Iconic Shore Eatery Redesigns to Withstand Storms

The Margate Dairy Bar & Burger has been a favorite eatery at the Jersey Shore since it opened in 1952. Named Best of Philly, Best of South Jersey, and Best Waffle in South Jersey for several years running, the iconic establishment is “the place” for window service burgers and shakes and draws thousands of visitors during a typical summer week.

After Hurricane Sandy destroyed most of the restaurant in 2012, owner Christopher Clayton began a major, million-dollar expansion and renovation of the Dairy Bar. He hired famed architect Richard Stokes to refashion the Dairy Bar in the Googie style, a modern form of architecture popular in the ‘50s and ‘60s that was heavily influenced by car culture, jets and the Space Age (think “The Jetsons”).

Just two blocks from the ocean and only three blocks from the bay, the Dairy Bar is vulnerable to frequent floods due to hurricanes and Atlantic storms. To qualify for flood insurance, the Dairy Bar had to meet federal building codes for flood zones. The general contractor recommended Flood Panel’s Flood Logs. Architect Stokes worked with Bill Coleman of Flood Protection NJ, Inc., to design and build a custom solution to match the Dairy Bar’s unique architectural requirements.

Now as the 2016 hurricane season looms, the Dairy Bar is ready for whatever nature brings its way. When installed, the Flood Logs will add several feet of flood protection to the current elevation of the Dairy Bar property, a few inches higher than the flood level reached during Hurricane Sandy. In addition, the clean, metal brackets of the Flood Logs blend in with the geometric angles of the Googie style.

“It has a rather unique application for my business because of the architecture outside. It’s almost like we put the brackets in as part of the design,” Clayton said.

Clayton is very confident in his Flood Panel investment. “When you get a nice rain coat and boots, you want it to rain. I hate to say it, but I wouldn’t mind getting a storm with a foot of water, just so I could deploy them and see them work. Bring it on!”