Shore Dining, Part 1

Usually, we can only begrudge the über-rich their private chefs. But not this summer at the Jersey Shore, where you can eat like a big shot, too.

It just so happens that the two best meals I savored near the beach this season were cooked by chefs who have recently emerged from their clients' luxury cocoons - be they mountain chalets at Lake Tahoe or a penthouse soaring above Washington Square - to grace the suntanned paying public with their talents.

For one chef, Tony Clark, his revamp of the Old Grange in Cape May tastes like the beginning of a major comeback for a chef who was, before going private a decade ago, one of Philly's hottest talents.

Chefs Christopher Sanchez and Ashley Pellagrino may be less familiar. But that should change soon: Their Black Eyed Susans in Harvey Cedars, a breezy BYOB that spins vivid farm-to-table flavors with effortless style, is serving the most satisfying food I've tasted on LBI in years.

They were tasty bookends to my dining adventures on the coast, but hardly the only memorable bites. There was mofongo in Margate, an ever-steady red-gravy gush of new Italian options from Somers Point to Sea Isle City, and a cheery retro breakfast cafe in Ocean City that served up enough cannoli-pancake power (and "Beach Party" nostalgia) to master the waves.

Black Eyed Susans

Some chefs make seasonal cooking look so easy - and a meal in the rustic-chic dining room at Black Eyed Susans in Harvey Cedars captured summer's natural vibrance with a seemingly effortless touch.

Perfectly seared grouper is framed by a plate of vivid pink broth steeped from rhubarb and stewed tomatoes. Brick-orange sockeye salmon soaks in the smoky savor of grilled baby artichokes and the electric-green zip of chive oil with snappy favas. Multicolored beets practically glowed against the creamy contrast of homemade ricotta cheese and tangy-sweet streaks of white balsamic emulsion.