"Once it was listed, we saw that response and thought, no, this doesn't feel right to us, either," Arielle Miller, chief operating officer of the Asbury Park hospitality group Smith, told the Asbury Park Press in June. She meant 522 Cookman Avenue. Earlier this year Smith tried to sell the property. People pushed back once the listing went up, and the group changed course and brought back Brickwall.
That pattern ran through all of downtown's big openings this year. Between June and September, three of the most-watched food and drink spots on Cookman and Lake avenues opened in rooms that already had a history. None of the operators started from scratch. Each one kept part of what was there before, whether a dish, a drink, or a reason people walked through the door.
522 Cookman Came Close to Changing Hands
Brickwall opened in 2006 as Smith's first restaurant. NJ.com counts it among the early businesses credited with helping revive downtown and turn Cookman Avenue into a place people went to eat. It closed in 2020, and NJ.com points to more competition, pandemic pressure and a need for renovations. Homesick, a comfort food restaurant from the same group, took over the space in 2021 and stayed until Brickwall came back this year.
The soft opening started on a Thursday in June, and Smith planned to add hours and menu items through July. The Press's photos are captioned June 18, so that is probably the reopening day, though no report states it outright.
Smith partner Jim Watt explained the timing in terms of the city itself:
"I think this is a pivotal time now because with all of the development and all of the physical and demographic changes that are happening, I think it's really important for Brickwall to act as that hub again."
The word that matters is "again." Brickwall started as a simple burger-and-beer place and became a community gathering spot during its first run. NJ.com reports that the group wants to win back that role. The prices fit that goal. Burgers are under $20, cocktails run $13 to $16, and beers are $2 during happy hour.
What Each Room Kept
Brickwall's new menu shows how this works. The old favorites are back: the "Burger Burger" with white American cheese and special sauce, shrimp and grits with Creole butter, a filet mignon sandwich with blue cheese, and a black bean burger with corn relish and fried onions. The hot-honey fried chicken sandwich stayed on from the Homesick years. The frozen cocktails are a nod to Little Buddy Hideaway, Brickwall's old tiki offshoot. The walls hold prints of Asbury Park that fine-art photographer Paolo Ventura shot in 2001, the same artwork that hangs at Pascal & Sabine.
So one room holds three generations at once: the original Brickwall menu, a holdover from Homesick, and a drink from a tiki bar that no longer exists. A few blocks away on Lake Avenue, the same thing happened at a different scale.
| Address | Before | Now | Opened | Carried forward |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 522 Cookman Ave. | Brickwall 2006–2020, then Homesick from 2021 | Brickwall | Soft opening in June 2026 | Original Brickwall dishes, Homesick's hot-honey chicken sandwich, Little Buddy Hideaway frozen drinks |
| 525 Cookman Ave. | The Bonney Read 2013–2023, The Mainstay 2023–2024 | Esquina No. 525 | Aug. 6, 2026 | The street number, built into the name |
| 527 Lake Ave. | Asbury Festhalle & Biergarten, closed 2023 after flood damage | Asbury Social | Sept. 12, 2026 | The OG Soft Pretzel |
525 Cookman, Across the Street
Across Cookman from Brickwall, number 525 had a decade-long tenant and then a short one. The Bonney Read was there from 2013 through 2023, and The Mainstay followed from 2023 through 2024. When NJ.com reported the next tenant in January, its headline said this "prime location" had "finally" landed a new restaurant.
That restaurant is Esquina No. 525, and it opened on Aug. 6. It serves Nikkei cuisine, which blends Japanese cooking techniques with Peruvian flavors. The owner is Hungry Trio Hospitality, which runs Ramen Nagomi, Aarzu and Courtyard Banquet in New York and New Jersey. Culinary director Chef Marques Tone runs a menu of premium seafood and meats cooked with Japanese technique and finished with lime, ají peppers and fresh herbs. Dishes come raw, chilled, grilled, fried and shareable.
Hungry Trio's statement gives the reason it picked this address: "Asbury Park has become one of New Jersey's most exciting culinary destinations, and we're honored to become part of its incredible restaurant community." The group is betting on a downtown dining scene that Brickwall helped create two decades ago, on a block where Brickwall is now open again.
Esquina has kept no dish from the old tenants. What it kept is the address, which is right there in the name.
Lake Avenue After the Flood
527 Lake Avenue sat empty the longest. Asbury Festhalle & Biergarten closed there in 2023 after flood damage. The new operators are already part of downtown. Claude Elie and Julian Gellman run House of Independents, and they turned the old beer hall into Asbury Social. The ribbon cutting was Sept. 10 and the official opening was Sept. 12.
The main room is called the Supper Club, a large dining and bar area with leather seating and a statement chandelier. The Local Girl reports that Elie calls the food "comfort food with an elevated Southern twist," and that the menu is split into "Opening Acts," "Main Acts" and "Supporting Acts." The OG Soft Pretzel is on it as a nod to the Festhalle years. The Green Room is a smaller space behind velvet curtains with its own entrance, and it can host private events for up to 50 guests.
Social Saturdays began Sept. 12 and run from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. The tables are cleared for dancing, and the operators told The Jersey Shore Girl they are aiming for a crowd aged 25 and up. The Coaster reported on Sept. 15 that the restaurant and lounge open at 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday and are closed Monday and Tuesday. We follow this building closely. You can find our page for 527 Lake Ave here.
What Hasn't Opened Yet
All three places are rolling out in stages, and some announced pieces had not been confirmed open by early October:
- Asbury Social rooftop. A Miami-inspired rooftop above the Supper Club, looking out over Wesley Lake. The Coaster expects it in "late fall."
- The Cocktail Lounge. A smaller room at Asbury Social for dining, drinks and private parties, listed as coming soon.
- A speakeasy connected to House of Independents. The September preview described an entrance at the back of the dining area that would lead into House of Independents, so dinner, drinks and a show could all happen in one building. Coverage after the opening has not confirmed that it is open.
- Esquina's late-night shift. Esquina opened with limited reservations and a shorter menu. It plans to add reservations, extend its hours and launch a late-night concept called Ember. The restaurant's website now describes the evening in phases called House Lights, Golden Hour, Amber and After Hours, and it does not mention Ember by name.
The rooftop and the speakeasy would follow the same pattern. A beer hall that closed after a flood would become a restaurant connected to a music venue that was already part of downtown nightlife.
The same thing happened off Cookman this summer. The Coaster reported in July that Kids Snack Bar, a dessert shop, had opened at 601 Main St. in the former Saint nightclub.
Sackman Realty's main office is in Asbury Park, and our team watches who moves into which building on Cookman and Lake avenues as closely as anyone. If you own a commercial space downtown and want to know what tenants are looking for right now, talk with Sackman Realty at our Asbury office.
