🍦Must you do Philly things at the Shore? | Down the Shore

Hello! I came face-to-face with the encroaching of Philly things down the Shore this summer at a Fishtown-centric pop-up over at Fish & Whistle in Ventnor, the brainchild of Vanessa Wong, who also opened Wahine Wine Company last year at the base of the Dorset Avenue Bridge in newly-bougie-aspiring Ventnor. For me, it was a treat: Fishtown pickles, artisanal pasta kits, hot sauce and olive oil straight from the hipster source 60 miles away.

But I balked at the seafood guy. I’m sure his curated and impeccably sourced frozen scallops, trucked down in a cooler from Philadelphia, originally from Maine, are great, but ... you’re at the Jersey Shore. If you’ve never picked up the ridiculously fresh (and not frozen) scallops, tile fish, or tuna from Viking Village in Barnegat Light (and available at Ventnor’s farmers market among others), or stood in line at the wonderful Randall’s in Pleasantville, or sidled up to the outdoor window of nearby Casino Lobster and ordered live lobster like they were cups of water ice from John’s, you’re really missing out. Not to mention fishing or crabbing for your own dinner!

Are people really looking to source all their fancy foods and dinners from Philly, or to eat at restaurants duplicated from where they just drove down from? I love the new Good Dog Bar in Atlantic City, it’s great! It’s a fantastic addition to Atlantic City. But if you’re here on vacation, wouldn’t it make more sense to seek out a local joint?

Sarah Maiellano wrote a great feature about all the Philly chefs and entrepreneurs who are bringing their sophisticated palates and business models down the Shore. Some are marooned, longing for the Vietnamese food they left behind on Washington Avenue (check out Atlantic City’s multiple offerings on that score), or French restaurants (have they been to the French-Afghan wonder Setaara, again in Atlantic City?) I’m not knocking all the great new restaurants and welcome all the burned-out Philly service workers who are finding better work-life balance near the beach. I love the energy of it all. But it seems strange to want to just do the things you could have done back home.

On a related note, my colleague Al Lubrano wrote an ode to the very Shore-specific general stores, many of which have been in the same families for generations. Their secret to longevity? They stock ... everything! And they’re happy to see you, and are happy to talk. And once you’re on that island, who wants to leave to go to Target or Walmart? Long may they live. Read Al’s beautiful and heartwarming ode to Dalrymple’s, Hand’s, Hoy’s, and other general stores here.

📮 Are you happy to see familiar Philly things down the Shore, or are you all in on the local joints? Let me know what you think by replying to this email, and I’ll include your most interesting responses.

🌞 It’s heating up even down the Shore, and the water’s been perfection, though thankfully not as hot as Florida.

— Amy S. Rosenberg (🐦 Tweet me at @amysrosenberg. 📷 Follow me on Insta at @amysrosenberg. 📧 Email me at downtheshore@inquirer.com)

⛈️ Shelf cloud Alarms sounded in Stone Harbor to get everyone off the beach after an ominous shelf cloud formed. Cecily Tynan tweeted out some cool video.

🗣️ Arch opposition Cape May considered a proposal for more of its controversial Promenade arches, which some people seem to not like that much.

🌊 Ocean City Beach Patrol won the prestigious Atlantic City Lifeguard Classic. The full schedule of lifeguard races is here. They are immensely fun!

🚲 Kids on bikes The talk is not about the teens, but the little ones, who seem to be allowed to ride their bikes alone and in the middle of the street down the Shore.

⏰ Curfew wars: While Ocean City’s teen drama seems to have faded, Beach Haven and Wildwood are both trying to tighten curfews, Wildwood’s to midnight, and Beach Haven’s to 10 p.m.

🤍 Mourning A Philadelphia family is “not managing at all” after 8-year-old Javier Velez died when his father’s car was struck while he was napping inside after a night of fishing along the White Horse Pike in Absecon, reports Eric Conklin of the Press of Atlantic City.

🛥️ Night in Venice, the annual boat parade in Ocean City is 6 p.m. on Saturday, with the theme — 🙄 — “It’s a Philly thing.” Actually it’s not! But welcome Jim Gardner, this year’s grand marshal. All the Night in Venice need-to-knows are here.

