Nothing beats a meal cooked entirely from scratch. All meals are prepared from raw, basic fresh ingredients instead of relying on prepackaged or processed foods. The whole experience brings out a sense of nostalgia for one's childhood at grandmother's house. Today, many scratch kitchens pride themselves on making something particular. Located at a strip mall off of Minnisink Road in Totowa, my partner and I decided on dinner at Robert's Scratch Kitchen for some of us as first-timer. The reservation was easily made via OpenTable. Upon arrival at this cozy, inviting, and relaxed BYOB establishment, we were greeted by the owner, Robert, and got a table immediately by the window. The menu featured a variety of Italian, seafood, steak, pork, and veal dishes that change with the seasons, including a full gluten-free option catered especially to those with celiac. Their usage of an iPad shows the rotated specials was a novel idea. For starters, we decided on the Artichoke Hearts and Apple Salad. Our main meal consisted of Linguini and Clams as well as Eggplant Parmesan. The food was constantly fresh and prepared exactly how we had ordered it. The portions were healthy portions. The price was comparable to the area. The staff was attentive and wanted to ensure that we were happy. Our server was Juan. We had a wonderful culinary experience. read more

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We visited Robert's Scratch Kitchen today (February 14) for Valentine's Day dinner. They start you off with complimentary bread, which was a nice touch. I ordered the filet mignon, and the meat itself was very tender and delicious. The sauce, however, tasted a bit like packaged consommé and could definitely be improved to match the quality of the steak. My wife ordered the gnocchi, and they were very good. For dessert, we had the lava cake, which unfortunately was a little dry. Overall, the service was very good, and the experience was enjoyable. I'd give this place 4 stars. read more

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Awesome service. Amazing food! More than accommodating to both those who do not have food constraints and those limitations because of severe allergies or Celiac, for which we are so grateful!!!! While only one in our party has celiac, our table of 7 dined here because we could ALL enjoy our meal together. We know having to take these precautions are often a challenge, but because you do, we are able to dine with you. So maybe there was one with celiac disease, but 6 others dined with you because we were able to enjoy our dining experience together. We had semonlina bread service. We had the gluten free bread service. We shared the meatball salad, caesar salad and the short rib fries --- all were wonderful. Standout entrees were the GF penne vodka, Grilled veal chop - perfections, Chicken Francaise AND the Gnocchi Bolognese (my dish and also grabbed it GF to share) ... AND the desserts. The specials and the desserts on the IPAD also make everything so tempting and influenced us to order the desserts. Great Restaurant for everyone - truly, for everyone :) I have photos and will try to add.... read more

Came here for Valentine's Day and had an amazing experience. The food was extremely fresh. My husband found this place and when we first pulled in, I wasn't sure what it would be like, but the food was absolutely delicious. Everything is incredibly fresh and I totally recommend. Would definitely come back! read more

Robert's Scratch Kitchen - New American Near Me - Totowa, New Jersey

Another local gem of a spot to eat. It's BYOB! They have plenty of parking. Been here many times and the food is always great. It's noisy but I always feel that's a sign that it's a great restaurant. The staff is always on point as well you don't need a reservation but I suggest it read more

The restaurant is a sparkly cute BYOB. I love anything gold and crystal. We have dined here several times. The servers all seemed to work together tonight which was nice. I think each of them came to the table at some point. The appetizers were delicious-fried calamari with a delicious sauce, meatball salad, and the yummy spicy shrimp beeps. For entrees we had a filet mignon and a sage butternut scallop pasta that I asked to have spaghetti instead of gnocchi. Overall a tasty night. read more

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It's BYOB the servers there are incredible. Very fancy place. Pricy but worth it. The food tasted amazing along with the food. Everything is made from scratch and gluten free. Can't go wrong here. read more

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Enjoyed a lovely dinner here. Great menu & we loved that it was BYO. Atmosphere could use some updating & softer surfaces as it was extremely loud in there. Seemed they were missing a server. We had to ask for water twice & it took a while for them to clear the dirty dishes. Food was excellent. We enjoyed the tri color salad (split for us), goat cheese salad, & fig crostini to start. We also got a nice bread basket & we liked how they had olive oil on the table. Entree's: Rigatoni Bolognese was so good & such a large portion! We also enjoyed the arctic char & chicken milanese. The carrot cake was delish & expresso's were good. All in all, I would come back! read more

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Food here delicious and the owner Robert is the best!! We had a medical emergency and he was such a help. Not only did he assist us he did not charge us for two meals that two of our friends ordered before ambulance arrived. Juan is the best!!! Love this restaurant read more

This place is outstanding as a restaurant . The service is top notch but the food is off the chart. Home Chef Sal read more

Love that they have an entire GF menu (as well as non-GF bread and pasta available). The staff is incredibly attentive and responsive to your dining needs too (very helpful especially since we had a small snafu that they corrected immediately). We started out with a full basket of GF bread (really good flavor and brought out hot but the crust was a little too hard), the calamari (really well cooked and tender with solid breading and delicious sauce, although my bf thought there could be more flavor to the breading), lobster fra diavolo (really spicy but in a good way), and chicken Marsala (which my bf really enjoyed). I ended with the affogato which was absolutely delicious. Overall, I thought the meal was great and I would definitely return and try their rice balls and other items. It's BYO and a popular spot so I'd recommend a reservation for busy weekend nights. read more

Robert's Scratch Kitchen - New American Near Me - Totowa, New Jersey

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I've been here several times over the years and I can say the one thing is that they are consistent. I've had small groups and larger dinner parties, everyone is always happy with their meals. The one thing that is different about them is their specials and desserts are displayed on a tablet. The visuals can really help with your decision. Their homemade pasta is delicious and I haven't ordered anything bad here. The staff is always very nice. Because it's a small place, definitely recommend making reservations. It's also BYOB. read more

