Salt Creek Grille Celebrates 20 Years

What icons are celebrating a 20-year anniversary in 2018? There’s media giant Google, the Apple iMac, Viagra and – drum roll please – our own local favorite, Salt Creek Grille in Rumson!

That’s right. For 20 years now, Salt Creek Grille has been welcoming friends at its distinctive waterfront location on the Navesink River. That’s no small feat for a restaurant In New Jersey’s competitive food and beverage business, and is a credit to the restaurant staff and its personable owner Steve Bidgood.

“We love being a part of the Shore community and have enjoyed making friends,” said Bidgood, who officially opened Salt Creek Grille April 15, 1998. ”Many of our guests have been coming here for 20 years so now we are celebrating their children’s graduations.”

Another draw at this perennially popular spot is Salt Creek’s engaging menu, which continues to satisfy regular guests and attract new ones. Both kitchen and wait staff, led by Executive Chef Bob Belt, invest passion, expertise, hard work and long hours to make sure every dish, every cocktail and every Sunday brunch is the best it can be. And the team at Salt Creek has continued to adjust the menu to reflect the changes in diners’ tastes.

For example, last year Salt Creek launched one of its most ambitious menu changes, introducing new classics while retaining some old favorites. These changes included new small-plate dishes and additional items on the popular Happy Hour menu.

Salt Creek’s private dining room has also received a major makeover and now hosts an average of 400 events a year! These include weddings and bridal showers and – remember, it’s been 20 years – the anniversary celebrations of couples married at Salt Creek. And even the graduation parties of their children!

Over 20 years, Salt Creek has certainly earned a beloved spot in the community. And it has given back. Not only does it employ approximately 100 local Shore residents – many who have been here since the beginning – but it supports more than 50 other local businesses, such as family-owned Lusty Lobster, Shore Point Distributing Company, Inc. and Guaranteed Landscaping. And Salt Creek’s annual Wine & Martini Tasting Benefit has raised $1 million for local charities, all of which goes directly to the charities. This year’s event, scheduled for Thursday, April 12, will benefit Covenant House in Asbury Park.

Along the way, Salt Creek has been recognized for its exceptional service and contributions to the community and, in 2015, Bidgood received the industry’s highest honor and was named as Restaurateur of the Year by New Jersey Restaurant and Hospitality Association.

The Rumson site is one of five Salt Creek Grille restaurants with two in New Jersey and three in Orange County, California. The Rumson location was the second to open and 20 years later shows no signs of slowing down. New Jersey's other Salt Creek Grille opened in Princeton in 2007.

Bidgood resides in Eatontown with his wife Lynn. Their two daughters, Megan and Shauna, are graduates from Towson University and now have careers and reside in Maryland.

About Salt Creek Grille

For two decades Salt Creek Grille has been a neighborhood fixture in Rumson, inspiring a sense of community and pride with it’s “welcome home” ambience that makes guests feel at home night after night. The ski lodge-like architecture, award-winning menu, boutique wine list, artisan cocktails and hospitable, knowledgeable staff all contribute to making Salt Creek Grille the most popular restaurant at the Jersey Shore year round. The American grill fare centers around the authentic mesquite wood-fired grill serving appetizers, gourmet dinner salads, exceptional sandwiches, Rumson’s best burgers, tender steaks, chops and chicken, fall-off-the bone ribs, fresh seafood, housemade desserts all made from scratch daily. A private dining room with panoramic views of the Navesink River is the preferred site for memorable social and corporate events for groups from 20 to 150. Salt Creek Grille is known as a leader within the industry and within its community. In fact, the restaurant holds an annual fundraising event for a different local charity serving children’s needs – at no cost to the charity - reached an astounding $1 million milestone in 2017 of total funds raised! Another notable achievement among many is when co-owner Steve Bidgood was named “New Jersey’s Restaurateur of the Year 2015.”

Salt Creek Grille, 4 Bingham Avenue, Rumson, NJ, open daily, cocktails at 4 and dinner at 5. Sunday Brunch from 11 – 2:30, lunch 1-5, dinner at 5. Midweek specials. 732.933.9272 www.saltcreekgrille.com