PROMOTION: ATLANTIC CITY ATLANTIC CITY BY BRET LOVE 56 ON THE BOARDWALK A brief history of 72 CONVENTIONAL WISDOM The $268 million Atlantic City. Atlantic City Convention Center is at the center of the city’s redevelopment plan. 61 THE NEW “BOARDWALK EMPIRE” A look at Atlantic City’s incredible growth spurt. 74 HALL OF FAME At 81, Boardwalk Hall remains one of America’s hottest mid-sized venues. 65 FOODIE FRENZY Forget the buffet: Atlantic City’s gone gourmet. 76 CALENDAR OF EVENTS Annual events in Atlantic City. 68 AHHHHHH-TLANTIC CITY These spas are sure to help you turn off in a town that’s 77 ATLANTIC CITY HAS IT ALL If you’ve already “always turned on.” shopped, gambled and checked out the spas, restaurants and nightclubs, but you’re still 70 THE OTHER “CITY THAT NEVER SLEEPS” looking for something to do, don’t worry— A guide to the best of Atlantic City nightlife. Atlantic City has plenty more to offer. 54 71 HELLO, GOOD BUYS! The best places in TRAVEL INFORMATION: Atlantic City to shop ’til you drop. atlanticcitynj.com l 1-888-AC-VISIT PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ATLANTIC CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ATLANTIC AAtlantictlantic CityCity AdvertorialAdvertorial pp054-077.indd054-077.indd 5454 111/11/20101/11/2010 112:422:42 PROMOTION: ATLANTIC CITY ON THE BOARDWALK A brief history of Atlantic City. THE DATE IS Sept. 16, 2010. At Caesars Hotel & Casino and the private event space One Atlantic, workers are busily milling about like bees, making preparations for one of the biggest events to hit Atlantic City in years. Tonight will mark the premiere party for the new Martin Scorcese- produced HBO series Boardwalk Empire, and stars such as Michael Pitt, Kelly Macdonald and Dabney Coleman (not to mention writer/executive producer Terence Winter, known for his work on The Sopranos) will soon be rubbing elbows with locals and partying into the wee hours of the morning. The city known for its ad campaign slogan, “Always Turned On,” is buzzing with excitement, clearly eager for its moment in the spotlight. Based on Nelson Johnson’s book, Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times, and Corruption Of Atlantic City, the series offers a look at the historic partnership between the area’s local politicians and racketeers. The story primarily focuses on crime boss Enoch “Nucky” Johnson (played pitch-perfectly by Steve Buscemi), whose machinations in Atlantic City during Prohibition helped transformed the city from a quaint seaside health resort into an international gambling and entertainment mecca where practically anything was permissible. The show helps to reinforce the notion that, while there may be many US cities with legalized casi- nos and gambling, few have the rich, colorful history that still lives and breathes in Atlantic City today. Set on the New Jersey shore between the Atlantic Ocean and marsh- lands, Atlantic City was incorporated in 1854, when train service began linking the area with Philadelphia. One of its signature attractions, the Boardwalk, was originally constructed in 1870 to help hotel owners keep sand out of their lobbies. The first road from the mainland was completed in 1870 after 17 years of construction, and by 1878, Atlantic City had become such a popular tourist destination that one railroad line would no longer suffice and the Narrow Gauge Line to Philadelphia was soon constructed. Thanks to tycoons like Johnson, development in the area surged in the early 20th century, making Atlantic City the hip, happening hotspot for the Hollywood elite to hang out. A cornucopia of luxury hotels (including the Chalfonte Hotel and Haddon Hall, which eventually became Resorts International Hotel & Casino, the city’s first legal casino) made the area such a model of using property ownership to achieve great wealth, that Atlantic City later served as the inspiration for the classic board game Mo- nopoly, using real-life street names (Boardwalk, Park Place, Baltic Ave) and property values based on the area. Steel Pier, known as “The Showplace of the Nation,” attracted color- 56 ful acts ranging from high-diving horses to water-skiing canine Rex the CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ATLANTIC AAtlantictlantic CityCity AdvertorialAdvertorial pp054-077.indd054-077.indd 5656 111/11/20101/11/2010 112:422:42 AAtlantictlantic CityCity AdvertorialAdvertorial pp054-077.indd054-077.indd 5757 111/11/20101/11/2010 112:422:42 PROMOTION: ATLANTIC CITY WEEKEND TO REMEMBER FLYAWAY! Win a trip for 2 to Harrah’s Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey WATERFRONT SUITES VIKING COOKING SCHOOL Wonder Dog to entertainers such houses across the bay, with as Frank Sinatra and Al Jolson. docks underneath the boat- Life on Atlantic City’s beaches houses where the bootleggers became increasingly colorful, could unload their cargo away with the introduction of roll- from the prying eyes of the law. ing chairs to wheel visitors up Finally, there’s The Knife & Fork and down the Boardwalk, the Inn, which originally opened in WATERFRONT SHOPPING accidental invention of saltwater 1927 and operated as a speak- taffy and the segregated Chicken easy during Prohibition, and Log on to www.HarrahsResort.com/airtran Bone Beach, which attracting has been completely restored to and enter for your chance to win a trip to Atlantic City. African-American legends like its original glory as a steak and Sammy Davis Jr., Duke Ellington, seafood restaurant. 