The Best of Both Hot Weather Worlds
Well, at least from this corner, where fishing, crabbing and eating as if one is in a Final Day scenario share the hot ‘n muggy summertime stage.
At Charlie’s Bait ‘N’ Tackle, and Charlie’s Farm Stand, separated by a patch of blacktop, it’s all here.
In big, bountiful bunches, from all that it takes to catch fluke, blowfish, stripers, bluefish and blueclaws, to uber fresh fruits and veggies, homemade salads, monster hot and cold sandwiches, gushing freshly squeezed orange juice, and made on premises legendary cheesecakes and cheesecake parfaits (you read that correctly).
On Route 35, both directions, in Normandy Beach, although the formal address is 485 Route 35 North in Mantoloking. Odd, that, but I’ll roll with it.
Shedding concrete dust and all other construction detritus Phoenix-like from the colossal wreckage wrought by SuperStorm Sandy, and the seemingly endless time it took for road repair and brick and mortar re-building, both entities, owned and managed by the generations old resident Kupper family, this is a one-two summer punch that is a must-visit, and, believe yours truly, it’s all consumptive, one way or another!
The triumvirate of Pete “Petey” Kupper and sons Zach and Hunter oversee both businesses and can cover all bases of both businesses as is sometimes warranted, especially during the summertime crunch.
The staff of both consistently fire on all cylinders, and my visit took it all in, from a seasoned angler selecting tackle and baits for a bay fluke foray, to a family being outfitted for a weekend of crabbing, to a group ordering hot and cold sandwiches from the first down-length heart stopping menu over the kitchen, to people perusing and selecting from the array of fresh veggies (including a recent delivery of fresh Jersey sweet corn), to watching the cheesecake crew creating and whipping up another selection oft described as the best along the Jersey shore.
Shared Petey, “The former owner, Tommy Lightner, met a woman selling cheesecakes at the Englishtown Flea market many, many years ago. She was always selling out and only made small batches because all she had was a single mixer. Anyway, she retired and he obtained the recipe and the mixer. In fact, we still have it here. It’s part of history. When we bought the business, we kept the recipe and the mixer.” A staffer retrieved the mixer (see photo) from a shelf and placed in on the counter, and in a flashback, it reminded me of the model my Aunt Vi used to make the dough for zeppoles.
Back to the cheesecake operation.
Baking manager Kali Bennette and her Fantastic Four were in the process of mixing and preparing various cheesecakes and parfaits. It was a seamless operation, and the end results could be viewed in the counter cases, stand up freezers...and being carefully placed in boxes of customers patiently waiting for the delights.
If there’s any mandatory “one stop” along the reach Barnegat Bay, from fishing and crabbing to a magnum lunch selection to picking up the freshest of produce and the most tongue-slap-your-brains-out cheesecakes and parfaits, well, it’s all found here.
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