You’ll find some of the best fried chicken around and a great option for a crowd, at the local Chicken Holiday, primarily a takeout place, here for over 40 years. Yet be sure to treat yourself to a walk-in to check out the old photos on the wall, to chat with the owner and decide on sides like mac and cheese, sweet potato fries, and vegetables from zucchini to okra. There are snack options too, like chicken snack and flounder snack — smaller portions that, regardless, come with fries or mashed potatoes.

Local favorite chef, Aimee McElroy, formerly of Medusa Stone Fired Kitchen, is back at it, making her specialty pies, salads, and sides. Grab a seat on the deck that overlooks Deal Lake or a table in a dining room with glampy cabin vibes. Share a fennel and sausage pizza, or one with meatballs, mushrooms, or roasted eggplant (there are classics available, too). It’s a booze-free spot, with a Mocking Bar of zero-proof or botanical beverages, though you can also BYOB. Breakfast and lunch is available Sunday.

This boutique hotel offers lunch, a swanky cocktail bar, and a comely dining room for dinner with a New American tasting menu from chef and partner David Viana. During the day, reserve a chair at the pool and use the QR code for the poolside menu — a collection of sandwiches, salads, and snacks, as well as beachy drinks, bubbles, and spritzes. Or don a coverup for a proper meal in the dining room.

Ada’s serves a mix of Ethiopian and Dominican dishes with a wide selection of meat and vegetarian options including mofongo as well as samplers served on homemade injera. The owner’s presence lends warmth to the experience.

Vibrant and welcoming, Georgie’s hosts events like drag and karaoke nights while serving snacky bar food and cheap drinks. Georgie’s has been a hearth for Asbury and the surrounding area’s LGBTQ community since 1999.

Looking for a cheap breakfast or a couple of empanada snacks? Or maybe it’s chicken soup or beans-and-rice you’re craving. This recently revamped steam table restaurant in the parking lot of a grocery store is better than it needs to be and the price is right. A ten-spot goes far at this clean, well-lighted place, with a cross section of locals and visitors, offering indoor and outdoor seating.

Wonder Bar is home of the yappy hour, an outdoor sandy area with picnic tables where dogs lose their minds with excitement as they swim in baby pools while patrons drink Budweiser. This Asbury Park institution also features a regular roster of local performers like Springsteen cover band, Tramps Like Us. And it’s home to one of the best burgers in town.

Connected to Asbury Lanes, a revamped bowling alley, bar, and music venue, the Diner serves dishes like hot honey chicken and waffles or brioche french toast. The prices are steeper than a typical diner, but then again, most diners don’t offer a wagyu burger. Time your visit right and catch a sound check while there.

A red sauce spot on the edge of town, Jimmy’s is the kind of place that was founded in the ’80s and hasn’t changed since. This past year, Paul McCartney stopped by when he was in town, with other visits from Joe Pesci, Ray Liotta, Danny DeVito, and Bruce Springsteen. Try to grab a seat at the bar and grab yourself some antipasti.

A sibling to the one in Jersey City, Porta offers a solid collection of salads, sides like meatballs and Italian sausage, and pizzas like the Spring Betty with goat cheese, spinach béchamel, spring onions, artichokes, and pecorino Romano. The bar is endless and the room has little to mute noise, so if the party-level volume is not your scene, there’s the outside area with plenty of picnic tables with room to spread out.

Here’s a second-level boardwalk venue with a view of the ocean on one side and the Stone Pony Summer Stage on the other. It’s more of a bar with high-octane cocktails as well as inventive mocktails, yet also sells snacks like za’atar fries, shawarma, pretzels and beer cheese, or skirt steak. If it rains, there’s also a handsome indoor bar with a fireplace.

Look for towering sandwiches and elegant sweet plates like a berry skillet cake in Cardinal’s green and sunny daytime spot. Start or end a meal with a pillowy xuixo: a fried pastry filled with cream and coated in sugar, which originated from the Catalonia region of Spain.

This low-key operation is a go-to for high-quality coffee roasted by owners Douglas Parent and Paul Cali’s nearby roastery, Maiden Coffee. Pick up an iced latte, cold brew, or one of their seasonal iced teas to bring to the beach, or settle in among the many regulars.

A little slip of a place and a sibling to Homesick restaurant next door, vinyl bar Lovesick offers an interesting wine list , start-to-finish albums, and great service with bartenders excited to talk about pours. It’s also a fine place for a bowl of ramen, pork katsu, a burger, or banh mi. Take the guesswork out of picking up bottles for home with its wine club, for the month, three months, or six months of curated wine boxes and member perks, for delivery or pick-up.

Dimly-lit Bond Street offers casual bites for dinner or late night, including $12 burgers, $7 grilled cheeses with additions like bacon and apple, plus shoestring fries, onion rings, and more. The basement level of the bar hosts events and live music, accessed by passing through Bond’s connected partner restaurant, Capitoline.

At Talula’s, everything is baked, pickled, and fermented in-house: Sourdough loaves and pizza are essential to the menu, which features a roasted pastrami reuben sandwich loaded with red cabbage slaw, and the Beekeeper’s Lament pizza topped with soppressata and honey. Plant-based options are never boring here, like the “crab” cakes, hearty and layered in both texture and flavor.

Locals like Taka for the vibe and the inventive sushi rolls like the Jun-San, a medley of tuna, avocado, salmon, and yellowtail with scallion, caramelized soy sauce, spicy mayo, and crunchy tempura. The ceilings are lofty, orb-like lights hang above the bar, and sake casks line the back wall of the main dining room. It’s a good place for sake, wine, and beers, with a wide menu for many tastes.

Though it’s among the more expensive restaurants around, the atmosphere at Grand Tavern is relaxed and rustic, with wood-beam ceilings and fixtures evoking English hunting culture. The menu is small and refined, celebrating beef, fat, butter, and cream. Expect small plates like fried sunchokes, and dishes such a. short-rib sauerbraten. The dessert on rotation won’t disappoint, including sticky toffee pudding in a pool of caramel, topped with fresh whipped cream and flaky salt. 

There’s always a wait for seats at Pete and Elda’s, a Neptune staple for 50 years, here for cheap beer, bar food, sports on the TVs, and a thinner than a Saltine crust pizza that’s attracted a legion of fans. Eat a whole extra large pie and get a free t-shirt, which, since it’s so light, happens all the time.