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Swing Dancing performance at the Feast of San Gennaro!

 

Sunday, September 21st , LIVE Swing Dancing with Paolo & Laurentina and the City Rhythm Orchestra.
Paolo & Lauren have been dancing together for over 7 years. They are experts in the historical Swing styles such as The Lindy Hop, The Balboa and Collegiate Shag. Early on Paolo trained with Swing Specialists Steven Mitchell, Ryan & Jenny, Marcus & Barble, Old Timer Frankie Manning and others of great stature. Paolo and his original partner Janice Wilson rapidly found success as Lindy Hoppers, winning competitions and teaching/performing worldwide (from Montreal to Australia). Paolo Pasta Lanna’s first Theater/Stage Tour came in 2000 when invited by Wynton Marsalis to travel with The Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. Theater Tours that followed included “Swing Dance America” and “Forever Swing” The Big Band Musical Revue that featured Michael Buble. Paolo also appeared on Television programs CNBC’s Great Stuff, The David Letterman Show, and most recently Project Runway Season 11.  Lauren trained early on as a Ballroom Dancer and developed her own graceful smooth styling in Swing. Paolo and Lauren both appear in several dance instructional DVDs produced by Jumpin’ Entertainment.
Today they continue to hone their skills of these historic American dances by teaching and performing throughout the Country.

https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/_uCVFAdRth0

 

The Feast of San Gennaro
September 20 & 21, 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Main St. between 10th and 13th Avenues, Belmar, New Jersey
The festival will feature plenty of Italian foods, wines, games and activities, starting with the traditional procession of the statue of San Gennaro.

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BBQ & Craft Beer Festival at Monmouth Park

 

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Don’t miss our celebration of everything barbeque at the annual BBQ & Craft Beer Festival. Ribs, pulled pork, brisket – it’s all back and better than ever, served up by some of the Garden State’s best BBQ joints. In addition, cool off with a cold one in the beer garden with live music by After The Reign, courtesy of Thunder 106.3!

Saturday & Sunday, August 30th and 31st 11:30 am – 5:30 pm at Monmouth Park Racetrack

Vendors include: Ben’s BBQ, Chop Shop BBQ, DRJ Catering, El Lechon De Negron, Enzo’s Pizza, Five Sisters Catering, Jersey Shore BBQ, JT’s Drive In, LLC , Kim Chi Smoke, Local Smoke BBQ, Mary Queen of Pork, Chimney Cake Factory, Chip Stix, Coney Waffle, Four Boys Concession, Kona Ice, Waffle de Lys & Wild Bill’s Olde Fashioned Soda

$3. general admission gets you into the track AND festival area. Food items are priced a la carte. Beer Garden is $10 for ten 2oz samples and a commemorative mini-Pilsner glass.

Sponsored by World Jeep, New Jersey Lottery, NJ Division of Travel & Tourism and Star Ledger

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2014 Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off Winners

Shore Chef Crab Cake cook off Aug 2014

Best Crab Cake – Bahr’s Landing
Best of the Rest – Red Hook Lobster Pound for their Maine-style Lobster Roll
People’s Choice, Best Crab Cake: Ike’s Famous Crab Cakes
People’s Choice, Best of the Rest – Bacon on Wheels for their tempura-fried Soft Shell Crab Taco. Bacon on Wheels also won the Fun 107.1 Delicious award, chosen by the team from 107.1
In the Home Cookin’ Amateur Crab Cake Contest, Dan Reilly of River Edge won for a lump crab and claw crab cake, accented with olive oil, garlic powder, sriracha and chipotle mayo. Dan hopes to own a food truck soon!
For more on this, read

Bahrs, Red Hook Lobster Pound win top honors at Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off

By Peter Genovese | The Star-Ledger

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Photo Contest – Monmouth & Ocean County Photos

Calling all professional, amateur and enthusiastic shutterbugs…Two major Jersey Shore tourism organizations, the Ocean County Department of Business Development and Tourism and Monmouth County Tourism have partnered with Spark Market Solutions, LLC of Red Bank, NJ to produce Explore Ocean ’16, and the 2016 issue of the Visit Monmouth Guide. These two power house high-end travel and tourism guides will highlight both regions as vacation destinations. Spark Market Solutions is looking for diverse, artistic photos of your favorite areas of Ocean & Monmouth Counties. Think beach, surf, family fun or what makes people come to the Jersey Shore. Please remember releases will be needed for children.

