Top 9+ restaurants coming, 2 open and ice cream trucks hit the road

April may be known for its showers, but the month also brought plenty of dining news.

We learned that lots of new restaurants are coming to the Jersey Shore, from a pair of soda shops by the beach to an ice cream shop that delivers into the night.

A restaurateur was approved for a long sought-after eatery, and a longtime chef who lost his restaurant last year announced an exciting new venture, just in time for summer.

Here is the food and dining news we reported on in April.

Boardwalk Bandit Sandwich & Soda coming to Bradley Beach

Boardwalk Bandit Sandwich & Soda will open in Bradley Beach in May 2026.

The sandwich shop and soda fountain, from the owners of former Cherry Hill brewery Forgotten Boardwalk Brewing Co., will open at 200 Ocean Ave. in May.

The restaurant, which will be primarily takeout but offer patio seating, will serve scratch-made sodas that are carbonated and canned on site, including colas, vanilla cream soda and egg creams. The kitchen will serve "casual, seaside" items including a Jersey tomato sandwich, a double smash burger, a plant-based crab cake sandwich, a fish sandwich and a hot dog with peppers, onions and fries in pizza bread, among other dishes.

Birravino owner to add new Red Bank restaurant

Screenshot of a rendering of a new restaurant at the corner of Riverside Avenue and Bridge Avenue in Red Bank.

In early April, the Red Bank Planning Board approved a proposal from Birravino owner Victor Rallo to convert an existing vacant gas station building on Riverside Avenue into a new eatery.

Rallo has not yet decided on a concept or name for the restaurant, which will share a liquor license with Birravino. The project's floor plan includes a dining room, small pizza oven, kitchen, bar seating and other seating, including outdoor seats.

Texas Roadhouse plans Toms River restaurant

Texas Roadhouse has signed a lease to replace the former Pizza Hut on Route 37 in Toms River.

Steakhouse chain Texas Roadhouse has signed a lease to open at the location of a former Pizza Hut at Toms River Town Center shopping center, 211 Route 37.

Next, the company will file plans with the township and seek approval to tear down the old restaurant building and construct the new restaurant, which will be the chain's first in Ocean County. There are Texas Roadhouse restaurants in Howell and Holmdel.

Gregorys Coffee coming to Brick

Gregorys Coffee is leasing a space next to Cava for its first Ocean County cafe. The restaurant also will have a drive through lane.

First came Cava; now, Gregorys.

The former Atlanta Bread Company space at Brick Plaza welcomed Mediterranean-inspired fast-casual restaurant Cava last year, and now Gregorys Coffee has signed on to lease the space next door.

It joins Dae Gee Korean BBQ, which opened April 20 in the plaza on Chambers Bridge Road, and Raising Canes's and Cuzin's Seafood, which are forthcoming.

The coffee chain, founded by Gregory Zamfotis, who grew up in Holmdel, has more than 50 stores in 12 states. A location also is under construction in Manalapan. The coffee shop's menu includes drinks like cherry blossom matcha or London Calling, made with Earl Grey tea, lavender, citrus and oat milk topped with lavender cold foam, and food items including bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches; vegan burritos; and baked goods.

Scoop N Scootery opens in Red Bank

Austin Crittenden, co-founder of Scoop N Scootery makes an ice cream sundae at the new Red Bank shop on East Front Street in Red Bank.

An ice cream chain known for serving over-the-top sundaes, staying open late and offering delivery opened in April at 21 E. Front St. in Red Bank.

Scoop N Scootery, born in Boston, offers 70 different sundaes, including "Thick Mint," with mint Oreo and chocolate ice cream topped with brownie bites, fudge and Nutella whipped cream, and "Fudge Judy," made with chocolate brownie and vanilla ice creams with marshmallow Fluff, cheesecake bites, Oreos, fudge and whipped cream.

The Red Bank store is Scoop N Scootery's first in New Jersey.

Jersey Mike's coming to Bell Works Fort Monmouth

Subs from Jersey Mike's.

The former Commvault building off Hope Road in Tinton Falls is being converted into Bell Works Fort Monmouth, and Jersey Mike's has signed on as a tenant.

The New Jersey-born sandwich shop will be among amenities that include a food hall, coffee shop, fitness center, indoor golf, and restaurant at the office building, described by developer Ralph Zucker of Inspired by Somerset Development as a "baby Bell Works" in comparison to the Holmdel hub of the same name.

Jersey Freeze launches an ice cream truck

Jersey Freeze, an ice cream shop and restaurant with locations in Freehold Township, Holmdel and Colts Neck, has added an ice cream truck that will be used for events.

Jersey Freeze, an iconic Monmouth County ice cream shop that has been scooping for nearly 75 years, is hitting the road.

The company, which has an ice cream store and restaurant in Freehold Township and has opened ice cream shops in Holmdel and Colts Neck in recent years, has added an ice cream truck.

