Sammy’s Ye Old Cider Mill

Very different type of steakhouse. Order, sit and bar and have a few cocktails then get called back upstairs for dinner.
Food was delicious for old time fare. I like my steaks mooing, and they did it perfectly. Oil and garlic over pasta is delicious. Shrimp scampi was terrific. The best thing is the fries fries in beef fat! So darn delicious, but make sure you take your cholesterol meds.
Lots of garlic consumed = no making out with your bride or business meetings the next morning.
One less star because they don’t dim the crazy football stadium bright lighting in the dining area. I’m not performing surgery on my steak, I’m eating it so dim the lights!
Will return.

We’ve been going to Sammy’s for years but probably won’t go again. The food is okay, the waitstaff is terrific, but getting in a long line to order to be greeted by the owner/​hostess with an attitude makes it just not worth the trouble.

The experience is different than anything I’ve ever been to before, but honestly I’m not sure why you’d go back more than a couple of times. Food is very expensive and not worth the cost.

If you are over 70 years old and enjoy waiting 2 hours for expensive, fairly terrible food, then this is the restaurant for you. I used to come here as a kid and loved it because of the video games downstairs, but having come here as an adult, I was so disappointed in just about every aspect of Sammy’s. Don’t ignore the other Unilocal reviews like I did. This place is LONG past it’s prime. The service is astoundingly bad. The scene is like an old age community, with a few of the housewives from NJ thrown in the mix. Food is mediocre steak, decent lobster, good French fries, disgusting salad, and gross creamed spinach. If you’re a chump that enjoys paying a lot for bad food and being treated badly in the name of nostalgia, this is your spot! Everyone else should stay away.

Saw a blurb on news 12 NJ about Sammy’s in Mendham being one of those places in NJ you must try before you die… it’s NOT. Is it quirky .yes a must visit .NO.
You walk in and are handed a menu at hostess stand where place your order before being directed to the bar/​game room downstairs. I order bone in NY strip medium rare kids order 3-​shrimp scampi appetizer a burger and spaghettis with garlic and oil for dinner and girlfried orders a filet mignon. We go downstairs and order 2 mixed drinks and 3 shirley temples and indulge in a family game of shuffleboard while waiting to be called to our table.
Once we are called back upstairs to our table we have bread a a family style salad of grape tomatoes a slice of onion and lettuce drenched in balsamic dressing. We order another round of drinks as dinner is served. My steak ordered medium rare is actually served a touch on the well side of medium a barely pink center no red at all, girlfriends fillet (medium)was good, burger looked good and was devoured by a not great eater, scampi was reported as good and spaghetti with garlic and oil was spaghetti with garlic and oil. You also get a family style plate of steamed broccoli and another plate of french fries to share.
Forget about the steaks being seasoned at all. They are dry aged and and cooked without any seasoning that I was able to detect. Many top steakhouses season with salt n pepper sear in a pan and finish cooking to order in broiler so you get a nice crust on your steak. That don’t happen here.
Dining room consists of a bunch of tables of different shapes sizes and capacities and tablecloths and napkins are linen. There is a mural along the walls that was probably cool in the 50’s to early 70’s that lets you know this place has been in action for a while.
Bill $ 202, add $ 20 for bartender and $ 40 for waiter in tips for a total of $ 260. I personally feel bill of $ 150 would have been fair for what we got which was an unimpressively prepared meal in an unimpressive setting. If you are going to charge $ 50 for a steak you better cook it correctly as ordered every time.
Best steak I’ve experienced in NJ hands down is at the Striphouse in Livingston NJ as it is upscale-​casual and is right there with the best NYC has to offer with regard to food quality. For a more casual place I’d go to Steve’s Sizzlin’ in Carlstadt.
Moe out

