ASBURY PARK — A new restaurant on the city’s famed boardwalk offers sweeping Atlantic views and a broad menu of Mediterranean-inspired dishes, but a recent visit found that the scenery often overshadowed the food.
Boardwalk setting raises expectations
Lili Oceanfront Restaurant, which opened in early July in the space formerly occupied by Stella Marina Bar and Restaurant, stakes its appeal on location. The dining room and outdoor tables sit steps from the sand and promenade, presenting patrons with the kind of seaside backdrop that draws summer crowds to the Jersey Shore.
Owner Alan Aldakhlallah, who also runs Laila restaurants in Brooklyn and Staten Island, said he envisioned a relaxed, family-oriented spot where guests could choose from many culinary traditions in one visit.
“It’s not a Greek restaurant. It’s not a Middle Eastern restaurant. It’s not an Italian restaurant,” Aldakhlallah told NJ.com. “It’s a restaurant where a family could eat different things in one visit. You want pasta? I have pasta. You want shish kabab? We have that.”
The menu aims to draw on flavors from Greece, Syria, Lebanon, Morocco and beyond, presenting items that range from hummus and pizza to kababs and pasta. A bar on site is also creating cocktails intended to complement the seaside dining experience.
Food falters despite strong moments
On a recent visit, some plates offered satisfying flavors and good execution, but others were underwhelming, leaving the impression that the restaurant leans more on its prime location than on culinary consistency. The review singled out the Lili mazza board, a shareable platter priced at $37, as a highlight for variety and presentation, while noting that other menu items lacked the same level of refinement.
The breadth of offerings — from mezze to mains — is a deliberate choice by ownership: a one-stop option for groups with different tastes visiting the boardwalk. That approach can be an advantage in a tourist-driven summer market, but it can also produce uneven results when a kitchen stretches across disparate cuisines.
- Strengths: Stunning ocean views, family-friendly concept, standout shareable options.
- Weaknesses: Inconsistent food quality across the menu, some dishes underwhelming compared with expectations.
- Context: The restaurant occupies a high-profile boardwalk site with built-in foot traffic during the summer season.
How Lili fits into Asbury Park’s dining scene
Asbury Park has built a reputation as a summer destination with a diverse restaurant scene, where beachfront locations command premium expectations. Opening a new restaurant on the boardwalk carries commercial opportunities but also immediate scrutiny from diners and critics who compare new concepts with established Shore favorites.
The owner’s past experience operating Laila in New York brings an urban Mediterranean influence to the menu, and the boardwalk location positions Lili to attract visitors seeking both convenience and atmosphere. For diners who prioritize view and location, Lili delivers; for those focused primarily on gastronomy, the experience may be mixed.
Practical information for visitors
Patrons planning a visit should consider the following:
- Expect strong seaside views — seating near the boardwalk fills quickly during warm-weather hours.
- The menu is intentionally broad; groups seeking tightly focused regional cuisine may find the variety less satisfying.
- Shareable plates such as the Lili mazza board can be a good option for sampling multiple flavors.
| Menu element | Notes |
|---|---|
| Lili mazza board | Shareable platter; priced at $37; highlighted in a recent review. |
| Other offerings | Includes hummus, pizza, kababs, pasta and cocktails; execution described as inconsistent. |
Bottom line
Lili Oceanfront has the essential ingredients of a popular boardwalk destination — location, atmosphere and a menu designed to appeal to a wide audience. But the restaurant’s long-term success on the Asbury Park boardwalk will depend on how reliably the kitchen can deliver across its diverse offerings. Early diners may find the view worth the visit; those in search of refined, consistently excellent plates might wait to see how the menu and execution evolve as the restaurant settles into the summer season.
Rohan Iyer, State Correspondent at WE NEWS, contributed reporting from Asbury Park.
