Red Lion Liquor License Transferred to Chain

The liquor license held by the former Red Lion Inn on Drum Point Road has now been transferred to Crab Addison, Inc., which will utilize it in the operation of a chain seafood restaurant planned for Brick Plaza.

In September, the township planning board approved an application by Joe's Crab Shack to construct a new restaurant in the shopping complex.

The 8,600 square foot restaurant will be located where the former FedEx-Kinko's store was located in the rear of the plaza in a stand-alone building, said Township Planner Mike Fowler at the time.

The building that formerly housed FedEx-Kinko's will be demolished, Fowler said.

The restaurant will feature, in addition to its indoor dining room, an outdoor "pirate ship" themed play area for kids.

The Red Lion, a historic bar and restaurant in Brick, shut its doors in Jan. 2012, and has since been demolished and replaced by a CVS pharmacy.

Historical records show the former Red Lion was built in 1926. According to the book "Images of America - Brick Township," the restaurant was founded by Joseph and Phyllis McClorry, who ran it until 1957, when it became Citta’s Red Lion Tavern. The Bottazzi family had owned it since 1977.

As for the new holder of its liquor license: There are 127 Joe Crab's Shack locations nationwide. The Brick location will be the chain's fifth in New Jersey. Other restaurants are located in Eatontown, Lawrenceville, Clifton and South Plainfield.