We were excited to be dining at a new steakhouse to us. When we arrived they said our reservation had been canceled and we said that could not be as we were driving there at the time the reservation was cancelled. They were able to book us again and sat us promptly. Our waiter was informative and knowledgeable of the menu. He informed us that the kitchen prefers to receive the entire order so we placed our appetizers: charred octopus and lamb chops. I also ordered a wedge salad. Another waiter came to our table to Inform us that our original server shift had ended and he would be taking care of us. Our appetizers came! The octopus was perfection! Extremely good! Honestly, the best I've ever had. The lamb came med rare and that was a little to rare for my wife. We waited for a considerable amount of time as I had completed the octopus and was expecting the rest of the items to come. We wanted to send the lamb back to be cooked a little longer but when the waiter finally returned I said I thought our meal would be here by now and so we will take the lamb home. He looked at me and said, no, your order goes in when your appetizers are finished. I said, That's what I expected but that's not what your comrade said. He apologized and placed a fire on our order. As a former restauranteur, I understood fully. I also noticed he was responsible for 3 other tables. Eventually the Halibut came and my wife's salad! The halibut was exceptional. A little small serving size for the price but it was prepared very well. And the homemade fries, no truffle oil, is worth the trip! We will be back with others. Nice ambience but it was chilly based on where we were sitting! A definite plus is valet parking too! read more

Beyond underwhelming. So upset about this. First, our table was great. We were immediately greeted by a bus boy telling us sparkling water. My husband and I are Spanish speaking and told him no, regular water. I love pellegreno but we just didn't want it. Our waiter came over. He was nice enough but other than that, the service seriously lacked. The octopus was not charred whatsoever. My spouse enjoyed it but the man doesn't know. He just doesn't know. The other 2 appetizers were just decent. Nothing I would run back for. The waiter recommended all the fish appetizers. He was also saying to me most tables of 2 do the tomahawk and the lobster tails. That's great, but I love my NY strip. I felt like he was trying to get us to spend which we do regardless but if I'm going to spend don't try to upsell me on a tomahawk. Anyhow onto the steaks. He spaced out entrees and appetizers- one good thing. We definitely didn't feel rushed but I couldnt wait to run out of there. He didn't come by once to pour wine. My steak was too charred and completely undercooked on the inside My spouse his was delicious. The sides were decent. Service sucked. I would never go back. For a $300.00 bill, BYOB and a crowd that looked grunge. Who goes to a steakhouse in sneakers and jeans? What is the vibe supposed to be? It def is not the scene like Butchers Block or Prime 112. I think it's a confused spot. I wanted to love it but the waiters attitude ruined my night. Also, the smell of the char made me so nauseous. I love to try new places but this is def not one I am willing to return too. Too bad because it is so close by. read more

After being sat in their upstairs outdoor area with a heater that turned on and off.. to the point that I spent the entire meal cold and so did the rest of our party. We never had our water refilled and when taking our order the experience felt like dealing with a used car SALESMAN. They charge you for for everything including the Chimichurri is an extra 10 dollars. When our meals finally came one of our dishes was cold, we asked kindly if they could fix the issue they reheated it... food came back out still cold. We ask to speak to manager, he did not have any interest in coming to speak with us... eventually once we paid the bill he approached us and said it was to late for him to do anything. When I go out dinner and pay premium prices ... I expect to have premium service not be nickeled and dimed while eating in the cold with below standard service with food that does not wow! WILL NOT RETURN! read more

Excellent restaurant with a variety of options. The cowboy ribeye was huge and cooked perfectly and the sides (Brussels sprouts, French fries, sweet potato fries, shishito peppers, Mac and cheese) were delicious. This is probably the best new dinner spot in downtown freehold. Dessert was great too and they support BYOB!! read more

