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LBI’s Holiday Snack Bar gets belated OK to open for 2023 season from Beach Haven

A June 5 meeting will consider whether the spot can stay open.

The Holiday Snack Bar in Beach Haven has been an institution for 75 years on Long Beach Island.
The Holiday Snack Bar in Beach Haven has been an institution for 75 years on Long Beach Island.Read moreCourtesy of the Holiday Snack Bar
    by Amy S. Rosenberg
    Updated 
    Published 

After a standoff with the Borough of Beach Haven over breakfast and outdoor seating that threatened its 2023 season, the beloved 75-year-old Holiday Snack Bar was issued a conditional renewal of its mercantile license this week, allowing it to stay open.

“The Borough is cognizant that the issues with Holiday Snack Bar are of ongoing concern to Borough residents and visitors,” wrote borough manager Sherry Mason in a news release issued Tuesday.

She said Holiday Snack Bar had agreed to file a “minor site plan application” related to outdoor seating. The mercantile license was approved contingent upon Holiday Snack Bar submitting a Land Use Development application related to its outdoor seating plan, which they did on Monday.

Mason said the application will be considered at the June 5 meeting of the Land Use Board. The board meets at 6 p.m. The borough declined further comment, beyond saying its interest has been to ensure compliance with the “law and proper procedure.”

Owner Eileen Bowker, a former athletic trainer at Pemberton High School who bought the Snack Bar in 2021 with her husband, Brian, a former teacher at Rancocas Valley High School, said the borough had been mad at her after a complaint over noise and said the snack bar could not open for breakfast. She said they sent police to issue citations and count the number of seats.

Bowker did not respond to a request for comment on Monday or Tuesday. She had turned to social media, receiving an outpouring of support from the Snack Bar’s many fans and a petition drive.

“Your family has done nothing but improve the island and work incredibly hard to keep us tourists happy,” said one commenter.

Mason, the borough manager, said that because the business operates in a residential area, it is an existing nonconforming use. That means anytime you want to expand the use, you have to get approval. She said the outdoor seating was a temporary allowance during the pandemic.

“We support the Holiday Snack Bar,” she said. “Every business has to follow the rules.”