If you are looking for the best restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach, NJ, you are going to find more than you expect. The town has a genuinely good food scene for a Jersey Shore destination, with seafood restaurants along the Manasquan River, Italian BYOB spots, solid pizza, waterfront bars, and some legitimately interesting cooking happening at a few of the smaller places.
Part of the confusion for first-time visitors is geography. Point Pleasant Beach and Point Pleasant are two separate towns sitting right next to each other, and most people searching for restaurants in Point Pleasant NJ do not realize they are actually two different places. Point Pleasant is the inland borough. Point Pleasant Beach is the one on the water, with the boardwalk, the beach, and the majority of the better restaurants. When locals talk about going “down the shore” to Point Pleasant, they almost always mean the beach side.
The wider area gets unfairly lumped in with the rest of the Jersey Shore, too. Outsiders sometimes picture the whole coastline as one long stretch of boardwalk bars and fried food, mostly thanks to MTV and Seaside Heights. But New Jersey’s shoreline is made up of dozens of distinct beach towns, each with its own character, and Point Pleasant Beach is one of the better ones for eating and drinking well.
From seafood and waterfront dining on the Manasquan River to tacos, BYOB Italian, great pizza, breakfast spots, and bars with live music, here is a guide to the best restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach and Point Pleasant, NJ.
Best Pizza in Point Pleasant Beach
Rosie's Pizza
New Jersey has quietly become one of the best pizza states in the country over the last decade. Legendary spots like Star Tavern and Santillo’s Brick Oven Pizza have been around for generations, but newer pizzerias like Razza, Bread & Salt, and now Rosie’s have helped push the state’s pizza scene into the national conversation.
Rosie’s serves both 16-inch round pies and grandma-style square pizzas. I lean slightly toward the square pie, which has an airy, almost focaccia-like crust with a crisp bottom and lightly charred edges. Plenty of people swear by the round pies, and honestly there is not a wrong choice here. If you are looking for the best pizza in Point Pleasant Beach, this is the place, and it holds up against some of the best pizza in New Jersey overall.
PIZZA | GRANDMA PIE | CASUAL | TAKEOUT
Italian Restaurants & BYOB Spots
Spano's Ristorante Italiano
There is a certain style of old-school Italian restaurant that feels uniquely New Jersey, and Spano’s fits that mold perfectly. It is one of the best Italian restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach and has been a local favorite for decades.
Joseph Spano originally opened in nearby Jackson in 1989 before relocating to Point Pleasant Beach in 2001. The menu focuses on traditional Italian-American cooking with housemade pasta, rotating daily specials, and generous portions. One of the standout dishes is the Sunday gravy, with sweet Italian sausage, homemade meatballs, and pork braciole simmered in marinara and served over fresh rigatoni.
Spano’s is BYOB, which is common among Italian restaurants in Point Pleasant NJ and along the Jersey Shore. If you are coming in summer, reservations are strongly recommended, especially on weekends.
ITALIAN | BYOB | HOUSEMADE PASTA | LOCAL FAVORITE
Poached Pear Bistro
Beach towns along the Jersey Shore tend to have plenty of seafood shacks, pizza spots, and casual boardwalk food, but Poached Pear Bistro offers something more refined. Executive Chef Scott Giordano, who trained at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, opened the restaurant in 2014.
The menu changes regularly but has included dishes like beef short rib carpaccio, duck confit ravioli, veal vol-au-vent, duck breast with foie gras, and rack of lamb persillade. Pastry Chef Teah Evans won an episode of Food Network’s Chopped, and the dessert program reflects that level of care.
Like several of the better BYOB restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach, Poached Pear does not have a liquor license, so bring a bottle. Reservations are strongly recommended in summer, especially on weekends. For an upscale dinner in Point Pleasant Beach, this is one of the best options in the area.
UPSCALE | BYOB | DATE NIGHT | CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN
Daniel's Bistro
Daniel’s Bistro is one of the better upscale restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach, and along with Poached Pear it sits at the top of the list for special occasion dining in the area.
The menu leans toward contemporary American cuisine with seafood, steak, and seasonal specials. The dining room is quieter and more intimate than most restaurants near the boardwalk, which makes it a good choice when you want a proper dinner rather than a lively shore-town atmosphere. Daniel’s is also BYOB, so bring a bottle.