Images chosen for these publications will be featured with full photo credit, and the grand prize winner will appear on the cover and receive a $250 cash prize.
Submit all high resolution photos via email to: info@sparkmybiz.com
Deadline: September 30, 2015

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A Great Day at the 27th NJ Sandcastle Contest in Belmar

 

Great weather and amazing sand creations at the 27th NJ Sandcastle Contest in Belmar, NJ. On July 30th many trophies were awarded to talented sand artists of all ages. Three prizes were awarded in six individual categories: 7 and under, 8 to 11, 12 to 15, 16 and up, family and day camps. The “Best on the Beach” award went to “Homer Simpson Trapped by Sandy.” D’Jais kept the party going with music, free giveaways, and a dance and hula hoop contest. It was a great day for all.

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2014 Home Cookin’ Amateur Crab Cake Contest

Thanks to popular demand, Monmouth Park is hosting the first annual Home Cookin’ Amateur Crab Cake Contest. The contest will be held on Sunday, August 17th at the Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook‐Off at Monmouth Park, 175 Oceanport Ave., Oceanport. The contest is open to all amateur and home chefs. Professional chefs are not eligible. Recipes will be evaluated by our team of professional chefs. Ten contestants will be chosen from the recipes submitted to cook their crab cakes for our team of judges at Monmouth Park starting at noon on Sunday, August 17th. All information must be included to be qualified to participate. By submitting this recipe, you permit use of its contents or any photos in related promotions for the event.

[button link=”http://www.sparkmybiz.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/MonmouthParkTopCrabCakeEntryFORMfields.pdf” type=”type-1-3″ size=”small” ] download pdf [/button] Monmouth Park Top Crab Cake Entry Form

Amateur Chefs & Seafood Lovers Wanted!
Amateur Crab Cake Contest Joins Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off at Monmouth Park

Each year, the popular Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off at Monmouth Park spawns countless requests from home cooks, aspiring chefs and wannabes who claim to make New Jersey’s best crab cake, wanting to know how they can get the recognition their masterpiece deserves. This year they’ll have the chance to strut their stuff, as the first annual Home Cookin’ Amateur Crab Cake Contest will be held on Sunday, August 17th as part of the Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off at Monmouth Park Racetrack.

Based on the merit of their recipe submissions, ten contestants will be chosen by a team of chefs to participate in a cook-off at the event that will be judged by a team of chefs and professionals led by Pete Genovese, the Star-Ledger’s food writer and captain of the famed Munchmobile. Entries will be judged on taste, texture and visual appeal.

“There are a lot of very talented chefs and passionate seafood lovers in New Jersey,” said Patti Baxter of Spark Market Solutions, organizers of the event. “We’re expecting a hot and heavy competition.”

The contest is open to amateur cooks and chefs. Contestants must be able to come to Monmouth Park on Sunday, August 17th for the live competition, with a grand prize of $500 to be awarded.

The Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off, presented by Monmouth Park and The Star-Ledger, will feature over a dozen seafood restaurants and eateries from the Jersey Shore on Saturday and Sunday, August 16 and 17. Visitors will have a chance to win prizes including tickets to an upcoming New Jersey Devils game, Broadway tickets, VIP packages to Monmouth Park and more when they vote for their favorite specialties for “People’s Choice” award. Come meet the personalities from 107.1FM as they judge “107.1 Delicious” on Saturday and meet Pete Genovese and the Munchmobile on Sunday. Monmouth Park’s heart-pounding thoroughbred racing guarantees a day of fun for the whole family.

Monmouth Park Racetrack is located in Oceanport, New Jersey, off Garden State Parkway exit 105. Gates open at 11:30 both days, and Sunday is Family Fun Day. Admission is only $3 and children 12 and under are free. Food prices vary by vendor. The Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off is sponsored by the NJ Lottery, World Subaru, the New Jersey Devils, Wild Bill’s Olde Fashioned Soda, Monmouth Health & Life magazine and is supported in part by a grant from the New Jersey Department of State, Division of Travel and Tourism.

