Blogfinger

Matt’s in Wall. Daily shipments. Blogfinger photos.

 

Matt’s produce. Everything is wonderful

Matt’s. 8/14/26. Delicious Jerseys.  Paul Goldfinger photos.   Eileen grows yummy basil in her OG backyard.

HAYLEY WESTENRA:

Fresh seafood—the best at Wegmans Ocean

Tearing into a lobster dinner at Mr. Shrimp’s restaurant  near the Belmar Marina. Go early. We each had a 1 1/2 pound feast. 8/11/26. Blogfinger photos. There is a fine seafood market there.  Go to Mr. Shrimp and bring home a seafood dinner–the menu is fabulous.   Paul  Goldfinger photo.

ANITA O’DAY.       “Satin Doll”

Paul Goldfinger portrait of a Grover with blue eyes. 8/12/26. He did not go to Rider except for parties.  One guess per customer.   Send your entry to Blogfinger@verizon.net

PEGGY LEE:

Jersey tomato report by Eileen and Paul Goldfinger at Matt’s Market in Belmar. Now is nearly peak season for those summer treasures.   8/12/25

Matts Farm Market. Tomato crop at its peak. Re-post from  8/12,/24. Eileen is the browser. She’s some tomato.   Click once to enlarge. Her shirt displays Hebrew writing*.   Paul Goldfinger photo.

Tomato sandwich in Eileen’s OG kitchen with a Jersey.  Paul Goldfinger photo..

September 21, 2025  update:   We have not been enthused about this summer’s tomatoes from New Jersey in mid-August.    But we went back to Matt’s now and found that the red fruits are now  better:  very good but not excellent.  And they still have very good corn. Wegmans has neither:  Jersey produce will be around through October. The Asbury Saturday Sunset Market will be open until Thanksgiving.

From Matt’s on 9/19/25. . Paul and Eileen  Goldfinger reporting from our OG kitchen.   This  “Jersey beefsteak” will be great with bagels and lox. And cream cheese from Bagel Talk  and onions from Peru.  And we love the bagels from  Bagel Talk in the mall opposite the OG entrance.  I  like their “everything” scooped and toasted.  Ask for Elmer.

Here’s a suggestion for this beautiful tomato crop in New Jersey.  We love tomato sandwiches. The concept is easy.  We like “Hey, Peach’s” sourdough* sliced bread, lightly toasted. Use Hellmann’s mayo and avocado slices. A slice of cheese is good;  for example Mozzarella. And a slice of Vidalia sweet onions for the daring.  (The Vidalia season is near the end, but Wegmans has some fine sweet onions from Peru.).    Note that in the 17th century  Peru supplied  Europe with silver  but now it’s onions.

After that you are on your own….but do it now while the Jerseys are peaking.

We like Matt’s Market and Garden Center for their huge selection of Jerseys.  They also have a large variety of local fruits and veggies; and Jersey corn.

Matt’s:    Take Memorial Parkway to the bridge.  Take 35 north by the Belmar Marina and turn left  at the Windmill onto 71 north.

Go past Mr. Shrimp, and Matt’s is a short distance ahead on the left.

I am thankful that my name isn’t Mr. Shrimp.   Girls: Would you date a guy named Mr. Shrimp?

Bonus suggestion for summer dinner:   Get lobsters. Wegmans will cook them for you, or do it yourself.  Serve them with beautiful Jersey corn and a salad.  And how about dessert at Days—if you have room.

• The best sourdough bread around is at “Hey, Peach” bakery in Bradley Beach, 126 Main Ave,  owned by Erin and James of Ocean Grove.  They are open Thursday to Sunday 7-3.

*”Am Yisrael Chai”  means  “The People of Israel  Live.”    It is a slogan of solidarity among Jews. It is used to express strength and unity, typically in the face of adversity, but also in moments of peace and prosperity.”

“Love and Marigolds.”  Michael Danna from the score of Monsoon Wedding.

Paul Goldfinger photo. Sunday.  8/09/26.  Twilight.   8 pm.  Walking back to the car from the Ocean Grove beach..  Fletcher Lake side of the Grove. Click once to enlarge..

Fletcher Lake, OG side. looking at Bradley Beach.    Which side has the best view?    8/9/26. 8 pm. Paul Goldfinger photo. Blogfinger.net. Click once to enlarge.

Spanky and Our Gang.   “Sunday Will Never Be the Same.”

A Waiter in Paris on my OG bookshelf.    Published August 9, 2022 with widespread distribution.  Paul Goldfinger’s  photograph is on the dust covers around the world.

Paul Goldfinger photograph.  Ocean Grove, NJ.   I have a credit on the inside of the dust cover. The actual print has been posted here on Blogfinger.net

Here is a link      https://wp.me/pqmj2-p6g :

You can also see an original print hanging in “Cheese on Main”  in  Ocean Grove,  New Jersey.  It is the only signed print currently on display, and you can get terrific Stilton cheese from Susan over there. That would be an English selection to go with Edward Chisholm’s fine book.

This is the red, white and blue. (French colors) version of the book.  3 publishers are involved with distribution by Simon and Schuster.

Paul Goldfinger photographer.

I was excited to see the finished product. My  photograph of Left Bank waiters was chosen for the dust cover, and it was thrilling to see that some designers had the print match the black and white of the photograph.

My  book copy was sent to me in June by the Octopus Publishing Group in London (Thanks to Giulia Hetherington whose musical name sounds so English…or “Anglais” as the book’s author says.)

I sent her one of my original B & W photos taken in the East Village.  It turns out that she spent time there with friends in a rented “flat” just a few blocks from where my New York  image was taken. She was thrilled with the gift.

So it is now officially published on August 9 , and many reviews and ads are already popping up on the Internet.

The book has been getting good reviews since the launch date including by the Wall Street Journal., the Daily Beast, Air Mail, London Review, The Guardian, Paris Review, Good Reads and Publishers Weekly.

Here is a short review from the publisher:

“An evocative portrait of the underbelly of contemporary Paris as seen through the eyes of a young waiter scraping out a living in the City of Light. A waiter’s job is to deceive you. They want you to believe in a luxurious calm because on the other side of that door . . . is hell.

“Edward Chisholm’s spellbinding memoir of his time as a Parisian waiter takes you beneath the surface of one of the most iconic cities in the world–and right into its glorious underbelly. He inhabits a world of inhuman hours, snatched sleep and dive bars; scraping by on coffee, bread and cigarettes, often under sadistic managers, with a wage so low you’re fighting your colleagues for tips. Your colleagues–including thieves, narcissists, ex-soldiers, immigrants, wannabe actors, and drug dealers–are the closest thing to family that you’ve got. It’s physically demanding, frequently humiliating and incredibly competitive. But it doesn’t matter because you’re in Paris, the center of the universe, and there’s nowhere else you’d rather be in the world.”

“A Waiter in Paris” is available in Kindle, but without my photo.  Most of the reviews include a  picture of the book’s cover, so anyone who reads a review or walks into a book shop all over the free world will see my photo, and that is a huge thrill.

WYNTON MARSALIS:  “You’re My Everything.”