A perfect weekend in Asbury Park, NJ

Calling Asbury Park a secret would betray its tumultuous and storied history: a fountain of American music, tucked away the swamps of Jersey† A home for national icons. A vibrant LGBTQ community. A city scarred by the civil rights movement, plagued for decades by mismanagement and mistrust, now in the midst of a burgeoning recovery, fueled by the soul that gave Asbury its raison d’être: music.

Now Asbury Park is being called “the coolest small town in America” by travel magazines and is regularly placed on “top beach destinations” lists.

But just an hour from Manhattan with no traffic, Asbury Park still feels like a discovery, a New Orleans-meets-Dogtown seaside town ignored by the bumper-to-bumper traffic from the Long Island Expressway to the Hamptons. , the overcrowded ferries that take day-trippers to Rockaway Beach or the growling, car-packed causeway to Long Beach Island.

Ignored, of course, at their own loss. Because, as I’ve learned since my first trip to Asbury 25 years ago, to do the Warped Tour with my father in the grounds behind the legendary Stone PonyAsbury Park offers a Jersey Shore idyll for all visitors: the rockers, diners, surfers, art lovers and just fans of a simple relaxing day at the beach. I’ve been keeping a rotating and updated list of suggestions for friends and family for years to help them have the perfect summer weekend. Now I will also share it with Times readers.

A beach weekend

You’re here for the beach, so let’s start with that. Most importantly, this is the Jersey Shore, home to paid beach access and draconian parking rules† Fortunately, Asbury Park has plenty of parking near the beach and doesn’t impose a time limit on paid parking, although it will cost you $3 per hour from 8am to 2am with no discounts on a daily rate. Then an all-day beach pass costs $6 per person on weekdays and increases to $9 on weekends.

Okay, time to pick a scaffold. Surfers, head north, as the only summer surf break during lifeguard hours is at Eighth Avenue and Deal Lake Drive (of course, there are no restrictions on morning patrols or sunset sessions). Non surfers who like to shred can book lessons at the surf beach via Summer surfing† For the equally active but steady crowd, head to the beaches off Sixth Avenue and search for the volleyball nets to join a fetch game or host your own.

The northern beaches are also home to the ‘dog beach’, a necessity in a city where bars build puppy play areas, host dog friendly “Yappy Hoursand the Mardi Gras parade revolves around costumed puppies† it’s not uncommon to see dogs in party hats trotting down the boardwalk after a birthday party. So in the early mornings and every evening after 6:30 PM, the beach at Deal Lake is open to dogs (and their owners).

For those who just want to sit and relax on the beach, grab a beach reading book the Asbury Book Cooperativea unique and local bookstore that operates as a cooperative, giving members voting rights on decisions and discounts on new books.

The Asbury Park BoardwalkLegendary as it may be for its appearances in Springsteen songs and Sopranos scenes, it’s not the kind of waterfront amusement park that many other coastal towns claim; more restaurants and bars line the shelves here. But there’s still some traditional beach fun, including the Asbury Splash Park, where sprinklers, hoses and other water-dispensing devices line the area for children. And the Silverball Pinball Museuman arcade that doubles as a museum of historic 1950s pinball machines offers the opportunity to join the wizards on Pinball Way.

A music weekend

Every September, Asbury Park is the site of SeaHearNow, a nationally recognized two-day festivalbut any weekend it can feel like its own music festival, as live music is sometimes played everywhere from a brewery to a bookstore to a coffee shop to a hotel lobby.

Start in the afternoon at the transparent clinch gallery, where local artists play on an intimate stage under the gaze of countless music legends photographed by renowned photographer Danny Clinch. A Jersey Shore native, Mr Clinch has photographed Bruce Springsteen, the Foo Fighters, Tupac and more, and his gallery on the east side of the Asbury Hotel is filled with portraits of iconic artists, including a (almost) life-sized Mr. Springsteen leaning against a muscle car for visitors to have their picture taken with. mr. Clinch will often join the bands onstage with his harmonica, while holding a recent blues duet with local Seaside band Johnny Nameless.

Walk from there to the center to the house of independents, a large sunken venue that can pack 500 fans for a Jersey punk showcase, a more reflective, indie marquee, or simply put a DJ on stage and have a dance party. End the night by going a few blocks to the Sainta venue that feels unchanged since it opened its doors in 1994, to a mix of local artists and nationally touring bands, packed into a slice of space that could easily be used as a punky dive bar.

The second day of our self-proclaimed festival starts with brunch at R-Bar, a new standout New Orleans-themed restaurant on Main Street that hosts a brass brunch on Saturdays and a backyard blues brunch on Sundays. Grab a Kane Head High on draft and some blue crab fritters and settle in for a perfect Jersey-meets-New-Orleans combination.

