Restaurant Reco -- Enjoyed Orange Squirrel archived

How about Ursino on the campus of Kean University?
http://www.ursinorestaurant.com/

OOPS closed Mondays, sorry

Yeah, that's the other hitch. But thanks, I'll keep it in mind for another time.

Great place in Bloomfield--

Perfect. Thanks, @bak.

Not to hijack this thread, but would Orange Squirrel be good for an anniversary dinner, do you think? I've been wanting to try A Tout Heure in Cranford, but they don't have a good time available when we want to go (9/14 or 9/21).

Hijack away, @amandacat.

A Toute Heure is our favorite--impossible to get a good Sat night reservation online--call a month in advance--so worth it.

A Toute Heure is the best! I'm sure it's not open Mondays but you should definitely try it another time.

So if one wanted to go to A Toute Heure but couldn't get a reservation, where would one go instead?

Fascino in Montclair is open Mondays

FYI, Orange Squirrel is both on http://www.OpenTable.com ( so you can make online reservations, and get points) AND http://www.Restaurant.com ( so you can get a voucher and save some money)

Fascino, might also be on both OpenTable and Restaurant.com

Just to clarify: Monday was a requirement for me, which bak satisfied, and I've made reservations at the Orange Squirrel. It doesn't appear that closed Mondays are a problem for amandacat, whose question remains active.

Pig & Prince in Montclair?

Huntley Taverne in Summit (I checked - open on Mondays).

Since I see you also like Greek food, Lithos Estatorio is open on Mondays and very highly rated.

Very good food and service and nice decor. We love going there.

http://lithosgreekrestaurant.com/contact.php

NYtoNJ said:

Huntley Taverne in Summit (I checked - open on Mondays).

Great option, esp if you can reserve their small private room which is lovely and costs nothing extra.

Escape in Montclair

Also in Montclair is Aozora, which was my favorite go-to restaurant for just about any occasion when we still lived in the area. Excellent sushi, but also a wonderful selection of all kinds of cross-cultural/fusion type foods. I used to love the sea bass dishes, the duck, and the rack of lamb with herb crust. I really miss that place since we moved.

No one has mentioned Lorena, is it also closed on Monday? Good place for special occasions of a romantic nature. Also, I love La Pergola in Millburn for special occasions. It's not cheap, but it is very, very good and just a little fancy. Not in an uncomfortable way, but in a way that raises it a bit above other more casual places.

One of our favorites for dinners with friends was Cara Mia, also in Millburn, or Il Fiorino in Summit. Much better than the usual Italian fare in the area, IMO.

I've heard many rave reviews of Culinariane in Montclair, although I've never been there.

If $$ is no object--top 10 in NJ consistently and our go-to place for special occasion dining:

http://www.restaurantserenade.com/

ETA: Open on Mondays and similar $$ to a few mentioned here:: we get carried away with the sommelier which adds the $$.

bookgirl said:

A Toute Heure is the best! I'm sure it's not open Mondays but you should definitely try it another time.

LOVE! "ATH"

Oof... I have never been inside of Restaurant Serenade but their website makes it look downright unattractive!
All business owners need to put their best foot forward in this digital world that we live in and IMHO their website and their Twitter feed full of typos really, really need updating.

Another vote for Huntley Taverne in Summit, link:

http://www.thehuntleytaverne.com/menus.html

They tout locally sourced, seasonal specialties; I went there for a special occasion and was extremely happy with both the food and the service. It's a little on the pricey side, but, in my opinion, worth it.

I don't know the age of your family or your price range, but Pluckeminn Inn is awesome and locavore-y.

http://www.pluckemininn.com/

The tasting menu looks incredible, but again, not sure of the above factors.

Ok, it's not exactly close, but Ninety Acres in Peapack-Gladstone is amazing. Prob about 30-35 min drive, but SO worth it. It's beautiful and the food is farm to table. Their tasting menu is great and reasonably priced. http://natirar.com/index.php/ninety_acres/
I can't wait to go back again!

Ps, the tasting option is called bring me food

debpod said:

Ps, the tasting option is called bring me food

Oh yeah!

We all had a great time tonight at Orange Squirrel, with my dad especially enthusiastic about the pan-seared whole bronzini. Just what we were looking for. Thanks again, @bak.

DaveSchmidt said:

We all had a great time tonight at Orange Squirrel, with my dad especially enthusiastic about the pan-seared whole bronzini. Just what we were looking for. Thanks again, @bak.

Hope you used a restaurant.com certificate to save $25!