Photo by Neidy Gutierrez / SOC Images.
Next Door Provisions isn’t just a name.
For restaurant owners Ruby Felix-Curtis and James “VJ” Curtis, Next Door Provisions is the culmination of their journey, their relationship, their upbringings, the mixture of their cultures and others’—plated intentionally and presented as a warm meal. For them, Next Door Provisions is the flavor of the West Side of Jersey City and they want to show everyone what their community is capable of.
“We’re here on the West Side. People don’t come to the West Side [but] we have a lot to offer. And that’s the thing. It’s like, people doubt that places could be of quality and value on this side of town. So we gotta work harder to get the message out… We’re a mom and pop [business]. This is the most personal it’s ever gonna get,” James told Slice of Culture.
“… We just want people to know that there’s something special on this side of town.”
“The restaurant is our beating heart, like, to me, this is something that I’ve worked hard for… This is us. We’re scrubbing floors, we’re doing everything,” added Ruby.
Homage To The Past + Love For The West Side
“Take your next bite, Next Door.”
That’s the tagline you’ll see and hear from the restaurant, which is located inside The Agnes apartment complex at 146 Yale Avenue in Jersey City.
When you walk in, you’re greeted with plants in every corner; stacked books on shelves off to the side, decorated with small figurines that are resting below hanging family photos; and in the middle, there’s a number of seating options.
After taking a second to stop and stare, you’ll probably be welcomed in by James, who works at the front of the shop while Ruby—better known as Chef Ruby—is whipping something up in the kitchen.
Next Door is positioned on one end of The Agnes’ lobby, and it wasn’t even meant to be a restaurant.
When the couple was inquiring about the space, the building wanted it to be a cafe, a “grab-and-go” spot, Ruby explained.
“[The space is] built for a cafe, but it’s not built for your talent and knowledge,” James said, looking at Ruby, who graduated from the French Culinary Institute and previously worked for three notable restaurants.
At first, the couple tried to work with it and created a cafe menu.
But it wasn’t what they wanted.
As they were going to turn down the offer, the owner of the space negotiated and told them they’re free to make any food they wanted.
And thus came Next Door Provisions on July 22, 2022—James’ 50th birthday.
In James’ eyes, the restaurant is an “accumulation” of his and Ruby’s relationship, which is a total of 23 years together, plus Ruby’s personal culinary journey, which pulls from cultural inspirations like French, Italian, Japanese, Korean and Filipino, to name a few.
“I tell people when they look at that menu—because some people don’t know what’s happening with the menu—[they’re like] how is it that you have a BLT and then you have kare kare, you have a caesar salad?… but we tell ’em, it’s her culinary journey… And it’s one of those things where like, yes, we’re Filipinos, but it doesn’t mean we’re not allowed to go in other lanes,” James said.
“… And then that’s like the immigrant experience… My grandfather said it once before, ‘Okay, well welcome to America! Now, did you come to America to become a Filipino or is there something more as far as what your story’s gonna be like?’ Being a Filipino is central to your story, but what else are you gonna add to that?”
– James “VJ” Curtis
And growing up on the West Side of town, the couple continued to pay homage to their Filipino roots and upbringing, but they continued to add their own flavor to their stories.
Two of which are present in the restaurant’s offerings: grilled cheese and kare kare.
Grilled cheese was one of the only meals Ruby would have time to eat while at her very first job in New York. This grilled cheese was made by one of her fellow cooks, Maar, who always gave her food when going home.
And looking back further, Ruby reminisced about her grandmother’s kare kare recipe, which always had a different, nostalgic taste to it.
“I’m always changing the recipe every time I cook it because there’s something there that my grandma had put in that, I don’t know what it is… it tastes the same, but there’s something there that I’m trying to reach for,” Ruby explained.
“And it’s my journey and my homage to her. And to say that, ‘Hey, I still remember you and I’m still here honoring you.’”
More Than What’s On Your Plate
Next Door’s offerings are fluid.
They offer dishes like a caesar salad, chicken katsu sandwich, grilled cheese sandwich and a NY strip, but they also offer Filipino dishes like kare kare, palabok and pork adobo. Each item, though, has their own Chef Ruby twist.
“The menu is things that resonates [with me] and also have an origin through my culinary journey. My favorite one is the grilled cheese… If you get to know the person that is [the inspiration] behind them, you’ll know why it was put in that way,” Ruby smiled.
Take their kare kare mafaldini.
Breaking it down, kare-kare is a traditional Filipino stew known for its savory peanut sauce, meats and vegetables, but in Chef Ruby’s take, she swaps the stew for a sauce mixed with coconut milk and glazed over fresh, locally sourced mafaldini pasta—which is a long, ribbon-like pasta with ruffles—that’s sprinkled with yellow biquinho peppers and brisket.
When it comes to plating, or presenting, the dishes, Ruby sticks to some core elements: salt, fat, acid and heat plus which ingredients are available to her and/or in season. As for the process of actually putting it together, it’s “Taste first… [and] before going to bed, [how to do the plating] works in my head.”
She added that James also “has an eye” for what an attractive dish looks like, and that’s how the final product comes out.
But more than the plate, Ruby and James said they want to give customers an experience.
“When people see [our kare kare mafaldini], they don’t know what to make of it… but then it’s just that eye opening moment they taste it,” James said.
“… [People have] bonds specific to the experiences that they’ve had in this restaurant. We’ve created friendships and that’s what community is. [They’re] not necessarily my neighbor. [They’re] now my friend.”
Next Door Provisions is open:
- Wednesdays to Fridays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m
- Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Wednesdays to Saturdays evenings from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Additionally, they’re currently collaborating with Manilla Manilla, a pop-up coffee and matcha business, with a rotating cafe menu and bites from local Filipino bakery, Panaderya Salvaje, to expand the experiences on the West Side. You can catch this every Thursday and Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Next Door will also be featuring much more of Chef Ruby’s new dishes and do more community events this year.
“West Side is special to us. This is where we grew up. This is our neighborhood. Let us show you what we can do,” James said.
