Morristown’s Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen announces partial opening, Oct. 21

The Vail Bar at the Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen, grand opening. Photo by Kevin Coughlin.
The Vail Bar at the Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen, grand opening. Photo by Kevin Coughlin.
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The Vail Bar at the Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen, grand opening. Photo by Kevin Coughlin.
The Vail Bar at the Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen, at grand opening celebration. Photo by Kevin Coughlin.
Why settle for a burger when you can impress your date by ordering Cauliflower Agnolotti with Chicken Jus & Brown Butter Mirepoix?
A mouthful, for sure–but a tasty one, no doubt.
HAVING A BALL: Chris Cannon demonstrates conviviality at his new Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen in Morristown. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
HAVING A BALL: Chris Cannon exudes conviviality at his new Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen in Morristown. Photo by Kevin Coughlin

Chris Cannon’s posh Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen–which we’ve been telling you about since Cannon’s very first meeting with Morristown planning officials–is planning a partial opening on Oct. 21, 2014.

Jockey Hollow actually is four venues, all under the historic Vail Mansion roof.
The Oyster & Wine Bar and Vail Bar will start serving customers for dinner; lunch hours should follow next week. In a month, look for private events in the basement Rathskeller room.
Haute cuisine in the upstairs Dining Room–with its expansive view of the Vail reflecting pool–should start just before the holidays.
Below are more details from the restaurant.  Here is video we shot as the $5 million renovation project was racing towards completion:

MORE COVERAGE OF THE JOCKEY HOLLOW BAR & KITCHEN

FROM THE JOCKEY HOLLOW BAR & KITCHEN:
Morristown, NJ … October 20, 2014 … FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE … The long-anticipated opening of Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen is finally at hand. Restaurateur Chris Cannon has announced a Phase I opening of his four-part restaurant concept in Morristown’s landmark Vail Mansion on Tuesday, October 21st.
“We want to make sure all is in place for a smooth, successful launch,” notes Cannon.“We’ve waited five years for this moment to arrive!”
The Oyster & Wine Bar (left) will serve oysters from Jersey’s own Forty North Oyster Farm, with whom Chris partnered last year. Happy Hour fans, take note! $1 oysters will be served Tuesday through Friday from 4-6pm.
Additional menu offerings will include crudo, salumi and the signature Italian-influenced contemporary fare for which Cannon and Executive Chef Kevin Sippel are known. Soon-to-be signatures will (no doubt) be Sippel’s Scrambled Hen Eggs with Black Truffle, Lardo & Country Bread, CC Burger with Raclette, Slab Bacon and Salt & Vinegar Fries and Cauliflower Agnolotti with Chicken Jus & Brown Butter Mirepoix. 
Reservations are now being accepted via OpenTable.com for dinner at the Oyster & Wine Bar. Its communal table and bar will be first come, first served, as will seating in the clubby Vail Bar, at the rear of the main level.
“We’ll start with dinner, then open for lunch next week,” adds GM Ron Morgan. “Four weeks or so from now, we’ll begin holding private events in the downstairs Rathskeller. Last to open will be the Dining Room upstairs, which we plan to launch in November just in time for the holidays.”
MEET JOCKEY HOLLOW’S PASTRY TEAM
Erica Leahy studied pastry at the Institute for Culinary Education in NYC. Her first position was at db Bistro Moderne, then the highly regarded Sweet Melissa’s Bakery (Brooklyn). She’s held many positions in Tom Colicchio’s Craft restaurant empire, where she was most recently Pastry Chef, Craft NY.
 
Andrea Lekberg graduated from The Art Institute of Chicago and The Cooking andHospitality Institute of Chicago. She has worked in kitchens as diverse as Coyote Cafe (Santa Fe, NM) and Magnolia Grill (Durham, SC); and was pastry chef at Sweet Melissa’s when it was awarded Best Pies and Tarts by Zagat. She opened The Artist Baker, a beloved Morristown spot, in 2010.
Andrea Lekberg, and Erica Leahy, pastry chefs at Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen grand opening. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
Andrea Lekberg, and Erica Leahy, pastry chefs at Jockey Hollow Bar & Kitchen grand opening. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
ABOUT JOCKEY HOLLOW BAR & KITCHEN
Housed in Morristown’s historic Vail Mansion, JHBK will be a culinary and cultural hub for North/Central New Jersey. It includes the casual, contemporary Oyster & Wine Bar; Vail Bar, a glam 1920’s-style cocktail lounge; The Rathskeller, a private event space; and The Dining Room, with a regional, sustainable farm-to-table focus.
The menus are modern American- and Italian-inspired, featuring locally sourced ingredients from Cannon’s partnerships with Mantoloking’s Forty North Oyster Farms and Mendham’s Ralston Farm. JHBK houses an impressive contemporary art collection commissioned specifically for the space from acclaimed international artists. It will also be a center for health & wellness in the NJ public schools, thanks to Cannon’s affiliation with NYC’s Wellness in the Schools.

1 COMMENT

  1. Spend many a marathon Town meeting what is now the bar. The current
    atmosphere. is far more congenial. Instead of paying tickets in the front hall, you can now enjoy delicious seafood.

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