Blue Rock Cafe522 Amboy Ave, Cliffwood Beach, NJ
732-583-7699
--by Gary Montgomery
June 2008--One might not want to swim in the murky, calm waters of Raritan Bay, but you may want to dine out near it. Once a dumping ground for refineries and manufacturing plants, a few decent eateries are beginning to dot the inner Bay's shoreline and one of them is in Cliffwood Beach--yes Cliffwood Beach. The tiny section of Aberdeen is home dock for the Blue Rock Cafe. It doesn't have the ambiance--nor the prices--of say, the Lobster Shanty in Point Pleasant, but it does have good, reasonably-priced seafood.
I was told the Blue Rock Cafe orders all their seafood fresh daily from Lusty Lobster in Highlands so you'll quickly want to grab an outdoor deck table (it's really patio furniture dressed in a plastic table cloth, but who cares) and order the Roasted Clam ($8.95 half dozen) starter. Follow that up with the clam chowder, part of the $18.95 pre-fixe Entree menu. On my visit I chose the creamy New England style with its generous chunks of soft clam meat--it's really tasty. When I came up for air I indulged in six Colossal Shrimp, fried to perfection and resting on a bed of french fries. They are the largest, most succulent shrimp I have tasted and well worth the asking price. I also suggest trying the pre-fixe King Crab Leg entree. The Blue Rock docks three-quarters of a pound of fresh, meaty crab legs at your table along with a bowl of drawn butter. There's also plenty of Lobster plates to choose from including the 1 LB Fresh Maine Lobster ($19.95) which I'm planning to try on my next visit.
The service wasn't the fastest (I was told the kitchen was backed up with orders) but it didn't really matter because I enjoyed the warm summer breezes, along with a Mojito
or two. And it's not fancy but the Blue Rock Cafe embarks on a voyage to serve up tasty, cheap seafood. So park your boat (several dock spaces available on the Matawan Creek, in fact), grab a cold drink, show off your new your flip flops and enjoy what the ocean gives up in Cliffwood Beach.The Blue Rock Cafe is open daily from 11am-2am. Happy hour is daily from 4pm-7pm. Website:http://www.fishbox.tv/bluerock/index.html
Outdoor dining:yes
credit cards: all major
reservations: no
dress: beach casual
lunch: yes
About the blogger: Gary Montgomery is a published food writer and has written many articles on New York City restaurants since 2000. He has been quoted in Playbill magazine and online at the James Beard Foundation website.
