The west side of the county, across the Hackensack River from everything else: a town of houses on hills above the Passaic, a main street on Kearny Avenue with Scottish, Irish, Portuguese and Latin American roots, two big parks, and the Harrison PATH station a short bus ride away. Kearny is the county's best value for a house with a yard and a real commute.
Kearny is the old Scottish town on the ridge between the Passaic and the Hackensack, now Portuguese, Brazilian and Ecuadorian too, with the bagpipe shop and the Taylor ham still in place on Kearny Avenue. I show homes here but I do not live here, so I built this day from the places locals rate highest, and I am walking it myself. Every place is real. The map is real. Scroll, and I'll walk you through it. Tap any stop for the full story.
A small café on Kearny Avenue with Brazilian-leaning plates and the first coffee of the day. Sit if there is a seat; the room is not big.
The Taylor ham, egg and cheese that Kearny argues about. A family place on Elm Street since 1968, open six in the morning to four in the afternoon, seven days.
Kearny's train is across the town line in Harrison: the Newark–World Trade Center PATH, one stop from Newark Penn and a direct ride to Lower Manhattan.
From here it is a walk to the Harrison PATH station on Frank E. Rodgers Boulevard, across the Harrison line: a short ride on the 40 bus from Davis Avenue and Bergen Avenue, a few blocks up from the park, or close to an hour on foot; then Newark–World Trade Center trains.
Lunch at the bottom of Kearny Avenue, by the Harrison line: Ecuadorian ceviche, hornado, empanadas and llapingachos, in a room built for family tables.
The errand that only exists in Kearny: a bagpipe and kilt shop that has been on the avenue since 1982, with Scottish and Irish groceries and sweets at the front.
The main library on Kearny Avenue, open until eight on Wednesdays, with preschool storytime and kids' yoga on the calendar.
The after-school hour: 46 county acres shared with Harrison, with a spring-fed lake, two playgrounds and a spray pool for the hot months.
Early dinner with children: a coffee shop and Asian-fusion kitchen on Midland Avenue with an indoor playground, open every day from eleven to nine.
Dinner one: Brazilian, on the avenue, with a feijoada the kitchen makes the slow way and a caipirinha with real cachaça.
Dinner two, or the drink after: a from-scratch kitchen at the very bottom of Kearny Avenue, with hand-shaped ravioli, braised short rib and a proper cocktail list.
Saturday starts at a Portuguese bakery on the avenue: pastéis de nata, pão de queijo, and a loaf for the weekend.
Thursdays, noon to six, on the Garfield Avenue side of the library: Jersey Fresh produce from Alstede Farms and a free concert some weeks.
And back to the river for the end of the weekend. The Passaic is the west edge of town, so the sun goes down over the water here.
Honest footnotes. None of these places pays me or knows I wrote this. I built this Kearny day from the places locals rate highest and I am walking it myself — tell me what I missed. Hours change; check before you go.
The west side of the county, across the Hackensack River from everything else: a town of houses on hills above the Passaic, a main street on Kearny Avenue with Scottish, Irish, Portuguese and Latin American roots, two big parks, and the Harrison PATH station a short bus ride away. Kearny is the county's best value for a house with a yard and a real commute.
Kearny sits between the Passaic and Hackensack rivers on the county's west side, with Harrison and East Newark to its south and the Meadowlands to its north. Most of the town is on the ridge above the Passaic: streets of one- and two-family houses, Kearny Avenue running along the top as the main street, and two large parks, Riverbank Park on the Passaic and West Hudson Park on the Harrison line. The southern tip, Kearny Point, is the old shipyard being rebuilt as offices and warehouses.
The town's identity comes from who came to work in its mills and shipyards: Scottish and Irish families first, then Portuguese and Brazilian, then Ecuadorian, Peruvian and Central American. Kearny Avenue still shows all of it, from the Scottish pub to the Portuguese bakery to the Ecuadorian restaurant, and the town's soccer history runs from the old Scottish clubs to the national team players who grew up here.
The commute is the question buyers ask first. The PATH runs from Harrison station, across the town line, to Newark and the World Trade Center; from most of Kearny that is a bus or a drive, not a walk. NJ Transit buses run to Newark Penn and Port Authority, and Route 7, Route 280 and the Turnpike are all close, which makes it one of the easier places in the county to own a car.
For buyers this is a house town with prices well below the Hudson waterfront and below Bayonne: detached and two-family houses with driveways and yards, plus some newer apartment buildings near the Harrison line. Investors like the two-families; families like the parks and the schools. I show it to anyone who has told me the waterfront numbers do not work.
Best for: families and first-time buyers who want a house with outdoor space and a PATH commute they can reach by bus, and anyone who drives for work. Harder for: buyers who want to walk out the door to a train or a waterfront.
The walk above is a real day in Kearny — coffee, the commute, the park, dinner. Answer four questions and it reorders itself around your morning, or open the route map and follow it yourself.
40,614 people live in Kearny, where the median age is 40.0 and the average individual income is $36,305.
Data provided by the U.S. Census Bureau.
There is plenty to do around Kearny — shopping, dining, parks and nightlife. The three scores below rate how easy it is to get around without a car.
Walk Score®, Transit Score® and Bike Score® provided by Walk Score.
The places within walking distance — where to eat, shop, train and get a haircut. Tap a row to find it on the map.
| Name | Category | Distance |
|---|
Places and addresses from OpenStreetMap contributors. Distances are straight-line from the centre of Kearny. Hours change — check before you go.
Data provided by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Daycare through high school, in or next to Kearny. A starting point for comparison — visit before you decide, and call me about catchment lines, which move.
| Name | Type | Grades | Students |
|---|
Public and charter schools from the NCES Common Core of Data; daycare and pre-school locations from OpenStreetMap contributors.
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