La Griglia

I visited the Restaurant for a Baby Shower in January (2016). The place wasn’t too hard to find — be mindful the parking lot is only available if you want to pay for valet parking. The place was pretty big, the event was in a private room on the second floor. The restaurant looked real upscale, I can only imagine the prices. It’s definitely an Italian spot, because the coat check lady only spoke Italian. The service was okay but it was private event so I can’t be too skeptic but it took forever just to get a cup of tea because the building was freezing inside, during JANUARY! The food wasn’t too bad either — I would say the grilled shrimp and crab cake appetizers were the best thing they served. I tried to be different and had the salmon but it was a bit raw in the middle so my entrée wasn’t too appetizing. My daughter had the steak with green beans — it was in some type of sauce but still came across a bit bland. And lastly our meal ended with dessert — obviously we had the baby shower cake but my daughter opted for the ice cream instead; Nasty couldn’t even begin to describe how that supposed chocolate ice cream tasted — its must’ve been made with the darkest of dark chocolate, either way if a kid gives back ice cream it must be nasty!
I don’t frequent Jersey so I won’t be back either way but it wasn’t a good first impression.

The was great!!! We had the pre-​fix menu on 3÷11÷16 and I had the stuffed mushroom with crab meat (AMAZING) and the red snapper which was great be lacked a little flavor (this is why it’s not 5stars) and the dessert amazing! My husband had the sole which was also great (needed a little more flavor). Overall, we will be here again it was truly a nice experience. Our waitress Diane was also great (thumbs up for service)

I have eaten here several times over the years and have had good experiences. After this last visit, I doubt I will return because the service was lacking. The waitress ignored us most of the night: took forever to take a drink order, never asked if we wanted or needed anything, or even checked to see how the food was! However, she was constantly at the larger tables (angling for the better tip). The bus boys were far more attentive than she was. I waitressed all through college and was not impressed. A tall, bearded man (the owner?) walked around checking on tables and never stopped at ours. The food was decent, but seafood seemed overcooked as if it were microwaved. It seems that this place caters to its regulars only. Anyway, so many great restaurants in the area, no need to go back to one that has become subpar.

Our boss took us here to treat us to lunch. Place is pretty small, but very nice and trendy. Our waiter Tony, was very nice and professional with a great sense of humor. I ordered the grilled shrimp and scallop salad which had fresh spinach, shredded radicchio, chopped mangos, sliced asparagus, cherry tomatoes in a nice mango vinaigrette. It is a perfect combination. I unfortunately forgot to take a pic of this delicious salad because I dug in as soon as the plate came in lol… As an entrée we all had a crab cake with 2 perfectly cooked scallops. It was simply excellent. And for dessert, 1 scoop of the white chocolate raspberry Gelato (because I was pretty stuffed at this point) and a regular coffee, a great end to a perfect meal.

My significant other and I went to La Griglia yesterday for Valentines Day. It was a pre-​fixe menu where you got an appetizer, dinner and dessert for $ 59.00 (excluding tax, drinks, and gratuity).
We had a nice time from the minute we were greeted at the door. After being seated, our waitress Diane, offered suggestions on wines and such. My significant other doesn’t drink wine so Diane suggested a martini. I had a glass of Cabernet.
For an appetizer, I got the crab stuffed mushrooms and my other half got the Cajun Calamari. We split both apps. The stuffed mushrooms were HUGE but really tasty. The calamari was also flavorful.
For an entrée I had the scallops and risotto. Everything was cooked perfectly. The scallops were very tender and the mushroom risotto was so delicious. My date had the salmon and loved every bite. We also added a side of sauteed spinach which was really good. We both ended up taking some of our entrée home.
There was so much food we hardly had room for the dessert but we were able to have a few bites. I got the cheesecake which came in a circle shape with a graham cracker bottom and my significant other had the chocolate decadence. We took the rest of that home as well.
When all was said and done, it was quite pricey but so worth it. We don’t treat ourselves to a place like that often (I love to prepare meals at home), but it was so worth it. The staff was super attentive and our waitress Diane was very nice and helpful. I’d like to go back and try other selections off the regular menu.