The truck will not circulate through neighborhoods like a traditional ice cream truck, owner Matt Cangialosi said. The Jersey Freeze team will bring it to large events, breweries and festivals and use it to visit hospitals, first responders and to support its fundraising efforts, specifically for the Freehold Township-based nonprofit organization Liv Like a Unicorn.

"It's just ice cream, no food," Cangialosi said. "It has a soft-serve machine on it, it has a freezer for our novelties — ice cream sandwiches, (ice cream) cupcakes, and whatever we want to bring."

The truck will serve milkshakes and chocolate dip, too; "all the things you’d have in an ice cream parlor," he said.

Chef Mike's Legacy to open in Seaside Heights

Chef and owner Mike Jurusz is pictured inside Chef Mike's ABG in South Seaside Park in 2021.

Chef Mike Jurusz, whose beachfront restaurant, Chef Mike's ABG in southern Seaside Park, closed in late 2025 after the property on which it sat was sold, is planning something new a few miles north.

Chef Mike's Legacy, a dinner-only, fine-dining restaurant, will open at the Hershey Motel, 1415 Boulevard in Seaside Heights. Jurusz is currently renovating the space, previously occupied by Dina's By The Sea, and hopes to open by Memorial Day.

In comparison to Chef Mike's ABG, which Jurusz ran as head chef for a decade before purchasing it in 2013, the new venture "is going to be a little more elevated," with an increased focus on hospitality. The restaurant has a liquor license; a bar is being built in the dining room, which through the years has mostly housed restaurants serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The chef is planning a seasonal menu that features favorites from his prior restaurant, including scallops, sea bass and crab cakes, "all the stuff that people loved there," he said. "But I'm going to put a little spin on it, a different look."

Maple House replaces Perkins Griddle

Maple House, a breakfast, lunch and brunch restaurant, will open at RiverWalk Center in Oceanport.

The mother-son team who planned to open a cafe-style version of Perkins called Perkins Griddle & Go has scrapped that plan for a sit-down breakfast-lunch-brunch concept called Maple House.

Lisa Dalton and Anthony Degrande plan to open the restaurant in early May at RiverWalk Center, a new retail complex off Oceanport Avenue at the former Fort Monmouth. They have also signed a lease for a second location at West Grove Square at Route 33 and Main Street in Neptune.

Maple House will serve omelets, various types of pancakes, waffles, sandwiches, skillets, fresh-baked pastries and its own branded coffee.

Tommy's Tavern +Tap opens in Toms River

Tommy's Tavern + Tap, a family-run restaurant chain that began in Sea Bright and has grown to 16 locations across three states, opened its first in Ocean County in April.

The restaurant replaced TGI Friday's at 1279 Hooper Ave. in Toms River; the building was completely renovated to reflect the self-described "rustic and industrial" style of Tommy's restaurants throughout New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware, including Sea Bright, Sea Girt, Freehold Township and Wall.

The new restaurant's dining room, anchored by a large, TV-topped bar where customers can order from both the regular and happy hour menus, comprises nearly 40 tables. Tommy's serves lunch and dinner, with an extensive menu that includes everything from small plates, soups and salads to burgers, pizza, flatbreads, sushi and poke.

Dirty soda shop coming to Bradley Beach

Bev Shack is taking over the former Chinatown Kitchen restaurant storefront at 801 Main Street in Bradley Beach.

Abby Taylor, co-founder of Playa Bowls, is bringing the dity soda trend to the beach with Bev Shack, a new business at 801 Main St. in Bradley Beach.

The shop, which replaces a shuttered Chinese restaurant, will specialize in "dirty sodas," which are sodas mixed with syrups and creams. Flavors include Sprite, orange and vanilla cream; Diet Coke, coconut and fresh lime; and watermelon, coconut, pineapple, club soda and lime, among others.

Taylor plans to open in late May.

Seoul Fried Chicken to open in Toms River

Landon’s Corner, former home of Big Dogs at the corner of Route 37 and Fischer Boulevard in Toms River, will be the home of SFC Seoul Fried Chicken, a fast-casual restaurant serving Korean-inspired fried chicken. Wednesday, April 1, 2026.

The eatery, which has locations in Edison, Somerset, Bound Brook and Hackensack, replaces Big Dogs restaurant at the corner of Fischer Boulevard.

SFC Seoul Fried Chicken's menu includes double-fried chicken wings, drumsticks and tenders in honey garlic, soy garlic, and sweet and spicy sauces, plus chicken sandwiches, sliders, and chicken rice bowls.

Sarah Griesemer joined the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey in 2003 and has been writing all things food since 2014. Send restaurant tips to [email protected], follow on Instagram at Jersey Shore Eats and subscribe to her weekly newsletter.