Navigation

Entries in harvey cedar's clambar (1)

Tuesday
Aug272013

Harvey Cedar's Clambar, aka No Cell Phones, on Long Beach Island

We call it No Cell Phones. Of course, that's not the real name of the place, but a printout tapped to the wall reads, "No Cell Phones." A hard-working, fast-shucking woman is quick to enforce the rule, so don't tempt her. Another sign tapped above the register inside reveals more about the lady in charge. It reads, "Nel Lally, Seafood Diva." Lally presides over a place called Harvey Cedar's Clambar on Centre Street in Beach Haven, New Jersey.

Beach Haven is a borough of Ocean County. It's one of the few parcels of land that make up Long Beach Island, a sprawling, flat, north-to-south slice of land just east of mainland New Jersey. We spent last weekend there. We'd been before, and each time we go we make it a point to visit Lally and occupy a few of the 30 barstools that line the old U-shaped wooden bar.

The menu is exactly what you want in a seaside, beach town eatery. Good, simple, no frills food prepared well, seasoned properly, and cooked perfectly. Picky eaters get chicken fingers and fries. Everyone else gets everything else. Here's what we had.

Click to read more ...