When you think of Atlantic City, I'm guessing the first two things that come to mind are casinos and the beach. While I am not a gambler (I'd rather spend my money shopping and have something to show for it later) I do love the beach. The sun, the boardwalk, the ocean view, the endless sky. When I'm "down the shore" my mornings are all about jogging or walking on the Ventnor boardwalk towards Atlantic City, and on the streets of Margate grabbing an iced venti coffee with soy at Starbucks.
At night, it's all about finding great places to eat. I am certainly spoiled living so close to Manhattan, but Atlantic City has to much to offer.
Last year I raved on my blog about Jose Garces Amada - this year, 12 of us hit Buddakan by Steven Starr, the sister of the ones in Phillie and NYC's Meatpacking District.
I'm a bit of a food snob so while I was excited to go to this one, located at Pier 1 by Caesars, I couldn't imagine that it could possible compare to the one I love downtown. Despite not having the massively high bank ceiling, this hot spot, complete with golden buddha and all, was pretty terrific.We started at the bar, which wasn't particularly large, and I ordered the Enlightenment - a non-frozen margarita-style drink with a kick. Milagro tequila, cucumber, lime, mint and thai chili. Loved it!
We quickly moved on to our communal table, smack center of the restaurant and just below big buddha's bulging belly. If that's not a motivation to eat well, right?
I ordered a house salad with ginger dressing, and I have to say, the scallion, watercress and radishes in it just elevated it from the usual Japanese restaurant style. We also had a couple of orders of edamame, with the perfect amount of sea salt dusting the top. Just so you know - the portions are BIG. Your eyes, when ordering, will surely be larger than your stomach.
My fellow diners enjoyed the crackling calamari salad, edamame dumplings, boneless spare ribs and more. I took a break, at my friend's suggestion, to try some top-quality cold sake. I don't like sake. Well, I don't like hot sake. Apparently I do enjoy top-quality cold sake however...that discovery (and fun company) might have been worth the trip on its own! They have a good variety of sakes to choose from in case you want to be adventurous.
For my entree I had a spicy tofu with cashews, dried pineapple and carrots. It was really delicious. It offered the right amount of heat without killing my tastebuds. It was saucier than I tend to like my food, but I enjoyed it, as did some of the non-vegans around the table. If none of this sounds good to you, they also have chinese broccoli, tempura vegetables, Chinese eggplant in garlic sauce and wok stir-fried asparagus along with rice and noodle dishes.If you can't tell, it was a great night. When the urge to gamble or sit on the beach strikes, check this out to round out your stay!
