Restaurants in Portsmouth Heights

Boardwalk Fresh Burgers and Fries was initially opened in 1981 by brothers Dave and Fran DiFerdinando, who admired the piping-hot and addictive french fries of the Ocean City boardwalk. Since then, they’ve expanded their menu of made-to-order hand-cut fries so patrons can pair potato products with never-frozen, always-fresh burgers. Patties can be customized with unlimited toppings and sauces that will pique your hunger tooth and activate dormant burger glands at the base of your skull so that your jaw unhinges a little. The menu also includes hot dogs, chicken tenders, and milkshakes.

Perhaps it’s the dining room’s glittering chandeliers that make diners feel as though they’ve stepped back in time, or maybe it’s the silver tea sets displayed atop baroque-style tables that bring to mind a bygone era. Though it’s difficult to single out the one element of First Ladies Tea Parlor that transports diners to the past, it’s evident that owner KJ Jordan has realized her vision. KJ’s passion for all things old-timey manifests itself in the parlor’s varied schedule of events, from historic fashion shows and presentations by authors and historical interpreters to speakeasy dinners that keep the spirit of the 1920s alive via live jazz and free admission for ghosts. Away from the sun-dappled dining room, chef Gabby Bauman and her culinary crew bustle about the kitchen whipping up light lunches featuring entrees named after first ladies, including the Lady Dolley sandwich filled with roasted turkey and avocado and the Lady Betty salad dappled with salmon fillet and apricot-ginger dressing.

Rib City’s 29 locations in nine states smoke cuts of meat and their eponymous ribs with techniques developed by father-son founders Paul and Craig Peden in 1989. Four secret-recipe sauces—sweet, tangy, hot, and Carolina mustard—ensconce baby back and St. Louis–style ribs in hardwood smokers, which chefs closely monitor to keep meats moist and tender. An array of sides, such as baked beans that are pressure-cooked in-house, flank dine-in and carryout combos of smoked turkey, sirloin, and fried shrimp, capped with slices of house-made coconut-cream and pecan pies. Rib City also caters special events such as weddings, birthday parties, and jury summonses.