We’ve lived in the area for 20 years and have been driving past the restaurant and I always wanted to try it. I talked my wife into going here for our wedding anniversary. We went on a Tuesday and there weren’t many people there. Not busy at all and mostly an older crowd (think well past retirement age).
Okay, so the ordering is strange but we expected it and had read the menu online before we went. Wife and I both ordered the filet mignon with shrimp scampi. When they took our order we were told it would be 15 to 20 minutes and to wait in the bar downstairs. I asked for a quiet table and explained it was our anniversary.
The bar is okay but no draft or craft beers. 5 minutes later they called us upstairs and sat us right in the middle of the dining room. So much for a quiet table. The dining room was only about ¹⁄₅ full. The «salad» was on the table. It’s terrible and inedible. Iceberg lettuce drowned in nasty oil and vinegar. They even included the parts of the iceberg you’d usually throw away. The oil had a plastic taste. Just terrible and a shame since there are so many good farms in the area and fresh veggies are abundant.
Next came cream of mushroom soup which we both enjoyed. No whole mushrooms but still good.
Our dinners came out and we were again disappointed. The garlic /​wine /​scampi sauce was like drinking a glass of wine. The didn’t cook the wine off. We ordered our steaks medium and my wife’s was raw (purple) on the inside. After sending it back twice and them just charring the outside we gave up and just ate it the way it was. The fries were the best thing they served.
The deserts were included and nothing worth mentioning. Coffee was good, but it’s coffee.
In the end I feel like I was ripped off. I was expecting an awesome aged steak cooked by someone who has experience slow cooking a good steak. Nope not happening. I don’t mind paying $ 50 a person for an awesome meal and mouth watering steak but that wasn’t the case.
The atmosphere is old, and it felt like since we weren’t «regulars» we didn’t get awesome food from the kitchen. The wait staff was attentive and helpful when we asked to send our raw steaks back. Overall it reminded us of a glorified diner. When we were walking out we saw some regulars who had a better looking salad.
I can now check this off my list and never go again. Would never recommend this place to anyone and in fact will warn against it. I joined Unilocal just to warn people. If you want a good steak go to Redwoods in Chester. They have an awesome wood burning grill. Also Black Horse Inn is a better meal for the price.

Another outstanding dinner at Sammy ’ s and still a fun place to dine. Hard to understand all the negative comments about the décor and their dining style. To us, that was always part of the charm and what sets it apart from others. Although we had a relatively short wait, (20 minutes) we still had enough time to enjoy a drink downstairs and was served by a friendly bartender that made two very generous cocktails. In the past we always went with a large group, which added to the fun, the kids playing video games while the adults enjoyed their drinks. But tonite it was just the two of us so we had a drink to temper the wait.
The salad was just as good as ever, the legendary red wine dressing still so unique. Hubby had the 16 ounce steak, I had the Shrimp Scampi. The steak was full of flavor and perfectly cooked. My scampi was absolutely yummy, again cooked only as Sammy ’ s does, lots of butter and garlic. Good fries and super sweet Jersey corn on the cob were wonderful additions. Dessert was also fantastic. The rice pudding with whipped cream and the apple crisp a la mode made for a perfect ending. So good to see Mary Ann taking your order, still so sweet after all these years. Our server Joanne was friendly yet professional and accommodating and helped make our dinner a wonderful experience. We have been coming to Sammys for over 30 years and we can’t wait to come back again when Stone Crabs are back in season. I can taste that delicious mustard sauce already!

The concept at this former speakeasy is interesting. You walk in and immediately place your dinner order to the host at the counter.
You are then sent to the basement where you can order a drink and relax as you wait for your food.
The servers at the tables bring you the food (that you ordered when you walked in) and they are supposed to keep your drinks full. The place is busy and the servers seem to be running like crazy all the time just to keep up. We had to ask for basic condiments and water refills several times.
The wait is long, the service and the food are mediocre (at best). The prices are high.
I understand this place is a neighborhood favorite. We were visiting friends in the area and they wanted to go there. The ambiance is quaint but it definitely isn’t worth the money.

The problem with Sammys will be the rising competition and their lack luster atmosphere and service. On our most recent visit, the service could not have been worse and the filet could not have been more under cooked. I ordered medium and the center was purple… nowhere near medium.

Wow. What a wonderful step back in time to the days restaurants were understated and personal.
You first order when you walk in, and travel downstairs to an inviting game room with engaging bartenders who pour generously. After a few friendly drinks, your name is called by the bartender, and you drift upstairs to your table to find a salad ready for you. Soon after your sizzling hot and juicy steak is brought out, crispy and perfect.
I would recommend this place to anyone who is not a communist.

