The Tropicana's first "Taste of the Quarter" will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. as guests will be able to walk around in the Old Havana-themed streetscape and sample The Quarter's eclectic cuisine while also helping The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
Fourteen of The Quarter's destinations will participate. Appetizers and entrees will be served, including crab dip, mini sliders and wings at A Dam Good Sports Bar, eggplant parmesan at Carmine's, guava rib sandwiches at Cuba Libre, mini potato cakes and corned beef and cabbage at Ri-Ra, pizza and wraps at The Comedy Stop, popcorn at the IMAX, mojitos at the Missile Bar, lettuce wraps, spare ribs, Mongolian beef, Ahi tuna and Chang's chicken at P.F. Chang's, signature cocktails and free karaoke at Planet Rose, signature cocktails at Providence, salmon kulebyaka at Red Square, crab cake sliders at The Palm, wines at Tinderbox/Vino 100 and coffee at Zeytinia.
Local "celebrity chefs" will be located throughout the restaurants, including Sen. James Whelan, Assemblymen Vince Polistina and John Amedeo and media personalities David Spatz, Michael James, Marc Miller, Pinky Kravitz, Don Williams and Chuck Darrow. I'll help out by being at The Palm from 7:30 to 8 p.m.
DJ Raymond Tyler will spin music in Providence from 7 to 9 p.m., and additional entertainment will be provided by the Michael Pedicin Jazz Trio. And 10-minute massages and makeup touch-ups can be found at bluemercury.
The event is sponsored by www.goac.com, and proceeds go to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Southern New Jersey/Shore Region Chapter, the world's largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding blood cancer research and providing education and patient services.
Tickets for the event are $25 per person and are available at the IMAX box office or Ticketmaster at 800-736-1420 or www.ticketmaster.com. Registration begins at 6 p.m. at the New Member Center located in The Quarter.
Beach Week at Hilton
Beach Week is here. After the Atlantic City Hilton's amazing success with the Beach Boys and Three Dog Night concerts over July 4 weekend, the casino is hosting the "Ultimate Summer Party" though Sunday, Aug. 24, with a series of beach parties.
"On the Fourth of July, more than 50,000 visitors enjoyed our free beach party with the Beach Boys. There's been incredible demand for us to follow that successful event with another open-to-the-public party. Beach Week 2008 is that event," says Phil Juliano, senior vice president of the Hilton. "Our beach is the perfect place to catch a movie with the family, to enjoy live entertainment and great food, and to party before the Jimmy Buffett concert at Boardwalk Hall on Sunday. It'll be the can't-miss party of the Summer."
On Thursday, Aug. 21, Hawkins Road gets the beach party going with country music from 1 to 4 p.m., followed by a
live broadcast from 4 to 7 p.m. from Cat Country 107.3 FM. The night will be capped off with a movie on the beach at 8:30 p.m. as beachgoers
will be treated to a free showing of the Johnny Depp movie "Pirates of the Caribbean."
Beach Week continues on Friday, Aug. 22, with live entertainment featuring the Bubba Mac Blues Band from 2 to 5:30 p.m.,
followed by a live broadcast from The Shark 103.7 FM from 6 to 10 p.m. A bonfire will light up the beach from 8 to 10 p.m.
On Saturday, Kool 98.3 FM broadcasts live from 2 to 6 p.m., followed by live entertainment at 6 and then another movie on the beach at 8:30 p.m.: the classic "Star Wars."
Beach Week will conclude on Sunday, Aug. 24, with a "Beach Party Tailgate" prior to the Buffett concert at Boardwalk Hall. Live entertainment begins at noon. The Beach Bumz Band, a Buffett tribute band, plays the best of Buffett from 3 to 7 p.m.
Also, volleyball nets will be set up on the beach all week, and local merchants will be on hand offering great deals on a range of products. The Beach Bar will be open from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. serving food and drinks.
Freeze closes
Freeze, a frozen drink bar on Spice Road at Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort, recently closed.
For some reason, the bar that offered Fat Tuesday-like alcoholic and non-alcoholic frozen drinks never took off on Spice Road like its neighbors Burger and Plate did.
The Taj will not confirm what will take the place of Freeze, but a longtime rumor is that a sandwich joint will go there, possibly named Sub.
Hot dog contest
at Trump Plaza
It wasn't pretty, but it was a lot of fun as six contestants wolfed down hot dogs for Trump Plaza Beach Bar's second annual hot dog eating contest.
Joe "Tuxedo" Menchetti of Wallingford, Conn., devoured 17 hot dogs in 10 minutes, shattering last year's winner's total by five. No one used their puke buckets, and the Beach Bar was packed with interested onlookers.
Menchetti, whose strategy included eating two hot dogs at a time, followed by their buns drenched in water, went home with a $1,000 trip voucher.
Next year's contest will be held Memorial Day weekend and will be part of Nathan's official hot dog eating tour. Nathan's will open a hot dog stand on the Boardwalk in September in Trump Plaza near the Rainforest Cafe. Auntie Anne's Pretzels and Haagen Daaz ice cream will also be offered.
'Fashion Cent'
at Bally's
Saturday is the last edition of "Fashion Cent$," a fashion game present featuring music, giveaways, prizes and more at Bally's Bikini Beach Bar.
Sponsored by The Walk, a fashion show will show the best The Walk has to offer from 2 to 4 p.m. Featuring models and a live radio broadcast from WIRED 96.5 FM, the audience will get a chance to guess the correct outlet price of the outfits modeled to win discounts, coupons and more.
Celebrity sighting
Aubrey O'Day, a member of the band Danity Kane, performed at mur.mur at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa last weekend. O'Day posed for photographs and signed autographs with fans.
