A restaurant and tiki bar on the beach in South Seaside Park.
An upscale American restaurant from a celebrity chef in Union Beach.
A family-run Italian restaurant in Bradley Beach.
We said goodbye to these spots and more this year. Here are 15 restaurants and food businesses that we lost in Monmouth and Ocean counties in 2025.
21A on Broadway Long Branch
Alex and Cathy DiFede closed their martini bar and American-Mediterranean restaurant, 21A on Broadway, in March after nearly four years in business.
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“We wanted to bring a new restaurant with a classy vibe to the heart of downtown Long Branch,” Alex DiFede, a Sicilian native who grew up working in Italian restaurants and pizzerias around Monmouth County, told The Asbury Park Press shortly after opening.
The two-story restaurant at 202 Broadway reopened this summer as Moxie Modern, serving "modern American cuisine."
Mangiare Tu, Bradley Beach
Lana Graziano, whose family-run restaurant served "soulful Italian" food on Bradley Beach's Main Street for eight years, closed Mangiare Tu in March.
"This decision was not made lightly, and it comes with deep emotion and reflection," read the closing announcement on social media.
Graziano owned other restaurants prior to opening in Bradley Beach, including Mama Rosa's on Staten Island and the original Mangiare Tu in Brick, which was open from 1998 to 2006. She currently runs My Way Catering and offers private chef services and cooking lessons.
Heirloom at St. Laurent, Asbury Park
In summer 2022, the team behind the acclaimed Heirloom Kitchen in Old Bridge opened a sister location inside The St. Laurent, a new hotel built on the site of the former Hotel Tides in Asbury Park.
Earlier this year, the doors closed on the Monmouth County restaurant, but only for a few weeks: Judy & Harry's, the Heirloom owners' restaurant and bar focused on Italian and Jewish cuisines, reopened in its place.
Fireside Grill & Bar, Marlboro
Fireside Grill & Bar, a sports bar and restaurant on South Main St. in Marlboro, closed in May after 14 years in business.
The restaurant shared the building with Bad Hat Dumplings & Cocktails, which is also closed. Both spaces will become Meximodo Cocina Mexicana & Tequila Bar, a modern Mexican restaurant and tequila bar with locations in Metuchen and Jersey City. The new restaurant will open in 2026.
Tre Pizza Pasta and Beer Garden, Brick
Tre Pizza Pasta and Beer Garden and Rosalita's Roadside Cantina, a pair of Brick restaurants from the Great Restaurants hospitality group, closed in May.
"Thank you to everyone who supported us in Brick over the years," reads a news release from the group, which also owns Nonna's Cucina in Marlboro and Metropolitan Cafe? and The Standard in Freehold Borough. "We’re incredibly grateful and can’t wait to see you at one of our other Great Restaurants locations."
Cuzin's Seafood & Clam Bar, which has restaurants in Marlboro and New Brunswick, will replace Tre and Rosalita's in Brick Plaza.
Catherine’s Farm to Table, Point Pleasant Borough
Catherine's Farm to Table, a "modern American" BYOB from Chef Luke Milchman and Grant Kennedy, closed in July after two years in business.
"Due to unforseen circumstances, Catherine's Farm to Table will be closing indefinitely," the restaurant shared on social media. "Our time in Point Pleasant has been nothing short of incredible."
Through the years, the building at 1001 Arnold Ave. has housed several restaurants, including Capt'n Ed's Place, The Quarter House and The White Owl, among others.
The GOAT by David Burke, Union Beach
The GOAT by David Burke, a Union Beach restaurant that opened on Route 36 in Union Beach in 2022, closed quietly in July.
The closure of the restaurant, which served modern Continental and American cuisines in the renovated Piero's Italian Restaurant space, followed an announcement that renovations were under way. The closure was confirmed with a note on the restaurant's Instagram page: "Closed. Thank you for being such wonderful guests. We hope you'll visit us at Red Horse (Steakhouse by David Burke) in Rumson."
Burke also owns Red Horse by David Burke Steakhouse in Rumson, David Burke's Dixie Lee Bakery in Keansburg, Orchard Burke by David Burke in East Brunswick and Red Horse by David Burke in Bernardsville, as well as several restaurants in New York.
Mr. Cupcakes, Brick
In 2022, Johnny Manganiotis expanded his North Jersey cupcake business, Mr. Cupcakes, to the Shore with the opening of a bakery in Brick.
After three years at Boulevard Square shopping plaza on Brick Boulevard, the bake shop closed in October to allow Manganiotis and his wife, Mikayla, time to focus on their breakfast, brunch and lunch restaurant, Mila's of Seaside, which opened in the spring.
