Nunzio’s BBQ Charcoal Grill

It’s now my go to spot for a great 10 dollar lunch … But starting today it’s my spot for a great 13 dollar lunch because I tried and empanada as an appetizer … Soooooo good … Give them a shot !

Good food compared to most places in the area. Chicken was a little over cooked and dry. Rice and beans were good but didn’t stand out. Best park of the meal were the french fries. If you had Portuguese BBQ chicken in the past then you already had this.

Love Nunzio’s knocks burnet bbq out the park. I’m a frequent visitor. Yyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

I was there on April 16, 2016. I ordered the Grilled Jumbo Shrimp with Rice and Fries and Guarana soda. It was delicious. The restaurant is casual and clean. The staff is friendly and courteous. I recommend this place to anyone and will definitely be back when I am in the area.

Most delicious grilled chicken I ever had, and a hot Sause they serve with it is off the hook! I can’t tell how much I love it, yum! The vegetables and potatoes that comes with it, makes the whole fish just perfect! Way to go! Thank u!

I’ve had from this place; rotisserie chicken, ribs, chicken wings and chicken sandwich they were all tasty! Definitely recommend eating here. The fries and rice that come with the Chicken are also great

I had high hopes after reading the reviews and was pretty excited to try out this spot, as I really miss the tiny hole-​in-​the-​wall spots I used to visit in the Lower East Side for some baked chicken and rice.
Pretty much everything I tasted was awesome. It’s clear that somebody really cares about the good food at non-​pretentious prices. I love the little touches like the pepper grinder and steamed vegetables, not frozen, and home made fries.
I loved every bite of the chicken empanada and beef empanada with hot sauce. The mister preferred the beef, kinda reminded me of picadillo. I preferred the chicken, reminded me of shredded chicken in a sazon sauce.
I ordered garlic chicken with fries and vegetables but also ate a nice portion of my husband’s pork rib/​beef rib, rice and vegies platter. Can’t go wrong! Those beef ribs were made with so much love and the taste of the grill just makes it succulent.
I will definitely be back for more and I will bring friends!
Also helps that they take credit card.

Amazingly delicious food for a phenomenal price! The food here is consistent and well done. The home made hot sauce is a nice vinegar base which I personally love. This place is certainly worth checking out. I continue to return never disappointed.

When you arrive the smokey smell makes your mouth drool and the food does not disappoint

Mmmmmm… you smell this place a mile away.
Delicious food. Eat there often.
Beef ribs, pork ribs, chicken, garlic chicken… all delicious.
I get my order with just vegetables, but I’ve seen the portion they do with fries and rice! Huge and looks delicious.
Pricing is very fair. Service is good, and usually everyone if friendly.
Small parking area next to restaurant.
Must try.

This place was pretty solid, although I’m «rounding up» and giving four stars. Only went once… take out. Got the garlic chicken, garlic shrimp, and a few chorizos. Everything was really tasty.

All I have to say is order the beef ribs with rice and fries. The flavors in the beef ribs are unbelievable. I’ve also tried the rotisserie chicken and the NY Strip steak but to me the beef ribs are on another level.

The only reason why I’m giving this place 4 stars is because it was cold inside the restaurant. Other than that the food was amazing. The food was very well seasoned, marinated. So delicious I couldn’t get enough. I ordered garlic chicken breast, shrimp and veggies. Usually if you order garlic anything its drenched in butter, not this place. In the pic I post you’ll see potatoes included in the pics but I didn’t eat it b/​c of the low carb diet and no other reason. Took everything for me not to eat it. Even though I miss carbs today it wasn’t missed at all that’s how good the food was. The service was efficient. The atmosphere was nice. Cool lunch crowd. The prices and the portions were reasonable. I recommend anyone in the area to go to this treasure you won’t be disappointed!!!

I asked the police officer coming out of Nunzio’s how it was. Really a rhetorical question. The cops know where the good food is. He replied, delicious. We agree.
Very busy lunch crowd but we were able to score a table. Friendly wait staff. My son ordered a full rack of pork ribs and fries. The staff didn’t think he was up for the challenge. They were wrong. Garlic chicken and fries for me.
Food came out quickly. Trust me, we’ve been to a lot of these Portuguese restaurants. The ribs were as meaty as we’ve seen. No scraps, burnt ends. Just big meaty delicious suckers. The garlic chicken was addictive. Loved every bite. No generic fries here. Hand cut and freshly fried. Really good.
We never thought we would find a place that gave Clark BBQ or Backyard Grill in Kenilworth a run for the money. Nunzio’s does. We’ll be back as soon as is humanly
possible.

