SANDY HOOK: BEACH CLOSED BY BACTERIA
One of the ocean beaches at Sandy Hook was closed Tuesday after a high level of bacteria was found in the water, NJ.com reported.
SEA BRIGHT: SWIMMER DIES AFTER RESCUE
A northern New Jersey man died late Monday, hours after he was pulled from the Atlantic Ocean off an unprotected beach in Sea Bright, NJ.com reported Tuesday.
Kevin Searfoss, 18, of Rockaway, died at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch at 11 p.m., borough police Chief John Sorrentino told the publication.
SEA BRIGHT: DONOVAN’S TIKI BAR REOPENS
With new access ramps over the sea wall, the restored tiki bar at Donovan’s was back in business Friday afternoon, as co-owner Chris Bowler announced via the signboard, below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Thirty-two months after it was knocked cold by Hurricane Sandy, a Sea Bright watering hole stirred back to life in limited form Friday afternoon.
Employees of Donovan’s Reef, which had been a magnet to Wall Street millionaires and Side Street store clerks alike, threw open a fenced gate to its beachfront tiki bar shortly before 3 p.m., marking the end of a long, frustrating struggle, its owners said.
SEA BRIGHT: WHALE OF A DAY AT THE BEACH
Reader Betsy Lunney photographed a whale feeding in the Atlantic off the Sands Beach Club in Sea Bright Sunday afternoon. Nearby, a reported shark sighting off Driftwood Beach Club prompted police to issue a warning to bathers at about 4:30 p.m., but the warning was cancelled around 8 p.m. with a message that the shark was actually a sunfish. (Photo by Betsy Lunney. Click to enlarge.)
SEA BRIGHT: BRUNCH MAKES A BEACHHEAD
The dining deck at Ama, with panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean. Below, a brunchtime bloody Mary. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
For many years, options for Sunday brunch, the 10-to-2 repast that invites an eat-whatever-you’re-in-the-mood-for approach to breakfast and lunch, were limited on the Greater Red Bank Green.
Our only choices were expensive buffets at Red Bank’s Molly Pitcher Inn and Rumson’s Salt Creek Grille, both of which required reservations and adherence to dress codes.
But the boom of new restaurants in Red Bank and Sea Bright has brought more a la carte options for brunch-seekers.
FARMERS MARKETS: WHERE TO GET FRESH
At the Sea Bright farmers market, Meg Paska sells locally grown produce and flowers from Seven Arrows Farm, while the Holly Hill Farm table, below, offers Rumson-grown seedlings and produce. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
Options for finding locally grown produce on the Greater Red Bank Green doubled with the addition last year of a farmers’ market in the Sea Bright municipal parking lot on Thursdays.
For local shoppers, that means more variety. While both Sea Bright and the Red Bank Farmers’ Market at the Galleria on summer and autumn Sundays are dependable for farm-grown veggies, there are some characteristics that differentiate the two.
SEA BRIGHT: FINDING GOLD(FISH) AT THE FAIR
A gaggle of girls celebrated their goldfish prizes at a stand at the Sea Bright Firemen’s Fair on opening Thursday. The event, which features a Ferris wheel, continues through Sunday in the former Peninsula House lot on Ocean Avenue. All proceeds go to benefit Sea Bright Fire Rescue and the borough’s recreation repartment. More info here. (Photos by Trish Russoniello. Click to enlarge)
SEA BRIGHT: ALL FIRED UP FOR THE FAIR
The Sea Bright Firemen’s Fair returns Thursday for a four-night stand of rides, music, games and great views.
On paper, the four-evening Sea Bright Firemen’s Fair would seem to have pretty much exactly what you’d expect of any small-town fundraiser carnival: the trucked-in rides, the games of chance, the food vendors, the local music.
But to residents of the greater Red Bank Green, the annual fair always meant something more, signaling as it does the start of the summer fun season, every bit as much as the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair bookends the other side with one last bittersweet blast against the encroaching back-to-school blues.
SEA BRIGHT: GOING OVERBOARD AT EVENTIDE
The pungent Garlic Shrimp, above, and the Drunken Clams, below,are customer favorites. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
There isn’t a bad seat at the Eventide Grille, tucked away at the Navesink Marina in Sea Bright.
