Theater Square Grill

Wife and I went to a show before Christmas and decided to dine at Theater Square Grill mainly for convenience. Glad we did. The food was really good. Everything was seasoned well with great presentation. I was expecting the NYC pre-​theater experience, ie… prix fix of 4 mediocre apps, 4 mains and a couple desserts. Though we did have the prix fix, it really did not feel like it. The menu was very balanced in terms of different meats and fish.
I would definitely recommend and will go there again if we find ourselves at NJ PAC again.

So about three weeks ago I came here for dinner with some people before the Lewis Black Comedy Show. We sat down at dinner at 6 PM — 2 hours before the show started — plenty of time to eat and get to our seats in time right — so we thought…
It started off with us all ordering drinks — most of us got wine or soda. After waiting about 20 minutes the wine finally came. However as they were setting my wine down on the table, they spilled another person’s glass (red wine mind you) all down my back. Everything — my shirt, sweater, and pants were covered in red wine. Luckily my friend had her jacket with her, so I was able to take off my shirt and put on her jacket. After that whole ordeal we finally were able to order our food…
Most of started off with soup or salad. I had the butternut squash soup which was good but lukewarm. I checked to make sure I was not the only one with that problem — yep everyone had lukewarm soup.
Then we had our meals. I had the burger cooked medium with fries on the side. My burger came out RED — It was barely cooked. I had to send it back to be recooked.
Then we moved on to dessert — now by this time it was 7:50 — the chocolate dome that almost everyone ordered was a bit different then what they described. It was supposed to be milk chocolate cake with a light moose on top then covered in dark chocolate. However they ran out of the light moose and topped it off with ice cream instead and there was no dark chocolate covering. Now this would not have been so bad if they would have informed people of this change, but you only found out after taking a bit. Not cool.
Then if you wanted to order another drink — it was a huge hassle — We had to ask for a diet coke four different times until we actually received one.
Oh and the best part of this experience is that the manager reassured me that he would pay for my dry cleaning bill — you know since my whole outfit was ruined by the red wine he spilled. I have called him now three times to speak to him on how to submit the bill and he still has not called me back. I even called the general office to explain the situation and I have not received one phone call back. Little do they know that this situation will not be dropped.
If everyone has half the experience that I have had — they will be out of business very shortly.

Be warned — the reason that the entrée prices are so reasonable is that the portions are so small. These are fine if you usually take home half your dinner as leftovers, but not if you need a full entrée.
It is a convenient location, but is poorly run. We made reservations a week in advance and were told three days before our dinner that it would be a prix-​fixe meal. When we arrived, they were using the regular menu so none of the promised duck or monkfish. The diners around us had the same complaint.
A previous poster is correct that all the food tastes like it has been sitting on a steam table, especially the appetizers.
The servers try hard and are very polite. They just have no sense of urgency.
It is probably worth walking the 4 — 5 blocks to 27 Mix to get better food in a less sophisticated atmosphere. Or if you have the time, come early or go late and eat in the Ironbound.

Chosen for its pre-​concert convenience, the Grill widely surpassed our modest expectations. The loin of pork was expertly cooked and accompanied by a fine sauce; the maize flan was simply outstanding. The wine list is interesting and varied. Service was pretty good; my sensitivity to loud acoustics was not troubled, at least where we were seated. Only some wobbly chairs and tables were out of tune with the high-​quality experience. It’s refreshing to find a fancy-​ish NY area restaurant actually delivering on its pretensions.

Theater Square Grill is located in the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark. They serve what I would categorize as American food with an entrée or two for everyone. The food is always good. The service can be spotty because the staff has a tendency to become overwhelmed when serving a large number of meals in advance of a performance at the NJPAC. It can get a bit loud because of the very high ceilings. The décor is extremely pleasant. There is a full bar.
Theater Square Grill is a great place for a pre-​concert dinner.