I have been to Sammy’s twice now. The first time about 12 years ago, and again just this past weekend for a celebration. This time we arrived late so we missed the downstairs hangout time, which was probably a good thing. Last time I recall it being like going to someone’s old basement with no charm whatsoever, and I hear it hasn’t changed.
I didn’t really recall how the food was the first time other than that I didn’t think it was all that spectacular. So now after 12 years of culinary experiences under my belt I was interested to see how I would like it. And the answer is not too much.
First the highlights. The penne vodka was good and the shrimp scampi was very good. The fries were also very good and nice and crispy.
Now the bad. I ordered the T-​bone steak cooked Medium Rare. I always considered Sammy’s a steak restaurant, so I was excited for good steak, but I was quite disappointed. First of all it was overcooked. The center was medium and the edges were medium well and almost bunt on the outside. Secondly there is no seasoning on the steak. Having watched lots of cooking shows I have learned that «seasoning» generally just means salt. Most steak restaurants over salt their steak but at Sammy’s I could hardly detect any. I had to add salt which I almost never do for anything. Finally the whole thing ended up being pretty dry and lacking in flavor. As many people mentioned, the salad is just lettuce and a bit of tomato and onion and just swimming in oil and vinegar — literally sopping wet. Also the broccoli side dish was just basic steamed broccoli also not seasoned and the apple crisp was decent.
The service was fine but nothing special. Waitress never brought the water I asked for towards the end of the meal. All in all for the price they charge Sammy’s was a real disappointment.

I enjoy the entire trip to Sammy’s… Order first, go downstairs for a drink or two, and then back upstairs for dinner. Salad, fries and desserts included. I ordered the Rib eye and loved every bit of ounce of it. Family style tables but we had enough for our own… Great dinner.

Well, I’m a Jersey boy, have been passing this place for 50+ years & have never stopped in. I was hoping to have found a classic Jersey experience. I did, but I was also hoping it would have been positive! My friend has RAVED about this place for the 7 Years I’ve known him, I’m glad I didn’t tell him I was going, I am certainly not mentioning I did when I see him at work Monday. I went for my birthday, my wife says I got gyipped. You read the other reviews, they say things similar to me & they stil give it 4 stars, I don’t get it. The silly ordering process, tasteless salad, long wait for the mediocre foods, well read on.
As you walk in, there is a stack of menus, why? You can’t read them! The (I guess) hostess explains the menu in 10 seconds and then looks at you like «…whaddareya gonna eat, people are waiting! «I got the classic feeling, ya I’m from Jersey & I don’t like you either!
The place looks like a third string Pocono Resort in the 50“s. Upstairs the 120 watt high voltage lighting reflecting off the white high gloss paint 18 coats thick hurt my eyes. Then the 18» TV’S that are 2 feet deep and knotty pine paneling in the VFW style bar downstairs are not a surprise. As you do the «go downstairs thing» the staff looks like they are afraid to make eye contact with you. The drink was wrong, bartender didn’t care. It’s literally like being in a strangers 50 year old basement with other people’s screaming kids. Of course their parents think they are adorable as they bump into you and bounce off the walls & think you should think so too. I don’t wish this on ANYONE but heaven forbid if they EVER have a fire! This is a good example why we have developed building codes.
The salad had Mobile 1 oil & vinegar dressing, steak was over cooked, spinach was tasteless, deserts were like Little Debbie cakes. We didn’t finish ONE ITEM, the drinks — salad — filet — pork chops — creamed spinach — cheese cake — apple pie, no one ever asked what was wrong with anything. I do have to say, the upstairs wait staff DO try, my waiter & his team were all attentive & I think he knew we were not happy. I just got the feeling he knew he couldn’t do much for me and did not want to ask. We just didn’t feel comfortable complaining about every single thing! Oh I forgot, the coffee was actually VERY good.
Just because the bar is downstairs, we shouldn’t be forced down there! Let me go down if I want, but just sit me at a table and let me order LIKE EVERY OTHER RESTAURANT. If I want the waiter to get my drink, what’s wrong with that? If I want to go down to the bar arcade/​nursery, I will.
Oh well, they seem to do well, all the other parties seemed to really be enjoying themselves & that’s really all that matters. They won’t miss me.