Nunzio’s dinner, round 2. I said I would be back to give the food a shot again, so I stopped by this evening. The staff was friendly and were constantly taking orders even with 30 minutes until closing time.
–Whole Garlic Chicken w/​Rice and Fries ($ 13.50) (B): After being disappointed by the lackluster pork ribs the last time I was here, I went with the popular garlic chicken. It was tender and was served as large slices of grilled boneless thigh meat. Now I see why a lot of people love it. However, when I read «garlic chicken,» I was expecting a garlic flavored rotisserie chicken, not slices of it. I would have liked this better if the garlic flavor was a little stronger, though. The rice could have been cooked a little longer, but I really didn’t mind. On the other hand, the fries still don’t appeal to me.
–Garlic Chicken w/​Beef Short Ribs (plain) ($ 14.50) (B-​): The beef short ribs were too tough! I grill short ribs/​kalbi often and was disappointed to find how chewy theirs were. If there was anything that I did like about the ribs, it would probably be the seasoning or marinade. It matched well with this cut of meat – I think it would match well with their pork ribs, as well. The garlic chicken is the same as the one described above.
While I liked the food, I’m not sure if I’ll be back anytime soon. When comparing similar Portuguese restaurants in the area, I say Nunzio’s has the upper hand, though. The grilled chicken here is much more flavorful compared to other places like Burnet #2 on Stuyvesant. If I ever crave Portuguese-​style grilled meat again, my order will probably come from here.

This is my idea of an authentic family owned restaurant. The empanadas absolutely delicious. The service was friendly and professional. I had a blast here. I also had the pleasure of sitting in to get the full fled experience. Simply awesome!

Unfortunately, I’m sorry I went. I came at about 8:30 PM, well before closing. They took my order, and a few minutes later — «We close at 9, do you mind getting this to go?» I didn’t really mind per se, but typically a restaurant that closes at 9 will let patrons eat until 10. Whatever. I counted the wait — 20 minutes. In that time, I watched the staff fill orders sequentially, as they were taken. Why not put multiple orders on at once? No wonder the wait is so long. One star deduction.
I then watched them fill my order. I had a half order split between chicken and ribs. The chicken went in, then one rib, then… no, take that rib back, chop it in half. Okay… no, take that rib back, chop a little more off the top. Guys, I’m watching you. What are you going to do with the extras? Throw them out? Is it that important that I can’t get them? Two star deduction.
The food: Pork ribs 1 star. Tasteless, extremely chewy, even for my strong jaw. I did manage to get through it, but I can cook better BBQ than that and I can’t cook BBQ. Chicken 4 stars. Flavorful, clearly what they’re known for, and that’s why I got it. This one actually had some of that charcoal flavor to it. Rice looked good but I already had my carbs, so I went with veggies. They threw about 50 cents of veggies in a pot for a few minutes too long and dumped the soggy mess in. 2 stars, only because they were at least reasonably fresh.
Finally, the empanada. It’s advertised as the best in Maplewood, and now I’m convinced it’s the only one in Maplewood. The crust is absolutely wonderful, light, crispy, flaky, yet puffy. I ordered the beef one, and the filling had barely any taste or juice to it. It also took up barely ¹⁄₃ of the empanada. I felt cheated, after the relatively nice portions otherwise.
I’ll never forget watching them chop off part of my order and toss it. That’s what I’ll leave here with. If that’s your customer service, I will not be a customer.

We could literally smell the barbecue as we drove by Nunzio’s for the first time, piquing out interest enough to stop for lunch. The inside is unassuming, just a few tables and chairs and a large wrap around counter with additional seating… but if you take a glimpse over the counter, you’ll see the open pit barbecue, amazing! We ordered the half chicken, pork ribs over rice and vegetables… it was delicious. The chicken had a crispy skin outside and moist, perfectly cooked chicken inside… the yellow rice and fresh steamed vegetables were the perfect accompaniment. Will definitely go back or order take out. A must, such a great neighborhood spot.

While the food usually tastes good, the quantity is terrible. I got the ribs/​chorizo combo for $ 7.75 and it came with one small rib.

There was a time when Nunzios was the go to spot for my family. We would order for pick up and enjoy the flavorful cuisine options. That has since changed. My most recent visit was the ultimate worst and final!
I visited the location with my boyfriend for LUNCH and was OVERCHARGED for less than quality food AND service.
Here is the breakdown as follows:
1. Upon entering the hostess at the counter rushed us to order from the menu. We both agreed to order LUNCH, and only viewed the LUNCH section.
2. The food quality and flavor has diminished– bland yellow rice, undercooked chicken, dry and small garlic shrimp, etc.
3. The itemized was very misleading. When I requested the $ 11.25 garlic shrimp with rice and vegetables, I was charged $ 19.25 and told that the mistake was due to «miscommunication» (with a Free large grin instead of comp or even a sorry)!
Also black beans is not included and will cost an extra $ 3!
All that to say, I will take my business to BBQ BURNETT at one of there 3 very successful locations!