Manganiotis still owns Mr. Cupcakes locations in Clifton, Hawthorne and Paramus and offers cupcake deliveries in Ocean County and pickup at the restaurant.
The shuttered Mr. Cupcakes space soon will be occupied by Cheessteaks, a cheesesteak and chicken wing restaurant with locations in Belmar and Merchantville.
Bradley Brew Project, Bradley Beach
After seven years of brewing beer in Bradley Beach, Chelsey and Mike Ziolkowski closed Bradley Brew Project in October.
The closure of the Main Street taproom and brewery did not mean the end of the brand's beers, though. The couple, who opened Bradley Brew Project in 2018, moved its brewing and distribution to their second brewery, Tall Oaks Farm & Brewery in Farmingdale.
"The Bradley Brew Project name and the brands are staying exactly as they are," Mike Ziolkowski said at the time. "Nothing changes there, so that will continue as is."
The building at 714 Main St. in Bradley Beach will be taken over by New Jersey-based brewery Erratic Fermentations.
Albarino Tapas & Wine Bar, Shrewsbury
Albarino, which opened on Broad Street in Shrewsbury in 2017, closed in November.
"It has been an absolute pleasure serving you and being part of this wonderful community," the restaurant shared on Instagram. "While this chapter comes to a close, it’s not goodbye, it’s hasta luego. We invite you to visit our other locations in Princeton and continue to shop small this holiday season to support local businesses that make our communities thrive."
Terra Momo, the group behind the restaurant, also owns Eno Terra in Kingston, Terra Momo Bread Company in Pennington, and Mediterra and Teresa Cafe, both in Princeton.
Good Life Organic Kitchen, Red Bank
Good Life Organic Kitchen, a superfood-focused restaurant serving smoothie bowls, soups, salads, sandwiches, juices and coffee in Red Bank, closed in November.
Anita and Melvin Pierce opened the restaurant, a franchise of a small chain, on Broad Street in 2021.
"We opened these doors to serve real food and real healing. We grew with this community through every high and every challenge. We feel deep gratitude for every person who supported this space," they shared on Instagram. "Please do not feel bad or sorry that we are leaving. We are only sorry to our customers that we cannot continue giving you the healthiest options in town."
A Slice of Heaven, Beach Haven
A Slice of Heaven, a Long Beach Island pizzeria open for for 30 years, closed in November after the sale of its building.
Colleen Mazzella, who opened the restaurant with her late husband, Dominick, in 1995, leased their restaurant's space. A Slice of Heaven closed Nov. 17.
She is searching for a new location for the restaurant, which her son — also named Dominick — dreams of taking over. Mazzella hopes to keep the restaurant on Long Beach Island.
"My intention is to be on the island," said Mazzella, who grew up in Brant Beach. "I love the people here. I grew up here. I love everything about it."
Rare Co., Ship Bottom
Rare Co., a steakhouse and seafood restaurant that opened on Long Beach Island in 2022, closed in November.
"As our family continues to grow, we’ve decided to shift our focus toward this new and beautiful chapter, raising our babies," the owners of the Long Beach Boulevard restaurant, formerly The Greenhouse Cafe, shared on social media. "This isn’t goodbye forever — just 'see you later.' We look forward to the possibilities and the day when we return, refreshed and ready."
Salt Creek Grille, Rumson
Salt Creek Grille, which opened along the Navesink River in Rumson in 1998, will close Wednesday, Dec. 31.
“We have come to the end of our lease, and while this chapter is coming to an end, the memories we created together will last a lifetime,” the restaurant shared on Instagram.
The news follows the October closure of Salt Creek Grille in Princeton. Two other locations, both in California, remain open.
Chef Mike's ABG, South Seaside Park
New Year's Eve is the final day for the South Seaside Park location of Chef Mike's ABG, a restaurant and tiki bar on the beach.
The property on which the restaurant sits, between 23rd and 24th avenues in the South Seaside Park section of Berkeley Township, was purchased by a developer who plans to build around a dozen homes, owner and chef Mike Jurusz said.
"It is a shame, and it’s something that I have no control over," said Jurusz, who purchased the restaurant, previously Atlantic Bar & Grill, in 2013. "But everybody has a right to sell, so I'm not mad about it."
The chef plans to reopen in another location.
Sarah Griesemer joined the USA TODAY NETWORK in 2003 and has been writing all things food since 2014. Send restaurant tips to [email protected], and for more Jersey Shore food news, subscribe to our weekly Jersey Shore Eats newsletter.
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