We went here to celebrate my nephew's graduation from college. First the service was 100%. but that was it. My nephew ordered a chicken dish and it was pink on the inside so not cooked properly. Another person ordered crab cakes and asked where is the crab meat. We had better from the grocery store. Another person said the dish she got had no flavor. I ordered the pasta in red sauce with shrimp. The shrimp were the smallest they could buy and then cut into ev smaller pieces. The sauce was bland. Had better in small mom and pop locations. For the price certainly not worth it read more

Great service and atmosphere the food was plated and prepared perfectly and the dessert carrot cake was delicious. read more

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Great all around ! Run there....don't walk ! Service...drinks...and the food and atmosphere ate 5 star.

First rate location for a celebration dinner. Wait staff is on point and meals beautifully prepared and presented. Someone is always near by to support a request and provide a recommendation or modify a meal accordingly. Wine list is substantial and well curated. We had an Meritage which was superlative. Dessert also hit the mark with OG choices only available at a real deal fine Italian restaurant. read more

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Was there most recently for lunch but have also been there for dinner. Food is amazing and service is always impeccable. Would definitely go back! My absolute favorite is either the Arctic Char for a light lunch or the Osso Bucco when I really want to treat myself. Either way, no matter what you pick, you won't be disappointed. read more

The food, service and atmosphere never disappoint. We tried some specials and off menu items which were all delicious. As usual, Donny paired the meals perfectly. read more

Ristorante da Benito - Pappardelle Carne, Vitello Parmigiana veal saltimbocca alla romana - Italian Near Me - Union, New Jersey

I can't believe that I'm writing an excellent review for a restaurant in Union but this restaurant is excellent. Service great, drinks great, and food great. Pasta done just right. Will definitely return. read more

While the food is good here the price point is just ridiculous. Drinks are way overpriced. It's not like this is an amazing place you have to go to. For me it's a place I'll visit rarely. read more

The food was great just wasn't enough on the plate. They gave us a complimentary dessert because we were celebrating our 21st wedding anniversary. Oh and by the way, the Margarita was awesome. read more

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I came here for a date this week for dinner . I had never heard of this place until my date mentioned it . All I can say is wow!!! The quality of the food and service is phenomenal. It is 4 star dining and I was so surprised how fast the food came out . If you go , order the cheese tortellini appetizer . It is very rich so you can definitely share . Their pastas and sauce are homemade you definitely don't want to miss that . We didn't order dessert but I saw some that came out and they looked very appealing . This place is a game change to the area I hope they do well . read more

Ristorante da Benito - Italian Near Me - Union, New Jersey

An old school Italian place that feels luxe. To start, we were given a bread basket with the greenest olive oil I've ever seen! The bread was not warmed but the texture was nice regardless (crispy crust and soft chewy inside). One of the specials for the day was oyster Rockefeller so we decided to try. It was good! My fiancé thought the toppings kind of overwhelmed the actual oysters but it was our first time having this dish so maybe that is the intention. For mains, we shared linguine alle vongole and a breaded veal dish. Both were generous portions. The linguine was cooked very Al dente and the sauce was delicious. The clams were on the chewy side, however. As for the veal, it was plated so that a salad rested on top of the veal. I thought this was an interesting choice since the heat of the veal wilted the lettuce almost immediately making it less enjoyable. I found myself wanting more seasoning - either more salt on the veal, a dressing for the relatively plain salad, or maybe a sauce? It was still enjoyable but I wanted more flavor. By the end we were stuffed but still opted for dessert. They unfortunately do not have tiramisu but we got a chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream which was great. Overall the service is good too. read more

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My friend took me here for my birthday and I had mixed feeling regarding the food. I don't know but it didn't feel like an Italian restaurant to me, or the ones I'm used to. We had the tuna tartar and it was the worst I have had. The texture and look was more like beef and the flavor was off completely. For the entrée I had the filet which was okay and my friend had a five cheese cheese pasta that she liked but I found it taste more like a Chinese dumpling with cheese sauce. The best part was the crème brulee. That was delicious and their coffee. read more

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Real good food. Pictures here on yelp don't do it justice for inside or food pics. Caesar salad was perfectly dressed, cauliflower soup (nightly special) was nice... my rack of lamb was cooked really well and i was apprehensive about the cabbage salad underneath but it was a highlight. Wife's arctic char was good too. Unassuming from outside... limited parking but just go down street. read more

