Montclair Restaurant Help
The Orange Squirrel-just over the Montclair/Bloomfield line. Fabulous food!
http://www.theorangesquirrel.com/
I don't have a perfect suggestion, but I am 100 percent certain that Above is not your answer.
prince and pig Montclair,
No to Above and scalini fedeli had a blue hair feel to me
We've always loved Eagan & Sons at 118 Walnut Street. I just checked their menu since we haven't been in a while, and it looks like they currently do not carry the ribs that we enjoyed, but they have a great beer selection if that's what these young whippersnappers are into 
My Millennial daughter loves Above. But I think the OP was just putting it out there as a model of the type of restaurant desired, but wants to find similar in Montclair. (If I didn't misinterpret.)
This Montclair native highly recommends Egans & Sons for lunch. I've enjoyed many meet ups with my former classmates, friends and family. They have a great bar too!! Not too expensive either. I also like Halcyon down the street on Walnut but they are a bit pricey. I've only had cocktails and apps there though. Enjoy!
Thanks for all the great advice. I'll let you know which one we go to. Much appreciated
jumping on this thread. Anniversary tomorrow and due to other events couldn't make reservations. We tend to prefer more ethnic food as opposed to "new American," which seems to be what everything is these days.
Our fallback for "nicer" dining in Montclair is Fricassee, we really only eat the mussels and salad (or share a seafood dish in addition) but the service and atmosphere is always pleasant.
Any other recs that are NOT "new American" cuisine, offer a nice atmosphere and good service? (With GF/veggie/seafood options).
shh said:
jumping on this thread. Anniversary tomorrow and due to other events couldn't make reservations. We tend to prefer more ethnic food as opposed to "new American," which seems to be what everything is these days.
Our fallback for "nicer" dining in Montclair is Fricassee, we really only eat the mussels and salad (or share a seafood dish in addition) but the service and atmosphere is always pleasant.
Any other recs that are NOT "new American" cuisine, offer a nice atmosphere and good service? (With GF/veggie/seafood options).
Costanera
http://costaneranj.com/menu/dinner/
My favorite go to place in Montclair is Mesob Ethiopian. I'm also a fan of Samba. I've heard good things about Escape although we have never been.
ctrzaska said:
VERY casual, but take a look at Ani Ramen. Great stuff.
They take no rez and the wait on weekends is betw 45min to an hr.
MichR said:
My favorite go to place in Montclair is Mesob Ethiopian. I'm also a fan of Samba. I've heard good things about Escape although we have never been.
This place has a good rep but I disliked it. scooping up and eating the yummy vegetable stuff with wet ace bandages didn't appeal to me.
Recently went to Laurel and Sage in Montclair. Thoroughly enjoyed the food, service and ambiance. Looking forward to going back.
The_Soulful_Mr_T said:
MichR said:
My favorite go to place in Montclair is Mesob Ethiopian. I'm also a fan of Samba. I've heard good things about Escape although we have never been.
This place has a good rep but I disliked it. scooping up and eating the yummy vegetable stuff with wet ace bandages didn't appeal to me.
Mesob is also my favorite in Montclair - but some people do experience culture shock.
The first time I took my spouse out for Ethiopian fare (in NYC), I forgot to let him know that you eat it by tearing off pieces of the yummy injera bread. Fortunately the waitstaff saw his look of panic and brought him a fork.
It's become one of his favorite cuisines, but he now wraps the yummy veggie and meat inside a larger piece of injera, to create something like a burrito... 
Sounds like you didn't dislike Mesob--you disliked Ethiopian food. Not the restaurant's fault!
The_Soulful_Mr_T said:
MichR said:
My favorite go to place in Montclair is Mesob Ethiopian. I'm also a fan of Samba. I've heard good things about Escape although we have never been.
This place has a good rep but I disliked it. scooping up and eating the yummy vegetable stuff with wet ace bandages didn't appeal to me.
For a special occasion, Fascino, the best food and atmosphere for a special occasion. For the best food, Orange Squirrel in Bloomfield, but not a special occasion atmosphere. The other places recommended have good food, but are not special occasion places. I agree with Scala de Nonna, really good food but I would not go there for a special occasion. Way too noisy.
imonlysleeping said:
Sounds like you didn't dislike Mesob--you disliked Ethiopian food. Not the restaurant's fault!
The_Soulful_Mr_T said:
MichR said:
My favorite go to place in Montclair is Mesob Ethiopian. I'm also a fan of Samba. I've heard good things about Escape although we have never been.
This place has a good rep but I disliked it. scooping up and eating the yummy vegetable stuff with wet ace bandages didn't appeal to me.
I don't disagree,
My wife and I went to Mesob last Saturday night because we had her mother in town and were kid-free so we decided to go exploring. It was quite good. (We're fairly well versed in Ethiopian fare, so we didn't have any culture shock.)
We have been to Walia in South Orange (which I recall enjoying as well - memory is slightly fuzzy there), but oddly haven't been to Lalibela yet despite it being a short walk from our house.
Agree with Mesob & Fascino from the above suggestions. Wife and I like http://www.denovomontclair.com/ in Upper Montclair a lot as well.
prerak77 said:
Agree with Mesob & Fascino from the above suggestions. Wife and I like http://www.denovomontclair.com/ in Upper Montclair a lot as well.
DeNovo is great but LOUD!!!!!!
granted not a celebratory or upscale kinda place, but had brunch at Raymond's last weekend and was completely underwhelmed. Surly service on all levels, mediocre food that took over an hour to get and extremely noisy. Only good thing was the coffee.
The_Soulful_Mr_T said:
prerak77 said:
Agree with Mesob & Fascino from the above suggestions. Wife and I like http://www.denovomontclair.com/ in Upper Montclair a lot as well.
DeNovo is great but LOUD!!!!!!
OP never said mentioned noise levels, plus to me it is an indicator of people enjoying themselves.
LOL, I can only imagine my group of friends, we would probably never be allowed back at most restaurants. Especially some Montclair est. with their BYOB policy, we get pretty boisterous!
MsSumida said:
granted not a celebratory or upscale kinda place, but had brunch at Raymond's last weekend and was completely underwhelmed. Surly service on all levels, mediocre food that took over an hour to get and extremely noisy. Only good thing was the coffee.
Sorry to hear that. Raymond's is a local favorite.
prerak77 said:
The_Soulful_Mr_T said:
prerak77 said:
Agree with Mesob & Fascino from the above suggestions. Wife and I like http://www.denovomontclair.com/ in Upper Montclair a lot as well.
DeNovo is great but LOUD!!!!!!
OP never said mentioned noise levels, plus to me it is an indicator of people enjoying themselves.
LOL, I can only imagine my group of friends, we would probably never be allowed back at most restaurants. Especially some Montclair est. with their BYOB policy, we get pretty boisterous!
To me it's an indicator of bad acoustics and crap restaurant design.
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I need a recommendation for a great restaurant in Montclair. I want to take a young couple (28 and 30) to a celebratory lunch . I am looking for a restaurant that Millennials would love and that would be somewhat memorable and special.
This was a good friend of my daughter in elementary school. They are closing on their first home and I want to take them somewhere memorable to celebrate. I am a different generation and I recognize that my idea of cool is probably different than their idea of cool.
I'm thinking Above in South Orange could be a possibility but I don't know Montclair restaurants well enough.