Fast becoming my favorite "higher end" restaurant in Cape May! It's gourmet Italian at its best! The daily specials are usually the play but you can not go wrong with the menu lamb chops or any of the traditional pastas! I highly recommend the stuffed meatball appetizer or the fried Jersey tomatoes. Complete out your dinner with a chocolate martini for desert! If you are lucky enough to be there on a night where the grilled bone in pork chop marinated in apples & brown butter.....that's a MUST order!!! read more

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Absolutely amazing! The food is so good and the place, ambience is overall just beautiful. We absolutely loved the appetizers. We started with a special, a sausage and pepper dip, and the truffle burrata. They were both to die for. I was licking the plate clean on the truffle burrata! For entrees, we got a pork chop special, spaghettini, rigatoni vodka, and Mediterranean crab pasta...everyone absolutely loved their dish! We will 100% be back. The service was wonderful and the ambience is just great. The place is beautiful and the view is amazing. Just know that you will need reservations and they don't take reservations for outdoor seating. read more

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First it was 2 hrs between the apps and main course. After 90 minutes they said people were short in kitchen??Lack of customer service when apps out at 840 and main course served at 1020??This USED to be one of our go to places now it's a stay away place. After waiting orders were not only wrong but cold at 1020...No manager on to speak with and our party of 8 was less than happy. Went to boardwalk for pizza.. read more

Had a 6:00 reservation. Arrived at 5:58 and were told they were running a little behind with seatings. Went to the bar for a cocktail, bartender made a good martini. Was finally seated at 6:25. Ordered the calamari which was served with no marinara or other sauce. It was over cooked, dry and chewy. Sent it away. Got a Caesar salad which was good. For entree ordered the Pork Chop Florentine. Seemed to be a decent quality meat, but was rather flavorless and the rice was very dry. I think the best part of the meal was the bread that was served with infused olive oil. After plates were cleared we sat there for 25 minutes with nothing. Opted against coffee/dessert at that point and just paid and left. The server was working hard but seemed too busy to provide adequate service. One and done for this place. Side note: this place is also very loud. read more

Secondo Panico's - Pork Chop Florentine - Italian Near Me - Cape May, New Jersey

We absolutely love this place. Hard to get into- definitely not a walk in type of place, and we would almost dock a star just because the music is always absurdly loud- but the service, ambiance and food otherwise is deserving of 5 stars. The service is always great, and the food is excellent. I just pray they read this and turn it down a notch. When you are 35 years old and cant talk to the person directly next to you, its too darn loud. read more

Food: 4/5 Service: 3.5/5 Atmosphere: 3/5 To start the dinner, we had a reservation through someone working in the restaurant, and they forgot to put our name down, which was a bit of a cluster. We sat outside, and the atmosphere was pretty and relaxing. There was a mini bar area and live music playing with a view of the bay. One recommendation, in my opinion, is to put the live music off to the side and turn down the volume a little. We sat in front of the guy playing, and it was deafening. I couldn't hear any of my family members, even the ones sitting next to me. The service was excellent; the waiter who had our table took the time to answer our questions. One thing I'd say about the service is nothing seemed to come out constantly; it was all scattered, and when our entrees came, everyone's all came out at a different, but given that there were a lot of us at a table. It was starting to become very busy; it wasn't a big deal; everything was still very delicious. My fiancé and I started with the Zucchini Chips, which were very good loved the tzatziki sauce; it was so refreshing and complimented the dish well. Then the Mozzarella Fritos, (there are usually 3 per plate; my niece couldn't wait any longer haha) they were good, very, very cheesy light breading on them. The Bruschetta was my favorite; it was so fresh between the tomatoes, onions, and basil, and not too much balsamic vinaigrette. The Crab Fritos was ok; not a lot of crab meat inside, there was a lot of filler (stuffing) inside, and it came with a side of marinara which I didn't think went with it. I was expecting cocktail sauce or something similar. As for the entree, it was great; the alla vodka sauce was flavorful and creamy, and the pieces of chicken throughout it added a pleasant salty element to the dish. Overall, I would definitely come back and try out other things. If you're in the area, you should definitely make a reservation here. read more

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Terrible experience. Ordered from Grubhub and they claimed they arent on Grubhub after waiting 2 hours. Don't order from here. They should be banned from Grubhub read more

Secondo Panico's - Italian Near Me - Cape May, New Jersey

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Food does not live up to the price. Meat was over done not cook to chef recommendation. Overall food not good. Waitress was good.

