Oceans Calling Festival 'a home run' for Ocean City businesses on Boardwalk

Ocean City's beloved businesses took one big collective breath on Monday, Oct. 2, as the last of the beach-bound festivalgoers from the inaugural Oceans Calling Festival scurried out of town. It was a long weekend for the mom-and-pop shops, that's for sure; but, the general consensus is, a successful one at that.

Although the robust summer season has officially come to a close, the resort town was teeming with life and crawling with tourists from Sept. 29 through Oct. 1. With a reported total of 50,000 people in town each day for the three-day music festival, businesses lining the historic Boardwalk flourished.

Having featured 30+ performances from a variety of artists — including Noah Kahan, John Mayer and more — the large-scale festival proved to be a massive success. Yet, one area in which the festival fell short was transportation — a problem that was reportedly fixed after distaste was voiced on the first day.

Regardless of any hiccups, local businesses cannot stop gushing about the event and their desire for it to return.

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Oceans Calling festivalgoers labeled 'kind and patient'

King's Cotton Candy had concert attendees covered during the big event. If festivalgoers had a sweet tooth of any sort — whether for funnel cakes, cotton candy, candy apples or deep-fried Oreos — King's was the answer.

"The business overall — Friday, Saturday and Sunday — was definitely comparable to weekends during the summer. It was wonderful getting that business, and everyone was super kind and patient," said co-owner Mary Poudel.

Poudel shared that King's made most of its profit in between concert sets, when masses of attendees would get up and move from one stage to another. During that time, the Boardwalk flooded with people in search of a bite to eat.

Poudel and her father, Danny King, agreed that, overall, the event was a positive experience.

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"It was amazing. It was organized. It was functional. Everyone was pleasant. All of the bands were on time," Poudel said, adding that the only downside was King's lack of staff.

"It's wonderful getting that business, but you don't have that summer staff to accommodate it," she said. "There were a lot of questions that couldn't be answered until the event happened."

Regarding transportation issues, Poudel said she and her father caught sight of a long line, stretching halfway down the block, of festivalgoers waiting to catch the bus. But, they said, the issue seemed to have been fixed by the next day.

Bull on the Beach fully staffed for Oceans Calling's big crowd

Business has been booming for local restaurant and bar Bull on the Beach.

In addition to its original 94th Street location, the open-pit restaurant operates two separate locations on the Boardwalk: one at Second Street for dine-in and carryout, and another near Trimper's at South Division Street for walk-up service only.

Bull on the Beach's newest location at South Division Street, which officially opened to the public during the last weekend of July, was where most of its business was focused throughout the three-day music festival, reported general manager Brad Wells.

"We missed a good majority of the summer, not having (our new location) open yet. We missed the Fourth of July. We missed 'Junebugs.' So, just to have that festival at the end put a little bright smile on everyone's face," he said.

Both of the restaurant and bar's Boardwalk locations did very well, said Wells, and operated under a full staff during the music festival. Unlike other local businesses, all of the restaurant's J-1 visa foreign students were still in town.

"We needed them, and they were making money. It was perfect timing," Wells said with a laugh.

In the end, the restaurant's South Division Street location benefitted the most from the large influx of tourists, all of whom flocked to the Inlet and Boardwalk for good music, good food and an overall good time.

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Wells encountered another happy surprise during the big event: less litter strewn across the ground.

"There was no trash laying around. People were picking up after themselves," he said. "Usually, during the summertime, you see trash dropped everywhere and people just walk over it."

Overall, Oceans Calling Festival was comparable to, if not better than, the other events the resort town has hosted, said Wells. Thanks to the music festival, even with little more than two months still left in the year, Bull on the Beach's finances have had a significant increase from 2022 to 2023.

"We looked back at last year's numbers, and there was a significant increase this year," Wells said.

The only downside to the festival was not knowing what to expect, leaving many businesses ill-prepared.

"The only thing we didn't anticipate was that amount of people. We started running out of our food supply the first night," Wells said. "So, that will be an adjustment we make next year as far as keeping more product on hand."

'City hit a home run' with Oceans Calling Festival

Like Bull on the Beach, local hangout Cork Bar enjoyed every single second of the three-day music festival.

"We had an incredible weekend," co-owner Billy Wilkins said of his family-run business. "I think the promoters and city hit a home run. Anything you could think of, they had it covered. They did everything right, everything perfect."

"We've never had an event that big. There were no fights, no arguments. Everyone had a good time," he added.

Cork Bar, which has been serving up cold beer and bar bites on the Boardwalk since 1964, came well prepared for the inaugural festival with a full staff and fully-stocked bar and kitchen. With pool tables tucked into the back corner, comfy bar stools calling customers' names and a jukebox emitting catchy tunes, it was the place to be.

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The only problem the resort town encountered, Wilkins noted, was the significant backup of city bus transportation. Due to the large influx of visitors, leaving the festival grounds proved to be a much more difficult task than many initially predicted.

Wilkins, however, believes this issue should have been expected by festivalgoers.

"At the end of the day, I don't care what festival you're at, what concert, baseball or football game you go to - it's always an issue trying to leave," he said.

Regardless of any transportation problems the town faced, Cork Bar is eager for the music festival to make a grand return next year. Both Wilkins and his staff are more than ready for another go-around, and a tasty food and drink menu awaits.

"We're ready for this thing," he said. "That's what we do."

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Olivia Minzola covers communities on the Lower Shore. Contact her with tips and story ideas at ominzola@delmarvanow.com.

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Ocean City's Bull on the Beach, Cork Bar cheer Oceans Calling crowd