Newspaper and magazine articles about Atlantic City’s restaurants of yore always seem to elicit a healthy response from readers. The recent piece within these pages about fondly-remembered, long-gone eateries was no exception. Two responses to that piece stand out.
A Galloway Township reader asked about a shore restaurant called Dewey’s. “My sister and I were young children back in the 1950s,” the reader wrote. “Many Fridays, our family drove from our home in suburban Philadelphia to Somers Point and we’d stop for dinner along the way. One place we especially enjoyed was a place with a stage and a dark curtain. In our memories, the place was called Dewey’s. We always hoped to sit at a table by the curtain to sneak a peek at what was behind it.
“We also remember eating cinnamon buns which came in the bread basket. I’ve lived in Galloway for many years, but I’ve never run into anyone who can tell me exactly where this place was. My guess would be somewhere in Atlantic County. We would be grateful for any information you can provide.”
Mark Ferguson, moderator of a Facebook group dedicated to historic Galloway, discovered this information: “Dewey’s was originally built around 1918 as the Absecon Highland’s Grange Hall,” says Ferguson. “In the mid-1940s, Grange became a bar and café, and in the 1950s, it became John Lingelbach’s 6th Avenue Café. Owned by Dewey Felton, the venue officially became ‘Dewey’s’ and grew into a massive local staple during the 1950s. It was well-known for its live entertainment. The venue was so popular, that the Absecon Lions Club was founded at Dewey’s Inn in 1956. The restaurant closed in December of 1961.”
Another reader has very clear memories of one of the restaurants detailed in the “restaurants of yore” piece. “In your August 27 issue,” the reader wrote, “Bruce Klauber did a terrific job of shining a kitchen heat lamp on many fine local restaurants that are no longer with us. I remember them all, ate at many of them and even worked at a few. One slight complaint, however. On what planet was The Great Josh’s a Jewish-styled deli? It was a sub shop, period. You’d have a better chance finding an egg roll on the menu than a knish.”
Memories can be strange things. An Atlantic City Weekly piece published in June of 2019, described the restaurant. “On the other side of the monument, heading toward Downbeach, you couldn’t miss The Great Josh’s at 3709 Ventnor Avenue,” the piece read. “Ironically, the site of this prototypical New York-style (read: Jewish) deli/ice cream parlor has now become a popular Halal meat outlet: Urban redevelopment of the new millennium. What Abe’s was to Dock’s, Josh’s might have been to the legendary White House Subs. Larger in both seating size and menu, Josh’s served all the standard grilled items and cold subs, plus juicy, heaping piles of pastrami and corned beef. You just gotta love a place whose signature sandwich was labeled ‘The Bellyfiller.’”
Other readers chimed in with their warm memories of Atlantic City restaurants that were open for business back in the day. Herewith, a sampling:
DiLullo’s Restaurant, at 1415 Atlantic Avenue, was open, according to the limited information available, in the 1940s and 1950s, and was said to be a great place for Northern Italian cooking. The more famous DiLullo’s was in Philadelphia, which opened in 1939 on 11th and Market Street.
Pennsylvania Dutch cooking in Atlantic City? You bet. Jean’s Restaurant, at 139-141 South Carolina, was in business in the 1940s and 1950s, and stayed open for almost 20 years.
Kent’s Restaurants were a mini-franchise for the time, as their three, Atlantic City restaurants thrived for years since opening in 1903. The venues, which focused on breakfasts and all-American cooking, were located at 1214 Atlantic Avenue at North Carolina Avenue, 1700 Pacific Avenue at Illinois Avenue, and 2124 Atlantic Avenue, just opposite what was the Union Railroad Station. FYI, the station opened in 1934 and was in operation until 1964. Though it was on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places, the building was torn down in 1997.
McGee’s Bar and Restaurant, at 1615 Pacific Avenue, was a real destination since its opening in 1930. It’s been reported that McGee’s was nationally known for steaks, seafood, and live organ music; and that it attracted the shore’s elite through the years.
Little is known about Soloff’s Restaurant on 3805 Ventnor Avenue, except that it opened in 1938 and that it used the catchphrase “A meal in a sandwich.” Soloff’s may have been a precursor of sorts to the fabled Lou’s in Ventnor, which opened eight years later at 5011 Ventnor Avenue.
Possibly the most popular of all these obscurities was Atlantic City’s Child’s Restaurant, likely because it was part of one of the nation’s first restaurant chains. In the 1920s and 1930s, Child’s had around 125 venues in the United States and Canada. The Boardwalk location, which opened in 1927 with a nautical motif, was on South Carolina Avenue and had quite an extensive menu for the day. It was notable for its “Submarine Grill,” with seating, if you can imagine, under the Boardwalk. Child’s in Atlantic City did very well until the entire chain began to suffer. By 1950, the chain was down to 53 venues, and in 1952, Child’s in Atlantic City closed.
What’s there today? Resorts Casino Hotel. Ah…progress.
Bruce Klauber is the author of four books, an award-winning music journalist, concert and record producer and publicist, producer of the Warner Brothers and Hudson Music “Jazz Legends” film series, and performs both as a drummer and vocalist.
