When I moved here in 2003, I was shocked to pull up to the
Gulf station on 519 and have my gas pumped by not only a female, but a blonde
one. No Indians or Middle Easterners in sight. Since then, it would seem to me
that there has been a gradual increase in people of color to this area... I now
visit, with fair regularity, a deli, a convenience store, a couple of gas
stations and a Dunkin Donuts, who all employ or are owned by Indian
individuals.
Now, let me be clear, since political correctness is such an
issue these days. I am not saying that I have a problem with non-Caucasians.
I'm just saying that, whether you are pro or anti diversity, Warren County, NJ
is not quite caught up to the rest of the melting pot. Now, for a person like
me, the main issue with that is the lack of ethnic cuisine around here. For
Easton, PA's Heritage Day and similar celebrations, people head out to enjoy some Polish kielbasa
and kraut, or maybe some sausage and peppers if they want to get really crazy.
We recently had a decent Indian restaurant open up in the
town of Lopatcong,
much to my delight, which will hopefully do well and stick around for a while.
Other than that, we have one overpriced sushi joint, and a smattering of the
obligatory Italian and Chinese places. Somewhere close to Rt. 46 there's a
Cuban restaurant (which I'm not even sure is still open), but you have to
travel to Easton, PA or to Hunterdon County if you want some decent Spanish, Thai,
or other type of "exotic" fare.