I had high expectations for this restaurant, based on their reputation and their prices. I started with a special app ($14), a thin slice of roasted eggplant stacked on top of a tomato slice, goat cheese, and a few arugula leaves, dressed with balsamico. It was OK, but the tomato was not ripe, and the eggplant was dry. My entrée was their famous osso buco ($45). It was a generous portion, but utterly bland, even the sauce. It desperately needed seasoning: salt, pepper, garlic, bay leaf, anything. It was underwhelming. I make it better myself. Of course, I ate it, but didn't love it. I had the carrot cake for dessert. Obviously bought in, and served cold, straight from the refrigerator. I didn't finish it. The wine list is impressive, and the service was very professional. Our waitress was pleasant and attentive, without being intrusive. I'll echo what some other reviewers have said. Come here for the wine, service, and decor, but maybe not the food. read more

Ristorante da Benito - da Benito osso buco - Italian Near Me - Union, New Jersey

My wife had been here on a couple of occasions for business lunches and bragged about how good it is. So on her birthday, she wanted to go back for dinner. Being the great husband, I was happy to oblige. After you place your order, fresh bread and a dipping oil comes to your table. The bread was fresh and the dipping oil was nice. I did a good job on the bread. We began our meal with appetizers. We ordered Spanish octopus and the crab cakes. The Spanish Octopus consisted of thinly sliced meat from the octopus and you didn't see the legs, etc. It came with a chickpea puree. Excellent. The two crabcakes were small but cooked fresh and very tasty. Our entrees consisted of the whole wheat pasta with gorgonzola and walnuts and the angel hair pasta with shrimp in a fresh tomato sauce. The whole wheat pasta portion was small but an acceptable size for my wife. Very happy. My angel hair dish was loaded with plenty of shrimp and the portion was generous. Excellent sauce. We took home two slices of carrot cake for later. We both have had better carrot cake. Portion was good but it could have been fresher. The service was excellent. The prices were on the higher side but expect very good quality. There was a parking lot across the street and some on street parking. read more

Not enough good can be said about Ristorante da Benito. It's fabulous!!! This is a first class restaurant in terms of food, service, and ambiance. Wait staff were plenty, and we never wanted for water and bread refills. The maitre d and the owner were vigilant and attentive. We were there for 2 1/2 hours - this is dining as an experience and not a quick bite - and never felt rushed. Was here for lunch. Had the orecchiette with cherry tomatoes, a light, refreshing entree. My colleagues had the linguine with white clam sauce, the lobster filled ravioli, and the arctic char. Plating was beautiful and everyone ate every morsel. For dessert I had the coffee ice cream while one colleague had the trio of sorbet flavors and another had the carrot cake. All were exceptional. The icy treats are homemade; I gather the carrot cake is as well. There's ample parking. As far as the ladies restroom: it's beautifully appointed including luxurious hand soap plus gorgeous sinks and fixtures. read more

Was forewarned it be ovverated and it was that.not a great selection considering their pasta is homemade....no wine list presented..place very outdated,linguine and class were ok, dessert not so good and apps very small portion...won't be going back read more

Upon entering one can sense the energy of the room since the acoustics of not having any soft surfaces yields a very noisy, almost annoying din of loud shouting by the interesting over enthusiastic crowd of what appears to be "locals" The staff are incredibly charming from start to finish. We started with the Caesar salad .. nice flavors, perhaps a bit too much dressing but overall very nice the pastas here are wonderful all prepared in an original and authentic Italian style. We shared the pappardelle bolognese which was divine I also had lamb chops.. asked for medium got them rare.... I suppose the chef insists on rare Carrot cake a bit dense but very delicious! I must also say the wines here are quite nice with a large selection to choose from. Ill be back! read more

Benito is an outstanding chef and restaurateur. His food is exceptional, and service excellent!I have held several large parties at his restaurant and he has never failed to please us! read more

Update! Spoke to my bank today, explained exactly what happened to us at this dump. My bank refunded us for the full amount! Sorry it had to come to this. We attempted to talk with the owner and address the issue,, he had no interest in talking to me or my wife.The owners are not good at pleasing an unhappy customer. Very unprofessional. read more

Favorite Italian restaurant in Union County! Foodd is incredible, service is impeccable and the owner is on site and addresses every guest.