Been to many Italian restaurants and this was by far the worst. The server never check up on our party of 8. The specials were on a separate menu. The proper way is for the server to know all the specials and explain them. The octopus was just one small arm for $23. I've always received 2 or 3. The branzino was the whole fish throw on a plate. You have to fillet it yourself. For around the same price, all the branzinos I've had were presented whole and then filleted for you. The bottle of wine is all I had here. That was also a joke. The server poured a tasting pour and walked away. I had to pour me and my wife's first glass. First and last time. read more

As a loyal recurring customer, my last two visits in the Summer of 2024 was disappointing and underwhelming. The first Summer visit 3 individuals within my party of 5 order the Pasta Special. After 15 minutes we were surprisingly informed by our server that the kitchen was NOT able to fulfill our main dish order. At 5:30pm during the July 4th week, I find that difficult to believe. Our 2nd visit during the 4th week in July, we had ordered apps and our main courses. Similarly, as in our 1st visit 3 weeks earlier our server informed my son that his zucchini chips appetizer could NOT be made in the kitchen. I have been patronizing this establishment for the past 4 years. It seems that the Chefs and table servers have changed over and not for the better. The food flavor is below par for the price point of this restaurant. I will be seeking other restaurants in the Wildwood Crest and Cape May areas going forward. read more

Service was not good at all. Bartender ( Eric) great! Food - mediocre. Good feta app and bread. Salmon very bland We did not have dessert. Opted for ice cream elsewhere. read more

Had dinner and drinks tonight. The bar area is really enjoyable with live entertainment. The bartenders are very nice. Enjoyed some drinks before our table was ready. Becky was our server along with another woman training. Both of them were excellent. The appetizers were absolutely incredible along with the bread to start. Every main entree was absolutely delicious. This was our first time here but definitely will not be our last. Dishes are plentiful. They do not skimp on the food. We did not have dessert as we were so full. For a Tuesday night it was great to see it so busy. The shrimp on top of the filet were amazing and fried to perfection. The Sunday sauce over the pasta were prefect. The sausage was sliced nice and thin. We look forward to going back. read more

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We had delicious food. Service was good. I have the eggplant. My partner had the salmon. Both dishes were cooked very well. They even acknowledged special occasion for us, which was nice. Thank you. read more

Very disappointing experience. We waited more than 30 minutes past our reservation time. The server was not apologetic and the food was mediocre. This place is overrated and unprepared for summer crowds. There are much better places in Cape May. read more

A disappointing dining experience. Wish we could give more stars because the food was capably prepared, waitstaff was attentive and pleasant BUT the volume level was excruciatingly loud and ruined the entire meal. Conversation nearly impossible. We will not be returning. read more

As local homeowners who have dined at Secondo regularly over several years, we never had a bad experience until last night. We had a reservation for 2 at 6 pm and arrived a few minutes early. The young woman at the desk informed us that we would have to wait for a table and that we should go to the bar. She was very brusque and didn't clearly reassure us that she had our reservation. We checked in again after 10 minutes waited for about 20 minutes when we were informed by text that our table was ready. When the woman came to get us she offered us a table in the bar. Whenever we have booked a reservation we have always understood that the table would be in the main restaurant, and never dined in the bar, which is extremely noisy. We asked if there were no other options and the woman just said we could wait, without seeming to care that we were dissatisfied. My wife told the woman that she was rude and unhelpful. We sat at the bar table for a few minutes, discussed our options and then walked out and went to another restaurant. We were very disappointed and surprised that the restaurant did nothing to assuage us. Seems that many customers have a problem with the staff at the front desk. Sorry to have to write this. read more

I have been coming here for years now. Always upscale and the waiters are unbelievable. Very knowledgeable and thorough. Food is delicious and its a great dinner spot for small or big groups. read more

