Drive from Cape May to Jersey City and you'll pass dozens of packed dining rooms, buzzing bars, and Shore hotspots that locals swear by. Most guests never notice what so many of them share. It isn't a chef, a restaurant group, or a menu trend. It's a New Jersey restaurant designer — Raymond Haldeman — whose name is on the floor plans 3D renderings of more than twenty of the state's most successful restaurants.
That's not a coincidence. It's a track record. Over the past several years, Raymond has quietly become the go-to designer for New Jersey operators who buy a closed, tired, or underperforming space and need it reborn as a destination. He doesn't decorate. He resurrects — engineering the layout, the flow, and the drama that turn a dead room into a place people drive across the county to visit.
Why One Designer Keeps Showing Up
The restaurants below span cuisines, price points, and regions, but they were all built on the same approach: design that starts with the P&L and the guest flow, not a mood board. Before he ever drew a floor plan, Raymond spent decades inside the business — as a chef, society caterer, restaurateur, and nightclub owner — . That's why NJ operators keep hiring him: he designs rooms that make money, not just rooms that photograph well, but they sure do photograph well!
The New Jersey Portfolio
Jersey Shore & Monmouth County
Beacon 70 — Brick, NJ
Beacon 70 — Brick: the former Pilot House, reborn on the marina with bold old-world-meets-contemporary design.
River Rock Bar, Restaurant & Marina — Brick, NJ
River Rock Bar, Restaurant & Marina — Brick: a full waterfront dining-and-marina destination.
The Olde Silver Tavern — Manalapan, NJ"
The Olde Silver Tavern — Manalapan: a classic tavern, reimagined
Coastal Canteen — Manasquan, NJ
Coastal Canteen — Manasquan: coastal-casual dining done right.
Cuzin's Clam Bar — Marlboro, NJ
Cuzin's Clam Bar — Marlboro: the flagship of the powerhouse Cuzins seafood brand, plus its expansion
Cuzin’s Clam Bar, (expansion) Marlboro, NJ
Cuzin’s Clam Bar, (expansion) Marlboro. Within 2 weeks of opening the original Cuzins, it was obvious it was a juggernaut and I was asked to begin on the expansion to double its capacity!
Scarborough Fair — Sea Girt, NJ
Scarborough Fair — Sea Girt: a whimsicle Shore dining staple.
ViaSposito Bar & Italian Restaurant — Colts Neck, NJ
ViaSposito Bar & Italian Restaurant — Colts Neck: the former Siam Thai, now an authentic family-recipe Italian kitchen
ViaSposito Pizzeria & Italian Restaurant -- Red Bank, NJ
ViaSposito Pizzeria & Italian Restaurant -- Red Bank.
Urban Coalhouse -- Red Bank, NJ
Urban Coalhouse -- Red Bank: a bold bar-and-restaurant concept.
Central & Western New Jersey
Cuzins Seafood & Clam Bar -- New Brunswick, NJ
Cuzins Seafood & Clam Bar -- New Brunswick: the former Due Mari, reborn as a dramatically designed continuation of the Cuzins brand.
ViaSposito Italian Restaurant — Old Bridge, NJ
ViaSposito Italian Restaurant — Old Bridge
Harpoon Willy's -- Robbinsville, NJ
Harpoon Willy's -- Robbinsville: the former KUO Social, transformed into a warm, cozy destination.
Kitchen American Bar & Grill -- Whitehouse Station, NJ
Kitchen American Bar & Grill -- Whitehouse Station: the old Redington Diner, reborn as a vibrant bar and grill
Biryani City -- Hillsborough, NJ
Biryani City -- Hillsborough: the shuttered Golden Grill Buffet, now a thriving, dynamically designed Indian restaurant.
Palace of Asia -- Kingston, NJ
Palace of Asia -- Kingston: an elevated Asian-cuisine destination reborn from an old empty Charlie Brown’s space.
Key City Diner — Phillipsburg, NJ
Key City Diner — Phillipsburg: a New Jersey diner, reimagined.
North Jersey
Naxos Estiatorio — Woodland Park, NJ
Naxos Estiatorio — Woodland Park: the former On the Border, elevated into an upscale Greek restaurant with Naxos Island elegance
Don't Tell Liv — Jersey City, NJ
Don't Tell Liv — Jersey City: a high-energy club and lounge.
Suite 304 — Newark, NJ
Suite 304 — Newark: a renovated rustic 1930’s speakeasy bar-and-lounge brought back to life.
Holy Chic! Bar & Restaurant — Franklin, NJ
Holy Chic! Bar & Restaurant — Franklin: a new crazy bar-and-restaurant concept that after only 6 months of phenomenal success is already building the next one
South Jersey & South Jersey Shore
Fins Bar & Grille— Cape May, NJ
Fins Bar & Grille— Cape May: the former Fried Seafood House, transformed into an ultra-modern Shore restaurant with an illuminated glass water bar top.
Fins New Eating Bar — Cape May, NJ
Fins New Eating Bar — Cape May: the eating-bar with digital waterfall addition to Fins.
Peter Shields Inn — Cape May, NJ
Peter Shields Inn — Cape May: a landmark Cape May inn and restaurant
Femmina Italian Restaurant — Medford, NJ
Femmina Italian Restaurant — Medford: homestyle Italian in Burlington County
Westwood Golf Club — West Deptford, NJ
Westwood Golf Club — West Deptford: elevated clubhouse terrace dining.
See every project — including work in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Florida, Ohio, Wisconsin and beyond — on the full design portfolio.
What All of These Restaurants Have in Common
Different towns. Different cuisines. Different owners. One designer — and one philosophy. Each of these spaces was engineered to do three things at once: fix the operational flow that quietly bleeds a restaurant's profit, deliver the jaw-dropping "wow-factor" that makes a room a destination, and protect the owner's budget every step of the way. That's the common denominator. It's why a first-time operator in Cape May and a seasoned restaurateur in New Brunswick end up hiring the same man.
If you've bought a closed or underperforming New Jersey restaurant — or you're planning a rebrand that has to work — you now know whose name keeps showing up when these projects succeed.
Book a consultation with New Jersey's restaurant designer. (Button link to: https://www.raymondhaldeman.com/contact)
