A Taste of the South, Mere Steps from SPF

Clifton and Sharon Freshwater don’t take much time away from their eponymous restaurant, a South Avenue establishment just 150 yards west of Terrill Road, toeing Plainfield’s border with Fanwood.

“My food is definitely my passion,” Clifton said.

Sharon agreed. “You can love what you do,” she said, “but do you have a passion to be here grinding seven days a week? We’re giving it for our heart.”

Sharon and Clifton, who hail from Florida and North Carolina, and moved to Scotch Plains, opened Freshwaters in 1987: first as a take-out joint on the corner of Berkman Avenue and South Avenue in Plainfield; then, from 1991 to 1996, as a sit-down restaurant at Watchung Avenue and Fourth Street.

“I was very scared,” Clifton said of first opening the restaurant. “At that time, I was working for New Jersey Transit. On-the-job training.”

Sharon, meanwhile, pulled double-duty: a nine-to-five shift at Johnson & Johnson’s New Brunswick campus, followed by a six-to-eight stint at the restaurant.

“It was growing,” Sharon recalled. “Lots of catering, lots of business orders – events, weddings.”

In 1995, Sharon resigned from Johnson & Johnson to focus full-time on the restaurant, chiefly the business side of the operation. Two years later, she and Clifton pair moved the operation to the restaurant’s current location – a two-story establishment that seats 55, and includes private party space for up to 40 people, and a smaller private room for up to 18 people.

Nearly all of the food is cooked on a grill. But make no mistake – this isn’t any old barbecue shack, it’s a veritable southern bistro. From pecan-crusted crab cakes to catfish étouffée, short ribs, fried chicken and peach cobbler, every dish is prepared fresh and served alongside a tall heap of vegetables and cornbread.

“If we don’t make it, we don’t sell it,” Clifton said.

Entrees range from $14 to $19. But the restaurant is BYOB; meaning patrons won’t take a hit on the bill.

Food and price aren’t the restaurant’s only charms. The staff is friendly and attentive – “my wife makes sure that when you come here, you will have a fun experience,” Clifton said – and a jazz pianist performs on Saturday nights.

“When people come in, they’re comfortable and happy. There’s that personal connection,” Clifton said.

The recipe apparently works. For the past 14 years, the restaurant has attracted the likes of Mary J. Blige, Lennox Lewis, Alonzo Mourning and other celebrities from near and far.

In fact, the venture has proven so successful that Sharon and Clifton said they are expanding – perhaps to North Carolina – or even franchising. They added that their son, Clifton Jr., a business major, is helping in the expansion process.

For many Scotch Plains and Fanwood residents, however, Freshwaters remains, at least for the time being, “a hidden treasure,” as Clifton described. “You have to come and discover it, enjoy the experience.”

 Freshwaters Restaurant, 1442 South Avenue, Plainfield, 908-561-9099, Tuesday, 5 p.m. - 9 p.m.; Wednesday - Friday, 5 p.m. - 10 p.m.; Saturday, 4 p.m. - 10 p.m.; and Sunday, 1 p.m. - 8 p.m. http://www.myfreshwaters.com/home.aspx