Chatham Cod

JERSEY CITY, N.J. -- We headed to historic Jersey City, an area that's seeing a tremendous gentrification. And there are restaurants that go hand in hand with that gentrification. One is the LightHorse Tavern, located at 199 Washington Street.

The owners bought a couple of buildings in Jersey City, renovated them and opened up a restaurant. Since Bill Gray and Ron Smith opened their restaurant five years ago, Jersey City has seen plenty of change.

And the LightHorse Tavern on Washington is popular with both groups. The building is from 1850 and the LightHorse was Henry Lee's nickname. He was a major in General George Washington's army.

The story of the food is simple: favorites that don't come off the menu, like the meat loaf and fish and chips and seasonal specials, like the sea salt crusted Chatham cod.

Chef Juan Llivicura coats the cod with oil and butter and sprinkles panko and sea salt on one side. It's sauteed and finished off in the oven.

Meanwhile, he mixes arugula and fennel with a blood orange vinaigrette. The fish goes right on top. It's a light dish served in an updated historic setting.

Sea Salt Crust Chatham Cod Recipe

Ingredients:

2 portions of 7 oz. Chatham cod or Atlantic cod

Panko bread crumbs

sea salt

butter

olive oil

2 oz. rock arugula

1 oz. shaved fennel

ground black pepper

fresh-squeezed lemon

Blood Orange Vinaigrette ingredients:

4 blood oranges

1 tbsp. finely chopped

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

1 tsp. sugar

1 tbsp. cherry vinegar

1 cup olive oil

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper