BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer
MIGUEL JUAREZ staff Steve Mezzadri and Elly Teo are the creators and designers of Citrus, a new restaurant in downtown Freehold. FREEHOLD — Steve Mezzadri used to don a suit and tie and battle through hours of commuter traffic before he even began his work day in the New York City financial world.
Today he buttons up a crisp white chef’s jacket sporting the name Citrus on it. Mezzadri does not “do” the trading floor anymore. These days he can be found cooking up exotic, tasty dishes at Citrus, which opened at 32 W. Main St. in May.
Mezzadri and partner Elly Teo both quit their full-time jobs for the experience of owning their own business. The business is cooking for and serving customers in an elegant yet cozy environment.
The two former Monday-through-Friday workers now spend their 9 to 5’s, or rather their 2 p.m.-to whenever, depending on the night, the customer load and the clean-up, doing what they love to do — cooking.
Mezzadri and Teo do most of the work themselves.
He cooks most of the main dishes while she whips up desserts and acts as hostess to customers in the renovated restaurant that describes itself as having a chic New York-style setting.
Opening the restaurant still seems like a dream to the couple. Although they said they had been shopping around for a small place to open a restaurant, a walk on the borough’s main street sold them on downtown Freehold.
Mezzadri, 46, grew up in Staten Island, N.Y., and has lived in New Jersey for 20 years. He met the Malaysian-born Teo, 29, about three years ago during a trip to California. The couple now live in Freehold Township.
“I always loved to cook,” Mezzadri said, adding that after the couple moved back to New Jersey they experimented by cooking different dishes for their friends.
With her extensive European and Asian travel experience, Teo brings her flair for the exotic to the business. Mixing foods and flavors is the focus of this unique type of cooking, which the restaurant owners refer to as fusion cooking.
The chefs blend foods, spices and vegetables from different cultures and the result is a new cuisine that is tasty and colorful.
Foods like Korean-style Negimaki — beef rolls with enoki mushrooms, asparagus and red peppers with a sweet and spicy Korean marinade, or pistachio crusted shrimp, a deep fried shrimp in crushed pistachios with a rio grande citrus beurre blanc sauce. There are also dishes like lobster ravioli, which comes with sautéed crawfish, grilled asparagus and an exotic mushroom medley in a thyme-infused light cream sauce.
For those who would rather indulge in culinary treats more akin to American cuisine, there are dishes such as grilled strip steak served with herb-scented roast potatoes and pork chops with grilled vegetables and sweet potato fries.
Teo, who studied art at Arizona State University, brings her creativity not only in cooking, but in decorating as well to the business. She has painted large murals along the walls, using bright primary colors and modern designs on a backdrop of colorful embossed painted metal. The opposite wall retains its original brick facade, giving an “old world” feel to the restaurant.
Desserts are made at the restaurant and change with the seasons or when the couple sees something they would like to add.
Citrus is open for dinner Tuesday through Thursday, 5:30-10 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 5:30-11 p.m. Reservations are accepted.