Crappy turned Happy- "Bergen Town Center"

It used to be just "the Bergen Mall". And since we live in the mall Mecca of the United States (I have to assume), it was considered the crappiest of the FOUR within a 10 mile radius. Garden State Plaza, Paramus Park, Riverside Square, and....in DISTANT last, Bergen Mall.

I never went there as a kid. "My" mall was Paramus Park. It was closest, it was the "hang out", you could smoke cigarettes in there. It had Canadians, Sid's Pants, Attivo, Just Shirts, KB Toys, and CVS. What else could a tween in the 80's want? I worked in CVS with Ann Marie when I was going into my sophomore year of high school. I think we spent as much time at the mall as we did in school. Anyway, Garden State Plaza wasn't the mini universe it is now, but it was building up. I wasn't old enough to hang at the mall when it was still an outdoor thing. It was farther and my mom didn't like to drive there. Riverside was more the "snooty mall". Expensive stores, not really teen friendly and it didn't have Restaurant Row. Bergen wasn't even really a thought. It was small and didn't have any stores to write home about.

Now- it's THE mall. Or "Town Center" as it's now called. If you're looking for steals & deals, look no further. It has SLOWLY been building. I like Saks Off Fifth & Marshalls but not enough to go that mall just for those. Easier just to stick to Loehmanns. But, once Century 21 came to it, it started it's journey to becoming a major player in the mall Mecca market here. Then Nordstrom Rack, Bloomingdales Outlet, and Neiman Last Call- boom, boom, boom and here we are. Not to mention there are now J Crew, Banana Republic and a Disney Store outlets too. That is in addition to Children's Place, Carters, Gymboree and Stride Rite. Gymboree Outlet is a little annoying because they don't take coupons or Gymbucks. So, you have to really just buy off the sale and clearance racks to do better than in the regular Gymboree stores. But Banana Republic is a HUGE hit. B got a shirt and pants for $90 that would have been $200 in the regular store. I got $60 Sperry shoes in the Stride Rite outlet for E for $24 last year. I can always find great deals in the Gap Outlet. If only Loehmanns would move in there....Ahhh, a girl can dream.

It was raining & I needed to kill an hour and a half with E. I was going to try to take him to a play place but honesty, I didn't feel like paying $14 or $15 dollars for an hour. So went to Bergen Town Center to check out Sugar and Plumm, Purveyors of Yumm http://www.sugarandplumm.com/.
I wasn't sure what it was going to be beyond candy.  I had no idea what to expect. It's very pretty inside and have some of the most exquisite looking pastries I've seen.  Interestingly enough, the only pastry "missing", at least to me, is cupcakes. But, what I found the most intriguing and what would bring me back there is crepes. There is a crepe place in Fair Lawn, Creme de la Crepes- http://www.yelp.com/biz/creme-de-la-crepes-fair-lawn, and I've never eaten there, but this is just more convenient and appealing to me. They make them right there and you have a choice of sweet or savory. I'll be back for those.

Sugar and Plumm has candy, but still no match for my "Candy Store" in Garden State Plaza. For me, if you're going to carry Jelly Belly, you need to carry A LOT of the line. A few flavors aren't going to do it for me. But, they do have bulk candy there- just not sure how expensive they are. They had nostalgic candy, coffee, and some "regular" stuff like brownies and danish. It's the only place like it I've seen around- I think this is what Heavenly Treats in Glen Rock is trying to be, just on a much smaller scale. I think it's a great addition to the mall because while there is Bobby's Burger Palace, Villa Fresh Italian Kitchen, Qdoba, Sarku Japan, Starbucks and Whole Foods, there was really nowhere for "sweets" or coffee. You can stop in Lindt but that's just chocolate, it's grab and go and there is only so much chocolate you can eat. If you're not going to have a Starbucks, Sugar and Plumm is a great way to go. It keeps with the smaller, a-step-up-from-fast-food restaurant thing & good monetary deal thing going on. It's not trying to be a more high-end Restaurant Row kind of destination.

I also have to mention Target. I'm not a Target shopper, or I wasn't, before they put a fresh market in there. They have almost everything I need, including a decent selection of organic stuff (including milk, puree pouches, Jammy Sammys). I used to have to drive all over to different markets but now, between Whole Foods and Target, I don't have to do nearly as much running around. With a toddler, this type of food shopping is a dream. I'd be thrilled if Shop Rite was actually connected to WF and Target, because SR is my main market of choice but at least they're in the same general parking lot area. No, I don't like to do SR At Home or Peapod. I like to pick my own stuff. I actually LIKE going to the supermarket. I just don't like doing it with a short human, otherwise known as a 2.5 yr old. One market- fine, but since I'm a brand shopper and no one market has it all, the getting him in and out of the carseat and in and out of the shopping carts is for the birds.

I'd say the only thing really missing is some kind of play area. What would be even better would be if a kids play gym kind of place opened INSIDE there. Then it would be heaven. Like if Cutie Patootie came up there, it would surely be a hit. Not a Little Gym or My Gym where you HAVE to have a membership. It has to be one of those places like a CP or a Funtime Junction where it's more pay-to-play. I'll be waiting for this...someone- Quick! Get on that!

http://www.bergentowncenter.com/index.aspx