What you should eat at celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson's new restaurant in Newark

Soon after Marcus Samuelsson's restaurant opened in Newark, we high-tailed it to sample the award-winning chef's eats.

We were hardly the only ones.

Marcus B&P, a casual all-day restaurant that Samuelsson hopes will help Newark as his renowned Red Rooster has helped Harlem, was hopping — on a weeknight. The bar was jampacked; every table in the funky 44-seat dining room was occupied. Marcus B&P was only 11 days old (it opened Nov. 17).

"Ninety percent of our customers are local," said general manager Chris Keys, a Newark resident. Many of the remainder hail from New York City. "We get Red Rooster regulars here," Keys said. (FYI: the Obamas made sure to go there on one of their trips to New York City.)

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Thanks to Marcus B&P, New Jerseyans no longer have to cross the river to enjoy the dishes created by Ethiopian-born, Swedish-rasied Samulesson, a multiple James Beard winner and cookbook author.

So what's to eat at Marcus B&P? Here's what we tried:

1. Marcus's Cornbread

"You can't open a Marcus restaurant without Marcus's cornbread," general manager Keys said. Darn right. Samuelsson's cornbread is legendary. If you've ever dined at Red Rooster, you'll spot his legendary cornbread on just about everyone's table. Samuelsson's fans know to order it. And now you do too. At B&P, the near half-bread-loaf portion is accompanied by sweet and silky Five Acres butter and heavenly Tassot honey. For good measure, the dense, earthy bread is flecked with MV black salt. It costs $8, but it's deliciousness is priceless.

2. Fried Chicken & Waffles

As with cornbread, a Samuelsson restaurant isn't complete without fried chicken. Samuelsson has said that it took him three years to perfect his fried chicken for Red Rooster, one of the dishes he credits for his success. He sure does know how to fry a bird. At B&P, the delightfully crispy chicken has a slight kick, thanks to the Jamaican-style escovitch sauce. The waffles are made from "super-ripe" plaintains. $9

(3) The Nine Seven-3

Samuelsson's used Newark's area code to name this awesome thick-dough pizza, an homage to Jersey's iconic breakfast sandwich: Taylor Ham, cheese and eggs.The pizza, served with respect on a pizza stand, is topped with provolone cheese, a soft-boiled Goffle Road Farm egg and, of course, Taylor Ham. It's breakfast – for dinner. $14.

(4) Dorowat Rigatoni

Dorowat, spicy Ethiopian stew which is the national dish of Samuelsson's native country, is usually served with injera, the spongy Ethiopian sourdough flatbread. Samuelsson replaces injera with rigatoni, making the dish a tasty Italian-Ethiopian hybrid. If you have any cornbread left, use it to soak up the sauce. $19

(5) Seafood Pancake

The night we ate here, the seafood pancake was a special. Today it's on the regular menu. Be thankful it is; it's a winner. Crisp and somewhat sweet, it tastes like a scoop of pure deep ocean that was fortunate enough to have some sweet soy and Japanese kewpie mayo drift in. $14.

(6) Dorthann's Donuts

Samuelsson could have saved his kitchen crew work and time by having them make only the chocolate citrus ice cream that accompanies this doughnut dessert. The three square-shaped doughnuts, stuffed with local hazelnut filling, were fine, but the ice cream – to this ice cream fanatic – was incredible. $9.

Marcus B&P is at 56 Halsey St., Newark 973-645-0004; marcusbp.com/