Had a great dinner! Everything was great- kuddos to our server Brandon and Jay for their 5 star service. The appetizers did not disappoint- Figs pizza Trio pasta Pork belly Charcuterie board had great choices Dinner- Everyone had filets ( perfectly cooked) Sauce was amazing Sides- Sweet potato fries Truffle fries Mashed potatoes Mac and cheese Brussels sprouts Dessert board was the cherry on top!! Looking forward to going back soon. So happy we have a great restaurant in town. read more

My husband and I were very impressed! BYOB is not our regular thing. The attention to detail, plating, service and design made us big fans. From start to finish, Jack our server was helping us make choices. It was the calm before the storm on Sat. afternoon. We had time to talk and watch a well run, busy night work. Between the two of us we have well over 40 years experience in the restaurant business. I did not even get to the great food! A delicious dried papaya and a lot more surprises. We can't wait to bring friends! read more

Had a great evening from start to finish tonight! From the hostess to the the servers and everyone and everything in between it was a great experience. Ambience was reminiscent of NYC or Chicago upscale dining. Food: Octopus was full on flavor and a great portion. The Short Rib was nothing short of a perfectly cooked Dinosaur Bone with intense flavors and melt in mouth textures. The 55 day aged Chefs Special steak was perfectly executed and should remain a special. I forgot to mention the house made/baked breads complimented with seasoned soften butter that could have been the start and finish of the meal. Back to the courses, the potatoes Dauphine cooked in duck fat was a highlight of the meal. Root Veg was very well seasoned and cooked. What stole the show (or maybe the wine kicked in at this point) was the Spicy Brownie with the marshmallow and Vanilla gelato on top... we sat upstairs and as our server Martha pointed out it has its own unique vibe up there! I try to be completely transparent, I should say the parking is the only negative. And from what I hear, stay tuned for private dining room and brewery next door! Make your reservations asap! read more

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Wow Nice addition to Freehold Pizza was so good Clams spot on Filet mignon cooked perfectly I'd stay away from the pork chop, that was overcooked but still edible, by no means garbage. Hip place. Hip music. Hip staff Def give this a try read more

Not a place to dine. The music was very loud, the kitchen insisted that we order everything at once and the server was not very pleasant. The entrees came out immediately after we finished our appetizers. The food was good, although the asparagus was "reedy". Not a place I needed to return to read more

We were there for a family Easter Diner. We had reservations for 6. Service was absolutely awful. We had to ask for ketchup for the fries and Salt & Pepper for the table which took forever to get. House Diner Specials and Salads were just mediocre. Two had the filet mignon sandwich said it was tough and hard to chew. The remaining four of had Pasta and Seafood specials and they thought dinners were just okay. Definitely not worth the price. We were seated upstairs and just be for warned the bathroom is unisex, the door does not lock and it is right off the dining room so when you open the door everyone can see in. The decor is really nice -- read more

Beautiful atmosphere and overall great addition to freehold... however, the menu is quite overpriced for what you get. The dry aged steak was ordered medium and served almost rare. The broccoli rabe was tough and gag worthy... and lastly, the service was SO fast that it was borderline indirectly being rushed. Mediocre spot overall that has potential. read more

I tried to leave a review on Google idk it's not working for me, anyways - I chose Charkol for my birthday dinner in hopes that either Nick of Leaf would be our server this evening. We continue to come back to Charkol because they truly have the best wait staff out of any restaurant we've been to. Lucky for us, Nick was our server and Leaf stopped by to chat! Nick is very knowledgeable about the entire menu and gives great recommendations, we had a fantastic meal thanks to him! If it wasn't for their wait staff, and of course Nick and Leaf, we wouldn't have the same experience - they make the meal! Thank you Nick for a great birthday dinner, we will be back soon :) read more

The menu is limited everything on it is extremely Overpriced. The portions are small. The appetizer ribs are like giant leather dinosaur ribs (don't bother). They were out of most of the seafood and it's Tuesday. Missing multiple best options on the menu. Menu very limited needs A refurbishment. Staff extremely nice, place is beautiful. ‍ read more