what an amazing experience I love this restaurant the meatballs are some of the best I've ever had in New Jersey, I love the Osso Buco. It's also one of my favorite dishes and my go to restaurant when I'm in the mood for Osso Buco. The selection at the bar is phenomenal and their menu has everything you can imagine. Definitely give it a try. It's been around for years and their quality is like no other. read more

Full disclosure: I attended a work event in the private dining room so did not pay for the meal. We were only able to order from a limited pre-set menu. Food: incredibly underwhelming based on the other Yelp reviews - Cold Antipasto (mozzarella, roasted pepper, and tomato): sad piece of tomato topped with a single piece of mozarella. One small roasted pepper was splayed open in the attempt to fill the empty plate. Did they run out of ingredients in the kitchen? I would recommend putting it on a smaller plate at the very least, so it doesn't look so ridiculous - Mixed Baby Field Green Salad: bed of mixed greens with a few tiny radish slices thrown in as an afterthought. More thought needs to be put into the composition of this dish - Slow Cooked Wild Salmon: got this based on the waiter's recommendation. Someone needs to take an objective look at the ingredients and proportions of the dish. Huge piece of salmon that was undercooked in the middle. I don't mind it being on the rare side, but one of the people in our party sent it back because she couldn't stomach it. It was topped with thinly sliced cucumbers and cherry tomatoes with a tiny piece of chickpea cake on the side. This dish would have been more successful had the salmon been a smaller portion (easier to achieve the correct temperature) accompanied by some type of grain (ex. rice, couscous, farro) and vegetables - Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream: the inside of the chocolate cake did have the ooey gooey goodness of melted chocolate that paired well with the vanilla ice cream. Probably the most successful dish of the night Service/Ambiance: Excellent service and pace of the courses for the meal. The private dining area was spacious and had the feeling of an intimate dinner in a wine cellar given the bottles that adorned the walls. There is a parking lot across the street from the restaurant Overall: I am very glad I did not pay for this meal read more

An absolute must!!! The staff was amazing...my water glass never reached 1/2 full....the veal was just out of this world!!!! I'm always a bit apprehensive on trying new places but I put on my big boy pants and listened to the recommendation from a client and well I now have my for sure go to place in Union county area....... Thanks again and see you real soon :) read more

Excellent Italian restaurant located st Five Corners in Union. Nice ambiance and good service. Parking lot on side of restaurant and across street. Appetizer of crab cakes was good and filled with crab meat. Dinner of jumbo shrimp and vegetables satisfying. Finished off with créeme burlee. Definitely returning! read more

Ristorante da Benito - Eny - Italian Near Me - Union, New Jersey

Went here for a group dinner. Ambience is nice but that's about the only okay thing about the restaurant. Bread basket is decent, although not warmed, Olive Oil tasted fine. Then everything goes south. We ordered their special german sausage appetizer, crab cakes, octopus, roast chicken, linguini with clams, pappardelle bolognese, rack of lamb, and shrimp. Sausage app, was very fatty, overcooked, crab cakes were dry, roast chicken was actually good. linguini, papperdelle, rack of lamb, and shrimp were not memorable. To add insult to injury, they charge more than what some items are actually worth when comparing to the menu. One of our group members was called fat, even if it is a joke, that's a bit unnerving. They also added an additional item to our bill which we didn't catch until the next day. We spoke with a female manager and she is an absolute horrible human being. TLDR: Overpriced, underwhelming flavor, very small portions, poor service. Do yourself a favor and avoid at all cost. read more

Amazing and delicious food prepared with passion outstanding service consecutive cuisine read more

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One word Gondolas get them :-) to die for! All food delicious. Very nice place. Great wine selection read more

