One of the Most Beautiful Restaurants in the US Is an Hour from New York: Why You Should Visit It

New York City has its fair share of attractions, but if you travel across state lines to New Jersey, you'll find even more floral magic and some of the most beautiful restaurants in the United States. SecretNYC tells in more detail.

In addition to having the most cherry blossom trees in the country, New Jersey has a wonderful park and sculpture garden with 25 species of wildflowers, 2000 trees, and 270 works of art. Experts recommend visiting Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, New Jersey.

Grounds for Sculpture spans a whopping 17 hectares. It first opened in 1992 thanks to its founder, J. Seward Johnson, an artist and philanthropist. He hoped to make contemporary art more accessible to the public in a relaxed and welcoming environment. environment.

Restaurant Rat's

While the entire sculpture park and gardens are certainly the main reason to visit, Rat's Restaurant is also worth a look. It evokes associations with a rustic French diner, with old-fashioned architecture and ivy climbing up the facade.

Restaurant located in the park. Be sure to specify "outdoors" when booking.

Guests will enjoy a stunning view of the main pond, covered with water lilies, irises and framed by towering weeping willows. Of course, the most impressive is the Japanese bridge, which will take you straight to France. The design of this corner was intended to recreate the famous painting "Bridge over the Pond with Water Lilies", which was created in 1899 by Claude Monet. The bridge imitates the one that is located today in the estate of the impressionist artist in Giverny, France.

Sculpture area

The main sculpture park "aims to exhibit the works of contemporary artists from around the world."

The park boasts nearly 300 sculptures in a vast open space. You can find everything from giant bronze statues of famous people to a glowing fiberglass snake rising from a pond.

In addition, there are six additional galleries on the premises for new and emerging artists.

Opening hours, booking and tickets

To enter the territory, you need to buy a ticket in advance. hereTickets are released every two weeks. If you don't see any slots available, it means that all seats are sold out for that time period. You'll have to check back later for additional dates.

Price:

• $25 – for adults (18+);
• $18 - Seniors (65+), Active Military, Veterans (ID required), Healthcare Professionals (ID required);
• $12 - for children aged 6 to 17 or with a student ID.

The park is open every day from 10:00 to 17:00, except Tuesday.

To dine at Rat's, you can simply make a reservation at OpenTable or call them directly at 609-584-7800. Please note that dining does not guarantee entry to the sculpture garden. You will still need to purchase timed tickets in advance.

The restaurant is closed from Monday to Wednesday.

Restaurant business hours:

• Thursday - Saturday

Lunch: 11:00 – 15:00. Dinner: 17:00 – 21:00.

• Sunday Brunch: 11:00 AM – 15:00 PM. Dinner: 17:00 PM – 20:00 PM.

Getting there

Grounds for Sculpture is located at 80 Sculptors Way in Hamilton, New Jersey.
You can take the NJ Transit Northeast Corridor train to Hamilton Station or Trenton Transit Center (depending on the time), then transfer to the 608 bus to E STATE ST EXT AT FAIRGROUNDS RD or E STATE ST EXT AT SCULPTORS WAY. From New York City, you would board this train at Penn Station.

By car it is about an hour's drive (depending on traffic/schedule), and by public transport the journey will take about 1,5 hours.