Down the Shore, 2025
A deep dive into seafood
After four years in Wyoming and three in Colorado, we are delighted to be back in the mid-Atlantic and close to South Jersey and its myriad seafood options. When I saw a Facebook post about a pop-up dinner at Matthews Seafood Market in Cape May Court House, my favorite market for local fish options, I immediately called for a reservation.
It was our first night in South Jersey, and a great way to kick off the month. The dinner was a treat, every course a delight.
My brother Geoff and his wife Barbra were our first visitors and came bearing great gifts—a large bag of their artisanal ice cubes from their home icemaker and a loaf of Barbra’s famous Cinnamon Raisin Sourdough Bread. And wine. And beer. There would be some thirsty days ahead.
For our first dinner at home with just us, I made soft-shelled crab sandwiches, quick and easy. We had stopped at Bailey’s seafood market in Dennisville on the way in, looking for the drum we had purchased there last year, but it was not available. But I was able to get some at Matthew’s for a dinner with Geoff and Barbra that contained no garlic or onions, as my bro is sensitive to the alliums.
Roasted Roma Tomatoes is another of our standard recipes to have on hand before the tomatoes start in earnest. They are perfect with anything, even just reclining on a slice of baguette. We were planning to have a big dinner on Saturday, when both sisters, Mary and Helen, would roll in with their respective families.
Rose and the Wyoming kiddos arrived in the wee hours of Wednesday morning, after delays in Dallas, and Kirk, Iris, and I made chocolate cake for John’s birthday the next day. We were also planning to celebrate Al’s wife Mary’s birthday, which had been the previous Sunday. We needed lots of desserts.
Our birthday dinner for John was another seafood extravaganza that was a shellfish trifecta—clams, oysters, and scallops. A Caesar Salad accompanied, but we needed to save room for dessert—Kirk’s Cockeyed Cake and a Bumbleberry Pie to celebrate Mary.
It was a fun birthday dinner, and the kids enjoyed cousin time. Iris, who every day names CoCo as what she is most grateful for when we do our Happy Family ritual at the table, was in her glory. She even tried a clam—and liked it. But didn’t want another one.
The next day CoCo and his parents arrived for morning playtime and our two vacation breakfast cereal options, as well as slices of toasted Cinnamon Raisin Bread dripping with Kellygold salted butter.
We spent lots of hours on the beach with our individual tents and canopies aligned to watch the waves. There were many castles built, then dripped, and then smashed. We chased the vigilant gulls who circled the encampment, waiting for a loose cheese curl to roll their way. The kids were happy to take outdoor showers to rinse off the sand before a thorough soaking in a warm tub to reconstitute their minds and bodies.
Our big party on Saturday night was at my sister Mary’s house to celebrate Brooke’s Lungaversary. Eleven years ago, she received a double lung transplant that saved her life and enabled her to become the woman that she is today—happy with her partner Jon, whose three kids, Madison, Blake, and Thea, adore her. We were celebrating her and also meeting her brother Brian’s fiancée, Angela, for the first time. It was another double celebration!
Mary and Rolf’s big house on the bay easily accommodated the 29 of us and Mary’s menu of an elaborate taco bar with pulled pork, pulled chicken, and local black seabass provided many options. I don’t have photos of her great food because there was so much going on that evening. But someone had the wherewithal to suggest a group photo, and that is what we did with the help of the next-door neighbor, who snapped it for us.
The next day, we lost the Miami crew, but we were happy to connect with Lizzie and her husband, Ryan, and their daughters, Emily and Joanie, at the beach. There was a lot of turtle action all week as the females are crossing the road to get to the marsh to lay eggs, and John has taken the lead on Turtle Patrol, and even Ryan got into the act, and Emily took his turtle out to the Wetlands Institute for rescue.
Rose treated us all to dinner on Friday night at Quahogs, and it was another great seafood experience, with freshly made fish sticks for the kids and many seafood options for the adults. Also, some very nice cocktails there. We will go back.
The next day, we drove the Wyomingites up to Philly to catch their flight and hurried out of that hot town as quickly as we could. At home, we had a simple Mezze platter for dinner with Roasted Eggplant, Caprese salad, and Helen’s famous roasted peppers. It was quiet now. Everyone poured out that morning, back to reality and work or school. I went to the farmers market on Sunday at Stone Harbor but didn’t buy much as we are down to our last week, and I am trying to empty the fridge. But our neighbor Phil gifted us two beautiful flounder fillets that I cooked up, and we had dinner watching the Phillies beat the Mets. A perfect summer evening.
And a perfect summer breakfast this morning at the Fishing Pier Grill in Avalon at the end of the boardwalk. We sat at the counter, and I got a Pork Roll sandwich on a somewhat smashed Kaiser roll, and John had scrapple and eggs. We can diet when we get home.
And the wonderful mid-Atlantic delicacy of scrapple
What a wonderful Jersey, family culinary experience 😍