You might remember our article on the Dine United OC competition from last month where we challenged our readers to eat at participating restaurants in Ocean City this summer to support a good cause. Well, even though the event runs through Labor Day, the first month of the competition has been a huge success. The competition kicked off on June 15th and, as of July 15th, the competition had already raised over $16,000 for United Way of the Lower Eastern Shore!

After the first month, here are the leaders by category:

0-150 Seating Capacity Category:

  1. The General’s Kitchen
  2. The Original Poolbar & Grill
  3. Mañana Mode

150-300 Seating Capacity Category:

  1. Happy Jack Pancake House
  2. The Dough Roller 41st Street
  3. The Dough Roller 70th Street

300-600 Seating Capacity Category:

  1. Blu Crabhouse & Raw Bar
  2. Harrison’s Harbor Watch
  3. Grotto Pizza

600+ Seating Capacity Category:

  1. Seacrets
  2. The Embers Restaurant
  3. Phillips Seafood 20th Street

An awards ceremony will be held at Blu Crabhouse & Raw Bar in Ocean City, MD shortly after the competition concludes where winners will be announced for the most successful restaurant campaign, and the most creative campaign in each category based on seating capacity.

Cole Taustin of Blu Crabhouse & Raw Bar shared, “We are really excited about the results of the first month of Dine United OC, and we can’t wait to see what the restaurants will do in the busier months of the summer!”

22 Ocean City restaurants are participating, including: Blu Crabhouse & Raw Bar, The Embers Restaurant, DaVinci’s, Happy Jack Pancake House, Phillips Seafood, Seacrets, Smitty McGee’s, Surfin’ Betty’s, Touch of Italy, Grotto Pizza, General’s Kitchen, The Dough Roller (41st and 70th street locations) and The Harrison Group of Restaurants including 32 Palm, Atrium Café, Caribbean Pool Bar & Grille, The Coral Reef, The Deep End, Harrison’s Harbor Watch, Hemingways, Mañana Mode, Rumbas and The Original Pool Bar.  For more information and regular updates about participating restaurants and their specials, visit www.unitedway4us.org.  

C’mon, Shorebread readers: this is a great start to the competition but we know we can do more for our community. Get out there and eat at these great restaurants for a great cause!