My partner and I came for dinner before our showing at the Papermill Playhouse, and it made for a wonderful and romantic evening! Dinner was crowded for 5:30 on a Thursday evening, which we didn't expect, but that didn't stop the service from being wonderful! Our waitress was knowledgable and kind, and provided quick and efficient service! The bread was soft and herbed, we were presented with two bruschetta breads and some roasted zuchinni chip along with our bread which I loved. We shared the garlic shrimp appetizer, i had the side of parmesean risotto as my meal (and tasted my partner's food) and my partner had the strip steak au pivoire with a side of asparagus. It was very kind that they split the appetizer in half and brought it out on two separate plates for us, but I couldnt really taste many of the flavors mentioned on the menu with the garlic shrimp. The side of risotto was huge, and could easily be an entree if I asked for more parmesean on top. However the steak and the spinach/mashed potatoes that came with it were to die for. I ended up eating more than my fair share since it wasnt my entree, but I would go back just for that! It is BYOB, but there is a wine and liquor store two doors down. For dessert we had the strawberries with cold cream on top and I was in heaven. I would love to come back and try more of their menu, but I'm also hooked on everything we already tried! read more

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I'm so happy that I found this restaurant! I was randomly scrolling through Groupon and their restaurant came up! After checking out the reviews on Yelp I decided to make a reservation that same day! Cara Mia is BYOB so don't forget to grab your favorite bottle of wine! There's a small liquor store two doors down with a great variety of options. Lots of metered parking right across the street but it was free at the time of my reservation (8pm). As soon as we sat down we were greeted with delicious bread and bruschetta with zucchini chips. For my entree I decided to go with the Fettuccine Cara Mia which is crab meat, shrimp, scallions, and diced tomatoes in a pink vodka sauce. My boyfriend and I were both blown away by the flavor in the pasta! For dessert, we went with the chocolate cookie cake and that was also amazing! I can't wait to return to Cara Mia to try something else on the menu! If you're able to find the Groupon definitely purchase it! read more

Cara Mia - Fettucine Cara Mia - Jumbo Lump Crab Meat, Shrimp, Scallions, Diced Tomato, Chili Flakes, Garlic, Pink Vodka Sauce - Italian Near Me - Millburn, New Jersey

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Cara Mia? No. More like, "Mammamia - FOOD POISONING!!" Over 36 hours of cramps, pain, sweat, and what ever else accompanies that misery. My friend and I came in for lunch. The place was recommended and after looking at the reviews, we were optimistic it was a good choice. We were the only customers there. Upon entering, the little walkway was messy and dirty, the mess continued into the main dining room. We were seated in the side room and that, at least, looked clean and ready for business. This is an old-style Italian restaurant. A place where updates are made once every blue moon - but regulars, for some odd reason, just love this joint. A little starter came to the table: cold, fried, chewy, oily zucchini and bruschetta. I regret tasting (2 pieces) of that zucchini. It was one of the worst foods I have ever tasted in a restaurant, ever. I don't know if it was days old, or fried in old oil and kept in fridge, or spoiled zucchini.... But I believe these 2 pieces got me severely sick. My friend did not eat any of the starter. My endive salad was uneventful and underwhelming. Completely bland to the eye and drenched in vinegar dressing. Eatable, but nothing to write home about. Hopefully the veggies were washed, or it could have been e-coli. Who knows? Service was fine, a bit slow (for only having 2 customers), but everyone seemed a bit unprofessional. I started feeling sick pretty immediately, within 1 hour of eating at Cara Mia. If the main restaurant was messy and dirty, I can't imagine what the kitchen, cold room and freezers look like. No, I wholeheartedly do not recommend this restaurant. read more

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One of my first post covid dining experiences and it was a good experience! We had a few old favorites- spicy snapper and portobello starter. And tried the swordfish special which was delicious! Love sitting outside! read more

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This is my third time coming to this restaurant, my first time ordering the chicken parmigiana. Two words "So Amazing" I'll definitely be back again! read more

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Wonderful place! The food was delicious and the ambience wonderful. Perfect place for post-matinee at Papermill.