Mesmerized by the sun glinting off the Shrewsbury River, PieHole almost forgot the real reason we were here, until an insistent, growling stomach reminded us: lunch.
SEA BRIGHT: AIRING OUT KITES ON THE BEACH
Crisp blue skies, ocean breezes and beach sand made an ideal setting for the Sea Bright Festival on Saturday. The event, the first of its kind, was one of several aimed at demonstrating that the borough is “more than just a summer destination,” in the words of the organizing Sustainable Sea Bright Committee.
Check out all of redbankgreen‘s photos, below. (Photos by Peter Lindner. Click to enlarge)
SEA BRIGHT: DIVING INTO A BLOODY HOOK
Ashlyn Schmidt pours a spicy bloody Mary at Dive in Sea Bright. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
A sweet cocktail filled with tropical fruit is nice on a hot summer day, but with the strong spring winds still blowing sharp and cold in Sea Bright, only a hearty, spicy cocktail could quench PieHole‘s thirst.
Dive, a “coastal bar and food joint” on Ocean Avenue, offers a Sunday brunch and bloody Mary menu featuring a quaff called the Bloody Hook that makes the lips tingle and the throat burn with enjoyment.
SEA BRIGHT: APARTMENTS RAZED FOR PARK
Sea Bright’s Anchorage Apartments, left uninhabitable by the converging waters of the Atlantic Ocean and Shrewsbury River in Hurricane Sandy, were demolished Saturday. Using Green Acres funding, the state plans to buy the complex, at the anchorage of the Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, and turn it into a 1.2-acre park. At right: during the October, 2012 hurricane, a utility pole became lodged in one of the first-floor units. (Photo above by Kenny Katzgrau. Click to enlarge)
WHATS FOR LUNCH: SLIDERS ON SURFBOARDS
Brisket sliders and an Orange Crush on a surfboard-themed table at Woody’s Ocean Grille in Sea Bright. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
Meeting a friend for lunch at the beach is one of the biggest perks to living on the greater Green. So, dispensing with the usual idea of running into Red Bank, we opted for the more relaxing sandy beach locale of Sea Bright, where Woody’s Ocean Bar and Grille stands among the reopened restaurants decimated by Hurricane Sandy almost two years ago.
Decorated true to its name, the driftwood and lacquered-surfboard styling gives this place a comfortable beach vibe. Upstairs, in a loft overhanging the bar, a long banquette with comfy little pillows made us feel like we were sitting on a sofa rather than a bench. The skylight adds to the outdoorsy ambiance. (For more on the design, check out redbankgreen‘s 2013 feature on designer Jeff Cahill.)
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SEA BRIGHT: DIVE BAR DIVES RIGHT BACK IN
A bright and colorful interior to Dive into in Sea Bright. Below, the vegetarian black bean burger. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
Dive owners and newlyweds Christina DiIorio and Steven Graniero start and finish one another’s sentences.
“We called it Dive so people would feel comfortable to come here,” Graniero said. “Diving into Sea Bright, diving into the food, and just diving into the new place,” DiIorio added.
After Hurricane Sandy, Dive – which had been open only two years – was closed for 20 months. In that time, the couple worked on refurbishing the restaurant and got married. “We opened Dive on out honeymoon” in early July, DiIorio said.
They hired Sea Bright locals, Kyle Hopfensperger as executive chef and Daniel Ciameroni as sous chef. Both 29 years old, they have restaurant experience in the area, and either ride their bikes or skateboards to work. They have also been friends since they were two years old.
SEA BRIGHT: SO LONG, SUMMER THRONGS
Beachgoers thronged the sands of Sandy Hook, above, and Sea Bright, right, on a hot, muggy Labor Day that marked the unofficial end of summer Monday. For locals, of course, a new season of free access to wide-open beaches begins.
More photos after the jump… (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
SEA BRIGHT: FOWLER TEES IT UP ON BEACH
Pro golfer Rickie Fowler, who’s having a scorching hot year on the links, paid a visit to the beach in Sea Bright Tuesday, showing off his swing to admiring fans by knocking some biodegradable balls into the Atlantic Ocean.
Rich Chrampanis of Shore Sports Zone was there, camera and microphone at the ready. Check out his interview, and watch for a redbankgreen-Sports Zone collaboration starting in September. (Video courtesy of Shore Sports Zone .)
