Restaurant+Review+Example+2

=Snap, crackle and more at Cereal Bowl in New Brunswick=

March 10, 2010, 3:53PM
William Perlman Some of the cereal choices at The Cereal Bowl, 296 George Street in New Brunswick

.   Since my daughter Jana left for law school, the cereal shelf has been invaded by her brother Eric’s protein bars and trail mix combos. But when she’s home, there are at least three open boxes in the house at all times. Hey, you never know if it’s going to be a Cinnamon Life, Oatmeal Squares or Honey Bunches of Oats kind of day. When our other daughter Joannah is home and I find a box of their favorite Lucky Charms in the pantry, I know one or both of them is having a very bad day. I blame their cereal addiction on college. They kept it in their rooms as snacks, ate it for breakfast in the dining hall and munched while they studied. Cereal is filling, it’s inexpensive, it doesn’t involve cooking and as Diane Vogel, the owner of The Cereal Bowl in New Brunswick puts it, “It’s comfort food for college students.”

Actually, her new store right in the midst of the Rutgers campus is the ultimate cereal lover’s dream come true. You walk into a bright, cheery space, smell fresh-brewed coffee and an adorable, sweet-as-sugar young person behind the counter — a student herself — in pajama bottoms and a baseball T-shirt enthusiastically asks how she can help.

I was clueless, so Marlene and Sarah explained there are 20 kinds of cold cereal in large dispensers on the wall, and 20 toppings in containers to choose from. If you prefer hot cereal, you can have your oatmeal made from hearty Quaker oats plain or with some toppings. There are small bowls (16 ounces) and regular bowls (24 ounces), and by the time you’re done concocting, it’s a full meal. The prices are college-student cheap: small bowls range from $3.39 to $3.79 and regular bowls are $3.99 to $4.59. If that isn’t enough, there are yogurt parfaits ($4.99), “oaties” ($4.69), which are smoothies made with oats and lots of other good stuff. Peanut butter paninis ($2), muffins ($1.59, chocolate, corn, banana nut, blueberry, apple crunch), grits ($2, small; $3 large; add 50 cents for cheese), whey protein shots (69 cents), and Rice Krispies treats ($1.69).

On the menu, you can choose from the shop’s combination dishes or design your own. Many items are listed with the fat, calorie, fiber, protein and sugar content, and if you have dietary restrictions, you can choose from soy, lactose-free, skim, 2 percent or whole milk. For example, a “3 on 3” is a bowl of Fruit Loops, Fruity Pebbles and Apple Jacks with fresh strawberries, bananas and blueberries. A healthier “Morning Glory” comes with Frosted Mini-Wheats, fresh strawberries, bananas and almonds, and “Ruby Nuts About You” combines Honey Nut Cheerios, Grape Nuts, chopped pecans, sliced almonds and cinnamon.

If you’re craving dessert, “Give Me S’More” gives you Cocoa Puffs, Golden Grahams, marshmallows, chocolate chips and graham bites. Not sweet enough? How about “The Dirt Bowl,” with Cookie Crisp, Oreos, chocolate sauce and gummy worms?

My dad was always trying to get us to eat oatmeal, and with the help of a little brown sugar, we’d sometimes cooperate. But at The Cereal Bowl, there’s “Dad Knows Best,” with oatmeal, fresh strawberries, bananas and blueberries. Yum. Then there’s “Mom Knows More,” also with oatmeal, but with apple pie filling, brown sugar, graham bites, and caramel. Now that might have done it, Dad. “Haul ‘n Oats” combines oatmeal with maple syrup, raisins, dried cranberries, coconut and chopped pecans. But Vogel says the best selling oatmeal is “Strawberry Cheesecake,” with cheesecake filling, fresh strawberries and graham bites. Not surprising. Oaties include “Bananaberry Bombs,” strawberries, bananas, oats, sorbet, honey, and milk; “Mango Madness,” made with mango sorbet, orange juice, bananas, oats, and milk; and “Cookies and Cream,” from frozen yogurt, oats, Oreos, and milk. The parfaits look like sundaes, made from combinations of yogurt, fresh fruit, granola and cold cereal.

Some of the cold cereals not mentioned above include Total, Special K, Frosted Flakes, Corn Flakes, Wheaties, Rice Krispies, Cap’n Crunch, Trix, Cheerios, Cookie Crisp and Cinnamon Crunch (gluten-free). Other toppings: M&Ms, gummy bears, sprinkles, peanut butter chips, Craisins, and apples.

If you want to make up your own box of cereal to go, choose any combination of cereals and the staff will fill up a Ziploc with your choices and give you a box, and you can take it all home. Naturally, I couldn’t just make it easy and order off the menu. Somewhere between “Ruby Nuts About You” and “Morning Glory,” I created my own masterpiece of Honey Nut Cheerios, Grape Nuts, pecans, almonds, bananas, strawberries, raisins, and a touch of cinnamon. It was so good, I thought about adding cereal to the shopping list this week, but where would I start?

That’s the beauty of The Cereal Bowl. You can have pecans and Craisins one day, coconut and bananas the next, oatmeal, dried cranberries and brown sugar after that, and then change your cereal to fit your mood.

I also like the store’s commitment to sustainability. Every bowl is made from recycled materials and is biodegradable, the coffee is fair-trade, certified organic, and the packaging is earth-friendly.

This is the first Cereal Bowl in New Jersey; there are others in Delaware, Miami, Washington, D.C., and even one in Qatar. Vogel says she would love to open a couple more, also near college campuses, where kids like the local Rutgers students can eat well, feel good about saving money, hang out and study, using WiFi or watching a ballgame on TV. And talk about comfort — here’s a place where you can come and eat in your pajamas and no one will look twice.

Hmmm. I think I’ll forget to mention that the next time my daughters are home and we hit The Cereal Bowl for some Lucky Charms on one of those days.

//**The Cereal Bowl**// 296 George Street, New Brunswick, (732) 543-2727. [|thecerealbowl.com]