Atlantic City Weekly

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ATLANTIC CITY — In a sense, Jason Hanin never 
really left Atlantic City’s Chelsea Prime.


The cerebral, 30-something chef who authored an initial menu here was also largely responsible for creating Margate’s late, lamented seafood standout, Dune. That’s two of the very finest restaurants yours truly has encountered since taking over this space in the final months of 2006.


And notably different: one casual, esoteric and oceanic, the other a classic American steak house with plenty of timely, dramatic twists.


Hanin, still rehabbing a left wrist badly fractured during an early 2011 motorcycle crash, returned full time to Chelsea Prime in late April. Prior to that time he continued to act in a consultancy role, particularly regarding all food-related issues, although not directly responsible for day-to-da y operations.


He was, however, described by management as “always at the forefront of the menu and the dishes we serve.” A recent evening at the utterly splendid fifth-floor facility revealed a nice update to that bill of fare.


But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. 


Walking into the playful, black and white environs, visitors are welcomed by a 180-degree, panoramic seascape of the azure Atlantic. Seriously folks, this is one of those places — few and far between locally — that you absolutely must experience if you consider yourself a food aficionado.


Decor includes dozens of nostalgic photographs taken from throughout Atlantic City’s storied history. Everything about Chelsea Prime, from atmosphere to service and fare is executed with the greatest level of care and precision. 


Like our first two plates, hamachi crudo and Peekytoe crab meat starters. The former brought translucent, razor-thin slices of fresh yellowtail. Mildly sweet fish was accented by fennel salad, lavender leaves and flowers, honey plus tiny pearls of pink grapefruit. Those pink dots, looking very much like caviar, exploded with bright, citrus flavor. Clever, but neither obtrusive nor over-the-top, as many similar items created via the realm of molecular gastronomy tend often to be. Combined with other elements they created a mellow harmonic tone to accompany the pretty, pristine hamachi.


My crab, specifically vetted by our server, was quite different than the standard jumbo lump. Texturally softer, this Maine product possesses a silken nature. Its essence contained both sweet and salty moments of pure edible pleasure. So much that the accompanying house cocktail sauce, finished with freshly grated horseradish, went virtually untouched.


Next up were a pair of salads. First, a nightly Farmer’s, accurately demonstrating Hanin’s impeccable modern sensibilities. Composed of four thin stalks of broccolini — more about that veg in a moment — arranged with tiny enoki mushrooms, rounds of radish and sliced apple on a long, narrow plate. The green at its center is a hybrid between standard broccoli and a Chinese variant. Quickly blanched, drained and cooled it became tender and supple, requiring only a fork’s gentle pressure to allow bite-size pieces. Crunch and sweetness were provided courtesy of the radish/apple pairing. As unique a salad to be found anywhere on the planet. 


My chopped version was ladled with a big old pile of expertly cut elements — multiple lettuces, avocado, tomatoes, green beans among them. Topped by a trio of poached, butterflied shrimp, the vegetables were tossed with a simpatico Green Goddess dressing, whose color and herbal content worked wonders with the vegetables.