The main event is on Second Avenue, where the siren song comes from the legendary Stone Pony still echoes across the boardwalk, 48 years since it first opened its doorsand mr. springsteen sometimes happens† The venue’s Summer Stage, housed in the back yard, hosts major national acts, from Phil Lesh to Jason Isbell to the Bouncing Souls, while the aftershow may be at the Pony, where local bands take to the same stage as Mr. . Springsteen, Stevie Van Zandt and Southside Johnny regularly called home.

If your ears aren’t ringing yet, head back to the boardwalk at the Asbury Park Yacht Clubwhere on weekends there are often late night concerts that go on past midnight, and sweaty dancers blasting into the salty air.

A Jersey style food tour

Asbury’s many music venues may only be overshadowed by its thriving restaurant scene. There is a lot to eat, so let’s start early.

This is New Jersey, after all, so for breakfast eat that fatty, salty chopped pork shoulder product: Taylor Ham (or, as they call it in Asbury, Pork Roll). It’s available all over the city, but for the best experience, head to the Johnny Pork Roll Truck at the North Eats Food Truck park and get the Sandwich, a traditional pork, egg, and cheese sandwich with “saltpepper ketchup,” a seasoning that must be pronounced in the same breath.

If experimenting with the state’s most precious and idiosyncratic cuisine isn’t up to you, go to Cardinal Provisions for a mix of traditional brunch standards and original takes, like the cacio e pepe eggs.

You want to walk away from that breakfast, so walk downtown toward Frank’s Deli and Restaurant for a classic, multi-page laminated menu and formica stands. There is nothing bad on this menu, but you are here for delicious Italian sandwiches. Order them like Anthony Bourdain used to do: a pile of ham, salami, pepperoni, provolone, tomatoes, onions, shredded lettuce, and hot peppers, soaked in oil and vinegar.

Now dinner can go both ways. You could take a full pizza tour, sampling all of New Jersey’s styles in the square mile of Asbury. Start at Marucas on the boardwalk for a slice of “Tomato Pie,” a Jersey original where the sauce spirals out of the center, mixing with the cheese rather than being buried by it. Then Talulas hawks some of the best Neapolitan pizza in New Jersey or New York, sourcing all their ingredients from local farms marked on a blackboard above the bar. Or go to Killer Pies for a traditional slice and a custom, classic fountain soda.

For more of a sit-down dinner, go to Heirloom in St. Laurent (where a fixed price of $75 with a signature duck dish is arguably the best eatery in town), Pascal & Sabine for French-inspired dishes, or Coastal Neighborhood for lofty Mexican cuisine and some of the best shrimp tacos on the coast. The promenade is home to Langosta lounge and its famous Surf Curry, featuring fresh seafood floating in a house mix of yellow and green curry. Newcomer R Bar offers classic Big Easy dishes like gumbo, as well as Jersey-inspired spins like a fried pork sandwich that pays tribute to the famous fried bologna sandwich in Turkey and the Wolf in New Orleans. And since the fish swim so close, there’s plenty of seafood around the Bonney Read†

If you’ve saved room for dessert, go to Delights from a Rockstar and order cupcakes and other treats like a Macaroon 5, S’more than a Feeling, or an Oreo Speedwagon (I could go on, but I’ll save some surprises for the visit).

Where to stay

Unlike many Jersey Shore towns, Asbury Park has several large hotels with full amenities and a range of prices. To experience the new, modern essence of Asbury, stay at the Asbury, a hotel from the historic Salvation Army building that often has live music in the lobby, a rooftop bar, and a pool in the back (weekdays start at $395, weekends $660). Across the road from Bradley Park is the Berkeley Oceanfront Hotela long-running hotel that has been renovated and upgraded (weekdays start at $295, weekends $459†† On the other side of the beach is the empress hotel (weekdays $229, weekends $339), a popular spot for LGBTQ visitors, overlooking the ocean.

For those looking for luxury, the new Asbury Ocean Club (weekdays start at $585, weekends $905), housed in a glittering glass tower in the middle of the beach, is like leaving Asbury and stepping into a Hamptons or South Beach scene. The lobby, bar and pool are all on the second floor of the hotel, the only one on the street being a small vestibule with elevators. And the St. Laurent ($425 to $600 most nights), recently opened this summer in the historic Hotel Tides building, has 20 individually decorated guest rooms — each furnished with a custom surfboard from a local artist and comes with free beach passes – upstairs an expansive restaurant, whiskey bar, and backyard pool.