STONE HARBOR – Nearly two dozen restaurants in Stone Harbor and Avalon are opening their doors June 8-15 in hopes that locals and visitors will come to their eateries and enjoy their unique styles and cuisine during Stone Harbor Restaurant Week.

Sponsored by the Stone Harbor Chamber of Commerce, participating restaurants will offer special, fixed-price menus, providing a way for diners to explore diverse culinary experiences.

One participating restaurant owner, Anne Fitzsimmons, said she likes going to Cape May for their Restaurant Week, which usually runs the first week in June. “I think our restaurants are just as good and competitive with the fine dining options in Cape May,” she said. “This gives us a chance to put Stone Harbor on the dining map as well. And we’re only 10 miles up the Parkway.”

She owns Jays on Third, which she described as “eclectic” with its Asian-inspired flavors, in its 19th year of service.

“It’s up to each restaurant what they want to offer,” she added. “There is a diversified selection of places, and some are in their first year of business. It’s more important that they participate.”

According to Marnie Lengle, Chamber Coordinator, the locally owned eateries range from pizza parlors and pubs, to casual BYOBs to sophisticated and elegant establishments. “Restaurants will be offering lunch or dinner or both, so we have everything from grab-and-go to elegant restaurants,” she said. “It’s a chance to rediscover, and discover, the dining destinations in Stone Harbor.”

Many of the restaurants will offer a special Restaurant Week menu and pricing, in addition to their regular menu. The latest list of participating restaurants, menus and pricing can be found here. Reservations are recommended as well.

“Our goal is to have the restaurants build a menu around whatever their goal is,” noted Lengle. “Some will offer beloved dishes, which have been a staple for years. Others will feature something new. In the end, our goal is to grow our customer base.”

“We are a small community, and we employ locals as well as others,” Fitzsimmons said. “In the off-season, local people are coming to our restaurants; in the season, many visitors, as well. We have 22 standing reservations each weekend from May thru September, so for me, it’s like throwing a dinner party.”

“We want people to know that we are on the map as a culinary destination,” she added.

“Our teams and staff work hard during the season, and we want to support each other,” added Nicholas DiMeglio, food and beverage director at The Reeds at Shelter Haven, Stone Harbor.

Their Water Star Grill will be the only one of the four restaurants at the Reeds participating in Restaurant Week, according to DiMeglio, who said they will be offering a three-course special menu for $60 per person, along with a wine pairing for each course.

“Our goal is to have an event that the town can look forward to,” he added. “While it’s still not super busy in our shoretown. Our hope is that they enjoy our menu and enjoy the views of the bay while they are dining.”

Lengle added that Stone Harbor is a “legacy community, with many of the same families living here from generation to generation. Eighty percent of our businesses are within walking distance of each other; just within this block, there are 10 restaurants participating in Restaurant Week. People like to stroll through town and window shop, well, now instead of peaking in, they can go inside and enjoy a wonderful dining experience.”

Deanna Ebner echoed her sentiments. She and Lucas Manteca, previous owners and operators of Cape May Point’s “Red Store” and owners of Stone Harbor’s Quahog’s, have a new BYOB in town called La Portena.

Chef Lucas and Ebner have created an Argentinian steak house experience with a fresh, cozy atmosphere.

“I grew up in Stone Harbor,” Ebner said, “and now my child is doing the same. It’s a close-knit, walkable town where generations stay connected. I still spend my free time in the same places I did growing up. This town has always been my home, and I love having my two businesses here.”

“There are so many restaurants offering so many different cuisines, we hope everyone will come and sample all of them during Restaurant Week,” added DiMeglio. “You can come to Stone Harbor after enjoying the Cape May restaurants and extend your eating fun.”

Success, for Fitzsimmons, is simple. “My hope is that we greet some new customers, who have a positive experience and want to come back,” she said. “We also want to keep our regulars coming.”

Restaurant weekend will also be held this fall, Oct. 9-13.

Contact the author, Karen Knight, at 609-886-8600 ext. 156 or by email at kknght@cmcherald.com