Not your typical steak house. The whole ambiance was such a good vibe! We ordered the tomahawk for 2 and it was cooked to perfection. We tried quite a few sides and they were all delicious. Its byob which helps. It was a little pricey but it was worth it! read more

Unique interior design with hanging lights and blue patterned wall with high ceilings. Cuts of meat showcased in glass. Top notch fries (some of the best), mac and cheese and pork belly. Wonderful crusted halibut. Nice steak san, scallops, pork shank. Sweet flavored risotto definitely different ... Pleasant service. For an establishment offering what it does, and in the way it does, we're all wondering why it's still BYOB. Pop into the liquor store on Main if you forget your bottle(s). One other tip, just from our perspective, rather than show the credit card fees on the bill itself creating a list of pennies, just build it into the overall cost. The tack on is Tacky! Parking a premium in downtown Freehold. read more

Nice atmosphere cool vibe but too many issues to mention. No wine glasses at seating, after much delay waiter showed up with one... there was four of us. Lets see what else how about waiter not taking time to explain meat temperature preference, just kept saying "I cant tell you how you like your steak". Waited excessive time for meal to be served, one meal served on a chipped plate. We were celebrating two birthdays and forgot requested candles for both. Then waiter had the nerve to return and stated that he did not think we tipped him enough. Needless to say no need to ever dine here again. Big L read more

Food was fantastic! Our waitress, Kelly was so sweet and attentive. Steak was cooked to perfection. Definitely going back

This place was a complete let down. Service was terrible beginning with too many hosts just standing around to our 2 servers who paid no attention to us & did not check on us during the meal. My husband & I went with another couple. The 2 ladies ordered the filet & the men ordered rib eyes. Both were extremely salty, unbelievably salty. It was very disappointing. We did not mention it due to the fact that our server disappeared & felt nobody cared anyway. Almost $400 bill for byob. Def not worth the time & money! We will not be going back. read more

Trying to be high-end but truly failing at it. A lot of favoritism in this place. Arrived with our byob and told they told use they have no more wine glasses. Waited so long to get our main meal while another table got theirs. We were there before them. Truffle fries? With truffle oil? I think not. Overall food took too long. And i am disappointed. read more

Best steak by far. Been to the famous Peter Luger's in Brooklyn and I have to say this place blows it out of the water. Atmosphere is loud and obnoxious but the food will distract you. A must for any special occasion, we've seen waiters walking around with what looked like Roman candles for Birthday celebrations. Great atmosphere. They did a great job with the aesthetically pleasing indoor decor. You will depart with a full belly and very satisfied! read more

Salty food rare steak . I asked for medium rare and I got them rare !! The spinach was salty and mash potatoes tasteless !! They octopus was very salty !! Very disappointed !! Too much money for mediocre food . Won't be back read more

We had heard very mixed reviews, but decided to give it a chance. As an appetizer we went with the seared pork belly, which was delicious and well presented. For the main course, we got the dry aged porter house for two and a side of wood fire Brussels sprouts. The porter house seemed like it wasn't seasoned at all and had absolutely no flavor. The Brussels sprouts were extremely undercooked and they too lacked flavor. Establishment is way too expensive to have to flip a coin on if you're going to get a quality meal or not. Would not frequent again anytime soon. read more

Great looking place. Food quality is not bad. Terrible wait for Saturday night. We had to wait for an hour for small Porter house for two that looked like T-bone for one. Side dishes came when we were done with the steak. Yet, the entire order had to be ordered together. We will not return. read more

Top steakhouse prices should have top steakhouse product. Don't get me wrong the steak was great but the steak sauces were inedible. Also the pork belly was probably the worst appetizer I have ever had. One last thing. Turn down the music. It was so loud the night I went I couldn't even have a conversation with my wife read more

