New Chef Has Big Plans for Taphouse Grille

Stephen Mohren's wants to change people's minds when it comes to bar and comfort food.

Mohren is the new executive chef. He brings a 13-year career and simple philosophy of using homemade ingredients to redefine what people will eat when sharing an appetizer with friends during a football game or having dinner out with loved ones. 

“I like to go out to eat and get something unique, something that you can’t get anywhere else,” Mohren said.

Taphouse opened on French Hill Road a little more than seven months ago with a large selection of Italian food. Mohren was hired about two months ago.

“We’ve gone in a different direction,” Mohren said. “When I first walked in here I saw the bar with all the beer taps and took in the atmosphere and thought to myself: ‘comfort food’.”

Morhen's braised short-rib tacos are cooked in beer and apple juice and covered in an apricot barbecue sauce and pickled red onions and served with chipotle aioli sauce on the side.

One of Taphouse’s signature desserts is the strawberry shortcake. It is made with strawberry jam, vanilla-infused mascarpone cheese and a balsamic strawberry sauce.

Pizza with truffle oil and sliced potatoes and black bean chili with jalapeño peppers and jalapeño cornbread are some of Mohren's other creations. Others will debut during football season and in October.

Mohren previously worked for the Park Grille in Newark and helped run The Manor in West Orange. He enjoys creating dishes that pair well with one of the two-dozen beers on tap. Many of the selections are made by microbrews in the United States and Europe.

“I want the food that we create here to be special,” Mohren said. “Being able to pair the food with these craft beers was one of the things that made me want to come here.”

Mike Fetherston, co-owner of Taphouse, said that he shares Mohren’s approach to food and vision for the type of restaurant Taphouse could become one day.

“You could have a nice relaxing atmosphere and a place that looks great but everything has to blend together,” Fetherston said. “The food, the atmosphere, the look. I think we’ve got all that and [Mohren] is a big part of that.”