Secondo Panico's - Italian Near Me - Cape May, New Jersey

Last time I will ever eat here. This was a place we used to love to get dinner, but it has definitely gone down hill. To start, we made a reservation were not able to get seated until everyone was there even though we watched them set the table behind us because they seemed to have forgot about our reservation even after emailing the owner to confirm. While waiting, we watched them bring in a soaking wet patio table that was remarkably smaller than the table it was added to. It did not help that the host was not friendly at all and appeared to have been bothered by the fact that we even showed up. Once seated, it was a disappointment to see that pizza is not an option if you are sitting in the dinning room (which you would be if you were getting dinner) even though their brick oven which is advertised is situated in there. It was also a disappointment that anytime we ordered drinks we had to ask multiple times before receiving them and that the waiter was not able to provide enough bread plates or water glasses to begin with. Overall, this used to be a nice place to dine but seems to think they are too good to serve pizza in their dining room even though they can't connect tables of the same size for larger parties or count on two hands the number plates/glasses for their customers. Definitely will not be eating at this restaurant again or recommending to anyone in the future, it's probably safe to assume the same about their sister restaurant Panickos. read more

The restaurant was beautifully decorated Service was outstanding. Food was delicious. Four course prix fix on New Years Eve We went early. We loved the whole experience read more

We happened on this spot while looking for something new at the beach. We opted for this spot since they had reservations available. We had an 830 seating however took 15 minutes to wait for table. The vibe is loud and bustling. There were a lot of people here for fifty percent capacity. We started out the meal with the 2 mules. One was it's always "honey" and the other one was based with orange and orange juice . Both drink were booze forward and good. We opted for 2 appetizers to share. The first was the baked artichoke and the bake feta with honey. Both appetizers were very good . For meals we opted for a veal dish with tomatoes and cheese and scallops with a Sambuco Cream sauce. The sauce was very light in flavor of sambuco. Overall the entrees were good but they could have standard to be warmer. There were many specials on the list too and all seemed to be good. We kept having food envy as waiters were walking past. We rounded the meal off with some white wine. Service was good and attentive, our waiter was busy with many tables it seemed but kept us posted. All in all we spent 153.00 for 2 all in with gratuity and drinks. Was good would definitely return. read more

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Terrible food. Bad service. Music is so loud you can't hear each other. Other than that everything else was fine. I ordered a feta and honey appetizer for $15 that was a plate of inedible slop with some pita chips. When the waiter saw I didn't eat it he asked if it was ok. I said it was awful and he ran away. 10 minutes later he asked if I wanted to take it home! LOL. The eggplant main course looked ok but it had no taste whatsoever. I joked with my family that this is what it must have been like for the people who lost taste during COVID. Also they took FOREVER (over 1 hour between app and entrees). Lastly the 5 entrees staggered out one at a time over about 10 minutes making it impossible to all eat together. We will never go back! read more

The hostess seated us promptly which was a blessing as it had been a long day. We were a table of 7. We ordered six different appetizers; spanikopita, calamari, crab cakes, a triple cream cheese, several specials. They were all excellent. We ordered a variety of drinks: margaritas, the house sangria, beer and wine. Then we waited. And waited. The entrees took about 55 minutes to arrive. The pasta dishes were small and overcooked. My combination of chicken parm, ravioli and lasagna was inedible, The ribeye was a disgusting 2 foot length slab of meat, consisting mostly of bone. The fillet and lobster tail were small with little in the way of vegetables. The restaurant seems to have a strategy of either making customers wait even though they have reservations and order drinks from the bar or to make customers wait excessively long between appetizer and entree so they will order more drinks. The drinks were very pricey. The bill was astonishing. I would not eat there again. read more

If you go there sit outside .The indoor dining is a headache waiting to happen! soooo loud.. The food is nothing to write home about. Just ok. Kinda overpriced too. Wont be going back any time soon. read more

