Love's Secret Sauce
If you hate delicious pizza, true love, handmade chocolate, and all the feels — just run away now.
Have you been eagerly awaiting the next newsletter? It’s finally here! At last!
Before we start, here’s a music pairing for this edition:
📰🌵We Live In A News Desert. Here’s Your News Dessert. 📰🧁
Hello to our long-time astonishingly good-looking smart readers and howdy to all our shiny new subscribers. Here’s a photo to express our love, since we know people don’t love to read big chunks of copy…
So in case you didn’t know… we are the only publication to report on the Hudson hydrangea thieves, the budding DIY music scene, the Edgewater parrot migration, the controversial “corn” growing in a local parking lot, the Hoboken-ish condo that didn’t know what town it was in, the exact amount it costs to put a giant picture of boobs next to the 495, and how much Weehawken gets paid to launch a drone show.
Phew! A lot, right? We also have exclusive interviews and profiles with local notables.
We were also the first to write about the new hipster Houdini cafe and then share a discovery of more magical history along the Hudson.
We now have thousands of readers per issue, but just 29 people who pay to help support this newsletter. 29 is nothing to sneeze at, and it’s one more since the last time (thank youuuuuu!) — but it’s still less than 1% of all monthly readers.
Anyway, below is that button to subscribe or upgrade, and thank you so much to all free and paid subscribers.
Take Another Little Pizza My ❤️ Now Baby
Valentine’s Day is coming. And if you don’t know, my mother was a romance author of over 30 novels, and I adore a good love story. So here goes…
Vincent and Tomijean, pictured, are in their fourth year as the owners of West New York Pizza, and are celebrating nearly a decade of marriage. The restaurant business is hard work, and they are on site — but they get inspiration from a shared a love of food, community, and love for each other.
🍕 The Perfect Slice Hiding In Plain Sight?
I recently discovered West New York Pizza after I saw one of the owners offering to do a good deed for neighbors. It wasn’t even in a place where many people might see it. There was no ad, no flashy social media video, no perfect photo. It wasn’t a marketing play — it was genuine.
So I decided to write to them, and then sashay on down Park Ave to try the pizza. Because why not? I needed the walk. If it wasn’t great? Well I’d still like them for being nice.
But lo and behold — it was excellent pizza, hitting way above its weight for what you expect from a local parlor, with a perfectly thin crust and high-quality toppings. I tried two slices of their “Ultimate Insane Gourmet Pies!” — the spinachoke was particularly divine, creamy and with tang, and enough garlic to send vampires as far away as Hackensack packing.
I then learned there was a good reason for this. Vincent has worked for more than 20 years at landmark NY pizza places like King Umberto, Piola, and Gino’s, honing his skills in Italian cooking and pizza making.
How did they meet?
I love asking how couples met. For Vince and Tomijean, their meet cute was simply walking in New York City — finding they kept stopping at the same corners — and striking up a conversation. Then, when their paths parted, exchanging numbers. This is how you do it without apps, kids! 👈
Love of community
Tomijean worked in the non-profit sector for many years, and that’s maybe one reason why she, and they, are so invested in the neighborhood. West New York Pizza is known for their free slice day in September for Memorial High School, their great teacher / student specials (like $5.50 for 2 regular slices and a soda or water). They’re also known for giving discounts and/or sponsoring tons of school events including Little League, the plays, and the yearbook.
They greet customers by name, and it seems like a home base for many, including two recent high school graduates I talked to. Jasmine touted the Buffalo chicken as a fave, and Evelyn said she appreciates a lactose-free pizza they make for her. Later a high school instructor came in who said he’s a big fan. Vince and Tomijean both had nothing but great things to say about the kids they serve and the ones they’ve hired, describing them as “so nice,” “adorable,” and “polite.”
So if you love pizza and good vibes, do yourself a huge favor and just order from this hidden gem of a pizza place that’s been hiding in plain sight for nearly four years.
Special deal 4 our readers!
The heart-shaped pizza usually costs more, but if you call to order and say Weehawken Gazette sent you, you will get it for the same price AND get 10% off. 🤩
📞 And seriously, call to order… Slice, GrubHub, Uber all take about 20-30%. That passes the price onto you, and takes $ away from the business.
West New York Pizza
5404 Park Ave, West New York, NJ
Call: 201-305-5299
Life Is Sweet For This Bite-Sized Local Business
Have you ever heard of brigadeiros? Pronounced bree-gah-DAY-roos, they are a well-loved Brazilian dessert. But I had never heard of them until I discovered nom nom, a new confectionery brand based in Weehawken.
Here’s their (much better) description:
Straight from Brazil, brigadeiros are bite-sized balls of pure joy—soft, gooey, and irresistibly creamy. Think fudge, caramel, and truffles rolled into one adorable, sprinkle-covered treat. A party favorite for decades, they’re the dessert everyone reaches for first—and the moment your dessert table didn’t know it needed. 🍫✨
I picked up a box in Weehawken, and shared with my family. They are delicious. But you kind of guessed that from the description, right? And there’s now an opportunity for one of our lucky followers to win a box, so go see that opportunity here on our Instagram. They are available in chocolate, white chocolate, strawberry, coconut and dulce de leche.
