Lobster Shanty Owners To Build Brick's Traders Cove Restaurant

(Mayor John Ducey said the proposed restaurant at Traders Cove "will be the jewel of the state." Karen Wall photo)

BRICK, NJ -- A restaurant with views of Barnegat Bay is expected to open in the summer of 2017 at Traders Cove, after the Township Council approved a contract for the project Tuesday night.

Chefs International, the owners of the Lobster Shanty, the Wharfside and a number of restaurants at the Jersey Shore, has been designated as the redeveloper for the project.

"This will be the jewel of the state," Mayor John Ducey said as he announced the project. The restaurant will sit on the grass lot that sits on the north side of Mantoloking Road, on the northeast edge of the Traders Cove marina. It will include firepits in a sandy area, a bar area, and access for transient boaters to pull up for a meal.

The restaurant will operate seasonally, from April to September, Ducey said. Operations could become year-round if the restaurant is successful enough, said Robert Cooper, president and CEO of Chefs International.

Chefs International, which is constructing the restaurant, is leasing the land for $75,000, with the lease increasing by 2 percent per year, Township Attorney Kevin Sharkey said. That amount will be reduced by any property taxes that Chefs International pays on the improvements, Sharkey said.

The lease is for 24 years, with two optional 10-year extensions, officials said.

"This is being built entirely by a private business," Ducey said. "There is no taxpayer money being used."

The money from the lease, he said, will help the township pay down the $15 million in bonds that were taken out to pay for the property.

"If we were paying this off at $300,000 a year, it would take 50 years, not including interest," Ducey said. "This proposed restaurant will help speed that up."

Ducey said the township marina at Traders Cove turned a profit of $82,000 in 2015, not including what the township pays in debt service.

Cooper said the restaurant will retain the Traders Cove label.

"We like the whole Traders Cove theme," he said.

Cooper, who started his restaurant career as a bar back working for Jack Baker, the original owner of Jack Baker's Lobster Shanty, said the Traders Cove project is similar to the restaurant at the 9th Avenue Pier in Belmar. That restaurant sits on property owned by the borough of Belmar.

"I'm more excited about this one than any other project we've ever done," Cooper said.

The restaurant will employ about 100 people, he said.

Ducey said the project -- which has been assailed by some groups, including Save Barnegat Bay -- will not eliminate access or amenities that exist at Traders Cove.

"It won't disrupt the boat ramp. People will still be able to fish and crab there," Ducey said. "Green Acres and the Deparment of Environmental Protection have given their blessing."

The township has to file an amendment to its Coastal Area Facilities Review Act permit, Business Adminstrator Joanne Bergin said, now that a plan for the restaurant exists. The original permit request was submitted for the entire site, so the township has to go back with a site plan for the restaurant as a modification.

The goal is for the restaurant to open in the summer of 2017, said John Jackson, attorney for Chefs International.

"We think this will be a nice amenity for Bricktown," Jackson said.