🪝 Spiegelworld’s The Hook at Caesar’s, a circus-meets-cabaret-meets-burlesque-meets-magic show, opened its A.C. permanent residency to enthusiastic reviews.

📷 Notice the amusement park remains at the foot of the George Redding Bridge heading into Wildwood. Inquirer photographer Tom Gralish did.

🦅 Bridge birds: Ocean City’s rookery off the eastbound lanes of the Ninth Street bridge at the Welcome Center is just sensational bird-watching.

🍹 Travel up the Parkway for classic North Jersey Shore bars like Parker House in Sea Girt? Are they better than what we have down here?

🏄🏽 Stoked Michelle Myers reports on free exercise classes, including a surf class for people with disabilities in Wildwood.

🌿 Surf shop meets weed shop: Cape May County is close to getting its first legal marijuana dispensary.

Shibumi (noun, $270) The blue and teal beach-shade device that is wind-driven is second only to the Cool Cabana four-posted umbrella in popularity this summer, though some towns, like Long Beach Township, have banned it.

Wow, people using that cool Shibumi canopy seem extremely content and shaded. Should we splurge for one?

Last week’s question was about disappearing Shore haunts. Of the choices, only Mustache Bill’s is still open, and this may very well be the last season for the Barnegat landmark. A reader called h2oholic was first with the answer, adding “Great food. Have to enjoy it now since the property is for sale.”

Alas. Can a Philly chef be far behind?

This week’s question: What does the most popular version of the plush sensation Sunny the Seagull from Morey’s Piers have in its mouth?

A. Johnson’s Popcorn kernel

B. Slice of Mack’s Pizza

C. Cup of Polish Water Ice

D. French fry

If you think you know the answer, email me for a chance of a shout out.

We got a lot of ideas about how to get down the Shore most efficiently after The Inquirer’s runaway summer hit Race to the Shore. Most involved not routes but ... timing. Go early! Go at 2 a.m. Go ... in September (🤫).

One idea with respect to the train option is to get off in Absecon, and hit the Uber to O.C. from there, instead of going all the way into A.C. Might save some time, especially if you have someone waiting to pick you up.

Other thoughts:

From John Shiffert: Reporting from my trip early Saturday morning...I made it from Flourtown to the end of the Stainton Causeway at 9th Street in 95 minutes. I left at 5:55 a.m. , and arrived at 7:30 a.m., without contravening the speed limits. Because Kelly Drive was closed for a regatta, I had to get on the [Schuylkill] at City Avenue and went over the Walt, which I would never do unless there wasn’t any traffic. Still, that’s the key to getting to O.C. in a timely fashion ... timing.

Matt Engel loves the backroads from Wilkes-Barre to Wildwood. It’s a breathtaking journey when you approach the magnificent Commodore Barry Bridge at Chester, Pa. It gets even better when you ride the scenic back roads in South Jersey to Wildwood. And the corn is fantastic!

Theresa Willer-Grinkewicz sends this dreamy hitchhiking memory...

We were about 19, we decided on a Friday night, about 9pm, to hitch-hike to Wildwood where our friends were. Our friend Earl drove Gus and me to Olga’s diner on Route 73 and we stuck out our thumbs. After about 5 minutes, a guy pulled over and asked where we were heading. “Wildwood,” we said. “Well, I can take you as far as the Villas,” and we hopped in. The man knew every back road in South Jersey and were in the Villas in about an hour. He left us on a seemingly deserted road but in about 10 minutes, a souped-up Chevy comes roaring down the road, passes us but stops about 100 yards away. We ran up to him and got in. Twenty minutes later, we left the hot-rodder at Uncle Lou’s Pancake House where our friends were hanging out. Sat down to a plate of pancakes at 1am while the BeeGee’s “New York Mining Disaster 1941″ played in the background.

📮 Send me your Shore memory, tell us how the Shore taps into something deep for you, for a chance to be featured here.

😎 Bye until next week, which will be ... August. Stay cool, and shaded.