Chatham Main St. In A 'Renaissance' With New Restaurants: Mayor

CHATHAM BOROUGH, NJ — In a year full of bad coronavirus news, Chatham has reasons for excitement. Despite a difficult business climate, many new restaurants have added flavor to Main Street.

Among those new eateries, Sonny's Indian Kitchen held a major celebration Sunday for its grand reopening. The event included a DJ playing Bhangra music, a Dhol (drum) performer and traditional Indian dancers. Owner Sonny Kumar also presented a $1,500 check to the Chatham Education Foundation.

Related article: Chef Opens Authentic Indian Kitchen In Chatham

Chatham Borough Mayor Thaddeus J. Kobylarz reflected on all the new restaurants during Monday's council meeting.

"Main Street in Chatham is going through something of a renaissance right now," Kobylarz said. "Who would have thunk in this age of global pandemic? But each of these eateries have played a huge part in the creation of a more flourishing downtown scene. Not just the downtown area — it’s now a downtown scene, and that is progress."

Kobylarz listed restaurants such as Fleur De Sel, Asahda's Soul Food, Mexican Spice, Namkeen Hot Chicken and Scoop's Ice Cream.

The pandemic has created obstacles for restaurants because of restrictions designed to slow the spread of COVID-19. New Jersey expanded indoor-dining capacity to 50 percent Friday.

But Gov. Phil Murphy said he will hold off on further reopenings because of the surge in coronavirus variants throughout the region. Read more: Gov. Murphy: Surge In COVID Variants In NJ Will Delay Reopenings.

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