Can you really dine with a ghost at this N.J. restaurant? We went spirit hunting.

Amber Ramos isn’t afraid to admit it. The hostess at Spring House in Tenafly has felt a supernatural presence on the restaurant’s second floor.
“Sometimes I’ll be there alone,” Ramos told NJ Advance Media, “and the lights just kind of dim or flicker.”
Jonathan Krieger (co-owner of acclaimed Chinese restaurant Fat Choy in Englewood) and Brandon Hirsch opened this North Jersey restaurant and social club, offering Mediterranean and New American fare, back in May. But since opening, they claim to have an unexpected resident at the restaurant — a friendly ghost.
The restaurant is located in the Demarest-Lyle House, a historic stone building built in 1794 that is on the National Register of Historic Places. The group spent their first year operating in this building as The Spring, a cafe serving quick eats like coffee, sandwiches and smoothies. During this time, they kept hearing stories from customers about weird things that happened years earlier when the building was a school.
“We had a lot of families coming in (to the cafe), talking about how their kids went to school here,” Hirsch said. “The teachers and parents noticed that the kids would stand in corners and talk out loud, which they found bizarre.”
Legend has it the children were talking to a woman — Julia Lyle. Lyle lived in the house with her husband, John, in the early 1900s. John passed away in 1912 and Julia followed in 1939. Tenafly purchased the home in 1940 to serve as a new town hall.
The town listed the house for sale in 1997 and it became an office space in the 2000s.
Krieger had no idea of the apparent lingering ghost prior to purchasing the building in 2023. Four weeks before they turned The Spring into a full-blown restaurant called Spring House in hopes of boosting profits, they were looking for a way to pay homage to the history of the building.
“Then we found pictures of (Julia Lyle) and learned about the story,” Krieger said.
The eeriest part of the situation? Krieger’s wife is also named Julia.
“When we found that out, it was pretty intense,” Krieger said. “Everybody got chills.”
Krieger attests that Julia Lyle’s presence can be felt on the second floor of the restaurant during the nighttime. He says says guests will know she’s there when the lights in the room flicker, and they might be overcome by a strange, positive feeling.
“When you’re upstairs you just, out of nowhere feel really good,” Krieger said.
Of course, I had to see this for myself. I was a little skeptical about dining with someone from the afterlife. I’ve never had a paranormal experience, and I don’t believe in ghosts. But nevertheless, I took a trip to Tenafly to investigate. Who says food writers can’t be Ghostbusters?
I will concede that the outside of the house looked, well … haunted. The Tudor-style architecture was beautiful, but I was slightly creeped out. The lights in the upstairs dining room and lounge were much dimmer than downstairs. Perhaps setting the mood for a haunting evening?
While I was indulged in their crispy calamari ($18), blistering shishito peppers ($14) and juicy half-chicken ($36), I noticed the lights flickering, consistently changing back and forth from bright to dark. It happened even more when I said Julia’s name.
I was enjoying a few spoonfuls of their decadent amaretto tiramisu ($12) during dessert, when I felt a slight breeze on my right shoulder a few times. Maybe there was just a draft in the room, but the night wasn’t chilly.
Is there really a ghost residing at Spring House? Maybe. I probably wouldn’t have paid much attention to the lights or the breeze if I hadn’t known about the possible visitor. But I didn’t see any of the employees controlling the lights, either. To be fair, a 230-year old building could also simply have faulty wiring.
Luckily, Hirsch and Krieger say that the ghost doesn’t faze guests at all. While they don’t market the restaurant as haunted, they do inform guests if they have a reservation in their “ghost room,” an area of the restaurant dedicated to Julia Lyle complete with photos of her.
The Spring House space is gorgeous with a different vibe in each room but still highlighting a cozy, yet classic touch featuring vintage furnishings and an upscale bar. The food is worth the trip, and the potential paranormal activity makes it a must for anyone looking to go ghost-hunting.
Though I’m not a full believer yet, if Julia is here, she’s a friendly ghost for sure. No need to call the Ghostbusters!
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Lauren Musni may be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @Laurengmusni and on Instagram. Find NJ.com on Facebook.