It was a holiday family get together with 11 people. They had a great table and an excellent waiter. Who was both personable and professional. The menu variety was able to provide options for everyone (vegan to carnivore). The food was excellent, cooked to order. The sides were large enough to be shared comfortably. The restaurant is BYOB, but my son-in-laws earned their dinner by running across the street to buy a couple of bottles of Wine. We ordered 1 of each on the dessert menu and passed it around, everyone was more than satisfied. My 3 year old granddaughter specifically enjoyed the macaroni and cheese, along with desserts. read more

The most horrific experience I have ever had at a restaurant. Because I complained that the food was too salty, the server went psycho on me. Such unbecoming and ungracious behavior. Axel needs to be trained in accommodating complaints because his anger is not appreciated at restaurants. read more

Horrible service and very overpriced for both the quality and the fact that it is a BYOB. Our waiter had a huge personality bordering on obnoxious which would have been ok if he was attentive and skilled. He was not. Drink service was slow almost non-existent leaving at least half of our party thirsty on and off through our meal. When we asked the waiter for some water he was sarcastic with us and even became confrontational over it. Also, watch out for all the upcharges. Horrible over priced experience. Definitely go someplace else. read more

We went to Charkol to celebrate a birthday and it was great. The steak was pretty good, but everything else was delicious. The bread to start was so unique, salty and the perfect texture. The sides were all amazing and the atmosphere was lovely. Our server was very friendly and helpful and answered all of our questions. read more

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The restaurant is gorgeous, the hostesses were welcoming but overall this place was disappointing. The food was fine, but was hoping for great. The pizza appetizer was the best option. Clams were really bad, gritty and really big. The bread and butter were great. The shrimp tempura appetizer didnt get good reviews, but the scallion pancake was a nice touch. Got the tomahawk for two, was not really that hot and was too fatty for my liking. Food came out really staggered, forgot a few things that came out after we were done and they kindly took off the bill because we ate as an after thought. Brussel sprouts were eh, fries were great. Place is VERY loud. Overall, its a nice place to go to impress someone with a nice night out, but the food doesn't live up to the hype. There are a lot of small things they could do to make this place so much better read more

Not worth it. Slow to bring food. Food was cold. Not ok for a $70 steak. Order missing items. Inattentive staff. They have a lot of work to do. read more

I was at Char-kol for the first time on Saturday night. It was extremely busy, but that did not effect the service or the food. Our server Christine was polite, helpful and funny. My husband and I both had the NY strip and both were cooked to perfection. We also had the mac and cheese which was also very good. We will definitely be back, and will request Christine. read more

Low rating. Normal restaurant start up issues. First and foremost, steak was really good bad news 45 minute wait for food, steak I ordered was out of stock so have to pay 10$ for dry aged cut of same steak ( really) and had to send back one dinner steak was actually raw. Just thinking how chef Ramsey would have reacted. Plus side, Great vibe, kind of loud would reduce sound on music, heavy capital investment, very impressive decor, servers great, this was a Thursday, hmm Friday and Saturday would be worse. They will figure it out but slow out of the blocks for the $$$$ they charge. Byob so that makes up for a lot. read more

We had reservations for 4 and were seated promptly. Chairs were wrapped in warm brown leather very trendy. The atmosphere was amazing as was the service. Only open for 3 months they are working hard an on top of their game. The menu had something for everyone at varied price ranges. It's ala carte but the portions can be shared. Steaks were amazing and cooked perfectly. Pizza appetizer with pork belly and red onions was delicious. We were amazed from start to finish. It was also nice to try a new place in downtown Freehold. Definitely a top spot we will visit again. Plus it's a byob. They offer a discount for cash charging a cc fee. Pricey but well worth every dollar. read more

Great ambiance, great food, great staff! And thank you for not charging for using our charge card. We'll be back!