Lara Maltezinho, the founder, answered some of my questions.
Q: When did this business start? From conception to making it live?
LM: nom nom is still very much a baby brand. The idea had been quietly taking shape for a while, but it officially came to life in October of 2025.
After more than 15 years partnering with large, global brands on their branding efforts, creating nom nom has been an entirely different kind of joy. For the first time, I’m not helping tell someone else’s story—I’m building my own.
Q: Who are you? Meaning aside from the head of this neat venture?
LM: I’ve called Weehawken home for the past four years, where I live with my family and raise my three kids. I’m a millennial mom, and someone who deeply believes that food is one of the purest ways to connect with others. I still have a day job in the branding world, a field I’ve worked in my entire career and continue to love.
Originally, I’m from Brazil, but my identity goes far beyond one place. I spent years moving around the world before landing in New York ten years ago. With every move, I carried pieces of home with me — traditions, learnings, and recipes I either inherited or picked up along the way.
I don’t have formal baking training or professional kitchen experience, but cooking has always been my love language. What started as something deeply personal has turned into a small business rooted in warmth, connection, and the simple pleasure of feeding people well.
Nom nom delivers in Weehawken and adjacent areas, as well as in some Manhattan neighborhoods for $7. Free pick-up in Weehawken is also available.
Orders can be placed on their website, via Instagram @eatmorenomnom or through the email hello@nomandnom.com
❄️ Snow You Got Scammed?
Facebook exploded recently with a flurry of people in Northern NJ who all claimed they saw the same flier from “Ashly Snow Shoveling Services,” paid for their service, but then nobody showed up. Reports came in on groups from Garfield, Clifton, Edgewater, Fort Lee, and Cliffside Park. The flier looks like it was made using AI design, and yes, the people who got scammed all said they paid for the service in advance. Some said they eventually got refunds.
Lesson learned? Don’t pay beforehand. And if you are a senior, see if your local government has resources to connect you with help, some of which we wrote about here in the last issue.
Signs Of Intelligent Bus Life
Knowing when the next NJ Transit bus is coming is unknowable unless you have the app, and even then it’s no fun looking up the stop number and pulling out your phone every two seconds, especially in the freezing cold. Well a few weeks ago, a clever bus sign appeared in Hoboken that lets you know when the buses are coming. And this month, another appeared.
Are they coming to Weehawken? To the whole of the NJ Gold Coast? A gal can dream.
The scoop was reported by Caren Lissner at Patch, and the full story is here: Mysterious Electric Signs Appear At 2 NJ Transit Bus Stops In Hoboken
No Fancy French NoHu Museum For You!
In 2021 the plans for a Jersey City branch of a famous Paris art museum in our backyard were unveiled, and as recently as October 2024, it was reported that the plans were revived:
“The project to create a Centre Pompidou in Jersey City promises immersive, interactive experiences that centre the local art scene in northern New Jersey, complete with a special focus on education and performance initiatives.” —theartnewspaper.com
It would’ve had “85,000 square feet indoors and 14,600 square feet outdoors for a sculpture garden and deck.” Un brin de folie égaye la vie, amiright?
But flash ahead to today, and Jersey City is $255 million in the hole, and the new mayor just confirmed that the project is indeed dead. It might become a senior home, a rec center… but it won’t be a cultural landmark. Story here on NJ.com: N.J.’s dream of opening branch of world-famous French art museum is officially ‘dead’
Classifieds
👨💼 Smart, mature, and personable male college student seeks part-time employment. Prefers in-person work in a group setting. If you are looking for a hard-worker who is ready to go, write to bigwigs@bignoyes.com with “Classifieds” in the subject line.
Bye Bye Love
FYI if you see this in time, there’s a Valentine’s Day Art Festival at the Port Imperial Ferry Terminal 12-8:30P on Thursday 2/12. Jazz, dance, art and more. Details here.
Hugo Holland is our unpaid copyeditor this week. We give him a frenzied few minutes to look at the draft before yelling, “whatever — we need to send it STAT!” He has also started writing and editing for a real newspaper recently.
Feel free to leave a comment here or email us tips: susie@bignoyes.com
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If you want our sponsor rate sheet for ads or want to discuss sponsored content ideas? Email susie@bignoyes.com — as always, we will always disclose pay or freebies.
Freebies disclosure: We got 2 free slices of pizza and a bottle of water from West NY Pizza. But we were coming to write about them before they offered! nom noms offered us a free box ($30 value), but did not take the freebie, we paid for it.
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Tah for now, nice nabes!
Susie
PS Subscribers get this newsletter first AND they can laugh at exclusive errors that are later corrected in the archive version. What’s not to love? Special bonus? We’ll end with a photo this week.
