Missing something? Try these fine substitutes

PART OF WHAT we all love about the Shore is that year after year, it's always the same. The bike rental shack hasn't budged since you were a kid. The custard stand and fudge store are still right where you left them last August. Skee-Ball abides.

When change happens here, it's heartbreaking.

To help ease the pain, we've cast around for places that substitute pretty well for beloved nostalgic Shore spots and nostalgic Shore fun that have disappeared - or in one case, for a nostalgic city sound that's being reborn down the Shore this year.

We've specifically excluded the Doo Wop attractions of Wildwood because we know that you know they're there. (For a map and a schedule of guided tours, visit the Doo Wop Preservation League Web site at doowopusa.org and click on "2009 Tours & Events.")

We have included Storybook Land, even though it never went away. Almost eerily the same as it ever was, the Egg Harbor Township kiddie amusement park is the trippiest nostalgia trip going for anyone who has visited at any point since 1955, when it opened.

Our downashore wayback machine goes as far back as the Gilded Age and makes stops as recent as 1993 - the halcyon days of your youth if you're 20 today. Pick and choose among the entries for a do-it-yourself nostalgia trip to the era that tugs your own personal heartstrings.

If you miss . . .

Seafood with paprika at Captain Starn's

Try this. . .

Seafood with paprika at Busch's

These days, the of-the-moment seafood restaurant in Atlantic City is Seablue at the Borgata (609-317-1000), with trendy offerings like Ahi tuna tartare with ancho chili and sesame oil.

If your taste runs more toward moments past, try Busch's Seafood Restaurant in Sea Isle City, a graciously retro establishment in the manner of AC's dear, departed Hackney's and Captain Starn's. Busch's is so devoted to keeping things just the way they were that the management photographs the arrangement of pictures on the restaurant walls so they can be rehung precisely after paint jobs.

"It's a time capsule," said chef-owner Al Schettig.

Yes, Busch's still serves deviled clams, shrimp Lamaze and she-crab soup. (Traditionally the soup has been served on Sundays and Tuesdays only, expanding this summer to the Saturday lunch menu.) No, for goodness sake, it is not a BYO.

Busch's Seafood Restaurant, 8700 Anna Phillips Lane, Sea Isle City, 609-263-8626. Open weekends only until June 16.

If you miss . . .

Wibbage on AM 990

Try this . . .

Wibbage on the beach

After a 32-year hiatus, the Wibbage sound is back on your radio dial, although it's now on that other radio dial - FM 94.3 instead of the old AM 990.

There's also been a geographic relocation, so the hits of the 1960s and 1970s that put Philly's WIBG on the map are now broadcast from Wildwood's WILW. The signal carrying the revived Wibbage format reaches Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland counties.

Former Wibbage nemesis Jim Nettleton, a "Boss Jock" from rival WFIL, has crossed over to deejay the morning shift. Broadcasts throughout the day are peppered with a collection of 20-second sound clips from WIBG's heyday, including the on-air patter of disc jockey Hy-Lit and the other Wibbage "Good Guys," retro commercials and throwback TV theme songs (from Mister Ed, for instance.)

One of the nostalgic audio novelties airs about every 15 minutes. "It adds a lot of texture to the station," said Rick Brancadora, a manager. "In those days, jocks were, how do I put this? There were a lot of opinions."

If you miss . . .

Ocean City baby parade cuties

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Cute babies, all growed up

In recent years, the costumed babies in the Ocean City Baby Parade have favored sports themes, crabs and politics. At this year's parade, scheduled for Aug. 13, spectators can expect a nostalgic shift back to the nursery rhyme character impersonators who were popular in days gone by, because the parade has invited previous entrants back to help mark its 100th anniversary.

"A lot of them are going to come back and re-create Little Bo Peep or whatever they did," said OC publicist Mark Soifer.

Among the past baby paraders who've sent word that they'll participate are members of Collegeville's White family, a dynasty that claimed prizes for 15 years with themes like "Sweet as Cotton Candy" (1986) and "Apple Pickin' Time" (1993).

Former baby parade grand marshals are also being asked back for the anniversary event, and Soifer said Sally Starr hopes to attend.

"You're talking about nostalgia? This thing is soaked in nostalgia," he said. "You can wring it out."

If you miss . . .

Storybook Land, circa 1973

Try this . . .

Storybook Land, 2009

Attractions like the Alice in Wonderland Tunnel from the groovy era of your youth are still here, as are the animal-shaped trash cans that ask you to feed them your refuse - yes, some still talk.

At 54 years old, Egg Harbor's Storybook Land is still earning raves from parents of preschool children, these days on Web sites like TripAdvisor, where the "very retro-looking" amusement park earns an impressive 4 1/2-star rating for being "cute," "shaded," "beautifully landscaped" and "immaculate."

