Walk the Ocean City Boardwalk today and you will find plenty of institutions that have survived generations of changing tastes, storms and summer crowds. But for locals and vacationers, part of the fun of strolling the boards is remembering what used to be there.
A storefront can disappear, or even an amusement park, yet decades later people still remember the smells, sounds, and sights of nostalgia.
Ocean City’s Boardwalk has continuously reinvented itself, and these 10 former favorites are part of its story.
Old Salt
For nearly four decades, Old Salt brought a distinctly nautical flavor to the Boardwalk’s 1300 block.
Harry and Gloria Klause opened the shop in 1977, filling it with ship models, brass bells and maritime décor inspired by Harry’s fascination with the sea. Over time, the merchandise expanded to include souvenirs, gifts and home décor, while the business remained in the family. When Old Salt celebrated its 35th anniversary in 2012, the founders’ granddaughters were among those operating it.
Its closing left behind a little archaeological surprise. During renovations at the former shop in 2017, workers removed signage and exposed much older advertisements hidden underneath — a literal glimpse into layers of Boardwalk history.
Moore’s Bowling Casino
Long before the Moorlyn became known as a movie theater, visitors came to Moorlyn Terrace to bowl.
Moore’s Bowling Casino opened in 1905. The property later incorporated additional entertainment before undergoing a dramatic conversion: in 1922, the bowling alleys were removed as part of a project to create a roughly 1,600-seat movie theater.
The Moorlyn would go on to host films for generations, making the original Bowling Casino easy to forget. Since 2024, you can enjoy a matinee at Moorlyn Square Theatre, occupying the same space.
Flanders Beach Grille
There was a time when a boardwalk stroll or bike ride near the Flanders Hotel could include a stop at the Flanders Beach Grille for an affordable breakfast, lunch or treat.
The restaurant is frequently mentioned in longtime visitors’ recollections of vanished Ocean City landmarks, particularly by those who remember the Flanders property and its saltwater swimming pool.
It belonged to an era when Boardwalk dining was less about nationally recognizable brands and more about individual restaurants whose names became intertwined with a family’s annual vacation ritual.
Copper Kettle Fudge
Few vanished businesses inspire sensory memories quite like Copper Kettle.
Located around 11th Street, across from the Flanders, the shop was famous for fudge — and for letting pedestrians watch candy being made through the window. Former customers still recall the prominent copper kettle itself, a piece of visual branding impressive enough that people were discussing it online decades after the business disappeared.
Today, the storefront is associated with Fralinger’s Salt Water Taffy & Fudge, where boardwalkers can still taste delicious treats.
Planters Peanuts
Before Mr. Peanut became primarily a supermarket mascot, Ocean City visitors could encounter him right on the Boardwalk.
The Planters shop \is remembered for freshly roasted nuts and, perhaps even more vividly, the life-sized Mr. Peanut character who wandered the boards in his top hat and monocle. Online recollections from former visitors and employees describe the costumed peanut as an unmistakable part of a Boardwalk trip in the 1970s and beyond.
For a generation of children, getting peanuts — or spotting Mr. Peanut approaching through the crowd — was as much a part of Ocean City as pizza and amusement rides.
Larzelere’s Penny Candy Store
Before candy shopping involved grabbing a prepackaged bag from a shelf, Larzelere’s made choosing sweets an event.
The store, remembered around Fourth Street and the Boardwalk, became famous for penny candy. Customers could select individual pieces, collecting their choices before the candy was counted and bagged at the counter. One former visitor remembered presenting a little bowl of selections to the “Larzelere girls,” who would count everything before putting the candy into a bag.
Historic photographs of Larzelere’s remain preserved in collections of Ocean City Boardwalk imagery.
The Strand Theatre
Perhaps no vanished Ocean City theater is more recognizable than the Strand.
The theater opened at Ninth Street and the Boardwalk in 1938 and featured classic Art Deco styling, balconies and a decorative curtain depicting King Neptune.
The Strand remained an Ocean City fixture for decades before closing in 2014. Its building did not disappear, however. Redevelopment plans transformed the former theater into the flagship Boardwalk location for Manco & Manco Pizza, preserving one familiar Boardwalk institution inside the shell of another.
For anyone who once looked up at the Strand marquee to see what was playing, it can still feel strange to remember a movie theater where diners now sit with pizza.
Walt’s Original Primo Pizza
Longtime Ocean City pizza fans know that the Boardwalk’s pizza conversation once involved more than one famous name.
Primo Pizza, near Eighth Street and the Boardwalk, developed a particularly devoted following. A 2010 Ocean City food blog even framed the local debate as a full-fledged “pizza war” between Primo and Mack & Manco, noting that Primo had a reputation among locals and frequent visitors as a worthy rival to the Boardwalk giant.
That rivalry was part of the fun. Families developed allegiances, debated crust and sauce and knew exactly which counter they planned to visit before they ever stepped onto the boards.
Primo may be gone from the Boardwalk, but you can still enjoy their iconic slices at their Somers Point and Egg Harbor Township locations.
The Showboat Theatre
In an age before streaming — and before every vacation rental came with multiple televisions — going to the movies was a major part of a Shore vacation.
The Showboat Theatre opened in 1929 as a venue for vaudeville before becoming a movie theater. It was later known as the Surf Theatre.
The Surf ultimately closed in the 1980s, and the property was converted into retail space.
For decades, however, Showboat and later Surf joined Ocean City’s surprisingly rich lineup of Boardwalk movie houses. At one point, theaters were nearly as much a part of the Boardwalk landscape as tee-shirt shops.
Mia’s Christmas Gallery
Mia’s Christmas Gallery brought December to the Boardwalk in the middle of the tourism season, filling its store between 10th and 11th streets with Christmas trees, ornaments, Santas, lights and collectibles.
Charlie and Rose Caucci opened Mia’s in 2000 and named it for their daughter. Jane and Jim Saile purchased the business in 2012, and by 2016 it was described as a Boardwalk landmark.
Eventually, Mia’s left the Boardwalk for downtown Ocean City. The business continues at 755 Asbury Ave., where customers can still shop for Christmas décor and Ocean City-themed ornaments.
So Mia’s is less a lost business than a relocated piece of Boardwalk nostalgia.
The Boardwalk keeps changing
That is ultimately the story of the Ocean City Boardwalk.
Businesses disappear. Others move. Movie theaters become stores and restaurants. A bowling alley becomes a cinema. The place a child bought penny candy becomes part of somebody else’s childhood in an entirely different form.
Still, memories have a way of preserving a version of the Boardwalk that construction crews cannot tear down.
Sarah Fertsch of Egg Harbor Township holds a Bachelors of Arts in Public Relations. She is a locally renowned poet, storyteller, and dog lover.
