From an aerial shot of an acai bowl to a pose in front of a music stage, photos like these prove that Monmouth County owns its fair share of locales that are deemed “Instagram-worthy.”

The term can be summed up as anything that evokes emotion, including but not limited to: laughter, appreciation, jealousy and inspiration, says Vogue Magazine. Small businesses across the county are capitalizing on this social media craze through the sharing of photos from their followers.

One hotspot for Italian cuisine, Porta, displays a series of three doors at its facade. Junior Mary Lykes of Howell is just one of many who have taken a photo in front of the restaurant; the only difference being that she hasn’t stepped foot into the restaurant.

“I passed the Porta doors and I was like, ‘Wow, that is the place where everyone takes the picture’, so obviously I felt the need to do the same because everyone else has done it,” Lykes said.

Another popular photo-op for Instagram lovers is the music scene, The Stone Pony. In a survey of 228 CHS students from Jan. 19 to Jan. 20, The Stone Pony beat out many other popular Monmouth County hangouts, with over 85 percent stating that they have seen a photo being posted or taken at the venue. Junior Alice Nathanson of Long Branch compares her experience at The Stone Pony to what social media had made it out to be.

“Based on what my friends told me and from social media, I had expected Stone Pony to be bigger than it actually was,” Nathanson said. “Also, it was way more crowded than I was expecting, and there were more adults there than I thought there would be.”

While some Instagram posts manipulate the real-life experience, others coerce people into actually visiting these places. Junior Rachel Wolson of Bradley Beach grew up surrounded by these popular areas on the Jersey Shore.

“When I see other people there, I’m like ‘Hey, I should go there more often, it looks like fun,’ and then I do want to hop on the bandwagon type thing,” Wolson said.

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, but they didn’t mention the thousand new clientele who come along with it.