Have you frequented The Lil Dove Café on Palisades Ave. in the Heights? It is an utter delight on so many levels. The food, the drinks, the merchandise, the décor…it’s all so light, lovely and charming.

Another niche ice cream store has come to Jersey City. Located in the Heights, Stack Creamery is a family-business devoted to the art of ice cream. The 3 siblings who opened Stack used to live in Jersey City for 6 years.

Shalea Walker has been working internationally as a licensed esthetician and professional makeup artist for nearly two decades. Her work has been featured in countless magazines and media outlets including Vibe, The Today Show, Marie Claire, Teen Vogue, Black Beat, Real Simple, Fitness, New Jersey Life…the list goes on and on.

Support your health naturally at Raine and River, a new apothecary on Grove St., close to City Hall. Owner Natasha is a spiritual herbalist who creates plant-based medicines, potions, tinctures, extracts, teas and tonic to both promote overall health and healing as well as target specific maladies or conditions.

Monticello Avenue has a new vegan restaurant. Poor Man Vegan opened in May serving vegan comfort food at budget friendly prices. The wife and husband team behind this new spot began their business as a vegan catering service, delivering food and baked treats to events and parties.

This Hoboken-based home, gift and lifestyle shop packs a lot of carefully curated products into their cozy footprint on 1st St. Owners Michael and John selected their retail partners with a focus on quality over quantity, sustainability, fair trade practices and diversity - focusing on women, LGBTQ and black-owned companies.

The deeply intertwined relationship between our mental and physical health is more apparent than ever. It is hard to keep your spirits up when, say, your neck in in spasm from typing from home all day in a non-ergonomically correct setup. Thankfully, Meghan and her team can help with this and with many more issues and ailments that affect parts of the body.

Have you checked out SMUSH Gallery in the Heights? It is a super cool art gallery and community event space run by multidisciplinary artist Katelyn Heller. And can we say hats off to her and all Jersey City artists and institutions who found creative ways to come out of the other side of the pandemic intact.

Just days ago, the Drip Coffee Culture truck rolled up to West Hamilton Park to the delight of so many locals in Hamilton Park.Where have you been? was the most common question posed to owner Eric Maury. The answer to that is a great one…

The automat holds a special place in our culinary history. Originally conceived of in Berlin in the 19th Century as a self-service restaurant, the concept really took off in America - Philly and NYC to be exact - after the Great Depression.

If you have been down to Harborside recently you have surely noticed the extensive renovations underway, such as the Pedestrian Plaza being installed at 210 Harborside. Another big change is the arrival of the Smorgasburg Food Market. It will take place at 195 Hudson St. each Saturday from late May to October, from 11am to 6pm.

Rounding out the full spectrum of gift options are a good range of greeting cards and very fancy popcorns, fine teas, and snacks. Whether you are treating yourself or someone as equally special, Washington General Store has got you. Such a sweet store - run by nicest people, to boot.

Upon opening in 2018, their custom cakes, cookies, cake pops and desserts in a jar made Sugarsuckle the go-to bakery among event planners looking for exquisitely tasteful desserts that provide visual wow along with tasting great. That distinction really set them apart as there are many high-concept desserts that look dazzling but taste average at best.

Hoboken’s Prime Cycle is yet another local business that has really hustled to keep it moving during the pandemic. Thanks to Prime Cycle for keeping class in action and for all the hard work and community acts of kindness over the past year.

Independent bookstores are not a thing of the past in Hudson County, for which we are eternally grateful. Jersey City has WORD, Bayonne has The Little Boho Bookshop, and Hoboken has Little City Books.