Also, as one fan notes, "Everything mechanical actually works!"

Storybook Land, 6415 Black Horse Pike, Egg Harbor Township, 609-641-7847. Admission $20.95 plus tax for each child or adult. Free for children under 1.

If you miss . . .

Proximity to the ocean in Wildwood

Try this . . .

The roof deck at Stewart's Root Beer

While the water no longer laps at the Wildwood Boardwalk, you can at least see the ocean, smell the salt air and feel the breeze from the roof deck at Stewart's Root Beer, Magnolia and Boardwalk (609-770-8538). Root beer floats are a specialty here, in case you're also nostalgic for the Fifties.

For dinner or drinks right at the water's edge in Wildwood, there's Oasis Cafe at the back of the Ocean Oasis waterpark at Morey's Piers (609-729-3700).

You'll need to hike the full length of Surfside Pier to reach this secluded roofdeck restaurant. But you don't need to pay water park admission to eat there. Ask park personnel for directions to the public-access ramp that skirts the water park.

There's also a public-access ramp from Ocean Oasis to the shoreline below - again, ask for directions - plus sprinklers to remove the sand from your Crocs before the long trek back to the boardwalk.

If you miss . . .

Cape May's Christian Admiral Hotel

Try this . . .

Cape May's Congress Hall Hotel

Not many shoregoers who are alive today would have been guests during the Admiral's glory days in the early 1900s. But maybe you attended the swank behemoth's demolition in 1996 - one shore scribe likened the event to the sinking of the Titanic - and dreamed of the way it might have been at the height of the Gilded Age.

One modern approximation is the renovated Congress Hall (251 Beach Ave.), another turn-of-the-century Cape May grande dame that's now attracting moneyed guests with the luxe amenities of our era, like Aveda bath products. In season, there are regular yoga lessons on the hotel's ocean-facing lawn, where John Philip Sousa used to perform back in the day. (He even wrote a song in the hotel's honor: the "Congress Hall March.")

Congress Hall's posted peak-season rates are about $425 a night, with a four-night minimum. But check with the hotel (609-884-8421) and at Expedia et al for deals.

If you can't swing an overnight visit, front office manager Dennis Zaicevs said you're still welcome to purchase a cocktail at the bar - the hotel has two - and sip it on the veranda overlooking the ocean.

Trolley tours that are run by the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts chronicle the history of both the Christian Admiral and Congress Hall. They embark regularly from the Cape May information booth at the intersection of Washington and Ocean streets. You want the "Mansions by the Sea" route.

If you miss . . .

The Shore social circuit of old

Try this . . .

Seaview Resort and Spa

Grace Kelly had her Sweet 16 party here in 1945, and despite a sprawl of time-share condos on the wooded 670-acre property, the ambiance hasn't changed appreciably since then. The resort decor is old money casual, with two 18-hole golf courses, a wood-beamed, open-air ballroom and a retro indoor pool.

In its prime, the place was as upper crusty as it gets. Now more mid-range, with a three-star rating from Mobil, the Seaview was a Marriott property until last weekend and is newly part of the Dolce hotel chain, based in North Jersey. (Visit dolce-seaview-hotel.com for rates and reservations, or call 609-652-1800).

The seasoned members of the Seaview bell staff are the keepers of the throwback resort's rich history - much of it firsthand - and they're happy to share her secrets. "The guy that's been here the least amount time is 25 years," said bellman Bruce Douglas, who's been there for 29.

The Seaview is situated on the mainland in Galloway, N.J., about 7 miles west of Atlantic City. There are views of the modern AC skyline from bay-facing rooms on the third floor.

If you miss . . .

Zaberer's Restaurant

Try this . . .

Zaberer's Restaurant memorabilia

The landmark sign is the star attraction of a veritable Zaberer's shrine housed at the charming George F. Boyer Historical Museum, run by the Wildwood Historical Society. Also on display: nostaglic celebrity photos, menus, a waitress uniform and - as of this month - an original Zaberer's Tiffanylamp, shipped to Wildwood from Florida as a surprise donation from restaurant scion Donald Zaberer.

"He put those little white plastic popcorn things in the box and I was wearing corduroy pants when I opened it," said museum historian Bob Bright. "I was covered with those things."

At the Historical Society, you can also set your wayback machine to 1936, when the ill-fated Hindenburg did a Wildwood flyover - the museum has pictures - or way, way back to 1895, when Wildwood still had woods. The preserved trunk of the famous Wildwood "W tree," a turn-of-the-century landmark, is here, too. *

George F. Boyer Historical Museum, 3905 Pacific Ave., Wildwood, 609-523-0277. Summer hours are 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday. No admission fee, although donations are appreciated.