Greetings from Asbury Park-Where the City Meets

A small coastal town on the Jersey Shore, the City of Asbury Park is currently going through a major economic development.

Once a popular seaside town, it at one time boasted 100 hotels inviting tourists to its approximately one square mile of beach, boardwalk, music venues, and restaurants; that number has now dropped to five.

Infamously known for the Stone Pony where local living legend Bruce Springsteen still plays, Asbury Park had run to disrepair. A corrupt city government, high drug activity, and a major riot in the 1960s has given the city a reputation to avoid.

After recently meeting with Tom Gilmore, the current Director of the Department of Commerce, the outlook for the City is really positive. Developers are building luxury condos overlooking the ocean. The municipal government has cleaned its offices of negative influences and the downtown area is revitalizing its boutique and restaurant business trying to draw in revenue from both the tourists and the locals.

Some places of interest that I enjoyed when recently visiting this hopeful town are:

Bistro Olé - 230 Main Street, Asbury Park, NJ 07712 (732) 897-0048 www.bistroole.com
This restaurant opened in 2003 and serves "Latin infused Spanish Portuguese cuisine."

Antique Emporium – 646 Cookman Ave, Asbury Park, NJ 07712 (732) 774-8230
A large antique shop housing 70 vendors with an additional 80 on the waiting list. I was told that if you cannot find what you are looking for here, you are out of luck. You may even find something you did not know you needed.

Asbury Bark – 535 Bangs Avenue, Asbury Park, NJ 07712 (732)775-4801
A small boutique filled with high end dog themed gifts for you and your favorite canine.

Quick Tips:

I was told that even while the City is still working on improving its image, the best place to stay while visiting would be the B&B’s and hotels in the next town over of Ocean Grove. Click HERE for a list of inns, hotels and B&B’s.

I remember the glamorous Asbury Park Berkeley Carteret with its wonderful ocean views and beautiful architecture, but learned that it is currently owned by people who were not experienced hoteliers and it was a little run down.

Most shops and restaurants are open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The eastern downtown area is the place to truly experience the revitalization. While it is perfectly safe in the daytime to walk around this area, do not venture too far westward, especially in the evenings, as this is where most of the troublesome areas are located.

The City is currently holding "First Saturday" events. The slogan is "Uptown meets Downtown for shopping in the streets." On the first Saturday of each month, restaurants and boutiques all stay open for extended hours and a different theme is created for visitors. From "Saturday Night Fever" to the "Tango", everyone is encouraged to dress up and visit the art galleries, listen to street music, take in some dining specials, and enjoy the dance contests. The local Chamber of Commerce can provide you with the new discount booklet used in conjunction with this event.

The City also has a weekly "Dining Out" promotion. Every Wednesday during April and May select restaurants offer a per person meal including a starter, entrée, and dessert. This does not include tax, gratuity, or beverage. Here is a list of participating restaurants.

Best Way To Get Around:

Directions:
From the North: Garden State Parkway South to Exit 102 – Route 66 to Asbury Ave
From the South: Garden State Parkway North to Exit 100A – Route 66 to Asbury Ave
From Philadelphia: 195 East to Route 18 North to Route 66 (Exit 10) to Asbury Ave

New Jersey Transit has a train station right in downtown. Get off the train, cross the street and many of the City’s highlights are in walking distance from the tracks, including the boardwalk. Take the NJ Coast Line from NYC or North Jersey.

From Philadelphia, NJ Transit’s bus # 317 departs from the Greyhound Terminal at 10th and Filbert and arrives at the train station as well.

Academy Bus Service will drop you off right at the train station as well as the eastern part of downtown. www.academybus.com

If you drive in, street parking is tough on the weekdays. There is a strict 2 hour limit during the day, but free parking is provided in the train station and also in the municipal lot right next door.

The boardwalk is fairly new after a million renovation was completed 2 ½ years ago. A wonderful way to catch the ocean breezes and walk off the delicious meal you just ate.

I knew I was in for a good time when Rico, the good looking host and part owner, greeted each one of us in our group of eight with hugs and kisses on both cheeks.

We were seated immediately for lunch and presented with water, bread, and oil to occupy us as we perused the menus and orders were taken.

