A New Menu With a View at The Rooftop

By Katie McFadden

Have you been to The Rooftop at The Rockaway Hotel lately? If not, you’re missing out on the beach and bayside views, gorgeous sunsets and a brand-new menu, making it like a whole new restaurant on the peninsula.

For those who’ve got a taste for seafood or Asian-inspired dishes, The Rooftop pairs them well with its sea views on the sixth floor of The Rockaway Hotel. Maybe start with a crispy rice with tuna with soy sesame and siracha, a smoked salmon with jalapeño cream cheese and eel sauce or lobster with kewpie mayo, wasabi and scallions. For sushi lovers, they offer a salmon roll, a spicy tuna roll or a vegetable roll. The raw bar has become a staple, serving up oysters, little neck clams and shrimp cocktail. But maybe try something different with a bao, an Asian-bun with crispy chicken, katsu beef or crispy mushroom. Out with a group of friends or family? Order a tier and get a sampling of choices. And if you want to go all out, splurge on the tomahawk, an eye-opening 38 oz Pat LaFrieda prime cut, served with lettuce cups, scallion pancakes, romesco sauce and kimchi relish to scoop it all up in small bites. Plus, they even have caviar, if you really want a fine-dining experience.

Want to pair those delicious courses with a drink, or just going out for cocktails? The Rooftop offers some of The Rockaway Hotel favorites like their spicy margarita, the shark bite, espresso martinis, a variety of refreshing mocktails for the non-drinkers, and now some Rooftop-only exclusives. Try the ocean spritz with Aperol, grapefruit, lemon and rose prosecco or the bay side spritz with vodka, watermelon, elderflower, lime and mint. And on Wednesdays, take advantage of the spritz specials with Aperol or Campari spritzes for just $12.

The Rooftop rolled out its new menu in June, separating it from Margie’s and The Poolhouse menus, and giving hotel guests an additional option during their stay and locals another restaurant option. “We want to get the word out because people don’t realize,” Margo Comis, director of guest experience at The Rockaway Hotel said. When the hotel first opened in 2020, The Rooftop was the only restaurant as covid restrictions were still in play. As The Poolhouse and Margie’s came along, some of the menu items overlapped. But this year, The Rockaway Hotel wanted to revamp The Rooftop, and make it not only their late-night hotspot, but offer more of a dining experience starting this summer.

“It feels more like a dining area now, where it used to be mainly cocktails and food came secondary. Now it has its own menu and is completely different,” Comis said. “We wanted to make it more of a dining experience because it’s such a beautiful setting. We have the views, we have the sunset, and we had people asking for it, so we just needed to come up with a menu that could be properly executed up here and have its own identity apart from Margie’s and The Poolhouse. It’s nice to have three unique restaurants this summer, with their own menus.”.

That’s where the Asian and seafood inspired menu came in. “We found a menu that pairs well with the nightlife vibe and cocktails. We were looking at the peninsula and the offerings here and the offerings throughout the Hotel. Margie’s is more American. The Poolside is more casual fare,” Comis said. “If it’s a hot day, how can you feel refreshed but also have something you can enjoy at nighttime? There aren’t too many places on the peninsula offering these items, especially late night, and paired with cocktails, live DJS or music.”

Opening at 4 p.m. on Wednesdays through Sundays, The Rooftop is the Hotel’s late-night dining spot. On Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, the kitchen is open until 10 p.m. and on Fridays and Saturdays, it stays open until 11 p.m., with the bar open even later. And there’s no strict dress code, so people can enjoy it, coming off the beach for a casual night or for a fancier experience. Reservations are accepted for tables inside and outside, as are walk-ins, who can grab drinks and a meal at the bar or put their name down for a table.

On many nights, guests might plan their evening around music. On Fridays and Saturdays, The Rooftop has live DJs, some that have started spinning vinyl on Fridays, and some spinning more dance tunes on Saturdays. On Thursdays, The Rooftop still also serves as the main spot for Dinner and a Band, unless the crowd is expected to be bigger, like last week’s sold-out Wine With Sue show, moving Dinner and a Band to the second floor stage. Same will be the case as Pico serves up dishes for Hell & High Water this Thursday, July 31 at 6 p.m., but the following week, Batesy’s pairs up with the band El Scorcho, with the location to be determined. Tickets and info can be found on The Rockaway Hotel website.

Whether you’re coming to The Rooftop for the new food, the new cocktails or the music, it’s almost always paired with that extra special touch. “It’s the views,” Comis said. “Just seeing both the city and the ocean simultaneously is just so special and it blows people away when they come up here. They don’t expect it. And it puts you in perspective of where you are, being in the city but also being by the beach. And those sunsets. I’ve been looking at them for five years here and it never gets old.”

The Rockaway Hotel is located at 108-10 Rockaway Beach Drive. For reservations, menus, tickets for Dinner and a Band and even information about booking The Rooftop for a private party, head to www.therockawayhotel.com. For photos and more updates, follow @therooftoprockaway on Instagram.