Alex & Ray
Things To Do!
Asbury Park Boardwalk
Take a stroll! Do some shopping! Enjoy the breeze! Play some minigolf!
Watermark
Our fabulous wedding venue, Watermark, also happens to be Asbury's best cocktail lounge! With a gorgeous view of the beach, a delicious selection of gourmet bar bites, and an incredible variety of beautifully creative cocktails and mocktails of every kind, we sure wouldn't blame you for checking out Watermark during their public hours too!
Silverball Museum
Right down the Asbury Park Boardwalk from our reception venue Watermark, Silverball is a museum of classic pinball machines and arcade games, and yes, everything is playable! Pay by minute for unlimited free play, a great way to kill a little time on the Boardwalk!
MOGO Korean Fusion Tacos (Boardwalk booth location)
Located in a little booth on the Boardwalk next to Watermark, MOGO is one of our favorite places to eat in the world! They specialize in Korean fusion tacos, and they WILL change your life. Visit the Cookman Ave. restaurant location as well for expanded menu and a free kimchi bar! Perfect if you're peckish in the afternoon, or if you're craving a late night munch after the reception....or even the next morning!
Langosta Lounge
Langosta is a great bar and restaurant right on the Boardwalk specializing in "shore cuisine", emphasizing local fare for a summertime palate. Ray's band Des and the Swagmatics plays Langosta regularly, so you can bet it'll be a fun intimate spot to possibly catch some live music!
Cookman Avenue
Enjoy a little shopping on Cookman Avenue, the heart downtown Asbury! Boutique shops like Foolish Ginger and Rebel Supply Co. are full of unique finds, and there are a string of great spots to pop in for a bite or a drink. Check out some more Cookman Avenue & downtown favorites below!
The Shoppes at the Arcade
A great collection of little shops, including an amazing vintage clothing store Backward Glances, Crust & Crumble pizza, a fun little comic book and record shop, and classic video game store Kill Screen Games!
Kill Screen Games
At last, the promised land! Kill Screen is tucked away in the aforementioned Shoppes at the Arcade, but totally deserves its own mention! This is the place to find your favorite video games from the classic systems of your childhood! Atari! SNES! N64! Old school Playstation! GameBoy! They've got it all! Last year for his birthday, Ray and Alex competed in a MarioKart 64 tournament here, with Ray placing 3rd and Alex pulling ahead in 2nd place!
Talula's
Seriously, if you come to the Jersey Shore and don't get pizza while you're here...
The Speakeatery
As seen and drooled over on Instagram, The Speakeatery is responsible for some of the most decadent, creative, mouth-watering sandwiches you'll ever see. The menu is almost overwhelming!
MOGO Korean Fusion Tacos (Cookman restaurant location)
The Cookman Avenue location of MOGO has a much larger menu than the booth location on the boardwalk next to Watermark, featuring burritos, incredible chicken wings and more, plus a free kimchi bar! Perfect if you're peckish in the afternoon, or if you're craving a late night munch after the reception....or even the next morning!
REYLA
A newer restaurant in town, REYLA specializes in Middle Eastern-influenced fusion cuisine, not to mention beautifully creative drinks. This is NOT your traditional Lebanese restaurant with hookah and a belly dancer! With a menu that's a western love letter to Arab flavors, REYLA has quickly become a favorite of Alex and Ray's, and even Ray's parents are deeply impressed by the balance of reverence for Middle Eastern traditions and incredible playfulness and creativity. We just about insist our Egyptian relatives and guests visit, but all are promised a thoughtful and bold culinary experience!
Bond Street Bar
If you enjoy a beer and fried snack best in surrounded by tattoos and denim in an endearing, rough-around-the-edges dive, Bond St. is where you want to be! If you're hungry, grab a burger or some corn nuggets while you're there!
Pascal & Sabine
Featuring excellent cocktails and absolutely decadent French-influenced cuisine, Pascal & Sabine is one of the best meals in town if you're alright with a higher price point, but the $18 burger with raclette and sauteed onions will change your life if you let it. Great happy hour deals and a Sunday morning brunch, too!
Asbury Festhalle & Biergarten
Asbury Biergarten boasts a delightful selection of German, Austrian and Belgian beers, as well as a delightful menu of authentic Austrian-Hungarian cuisine. Ray has been cooking all kinds of Austrian foods since taking Alex there for their engagement, but when they really miss the real thing, this is their spot!
Hotel Tides Restaurant & Bar
One of our absolute favorite restaurants, and an Asbury Park local best-kept-secret! Tides is tucked away in the historic residential district of Asbury. It's a cozy spot to stay while you're in town, but the hotel's restaurant is nothing short of phenomenal. A touch pricier, but it's not to be overlooked if you're seeking for a truly special dinner one night in town. Ray and Alex have spent a few anniversaries and birthdays there, but even the bar menu is worth checking out!
Georgie's
Asbury Park is among other things a beautifully thriving hub of New Jersey's LGBTQ+ community, so we're happy to say that all of the establishments we've recommended in town are inclusive spaces! That said, if any of our beloved LGBTQ+ guests are looking to be around their community while in town, Georgie's is where to go! Repeatedly voted the best queer bar in New Jersey, Georgie's is warmly welcoming to all, and one of the most fun spots in town, especially on karaoke nights! Ray's band Des and the Swagmatics have been honored to play an annual Pulse Nightclub memorial & benefit concert at Georgie's every year.
Pete & Elda's Bar / Carmen's Pizzeria
A Jersey Shore institution! Sample Pete & Elda's specialty, cracker-thin-crust pizza! If you can eat an XXL pie by yourself, you get a t shirt! Earning a Pete & Elda's shirt is a rite of passage around here...but even if you're not THAT hungry, it's still worth a visit, for the pizza or for the rest of the Jersey-Italian menu.