Free tolls and food on the Atlantic City Expressway from Chickie’s & Pete’s to start Memorial Day weekend

In what has become a rite of Memorial Day weekend, Chickie’s & Pete’s will pay the Atlantic City Expressway tolls for motorists headed east through the Egg Harbor Toll Plaza between 5 and 6 p.m. Friday.

That afternoon from noon to 5 p.m., the sports-bar chain will also host a party at the Farley Service Plaza in Hammonton with free Crabfries and other food and beverages from Hershey’s Ice Cream, Mars, Carlo’s Bakery, Applegreen, and Monster Energy Drink; a demo by the New Jersey State Police Dog Search and Rescue Team; and a display of fire and rescue equipment from Atlantic City International Airport.

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In addition, children can visit with ambassadors from the Funny Farm, an animal-rescue sanctuary for farm and zoo animals. They’ll also have vendors and artists.

Chickie’s & Pete’s has been doing this since 2013, minus the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021.

For decades, Egg Harbor was popularly known as “the dollar tolls.” But then came inflation. The cash toll for passenger cars is now $4.55, up from $4.40 last year.

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Chickie’s & Pete’s owner Pete Ciarrocchi said he chose Memorial Day weekend as a way to remember his family’s military tradition, including his father, Pete Sr. and uncles Bo and George, who both served in the armed forces. He said George Ciarrocchi, his restaurant mentor, won the Silver Star for valor.

“He was quite the guy, and I couldn’t think of a better way to honor him,” Ciarrocchi said in a statement.