Tree, toys light up Hyatt Morristown

The annual Christmas tree lighting at the Hyatt Morristown was a festive affair, and not just because of the colorful trimmings. Hotel employees donated gifts to the U.S. Marines’ Toys for Tots drive. Mayor Tim Dougherty and the First Lady, Mary Dougherty, also took part in the holiday ceremony.

MORE HOLIDAY COVERAGE

Video: Jamming at ZEBU in Morristown with Aaron, EJ and Travis

Morristown’s ZEBU Forno is a bakery, right?  And bread needs jam. Which is what Aaron Velasquez,  E.J. Enright and Travis Fielding provided on Nov. 25.

Aaron’s beat-boxing won Morristown’s Got Talent! a couple of years ago, and he recently appeared here with his college a cappella group, the Poor Richards.

E.J., a Morristown High grad who now attends County College of Morris, has performed at several MG events, including the Fourth Annual MorristownGreen.com Film & Music Festival in September.

Travis also played the festival, with his band Captain Lung. Before that he performed in a group called the Members. He is a junior at MHS.

UPDATE! Captain Lung is performing at the famed Stone Pony in Asbury Park at 4 pm on Dec. 4. That’s the same club where Bruce Springsteen, Southside Johnny, Van Morrison, Blondie and many other stars polished their acts. Tickets are $10; contact the Lungs on Facebook to buy yours.

Nostalgia with a facelift: Don’s to serve Boomer burgers in Morristown

Did you ever revisit your childhood playground, and discover to your dismay that it wasn’t really as huge as Yankee Stadium?

For that matter, does the new Yankee Stadium measure up to the one you remember visiting with your dad?

These are the kinds of questions that keep Mike Chutko awake at night as he prepares to open Don’s Burgers and Fries in Morristown within a couple of weeks.

Don’s Drive-In has a storied past: It was a Livingston institution from 1955 until the early ’90s, when Don Roth sold it. Don’s eventually disappeared from South Orange Avenue and Don Roth is gone, too; he died on Thanksgiving Eve two years ago during elective heart surgery.

Yet more than 1,500 fans on the I Miss Don’s Facebook page still debate which was better: Don’s cheeseburgers or pizza burgers. The onion rings and coffee shakes are remembered fondly, too, along with many of the waitresses.

Even Mike’s girlfriend reminds him about the old place.

“She’s been a vegetarian since she was 16. She said the only way she would eat meat again would be to have Don’s burgers,” Mike said, amidst the roar of power-sanders inside the South Street restaurant, which on Tuesday still lacked seating and cash registers.

Talk about pressure!

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But if anyone can pull off this revival, it is this self-described perfectionist. A veteran of more than 20 years in the restaurant business, Mike, 50, has a carefully crafted recipe for success that starts with… Don’s recipes.

“Don was integral to the planning” of the Morristown venture at the time of his death, said Mike, who has known the Roth family for 30 years. His best friend from high school married one of Don’s daughters.

“I’m not normal. I’m a bit of a character. Don was the same way. He saw the good in everyone and always had a laugh and a half,”  said Mike, a longtime Morristown resident and Delbarton graduate. “He was one of the nicest human beings you could ever meet.”

Don was ahead of his time, serving salmon- and bison burgers and low-cal shakes. Mike’s menu will include a veggie burger, salads, and some novel milk shake flavors, including blueberry cheesecake with fresh blueberries.

Mike won’t try to recreate the 1950s, à la the Johnny Rockets chain. No roller skates. No art deco. There will be some nods to the past, however. He is contemplating drive-up service in the rear parking area. And patrons will see a huge mural of the original Don’s, with a black-and-white montage of customers devouring the burgers, just like in the old place. Members of Don’s family are among the pictured diners.

The new Don’s also will keep a tradition of serving only fresh beef, and of charging competitive prices, Mike said. In the late ’70s and early ’80s, when a burger and fries set you back $3.29, Don’s served half a million customers a year and rang up $6 million in annual sales, according to Mike.

He said a burger, fries and shake at the new place will cost about half what you would pay at the new Urban Table, closer to the Morristown Green. The new Don’s fits in the “fast/casual” segment of the dining industry.  You place your order before sitting down, as you would at Qdoba.

“It’s not Urban Table. That’s a dining experience. I’m more of an eating experience,” said Mike, who is shooting for a Dec. 14 opening. “Our niche is our product will be better than everybody’s.”

Mike did not set out to follow a fast food legend. He studied math and computer science at Fairfield University, got an MBA at Fairleigh Dickinson, and followed his father’s footsteps to AT&T.

“I saw what it did to my dad. It consumed him. It was nothing more than a paycheck. I didn’t want to do that,” he said.

Mike opened a Steak Escape restaurant at the Rockaway Townsquare Mall in 1990. He added five Papa John’s pizza franchises in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley, and two more Steak Escapes, including one at Newark Airport.