I attended a private event at this restaurant. It was amazing! The drinks, the food, and the atmosphere was fantastic! The waiter and waitress were attentive and polite. This was a big party and usually waiters get tired especially when they are catering to a bunch of needy women. Not at this restaurant!! Ok, let me talk about the food. The feta, olives and meats were so fresh and delicious. The watermelon salad was refreshing! And let me tell ya, I'm one of those people that judge people who put fruit on their salad. Like eww, why would you do that? But I tried it and Secondo made me a fan! I ate it twice, it was just that good. The bread was soft and warm. I ordered their pork chop. I NEVER get pork chop at restaurants but I saw the pics on Yelp and had to give it a try. That pork chop was so tender and the gnocchi was fresh and complimented the pork chop well. I tried my sister's salmon and rice and it was delicious too. Fresh, crispy skin, but flaky and the flavors made my mouth water. When I come back to Cape May with my family, I'm definitely bringing my husband because I need to experience this with him and I need to experience this food and atmosphere, over and over again. Oh, one more thing: I met the owner and she was soooooo sweet! read more

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Been here no less than 40 times. Absolutely amazing. The pork chop special with gnocchi is a must!! We've also just gone to the bar area for light apps and music. We recommend secondo to all of our out of town visitors and have never received poor feedback. As a local, this is one of our regular " go to" places that we love. read more

Absolutely awful. Christmas eve. Service terrible. Items on a prix fixed menu were sold out. No salad. Soup never came. My appetizer was literally tossed on the table. My husband's appetizer came 10 minutes after mine. Would NEVER go back. Was still charged full price for a 3 course prix fixed. No apologies. No price adjustment. WORST EXPERIENCE. ZERO STARS read more

We gave them courtesy not go on social media and emailed the owner because we loved the place. She seemed very appreciative. We go back again and don't say who we are even though she offered a round of drinks. Our food again was half the portion and she was nothing but rude and dismissive. They are trying to say it's because they got new plates. Really? So only a half of piece of chicken fits on it now? We are full time residence and drop a $100-$200 at least 2-3 times a month over the last few years . There are mostly new people working and the owner Thea was very defensive and said we complain all the time according to her staff. I stated they are of course protecting themselves. Not once! Have we said a word until this. Honestly! We are very disappointed. There are not many restaurants open in the winter but we will not spend our hard earned money at this place again. read more

Posh vibes here. It reminds me of a bar where the ladies in Sex & The City would go. We had a group of 6. The honey Moscow mule is fabulous. Our server left the extra honey for me (at my request) which worked out for me. I love that they drizzle the honey on the rim of the cups. So fun and yummy. The food was really good. The bread dipped in olive oil with spices is to die for (and on the house). We shared the loaded French fries, fried mozzarella, and octopus for appetizers. All incredible tasting. For dinner I had the rigatoni, which is pictured. Incredible. We got peanut butter bomb, and Apple fritter a la mode for dessert. Everything was amazing. Great service too. read more

Secondo Panico's - Rigatoni and the honey Moscow mule - Italian Near Me - Cape May, New Jersey

