Atlantic City has certainly had its share of restaurateurs – some great, some not so much – who have come and gone. Among them all, my favorite is Stephen Starr.
So, while it pains me to say that he wasn’t available for an interview for this story, my unabashed adoration for his contributions to the culinary scene – from Atlantic City to New York; from Fort Lauderdale to Washington, D.C. to Nashville, and especially Philadelphia – remains as worshipful as ever.
The fact that the creator of such iconic restaurants as Buddakan and Continental – which at one point anchored the once stunning Pier Shops at Caesars – opened two new restaurants at Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City this summer is not only amazingly welcome, but it’s downright surprising.
Chez Frites and Sunny’s are both prototypical Starr restaurants. The food is familiar yet modern and refreshed; the settings are clean, crisp, vibrant yet classic and the service is impeccable.
Do yourself a favor and check them both out. They offer two very different experiences, yet share those signature Stephen Starr elements that make his restaurants special.
But first, let me reminisce.
Starr in Atlantic City
One of my fondest memories of Starr was sitting inside the once glorious Buddakan in Atlantic City for lunch one day. Incredibly sharp, Starr’s attentive staff sent out plate after meticulous plate for him to critique.
And critique he did.
With just one bite, he would immediately recognize if something was properly seasoned or prepared correctly. With just one glance, he instinctively recognized if something wasn’t plated to his liking. He was always polite but curt. And if he liked something, he was just as quick to compliment as he was to criticize.
As a food journalist, I learned a lot that day, but the thing I remember most is how dissatisfied he was with Atlantic City.
“Scott, I love Atlantic City, but I will never open another restaurant here,” said Starr, whose two restaurants celebrated more than a decade in Atlantic City beginning in the mid-2000s. “I have opened restaurants in cities around the world, but Atlantic City is the most difficult city to operate in.”
Starr, who at that point just opened his first international restaurant in Paris, was referring to what he felt were complicated and sometimes overbearing rules and procedures from Atlantic City government and the CRDA. At that point, Starr operated about 20 restaurants.
Buddakan and Continental were two of the greatest restaurants in Atlantic City history. Although it was short-lived, Starr’s Chelsea Prime at the Curtis Bashaw-owned The Chelsea, was arguably the best steakhouse in Atlantic City. And its sister operation, Teplitzky’s, offered an amazing retro coffeehouse experience at The Chelsea. A good deal of Starr’s flair can still be found in the restaurants that currently exist in those spaces: Gilchrist’s and Chelsea 5.
Starr’s current roster of restaurants – there are more than 40 Starr Restaurants including his two new ones at Ocean – is as impressive as ever.
He has made his mark in Philadelphia.
There is Buddakan (modern Asian) and the Continental (restaurant and martini bar) – his first two restaurants there remain as iconic as the Liberty Bell. Barclay Prime is my second favorite steakhouse on the planet next to Peter Luger in Brooklyn. El Vez and Morimoto (Mexican and Japanese) display that his restaurants can be influenced by all cultures.
The Dandelion (British pub), Parc (French bistro), Butcher and Singer (steakhouse), Talula’s Garden (farm to table) and Fette Sau (barbecue) show his remarkable ability to reach anyone and everyone. If you eat food, there’s a Stephen Starr restaurant out there that will bring meaning into your life.
That’s because food is everything to Starr. Since he founded his empire in 1995, Starr has become one of the most successful, revered and influential restaurateurs in the country, winning several James Beard Foundation Awards including the coveted Outstanding Restaurateur honor in 2017, and Restaurateur of the Year from Bon Appetit and Zagat.
Maybe one day I will treat myself to one of his Michelin Star restaurants, including The Clocktower, a New York eatery serving “modern cuisine with a palpable UK sensibility;” and Le Coucou, a French restaurant in Manhattan which has held a Michelin Star for six straight years thanks to Chef Daniel Rose.
Thankfully, he has let his onetime negative feelings about the city he visited since a child fade so that he could return.
Chez Frites
Of the two new Atlantic City establishments, Chez Frites is certainly the most unique and chic offering.
Sometimes simplicity speaks volumes. And that’s exactly what Starr was going for when he envisioned this prix-fixe concept that offers a traditional French bistro experience.
The dining room is swanky yet understated, and the adjacent bar feels like you stepped into an underground rock club where the cocktails are mostly classics prepared perfectly, including an Aperol Spritz Manhattan made with Sagamore Rye, and a Sidebar with Hennessy VS and Grand Marnier.
You don’t have to take too much time deciding what you want to eat. Ranging from $44 to $67, diners are treated to a mixed greens salad with white balsamic vinaigrette, and choice of lobster, steak or salmon frites. There is also a salt-baked celery root option for vegetarians.