The restaurant sits directly across from the Asbury Park municipal building on the corner of Main Street and Mattison Avenue. I was told by one of my lunch mates, who had been a previous visitor, that dinner on a Saturday night can be a two-hour wait. While it has only been open since 2003, the venue has become popular with the residents as well as visitors to the area.

Catching the end of Rico’s conversation with the other end of the table I was under the impression that this was not his first foray into the restaurant business. The comment I heard was " I’m back and to quote Elton John, "You can’t keep the b**** down"".

The atmosphere was clean and clutter free, with black and white dominating the color scheme and understated accents of red and yellow throughout, seen mostly on the large mural on the wall. Rich red cherry wood for the tables and chairs completed the look.

The prices here are extremely reasonable with soups, tapas, side dishes, and saladas ranging from $3 to $7. Five different sandwiches were each priced at $7 each, and include Spanish fries and a house salad. Two vegetarian entrees were $12 each, and lunch specials were all $10 each. Dinner specials were also available during lunch time, and they ranged from $12 for crab cakes, served over Spanish rice and topped with sautéed spinach and smoked cream sauce; to $18 for Paella Valenciana for two, which included fresh seafood, Spanish sausage, and chicken. The table next to us ordered this, and it was beautiful when it came out still sizzling in the pan with a lobster tail on top.

Our party ordered various dishes--from grilled chicken breast topped with guacamole and plantain chips ($10), to almond crusted salmon topped with Dijon mustard cream sauce and served in a large banana leaf ($10).

I ordered from the tapas menu and thought the Champiñones ($6) delicious. The huge portion of portabello mushroom topped with roasted red pepper, manchezo cheese and spinach pesto sauce garnished with tomato and green onion was big enough for two people. Before I knew how large the portions were, I also tried a side of sweet plantains ($3). These were so delicious it was like each piece was a small dessert in itself, and a perfect accent to a wonderful lunch. There were plenty of leftovers to take home.

Note: reservations not accepted, except for holidays, and your entire party must be present to be seated.

www.bistroole.com

A recent date and I decided to visit Asbury Park and dine at Moonstruck; a fairly new restaurant to the area that originally opened in nearby Ocean Grove in 1995, and was given rave reviews by all I have spoken to.

Easy to get to, about 10 minutes from the Garden State Parkway it overlooks Wesley Lake and some beautiful homes across the way. As we turned onto the street where the restaurant was located, I took notice of all the cars lined up along the road and parked in the lot. I was expecting the place to be packed especially as it was about 7:00pm on a Friday night.

We pulled in and were able to grab a spot right near the front door. As we climbed the stairs to the wrap around porch and entered, we were immediately greeted by the friendly hostess who, as she walked us up to the third floor dining area, explained that the first floor was primarily the waiting area with bar, cocktail lounge, and live entertainment. The second and third floors were used for main dining and overflow during the summer and weekends.

Our floor had plenty of tables and soft lighting; we were seated near the center of the floor without the advantage of being able to admire the lake view from closer to the front of the room. We were afforded the comfort of the large fireplace situated on one wall. I did notice that there was at least one nice sized room off the main dining area that could accommodate a fairly large private dining party.

Our waitress greeted us and took our drink orders after offering menus. I had water and my date, Dave, had a beer. We chose to start with the artichoke appetizer that was the special for the evening, which ended up being more leaf than heart and wasn’t that good. For our main entrees I chose the raspberry chicken ($16.95) and Dave, who loves seafood, chose the seafood linguine ($21.95). The chicken was wonderfully done and served with brown rice and a vegetable medley of carrots, green beans, and peas. Dave thoroughly enjoyed his scallops, mussels, and shrimp over pasta in a light red sauce. The portions were generous and definitely made up for the disappointing appetizer. For dessert, I chose the chocolate torte and Dave had the crème brulee. Both were delicious and wonderfully prepared.

The total cost for the two of use came to $90 and included one appetizer, one drink, two entrees, dessert, and tip. While this place was a little pricey for regular patronage, I would definitely return; possibly during the City’s "Dining Out" promotion where select venues offer a 3 course meal for $25.00 on Wednesday’s during certain months.

www.moonstrucknj.com

I met a girlfriend at the Japanese restaurant and was seated right in front of the floor to ceiling windows. Only one or two other tables were occupied at 6:30pm, but by the time we left about 1½ hours later the place was filled.

