At 408A 7th Avenue in Asbury Park, inside the 21-and-up St. Laurent hotel, there is a bowl of matzo ball soup that tells you almost everything you need to know before the first spoonful.
The matzo balls are made with ricotta, the broth gets a lift from dill pistou, and suddenly the whole idea of “Jewish Italian” stops sounding like a clever pitch and starts tasting like somebody’s family story got dressed up for dinner.
That is Judy & Harry’s in a nutshell: playful, polished, and very New Jersey without trying too hard. Chef David Viana and Neilly Robinson have built a restaurant that feels special enough for a planned night out, but not so stiff that you need to whisper over your chicken parm.
Now that Viana has landed a 2026 James Beard semifinalist nod for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic, the secret is officially out.
Why Judy and Harry’s Is Suddenly on Every New Jersey Food Lover’s Radar
The buzz around Judy & Harry’s did not come out of nowhere. New Jersey diners already knew David Viana and Neilly Robinson from Heirloom Kitchen in Old Bridge and Lita in Aberdeen, two places that helped make Central Jersey feel like a serious dining destination instead of a pass-through on the way to somewhere else.
Judy & Harry’s brings that same ambition to Asbury Park, but with a looser collar and a louder laugh. It is not a tasting-menu temple.
It is a restaurant where focaccia, latkes, martinis, chicken Savoy, and a giant “The Parm” can all live on the same table without anyone acting like that is strange. That is part of the charm.
The concept sits inside The St. Laurent, a boutique hotel and social club just a few blocks from the beach, which gives the whole thing a built-in sense of occasion. But the food keeps it from feeling like a hotel restaurant you wander into because it is convenient.
Judy’s serves dinner Wednesday through Sunday from 5 to 10 p.m., while Harry’s, the companion bar, keeps later hours on Thursday through Saturday, staying open until midnight.
That matters because this is the kind of place where dinner can easily become “one more drink,” especially when the bar is right there waiting with schmaltz potatoes, a burger, and cocktails that are far more thoughtful than the usual post-dinner nightcap.
The James Beard Nod That Put This Asbury Park Spot in the Spotlight
Here is the thing about a James Beard mention: it does not magically make a restaurant good. It just makes more people notice what the regulars, the food-obsessed friends, and the “I know a spot” crowd have already been talking about.
In January 2026, the James Beard Foundation named David Viana of Judy & Harry’s a semifinalist for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic, a region that includes New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. That is a crowded field, and it is not exactly short on big-city competition.
So when an Asbury Park restaurant lands there, it is a real signal. It also fits Viana’s track record.
The St. Laurent notes that he has cooked in major kitchens including Eleven Madison Park and the two-Michelin-star Villa Joya in Portugal, and many diners know him from Bravo’s “Top Chef” Season 16. Still, Judy & Harry’s does not feel like a résumé restaurant, which is a very good thing.
The James Beard nod may be what gets people to book the table, but the restaurant’s personality is what makes the visit stick. This is not a chef simply showing off technique.
It feels more like Viana and Robinson are taking familiar Jersey food memories and asking, “What if we made them sharper, funnier, richer, and just a little unexpected?” That is why the recognition lands so well. It feels earned, but it does not flatten the place into something precious.
A Shore Restaurant With a Big Family Story Behind It
Before this became a James Beard talking point, it was a family tribute. Judy’s is named for Neilly Robinson’s mother, and Harry’s is named for her father; The St. Laurent describes Robinson’s parents as the inspiration behind both the menu and design elements.
That little detail matters because it explains why the restaurant does not feel like a trend board come to life. The Jewish Italian idea has roots here.
It has a person behind it. It has that very New Jersey overlap of Sunday sauce, deli counter instincts, big flavors, and family mythology.
The restaurant’s own line, “a Jewish woman who thinks she’s Italian,” is funny because it feels less like branding and more like something someone’s aunt would say after a second glass of wine. The two-part setup also gives the place rhythm.
Judy’s is the main restaurant, where the dinner menu does the heavy lifting. Harry’s is the companion cocktail bar, where the night can either begin with a drink or end with one.
Together, they make the space feel more alive than a standard dining room. You can come for a serious dinner and still leave with the sense that you have been to a party.