12 385&+$6( 1(&(66$5< 72 (17(5 25 Jackie Robinson, Lena Horne and Atlantic City is clearly a :,1$385&+$6(:,//127,1&5($6(<285 &+$1&(62):,11,1*6ZHHSVWDNHVLVRSHQWR Sugar Ray Robinson. town that’s proud of its roots, and U H V L G H Q W VR IW K H 8 6 D Q G3 5 Z K RD U H \ H D U VR I DJHDWWKHWLPHRIHQWU\9LVLWZZZKDUUDKVUHVRUW But what makes Atlantic Boardwalk Empire serves as an FRPDLUWUDQ DQG UHJLVWHU IRU D FKDQFH WR ZLQ City’s rich, 156-year history so emotionally charged reminder /LPLWRIRQHHQWU\SHUSHUVRQ2QH *UDQG3UL]H ò $ 7ULS IRU WZR RQH ZLQQHU DQG RQH JXHVW RQ remarkable is how much of it of the blood, sweat and tears that $LU7UDQ$LUZD\VIURPJDWHZD\FORVHVWWRZLQQHUV KRPHUHVLGHQF\WR$WODQWLF&LW\1-:LQQHUDQG remains for visitors to see today. went into making it into the glitzy, JXHVWPXVWWUDYHORQWKHVDPHLWLQHUDU\6XEMHFW Take Lucy The Elephant, a glamorous seaside city it is today. WRDYDLODELOLW\DQGEODFNRXWGDWHV7ZR QLJKWV KRWHO DFFRPPRGDWLRQV LQ D :DWHUIURQW 7RZHU 65-foot tall, pachyderm-shaped 6XLWH DW +DUUDKâV 5HVRUW LQ $WODQWLF &LW\ 1HZ -HUVH\ VXEMHFWWRDYDLODELOLW\DVGHWHUPLQHGE\ building originally constructed For more information on 6SRQVRULQWKHLUVROHGLVFUHWLRQ D)RRGDQG in 1882 to attract tourism to the the area’s history, check out %HYHUDJH&UHGLWD5HG'RRU6SD&UHGLWD 7RWDO5HZDUGV*LIW&DUG DOOVXEMHFWWRWHUPV area and help sell real estate. Or the Atlantic City Free Public DQGFRQGLWLRQVVWDWHG DQG FODVVHVWR9LNLQJ &RRNLQJ 6FKRRO DW +DUUDKâV 5HVRUW EDVHG RQ the Historic Absecon Light- Library, which has a special DYDLODELOLW\ 7ULSPXVWEHERRNHGRQD6XQGD\ house, the nation’s third tallest, exhibit of Prohibition-era 7KXUVGD\DQGPXVWEHWDNHQE\$SULO 7KH ì$59ú RI WKH *UDQG 3UL]H 7ULS LV which has 228 climbable steps photographs and extensive 6ZHHSVWDNHVEHJLQVDWDP&7RQ2FWREHU DQGHQGVDWSP&7RQ'HFHPEHU that take visitors to excellent archives; and the Atlantic 3UL]H VXEMHFW WR DYDLODELOLW\ 2GGV RI views of the Atlantic City sky- City Historical Museum On ZLQQLQJGHSHQGRQWKHQXPEHURIHOLJLEOHHQWULHV UHFHLYHG6ZHHSVWDNHVVXEMHFWWRWKHFRPSOHWH line. There’s also the Gardner’s Garden Pier, which has a RIðFLDOUXOHVIRXQGDWZZZKDUUDKVUHVRUWFRP DLUWUDQ6SRQVRU,1.3XEOLVKLQJ(DVW3DFHV Basin area, where you can look broad variety of late 19th- )HUU\5RDG$WODQWD*$ out across the docks where and early-20th-century fishermen bring in their day’s memorabilia and photo- haul and see Rum Runners’ graphs. Both are free. CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE ATLANTIC AAtlantictlantic CityCity AdvertorialAdvertorial pp054-077.indd054-077.indd 5858 111/11/20101/11/2010 112:422:42 PROMOTION: ATLANTIC CITY The new “Boardwalk Empire” A look at Atlantic City’s incredible growth spurt. FOR A CITY with more than 150 years of history, casino’s old image was somewhat staid and traditional, Atlantic City has seen an impressive amount of develop- the $550 million renovation rendered it sleek and sexy, ment over the past decade—transforming what was once adding Waterfront Shops, the Elizabeth Arden Red a drive-in destination into a budding vacation hotspot. Door Spa and The Pool. Not “a” pool, mind you, but Thousands of brand-new hotel rooms have been added, THE Pool: A domed, indoor adult playground that’s older casino resorts have been upgraded significantly, kept at a tropical 82 degrees year-round, turning into and even more construction is currently underway. one of the city’s hottest nightclubs after dark. The addi- The area’s current resurgence began with the 2003 tions expanded Harrah’s offerings considerably: It now opening of the swanky Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa, has 2,588 rooms, more than a dozen restaurants and a $1.1 billion joint venture between Boyd Gaming and 160,000 square feet of gaming space. MGM Resorts International that quickly emerged as Harrah’s also made a significant investment in beef- the top-grossing casino in Atlantic City. The hip, ultra- ing up Showboat Atlantic City, its Mardi Gras-themed modern hotel features 2,000 guest rooms and suites (in- property on the Boardwalk’s northern end. Originally cluding six tiers of luxury accommodations), a 161,000 opened in 1987, the hotel partnered with the House Of square-foot casino that includes the largest poker room Blues brand in 2003, adding a House Of Blues restau- in town, 13 destination restaurants, the 2,400-seat rant, live concert venue and the 544-room, $90 million Borgata Event Center, four nightclubs, 11 specialty retail Orleans Tower, which boasts impressive HOB-themed stores and the 54,000-square-foot, European-style Spa suites fit for a king (or, more appropriately, a rock star).