1. The food was very good 2. Good service overall Bad 1. Messed up 2 of the 6 orders. 4 of us started eating so it wouldn't get cold but annoying as hell. Made up for it a bit with free dessert and coffee 2. The veal chop was $20 more than other entrees. We were meeting someone for first time and would've been tacky to ask price but when entree is $20 more than all others they should make it transparent when they go through specials. It's embarrassing when we are splitting the bill read more

Went here with a Groupon after seeing so many positive reviews on Groupon. Was pleasantly surprised to find the restaurant is BYOB. -Food: -zucchini chips that came with the bread to start. They were saturated in oil. -porcini ravioli: delicious. The sauce was deliciously creamy, rich and truffley. Would recommend. -steak au poivre: good. Sauce was a bit salty by the end of the dish. Aide of mashed potatoes was regular. Spinach was blanched and unseasoned which was a good balance since the steak sauce had sufficient salt. -Service: ordered the porcini ravioli to share and was happy to see when they brought it out on two separate plates as opposed to making us uncomfortably share a center plate. We also ordered two steak au poivres, one medium rate and one well done for me. Although I shouldn't have to give a reason, in order for them to understand the importance of my steak being well-done, I explained to the waiter that I am expecting and cannot have any uncooked red meat. The first time they brought out steaks, it was quickly taken back after 5 minutes when the waiter realized he brought us the steak special instead. When they brought our steaks, mine was medium well with all slices pink and slightly bloody. I told the waiter and he took it back to get cooked further. When they brought it out again, several slices were still pink and with blood. I explained to the waiter that I could not take any chances in eating this. He understood and said they will slice it completely so that it could be cooked thoroughly. I appreciated his understanding but was a bit bothered that the kitchen took 2 tries to cook the steak thoroughly when it should be the easiest of the types to do. The food and service were good. Would return and recommend. read more

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Had been stalking their instagram page for quite some time and finally made it here for dinner for my wife's 30th birthday. Overall good ambience combined with good food. We ordered 2 pasta, both custom made to order. We had the cacio e pepe which was creamy but tasted a bit salty, the Rigatoni Vodka with Burrata was amazing with a little bit of spice and it was so creamy, the highlight was the burrata which was so light and complimented the pasta really well! For dessert we had Tiramisu, which was made with a lot of cream cheese and less lady fingers, so we thought it was less tasteir than the one which we make at home or have had some place else. read more

Cara Mia - Cacio E Pepe - Italian Near Me - Millburn, New Jersey

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We always go here when we have tickets to a show at Paper Mill Playhouse. Its very convenient to walk to and from the retreatant. Great Services,,,Great food. Highly recommend this place. read more

Amazing place! Amazing food! Amazing ambiance! Amazing staff! I truly enjoyed this place and cannot wait to revisit. read more

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I hadn't realized how long it had been since we last ate here. BUT, a Groupon coupon led us to try and we were quite pleased that we did. First off, our server, Zenep, was first rate. Second the food, from the Endive Salad to Barbara's Pumpkin Ravioli and my pasta Carbonara was excellent. Nice atmosphere, great food, BYOB, What's not to love. Okay, one small negative. The outside dining is imperfect due to the direction of the late afternoon/early summer evening sun. read more

They definitely don't pay attention because they messed my to go order up twice. Not sure how or why and my job dines at this restaurant every holiday. Smh read more

*sigh* it always happens this way. The first meal is amazing and it sets the bar (and my hopes) super high... Chicken Parmesan Entrée. The chicken was pounded so thin that there was literally no chew to the chicken. It was like eating the breading without meat in between the crispy coating. The sauce was watery and bland. No pasta. Just two potato wedges, four short green beans and two slivers of a carrot. $26! No picture of it because I put it in the trash immediately. I won't give up on Cara Mia. I'll give them another try. Bummer. A real bummer. read more

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Worst chicken parm i've ever had. Tasted like cardboard. The only thing that was halfway decent was the bread. Also was 70 dollars, i paid cash and left without finishing our meal. Never going back. read more

First time dining here but whenever we would pass, it's always looked crowded. The food was delicious. The hostess was so nice & friendly. She was also our waitress, LOVE! Her smile lit up the room. The decor was very chic, I love it! I had the Fettuccine with the seafood, delicious, my husband had the veal parm with linguine. Couldn't eat it all so we brought home leftovers. read more

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their food is DELICIOUS. great service. beautiful music. amazing ambiance. love love love. read more

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Food is excellent, service is also excellent, prices are fair. The only 2 negatives are parking (take an uber) and place is very loud.

