Atlantic City Restaurants

Angelo’s Fairmount Tavern
2300 Fairmount Ave., Owner Angelo “Sonny” Mancuso makes this place what it is. He picks the tomatoes that go in the marinara sauce and cooks up the dishes with that classic Sicilian taste. We can’t get enough of the spinach with artichokes and garlic. Voted “Best Locals’ Favorite” for 2000 in Atlantic City Magazine. Free parking. Lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. Dinner from 5 p.m. daily Children’s menu.

Atlantic City Bar & Grille
1219 Pacific and South Carolina avenues, Whole lobster, surf & turf served. Children’s menu.

Boulevard Cafe
Sheraton Atlantic City Convention Center Hotel, Two Ocean Way, Enjoy a beautiful view of the Atlantic City skyline through floor-to-ceiling windows while eating breakfast or lunch. Menu includes sandwiches, salads, seafood, and pasta. Open daily 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; Sunday buffet starts at 7 a.m. Children’s menu.

Chef Vola
111 S. Albion Place, you must make reservations to get into this exclusive restaurant. Menu items include seafood (seven types of fish daily), steak, veal, chops, and homemade pasta. Nonsmoking section. Bring your own wine or beer. Dinner 6 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.

Dock’s Oyster House
2405 Atlantic Ave., An Atlantic City dining institution and locals' favorite since 1897. Piano bar, free parking. Superb seafood menu. Dinner from 5 p.m. seven days a week year-round.

Flying Cloud Cafe
800 N. New Hampshire Ave., The cafe, named for the clipper ship that long was anchored beside it in Gardner’s Basin, offers deck dining for 100, weather permitting, and cozy quarters indoors. Specialties are seafood dishes and lobster. Open daily from 11:30 am for lunch and dinner. Children’s menu.

Girasole
3108 Pacific Ave., Just steps from the beach and Boardwalk, Girasole serves authentic Italian cuisine in a relaxed setting. The menu is highlighted by flavorful Mediterranean dishes, homemade pasta, and thin-crust pizzas from the brick oven. Voted “Best Appetizers” for 2000 in Atlantic City Magazine. Lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Dinner served 5:30 to 11 p.m. daily, with extended summer hours.

Grabel’s Restaurant & Lounge
3901 Atlantic Ave., Nouvelle cuisine complements the eatery’s New York supper club look. Favorites include veal chop with wild mushroom and sun-dried tomato sauce, roast duck seasoned with berry anisette sauce, and jumbo lump crab cakes. Open 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. Wednesday to Sunday.

Hard Rock Cafe
Boardwalk side of Trump Taj Mahal, Enjoy great appetizers, burgers, sandwiches, salads, and barbecue surrounded by some 2,000 priceless memorabilia items ranging from Jimi Hendrix’ psychedelic jacket to Kurt Cobain’s guitar. Thirsty? Belly up to the Gibson Guitar-shaped bar. Nonsmoking section. Children’s menu. Private parties. Open 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily. Children’s menu.

Imperial Inn
3124 Atlantic Ave., Specializing in Cantonese, Mandarin, and Hunan styles of Chinese cooking, plus roast pig and Peking duck. Nonsmoking section. Liquor license. Open 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

Irish Pub
164 S. St. James Place, Atlantic City, A longtime Atlantic City favorite, the Irish Pub satisfies with its rib-sticking bowls of Dublin beef stew. In summer, patio dining for 100 is available. Daily 1.95 lunch specials—a bowl of soup and a four-ounce sandwich—are what made the pub, and won’t ever change, owner Cathy Burke says. Voted “Best Cheap Eats” for 2000 in Atlantic City Magazine. Open daily 24 hours, dinner served 2 p.m. to 7 a.m. (No credit cards)

Jonathan's on West End
672 N. Trenton Ave., Atlantic City, Chef Jonathan Karp says his place is about the food. That includes raspberry filet— blackened filet mignon over grilled spinach and portobello mushrooms, with raspberry sauce, or another creation, apple tree marsala. Liquor license, children's menu. Bay view.

Knife & Fork Inn
Pacific and Atlantic avenues, Fourth-generation owner Andrew Latz infuses this venerable landmark with new enthusiasm while paying respect to family traditions. The delicious crab imperial/stuffed lobster/lamb chop menu that Latz’s grandparents created brings diners into the 21st century with a freshness beyond compare. Voted “Best Dining Institution” for 2000 in Atlantic City Magazine. Open for dinner from 5:30 p.m. daily. Entrées 18 to 50.

