AC Expressway Free Toll Friday Returns for Memorial Day Weekend Courtesy of Chickie's & Pete's

PHILADELPHIA - May 23, 2019 - PRLog -- While travel costs are on the rise, Chickie's & Pete's is helping families on the way to the New Jersey shore save dollars by picking up their toll costs this Friday.  Free Toll Friday, in honor of our veterans for Memorial Day Weekend, returns to the Egg Harbor Toll Plaza between 5:00pm and 6:00pm this Friday, May 24, 2019. Chickies & Pete's, best known for their world famous Crabfries®, will offer free tolls again for the 6th straight year. Leading up to the free tolls at rush hour, Chickie's and Pete's and STJA invite all travelers during the daytime between 11:00am and 4:00pm to enjoy free family fun, food, samples, vendors, exhibits and more at the Frank S. Farley Plaza.

Chickie's & Pete's, best known for their world famous Crabfries, will be paying tolls for all travelers between 5:00pm and 6:00pm at the very busy Egg Harbor Toll Plaza.  This Memorial Day Weekend, New Jersey will see at least one million people traveling throughout the state for the holiday. On average more than 285,000 motorists are expected to use the Atlantic City Expressway alone between Friday and Monday.

This is the 6th year in a row Chickie's & Pete's will celebrate the official kick-off to summer by paying tolls for travelers. This program is in honor of veteran's remembered on Memorial Day Weekend and is a thank you to all the customers and fans of Chickie's & Pete's for their support over the year.

"We're excited to be back at Farley's Plaza hosting one of our favorite annual events this year,' said Chickie's & Pete's founder and CEO Pete Ciarrocchi. "We love to send everyone off to the shore in good spirits before a big holiday weekend!"

Ciarrocchi chose Memorial Day Weekend to pay the tolls as a way to honor his family's military tradition. He said, "My Dad and my Uncles were all in the military. In fact, my Uncle George, who was my restaurant mentor, won the Silver Star for bravery. He was quite the guy and I couldn't think of a better way to honor him."

This Friday will see more than Free Tolls courtesy of Chickie's & Pete's. During the daytime, between 11:00am and 4:00pm, Chickie's & Pete's and STJA are inviting all travelers to join them at the Frank S. Farley Plaza to celebrate the start of the holiday weekend with free family fun.

Festivities will include free giveaways of the restaurant's legendary Crabfries, plus free samples of food and beverages from Starbucks, Hershey's Ice Cream and Fresh Attractions courtesy of HMSHost—restaurateur and operator of Farley Service plaza. Coke's Monster Energy Drink will be available to help refresh and invigorate the crowd. In addition, fire and rescue equipment from Atlantic City International Airport and the New Jersey State Police— which operates a station at Farley Plaza—will be on display. The New Jersey State Police is scheduled to land one of its helicopters, and will bring other rescue equipment for kids of all ages to checkout. Also attending the event will be SOULMAN, the mascot for the Philadelphia Soul, along with two Soulmates.

Additionally, a free demonstration by a State Police dog search and rescue team is planned, and they won't be the only canines there with Cape May Carriage company bringing a small group of dalmatian puppies for children to meet, greet and pet in a supervised area. Youngsters will also enjoy the chance to visit ambassadors from the Funny Farm—an animal rescue sanctuary that provides a home for farm and zoo animals. Among those making a guest appearance will be Farley the Farm Manager, a Border Collie; Tucker, a German Shepherd with Megaesophagus; Adele, the Diva Chicken; Happy, a new baby chick; Booger, a baby goose; Taz, a kitten along with other kittens and an anonymous baby pig.

The event includes almost 40 organizations, vendors and exhibitors from across South Jersey. Get free samples while they last, and of course don't miss the one-hour toll-free, eastbound passage at the Egg Harbor Toll Plaza as the SJTA kicks off another 100 Days of Summer.

Free Toll Friday, also celebrates Chickie's & Pete's 4th annual "Summer of Shellfish." The Summer of Shellfish is a special menu with a different shellfish offering each day all summer long at participating Chickie's & Pete's locations. This weekend all Chickie's & Pete's locations will be offering a special Memorial Day Weekend Menu consisting of 2x Snow Crab Legs, Ultimate Crabfries® and their Red, White and Blue Mussels with a choice of Mussels Red, Mussels White or Mussels Blue. For a complete list of Free Toll Friday and Summer of Shellfish events, visit www.ChickiesandPetes.com for details.

About Chickie's & Pete's:

Chickie's & Pete's is a Philadelphia-area based crab house and sports bar with full service locations primarily across Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Founded in 1977 by Peter and Henrietta "Chickie" Ciarrocchi, Chickie's & Pete's started as a single location in the Mayfair neighborhood of Philadelphia and has since grown to become one of the most recognizable brands in the region. They have been recognized by ESPN as being the top sports bar in North America. Chickie's famous, one-of-a- kind Crabfries® can also be found at concession locations in stadiums, arenas, boardwalks and amusement parks across the nation.