Was there 6 months ago and everything was great. It's really gone down hill. Service was nowhere near as good on these last couple visits. I asked where Rob was cause he always took really good care of us and they said he's been on vacation? I think they got new owners. 10/10 do not recommend. read more

Oh my god this place has the best steak and salmon I've ever had in my whole entire life. It was amazing will definitely come back. The service was impeccable and the food was honestly one of the best out here in nj definitely recommend if you were in milburn have to check this place out perfect for date night. read more

Cara Mia - Steak - Italian Near Me - Millburn, New Jersey

Came here for lunch . Parking is street or a metered parking lot across the street It was a beautiful day so I decided to sit outside I was greeted and seated right away My waitress was nice and tended to me. I was given complimentary fried zucchini and bruschetta to start .....as well as bread and butter ( which I didn't touch) . Fried zucchini and bruschetta was good to start I tried the calamari balsamico which was good. I also tried the Raviolo Porcini which was very good... could taste the truffle oil . Yum I would come back here again one day read more

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This little spot in Millburn really is a 5 star gem. Food was absolutely amazing!!!! My boyfriend & I started with the garlic shrimp - so flavorful & yummy! For dinner we were each in the mood for some heat. Our waiter Rob was super accommodating & had the chef make us rigatoni & shrimp in a scampi sauce with red hot cherry peppers which was so tasty! Everything was 10/10. If you're in the area definitely give this place a try & ask for Rob as your waiter! He won't disappoint!!!! read more

Cara Mia - Garlic Shrimp - Italian Near Me - Millburn, New Jersey

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We made a 5:45 reservation at this restaurant on a Saturday night anticipating we would have plenty of time to eat and attend the 7:30 show at The Papermill. Service is generally a bit slow here, but our most recent attempt will be our last It was difficult to get our waiter's attention. When we finally placed our order, we had already been sitting at our table for 30 minutes. We did tell the server we were going to a show and had to leave quickly Unfortunately I cannot give you a review of our meal because we had to leave before it arrived. At that point we were hungry and frustrated and did not have time to dine somewhere else before the show The ambiance was noisy and crowded for so early in the evening. I don't know if others were as unhappy as we felt. It seemed that people who had arrived after us got their entrees faster than we did. read more

We at dinner there on Tuesday Jan 16 2024. I ended up with food poisoning. I got sick with in 40 minutes of finishing my meal. We never made it home. I ended up in the emergency room. My test results confirmed. I had a conversation with YELP today as they took my first post down. Yelp told me to just state the facts. I also got a call from someone screaming at me. There another review from May. Women had also got food poisoning. Could have been very isolated, but i was very ill. So after 2 blood tests, and a procedure and 2 doctor visits. After 24 days i am feeling better. Now to get my bills paid. read more

Ambiance was nice and service was good. My food was ok. I got the shrimp/crab meat linguini which was very over cooked and I sadly wasn't impressed. I would be willing to give them another shot in the future due to the good service though. read more

An established Italian restaurant in Millburn with a charming old-school vibe. Before we even opened the menu we were given a basket of bread, bruschetta toast, and fried zucchini chips. All were delicious and different from the standard bread and butter! It held us over while we waited for our pastas. We ordered the fettuccine Cara Mia and the linguine vongole. Of the two, I preferred the fettuccine Cara Mia. The pasta was handmade and they were very generous with the shrimp and crab meat. Portions are large here, we were pretty full by the end but still made room for tiramisu. What a delight! Possibly the highlight of the meal for me. read more

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went December 20 with my wife for my birthday. The service was great and the hostess. Appetizer we had the meatball, which was very good dinner I ordered the pasta special with sausage and broccoli and mushrooms. The pasta was overcooked, and it was soft and mushy. My wife ordered the special halibut which was dry and overcooked. First time we ever had a bad meal there. I mentioned it to the hostess and she took off the pasta dish off the bill. Its a go to place but have to say extremely disappointed: Top it off we got there after the theater people left so the restaurant was halfway full so the kitchen had no excuse of being extra worked or maybe they were just tired. read more

A real good case of Montezuma's revenge three hours after ingesting the meal, I believe it came from the meatballs. They were not good.

