Every August, we ask you to tell us your favorite places to shop, eat, and spend time in Cape May!
If you’ve followed the Best of Cape May for a while, you know that certain businesses have won their categories for years, and there were no shocking overturns this time, but we were happy to see a few changes, such as our new runner-up for best burgers. We also added some new categories, including best thrift shop, best nature/science activity, best hands-on activity, and best table bread.
This year, we received over 400 submissions, which took a few days to tally! We carefully consider each write-in, standardizing business names and using provided information to get an accurate count. We’re strict about the one-nomination-per-category rule, and if we are not 100% certain what business someone meant (example: “The place on the mall that sells shirts”), we do not attempt to guess. For fairness, the vote is tossed. This year, a particular category received votes we couldn’t distinguish due to similar business names, so we are honoring both. It’s noted below.
Enough from us! Here are your winners & runners-up for the Best of Cape May 2025.
The Best in Shopping
Accessories & Jewelry: Whale’s Tale
Runner up: Queen May
Antiques & Vintage Goods: West End Garage
Runner up: Cape May Antique Center
Art Stores & Galleries: Gallery D’May
Runner up: Jawbone Gallery
Bath & Personal Care: Bath Time
Runner up: A Place on Earth
Beach Accessories (Towels, Umbrellas, Chairs): Cape May Trading Post at Dellas
Runner up: South End Surf Shop
Beach Bags & Totes: Sea Bags
Runner up: Sunset Beach Gift Shops
Books: Cape Atlantic Books
Runner up: Barrier Island Books
Worth a mention: The library & little free libraries received love on this year’s survey, as well as Hooked on Books in Wildwood!
Candy & Chocolate: Original Fudge Kitchen
Runner up: Louisa’s Chocolate Bar
Cape May Souvenirs: Sunset Beach Gift Shops
Runner up: Whale’s Tale
Flip Flops & Sandals: South End Surf Shop
Runner up: Pete Smith’s Surf Shop
Gifts: Whale’s Tale
Runner up: Sunset Beach Gift Shops
Gourmet & Specialty Food: The Cheese Shop
Runner up: Cape May Peanut Butter Co
Home Decor & Accessories: Cape May Wicker
Runner up: Quirk & Co.
Liquor, Spirits & Wine: Collier’s
Runner up: Joe Canal’s
Kids’ Clothing & Accessories: Arden’s Kids
Runner up: Whale’s Tale
Men’s Clothing & Accessories: Galvanic Cotton
Runner up: Company
Pet Accessories, Treats, and Toys: Collar and Bone
Runner up: Dog Days of Cape May
Shoes: This was a sweep for Casale’s, with several people bidding the store farewell. Casale’s closed their doors this past July. They opened in 1957. (There was no runner up for this category.)
Surf & Swimwear: South End Surf Shop
Runner up: Pete Smith’s Surf Shop
Tees & Sweatshirts: Flying Fish Studio
Runner up: It’s a Breeze
Thrift & Upcycled: West End Garage
Runner up: Ladies Room Consignment Shop
Worth a mention: We received several write-ins for The EtCetera Shop!
Women’s Clothing & Accessories: Cotton Company
Runner up: Victorious
The Best in Dining
Baked Goods & Pastries: Chez Michel
Runner up: Madison’s Bakery
Bar Bites / Small Plates: Oyster Bay
Runner up: Fins Bar & Grille, Taco Caballito
Breakfast Sandwiches: Coffee Tyme
Runner up: Bagel Time
Worth a mention: Westside Market & Ostara tied for third place! There were a lot of feelings about breakfast sandwiches this year.
Brunch: Mad Batter
Runner up: Blue Pig Tavern
Burgers: Ugly Mug
Runner up: Mayer’s Tavern
Coffee & Espresso: Coffee Tyme
Runner up: Magic Brain
Cold & Frozen Drinks / Smoothies: Coffee Tyme
Runner up: Golden Stop, Playa Bowls
Crab Cakes: Lobster House
Runner up: Freda’s
Fish or Shrimp Tacos: Taco Caballito
Runner up: Cape West Tacos
Fries: Lucky Bones
Runner up: Ugly Mug
French Cuisine: Maison Bleue
Runner up: 410 Bank Street
Hot Dogs: Hot Dog Tommy’s
Hot Dog Tommy’s sweeps this category every year, but we leave it on to recognize other hot dog vendors, which do exist! We hear Mayer’s had an excellent hot dog special recently that was so popular, they had to bring it back.
Ice Cream & Custard: Kohr Bros.
Runner up: Fine Fellows
Indian Cuisine: Exit Zero Filling Station. We’re sorry to report that Exit Zero will be closing its restaurant on September 20th.
Runner up: Sandalwood in Rio Grande (we can confirm, it’s delicious!)