Al Pacino ate here. Al f*ckin' Pacino and I'm giving it 3 stars. This place is definitely a spot Tony Soprano would have holed up in and got down on some fine homemade ravioli while trying to wine and dine some goombah. Benito's has been around for a while and is most definitely an old school locals spot. I unfortunately wasn't so impressed, mostly due to the price/value ratio. The place is huge, definitely a great site for a holiday/engagement party/private event, etc.. They have rooms that are sectioned off for privacy and the remaining space has an open dining area concept. Another plus is that there are no hard seats here, almost like lil' couches, your bottom is nicely cushioned at this linen napkin upscale joint. Our Caesar salad for 2 was Pathetic with a capital P. First of all, a caesar salad for two means you are making two people get the same salad; one would hope there would be a reason for this. So when a waiter saunters over with 2 plates with 2 measly servings of drenched lettuce, it will always be a huge fail. Why make 2 people get this? My FIL-to be enjoyed his crab cake very much, so I'd suggest you steer your appetizer eyes over in that direction. Moving on to the entrees, my veal scallopine was the best cooked scallopine I've ever had. Super thin, perfectly breaded and sauteed; this dish was seriously tender. The problem was portion size. Now, now, now, I'm not one of those people that needs a doggy bag, but for $30, I definitely wasn't satiated. Johnny Mac got the swordfish special and it was a big thick cut, nicely prepared. The warm chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream was heavenly. Warm fudge literally oozed out upon the first bite. All the desserts are homemade and definitely worth the caloric intake. Coffee was complimented with free biscotti and Italian cookies, which is always a nice touch. Chef Benito came out and gave us a grazie for coming in, I'm totally into it. If I was a baller and lived in Union County area this would be on my list, however while I'm living in JC, I'll stick to my Hudson County gems. read more

Ristorante da Benito - Italian Near Me - Union, New Jersey

Best Italian restaurant in NJ.....food from appetizers to desert fantastic Service is excellent, always a beautiful experience! read more

Valentines dinner. Exceptional. Excellent service, food and drinks were amazing. If you come here you must try the trio crema brulee! Reason for my 4 star and not 5: Although we had reservations, we waited about 25 -30mins for a table anyways. read more

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Was recommended a few times from family friends. They were amazing and very accommodating but the meal fell short. We had baked clams (great) and requested shrimp cocktail which they gave us but was warm. We got 2 pastas and Osso bucco. Both were decent but wouldn't run back for it. Went in with way higher expectations. Service was great but food meh. Would go elsewhere. read more

The food here is always fantastic, delicious dishes, beautiful presentation and no matter what we order we are always delighted with the meal. The wine list is extensive and the Ossobuco is out of this world, THE BEST I EVER HAD! The host is very hospitable, the servers are impeccable, super efficient, happy and polite. I recommend to everyone and I will be going back again and again. read more

How this restaurant only has 4 stars is beyond my comprehension. I have been coming here for almost a decade and it is by far the best restaurant in the state of New Jersey. I am assuming the low amount of reviews is because most of the clientele has been coming for so many years, it wouldn't cross their mind to write a review... which is understandable. I also need to add that my career requires me to dine out a lot and I have been to so many good restaurants and, in New Jersey, we are blessed to have many... but this is the BEST. It's not just the food but the SERVICE!! If you want an amazing meal, quick service and to be treated with respect... come here. And I'm so sorry it took me 10 years to write this myself! read more

This place is a hidden gem! Amazing food start to finish, from the bread, beverage, appetizer, entree and the Delish dessert. Bartender on point to give you all on the feels and make this very special night. The family atmosphere makes you feel like you're one of their own. We have came here numerous times and there is no better service or hospitality anywhere in this state! Can't say enough, just try one of the daily dinner specials what ever the surprise is it's an amazing dish you are truly in for a treat. The phenomenal culinary knowledge of this chef and his family makes familiar plates and tastes truly spectacular. Can't say enough.. this is for sure a must! Believe me you won't be disappointed!! read more

Ristorante da Benito - Prime bone in center cut veal chop - Italian Near Me - Union, New Jersey

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A great fine dining Italian restaurant in the small city of Union in New Jersey. The place is packed with people, make an early reservation is recommended. Get ready for the pricey meal and small portion. It also offers different kind of red and white wine, both local and international. Ordered the rack of lamb chop and taste incredible tender and delicious. The lamb is flavorful, the smell of the lamb is not heavy, and highly recommended. As appetizer, order the shrimp and scallop platter, it's awesome and taste ridiculous good! Ordered the carrot cake with mango sorbet as desert, oolala... so goooood!!!! Btw, ordered also a bottle of 2007 Argentina Malbec read more

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Clean..fresh...nice staff but they WAY over price and portion are smaller. I felt I was in Paris near the arch de triumph .. good yes ..worth the price..no. go for anniversary or such very elegant. read more