Disappointed. The short ribs first came out cold. Second time it was hot but the meat was disgusting. 90 percent fat. And it came other polenta which I asked to change to mashed. Waitress said no changes and that I would need buy a side. Order 12 dollar smashed potatoes. Got a tiny bowl of powered mashed potatoes worth about 25 cents. And it was cold by time the entree came out hot. Overpriced. And not worth it. Only good thing was the fries that came with a burger read more

We didn't stay. Arrived for 5:00 reservation and they were all in a meeting. No seating. Meanwhile it sounds like a disco in there. I asked if it could be lowered and the hostess politely told us "This is the vibe we want." Note that this is hardly the first review to complain about the noise in this restaurant. I'm not looking to hurt their business. Someone put a lot of work into this place. The food and service are said to be good. And you might feel differently. Maybe you don't mind the banging. But for some people, a loud-music dinner environment is a deal-breaker. I understand that a business and a customer must form a match. Some businesses purposely bounce some types of customers in favor of others. That's their right. In any case, this was not the vibe *we* wanted so we left. It's our anniversary. We wanted an upscale dinner and it was still early, so we went a short distance to a very comparable restaurant where the sound system is set perfectly, we were promptly seated, fed delicious food and given excellent service. I'll check the reviews from time to time. They are only open about a month. If the situation improves, maybe we will try again. read more

Wife and I ate outside for our 25th anniversary dinner. Service was excellent, Very attentive and friendly but not overwhelming. Outside seating overlooks the train tracks and downtown Freehold - not exactly scenic but not too bad. Food was excellent. I had the shrimp tempura as an app - unbelievably delicious. I splurged on a $75 ribeye steak which was also good but not amazing at that price. Steak was overpriced in my opinion. Does not include a side. Wife had scallops which were incredible. It's BYOB and there is a liquor store down the block. We passed through the inside dining area on our way out - beautiful inside and very modern. Glad we ate outside as it was ridiculously loud inside at peak hour. I'd give it 3.5 stars if I could and I will return but would not order the overpriced ribeye. read more

Pros - Great atmosphere and attentive service. Easy to find parking. It's BYOB Cons - The food lacked flavor. The roasted middle neck claims were salty. The char grilled Caesar was the only thing I enjoyed. For entrees I got the dry aged NY Strip steak and my husband got the premium NY Strip steak. We both agreed the steak was dry. For sides, the mac and cheese was bland and the fries were okay. I loved the decor of the place but the food was disappointing. read more

my family went there last night for a birthday dinner for the first time for a first impression it was very nice. We sat at our table and I immediately felt cold air blowing on me from above somewhere to the point where my daughters hair was blowing from the breeze. We ordered our food and found out if you want a veggie with dinner it's extra for all entrees except tomahawk steak, you get fries with that meal.I asked the waiter if he could get the air turned down and he said he would look into it. The food was good but after dinner we ordered coffees and all were literally cold. At this point i was done with this place to go home and warm up. I was freezing when we left there. Never going back to that place read more

Complete disaster of a dinner. And it's a shame because we really wanted to like this place. Reservations: We visited this establishment for the first time to celebrate our wedding anniversary. We booked a reservation beforehand and indicated that this was a special event. We don't think they even looked at our reservation details since there was zero mention of our anniversary. Service: The service was horrendous. Our server messed the order up multiple times. It was almost comical. He was also distracted and unprofessional. And the owner/manager (hipster gentlemen) never came by to apologize for the multiple mistakes his server made. It was really disappointing to see how management wouldn't own up to the service provided. Food: The "dry aged" cowboy ribeye was mediocre and bland. Not enough "char" on the surface of the steak. My wife's short rib was also bland and flavorless. Sausage pizza was ok. The highlight of our meal was the pork belly appetizer. Final thoughts: The only thing we liked about this place was the ambiance, pork belly app and the fact that it was byob. Those are the only reasons I gave them two stars. If you're looking for good food and service, steer clear of this place. We won't be going back. read more