Best road-trip restaurants in New Jersey

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Cash-only, reservations-required basement Italian institution since 1921 hidden off Pacific Ave.

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Dougherty-family raw bar and seafood house since 1897, the city's classiest old-guard dining room.

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Flatiron-shaped 1912 landmark predating the casinos, a clubby steak-and-seafood power spot.

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Since 1946, the definitive Atlantic City sub shop stacking cold cuts on fresh-baked crusty rolls.

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Shark River fish market and waterside cafe since 1924, tiki bar and picnic tables over the marina.

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Since 1928, home of the deep-fried Ripper whose casing splits in the oil, crowned best hot dog in America many times over.

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New Jersey's most famous destination diner, a Golemis-family institution with a grand 2021 rebuild and hours-long weekend waits.

$ · Lincoln Highway

A tiny landmark burger counter for the New Jersey Lincoln Highway approach, giving the eastern corridor a properly old-school road-food stop.

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The Cake Boss bakery on Washington Street since 1910, drawing pilgrims for lobster tails and rainbow cookies.

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Hoboken's oldest family-run restaurant, red-sauce classics under wall-to-wall Sinatra photos and a jukebox that plays only Frank.

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Mother-and-daughter homestyle Bangladeshi spot, James Beard-nominated, famed for its weekend multi-course Dawat feast.

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Filipino bakery and cafeteria-style spot for pandesal and homestyle adobo on Newark Avenue.

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North Indian neighborhood mainstay with leather booths, oversized pani puri, and glossy curries.

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Dan Richer's wood-fired temple of pizza, the only pizzeria ever to earn a three-star New York Times review.

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No-frills India Square standby turning out crackling dosas and idli to a devoted crowd.

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Long Branch oceanfront institution, Cajun-tinged seafood close enough to taste the salt spray.

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Ironbound Basque-Spanish landmark since 1976, old-world and generous with sizzling garlic shrimp and cod.

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Sprawling, festive Ironbound stalwart pouring sangria by the pitcher over massive seafood platters.

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The Ironbound's first seafood-focused Portuguese house since 1989, packed for garlicky shellfish and grilled fish.

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A 1930s Ironbound institution built around classic paella and sangria in a clubby dining room.

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Longtime Point Pleasant seafood favorite on the inlet, a summer-Shore rite of passage.

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Princeton's raucous four-decade student institution piling outrageous hoagies, including French-fry-topped monsters.