Atlantic City Weekly

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Dino Fiorentino and Danielle Roseto (foreground) with bartenders Veronica Weiss and Bobby Bechtel

Club Red

Tomatoe's stakes claim as distinctive, fun-loving lair

By Ray Schweibert --> WHEN KAREN SHERMAN AND business partner Carmen Rone relocated Tomatoe's from midtown to the bay side of Margate, making an upscale dining venue out of a gin joint that held numerous names over the years, little did they know they'd create such a fashionable following.

"Late at night it gets a bit wacky in here, which we didn't expect, quite frankly," says Sherman. "We thought we'd have a jazzy kind of bar and ended up with this sort of 'Club Tomatoe's' where people -- mostly young professionals -- come to get their ya-yas out. It's like a big family in here. They're well-behaved, but it gets a little insane."

A happy hour takes place Sunday through Thursday from 5-6:30pm and includes reduced drink prices and half-price appetizers. An innovative attraction called Rock-N-Roll Sushi happens every Monday and Wednesday from 9pm until midnight in the tavern -- one of Tomatoes' three dining areas. An extensive sushi menu is reduced to half price and Tony Cardelli, who formerly performed at the Forum Lounge at Caesars, sings classic songs.

"We've had people argue all night long that (Tony's) not singing, he's lip-synching to Frank Sinatra," says Sherman. "He has a beautiful voice."

A saxophone player or jazz trio performs on Thursday and Saturday evenings, and DJ Sparkles begins spinning tunes around midnight on most nights.

The building's previous incarnations went by such names as Gabel's, Polo Bay, South Beach and Touché, but if you haven't been inside within the last 10 years you would not recognize it as any of them. Tomatoe's is clean and pristine. It consists of an octagonal bar surrounded by 10 booths, an adjoining sushi bar, and two detached dining areas including one that can be partitioned by a shoji, which is a Japanese sliding door. Total capacity is about 300.

"What people thought might be our downfall -- that the place is entirely too large -- is actually what helps to keep us going," says Sherman. "We can accommodate large parties, but we're also capable of breaking the place down into smaller venues for things like business meetings and smaller functions."

Back in March, Tomatoe's hosted the Atlantic City Surf baseball team's annual meet-and-greet between players, coaches and fans.

Between the two dining areas is an expansive wine room housing about 2,000 bottles, which only accounts for part of Tomatoes' wine inventory.

"I have wine enclaves all over the building," says Sherman.

The non-sushi selections include a bar menu and another for the main dining room. Main entrées change frequently based on the time of year and the whimsicalness of the chefs, who are Rone, Marciel Montez and Tom Theoharris. Entrée prices range from $22 to $35 and consist of a tempting assortment of pasta dishes, seafood, steaks and poultry. The Seafood Spaghettini includes rock shrimp, mussels, calamari and crab "in a sexy tomato sauce."

"On any given night we'll offer anything from 'old school' Italian to Asian, Latin, Thai -- whatever we're in the mood for," says Sherman.

One seafood dish -- comprised of lobster tail and jumbo shrimp marinated in coconut milk -- is more fitting as a summertime dish and is taken off the menu as winter approaches.

"People have gotten a bit irritated when their favorite dish comes off the menu, but we just tell them, 'Try something new. It will be OK,'" says Sherman.

The sushi menu
allows diners to fashion their own combinations, or order from several different entrée plates or rolls. Watching the sushi chefs prepare the meals is a sight to behold, says Sherman.

"You should see them work when things get really busy," she says. "I don't know how any of them still have fingers. There's a style of roll called a Naruto (tuna, salmon and crab wrapped in cucumber with vinegar sauce) that involves slicing a cucumber lengthwise with a knife about (a foot) long. It's the most amazing thing you've ever seen. They're very good at their craft."