Restaurant Blog - Chowbaby.com

by Tom Wrona

ANGELO’S FAIRMOUNT TAVERN
2300 Fairmount Ave, Atlantic City, NJ 08401
609 344-2439
When the locals want a great meal without getting dressed up or spending a lot of money Angelo’s, in Atlantic City’s Ducktown neighborhood, has been the place to go since 1935. This is Italian comfort food at its best. The portions are huge and the menu is long (six steaks, nearly 20 pasta dishes, a baker’s dozen of seafood dishes and eighteen desserts). It’s a big, bright and convivial place so save Angelo’s for a date when you want to spend more time feeding each other than giving each other smoldering looks.

by Tom Wrona

EMMA’S ROTISSERIE
581 Ocean Heights Avenue, Somers Point, NJ 08221

Be warned if you try to find this joint on Google Maps. The locals say it’s in Somers Point but Google says it’s in Linwood. Either way it’s just a short hope from AC and you’ll find delicious chicken and ribs when you get here. The menu is a bit cutesy but it comes with subtitles. (Round-ups are appetizers; sidewinders are side dishes.) The chicken is not only delicious, it’s claimed to be free range and free of antibiotics and steroids. They call it BBQ but this is BBQ with a Southwestern flair.

By Tom Wrona

TONY’S BALTIMORE GRILL
2800 Atlantic Ave Atlantic City, NJ 08401
609 345-5766

Tony’s goes back at least 40 years and the prices seem to go back almost as far. How many places in AC still serve a $1.25 draft beer? The most expensive item on the menu is the Seafood Special. It features fried shrimp, crab cakes, scallops, french fries and coleslaw for $12.25. All the pizzas are less than $10 and that’s with an extra topping. Of course the prices would be irrelevant if the food wasn’t good. It is. Mangia! But bring cash. No credit cards accepted.

By Tom Wrona

BILL’S GYRO SOUVLAKI
1607 Boardwalk, Atlantic City, NJ 08401
609 347-2466

Bill’s may be one of the biggest bargains in AC. It’s right on the Boardwalk and it’s open 24/7. If you step inside you’ll see the walls are covered in dollar bills autographed and left by satisfied patrons over the decades this AC institution has been in business. My hard-to-please Greek friend was impressed by the homemade tzatziki (a yogurt-based sauce) with dill and I just love scarfing down the combo gyro souvlaki plate. There really is a Bill and he’s quite a character (he looks sort of like Popeye). If you put your camera on the table while you dine be prepared to pose when he picks it up and takes your picture. If Bill takes a shine to you he just might offer you a slice of baklava and a cup of coffee on the house. Bonuses: They serve breakfast too and they have a liquor license.

by Linda Drachman

Waterfront Buffet (formerly known as Fantasea Reef Buffet)
777 Harrahs Blvd at Harrah’s, Atlantic City, NJ 08401
(609) 441-5000
Harrah’s Waterfront Buffet covers a lot of ground geographically. You can savor flavors from the American bounty, check out Little Italy, head on over to Brazil or sample coastal cuisine. If you’re in the mood for something else, the Asian Wok or Mongolian Barbeque might hit the spot. Visit the Sushi Bar and try the Dim Sum. There’s also a huge salad bar where the choices include no less than twelve different greens, toppings and seven dressings. Tell the chef what you’d like and watch as he or she chops each order individually.

by : Tom Wrona

LITTLE SAIGON
2801 Arctic Avenue, Atlantic City, NJ  08401
609 347-9119
Little Saigon really is little. It seats less than 40 people at a time. With food this good and a dining room so small it’s best to make reservations for dinner. If you’ve never had Vietnamese cuisine you’re in for a treat. It bears a passing resemblance to Chinese but it’s much lighter, without the heavy sweet sauces of many Chinese dishes.  The spring rolls aren’t fried like their Chinese counterparts and the rice comes in variety of forms including white, whole, vermicelli (noodles) and “broken.” There are more than a dozen vegetarian dishes on the menu.

by Tom Wrona

RAM’S HEAD INN
9 Whitehorse Pike, Galloway, NJ 08205

The most romantic restaurant in Atlantic City is eight miles out of town. But it’s a trip well worth taking. The trip Executive chef Luigi Baretto has taken includes working at restaurants in Switzerland and Italy. You might want to start your meal with a caesar salad, prepared tableside, followed by sorbet to clear your palate. Then you can enjoy an entrée like pignoli crusted flounder in herbed lemon beurre blanc. Although luncheon attire is casual, for dinner leave your shorts, jeans and sneakers at home; jackets are required for the gentlemen.