New Indian Restaurant and Three-Story Sikh Temple Energize Carteret's Desi Community
Two significant developments are reshaping the South Asian community landscape near Carteret, New Jersey—a vibrant new Indian eatery coming to Route 1 and an ambitious proposal for a landmark three-story Sikh place of worship.
Mango People Collective to Bring Indian Restaurant and Sports Bar to Iselin
Urban Edge Properties, owners of The Plaza at Woodbridge shopping center on Route 1 in Iselin, New Jersey, announced that The Mango People Collective, formerly known as the Fine Indian Dining Group, will open a new full-service Indian restaurant and sports-themed pub at the location. The announcement was reported by TAPinto on April 22, 2026. The new establishment will occupy a 9,462-square-foot standalone building at 675 Route 1 in Iselin, the same location where TGI Fridays operated until it closed in 2024. The restaurant's name had not yet been selected at the time of the announcement. The Mango People Collective plans to serve both traditional and modern Indian cuisine at the space. The Plaza at Woodbridge is a Route 1 shopping center in the Woodbridge and Carteret area. The Mango People Collective operates its website at fineindiandining.com and also maintains a Facebook presence under the name Mango Peoples Collective. Authentic Indian cuisine, as featured in the group's promotional imagery, will be offered at the new location. The arrival of the new Indian restaurant is expected to be a notable addition to the dining scene along the Route 1 corridor, serving the area's large South Asian community. [1]
🪔 Gurudwara Singh Sabha Proposes Three-Story Sikh Temple on Carteret Border
Gurudwara Singh Sabha, a Sikh religious group, is seeking to build a three-story temple on the Carteret-Woodbridge border in New Jersey, according to a July 9, 2024 report by Patch staff writer Carly Baldwin. The proposed temple site is located at 941 Port Reading Avenue, in the portion of Port Reading that falls within Carteret's municipal boundaries. The site currently contains a parking lot owned by Gurudwara Singh Sabha. The group already operates a small indoor temple at the same location and seeks to significantly expand by constructing a new three-story house of worship. An application for the proposed construction was filed with the relevant local authority. A rendering of the proposed temple's appearance was provided by Gurudwara Singh Sabha to accompany news coverage. The proposed new building would substantially expand the Sikh community's formal worship space in the Port Reading area on the Carteret-Woodbridge border. The Patch article appeared under its Woodbridge, New Jersey local news real estate coverage. The proposed three-story temple would replace the existing small indoor temple currently operating at the 941 Port Reading Avenue site, dramatically enlarging the community's capacity for worship and congregation. [3]