For more information on the Home Cookin’ Amateur Crab Cake Contest or the Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off, contact Spark Market Solutions at 732-747-4449 or info@sparkmybiz.com.

Questions? Comments? [button link=”mailto:info@sparkmybiz.com” type=”type-1-3″ size=”small” ] click here [/button]

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Belmar Sandcastle Contest

Is there a hidden sculptor inside you just waiting to break free? Do you need an official excuse to spend the day at the beach digging in the sand? Bring your pail and shovel to the 28th annual New Jersey Sandcastle Contest at the 18th Avenue Beach in Belmar on Wednesday, July 30th.

Presented annually by the Belmar Tourism Commission and D’Jais, the competition is free and open to competitors of all ages and abilities. Prizes will be awarded in six different categories: ages 7 & under, ages 8-11, ages 12-15, and 16 and over, along with Best Group and Best Family. Judges will also award a “Best on the Beach” for the top sand creation.

Bring the family for tons of fun along with free giveaways, drinks, games and music. Visitors will have a chance to win great prizes, including tickets to a 2014/15 New Jersey Devils game.

Registration begins at 8 am at the 18th Avenue Beach, where admission to beach is free that day. Judging begins at noon. Rain date is July 30th. The New Jersey Sandcastle Contest is sponsored by World Jeep, GEICO, 95.9 The Rat, Press Communications Radio, NJ 101.5 and Spark Market Solutions.

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2014 Belmar Seafood Festival

28th Annual Belmar Seafood Festival at Silver Lake Park, Belmar, NJ, June 13-15 2014

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Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off

Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook-Off
August 16 & 17, 12 to 5 pm, Monmouth Park Racetrack. Shore Chefs compete for the best crab cake award and the coveted People’s Choice Award in the Crab Cake Cook-Off. Taste fare from your favorite local restaurants. Crab cakes, fried catfish, and lobster rolls are just a few of the favorites.

Interested in participating as a food vendor or crafter? Click here or contact us at 732-747-4449.

 

CrabCakeContest-2014-01

2014 Home Cookin’ Amateur Crab Cake Contest

Thanks to popular demand, Monmouth Park is hosting the first annual Home Cookin’ Amateur Crab Cake Contest. The contest will be held on Sunday, August 17th at the Shore Chef Crab Cake Cook‐Off at Monmouth Park, 175 Oceanport Ave., Oceanport. The contest is open to all amateur and home chefs. Professional chefs are not eligible. Recipes will be evaluated by our team of professional chefs. Ten contestants will be chosen from the recipes submitted to cook their crab cakes for our team of judges at Monmouth Park starting at noon on Sunday, August 17th. All information must be included to be qualified to participate. By submitting this recipe, you permit use of its contents or any photos in related promotions for the event.

[button link=”http://www.sparkmybiz.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/MonmouthParkTopCrabCakeEntryFORMfields.pdf” type=”type-1-3″ size=”small” ] download pdf [/button] Monmouth Park Top Crab Cake Entry Form

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Food Truck Showdown

Hungry for good eats? Make your way to the Manahawkin Mart on East Bay Avenue on Saturday, July 5th and Saturday July 26th from 10 am until 5 pm when the best food trucks from New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia roll into town for the ultimate Food Truck Showdown. Chow down on ethnic delicacies from Empanada Guy, El Lechon de Negron, and Hibachi Heaven. Sink your teeth into all-American favorites like Callahan’s Hot Dogs, Oink and the Moo BBQ and Five Sisters and outrageous specialties from Bacon on Wheels, 1 Potato Two and  Chimney Cake Factory. Savor sweet treats from Waffle de Lys, Four Boys, Kona Ice and Hoffman’s Ice Cream, just to name a few. Enter to win a four pack of tickets to a 2014 New Jersey Devils game or an overnight stay at FantaSeas Resort in Atlantic City. While you’re there, browse specialty and craft vendors and the Shoppes at Manahawkin Mart.

  

Don’t miss the Manahawkin Food Truck Showdown on Saturday July 5th and Saturday July 26th, from 10 am until 5 pm at the Shoppes at Manahawkin Mart on East Bay Avenue. Brought to you by Power Home Remodeling, the New Jersey Devils, 95.9 The Rat and Country Thunder 106 and produced by Spark Market Solutions. For more information call 732-747-4449.

 Admission is free.