7 favorite food destinations I can’t wait to revisit at the Jersey Shore
These are the restaurants, listed from north to south, where Craig LaBan is most excited to return to this summer.
My lucky mission each summer is to dive into the Jersey Shore’s restaurant scene to eat and write about what’s fresh in beach dining. The downside is that I rarely have the opportunity to return the following year to some of those new favorites. This spring, while waiting for the Shore’s post-Memorial Day food story to unfold, I began revisiting spots I’ve covered in years past. Here are seven special places, listed from north to south, that I’m looking forward to reexperiencing sooner, rather than later.
OK, so I reviewed Clemmy’s in Waretown just last summer. But this modern American BYOB just north of Manahawkin was such a hit, I believe co-owner Allen Walski (ex-Pumpkin, High Street on Market, the Plantation) is a talent to keep an eye on. A recent revisit to this airy 44-seater in a strip mall made the trip worthwhile, with gorgeous local scallops from Viking Village served as a crudo in citrusy brown butter, handmade agnolotti stuffed with foraged ramps, and an epic pork chop Milanese buried in tufts of salad and shaved Parmesan over smoked tomato sauce. Don’t skip the signature orange cake (get it, Clementine?) made by the chef’s mom. Clemmy’s, 290 US-9, Waretown; 609-891-4066; clemmysrestaurant.com
Over the past decade, Mexican cooking has become one of the Shore’s essential food groups, with dozens of excellent taquerias and cantinas from Long Beach Island to Cape May, including last year’s favorite, Los Machetes, in Ocean View. This summer, I’m looking forward to four-year-old La Cabañita in Manahawkin. Dolores Alvarado’s charming, flower-fringed building is a destination for bountiful platters reminiscent of her native Veracruz, including stellar shrimp cocktail, flaky masa empanadas, and a molcajete overflowing with fresh chorizo and tender carnitas bathed in her signature green salsa, all served with velvety handmade tortillas. Clemmy’s chef Allen Walski says La Cabañita is his go-to for birria. La Cabañita Mexican Restaurant, 621 E. Bay Ave., Manahawkin; 609-488-2056; lacabanitarestaurantnj.com
No one does tableside theatrics better than Cafe 2825, the clubby 39-year-old Atlantic City stalwart where virtually every party requests a visit from the rolling cart for hand-stretched mozzarella, still warm with sweet butterfat; toothy house-extruded spaghetti with truffled cream twirled inside a wheel of Pecorino Romano; or simply a classic, anchovy-laced Caesar. What defines Cafe 2825 is the quality, overseen by chef-owner Joe Lautato, whose repertoire of dishes like baked clams oreganata, tender braciole, and dreamy, deluxe veal parm make the case for this iconic restaurant as one of the finest practitioners of classic Italian American cooking anywhere. Cafe 2825 Atlantic Ave., Atlantic City; 609-344-6913; cafe2825.com
There are plenty of farm stands at the Jersey Shore, and Reed’s Farm certainly checks that box. Since Caroline “Cookie” Till of Margate’s renowned Steve & Cookie’s took over this 78-acre farm in Egg Harbor Township in 2020, it is turning out nearly 30,000 pounds of organic produce each summer, from 12 varieties of heirloom tomatoes (try the Jersey Devils) to Jenny Lind melons that are part of an official Slow Food Foundation Farm plot to preserve endangered heritage foods for the foundation’s Ark of Taste. The farm hosts monthly fundraiser pop-ups during the summer with chefs (like Greg Vernick), but the bountiful market and cafe are a daily draw, with pizzas baked in an outdoor oven, fresh soups and seasonal fruit pies, plus an apothecary line of teas and tinctures made from herbs grown on-site.
But Reed’s is not just about food. Run by the nonprofit A Meaningful Purpose, this farm is about how food can become a vehicle for community, healing, and food system change, with a market that employs people with special needs; a camp for children from underserved neighborhoods in Atlantic City to connect with agriculture, nutrition studies, and workforce training; and a barnyard full of “therapy animals” (Hello, Rosebud the potbellied pig!) beloved by a range of communities. Reed’s Farm, 5075 Spruce Ave., Egg Harbor Township; 609-457-0273; reedsorganicfarm.org
Longtime Shore-goers can be provincial about their favorite haunts, especially when it comes to doughnuts. I’ve been so fixated on the boardwalk beauties at Brown’s Restaurant (where I worked last summer as a “donut boy”) that it took me more than two decades to wander just a few blocks south to appreciate Dot’s Pastry Shop, which may be the oldest bakery at the Jersey Shore.
Established in 1947, this family-run gem’s longevity is rooted in old-fashioned quality, down to the 1930s boxing machine that mechanically wraps each box in string. The sticky buns are the best on the island — satisfyingly rich, but not leaden — while the glazed doughnuts are airy and flavorful, especially the one delicately twisted into the shape of a pretzel. Still, the real treasures are the famous cream-stuffed doughnuts buried in powdered sugar. “I’ll have one of those!” I said before the cheerful young counter woman stopped me and added two, shaking her head with a smile. “I’m doing you a favor,” she said. “One is a mistake.” Dot’s Pastry Shop, 3148 Asbury Ave., Ocean City; 609-399-0770; dotspastryshop.com
Great barbecue is a rare and precious commodity that’s devilishly hard to sustain in the Philadelphia region. But Wildwoods BBQ is one of our best current contenders, a year-round operation flanked by picnic tables in North Wildwood operated by two childhood friends from Australia, David Gill and Joel Romano. “Gilly,” who honed his pit craft at Hometown Bar B Que in Brooklyn, turns out a fantastic pepper-encrusted brisket that glistens, tender pulled pork, and tawny-skinned chickens still moist from a honey and bay leaf brine. The deeply smoked burnt ends are confited to melting softness in beef tallow before they’re glazed in tangy sauce warmed with harissa spice.
Romano, the former chef at the Goat’s Beard pubs, lends a creative touch — putting smoked beets over tzatziki dusted with dukka (a pistachio, peppercorn, sesame seasoning that also adds crunch to the outstanding ribs). The cumin-y Aussie sausages and housemade hot dogs are also a draw for a take-home “barbie,” while the exceptional smash patty burgers here made from the brisket trim are another reason for a visit. Wildwoods BBQ, 701 New Jersey Ave., North Wildwood; 609-600-3292; wildwoodsbbq.com
The fish doesn’t get any fresher than at Hooked Up Seafood, the cheerful, no-frills shack set along the Rio Grande Avenue causeway that connects the mainland to Wildwood: The picnic table where you’re devouring those bigeye tuna tacos, a pie tin of garlicky steamer clams, and platters of blackened John Dory is likely just a few feet from where Capt. Bill Bright has moored his commercial fishing boat, the Defiance.
After 16 years in business, Bill and Michelle Bright’s four children — Tess, Sara, Sam, and Will — have taken the lead, but you’ll still find the peerless seafood (simply grilled or hand-breaded in a cornmeal crust), creamy chowders, Jersey stone crab claws, and littlenecks cleaned and sorted on-site, all fished by the Brights, their extended family, or friends. The next generation is also launching a seafood charcuterie program for picnic baskets to ease the waits, a partnership with a local winery, and gluten-free options. Hooked Up Seafood, 1044 W. Rio Grande Ave., Wildwood; hookedupseafood.com