On a Saturday at 5:30pm, my husband took me here for the first time as a surprise, hearing about it from a friend. At first I was shocked as there is no signage out front as I had passed by the place on many occasions and had no idea it existed! In we went to place our order at the front desk. I had no idea how the place operated, but yet found it interesting how you placed your order and then went downstairs to enjoy the old speakeasy bar in the basement with game area. We enjoyed a game of «bar bowling» as we sipped our drinks. When your meal is ready they call you up and seat you at, in our case, a communal table, which I don’t mind as I enjoy talking to strangers!
The salad had already been set down for us, thank goodness I brought my own dressing because theirs was nondiscript, tasted more like oil than anything, I think it was suppose to be balsamic vinegar & oil but im not sure. Simple iceberg lettuce, a cherry tomato & a couple onions. There was a good amount of salad however. After that course was the LONG (at least 25 minutes) wait for the main entrée. I had the filet and my husband had the porkchops with the vinegar red peppers and potatos. It came with creamed spinach and french fries. The food was very delicious. Im not a big spinach fan but it was fantastic, I found myself wanting more. My filet which is dry-​aged beef that they age themselves was perfect and the porkchops along with the vinegar peppers and potatoes were excellent as well and a HUGE portion, enough for two people (I believe you can share for a small fee). The vinegar peppers at first taste were very strong, but paired along with the chops were amazing. The french fries are deep fried in beef fat and are quite tasty, but they did not come to the table hot, just warm, a little dissappointing.
For dessert there was a nice selection, we had the rice pudding and cheesecake. They home make most of their desserts (not the cheesecake). They were good.
The waitstaff was very friendly, attentive and plentiful, I don’t know why we had to wait so long for our main entrée but it didn’t disappoint.
They have a huge bar area in the basement which I believe many local come just to hang out there. Bar prices are reasonable and there are many games to play to keep you or the kids entertained while you wait. The décor was very old as other reviewers mentioned but I don’t go to a place for décor, I go for good food which it definitly had.
Being that everything was included in the price (entrée, vegetable, dessert & coffee) the portions were very generous, and that the place had a history and frequented by locals I thought it was very good and will definitely go back, probably during the week when its hopefully less crowded. I felt for the quality of the meats the price was reasonable. Many families in the place did however make it extremely noisy. All in all it was a totally new and different experience that aside from a couple blips we really enjoyed and look forward to trying something else off the menu.

We recently had dinner here with my family and I have been coming here on a regular basis for years. This past Saturday evening, I split a «Steak for two» which is suppose to be a Porter House Steak. I have ordered this steak before and was very pleased with it. It used to come on a plate, pre sliced with all the right pieces where they were suppose to be and freshly cut from the bone. This last time, the plate was smothered in French fries and the pieces were clearly not from the same steak. I know my steak! Each piece was approximately 2“x 4″ and had been cooked on all sides. The T bone was heavily charged all around and I suspect it had been used a few times. I know that a Porter House steak has both a NY strip and a filet but interestingly, this serving had two filets that were very different looking. The rest of the cuts did not appear to be from a strip but rather from from a sirloin cut. Clearly the French fries were an attempt to cover up this bovine crime scene! When I confronted one of the owner/​managers about the awkwardness of the steak she insisted that at Sammy’s they remove all the meat from the T bone before cooking so it all gets cooked to the right doneness. Does that sound right or ok to anyone? She then proceeded to storm away from the table muttering some offense under her breath. This is a $ 104.00 steak!!! And I for one feel like I was ripped off.

I’ve been coming to Sammy’s since I was a kid. I’m fifty one now so that’s a good chunk of time. When my now wife met my folks twenty three years ago, it was over a steak at Sammy’s. My fourteen year old son recently enjoyed his first steak there. Many of my life’s milestones have been marked with a meal at Sammy’s.
If you read the reviews, you know the drill. Find the place, order up front, go enjoy a really strong drink and wait. Exceptionally good steaks, lamb chops, lobsters, fries. Creamed corn on our last visit was really good. In a place that feels like a backwoods catering hall. I love it. You might not. More for me.
Can’t wait to return.