Excellent food and service. Nice cozy ambiance. Good portions and priced reasonably. Great place for dinner especially if you are going to see a show at Paper Mill playhouse. It's about a five minute walk to the theater. read more

We came to Cara Mia to celebrate my Uncle's 60th birthday over the holidays with around 30 of his closest family, friends and coworkers. What better way to do so than over Italian cuisine? Additionally, the restaurant offers BYOB - which being from Ohio, is unheard of. This was a huge positive in my book! The staff arranged for us to have an entire wing of the restaurant to ourselves, but we were a bit nervous when we arrived and the room was still full of the party before. However, their team was quick to flip the space and get things ready for our celebration! Let me say that for the most part, their team at Cara Mia was quick to help with anything needed and did a wonderful job. The menu was preset due to our guest count, and except for the entrees, was more 'family-style'. While pre-set, all of the menu was still full of delicious options and worked perfectly to keep things moving quickly. Everything was tasty, and I had the Herb Crusted Salmon and it was a great balance of savory and tang. The only turn off was that the guest of honor, who practices sobriety, was given a glass of wine not once, but twice, by one of the servers and never asked once if he even wanted wine. While the BYOB makes it nice that beverages can be shared among the group, I'd still encourage that you ask a guest if they want something before you give it to them. I get that it was a total mistake and not done intentionally, for a case like this it could be a big deal. read more

Cara Mia - Herb Crusted Salmon - Italian Near Me - Millburn, New Jersey

So me and the girls got together for a girls night dinner. We made reservations for 7pm for 10 people. When I arrived I was lucky to find parking in the parking lot across the street. When I walked in the owner walked me over to our seats and we were seated under the tent across the street. In this area we had multiple servers but the lady was by far the best of them all. The place is byob and she opened my bottle when I sat. We first started with the brushetta and it was so tasty. I also tasted the zucchini chips and it wasn't my favorite. For appetizers I tasted the little neck clams and they were tasty. For dinner I got the shrimp special with linguini and that was very good. I also tasted the salmon and swordfish and they both were good. The bill came to about $340 and that was pretty good. When we were waiting for the bill to come back one of the servers told us we had to leave soon because of course we shut the place down but we didn't even have our bill back lol. The nerve haha. All in all we had a good experience and I can't forget the great band they had. I will definitely return. read more

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Very elegant seating in a beautiful restaurant. BYOB, great menu items, and delicious food. The dessert options are delightful as well

Found Cara Mia on Groupon. Amazing food, service & ambiance. It's BYOB, and there is a liquor store right next door, so we grabbed a bottle of wine beforehand. Heated outdoor seating is limited but available. We plan to return very soon! read more

Cara Mia - Calamari Balsamico - Italian Near Me - Millburn, New Jersey

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I'm not sure how this restaurant could possibly get four stars. Although there is no problem with the service, the food leaves a lot to be desired. I ordered an endive salad with pear, and the pear was as hard as a rock. My wife had Branzino and she couldn't eat it because it smelled fishy. The one dish that was good was the Chicken Mello. The noise in the restaurant is so loud that people are screaming at each other to be heard across their table, which makes it even louder. One dessert from the menu was strawberries in Zabaglione Cream and the chef added Marsala wine to it, which was not on the menu, and it was terrible. read more

Nice cozy spot for good Italian. In a town sort of overrun by Italian restaurants, Cara Mia probably has the best balance of sufficiently broad menu options, price point and quality. Casual but yet in a nice white tablecloth setting. Generally friendly service and great that it's a BYO spot. read more

This place is an absolute gem in the Millburn/Summit área if you're looking for Italian cuisine. The service, including management, go above and beyond to make sure everything is taken care of AND it's BYO so that's a double win. Parking - There's a parking lot across the street that has free parking after 6 or 7 PM I believe if you can't find any street parking. Enjoy! read more

Always good food and service My favorite dish is the mushroom ravioli. Delicious! It's a local favorite for us

I came here with a group of 10. The service was out of this world good!!! The food was so delicious! We all were blown away by the delicious flavors of not just 1 but ALL our dishes!! This restaurant is BYOB. Don't walk run to this restaurant and don't forget your bottle of wine!! You won't be disappointed. read more

Service was great , food was not which is the reason for the three stars. Zucchini chips were soggy with not alot of flavor. The Branzino , presentation was not appetizing , I couldn't figure out what the blob was on top of my fish then I realized it was a portobello. The fish was grilled and tasted a little burnt and not alot of flavor all around in the entire dish. Balsamic glaze was not a good choice. Was pretty disappointed in the entire dish. read more

We went this Friday and it was supreme busy even at 7pm. We asked for a table for 3 and we were immediately offered a table and we sat outside under the tent since it was 70 degrees outside. They take all the covid requirements seriously and we appreciated that. They have hand sanitizer stations even across the street. The town did an awesome job allowing businesses to use extra space for business needs. Our waiter was so attentive and gave us his recommendations as well. They were so attentive to everyone there. The food....AMAZING. You can never go wrong. For dessert I recommend the limoncello cake and the affogato vanilla gelato, espresso!!! read more