"Why book? For a stay that feels like you own shorefront property on a dreamy stretch of the Atlantic. Set the scene My train rolls into the Asbury Park Station at around 10 p.m. on a Friday night—and it was startlingly easy to get here from Penn Station (despite one connection in Long Branch that I could’ve skipped for a direct route had I gotten my act together and absconded from the city just a few hours earlier). My fellow travelers—20-somethings who boarded the connection in Long Branch alongside me, with White Claws in tow and conviviality in abundance—dart through the torrential downpour and into their respective taxis. It's an April evening and the weather is accordingly atrocious—my plans to walk from the station to the hotel are immediately abandoned, and my own Uber driver tells me once he picks me up that twenty years ago I’d have been ill-advised to walk alone through these streets at night. It’s a whole new Asbury Park now; one built up in the past few years by a colorful cast of characters—resilient locals, NYC expats, LGBT players. “Where are you heading?” he asks me before divulging his pre-retirement career as an insurance inspector. “Oh,” he says, upon learning that my destination is the Asbury Ocean Club, “that’s a really nice place. I inspected it myself.” The backstory With Asbury Park’s reputation as a summer destination rapidly on the rise, real-estate investor iStar saw an opportunity to introduce a Hamptons sensibility to a sliver of land across the street from the boardwalk—luxurious lodgings and fine dining, all done up in the clean modernism that’s pervaded all edges of Long Island’s tip in recent years. Their successful attempt opened in 2019 for just one season, survived 2020, and reopened in 2021. Designed by Anda Andrei, it occupies the fourth floor of a building shared with an affiliated batch of luxury residences (the owners of whom share access to amenities such as the onsite restaurant and bar, ocean-facing pool, spa, and gym). The rooms Options are abundant and well-equipped, from the humble standard king to ocean-view suites. I’m staying in what is called a Dune Terrace Loft Suite, meaning my room opens onto a terrace that enjoys a view of a windswept garden of beach grass. The woman from the front desk who has swept me out of the storm and to my accommodations tugs at this glass door once, twice, three times with great gusto as wind racks the glass before assuring me that the doors are hurricane-proof for times like these. I sleep soundly with my curtains as the rain comes down on the beauty just outside. The April showers do not stop all weekend, but I am disinclined to leave the property anyway. I’m effectively in an apartment much nicer than my own, with built-in seating around a breakfast nook in addition to a proper sitting area (a sofa and a loveseat!). I read novels, nap, and dine via room service—all in a robe—only because the onsite restaurant is a grand twenty paces from my door. Food and drink Asbury Park proper has some incredible dining options, but for fine dining you’d be hard-pressed to find a better option than onsite restaurant The Drawing Room. Past the wood-clad bar and its green-velvet booths—if you merely seek hydration on your way into town, get a dirty martini complete with three blue cheese-stuffed olives—the cocktails are classic and chic, just like The Drawing Room itself. Colorful tiles, low lighting, and deep, deep armchairs make you feel like you’re being entertained in the eminently fashionable home of a particularly expert host. All of the seafood here comes sourced from Asbury Park’s own Local 130, the highlight being a seared scallop appetizer topped with sage and speck. The burnt caesar—my server notes her own enjoyment of “warm lettuce” to affirm that I’ve ordered the correct first course—is also excellent. If you’d rather venture into town for dinner, you can still dine on the property for breakfast (the full menu includes a classic plate of eggs, toast, and sausage as well as bagels-with-the-works and a pastry basket) and lunch (sandwiches and salads). All of these options can also be ordered directly to your room—indeed, the room service menu replicates that of the restaurant almost exactly, with the small caveat of included service and gratuity fees. The spa On the same floor as the gym lies Asbury Ocean Club’s boutique spa—there’s a grand desk for check-in, from which I’m led to one of two treatment rooms for a Beach Boy facial. My technician is soft-spoken and sweet, leading me through some lovely and effective breathing exercises as she massages serums into my face and massages my temples and shoulders. When I express insecurity about the scale of the pores on my nose, she decides to perform extractions that leave them daintier than they were when I arrived—she even shows me a peek at the sebaceous horrors she’s drawn out when I ask. Upon my return to New York, I spend the week lavishing in compliments regarding my complexion—it’s a healthful treatment lush with gentle, sea-inspired salves and such that leaves me accordingly refreshed. I’d advise booking in advance over spontaneity just because the property’s size means they design their schedule and call in staff depending on need—don’t bank on a talented someone waiting in the wings should you stop by on a whim. The neighborhood/area This is prime Asbury Park—in addition to the boardwalk, just across the street, which beckons with all of the picturesque, bustling pleasures of Jersey Shore splendor, there is a whole community inland with much to explore. Restaurants, nightlife (the legendary Stone Pony and its ceaseless live music programming will please the whole crowd, rowdy gay stalwart Paradise for those with ineffable joie de vivre), restaurants that turn into nightlife when the clock strikes ten (this is Porta, where I enjoy a meatball pizza and a cocktail as I watch the vast dining space transform into a dance floor) are all within walking distance. You may not want or need to venture from the property, but in high summer you would be very wrong not to take advantage of your position. The service Despite their omnipresence, the staff at Asbury Ocean Club never overbears—it’s easy to feel right at home, like a resident rather than a guest. The second you need something, however, rest assured that smiling assistance is on standby for whenever you may need it. For families That many families seem to live in the residences says it all—the shared spaces are populated not only by cosmopolitan chillers but also by multigenerational parties of which well-behaved small children can often be spotted. During the warmer months, kids will find no shortage of entertainment poolside—where their parents have a seriously impressive amount of space for lounging, by the way, it’s a real expanse out there—and, again, that proximity to the boardwalk and beach beyond is a dream for anyone familiar with the punishment of lugging toys and tots towards the sand. Eco effort You’ll rarely see a single-use plastic onsite, and those that do infiltrate property are biodegradable. Guests receive a complimentary glass water bottle that housekeeping refills during their daily tidy—sheets are changed only on request, and the increasingly common key card-triggered light switch is present here to ensure smart energy consumption. Most exciting and tangible is the aforementioned use of local food sources—fisheries and farms and the like—in the restaurant. Accessibility Guests have the option of selecting ADA-compliant accessible rooms at booking. Most of the amenities—rooms, pool, restaurant, bar—are located on the same floor, and multiple elevators access the gym and spa facility. Anything left to mention? The gym: In addition to a small but well-equipped facility, there’s a big room for the complimentary yoga and HIIT classes that you’ll find on a schedule by the door. At least one of these classes is not to be missed, for this room looks directly out onto the ocean. As you move through your flow you’ll find that there’s no shortage of beauty to take in—in my case, I find myself wrapt by the rough waves between vinyasas. Even in such calamity, beachgoers brave the sand and surfers give it their best go." - Charlie Hobbs