We were welcomed by Tony who was very attentive throughout our meal. We were presented with tasty fresh breads and butter, Olive oil and Olives. We ordered Oysters which were fresh and delicious.
The grilled Swordfish and Shrimp lunch special was flavorful and perfectly cooked, ingredients such as white beans, Porcini mushrooms, grilled tomato and Arugula in a light white wine stock, a very generous plate for 17 dollars. We arrived just before 3pm we were not hurried to order, the service was professional, and courteous.
A great selection of Wines were available as well as a bar where several guests were enjoying conversation.
This is an old school establishment that understands quality ingredients, exceptional service and great Italian recipes.

This place is thee best for service! Fresh seafood dishes great meat dishes! Excellent house made desserts! Highly recommend this place! Dover Sole, red snapper, swordfish, and I love their short ribs with sweet potatoes! Don’t leave this place without ordering the ice cream sandwich!

I’ve been coming here for years, as location is great for business friends coming up from the GSP. The food is top notch, the wine list is an Italian wine lover’s dream, and the staff is friendly/​knowledgeable (ask for Jamie if you’re eating in the dining area… eating at the bar with Miles is also fun). I try to stay away from desserts, but as another Unilocaler mentions below, you have to try them here. I recommend the pumpkin thing, the ice cream sandwich, or the chocolate peanut dome… you can’t go wrong with any of these. They also offer a reasonable corkage option on your own wine, and they are friendly about it (which is unusual for restaurants/​people that take pride in their wine lists). This is an easy 5-​star here on Unilocal

Party of 8 for our traditional Christmas Eve family dinner. 8 pm reservation, had nice table upstairs but the room was slightly cold throughout the meal.
Service was slow and lethargic at times which annoyed some in the party.
The food was good except the $ 36.00 Filet which was ordered slightly pink. What I received was the worst steak I have eve had at a restaurant. It was more like a steak you’d get from a badly catered wedding — grizzle, tough, smothered in a brown sauce to mask the taste. For $ 36.00 I expected more but frankly wasn’t up for the argument.
The others said their food was good to OK.

This is one of my favorite restaurants because I love dessert and the this restaurant has the best pastry chefs in NJ! Do not leave this restaurant without having dessert! Their best desserts are the ice cream sandwich, chocolate peanut butter dome, pumpkin splurge, and the chocolate pretzel tart. Best desserts at any restaurant in all of NJ! For dinner the short rib dish with sweet potatoes is one of my favorites it excellent! Any of their seafood specials I highly recommend as well all very fresh and cooked to perfection. My favorites are the halibut and the swordfish. The osso bucco, veal chop, and short ribs are all very good. The osso bucco comes with a risotto that’s outstanding! Appetizer favorites are the burratta, shrimp cocktail, scallops, and the stuffed mushrooms. The service is exceptional I never seen a kitchen run so smoothly there is never a wait for anything which is great! The waiters are the best here Tony being one of my favorites. They have valet parking which is nice so I don’t understand the complaints on Unilocal about it since it’s free and if it’s cold or raining out its nice to have valet. The food here was always very good but recently I’ve noticed it even got better! Definitely Check this place out and make sure you save room for dessert!

Food 10/​10, Service 10/​10, Consistency ¹⁰⁄₁₀.
After a top-​notch business lunch 2 years ago, I now regularly visit La Griglia and have worked my way through the entire menu. Everything is delicious, without exception. The entire staff (valet, bartenders, hosts, servers) are excellent. You always feel like you are eating at a place 5x the cost. Easily the best spot in the area.

Sevice is good, Cajun Calamari is very good but my entrée Fillet Mignon was very salty.

Been here a couple of times. Great food and great service. Try the Penne Vodka and the Cajun Calamari!

Atmosphere very nice. Service very good. Had the seafood soup. It was good. The raisin bread was outstanding.

Very fancy. Scallops were totally worth the $ 30 though. Had the burrata appetizer. Yum. Waiters were extremely attentive. The only thing I found too fancy and unnecessary was they forced you to do valet parking and the parking lot was really small.