Le Grand Fromage
25 Gordon’s Alley, Chef Michael McKiernan honors the traditional presentation of what he calls “the No. 1 bistro dish,” bistek aux pommes frites (grilled dry-aged New York strip steak with fried potatoes). Other dishes he prepares in the traditional method, but expresses his creativity with the presentation. Veal Oscar (veal, asparagus, crab and hollandaise sauce), for example, becomes salmon Oscar (pan-seared Atlantic salmon topped with jumbo lump crabmeat and sautéed spinach, 25.50). For a twist, he finishes the dish with sauce choron, instead of hollandaise. Lounge open from 5:30 p.m. to 8 a.m. Thursday to Saturday; opens at 7 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday; and 9 p.m. Sunday and Monday. Open for dinner 5:30 to 11 p.m. Thursday to Saturday.

Los Amigos
1926 Atlantic Ave., This popular uptown Mexican cantina recently added an outdoor patio and a second-floor dining room. Patrons come for the best margaritas in town and an expanded menu that includes regional Southwestern and Mexican dishes featuring such seafood specialties as red chile-crusted salmon, pan-seared shrimp in tequila-Tabasco sauce and crab quesadillas. Voted “Best Mexican Restaurant” for 2000 by Atlantic City Magazine. Open 11:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Late night Friday and Saturday 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. Closed Mondays. Children's menu. Free parking.

Mexico Restaurant
3810 Ventnor Ave., The authentic Mexican menu offers barbecued goat on weekends, and a full slate of burritos, fajitas, tacos, and quesadillas. Half a dozen Mexican beers, including the well-known Corona and Dos Equis, are available by the bottle. Open 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily.

Old Waterway Inn
1700 West Riverside Dr., Breathtaking skyline of Atlantic City viewed from the deck. Extensive seafood menu with meat and fowl dishes as well. Some favorite entrées are the Eastern Shore crab cakes and the swordfish. Voted “Best Restaurant with a View” for 2000 in Atlantic City Magazine. Nonsmoking section. Open 5 to 11 p.m. daily in the summer and Wednesday to Sunday in the winter.

Planet Hollywood
Arkansas Ave. and Boardwalk, Here, you can enjoy a unique dining experience amidst classic movie memorabilia. Offers California-style cuisine, including Asian noodle stir-fry, portobello mushroom burgers, barbecued rib, and fajitas. Open daily 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.

Sabatini’s
2210 Pacific Ave., Atlantic City, The Italian specialties are terrific, with clams casino like you’ve never had them. Known as Atlantic City’s “house of veal”—try the veal française. Excellent homemade cheesecake. Open 2 p.m. to midnight daily. Lounge open until 8 a.m., special bar menu.

Scannicchio’s
119 S. California Ave., Atlantic City, A real favorite with the uptown crowd and visiting celebrities for good veal dishes (stuffed veal chops, veal Marsala) and seafood entrées. Excellent homemade pasta dishes include lasagna, gnocchi, and ravioli. At least 10 specials a night. Open 4 to 10 p.m. Sunday to Friday, till 11 p.m Saturday. Call for winter hours. Closed holidays. Children’s menu.

Stage Deli of Atlantic City
Inside Trump Taj Mahal Casino at 1000 Boardwalk and Virginia Ave., Known for its sandwiches named for celebrities and famed for being too big to finish. Posters of all your favorite Broadway shows line the walls. Open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, till 1 a.m. Saturday.

Temple Bar & Grill
Inside Caesars Atlantic City, 2100 Pacific Ave., Atlantic City, Dine at the centerpiece of the hotel’s Temple Lobby. Sushi bar and exotic dishes, as well as seafood, steaks, and salads.

Tony’s Baltimore Grille
2800 Atlantic Ave., For 70 years, people have been raving about Tony’s pizza and the absurdly low prices (the 9.35 seafood platter is the most expensive item) on the menu. One bite and either you’re a believer or you’re from out of town. Open 24 hours, with food served 11 a.m. to 3 a.m. (No credit cards.)

Tun Tavern
2000 Kirkman Blvd. (adjacent to Sheraton Atlantic City Convention Center Hotel), Named for the brewpub in Philadelphia where Ben Franklin uttered the words, “Beer is living proof God loves us and wants us to be happy,” the Tun Tavern in Atlantic City offers eight beers that are brewed on the premises. Some of the ale is used for marinating steaks, basting pork, and making barbecue sauce. Open 11:30 a.m. to 3 a.m. Sunday to Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 7 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

White House Sub Shop
2301 Arctic Ave., Famous sub shop. Over 21 million sold.