Pig and Khao Chef Leah Cohen’s Favorite Date Night Spots

“Shukette is one of my favorites. We’ve gotten everything on the menu: All the breads, obviously. A bunch of the dips. We do the pita, and the frena with whipped garlic. I’m obsessed with the whipped garlic. I love garlic flavor, but it’s not overpowering; it’s not as sharp and punchy because it’s mellowed out with the oil.

“And then there’s the lamb tagine. I also pretty much love any of her vegetables. Right now, she has harissa carrots and this dish called mushroom arayes, which is a pita filled with mushrooms that have been pan-seared. The texture of both the pita and the mushrooms is fantastic; I’m obsessed with mushrooms because they have so much natural umami.

“I also love [chef Ayesha Nurdjaja’s] Bang Bang Shata sauce. I think that it’s nice when people take the time to make a hot sauce in-house and it’s good. It’s not overly spicy. It doesn’t kill the rest of the food. But it has that heat, which I love. And it’s not crazy vinegary.

“Shukette just has this really fun vibe, and you can tell even from the way the menu reads. It’s laid-back and fun. It has an open kitchen. Both of my restaurants have open kitchens, so I love that.

“And it’s also very close to home. I live in Jersey City, very close to the Lincoln Tunnel which is very important when we’re doing date night. If, God forbid, there’s any issues with the sitter, we can get home in less than 20 minutes.”

“We rarely go to places more than twice unless they’re really good. My husband and I have been here at least 10 times. I actually told my in-laws that I was pregnant with our second child when we took them out there. We get our food pretty fast, and they’re super consistent. I think that’s really important for a go-to spot.

“They have the best xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) in the city. The dumpling wrappers are thin — I don’t like a really doughy wrapper for xiaolongbao. I love the ratio of meat to liquid; it’s just perfect. It reminds me of the ones at Din Tai Fung — and I’ve had Din Tai Fung in every Asian country. Pinch basically took in old Din Tai Fung employees, so it’s pretty much the same.

“The Peking duck is legit. The duck skin is crispy, and the meat is tender on the inside. But the pancakes are really nice. They’re the best pancakes that I’ve had for Peking duck. They’re so thin, you really taste what’s on the inside. But they have enough substance to them where they can hold the duck and the cucumber and hoisin sauce.

“Mapo tofu here is spicy, and it’s balanced. It has a good tofu-to-pork ratio. And we get it with seafood fried rice. I eat those two together and it’s the perfect combination. The wontons in chile oil are delicious. So are the snow pea leaves. And they have good cocktails and wine.

“It’s also a fun vibe. It’s not an open kitchen, but there’s a glass window so you can see inside the kitchen and you can see them forming and steaming the dumplings, which is really nice. I just love that interaction — being able to see inside the kitchen.”

“We used to go here as a date night when we moved to Jersey City. And then when we had the kids, we brought them for lunch, too, because it’s a family spot. Actually, it was the first restaurant that I took the baby out to. He was 12 days old, and I was like ‘I need to eat something that I didn’t make.’

“When we go, we get six pizzas. We go hard. We get the guanciale pie, the funghi, the pepperoni, and the Jersey margherita with fresh Jersey Girl mozzarella.

“Dan [Richer, chef and owner of Razza] also does this cultured butter board where he ages them as you would with cheeses. I don’t like blue cheese, but I enjoy the less-aged butters. I like that concept and the idea of having fun and being creative because you don’t see stuff like that normally.”

“We also like Gouie. It’s this cute little sushi counter in the basement level of Essex Market. This was one of our first date night spots after the first three months of having my baby. It’s when you finally sleep through the night, and you’re like, ‘OK, let’s do something more than the regular routine.’

“When we go, we just order the fresh fish that the chef recommends for the day. We usually get the fatty toro. The quality of their fish is great. The rice is perfectly cooked. It’s seasoned well, and it holds its shape, but you can see every grain.

“What I also like about Gouie is that they have small dishes that are not sushi. Because, as much as I love sushi, I always feel hungry. Chawanmushi’s a classic: First of all, eggs are one of my favorite things, and theirs has a really nice creamy texture. It’s cooked properly and seasoned well, so it’s all about execution. I’m also a sucker for any tempura, and they usually have a special tempura of the day. I like their uni over rice in a cup; it’s a good amount of uni. And then they have the yuzu sake.

“The vibe in that space is nice, too. I love their sushi counter. It reminds me of being in Japan — just a small space in a market where you can just get amazing, delicious sushi. And there are people at Essex Market around you, and places to get desserts or anything else at the market.”