Inlets and Outlets : Jakeabob's Off the Bay Ready for Grand Opening

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Jakeabob's Off the Bay Ready for Grand Opening

Princess Cottage

Two of the most iconic images from the wrath of Hurricane Sandy come from Union Beach. The 150 year-old Princess Cottage on Front Street, which has since been torn down, and Jakeabob's Bay restaurant, which still sits a few blocks east, waiting for the powers that be to decide its fate.


Jakeabob's Bay

On Saturday, February 16, I had a chance to visit the new Jakeabob's Bay which will be located at 910 Union Avenue, about 10 blocks from the original location. The new restaurant will be called Jakeabob's Off the Bay, and is scheduled to open on February 28. According to owner Gigi Dorr, the status of the original location is still in limbo, waiting for the insurance companies involved to sort out who is responsible for what.

The new location is being decorated with doors that have been donated from homes throughout the borough of Union Beach that were destroyed during the hurricane. While the doors stand as a stark reminder of what the residents of Union Beach have been subjected to since October 29, they also represent the power and spirit of those same people who are bouncing back and rebuilding their lives in the face of great odds.

Dorr has been featured in several articles and television segments about her efforts to rebuild her business while at the same time she becoming a leading advocate and symbol for all of the residents of Union Beach.

Recently, a group on the social media site Facebook has given all of us a chance to support the borough of Union Beach and give a little something back to the person who has inspired all of us who have been involved in the post-Sandy restoration efforts.

Please take a look at the letter from the group, Paper doors for Gigi. Pass it along, send a door and a donation, and most importantly, put Jakeabob's Off the Bay on your must-do list of restaurants to visit this spring and summer.

Doors for Gigi

Gigi Dorr, owner of “Jakeabob’s Bay” in Union Beach, NJ, has given a tremendous amount of time, support, and love to our community since we were decimated by Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012.

For those who don’t know, she is planning to open a new restaurant at 910 Union Avenue in Union Beach which she will call “Jakeabob’s Off The Bay." She is using a theme of doors throughout the new Jake’s!

Gigi has lost so much, but she has given so much more! Many of us want to do something special for her, and we need everyone to help! First, make a paper door for Gigi! All doors need to be no bigger than 4 ¼ inches by 5 ½ inches (half a sheet of 8 ½ inch by 11 inch paper). You can find pictures of doors on the internet, or make your own! Take a picture of an actual door, or have a child color a picture of a door! Write messages of love and encouragement to Gigi on your door! If you are able, include a monetary donation to Gigi to help offset the costs of opening a new place! No donation is too small. All donations together can help make a difference! If you cannot afford a donation at this time, but would like to be a part of this, please just send a door for Gigi!

Doors and donations can be mailed or dropped off to:

Union Beach Police Department
650 Poole Avenue
Union Beach, NJ 07735
Attention: Mary

Checks should be made out directly to Gigi Dorr.

We have already given Gigi some paper doors we have recieved but would like to send her many many more!

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About This Blog

On October 29, 2012, Hurricane Sandy devastated the New Jersey shore from Keyport to Atlantic City. Hardest hit were the areas in the Bayshore (Keansburg to Port Monmouth) and along the barrier islands from Belmar to Holgate.

I am a free-lance writer who has spent every minute of my five decades on the Jersey Shore. My goal is to tell the story of the reconstruction of the Shore, the good, the bad, the setbacks and the triumphs.

In the coming year I will try to tell the story of the people who were affected by the storm, the business owners, the home owners, the musicians, cooks, the people who prime the engine of the local economy, and the kids who play football on Friday night in schools that were storm shelters a year earlier.

These are the stories that need to be told.

Occasionally I'll feature guest writers to help give a full, well-rounded picture of the recovery of the Shore. Attribution will be included at the end of each piece submitted by a guest.

Jack Sharkey

I'm free-lance writer, audio engineer by trade and a life-long (4th generation) resident of Ocean County. Growing up on the Metedeconk River, just a few miles from the Atlantic Ocean, my life and views have been shaped by salt water. My father's family moved from the Kereigh Head section of Elizabeth in the early 1950s, and my mother's family moved to the Toms River area from Poughkeepsie, NY, immediately after the Civil War. My roots in Ocean County go way back, yet I also understand the massive migration that forever changed the Jersey Shore.

Contributor: Debbie Miks

Back in 1923, the house I grew up in was being built by my great grandparents. Their home near Mantoloking on the barrier island had been washed away by a storm and they, being practical people, moved inland to the Adamston section of Brick. Watermen by trade, their living was clamming the bay and ocean fishing. My first summer job was at Point Pleasant boardwalk, in the Holiday Arcade, flipping burgers at Pyott’s Restaurant. I’ve lived in Brick nearly all of my life and can trace our family back to 1804, when the Hulse family “migrated” all the way from Freehold, NJ. It’s been said that we have salt water in our veins and I can’t imagine living anywhere else.

Debbie holds a Masters Degree in Technical and Professional Communications from NJIT and specializes in on-line communications as a Content Strategist and User Experience Designer.