UPSCALE | BYOB | SEAFOOD | DATE NIGHT
Casual Eats & Latin Food
Heights 167
Heights 167 is a Latin fusion restaurant in Point Pleasant Beach inspired by the food culture of Jackson Heights in Queens, and it is one of the more interesting places to eat in the area.
Jackson Heights is one of the most diverse food neighborhoods in New York City, with Colombian, Peruvian, Mexican, Ecuadorian, Dominican, Nepali, and Tibetan restaurants often sitting on the same block. When owner Eric Lucero moved down the shore to help run his family’s restaurant, Doña Julia Mexican Restaurant, he missed the variety of food he grew up eating in Queens. Heights 167 was his way of bringing some of those flavors to the Jersey Shore.
The menu pulls from several Latin American cuisines rather than focusing on one country. Standout dishes include the quesabirria tacos, Peruvian shrimp, Cuban ropa vieja, and plantain cups filled with brisket or shrimp inspired by Dominican tostones rellenos. They also do a large paella for two on Sundays.
If you are looking for something different from the typical seafood and pizza spots along the shore, Heights 167 is one of the more interesting restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach.
LATIN FUSION | TACOS | CASUAL | COCKTAILS
Surf Taco
Surf Taco has become one of the staple casual spots at the Jersey Shore, and the Point Pleasant Beach location is the original. There are now multiple locations across the shore towns, but this is where it started.
The menu is built around tacos, burritos, quesadillas, and bowls, with the food inspired more by the places the owners have traveled and surfed than by traditional Mexican cuisine. It is beach food in the best sense, the kind of place you stop at after a long day on the sand for a quick meal before heading back out.
The self-serve salsa bar, which Surf Taco calls the “Almost Famous” bar, is one of the things that keeps people coming back. Several homemade salsas ranging from mild to considerably hotter are available at the counter, and it is a simple concept that works.
For casual tacos and beach food in Point Pleasant Beach, Surf Taco is one of the most recognizable spots on the shore.
TACOS | CASUAL | LATE NIGHT | BEACH FOOD
Joe Leone's Italian Specialties
Joe Leone’s Italian Specialties is one of the best Italian delis at the Jersey Shore. The shop opened in 1997 and has since added locations in nearby Manasquan and Sea Girt.
The deli counter serves a full lineup of Italian sandwiches, while the prepared foods section rotates throughout the week with dishes like chicken piccata, rosemary lamb skewers, London broil with red wine demi-glace, and pappardelle with broccoli rabe. The monthly prepared food calendar is posted on their website, which is worth checking if you are staying down the shore for a few days and want to plan around it.
Beyond sandwiches and hot food, the market carries imported Italian ingredients, fresh pasta, sauces, cheeses, and olive oils. Prices run a little higher than a standard deli, but portions are generous and most sandwiches are large enough to split.
ITALIAN DELI | SANDWICHES | MARKET | TAKEOUT
Bars & Nightlife in Point Pleasant Beach
Martell's Tiki Bar
When it comes to bars in Point Pleasant Beach, Martell’s Tiki Bar is the most recognizable spot in town. The bar sits directly on the boardwalk and extends out over the beach on a large pier, with views up and down the shoreline.
Martell’s is a beach bar and live music venue more than a restaurant. During the summer, people stop in throughout the day for drinks between trips to the beach and come back later for live bands and a much bigger crowd. There is food available, but the draw here is the location, the outdoor setup, frozen drinks, and the atmosphere of being right on the water.
For anyone spending a weekend at the Jersey Shore, Martell’s is one of the defining boardwalk bars in Point Pleasant Beach and one of the better-known bars in Point Pleasant NJ overall.
TIKI BAR | LIVE MUSIC | BEACH BAR | NIGHTLIFE | BOARDWALK
Ark Pub & Eatery
The Ark Pub & Eatery is easy to walk past from the outside, but inside it feels like a proper neighborhood pub with wood floors, dark lighting, and a small fireplace. It is one of the better casual bars and restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach for burgers, beers, and pub food.
The menu focuses on straightforward bar food and comfort dishes. The Port Wine Cheddar Burger is the standout item and worth ordering. The beer selection is solid and the crowd tends to run more local than the larger boardwalk bars nearby.
The Ark does not offer WiFi, which fits the atmosphere perfectly. I usually work remotely when I am down the shore, so this is not my spot for a working lunch, but that is also kind of the point. It is the kind of place better suited for sitting at the bar on a rainy beach day or watching a game with a couple of beers than getting anything done.
