Margate City morphs from party strip to restaurant row

Margate City, the tony community just a poker chip’s throw from Atlantic City, has been keeping revelers “at bay” for decades. But these days, the scene along the Amherst Avenue strip is a far cry from the wild and woolly times baby boomers fondly remember.

The strip where a youth-oriented bar scene once roared is today an acclaimed restaurant district catering to adults with sophisticated palates and the means to satisfy them.

"At one time [the neighborhood bordering Beach Thoroughfare - aka "The Bay"] was known as the 'Barbary Coast,' " said legendary disc jockey Jerry Blavat, who this summer will mark the 39th season at his bar, Memories in Margate, on the corner of Amherst and Madison avenues.

"In the early days, Philadelphia had blue laws," [which prohibited bars from operating for the 24-hour period beginning at 12:01 a.m. Sunday], explained "The Geator With the Heater." As a result, he continued, large groups of Philly-area youngsters (who back in the 1960s and '70s could legally imbibe at age 18 in New Jersey) would head en masse to Margate every weekend from mid-March through Labor Day.

When they arrived, such long-gone saloons as Gable's, Kelly's Pub, the Beacon Inn, Merrill's and the Elbow Room welcomed them with open arms and bottomless kegs.

"That's all changed," said Blavat. "Now it's basically Restaurant Row. Tomatoes [restaurant] used to be Gable's. Merrill's is now [Sophie's Margate Cafe]."

According to Blavat, there were several reasons for the switch from cheap brewskis to high-end cuisine, including the passage of a law that prohibits local property owners from renting houses to large groups of young people. But the young partyers' loss is the foodies' gain. Amherst Avenue is now a first-class dining destination.

"I think it's an excellent series of restaurants. You have everything from Greek at Sophie's to modern American at Tomatoes to American-eclectic at Steve & Cookie's. Steve & Cookie's and Tomatoes are two of the best restaurants in New Jersey," said Ed Hitzel, a publisher, broadcaster and spice entrepreneur who has covered the Shore's dining scene for decades. (Check him out at www.edhitzel.com.)

Hitzel is especially partial to the bouillabaisse at Steve & Cookie's. "It's one of my top 10 entrées."

He noted that despite Amherst Avenue's history as party central, fine dining was always in the mix. "It's the original Restaurant Row," he said, "the one Cape May and Collingswood copied."

Among the late, great eateries he named were Strotbeck's Bay Club (where Steve & Cookie's now stands) and the Edgewater, which technically was in neighboring Longport, but which Hitzel described as "the anchor" in the strip's long relationship with topflight restaurants.

The names and menus along Amherst may have changed through the decades, but parking remains vexing to visitors during the summer because the neighboring streets are primarily residential.

"It's always a problem," acknowledged Margate City Clerk Tom Hiltner. "From the last weekend of June to Labor Day, parking is an issue."

But, Hiltner said, finding a legal spot for your wheels doesn't have to be "Mission: Impossible."

"A couple of the places have secure, off-street lots," he said, and along the bay front, you do have public parking that's free.

However, if your luck and timing are off, don't despair. Hiltner had advice that should make your night out on Amherst Avenue fun and hassle-free.

"It's going to sound kind of simple," he offered, but you can park 2 1/2 or three blocks away.

“Even on the most crowded weekends, if you park one block north of Ventnor Avenue, the main drag - between Ventnor and Winchester - it will only be a two- or three-block walk for most people.”