A new restaurant blending Dominican street food with Caribbean and soul food staples is set to open at 24 Hilliard Avenue in Edgewater sometime in September, bringing yaroa, rasta pasta and butter-baked chicken to a stretch of River Road already dense with foot traffic. The concept, called K Midnight Kitchen, comes from founder Katherine Jimenez, who spent years working in the food industry before striking out on her own.
According to Boozy Burbs, which covers dining, drinking and nightlife news in greater Bergen County, Jimenez previously worked as a Wawa food manager before creating K Midnight Kitchen. That corporate role would have put her in charge of fresh food and beverage operations, inventory control, associate scheduling and health and safety compliance across a high-volume retail kitchen, according to Wawa's own careers listing for the position. An exact opening date has not yet been announced, per the same report.
The menu leans heavily into Caribbean flavors, with Dominican-inspired dishes sitting alongside soul food and broader Caribbean fusion offerings. Expect yaroa, empanadas, fried chicken, BBQ chicken, sandwiches, baked mac and cheese, rasta pasta, specialty drinks, bubble teas and other sides once the doors open, per the same account.
A Dominican Street Food Staple Makes Its Bergen County Debut
Yaroa, one of the menu's centerpiece items, has roots that trace back to the late 1990s, when it emerged as a late-night street food in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic. The dish typically starts with a base of French fries or mashed plantains and yuca, then gets topped with seasoned meat, melted cheese, mayo and ketchup, according to Slice of Culture. The snack reportedly gained popularity from food carts clustered around Santiago's historic Monument before spreading to major U.S. East Coast cities.
Rasta Pasta, another menu item, has its own distinct origin story. The dish was created in 1985 in Negril, Jamaica by Chef Lorraine Washington at Paradise Yard Restaurant, combining Italian fettuccine with Caribbean jerk seasoning and bell peppers meant to reflect the Rastafarian colors of red, green and gold, per The Bermudian Magazine. It has since gained international recognition.
Why Edgewater Makes Sense For The Concept
K Midnight Kitchen is taking over a storefront with a track record of feeding a changing borough. The space most recently housed Szechuan Mirchi, a Halal Indo-Chinese fusion restaurant, and before that was home to River Thai Food, according to listings reviewed on Uber Eats. The address is 24 Hilliard Avenue, near NJ Transit bus stops for routes 158 and 188 that connect Bergen County to Midtown Manhattan and Fort Lee.
The demographic picture provides context for the timing. Edgewater's Hudson River-area location gives the borough a distinctive setting for a new restaurant.
Zoom out to the county level, and K Midnight Kitchen's Dominican-inspired menu becomes part of the broader regional dining context.
Part Of A Busy Late-Summer Stretch For Bergen County Dining
K Midnight Kitchen's arrival will add another restaurant to Bergen County's dining scene.
For now, the precise September opening date for K Midnight Kitchen remains unannounced, leaving Edgewater residents to watch the Hilliard Avenue storefront for signs of its debut.
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