Hoboken Café Legal Beans Another Hurricane Sandy Casualty

With every image that emerges, the damage wrought by Hurricane Sandy comes clearer into focus, and by far one of the worst affected areas was the waterfront community of Hoboken, N.J., which required aid from FEMA and the National Guard. Neighborhood restaurant and coffee shop Legal Beans suffered crushing flood damage, including a rush of water so powerful it shattered the café's windows and transported much of their furniture down the street. A call to the Jersey City location, Legal Grounds, yielded a non-working number. According to their website, both locations are closed through Nov. 9.

Eater reports on France 24's interview with Jojo Paloma, a cook at the restaurant, who explained that it took several days before they were even able to enter the hollowed out space, and now that they've started to assess the destruction, there are many health and safety concerns. The popular restaurant was known as much for its bean-sourcing and fine blends of coffee as it was for greasy spoon staples like chili cheese fries and pancake breakfasts.

The establishment previously made headlines in 2011 for serving a surprisingly good, under-the-radar pulled pork sandwich. While the two coffee-centric cafés are closed, a third location in Jersey City serving an expanded barbecue menu is open for business.