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CRANBURY: Cranbury Inn deemed N.J.’s oldest restaurant

By Nicole M. Wells, Special Writer
CRANBURY — With a deed for the property issued by King George III in 1765 hanging on the wall, a casual observer might conclude that The Cranbury Inn is on the older side of old.
What they might not realize, however, is that the inn is the oldest continuously operating restaurant in New Jersey, according to Thrillist.com.
By its own admission "obsessed with everything that’s worth caring about in food, drink and travel," Thrillist recently compiled a list of the oldest continuously operating eateries in America, selecting one from each state and Washington, D.C.
The Cranbury Inn was chosen from New Jersey.
In researching the backgrounds of restaurants nationwide, the dining and travel website listed restaurant associations, historical societies, tourism boards and business licensing departments among the organizations it consulted in order to make the final cut.
Innkeeper Tom Ingegneri said that, while they knew the restaurant was old, the designation came as a surprise to him.
"A friend of mine sent me the article," he said, referring to a Yahoo.com article, similar to the Thrillist.com piece, about the inn’s ranking.
He had not yet seen the Thrillist article.
As proprietors of the inn, Mr. Ingegneri said he and his wife Gay felt it never had its due justice.
"We thought it was totally unrecognized," he said. "I am so proud of this."
When they purchased the business, their goal was to make The Cranbury Inn the heartthrob of central New Jersey, he said, and, although it took 22 years, they feel that it’s now doing just that.
"You don’t have to go out and push it," he said. "It’s putting it where it belongs."
By way of example of the following the inn has gained, Mr. Ingegneri said that 18 to 20 percent of his business is women who have been married or had their wedding receptions at the inn returning to have other functions there.
According to Mr. Ingegneri, the recognition has created renewed interest in the history of the building.
Although he concedes that his tour is a bit shorter than his wife’s ("She can tell you everything!"), Mr. Ingegneri said that within the last couple of weeks, he has been giving two to three tours of the inn a day. He also recounted how a recent group having a business meeting at the inn asked him about its history and requested a tour.
"How often does that happen?" he asked.
Citing the national exposure, Mr. Ingegneri said he thought a spike in food tourism might bring more people through the inn’s doors in the days to come.
"My customers have a tremendous interest now in the history of it," he said.
According to the organization’s website, Thrillist.com began as an email newsletter in New York in 2003 that highlighted the best bar and restaurant openings each day.