In the small foyer you are greeted by three silver flat screen TVs silently playing black & white movies. The restaurant is decorated in soft moss green colors on the walls and bench seating along one wall with a giant Japanese themed mural. The lighting is soft and recessed, along with a giant cluster of round rice lamps in the center of the ceiling.

As we sat I took notice of the Zen-like simplicity of our table setting. A basic woven mat topped with a white cloth napkin and a set of chopsticks resting on a small stone.

Our waitress took our orders almost immediately and provided each of us with a small bowl of crispy, crunchy noodle type snacks. I took advantage of the $25 pre fixe menu for Wednesday nights and chose the vegetable roll sushi for my starter and Chicken Katsu as my entrée. My friend is a vegetarian, and with both options on the pre fixe menu containing meat, she chose from the main menu and had Udon; a vegetable broth with thick flour noodles ($16). This soup was also available with shrimp ($18).

The vegetable roll was delicious, cut into eight huge pieces containing cucumber, avocado, and carrot,  and surrounded by white rice. It was served with a side of wasabi and fresh ginger. Regular soy sauce was provided along with a low sodium version. I like to pour a little soy sauce in my side dish and mix a bit of wasabi in for a nice bit of heat when dipping my sushi. I could only eat half of the sushi, so I could save room for the chicken entrée.

When dinner was served, my friend and I laughed out loud at the size of her soup bowl. Half filled with her choice, the bowl had to be big enough to be used as a washbasin. She said the soup was delicious and the noodles were huge. The bowl came along with a matching spoon to ease the eating of the broth.

My chicken was mediocre, it ended up being nothing more that a slice of boneless-skinless chicken breast that was fried in a panko crust. It came with separate sides of white rice, cooked leeks, and a deliciously tangy sesame sauce that saved the meal. On the plate itself were sides of pickled beet relish and shredded white cabbage. This also was a large portion and went unfinished.

We each chose the chocolate Verona sundae, which was delectable. One scoop each of vanilla and semi-sweet chocolate ice cream topped with chocolate powder and chocolate sauce. This was so good, we wondered if anyone would notice if we licked the insides of our bowls.

It was a cold and rainy Friday evening when I took my dad to see "Kevin James" of "King of Queens" fame. The comedy show was held at the historic Paramount Theatre at the very end of Ocean Avenue in Asbury Park.

The show was scheduled to start at 8pm, so we decided to meet after work for a bite to eat. We ended up getting into Asbury Park about an hour early, which was good as we were able to find a decent place to park without having to pay at the street parking meters or using the valet parking, which I heard cost about $20.

Walking up to the grand building, it reminded me of a very small castle with a large center turret, arched entryways and fancy detailing. It definitely looks better from afar, as I soon learned. Upon entering the building the ushers told us and the small group of people who were also waiting to find their seats that the doors to the theater itself would open shortly. That gave me a moment to look around and notice all the peeling paint and wallpaper that was desperately in need of a makeover.

Even thought it was rundown you could see the elegance that once was prominent during its heyday. It now seats 1,600 and has been described as "simultaneously majestic and intimate." It was designed by Warren and Wetmore the same architects who designed New York’s Grand Central Station. Directly behind the theatre is Convention Hall and according to their website is located "directly on the boardwalk and extends directly out onto the beach while accommodating 3,600 people, depending on the event."

Both of these venues are connected by the Grand Arcade, through which the boardwalk passes. The buildings have hosted some very prominent acts starting with its first performance starring the Marx Brothers and Ginger Rogers on July 11, 1930. Since then Frank Sinatra, the Rolling Stones, and Duke Ellington have all performed here as well as the most famous locals, Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen.

Back to the show we came to see, we were seated by 7:30 in fourth row orchestra, directly in front of center stage. The seats were not very comfortable, but surprisingly they reclined. The opening act was Richie Minervini, who joked about, of course, NJ, its highways and its nickname "the Garden State". His act lasted about 30 minutes and was pretty funny. He then introduced the headliner, Kevin James.

We had seen Mr. James previously and had a grand time, and although he was humorous this time around, there was no comparison. The act lasted about 45 minutes and was based upon his love of food, his dislike of the gym and just grazed upon a few other topics. At one point, a woman in the audience screamed something unintelligible and he grabbed upon that and made fun of her for most of the night. Not bad, but not the best.