If I could give zero stars I would. We have been repeat customers - willing to overlook the slow service and the small menu - because of the ambiance, the oyster happy hour and the great bar staff. We will never be back. We made a reservation for four on December 1st for New Year's Eve. At the time we made the 6:45pm reservation (on OpenTable) there was no mention of a Prix Fixe menu. So when we sat down, we were a little disappointed, but got over it quickly since there were 10 entree options to choose from (for context, their regular menu has only 18 entree options). We ordered our soup/salad and appetizers. They were extremely small dishes - not meant for sharing - but we had no complaints since it was leaving plenty of room for the entrees. We ordered our entrees - all four of us getting different entrees and our server left to put the order in with the kitchen. Shortly after, our server came back to tell us that one dish we had ordered was not available - "Broccoli Rabe & Spicy Sausage/Penne/Garlic Wine Sauce". We inquired why it wasn't available, and were told that they only received half the order of Broccoli Rabe they placed. We asked why it was still listed on the paper menu (easy enough for a host/hostess to cross out or the server to mention as we took our seats) and she had no explanation and asked if we wanted to speak to the owner. We said no, but if she could ask the owner if we could have the Tomahawk at a discount for our inconvenience. The server came back, said that no - the owner would not give a discount for the Tomahawk but she would give us a few more minutes to decide picking another entree from the menu. When the server came back, she asked what the member of our party had decided on to order instead of the Broccoli Rabe dish. My husband said he really didn't want anything else from the Prix Fixe menu. The server immediately told him (from direction of the owner) that he would have to pay for the entire meal, even if he didn't get an entree or dessert. He said "that's f'ing bullsh*t" - which he shouldn't have said. To the server's credit, she called him out and said "please do not curse at me. I do not deserve that". He immediately apologized and told the server that he shouldn't have said that, he was sorry and it was not a reflection on her. He was frustrated with the situation. She asked if he wanted to speak to the owner and he said sure. (On her way to get the owner, our server told another server my husband was a "mother fu*&er"). The owner came to the table not looking to rectify the situation, but to pick a fight. She was claiming she was there to protect her server and that he shouldn't have spoken to her like that. He told her he was wrong and should not have said that and that he apologized to the server. The owner went on to ask what the problem was, and he mentioned that #1 we were unaware of the Prix Fixe menu. The owner said it was on OpenTable and Instagram. (Again, when I booked the seating, there was no mention of a Prix Fixe menu on December 1st and Instagram posted the menu on December 27th.) He then again mentioned that he wanted to order the Broccoli Rabe dish. The owner told him "well we don't have it" and he said "then why is it on the menu?" and she said "because we don't have Broccoli Rabe" and he said "but the whole point of a Prix Fixe menu is to make it easier for the kitchen with limited ingredients and a cost reduction for the restaurant". She kept repeating that they didn't have the Broccoli Rabe and blaming whomever didn't fulfill the restaurant's order. He kept pointed to the menu laying on the table and she said out of nowhere "Stop pointing your finger in my face." The owner proceeded to ask question after question without letting my husband answer and our friend said "Please let him speak" to which the owner responded "He's said enough and if you can't afford to eat here, then just leave". To which my friend's husband said "Do not speak to my wife like that" and the owner asked us if we wanted to leave. She immediately began to tell us to write whatever we wanted on social media because NYE was booked for three months. (Which based on my December 1st reservation, that's not true. And when I got in the car, I checked OpenTable and there were still reservations left for THAT night.) Before we could get a word in edgewise, she told us we had five minutes to leave. We were shocked and stunned! We still are! We quietly gathered our things and made our way to the door. On the way out, my husband gave the server a cash tip for the service she provided. The owner took the cash OUT OF HER HAND AND THREW IT OUT THE DOOR! She said she pays her servers more than we could ever tip her and "Happy New Year"! She literally took money out of the server's hand. The whole experience was surreal. I wasn't going to write a review, but after reading multiple reviews on multiple platforms, I had to add our story read more

Took the misses there to splurge while on vacation and man was it worth it! Made reservations just to be safe. Ate out back in their little canopy jawn, very fancy! One man playing and we had great service! Our waiter was named Jeff, good dude. Food wise, bread BANGING! Calamari DELICIOUS! Not the best we've ever had but pretty damn close. Misses got scallop special and I got the munk fish special. Both excellent and worth getting! If you like flavor and a classy Italian restaurant to splurge on while in Wildwood, go here! read more

Secondo Panico's - Munk fish special. Subbed mashed potatoes for extra veggies - Italian Near Me - Cape May, New Jersey

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Service was terrible. Waiter forgot about us. Then threw the dessert menu at us because he can't talk and never came back. I saw him talking to another waiter and actually had to stand up to get his attention. Not sure if I will come back. read more

First time for our anniversary and it was a great experience! Would definitely visit this restaurant again!!

Delicious food and great service! We will be back next time we are in Cape May. We sat outside on the water it was a beautiful September evening with friends. read more

WOW! Where do I even begin? This place is fantastic! Came by for a Birthday dinner on a whim. Called around 4pm about making reservations for 5pm for a party of four and we were seated right away when we arrived. Must try's: Calamari and truffle fries! Simple but elegant plating styles, flavor and taste, and server's friendliness! Any Fra Diavolo fans out there? If so, Spaghettini was DELICIOUS. Other entrees we ordered were the linguini with clam and crab, and Sunday dinner. Both were also very delicious. Very nice dine in experience and our server was so friendly and sweet! Wish I remembered her name. Pasta entree portions were huge! All in all, 10/10 would recommend! P.S - the bread is SO good. read more