Why do I love this place? Because it served me the most perfect, titillating filet mignon I have ever tried outside of NYC. Ristorante da Benito should just change their name to Buono since my experience from start to finish was nothing but that. Before I even write my review, I'm going to answer the inevitable question of whether I would come back again. The answer ladies and gentlemen is a resounding YES! I made my first visit to this place during a corporate meeting. I don't really expect a lot from these meetings, food-wise, because of past experiences but boy was I about to be proven wrong. Sitting on the usual long tables talking about the usual business idiocy that makes me fall asleep, I couldn't wait to finish and go home. Thankfully the antipasti came out and my eyes lit up. Hold up this thing looks incredible. Mozzarella, roasted pepper, and roasted tomato drizzled with a perfectly tangy glaze woke up my palate, and myself for that matter, because of how fresh and delicious it was. I swear the mozzarella was so fresh you could almost hear the cow in the distance calling out to you mooo. The pepper and tomato had the same freshness present that truly made this an amazing start to the meal. Okay so after a couple of minutes the main course finally came out. Getting a sense of how this place seems to take pride in their cooking I was curious how they would do with what I had ordered--perfectly medium filet mignon. Well let me tell you I can safely say I haven't had a filet mignon this good in New Jersey. That's a tall order for me to say but I stand by it. The filet is pan seared on a bed of potato gratin and blue cheese with a tarragon, Marsala, and red wine reduction. Yeah I know ridiculous right! That filet mignon came out so perfectly medium you would need to take out a cookbook to see the true definition of medium in order to appreciate it. The sauce was earthy and bold but never overpowered the beef. And the blue cheese flavored potato gratin was rich and fluffy with a hint of sweetness that balanced everything out. Man even now I still think of that dish. As if a cherry on top of a cake, the dessert I ordered rounded out the meal on a sweet note. I ordered the trio of crème brule. Now I think I've made it obvious how much I have an affinity for crème brule so I wanted to see if da Benito would have one weakness. Well I guess there is such a thing as being too much of an overachiever because this restaurant served up a sugar-inducing coma with their traditional, coffee, and peanut butter flavored crème brule. With its crunchy top, soft and decadent body and a velvety consistency on my palate sums up pretty much everything that dessert was. After stuffing myself silly, I left that meeting wanting, no needing, to come back to this restaurant. It's a great place for special occasions and based on my experience will certainly not fall short on the quality of their food. read more

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Always a great experience, the food is outstanding. The veal Milanese is mouth watering, cooked to perfection. The staff is so friendly and service is always fantastic. They make you feel like family. Management is attentive and accommodating to your needs. Always a wonderful dining experience! read more

I went to Benito last night for my Fraternity's annual formal. The place is relatively small so we took up most of it, but for that reason I cannot really comment on normal service standards. The restaurant had this pretty modern and classy vibe which is something that I wouldn't typically associate with our fraternity. It brought a touch of class to our rowdy bunch. We had a prefix 4 course menu that absolutely blew me away. Our alumni chair had gone previously to sample the food, and came back with very positive reviews. I was skeptical at first because they had only been cooking for one person, and when catering for about 80 people, I absolutely expect the level of cuisine to suffer; however, Benito's did not fail to deliver. The first appetizer was prosciutto with some slices of cantaloupe. The salty and sweet mix turned on my tastebuds for what was to come. The next course was so good that you'll have to forgive my use of caps. THEIR HOMEMADE RAVIOLI BLEW MY MIND. I felt like I was eating in the five star kitchens of Italy with the ravioli that I was served. It was so good that it nearly caused a riot as our brothers were trying to steal more from other people's plates. But most efforts were fruitless as most people inhaled the pasta puffs before you could even blink. The main entree that I sampled was a fillet mignon on a bed of potatoes. There were a few people who found it too rare, but because I like my meats as rare as a Mewtwo (that's a pokemon reference HAH), I thought the dish was fine. The only complaint I really heard was that there wasn't enough of it! My date had the salmon which I was able to try as well. It looked as good as it tasted, which is pretty damn good. For the dessert, I was able to have the tiramisu and the cheescake. Both were pretty good, and if I had them alone, I probably would have thought they were fantastic. But because I was so impressed by the other parts of the meal, they felt pretty average. Overall, the night was a wonderful success. The food was excellent and did not suffer any bit from the catering syndrome, and it only makes me want to go back for more. P.S. I was completely sober for the food portion and hammered on the open bar after the dessert. While the rest of my night was a blur, the food clearly stands out, which speaks even more volumes! read more

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