“The airport said, ‘Mike, we want a burger concept.’ My girlfriend said, ‘Why don’t you bring back Don’s?’” Mike recounted.

If Don’s flies in Morristown, he figures it will fly at the airport and elsewhere.  The takeoff has been a little bumpy.

The South Street location, a former bank, required extensive structural renovations. Coupled with his perfectionist streak–Mike spent five years remodeling a mansion in the historic district, and he is painstakingly raising a Great Dane puppy–this restaurant project has taken longer than he anticipated.

He also had to address questions about whether a burger joint belonged next to the stately Mayo Performing Arts Center, opened in 1937 as the Community Theatre and lovingly restored in the ’90s.

Mike persuaded the town historical commission and zoning officials to accept a realization that is obvious to Don’s Facebook fans–namely, that history comes in many flavors.

“Morristown is a colonial town, and this (restaurant) is not colonial in nature,” Mike said. “But it has its own historical aesthetic, to the ’40s and ’50s. They would rather see something of quality that is not George Washington, than faux bricks. Some of them liked the fact that it’s completely different. It’s historic in its own right. Historic doesn’t just mean George Washington.”

Whether the new Don’s goes down in history remains to be seen. If a few hundred Boomers launch a Welcome Back, Don’s Facebook page, he will know he has the right recipe.

 

 

 

 

 

Morristown police: Attempted child luring on Hill Street?

Morristown police report that a man may have attempted to lure a girl to his car on Hill Street this morning, Nov. 30.

The alleged incident occurred between 7 am and 7:30 am near Ford Avenue.  From the police account:

The suspicious male is described as a heavyset white male in his late 40′s to early 50′s wearing a black colored jacket and black Kangol type cap. The male was driving a newer model dark colored car, possibly a Ford Fusion or similar car. The male passed the victim and then circled around the block before motioning for her to approach the car. The victim did not approach and ran away at which time the vehicle drove away without any further contact.

Anyone with any information is requested to contact the Morristown Police Department at 973-538-2200.

As always, we encourage parents and their children to be vigilant and to report any suspicious activity to the Police as quickly as possible.

Police have reported similar incidents in recent months.

Morristown police: Parking restrictions along South Street tonight, Nov. 30

Parking will be restricted along South Street between Pine and Elm streets on Nov. 30 from 7 pm to 2 am for construction, Morristown police advise.

Seen around Morristown: Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker

St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Morristown has entertained its share of VIPs, from congressmen to captains of industry. On Thanksgiving, the rectory hosted one of cinema’s leading couples.

Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker joined Matthew’s sister, Pastor Janet Broderick, for a holiday gathering that included 24 members of the Broderick, Parker and Forste clans. (Sarah Jessica’s stepfather is a Forste.)

The actors’ son, James Wilkie Broderick, 9, got a lesson on the church’s 1930 Skinner organ from Darryl Roland, the new music director at St. Peter’s who specializes in children’s choral instruction.

The Thanksgiving scene also boasted five 2-year-olds–including Loretta and Tabatha, James’ twin sisters–along with a 27-pound turkey and pies from Sarah Jessica’s favorite Greenwich Village shop.

Rounding out the cast were the actress’ brothers, Toby Parker, who toured with the original Broadway cast of Annie, and Andrew Parker, who works on the Broadway production of Anything Goes, and their families.

Sarah Jessica had just returned from Australia, where she promoted her film, I Don’t Know How She Does It.  Her next movie, New Year’s Eve, is a romantic comedy co-starring Zac Efron, Michelle Pfeiffer and Ashton Kutcher.

Matthew, now co-starring in Tower Heist, returns to Broadway next year opposite Kelli O’Hara in Nice Work If You Can Get It, a musical comedy with songs by the Gershwins.

Tempers flare in Morristown court room during trial of accused Chatham priest-killer

Jose Feliciano, the former Chatham church janitor accused of fatally stabbing a priest two years ago, grew angry during intense cross-examination on Tuesday by Morris County Prosecutor Robert Bianchi, reported The Star-Ledger.

The prosecutor repeatedly pressed the defendant about discrepancies between statements he made shortly after the killing of the Rev. Edward Hinds and his testimony in Superior Court in Morristown.

“Don’t change my story, please,” Feliciano said, his eyes widening in anger during the scathing cross-examination.

Father Hinds was stabbed 44 times in the rectory of St. Patrick Church, according to authorities. Jose Feliciano testified this week that the priest coerced him into sexual acts by threatening to reveal his criminal record. The former janitor told the jury on Monday that “he just went crazy” with a steak knife when the priest fired him just five months shy of retirement, the paper reported.

‘Joe Mahoney’ and the Debate Faux Pas, from Morristown cartoonist Matt Keown

This week’s Mahoney: The Debate Faux Pas

Don’t forget, Mahoniacs, you can read Joe Mahoney every day at JoeMahoneyComics.com

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Joe Mahoney is about a powerful and driven CEO struggling to groom his free-spirit son to someday take over the family business. Matt believes in Mahonifest Destiny, which is the view that all literate Americans from sea to shining sea should read Joe Mahoney every week. He brings this comic to MG with hopes of converting the good citizens of Morristown into Mahoniacs.