SEA BRIGHT: CATCHING THE BIG ONE AT YUMI
The fresh and aptly named Sea Bright roll at Yumi (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
A horde of moviegoers filled the public beach in Sea Bright with assorted lawn chairs and blankets Sunday night. The occasion: the annual Shore Flicks showing of “Jaws,” which was rained out last year.
Keeping in the theme of the evening, dinner before the movie had to be seafood at Yumi on Ocean Avenue.
SOGGY START TO HOLIDAY WEEKEND?
Beachgoers beat a retreat from Beach E at Sandy Hook following the cancellation of a weekly concert because of an approaching storm Wednesday evening.
Forecasts indicate that Hurricane Arthur will veer east of the Jersey Shore, but heavy rains will drench the mid-Atlantic region from Thursday afternoon into Friday, July 4. Mostly sunny skies are expected to follow Saturday and Sunday. (Vine video by Gerda Liebmann.)
CLIPPINGS: BEACH WATCH IN SEA BRIGHT
A beach day so nice it’ll make your head spin. Or something like that. A Vine video from the municipal beach in Sea Bright on June 27, 2014. (Video by Gerda Liebmann. Click to pause.)
Check out all the Clippings from the Green here.
SEA BRIGHT: DONOVAN’S COMEBACK DELAYED
The site of Donovan’s Reef in April. (Photo above by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
An ambitious plan to reopen a prominent Sea Bright bar by July 4 won’t meet its goal, the Star-Ledger’s website reports.
Bob Phillips, an owner of Donovan’s Reef, tells nj.com that the effort has been frustrated by his inability to obtain a loan from the federal government.
Still, the business, destroyed by Hurricane Sandy in October, 2012, will reopen in scaled-down form this summer, with completion of a permanent new structure as early as November, Phillips tells the news organization.
RED BANK: BEACHY GIFT IDEA AT CANDY’S
Glassware at Candy’s Cottage. (Photo by John T Ward. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
New to Monmouth Street in Red Bank, Candy’s Cottage carries a selection of beach-themed, etched glassware.
Store owner – and seashell artisan – Candy Galekovic will personalize any of the elegant wine glasses with an array of seashells, which she glues to the base.
“A lot of people come in and purchase the champagne flutes for the bride and groom as toasting glasses,” she said, adding that the store also now offers gift registry on its website.
SUNRISE (SORTA) ON SUMMER IN SEA BRIGHT
redbankgreen is always delighted to plug the great work of Red Bank journalist Brian Donohue, who make the Ledger Live videos for NJ.com, the wesbite of the Star-Ledger. In this one, Donohue kicks off a daylong series of quick videos along the shore in Monmouth and Ocean counties on the cusp of summer 2014, starting at daybreak in our lovely Green borough of Sea Bright.
SPRING 2014: TASTE OF SUMMER
With ample sun and temperatures nearing 80 degrees just a few miles inland, dozens of beachgoers flocked to Sea Bright Sunday. Monday will be warm, with temperatures reaching about 76 degrees, but less sunny, with a chance of rain after 2 p.m., the National Weather Service forecasts. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
SEA BRIGHT: DONOVAN’S TO REBUILD
Donovan’s Reef as seen five days after Hurricane Sandy, above, and in better days, below. (Photo above by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Smashed to splinters by Hurricane Sandy, Sea Bright’s venerated beachfront bar, Donovan’s Reef, will make it’s return this summer, an owner tells redbankgreen.
The comeback, approved earlier this week by the borough planning board in a unanimous 8-0 vote, could begin with an the opening of tiki bar as soon as May 15, said Bob Phillips, who co-owns the business with two partners.
“Their mentality is, ‘We need you more than you need us,'” Phillips said of the board’s members.
SEA BRIGHT: FREE BEACH TO GET COSTLY LAV
A four-stall restroom with a ramp over the seawall is expected to be completed by Memorial Day, officials say. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
To those in the know, it’s Sea Bright’s “free beach,” and free it shall remain for the foreseeable future, town officials say.
But one of the tradeoffs in visiting the Anchorage Beach – reliance on porta-potties for bathroom service – is finally about to end, at a steep cost.