That is a tricky balance, especially in Asbury Park, where restaurants have to compete with beach-town energy, live music, bars, hotels, and the general pull of the boardwalk. Judy & Harry’s works because it does not fight that energy.
It joins in, but with better food than you were probably expecting when you first heard “restaurant inside a hotel.”
The Jewish Italian Menu That Makes the Drive Feel Worth It
The menu is where Judy & Harry’s really makes its case. This is not red-sauce nostalgia copied and pasted onto a white tablecloth, and it is not Jewish comfort food treated like a museum piece.
It is more mischievous than that. Judy’s matzo ball soup comes with ricotta matzo balls, mirepoix, and dill pistou.
The latke gets sour cream, apple relish, and bagna cauda. Chicken meatballs arrive with housemade ricotta.
Calamari frito comes with cherry peppers and charred lemon aioli. Even the Caesar gets crispy capers and toasted panko, which is exactly the kind of little move that makes you wonder why more Caesars are not doing the same.
The pastas are not shy either, with options like pappardelle with veal ragu, creste di gallo with pesto Genovese and confit chicken, and orecchiette with lamb sausage and kale. Then there are the bigger plates: branzino alla griglia, fluke piccata, roast chicken Savoy, balsamic skirt steak, and “The Parm,” which comes as chicken or eggplant and is served with two contorni.
Prices are firmly special-night-out territory, with pastas mostly in the low-to-mid $30s, roast chicken Savoy at $32, and “The Parm” listed at $56 for chicken or $48 for eggplant. But the menu has enough personality that the bill feels attached to a real experience, not just a plate of something expensive under flattering lights.
What to Order When You Finally Get a Table
Start with the soup. Not because it is the safest order, but because it is the clearest introduction to what Judy & Harry’s is doing.
Judy’s matzo ball soup takes something familiar and bends it without breaking it, which is the whole restaurant’s best trick. From there, the latke is the move if you like a dish that can go salty, creamy, sharp, and a little funky all at once.
Bagna cauda with a latke might sound like two grandmothers arguing in the kitchen, but somehow everybody wins. If the table is sharing, add the homemade focaccia and either the chopped salad or calamari frito so the meal has a little crunch before the richer stuff lands.
For mains, roast chicken Savoy is the house anchor, billed as an homage to the Belmont Tavern, which gives it real Jersey old-school credibility. The Parm is the splurge, and it is probably the dish that gets pointed at when it crosses the room.
For pasta people, pappardelle with veal ragu is the comfort order, while the lamb sausage orecchiette brings more attitude. Dessert should not be treated as an afterthought here.
Strawberry tiramisu with mascarpone mousse and strawberry sorbetto keeps things bright, while chocolate budino with dulce de leche espuma, chocolate streusel, and salted caramel gelato is the one for anyone who claims they just want “a bite” and then keeps reaching across the table.
Cocktails at Judy’s are listed at $16, with names like Borscht Toreador, Carrot Highball, and Cosmo-ish, so yes, the drinks are in on the joke too.
How to Turn Dinner in Asbury Park Into a Full Night Out
The smartest way to do Judy & Harry’s is not to treat it like a quick dinner stop. Asbury Park rewards lingering, and this restaurant is built for that.
Book dinner at Judy’s, leave a little time before or after for Harry’s, and let the night stretch. The address puts you at 408A 7th Avenue, inside The St. Laurent, which means you are close enough to the beach and boardwalk energy without being swallowed by the most chaotic part of town.
Just remember that The St. Laurent is a 21-plus property, so this is not the place for a family dinner with kids in tow. If you like a deal tucked into a splurge night, pay attention to the restaurant’s weekly specials.
Sunday Sauce is listed at $38 per person with 25 percent off wine bottles, and Pasta Happy Hour runs Wednesdays and Thursdays from 5 to 6 p.m. with half-off pasta at Judy’s. Harry’s also has its own bites, including a burger, schmaltz potatoes, mozzarella in carrozza, oysters, shrimp cocktail, and cacio e pepe potatoes, with the kitchen closing at 10 p.m.
That gives you options: a full dinner reservation, a pasta-and-cocktail early evening, or a later bar stop when you want the flavor of the place without committing to the whole production. However you play it, Judy & Harry’s feels like the rare Shore restaurant that can handle the hype without becoming only about the hype.
The James Beard nod may have made it harder to ignore, but the food is what makes it hard to forget.