Be Our Valentine! February 2025

Warren County Wanderings

“Love is a game that two can play and both win.” - Eva Gabor. However, “It is better to be alone than in bad company.” - George Washington

For the shortest month, February sure offers plenty of opportunities to get together and celebrate! Even though the celebrity groundhog saw his shadow (boo!), we have the Super Bowl coming up, Presidents Day, and, of course, Valentine’s Day.

You will find this issue packed with special Valentine (and “Galentine”) menus, events and activities, including some creative workshops. We pulled the gorgeous cover photo above from The Fudge Shoppe, which has a location in the Phillipsburg area.

If you are interested in live music and theater, comedy, trivia, or informational talks, we’ve got you covered, so scroll on!

As always, this is just a sampling of what is happening in our area, and we encourage you patronize your favorite Warren County restaurant/sports bar/caterer/sweets shop to help you commemorate this month’s special occasions, and hope this newsletter will inspire you to do so.

Happy Super Bowl, Happy Valentine’s/Galentine’s Day, Happy Presidents Day, and Happy Wanderings!

Coming Up

Shakespeare's comedy about a major act of betrayal, ill treatment, the development of magic arts and a plot of revenge.

Just in time for Valentine's Day & Super Bowl Sunday with the best of both worlds. This trivia session features questions about all the popular RomComs and an equal amount of sports questions. Grab your friends, your love of movies and sports, and grab some beers with Czig's.

Meg Lyding, trained through Circle of Chi by Master Lama Rasaji who lived and trained at the Darchen Lamasery in Tibet, shares a series of gentle, flowing, meditative movements done standing with balanced breathing. Meg who operates at a higher frequency, and is soft, focused and articulate.

Put on your thinking cap for free general trivia hosted by Emily of Invertase. Grab your team, a beer, and test your knowledge. Prizes for winners (and sometimes the losers too!)

Food and cocktail specials, boot-stompin' hardwood floors! $10 cover, ages 21+

Pair any of your lobster favorites with one of Czig's 50+ varieties of stouts.

Join Sharon Reuss for a stained glass talk and demonstration. Free for members, $10 for nonmembers. Register at WCArts.org.

 

Paint two adorable cats as part of a Valentine's beginner friendly watercolor class, focusing on simple techniques. Paint them to look like your own, use one of the provided examples, or just wing it and paint what feels right.

Join Warren County naturalist Jennifer Correa-Kruegel and Washington Boro Green Team member Josephine Noone for a presentation about endangered and threatened species of Warren County and how to start a wildlife sanctuary of your own.

Guest speaker, Rudy DiGilio will share what it was like to work in the mill and lab buildings. MWA staff and friends will share more about the restoration process and future plans. Guests will take a brief tour of the building to see its progress.

Celebrate the day of love a little early and make a charcuterie board with (or for!) someone you love. $50 and includes a glass of wine. Tickets available online.

Bring your gal pals for an hourlong workshop to create a bouquet or arrangement with beautiful blooms. Held 10am-3pm both days. Refreshments will also be available. No set workshop fee, you pay for what you use!

Registration required. Please call 908-750-4567.

Based on the book, music and lyrics by Joan Cushing and adapted from the book by Harry Allard and illustrated by James Marshall comes this Young Audiences Series performance of Miss Nelson has a Field Day.

Join Fromage and Sweet Bite Delights for a Chocolate Treat Making Class! You'll go home with a full box of sweets (pictured) and a savor a glass of wine while you design some gorgeous treats.

If food is your love language, elevate your Valentine’s celebration with Chef's Catering featuring a delicious menu and live music all weekend. Three seatings (4pm, 6pm, 8pm) will be available each day with advanced reservations recommended.

Let Stella G's do the Valentine's cooking for you with soup, salad, appetizers, Prime Rib with Truffled Wild Mushrooms, Port Glazed Onions & Sauce Bordelaise, Crab Cakes with Mango Chutney & Slaw, Parmesan Crusted Chicken with Lemon Beurre Blanc, Asparagus with Roasted Garlic Aioli, Roast

valentine's dinner

Brook Hollow Winery has a lovely evening of fine dining, wine, and music lined up for Valentine’s Day.

Cost is $50 per person. Seating is limited to first 100 people
 

Let Mohican Outdoor Center prepare a beautiful meal with the music by Deb D’anne in background.

Buck Hill is giving you plenty of time to enjoy a craft beer and special Valentine’s Day menu with offerings, all with suggested drink pairings.

Call 908-854-5300 to reserve your table.

Valentine’s Day weekend is great time for you and your sweetheart to visit Alba Vineyard, New Jersey’s largest estate vineyard! 

Special Tasting - $35/person - taste through 6 wines with a member our winemaking team (includes special chocolate bites)

Valentine's Day poster

Bring your special someone to Mama’s Café Baci to enjoy the regular menu all day or a special four-course Valentine's Day selection from 5-9 pm. Gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian options are always available.

Please call 908-852-2820 for reservations.