Italian Cuisine: Sapore
Runner up: Andrea Trattoria, Viggiano’s
Lobster Rolls: Quincy’s Original Lobster Rolls
Runner up: La La Lobster
Mexican Cuisine: Taco Caballito
Runner up: El Pueblo
Mussels: Lucky Bones
Runner up: Lobster House
Oysters on the Half Shell: Oyster Bay
Runner up: Lobster House
Pancakes: Uncle Bill’s Pancake House
Runner up: Mad Batter
Pizza: Mario’s
Runner up: Blue Moon
Plant-based options: Bella Vida Garden Cafe
Runner up: Mad Batter
Salads: George’s Place
Runner up: Lucky Bones
Sandwich, Wrap, or Hoagie: Westside Market
Runner up: Lots of love for Wawa this year! They took runner-up for this category
Scallops: Mayer’s Tavern
Runner up: Lobster House
Seafood: Lobster House
Runner up: Tisha’s
Smoothie Bowls: Playa Bowls
Runner up: Aloha Smoothie Co
Steak: Primal
Runner up: Washington Inn
Sushi: Yozu
Runner up: Port
Table Bread: Lobster House
Runner up: Panico’s
Wings: C-View Tavern
Runner up: Lucky Bones
Best place to get takeout: Lucky Bones
Runner up: Lobster House
Best options for kids: Rusty Nail
Runner up: Uncle Bill’s Pancake House
Best place to eat outside: Lobster House
Runner up: Blue Pig Tavern
Best view from the table: The Fish House
Runner up: Lobster House
A restaurant worth the splurge: Washington Inn
Runner up: Primal
Who has the best cocktails? Brown Room at Congress Hall
Runner up: The Ebbitt Room
Note: We asked about mocktails on this year’s survey, but there was no conclusive winner. We’ll ask again next year!
Best outdoor bar: Harry’s Ocean Bar & Grille
Runner up: Rusty Nail
Best live music: Chalfonte
Runner up: Carney’s, Rusty Nail
Best happy hour: Oyster Bay
Runner up: Harry’s Ocean Bar & Grille
The Best in Experiences
Bicycle or Surrey Rental Service: Cape Island Bikes
Runner up: Shield’s
Boat Tour, Charter, or Cruise: TIE! Cape May Whale Watch & Research and Cape May Whale Watcher (We can’t meaningfully distinguish the two whale watch companies among the votes due to similar business names, so they are declared a tie)
Runner up: The Osprey
Brewery or Distillery Tour & Tasting: Cape May Brewing Co.
Runner up: Nauti Spirits
Farms, Parks & Preserves: Beach Plum Farm
Runner up: TIE! Cape May County Park & Zoo and Rea’s Farm
Food Festival or Event: Lima Bean Festival
Runner up: 3-WAY TIE! Octoberfest, Strawberry Festival, and Cape May Restaurant Week (thank you for voting for us!)
Golf Course / Par 3: Cape May National
Runner up: TIE! Par 3 and Morey’s Big Little 9
Hands-on Activity: Pour Candle Bar & Chandlery
Runner up: The Nature Center of Cape May
Holiday Festival or Event: West Cape May Christmas Parade
Runner up: Winter Wonderland at Congress Hall
Live Performing Arts: Cape May Stage
Runner up: East Lynne Theatre Co
Kid-friendly Activity (besides the beach!): Cape May County Park & Zoo
Runner up: Mini Golf (generic)
Miniature Golf Course: Sunset Beach Gift Shops
Runner up: Ocean Putt
Worth a mention: Steve’s Stockton Golf received a lot of love this year!
Museum or Historic Site: Emlen Physick Estate
Runner up: Harriet Tubman Museum
Nature / Science Activity: Cape May Point Arts and Science Center
Runner up: The Nature Center of Cape May
Rides, Thrills, or High-Speed Activity: Morey’s Piers
Runner up: Revolution Rail
Spa or Wellness Center: Sea Spa at Congress Hall
Runner up: Cape May Day Spa
Tours of Cape May: Cape May MAC
Runner up: Ghost tours. (This category was a sweep by MAC with write-ins for a variety of their tours, with most people citing the trolleys. Votes for ghost tours did not cite specific companies, so we awarded runner-up to the general category!)
Winery Tour and Tasting: Cape May Winery
Runner up: Willow Creek Winery
Best thing to do outside of Cape May: Cape May County Park & Zoo
Runner up: Lots of love for the Wildwoods in this year’s survey! They were the runner up, with several mentions of the boardwalk.
And finally, what’s the best month to visit Cape May? September
Runner up: July
And there you have it, your winners for the Best of Cape May 2025! To everyone who voted, thank you so much for giving us your time and honest thoughts. We love recognizing our local businesses and hope that you found a new place to try from among this year’s winners.
If you didn’t see your favorites on the list, mark your calendar for August 2026. We usually release the voting form on the first!
Winners, download your poster!
If your business is among the winners, you can download your printable poster. It’s designed to print on standard letter-sized paper, and works in a frame or a window.
