A new cafe has opened, and another is planned, for a street in Newark’s Central Ward that has recently seen significant development.
The new Freetown Cafe opened earlier this month at 41 Halsey Street, on the corner of Bleeker Street, in Downtown. The cafe, which is open from 7am to 7pm on weekdays and 10am to 5pm on Saturdays, serves a variety of salads, paninis, and pastries, in addition to coffee and tea. According to the cafe’s website, it is named in honor of Accompong, Jamaica.
The restaurant is owned by Kwame, Kanika, and Nataki Williams, all of whom also own Vital Dining on Bloomfield Avenue in Montclair, which opened in 2014. Vital Dining has been reviewed by the New York Times.
Before Freetown Cafe came, the space on Halsey Street was vacant for over a year. Previously, Elbow Room Brooklyn operated a macaroni and cheese restaurant location at the site, and prior to that, the building, now owned by the Anton & Everett Urban Renewal Company, was abandoned for several years.
In addition, a coffee shop called Black Swan Espresso is coming to the block. A sign advertising the cafe was recently posted in the former Johnson’s Barber Shop space at 95 Halsey Street, between Warren and Linden Streets. The business currently has no website or social media presence, but the company was registered out of Jersey City in May, according to public records.
Several new businesses and locations of national chains have opened in Downtown Newark in the past two years, including Starbucks Coffee, Qdoba Mexican Eats, Jimmy John’s, SHE Boutique, Underground Skate Shop, Ron Tomson, Blaze Pizza, and Edo’s Dessert Lounge. More stores, such as Whole Foods Market, The Halal Guys, Krauszer’s, and Yoga Mechanics, are coming to the block. Hundreds of people are employed along the Halsey Street corridor at the Veterans Administration Building, the new Prudential Financial tower, and at state offices.
[gmap height=”250px”]41 Halsey St, Newark, NJ 07102[/gmap]
Freetown Cafe – 41 Halsey St, Newark, NJ 07102
