Branch Brook Park cherry blossoms 2019: How and when to see them – NorthJersey.com

Cherry blossoms can be frustratingly coy. Visit them a week too early and you’ll find spindly branches. Visit them a week too late and the blossoms will be scattered on the ground.

But these coquettish blooms, when caught at just the right time, are magnificent – frilly tufts that range in color from almost-white to bright bubblegum pink.

The time to see them? Now. The place to see them? Newark’s Branch Brook Park.

Branch Brook, which extends into Belleville, has an even larger collection of cherry blossoms than Washington DC. It was also the first county park to open in the country, and the first place to be listed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places.

Right now, the park is popping with pink, but it won’t stay that way for long, according to the Essex County Department of Parks and Recreation. Most likely, the blooms will begin to fall around April 20, and peak season will be over. Before it is, here’s how to make the most of your visit to Branch Brook Park

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The festival

You can catch the final few activities of the park’s Cherry Blossom Festival on April 13 and 14. The Essex County One-Mile Fun Run for kids begins at 10 a.m. on the 13th. Children can enter the free run through the park the day-of, and all will receive a T-shirt and award at the end of the race. It begins in the Concert Grove section of the park, near the Sacred Heart Cathedral and off of Park Avenue.

Directly after the run, a family day will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. This free event will include hula hooping, paddle boats, crafts, face painting and a fishing derby in Branch Book Lake from noon to 2 p.m. Food vendors will be on hand for supplying sustenance. 

The final event of the festival, Bloomfest, rund from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 14. Head to the Cherry Blossom Welcome Center (located east of Branch Brook Park Drive between Mill Street in Belleville and Heller Parkway in Newark) for free Japanese cultural demonstrations, including how to wear a kimono and a sushi-making session, as well as live performances by groups such as Drums of Thunder and Sawai Koto Academy.

See the trees

If you miss the festival, no worries — you can still make a visit to see the cherry blossoms on your own time. The park is open every day of the year.

Branch Brook Park is 360 acres — a long stretch of green surrounded by urban streets. So, it’s easy to get turned around and miss the trees.

The best place to start your visit is at the Cherry Blossom Welcome Center. The center has free parking, a playground for children, and an informational center with maps, bathrooms and a video and display cases that tell the history of the park.

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Most of the cherry trees are concentrated around the Welcome Center. Paved footpaths spiderweb out from the center — grab a map and start walking.

Another visitor center and playground is located between Mill Street and Prospect Avenue, where the cherry blossoms are also abundant. On the complete opposite side of the park, a visitor center can be found off of Bloomfield Avenue near the NJ Transit station. There are fewer blossoms on that side of the park, but there’s still a lovely display. Avoid the long, grassy center of the park — you won’t find any cherry blossoms there.

Take a tour

Bus tours through Branch Brook are available April 18 to 20, April 22 and April 26 to 27 every hour on the hour from 10 a.m. to noon. A guide will ride with guests to chat about the cherry blossoms and the design of the park. Each tour is 45 minutes. The bus leaves from the Cherry Blossom Welcome Center.

Those who’d prefer to make their own route can opt for a free cellphone tour by dialing 973-433-9047. As you walk along the park, you can enter location numbers at certain landmarks, and a one-to-two minute recording will play, filling you in on the history of that spot.

Go skating

After a walk around the park, how about a roll around the rink?

The Branch Brook Park Roller Skating Center is located in the south side of the park (115 Clifton Ave., Newark) and is open Mondays, Saturdays and Sundays. The free skate hours change daily and the price of admission ranges from $2 to $10, depending on the day.

The rink has an arcade and a café that sells kid-friendly foods such as hot dogs, pizza and chicken tenders. Call 379-482-8900 for more information about the rink.

Grab a bite

The dining options in the immediate area surrounding Branch Brook Park are slim. But, a quick 10-minute drive puts you in range of a bunch of restaurants.

They include:

• Top’s Diner: An East Newark staple known for its classic burgers, milkshakes and breakfast foods. 500 Passaic Ave., East Newark; 973-481-0490, thetopsdiner.com.
• Arlington Diner: Retro joint slinging classic diner foods. Ask to be seated with a mini jukebox. For a good time, pop in a few coins and choose a tune from a song selection that hasn’t changed for a good 15 years. 1 River Road, North Arlington; 201-998-6262, arlington-diner.com.
• Somos: A relatively new well-received restaurant featuring a menu of seafood-heavy Latin dishes such as grilled octopus, roasted cod and seafood stew — with a big bar.185 River Road, North Arlington; 201-621-0899, somosnj.com.
• Lee’s Hawaiian Islander: This kitschy, Polynesian-style restaurant offers a variety of Chinese-American dishes, weeknight karaoke and crazy strong cocktails, all in a room with plenty of tiki faces, a massive rock wall sprouting plastic flowers and a canoe hanging from the ceiling. 768 Stuyvesant Ave., Lyndhurst; 201-939-3777.
• Brookside Thai Restaurant: Quality Thai restaurant within a few miles of the park. We recommend the spicy, slightly sweet Kow Soy – a traditional curry dish with egg noodles. 380 Broad St., Bloomfield; 973-566-0057, brooksidethai.net.
• Ralph’s Pizzeria: Local favorite revered for its ultra-thin, super crispy cheese pizza. 564 Franklin Ave., Nutley; 973-235-1130, ralphspizzeria.com.

 

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