The Third 'B' of O.C.: Beach, Boardwalk and Browns

Good news for those of you jonesing for a doughnut fix: After a hurricane hiatus of a couple days, was open for business again Monday.

Doughnut makers were gearing up for spectacular weather leading up to Labor Day Weekend.

In what has been a tradition since Browns opened on the Boardwalk 35 years ago, many vacationers make getting Browns doughnuts a must-do part of their stay – even if it means standing in line for 40 minutes or an hour.

Once they get those hot, fresh rings of deliciousness in hand, they forget all about the wait. The cake-type doughnut comes in cinnamon (the most popular), vanilla, chocolate, plain, powdered or honey. They are 75 cents each, $4.25 for a half-dozen and $8.50 for a dozen.

“Everything we do is homemade, and I think that makes the difference,” says Melissa Brown, who co-owns the eatery with her husband, Jim. His parents, Marjorie and Harmon, founded the restaurant and now run a bed-and-breakfast inn in town.

Last year, Melissa and Jim added a second doughnut machine, which helped speed up production some. But people don't seem to mind waiting in line.

Sal Ferraro, summertime Ocean City resident, bikes to Browns just about every day and sits at the counter for a cinnamon doughnut and coffee.

“It's hard to eat just one, like potato chips,” Ferraro says. “It's the love that's put into them. They're excellent.”

Ferraro is kibbitzing with doughnut-maker Jim Hutchins, a retired Atlantic City police captain, with this last comment. But Hutchins and the other staffers are part of the draw for Ferraro, just as the doughnuts are.

“They're all nice people,” he says. “The help has been coming back for years, I've watched a lot of them grow up.”

Indeed, you get a warm, fuzzy family feel from Browns. Three generations of one family work there.

Nick “Poppy” Aquilino, is a toast maker. Hutchins, his son-in-law, is doughnut maker. And Hutchins' daughter Maggie is server and manager.

Of course, there's more than doughnuts to Browns. The 100-seat eatery has a full breakfast menu, with omelets, Texas-bread French toast, hot cakes, Belgian waffles and homemade creamed dried beef.

"Blueberry pancakes are one of our top sellers," Melissa Brown says. "The hot cake batter is homemade and we use no canned berries -- all fresh."

Lunchtime, take-out is popular – with burgers, hoagies, sloppy joe, wraps, club and cold sandwiches and salads, including the cobb salad, Melissa Brown's personal favorite. Some day, Brown would like to deliver to the beach. How cool would that be?

With a week to go before Labor Day, many doughnut-lovers were trying to get their last fix of the summer recently. The Migatulski family from Boiling Springs, PA, bought dougnuts and munched on them while sitting on a beach-view Boardwalk bench on a glorious pre-Irene morning.

“We're staying in a bed-and-breakfast, and I tell everyone to come to Browns,” Sally Migatulski says. “Our family has been coming here since I was a baby and we always get doughnuts from Browns.”

WHERE: St. Charles & Boardwalk

WHEN: Breakfast 7 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., lunch served until 5 p.m. Fall hours: 7 a.m. to noon weekends through Thanksgiving. Reopens Easter weekend.

GET IN TOUCH: (609) 391-0677

OTHER STUFF TO KNOW: Cash only, ATM on site. Counter or dining room seating. Take-out.