Got oysters? Dave Magrogan does, and now you can slurp his signature bivalves while you’re down the Shore. Saturday at 5 p.m., Magrogan opens his first New Jersey Doc Magrogran’s Oyster House in Sea Isle City, on the site that Busch’s Seafood occupied for 132 years.
The 5,000 square-foot restaurant is housed within The Dunes, a new condo development that also contains a 100-person hotel and The Breakwaters, a 330-person ballroom facility that Magrogan will operate.
The restaurateur who owns four existing Doc Magrogran’s says he’s designed the restaurant space to resemble an old-timey seafood house so that he might pay homage to Busch’s. There’s a deck that seats 60 and a private dining room for 75.
As for the menu, it’s heavy on raw bar items and seafood cooked on a wood-fired grill. Though he’ll serve craft beers and cocktails, it’s the wine he’s most excited about. He’ll have 30 by the glass.
"Our fresh seafood pairs beautifully with the incredible abundance of beer and wine available in New Jersey. And we're excited to see our guests pair up our raw or cooked seafood as we get into the summer," he says.
Doc's will open for lunch on June 10 at 11 a.m. Until then it will open just for dinner at 4 p.m.
Magrogran plans to expand his oyster empire throughout New Jersey and the Mid-Atlantic.