Food and prop styling by Shiri Feldman
Food prep and styling by Chef Suzie Gornish
Photography by Felicia Perretti

WHO

Lipa Ribiat

WHAT

Lipa’s Munch

WHERE

Lakewood, New Jersey

WHEN

Three years ago

WHY

To provide yeshivah bochurim with a place to buy great fast food

I’d just finished a spin class at the gym when I got an email with my next Like a Local deadline. A couple of us were still hanging around the locker room, so I took the opportunity to ask if anyone had an idea for me. That’s when Raquel exclaimed, “What about Lipa’s Munch?”

I was intrigued. As a local Lakewood resident who’s pretty much up-to-date with all things food, I was surprised that I’d never even heard of this establishment before though it’s been around for more than three years. When another one of my friends said, “They have the absolute best buffalo chicken fingers that exist,” I knew this was going to be my featured locale.

That Shabbos, when I mentioned to my kids that I’m thinking of checking out this joint, my son insisted that I can’t possibly walk into the store between the hours of 10 p.m. and 2 a.m., as it’s completely mobbed with bochurim. His take was that it’s a “bochur spot,” and that they’re famous for their “insane cholent.” Well, after that introduction, my curiosity was piqued, and I confirmed that I’ll certainly head over to check it out, albeit during the store’s “family hours” between 4 and 10 p.m.

The following Wednesday night found me and my sister Faigy, along with our girls, stepping inside a cramped but homey little storefront. I’m not sure what I had expected, but the first thing that struck me was how small it was. I later found out that there’s some additional seating upstairs, which made it easier to understand where the 150-plus boys manage to hang out each night. We ordered a variety of chicken fingers, with the finger-lickin’ buffalo fingers coming in as the clear winner. I also sampled a saucer-sized thin and crispy potato latke that was out of this world!

Although they’re famous for their cholent, I just couldn’t bring myself to eat cholent on an ordinary Wednesday night. I was told that the trick to the cholent’s amazing flavor is in the unique concept used to create its base. Lipa swears that caramelizing sugar, adding some honey, and then deep-frying the onions in that mixture imbues it with the depth of flavor that helps him sell roughly 750 portions of cholent weekly.