If you are looking for a truly one-of-a-kind, nostalgic pairing, look no further than Brook Hollow Winery. Enjoy a unique flight board options that takes 4 fan favorite Brook Hollow wines and pairs them with 4 different truffles.

Join Czig Meister's as they feature over 40+ variations of the Stout. Plan to be around all day. You never know what might be on tap next... 

Food from RES-Q BBQ.

Join the Hackettstown Business Improvement District as it celebrates Valentines Day Weekend with the barbershop Quartet Kudos as they roam from 12 - 2pm singing "Let Me Call you Sweetheart" as well as other choice songs. Sample the tastes of the great Hackettstown Eateries and Breweries.

RESCHEDULED from Saturday Feb. 15 to Sunday Feb. 16 The Hope Community Center welcomes North Jersey's own Water Street, a staple in the community when it comes to playing local events, volunteering and honoring the roots of their origin.

Grab your friends and join Man Skirt and the Traveling Palette for a paint & sip of a Be Mine Gnome glass! This class is $40 per person and a choice of 1 wine or pint glass to paint.

Limited space available. 

Every Sunday is free music trivia hosted by Steve. Grab your team, a beer, and test your knowledge with prizes for winners (and sometimes the losers too!)

Lynn Waclawski, Horticulture Program Assistant with Rutgers Cooperative Extension, will be discussing several gardent topics.
2/21 - Gardening 101

Allan Fuks is a multi-national, award-winning comedian with an unusual perspective informed by his unique background, born in Belgium to a Russian-Ukrainian Jewish family and then raised in the South Bronx projects.

Get your spices out and compete for a trophy and bragging rights for the best chili in Blairstown! Sign up to compete ($20), show up to eat ($10). Email: BlairstownChili@gmail.com to compete! 

An immersive murder mystery experience that promises an evening of excitement and entertainment. Begin with an indulgent wine tasting featuring a selection of 8 exquisite wines, followed by a Chicken Parmigiana dinner with pasta, salad, bread and dessert.

Get out to Invertase for a free performance to see the one and only Greg Smith, former member of Ted Nugent, Alice Cooper, Billy Joel, The Guess Who, Rainbow and Blue Oyster Cult, with his band, Off the Road. 

Come in out of the cold with your award winning soup recipes! Winners announced at 12:30 p.m.

Join military historian Paul Zigo of the WWII Era Studies Institute for a virtual presentation about the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of primarily African-American military pilots and airmen who fought in World War II.  They were the first African-American military aviators in the U.S.

Stella G's invites you to feast on St. Patrick's Day with Corned Beef & Cabbage served with carrots & potatoes, Shepard’s Pie, Fish & Chips, Irish Soda Bread and assorted baked goods. Bring your favorite beer!

Please call to make reservations: 908-813-0625

WC Arts presents the Open Photography Exhibit at the Oxford Municipal Building. This exhibit will be on view from February 24 to May 2 and is open to the public during regular office hours. One should call ahead to make sure the building is open at 908-453-3098.   

Entertainment

Brook Hollow never stops with the live music! Enjoy weekend music. Wine will be available by glass or bottle purchase.

Tiptons will be rockin' in December!

Hang out with Brass Rail for tunes every weekend!

Feb. 1- Naked Jake
Feb. 8 - Jimmy and Jimmy
Feb. 15 - Jeff Bellfy
Feb. 22 - Disaster Horse

Brook Hollow never stops with the live music! Enjoy weekend music. Wine will be available by glass or bottle purchase.

Tiptons will be rockin' in March!

March 1- Project 9
March 7- Scott Messina
March 8- Blaming Amy
March 14- D&B Acoustics
March 15- Say It Ain't So
March 21- Gruvitune
March 22- Avenue 16
March 29- Bobby Clark Band

 

Brook Hollow never stops with the live music! Enjoy weekend music. Wine will be available by glass or bottle purchase.

Tiptons will be rockin' in April!

Continuing

Back by popular demand! Brook Hollow invites you to a Friday night Meal Deal, perfectly paired with live music and extended happy hour specials. Talk about the ultimate pairing for your night out! Tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance.

Who doesn't love a good pub trivia night? Buttzville's own Colleen and Dave will be hosting a fun night of quizzes and games to test your knowledge. Win prizes, have fun with friends, and support local craft beer!

These classes will include gentle movement to warm the body, a variety of postures for strengthening muscles and creating improved flexibility, breath awareness practice for quieting the mind and increasing energy, and deep relaxation.

Next Stop Comedy brings top stand-up comedians to Invertase Brewing Company. The Champ's Dogs will be vending.

*Formerly Boston Comedy Club

Back by popular demand! Brook Hollow invites you to a Friday night Meal Deal, perfectly paired with live music and extended happy hour specials. Talk about the ultimate pairing for your night out! Tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance.

Community Corner

The Hackettstown Area Senior Hall of Fame will be hosted, for the fourth year in a row, by Riverwalk Village at The House of the Good Shepherd, a FellowshipLIFE community in Hackettstown.