I really don’t get what the big appeal is here. Sammy’s is one of those places I’ve always been meaning to go, but just haven’t for whatever reason. Long story short… I’m glad I can scratch it off my list of places to go or return to.
With the history behind this establishment I was expecting way more character inside. Nothing about the ambiance here said anything about an historic speakeasy for me. The interior is more like an old run down VFW hall if anything.
The highlight of my experience was probably the staff and service. Everyone from hostess to bartenders and servers were great. The whole ordering procedure is unique but totally unnecessary unless there’s a line out the door (which there wasn’t). Why we had to wait a half hour in the basement just for a salad to be placed on one of the many empty tables is beyond me.
As far as the food goes… mediocre at best. The complementary salad was virtually inedible. I don’t know how you can ruin something as simple as a house salad but they found a way. Probably the worst salad I have ever tasted. My NY strip was also mediocre, over-​cooked and absent of any seasoning whatsoever. The best part of the meal had to be the french fries.
I like the concept of including everything (salad, french fries, vegetable, coffee and dessert) in the price of the entrée; however, I still left feeling we overpaid for what we got. I hate to say it, but you’ll get a much better meal and value at one of the chains like Outback. Sorry Sammy’s, you are a one and done for me.

Really enjoyed my inaugural visit to Sammie’s. So much history and a very unique experience. Service was terrific although we did need to let the team know that we intended to settle in for an extra bottle of wine. They seem to have one gear there — move people in and out quickly.
The steak that I had was perfectly cooked. Everyone else enjoyed their steak and fish as well. Desert was very nice as well and I was able to convince the server to turn my cheese cake into an ala mode offer. It was delicious. We will definitely be back.

A lot of these reviews are spot on … the vibe is nice, service is excellent, good place to bring loud kids (like mine) and the basement bar is fun but the food is just not that great (and VERY overpriced)
i cant figure out why they drown the salad in vinegar. My steak was just not good — bland and dry — there is no excuse for that for what they charge. I will never go back.

3.5 Stars
After having gone to Ruth’s Chris and Peter Luger’s and Sammy’s in the same week, I can see now how Sammy’s just isn’t on the level of some of these top end steakhouses.
I still enjoy Sammy’s, having gone countless times, but their food – while very good – is just not on that upper echelon. I love their lamb chops, but have found them to be inconsistent in their cook temperature on my last several visits. On my last visit, I went with medium rare and they came out pretty rare. So, this time I went with medium, and they came out medium well. A joint like this, with years of experience pressing out these dishes has no excuse for missing their cook temps. It should be a rarity, not the norm. The lamb chops I’ve had at Sparks on numerous occasions blow these out of the water.
I still enjoy the setup. I love the concept of ordering upon arrival and then going down to the basement bar for cocktails. The kids enjoy the games, and I must admit I still love the shuffleboard bowling game. It’s nice to have a place to relax while waiting for a table, and it’s great to know that your food is on its way as soon as you’re seated. It’s also nice to be able to gauge your wait time by the size of the crowd. This entire setup makes the no reservation policy totally acceptable.
I’m a big fan of the family style sides. Those fries still come out crisp and delicious. They are an addiction!!! The seasonal vegetables are a nice touch as well. However, the salad is, always has been, and always will be completely overdressed in vinegar. It’s nice to have a salad, but it’s passable at best.
Every now and again, they’ll have a nice soup or appetizer available. I really enjoy both the stone crabs and soft shell crabs. However, be prepared to pay through the nose for them.
The desserts rarely seem to change and are just ok. The apple pie and the apple crisp are probably their best offerings. The brownie always seems to be pretty dry.
The décor is the same now as it was 30+ years ago. If you’re looking for a beautiful romantic place chock full of atmosphere, this isn’t it. If you’re looking for a plane Jane white table cloth, dig into your food and go to town kind of evening, this is your spot!
Sammy’s is a nice place, hidden away without so much as a sign demarcating it’s location. It’s pretty pricy, considering it tries to be a top level steakhouse with a smattering of seafood options and fresh lobster – though you won’t get the same quality as you will in many other restaurants of its ilk. However, it’s a place where you can bring your kids, and it’s a pretty noisy and rowdy good time establishment. It’s the kind of place I love to go once or twice a year, especially when we go with most of the family.