The week following Labor Day was a particularly busy one in Secaucus, with Restaurant Night, Dog Day Afternoon, the Veggie Fest, the ICC Carnival, Punt Pass & Kick, the 9/11 memorial, and the Out of the Darkness Walk all competing for attention within a four-day span. Not to mention the popular Wine Tasting Night taking place on Sept. 11 at the town pool.
Attendees at the fourth annual event were treated to two different cabernets, two pinot grigios, two chardonnays, and a merlot, totaling 30 cases of wine, all free to Secaucus residents courtesy of sponsors the Jersey Flyers Swim Team and the law firm of Chasan Leyner & Lamparello, PC. At least 12 different finger foods were offered by roving servers, including shrimp, buffalo chicken with dip, pulled pork sliders, beef with horseradish sliders, chopped meat with spicy cheese and onion sliders, and miniature hot dogs.
Seven-time Emmy winner Hunter Hayes provided the mood, singing along to a wide, nonstop mix of soul, disco, classic pop, and modern hits.
The 4th annual wine tasting night featured seven different wines and at least a dozen types of hors d’ouevres.
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She grew up in Weehawken, where she got to know many Secaucus residents. Secaucus didn’t have a high school at the time and students went to Weehawken High.
“This is a phenomenal town,” said Mike Grecco. “Everybody knows one another. It’s a friendly town.” A former councilman for 12 years and a Board of Education member for 12 years before that, he has seen the town change dramatically over the years. “Everything was done for the better,” he said.
Buckshot in the keister
“I moved here a year ago and let me tell you something: I love this town,” said Sandra Aguiar, sipping wine in a lawn chair beside a fiery brazier. “The people are so nice. It’s such a great community. There’s so much to do. I get the calendar and mark off things to do.”
But first she had to get over the culture shock. “When I first moved here I wondered why are the old people sitting outside at 11 at night? They’re going to get mugged.”
“Me, I never moved here [from another town],” said Wayne Wolf, sitting beside her. “I went from one end of town the other. I come from the back road. South End. Henry Street and down County Avenue. Forty, fifty years ago, that was most of the town. Most of this wasn’t here. I live right here now. I sat and watched them rip part of the woods down to build this pool.”
“The woods used to go right out to Mill Creek,” said John Jandreau. “Huber Street was the end of town. The farms were up this way.”
“Where I live now was a farmhouse,” remembered Mary Jandreau, a resident of town for 50 years. “When we came there were no stores. We had to take a bus to Journal Square. But we had so many bars. And we had a bowling alley that burned down.”
“There was a bar on every corner, almost,” said her husband. “I lived on Hudson Avenue. We had four within a block radius.”
As a youngster, he used to sneak into the fields at the north of town and steal produce. “This guy had tomatoes out in the field. We’d eat his tomatoes. He came out with a buckshot one day with salt and pepper. I got hit in the keister. My ass was fire red.”
Fun in the moonlight
Lee Udcoff spent the evening mingling with friends and grooving to the tunes. “I love the old music. I’m old,” she laughed.
“I’m 65 years old and this is my type of music,” said Susan Barry. She was attending the event for the first time. “Usually I’m working. I work at Danny’s Midway. I never get out to go to any event but I’m off tonight.”
Her first stop was the carnival in Buchmuller Park, but that wasn’t her type of crowd, so she got back in her car and headed over for some wine, hors d’oeuvres, conversation with friends, and Hunter Hayes.
“I love this,” she said. “I LOVE it.”
Hayes, who sang at the event last year and other concerts, has built a following in town. “I heard him up in North Caldwell where my girlfriend lives,” said Caroline Addeo, attending with her husband Felix. “He’s excellent.”
Sylvia Celeste, taking a break from dancing, sat at a table enjoying the music. This was her first time attending the wine tasting event. A transplant from Hoboken, she has lived in town for three years and has attended other Secaucus concerts and the Fourth of July fireworks show.
“Hoboken did a lot of events, but I guess because I was raised there it wasn’t as fun,” she said. “That was more city and it wasn’t just for Hoboken. You had people from New York coming in, from all over the place. This is just for Secaucus, so it’s not as crazy and it’s more calm. And it’s much safer.”
Art Schwartz may be reached at arts@hudsonreporter.com.