Laguna Grill and Rum Bar

Laguna Grill and Rum Bar
1400 Ocean Avenue, Brigantine Beach
609-266-7731; lagunagrill.com

Hours: Sun–Thurs, 8 am–10 pm; Friday and Saturday, 8 am–11 pm.

Price: $$

Style: Newly renovated, with an island vibe; friendly atmosphere abuzz with locals and day-trippers.

Don’t Miss: In lieu of a bread basket, you get blue corn chips with homemade salsa, along with a hefty side of edamames. It’s tempting to fill up, but leave room for the sandwiches and fresh seafood. The Laguna lobster roll ($16) is a favorite, as are the mahi tacos ($12), each with a side of fries or a house salad. Specialty salads include crab-cake Caesar ($15) and Thai beef salad ($13), which is filet tips over mixed greens, garnished with cilantro and basil. For dinner, check out the daily specials. A recent Tuesday featured cioppino ($25)—clams, mussels and lobster in a seafood-tomato broth.

Heads Up: Come for lunch and enjoy the ocean view. Nibble on shrimp cocktail, sip a margarita and watch the action on the beach—literally steps away.

The Scoop: The place made news late last year after it was caught selling cheap liquor marked as top shelf. Don’t worry, those owners are gone. The new owners, the Goochie Brothers, (aka Rip Reynolds and Tony Bruno) are well-known in town for their popular pizzeria, Goochie Brothers, and have invested a good sum into completely overhauling Laguna Grill. Their hard work shines.