Baughan said. The women are taking a calm approach to the storm, but Takacs' 7-year-old son is a little anxious. "He's very worried. He packed all his …

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Matawan's D'Bella Salon to Offer Cuts for a Cure

The October fundraiser will benefit the Susan G. Komen foundation

Join the fight against breast cancer by getting a hair cut at D'Bella Salon in Matawan. D'Bella, located on Matawan Road in the Townsquare Shopping Center, is offering hair cuts for $20 for both ladies and gents on Sunday, Oct. 14. All of the money raised during the event, which will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., will be donated to the Susan G. Komen Foundation, according to salon owners Eileen and Robert DeSanto. A product basket filled with salon quality brands, such as Redken, will be raffled off that day. Customers can also relax and enjoy food and beverages donated by Parkway Deli of Matawan. "Our salon believes in giving back to the community," said DeSanto. Breast cancer is a cause that touches home for the couple, as Robert's mother …

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Fresh Out of the Oven: LoCicero's Bakery Opens in Matawan

Old Bridge resident Chris LoCicero recently opened his doors at the intersection of Broad Street and Main Street

The smell of fresh baked sweets fills the air inside LoCicero's Bakery, where trays of chocolate chip cookies, sprinkled butter cookies, donuts, danishes, apple pockets and cakes are ready to be gobbled up by indulgent customers. Owner Chris LoCicero leans against the counter on a Wednesday evening after a long day of baking, slightly exhausted but extremely pleased with the amount of new customers he has welcomed since he opened a month ago.  "I opened up in June, and usually in June and July it's dead," he said. "It's been good. Better than I expected." The new bakery replaced Eat Cake, which recently left it's storefront in the Colonial Shops at the intersection of Broad Street and Main Street. LoCicero didn't grow up dreaming of …

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Matawan First Aid Squad Flea Market Kicks Off This Weekend

It's back! Vendors will be in the parking lot of the train station this Saturday and Sunday

The Matawan First Aid Flea Market is up and running once again at the Aberdeen Matawan NJ Transit Train Station. The market will open for the first time this season on Saturday, May 26 and will run every Saturday and Sunday of each month until the end of November. Interested in renting a spot? Contact Chuck Jameson at 732-619-4409 for price information and availability.

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Software Company Moves to Matawan, Brings Job Opportunities

The software-as-a-service company outgrew its Hazlet location, and plans to continue growing in Matawan

Twelve years ago a small software-as-a-service provider spun off of Comrise Technology in Hazlet with one goal: to make recruiting candidates and onboarding new employees extremely efficient for growing companies. Colin Day, the founder and CEO of iCIMS, was just 23 when he developed the business plan for an applicant tracking system that can be used by employers to connect to job seekers, recruit candidates and onboard new employees. Since then, iCIMS has grown to over 200 employees serving over 1,200 clients with international offices in Beijing and the United Kingdom. During the last quarter alone, iCIMS hired about 40 new employees and it was time to face facts. They no longer fit in the Hazlet office. On March 25, iCIMS officially …

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Matawan Carvel is a Readers' Choice Favorite

And, yes, the Matawan Friendly's is gone but clearly not forgotten

Congratulations to Carvel in Matawan for emerging as the clear Patch favorite in this week's Reader's Choice survey of ice cream and frozen yogurt places in Matawan, Aberdeen and Holmdel. The popular soft ice cream location on Rt. 34 drew more than 150 votes. A very unusual honorable mention goes to the memory of a Friendly's restaurant that used to be just down the road, on Rt. 34, but is no more. Yes, we need to remove it from our directory but it was fun to watch Friendly's devotees paying their respects with more than 250 votes. They may also have had in mind two nearby Friendly's, in Hazlet, on Rt. 35, and Old Bridge, on Ferry Road.  Voting in our unscientific poll ended at 9 a.m. Friday but you can still add reviews of your favorites…

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Matawan Music Together: Making a Musical Connection with Your Child

A local branch of Music Together is coming to Matawan

For Lisa Hearns, music is a way of life.  Hearns, a Woodbridge resident who recently launched Matawan Music Together, began singing and playing piano when she was a young girl. Since then, she has graduated from Berklee College of Music, taught piano and voice for over 15 years and released a jazz album. "My family was always musical. My mother and my father were both musical. They taught music, my sister played flute, I started playing piano when I was young and I tried out a few other instruments," Hearns said. When she heard about Music Together, she wanted to start her own center in order to bring musical education to babies and preschool-aged children. Music Together is an international program that began in 1987 and pioneered a …

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Farewell Charlie Brown's, Hello Mediterranean Chateau

It's too early to make a reservation, but the restaurant should open within a few weeks

Fans of Charlie Brown's were recipients of sad news in November 2010 when the owners of the corporation announced they would file for bankruptcy and close half of their locations, including the one in Matawan. As the steakhouse started to bounce back in 2011, a glimmer of hope that the Route 79 location might reopen quickly faded. Even the most recent wave of reopenings left the borough's location in the dark. However, the parking lot of the once popular eatery will not be empty for much longer. The Matawan Borough Council authorized the transfer of Charlie Brown's liquor license to Mediterranean Chateau Corp. at their Feb. 21 meeting. Borough Clerk Jean Monfort said the Portuguese restaurant plans to open within a few weeks. "I'm very …

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Who Should Move into the old Dollar Express?

The storefront remains vacant after Dollar Express closed this December

Dollar Express on Main Street in Matawan closed its doors for good shortly after Christmas.  Eileen Gendus, a Holmdel resident who owned the dollar store at 147 Main Street for two and a half years, decided to sell the store and pursue another retail venture further south. Prior to the Dollar Express, another dollar store occupied the space for about five years, according to Gendus. Before that, Matawan Drugs was there. She told Patch that she hoped someone would open another dollar store in her location to ensure that products remained available at a low price for local shoppers. However, in mid-February the storefront still remains vacant. What type of business would you like to see here?

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