A bit pricey but the atmosphere and service was excellent and the food was good.
The waiter was very professional and friendly. The interior here is pretty nice and like the waiter, it has an old school charm. Its a pretty big place with a large upstairs with multiple rooms.
The mussels in white sauce appetizer was probably the best I’ve ever had. Very fresh tasting and each had a piece of almost melted sliced garlic in each shell. The sauce was great! I even wanted to take it home to make my own pasta with it but it ran out from all the bread dipping we did. $ 12 for 11 good sized mussels.
The truffle fries were something different and not bad. Despite how fancy this place is, they do have ketchup to eat fries with — they don’t give you a heinz bottle though, they present one of those fancy tin things to pour it with.
The seafood platter (zuppa di pesci) came with a fish filet, lobster, clams, mussels and shrimp. We were able to add linguini to it for an extra 3.50. I liked that the dish wasn’t overly salty and all the seafood it came with tasted fresh and portion size was not bad. That said, for the price (34+), I expected more flavor. It was kinda mild.
The red snapper filet was very fresh and not fishy. Both the crispy crust as well as the delicious buttery sauce that encircled the dish was very delicious. The fish itself was a bit flavorless unless you dipped it in the sauce with each bite. It was still a very good dish. I am just nitpicking given the price point ($ 28).

Excellent food & service. Downstairs a little Tight to accommodate groups of 50+.
Standing room only. Great «date night» place!

Can’t believe what just happened … We have personal things in our car that are valuable and don’t want to give the keys to my car. Then I walk in and they say no keys no dinner REALLY!!! To make it Evan worse we look for the waiter that we use every time we go there to explain the situation but we got held up by the owner and he said I’m the owner no reason to look around I’m the owner you can leave. Hopefully mr owner you can realize this is 2015 and people wish not to give keys up that easy cause if there were things missing who’s to blame but us.
Thank u Mr Owner swinging ur hands around and saying please leave VERY PROFESSIONAL!!! So if u decide to have dinner there make sure ur ready to give up ur keys to ur car.

I absolutely adore this restaurant for a variety of reasons. Firstly, the ambiance is very upscale, inviting, romantic and yet trendy at the same time, you can tell they put a lot of work into the place and they’re very proud of it. This is easily one of my favorite restaurants in NJ. It’s very Manhattan like and every time I go I feel like I’m dining with very important people and members of the mob, but that’s another story. Anyway, the attention the staff and waiters give you truly makes you feel special. My parents have been here a bunch of times, so they happily welcomed them by first name and quickly brought out their favorite drinks. My mom can’t drink, so they joked around with her and brought her a martini without the vodka to make her laugh, she loved the attention. My dad told me they invite they top patrons to a free holiday dinner every year, that’s something you don’t normally hear about!
Tthey have an exceptional wine menu (all from Italy) and know every bottle in and out. The food is absolutely exceptional, the fish is always fresh, and the presentation of food is always superb, you can tell there’s a high level of attention to given to every dish. We started with the octopus salad special, imported burrata and the ahi tuna and salmon tartare. Everything was delicious and very fresh. The octopus salad was very light and refreshing, and burrata… you can’t go wrong there, just an exceptional dish. The prices are a bit on the higher side, but I think the ambiance and quality easily justifies the prices.
Please note, they host private parties every Sunday, so the restaurant is usually closed, which is somewhat of a bummer as I’ve gone on Sunday before totally forgetting that they were closed.

Really healthy with a nice atmosphere
What I liked ++
++ The wines !!! Directly imported from Italy, they have some of the best you can find (red, whites, sparkling ones, I was impressed)
++ Nothing too fancy, but quality is here
What I didn’t like –
– A little dissapointed by the freshness of seafood (antipasti and entrées…), didin’t try the meat, maybe next time
– Some dishes are pricy others are cheap, incoherent sometimes
= Definitely a good place in Kenilworth (on your right when exiting garden State parkway South, it’s one of the first restaurant you’ll pass so easy to find)