Wanted: Chief Financial Officer for town of Morristown

You would think that Morristown’s town hall would be swamped with résumés.

“Chief Financial Officer” is an important post, and it pays well. The last one pulled down $137,000.

But town Administrator Michael Rogers, who on Tuesday started meeting with department heads as part of the 2012 budget process, said he’s only received a few inquiries since CFO Bob Calise recently announced his departure to take a state job in Newark.

State regulations narrow the pool of applicants, Michael explained. A CFO of a giant corporation, for example, would not be eligible without first completing eight mandatory courses in municipal finance at Rutgers University.

Michael won’t be going it alone through this budget cycle.  Bob Calise, who served three different mayors during nine years in Morristown, will assist him on a part-time, interim basis.

In addition to helping prepare the municipal budget, the CFO oversees accounting, purchasing, investing and other transactions.

CONTRACTS EXPIRING

It’s too early to predict what taxpayers should expect from the next budget, Michael said. This year’s $36.5 million spending plan actually lowered the municipal tax rate by 2 cents–about $63 for someone with a house assessed at $350,000.

Contracts are expiring for all of the town’s union employees, including police and firefighters. The town’s health insurance contract also inspires in January; these costs have never come down in recent times, although employees are being required to pay for more of their coverage, Michael said.

The town also must raise money to repay itself for emergency expenditures incurred during Tropical Storm Irene and the October snowstorm.  Some $90,000 in overtime–much of it by police on traffic duty when stop lights went out– was racked up during Irene, Michael said.  About three-quarters of those expenses may be reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, he said.

The Administrator did not have snowstorm details readily available. Public works employees worked a lot of overtime in the aftermath of that storm, he said. It’s less certain whether those expenditures will be reimbursed; the federal government did not declare an emergency during that storm, Michael said.

 

 

The next act from Morristown’s Liquid Church: Virtual ‘Silent Night’

Morristown-based Liquid Church is not afraid of grand gestures.

A few years ago, the church offered gas at 99 cents a gallon. Over the summer, it invited people to take money out of the collection basket.

And now, for Christmas, it’s reaching out to the entire world for a global carol-sing. People are being asked to use their webcams to record themselves singing Silent Night, and post the videos to YouTube. From there, members of Liquid Church’s rock band will edit the videos into a virtual choir.  The results will be unveiled on Christmas Eve at services in Morristown, New Brunswick and Nutley.

“Hopefully, they’ll be able to drown out the alley cats who sing like me,” joked Liquid Church pastor and founder Tim Lucas.

He quickly corrected himself. The more, the merrier. That’s the point of this exercise–and of Liquid Church, he said.

“We think people of every tribe, nation and tongue should be able to participate,” said Pastor Tim, 40.

The virtual caroling was inspired by composer Ed Whitacre, who spoke at the annual TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conference about his popular experiment leading a 2,000-voice virtual choir.

 

Liquid Church began in 1999 with a dozen people “drinking bad coffee” in the basement of a 150-year-old Baptist church in Basking Ridge, Pastor Tim said. Since setting up shop on Speedwell Avenue in Morristown in 2007, it has grown to 2,000 members at three locations.

There were many singles at first; now the congregation skews towards couples in their 30s and 40s with young families, the pastor said. They support causes like building wells in drought-plagued Third World countries (it is Liquid Church, after all) and rebuilding flooded local missions.

Followers include soldiers in Iraq and citizens in Australia and Ireland, who watch services live via the internet and download videos and podcasts, according to Pastor Tim, who lives in Madison with his wife Colleen and their children, Chase, 9, and Del, 7.  One of the first Silent Night renditions has come from Estonia.

Although he attended an evangelical school, Wheaton College in Illinois, Pastor Tim said he never aspired to the ministry. He studied journalism and English, and taught advanced placement English for eight years at Summit High School.

“I never saw a relevant model of ministry that brought the Bible and the New York Times together,” he said. That changed when he heard Tim Keller preach at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York.  Pastor Tim figured that his teaching gig was good preparation. “If I can teach 17-year-olds Shakespeare, I can teach adults the Bible.”

Liquid Church’s rock and roll services are held in the Hyatt Morristown. Last week, the congregation baptized its 500th member, a Wall Street guy. In a hot tub. Pastor Tim has been known to impersonate Elvis Presley and Darth Vader at public events. Grand gestures can look like grandstanding to traditionalists, he knows.

“We’re not trying to convert the choir,” he said. “We’re trying to reach people who don’t go to church at all. These are people who are burned out on organized religion. We’re disorganized religion.  People may have given up on the institution of church, but they haven’t given up on God. We’re the perfect church for imperfect people. Come as you are. Everybody gets to play. That’s the message of Jesus.”

Alley cats, warm up your webcams.

 

 

 

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