PUB | BURGERS | BEER BAR | CASUAL
Seafood Restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach
The Wharfside Seafood & Patio Bar
For waterfront dining and live music in Point Pleasant Beach, Wharfside is one of the best spots in the area. The restaurant sits directly on the Manasquan River, not on the beach itself, which gives it a different feel from the boardwalk bars nearby. The river setting means boats passing by, calmer water, and some genuinely good sunset views looking out over the marina.
Wharfside works on two levels. The outdoor patio bar draws a lively crowd during the warmer months, with live music most weekends and a casual drinks-and-appetizers setup that works well on its own. The indoor dining room offers a fuller menu built around seafood, pasta, and steaks, and it is the better choice if you want a proper sit-down dinner rather than just a drink by the water.
Among the waterfront restaurants in Point Pleasant NJ, Wharfside is the one that does the best job of combining a good meal with a setting worth staying in for a few hours. If you are looking for restaurants in Point Pleasant NJ on the water, this is one of the first places to consider.
SEAFOOD | WATERFRONT | LIVE MUSIC | SUNSET VIEWS
The Shrimp Box
The Shrimp Box is one of the classic seafood restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach and has been a Jersey Shore staple for decades. It sits right along the Manasquan Inlet, which gives it a working-waterfront feel that is a bit different from the restaurants closer to the boardwalk.
The indoor menu leans into shore staples: lobster, scallops, crab cakes, shrimp platters, and fresh fish. The newer Outside The Box Patio Bar adds a more casual outdoor option with drinks, live music, and lighter fare during the warmer months, so there is a version of this place for most moods.
The Shrimp Box gets busy fast on summer weekends and around sunset, so expect a wait during peak season. If you are looking for seafood restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach with a genuine waterfront setting, this is one of the best options in town.
SEAFOOD | WATERFRONT | PATIO BAR | JERSEY SHORE CLASSIC
Atlantic Offshore Fishery
Atlantic Offshore Fishery is one of the more locally rooted seafood spots in Point Pleasant Beach. Part seafood market and part casual restaurant, it sits near the commercial fishing docks along the Manasquan Inlet and feels more connected to the town’s fishing industry than the larger waterfront restaurants nearby.
The market side sells fresh seafood to take home, while the restaurant serves seafood platters, sushi, lobster rolls, fish sandwiches, and daily specials based on what came in. It is a more casual setup than Wharfside or The Shrimp Box, but that is part of the appeal.
It works well for a lunch after the beach or for picking up fresh seafood before heading home. If you want the best seafood in Point Pleasant Beach without the tourist-driven atmosphere of the bigger waterfront spots, this is a good place to know about.
SEAFOOD | FISH MARKET | CASUAL | LOCAL FAVORITE
Breakfast in Point Pleasant
Klotz's Kitchen
Klotz’s Kitchen is in Point Pleasant proper, a few minutes inland from the beach, and it is one of the best breakfast spots in the area. It is worth the short drive from Point Pleasant Beach, especially on a morning when you want something more local than boardwalk food.
Klotz’s feels more like a neighborhood luncheonette than a modern brunch restaurant. The dining room is small, usually busy on weekends, and filled with locals who have clearly been coming here for years. The menu covers breakfast and lunch standards, but the rotating blackboard specials are a big part of why people keep returning.
For breakfast in Point Pleasant, this is one of the most reliable spots around. And when you are done, Frye Brewing Co. is right next door if you want a beer to follow it up.
BREAKFAST | BRUNCH | LOCAL FAVORITE | COMFORT FOOD
Point Pleasant Beach and nearby Point Pleasant have a much better food scene than most people expect from a Jersey Shore beach town. Between old-school Italian restaurants, seafood spots along the Manasquan River, Latin food, great pizza, breakfast counters, and bars with live music, there is enough here to fill an entire weekend without repeating the same type of meal twice.
Most visitors come for the beach and boardwalk, but the restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach have become a real reason to make the trip on their own. And while the two towns are technically separate, the best restaurants in Point Pleasant NJ are concentrated almost entirely on the beach side, which is worth knowing before you start looking.
Whether you are after waterfront restaurants on the Manasquan River, a casual lunch after the beach, an upscale BYOB dinner, or just a late slice of pizza, these are the best restaurants in Point Pleasant Beach and Point Pleasant, NJ.
