Don’t it always seem to go
That you don’t know what you’ve got til its gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot
We all have favorite places from our youth. For me there were several. One favorite of mine was Mickey Music – a record store. One of my high school jobs was at a cigar store in the same strip mall as Mickey Music. I would work all day Saturday and was paid in cash. During my 30 minute lunch, I would walk down to Mickey Music and each week pick out a new album. I think it’s a GNC now.
Then there’s Muscara Music that used to be on Washington Avenue. It was down the
street from Belleville Middle School (which was the original High School). Mr. and Mrs. Muscara started the instrument shop in 1951 and was visited by the likes of Connie Francis and Frankie Valli – two of Belleville’s own, by the way. I would go in and check out all the instruments as I would walk home from school and sometimes pick up some new sheet music.
It’s a Walgreen’s now.
Then there’s Jackie’s Lemon Ice. It was the BEST lemon ice. Period. I used to ride my bike down to Jackie’s on Union Avenue in the summer. The parking lot was the official hangout. You would always run into someone while you were there. Once I had my license, my friends and I would head there by the car full. You could get almost any flavor you could dream up, but I really only ever wanted lemon. Giacomina “Jackie” Rega’s lemon ice stand was open from 1951 and until his death in 2001. After that it became a Rita’s – common lemon ice. Nothing compared to Jackie’s.
Well, this past week, Jackie’s building was torn down. And when that building was torn down, there was a lot of sadness felt by the decades of fans of Jackie’s special recipe of lemon ice, complete with lemon zest. At least we all still have our memories. What will go up in its place you ask? A 7-Eleven.
And there goes another paradise.
This Is My New Jersey 
Lemon was my favorite too. To this day all lemon ice is compared to Jackie’s, and none ever quite live up to its greatness.
I remember Jackie’s when I was 4 or 5 yrs old. I remember how that Lemon Ice tasted compared to today’s standards. Nothing will ever replace it.
Belleville had good water back then.
My mother would talk Jackie into giving us 5 or 10 cent lemon ice. She would walk from 52 Columbus ave down the hill, past Jackie’s then down to Washington Ave to shop for groceries. This was in the late 50’s. I’m 71 now, my sister is 69 and my brother pushing a baby carriage, is Louis is 67.