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Service has slipped substantially since our last visit. Made a 5:30 reservation on a Tuesday evening, arrived on time, and still waited a half-hour for a table. Focaccia and tomato/mozzarella appetizer came promptly, but then waited a full hour for two pasta entrees. No explanation, no apology. Mediterranean crab spaghettini and scallop/tortellini special were both good, but not worth waiting an hour for. A significant decline since our first visit a year ago. read more

We decided to finally try this place after seeing it mentioned many times by friends! Definitely lived up to the hype! Classy, clean, fresh, delicious! The waiter was great! He knew the menu too to bottom and the specials and didn't even have to write it down! Checked on he multiple times and was friendly! Drinks were delicious, most amazing drinks we have had in a while! Appetizers delicious and big! We had the roasted feta with honey, sausage peppers and onions, clams casino and the crab bisque! All delicious and would order again next time! Fresh bread was warm and delicious with olive oil for dipping! We ordered the pork chop, raviolis, cavattapi with shrimp, pork chop special with gnoccis in brown butter and the octopus appetizer! The only thing we didn't care for was the desserts! Nothing bad just none of us truly cared for them! We had the coconut ball, peanut butter bomb and another one that looked like a pineapple upside down cake mini! Coffee was strong and probably imported! We liked it! Was definitely one of our more expensive meals but well worth it! You get what you pay for! We definitely would return this season but we don't get down there as much as we can! read more

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Had reservation for 7:00. Room was full, but we were seated quickly. Noise level in the room was EXTREMELY LOUD, as if everyone was trying shout over everyone else. The situation made for a very stressful environment! We waited at least twenty minutes before our server came to the table. It was another 15 minutes before our drinks were served, and another 15 minutes for our food to arrive. Food was OK, but not spectaular. Server was polite and professional. We will definitely think twice before going back. read more

Had an amazing meal here last night! The ambience is great, with an open air-type layout, huge picture windows overlooking the water, a spacious covered outdoor dining area, and lowlights with fun music. There's a large drink and food menu and a long list of specials, all of which sounded better than the last. I started with the "it's always honey in jersey" mule which had a unique twist - honey! Loved it! Our table split the roasted feta, which also is mixed with honey and is melted to perfection - especially yummy with their fresh made bread! My entree of choice was the sambuca scallop, pan seared to perfection and served over pappardelle in a creative fennel sauce. Also pictures is the eggplant pesto which was devoured in seconds! The desserts didn't seem to be made in house, so we opted against trying, but overall we were completely satisfied with the experience and the food was selectively. I would absolutely come back and recommend others do the same! read more

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Upon entering we were not greeted by the servers when given our parties name for our reservation. Not a word was said and then it was "follow me" . No hellos, no smile. We sat down, looked at the menu and waited for a server for about 20 minutes. The server finally appeared and took our appetizer order and listed what specials were on the menu that day. The server didn't really know the specials but not a big deal. Was just hard to follow and the server was fine with answering our questions. The bread and oil. Boring but the best food we had. The oil was plain and it seems like there was some cheese and garlic on the bread. It did come to the table nice and hot tho. The calamari was blah. No flavor. Just tasted like fried food. couldn't believe they didn't provide a dipping sauce with it. I wouldn't order it again. Tomato tower was ok The soup was good. The crab balls - again no flavor. Served with marinara. Nothing to rave home about and wouldn't order again Our entrees were awful. Fish with rice and crab on top. Very bland. No flavor. Few bones in the fish. The sauce they put on top was useless. The asparagus was ok. The veal entree was the worst veal I've ever had in my life. It was chewy and fatty. They brought the veal out with an arugula salad on top of the veal. Bad presentation and terrible meal. Also didn't like how we didn't get an itemized receipt. Our receipt showed the total due and that was it. Seems shady. We won't be back. read more

This place would not honor their menu......do not come here. Hostess contacted the owner and still no. $200 dinner bill out the window. read more

Secondo Panico's - Advertised price for oysters was not honored, because of 'inflation'. Who isn't experiencing inflation?? False advertising. - Italian Near Me - Cape May, New Jersey