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Visiting Rutgers? Here's some info

MrsScrew

Newbie
Sep 27, 2006
11
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I've been to Lincoln twice and had a blast. Can't wait for you all to get to NJ and have some fun at SHI stadium.

If you are traveling to NJ for the Rutgers game here's some info:

you can fly into Newark and take NJ transit directly down to New Brunswick. No rental car needed.

Hotels in New Brunswick, both walking distance from the train:

Hyatt (2 blocks from the train)
Heldrich (my personal favorite but about 4 blocks from the train...still an easy walk)

There are others in Piscataway or Somerset but only the 2 above are close to the food/bars/fun

George Street, across from the train station and in the direction of both hotels, is now a pedestrian walkway. All of the restaurants and bars have outdoor seating in the street.

Dining/bar options in downtown New Brunswick either on or just off of George Street:

Harvest Moon
Old Man Rafferty's
George Street Ale House
Tavern on George
Fat Cactus

Fine dining:

Steakhouse 85
Salt (seafood)
Catherine Lombardi (Italian)
Cuzin's Seafood Bar
Frog and the Peach

Other dining options on Easton Avenue

Destination Dogs
Stuff Your Face
Evelyn's
Thomas Sweets for fantastic ice cream!


The student bars are all on Easton Avenue, which is where the train lets you off. Not sure what mood the students are in these days so enter at your own risk:

Old Queens
Corner Tavern
Scarlet Pub
Huey's Knight Club
Golden Rail

At The Yard, on College Ave you can find R U Hungry and the famous Fat Sandwiches. They used to be part of the Grease Trucks that lost their home when RU built some buildings

MENU | RUHUNGRY?


www.ruhungrynj.net
www.ruhungrynj.net


Rutgers is spread in 2 towns for their main campus , Piscataway and New Brunswick. They also have campuses in Camden and Newark but, believe me, you don't want to be in either of those cities.

If you go into Manhattan, please for the love of God, Be aware of your surroundings at all times. Do not walk with your phone out like a tourist. Don't wear good jewelry. If you do go, the 9/11 museum is a must. I think it's something that everyone should visit.

NJ transit will also take you down to Trenton where you can switch to the SEPTA and head into Philly for a whole other set of entertainment and food.


Game Day:

It's the blackout game, so please remember to wear BLACK

There are shuttle buses in downtown New Brunswick that will take you to the stadium.

You can also Uber/Lyft to and from the stadium. RU has a specific drop off point but you will need to take the bus back to the Jersey Mike's Arena (JAR) to get an uber back to whereever it is you want to go..

If you are feeling energetic, it's an almost 3 mile walk from downtown NB and this route will take you through bar/restaurant areas : https://www.google.com/maps/dir/40....@40.5018658,-74.4539598,17z/data=!4m2!4m1!3e2

If you have a parking pass, follow the signs to your lot. Scarlet & Green are the closest, but a bit boring. A lot of old rich folks hang out there. Yellow and Blue are also close and a lot more fun, with a bit of a younger crowd. Purple and Silver are not to bad to walk from and are a great option to park your car and enjoy what there is around the stadium on gameday.

Tailgating starts early. The official "rules" about tailgating say 6 hours before is when you can get in the lots but just ignore that! We start setting mine up at 7am. Walk around the lots, most people will engage you in conversation and offer up a beer. Please note: the police in past years have been awful about giving out underage drinking tickets....$800. Last year they were not so bad and to my knowledge, the first game this year they were not bothering people but be warned!

MAKE SURE TO TRY A PORK ROLL, EGG AND CHEESE SANDWICH!! Food of the NJ Gods!!! ( I must say I really enjoyed Runza when I was in Lincoln. Great hangover food! )


Up near the stadium is our Victory statue as well as the first game statue. Both worth a visit and a photo.


Our team gets off the bus about 2.5 hours before kickoff up near the first game statue, our Scarlet Walk. Fans and the band line up along the first game statue to greet the team. .


This year the main road leading to the stadium is set up as a Jersey Shore Boardwalk with games with prizes (FREE!), Bouncy house things (FREE!) and rides(FREE!), and food trucks, so there will be plenty of food options if you don't tailgate. There is also a live band performing in the area and a beer garden. IT IS AWESOME. I was so impressed by it all that If I didn't have my own tailgate I would be participating in this in a heartbeat. Last week there were 14 different food/dessert trucks & stands and a mobile hotdog truck going up and down the road. We even had a ferris wheel!!

A little look at what it's been like:





***NOTE: Rutgers strictly follows the clear bag/bags smaller than a clutch rule. The security people stand there with rulers sending people away. Don't be that person! Also, no food or drink of any kind is allowed in the stadium (at least food or drink that is visible. What you can get into the stadium in your pockets, down the back of your pants or under your hat is none of their business!) No water bottles, no apples, no candy bars. Nothing. ***


Make sure you add your tickets to your Google/Apple wallet before you get to the stadium. There have been games where everyone is trying to access the app and no one can get to their tickets.



You will find that RU has a pretty lively tailgate scene, because we don't always win the game but we do win the tailgate.

Lastly, the final train out of NB to NYC is 1:38am. there won't be another train until 5:38am.

Map of parking and area around SHI stadium:

https://scarletknights.com/sports/2017/6/11/facilities-parking-html.aspx

Rutgers Visitors Fan Guide

Flipsnack
 
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Thank you for the suggestions. I am planning on going and this was very informative.
 
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What’s the parking there like?

What’s the must go to place for a Cheesesteak?

Thank you in advance!

Parking is all on campus but you need a pre-paid parking pass for all of the lots. Scarlet is a paved parking lot right next to the stadium. Green is next closest, but is grass. Yellow and blue are 5 minue walks to the stadium, the funnest, both are grass, both tend to get a bit muddy (I mention this becasue we are on day 3 of Ian making his way up the east coast. Should be dry, I hope, by Friday). Purple/silver/black are a bit further back (think 15 minute walk to the stadium) but also paved. There is a Greek Church on River road that is paved and allows parking/tailgating for a fee. Johnson park across the street from the stadium is another place but they flood a LOT and it would be iffy if it will be open Friday.

I'm sure you can get a parking pass on the secondary market.

Cheesesteak? Philly is the place to go. There may be a food truck on the Boardwalk that has them though. The thing you really want is Pork Roll. That's food of the NJ gods.

Sounds pretty damn fun

We don't always do so good on the football field. We make it up in our tailgate scene. We don't, however, have tailgating at the gas station the way we saw in Lincoln both times we were there.
 
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Thank you. I had a blast both times I visited Nebraska, especially the 2nd time when I got to drive a tractor & my husband drove a combine....our very own Green Acres moment gifted by a NU fan we met the first time.

I always want visiting fans to have a good time in NJ.
Lol, that's both maybe the most Midwest thing I've heard this year, and very awesome.
 
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I grew up in NYC. Went to school in Manhattan & lived there for years. I didn't know what a combine was and driving that tractor was truly my Ava Gabor Green Acres moment. Definately a highlight of the trip!

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We are gonna go to NYC for the weekend after the game. There are probably 100, but do you have a recommendation for a good Italian restaurant? TIA
 
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