The quality of the prime New York strip and South African lobster tails is noticeable, and the preparation – overseen by Executive Chef and Atlantic City veteran Tim Davis, is outstanding, including the all-you-can-eat, twice-fried, hand-cut french fries, which are perfection. You can also ask for a surf and turf option, which is sometimes available.
If you want to have an appetizer, you have a choice of four: shrimp cocktail, scallop crudo, mac and cheese made with Vermont cheddar and – my suggestion – Mussels Marinières, which is perhaps the best mussels dish in Atlantic City thanks to its quality Prince Edward Island mussels and a perfect white wine-shallot butter.
It may sound like a cliché, but save room for dessert because the desserts are some of the best in the city. You can opt for a simple vanilla crème brûlée or the dark Valrhona chocolate mousse, but I suggest the raspberry vacherin with its layers of fresh raspberry, vanilla ice cream, and crisp meringue that will remind you of a baked Alaska, or the perfectly light profiteroles filled with vanilla ice cream and drizzled with bittersweet chocolate. They are special desserts.
The challenge of Chez Frites will be its simplicity. While excellent in every way, can a small menu offering a choice of four entrees and four appetizers satisfy repeat diners? Let’s hope so, because Chez Frites is an outstanding experience.
Sunny’s
On the casual side of things is Sunny’s, a stylish café that is cute in a European sort of way featuring a beautiful bar area for some mimosas, bellinis or fun cocktails like the iced tea/lemonade-infused Arnold Bomber in the sun-drenched room.
The menu is fun and vibrant, reminiscent of the former Teplitzky’s and The Continental, with breakfast and lunch items that are not only delicious, but unpretentious and perfect for a casino café full of those looking to cure a hangover on Saturday night or to have a leisurely lunch date.
The biggest issue will be choosing what to eat, as the menu offers so many inviting options. The breakfast and lunch items are available at all times, so you can have their amazing tuna tacos with yellowfin tuna, spicy mayo, avocado-tomato relish, romaine lettuce and cilantro for an appetizer; a fried bologna sandwich with mustard and onions, American cheese, and pickles for your main course; and then indulge in Nutella buttermilk pancakes with fresh strawberries and whipped cream for the finale.
Other standouts include the tomato soup and grilled cheese starter, appetizers such as pigs in a blanket with puff pastry, baked mac and cheese with confit tomatoes, and their signature monkey bread with sweet cinnamon and creamy icing.
On the breakfast side, check out the Grand Slam McMuffin with pork sausage, fried egg, onions, hashbrowns, American cheese and ketchup on a Portuguese muffin; The Elvis, a double-stack of french toast with maple caramel sauce, peanut butter whipped cream, banana and bacon bits; and the steak and eggs, which features the same New York prime strip you get next door at Chez Frites along with eggs and crispy potatoes.
On the lunch side, you can’t go wrong with their lobster roll with lemon mayo on that Portuguese roll; the Cheeseburger Royale with double beef patties, American cheese, pickles and special sauce; one of the best gourmet turkey burgers you will ever have with homemade mustard sauce, and the World’s Best Chicken Tenders with house honey mustard, comeback sauce, sriracha ranch and crinkle cut fries that do a pretty good job living up to their billing.
Ocean Casino Resort’s restaurant offerings continue to not only expand in size, but in quality. Amada, from Iron Chef Jose Garces, who got his career start with Starr, remains at the top of the heap alongside a new Italian hot spot called LaScala’s Fire. But there’s always the also the impressive Ocean Steak; the fun, hip Villain & Saint; the new-and-improved Top Golf Swing Suite, and even some quality quick-serve options like High Steaks, which some say has the best cheesesteak in Atlantic City.
With Starr now in the picture, Ocean Casino Resort’s dining roster is one of the best in the city.
Chez Frites and Sunny’s are located on the Lobby Level inside Ocean Casino Resort, Atlantic City. Chez Frites is open 5-10 p.m. Thursdays, 5-11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays – bar open until 1 a.m. – and 5-10 p.m. Sundays and Mondays. Sunny’s is open 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursdays to Mondays. Hours may change seasonally. Go to TheOceanAC.com for details.
Scott Cronick is an award-winning journalist who has written about entertainment, food, news and more in South Jersey for nearly three decades. He hosts a daily radio show – “Off The Press with Scott Cronick” – 4 to 6 p.m. weekdays on Newstalk WOND 1400-AM, 92.3-FM, and WONDRadio.com. He can be reached at scronick@comcast.net.