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You can tell all the food from Robert's Scratch Kitchen is fresh and made to order. They don't skimp on the quality of ingredients here. They also always have a great variety of specials. It is a little pricy but you are paying for high quality for sure. The atmosphere is very nice; it's deceiving since you wouldn't expect a strip mall restaurant to be so modern on the inside! The staff is friendly and attentive. Truly (and shamelessly) my favorite thing on the menu is the peanut butter tower dessert. It's a must order if you are a PB and chocolate lover. I'll always save room for this. Extra points for BYOB as well! read more

Robert's Scratch Kitchen - New American Near Me - Totowa, New Jersey

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The restaurant is small. I recommend you make reservation to guarantee a table. I liked that they had photos of their food specials and desserts. The food came out promptly and was delicious. The quality was superb and quantity was well worth the price as well. Yet, I couldn't give them 4 stars (3.5), because they are lacking customer service. The hostess didn't greet us upon arrival. Instead, he asked for our name. He also seemed tense due to the busiest. The female server didn't make it any better. Again, no greeting, just wanted our order. Also, she was a little annoyed that we got tapwater instead of bottled water. Don't know we had a choice. She asked if we wanted water which we replied yes. Then another server came and gave us tapwater. We enjoyed the ambience of the place. There was music, positive crowd, and so forth. If they improve on service, then it would make the overall experience memorable. read more

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Ordered to go from here and I would go back again for the vodka pasta or quinoa salad. The vodka sauce was pretty good. I was excited when I finally convinced family to order takeout from here as I've been begging them to try this place off and on for several years. Tonight, we ordered 3 Chicken parm dinners, 1 over penne pasta, 2 with fingerling potatoes (the potatoes were dry and tasted like they were from day before) and green beans tasted like rosemary or had a weird after taste. My hub said it was a "dishwater" taste but I just thought it was the bay leaf or rosemary used. One said the carrots were too hard. Family said chicken parm was just ok. The one whom ordered filet minion actually preferred the Chicken Parm. I tired the penne that came with my son's Chicken Parm and it was mushy. I also had the Quinoa salad which was pretty good and I would order again but the dressing felt like it was missing something. I had the Lobster rigatoni and the homemade pasta was great. I didn't taste any truffle. The sauces were a little watery probably from the steam that collected in our to go containers. I dipped the bread in my mushroom sauce and thought it was fine but Everyone said the was stale. I'm sure if you ordered and ate in the restaurant it probably would have been a better experience. read more

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Party of 8 really enjoyed our meal, the service and atmosphere at Roberts Scratch Kitchen. Gluten free and non-gluten free diners all loved their meals. You wouldn't notice that most everything was gluten free. Loved to be able to have GF calamari and crab cakes. Celiac had absolutely no issues. Absolutely Delicious Dinner!! read more

We were a party of four for our second time eating lunch here. Very nice cozy restaurant. We were not disappointed. Our waiter Juan was so accommodating. All of our meals were delicious. It is a BYOB which is an added plus. We had finished our meal and a friend arrived to see us. Juan was terrific. We ordered dessert and we shared our orders. Just a very pleasant time. We will eat here again but we will not wait so long. Next, we should dine here with our spouses. read more

5 Star Dinner as always. From the fresh oysters to the gluten free lobster rigatoni I can't get enough of this place. The best gluten free bread , if you are allergic you know how valuable that is... :D My go to dinner spot 10/10 read more

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The service was excellent. Our server was so nice. This place is byob so we brought a bottle of wine with us. The bread, yum, of course. The calamari had a particular taste that wasn't bad, a sweet sesame asian. BUT it needed a sauce. I had a tuna special. It was tasty. My friend had the short rib pasta, not bad. I would come back and try something different on the menu but nothing really wow'd me. read more

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Food was amazing and waiter was very attentive. I would definitely recommend this place. read more

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From the moment we walked in, we felt the warm welcome. Having a gluten free safe place to eat is importantt. All the menu items we picked were amazing. We will definitely be back again. We drove about an hour to eat here and it was so worth it! read more

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Based on the reviews, I decided to treat my mom to a birthday dinner so we went on a Wednesday night as a party of 5. Our reservation was for 7:30. Unfortunately only two people were serving and there was a huge party of 16, as well as another group. I think that impacted timing of our food. We didn't receive our appetizers until 8:15 and dinner came out at 9. We were bummed it was taking so long. Besides that everything was great, including service, and I'd recommend as our meals were excellent. It's also byob. read more

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If you didn't know this place existed, you would probably pass right by, but in New Jersey I'm starting to find that the best restaurants are located. Inside of strip malls! I decided to try a few of the seasonal fall specials, including the truffle, roasted artichoke carts, their fall salad with goat cheese, which was very tasty, and my favorite spinach fettuccine pasta with Cajun shrimp and an amazing cream sauce! If you haven't been yet, what are you waiting for? Also my server Juan was fantastic. read more

Robert's Scratch Kitchen - Cajun shrimp pasta - New American Near Me - Totowa, New Jersey

I've been to RSK for a private event and most recently, a birthday dinner. The wait staff were very knowledgeable about the menu and the visuals of the specials helped me to decide what I wanted. The food was so flavorful and fresh without being greasy or salty! The portions were generous as well. The ambiance was nice and although it's a small restaurant that was packed for dinner, it wasn't too loud. The only critique is that the bathroom didn't have a changing table and it was very difficult and uncomfortable to change my toddler's diaper. read more

Wow. It's been a few days and I'm still thinking of the few bites of my daughters pasta I was able to snag off her plate. We started with warm bread (gluten free and regular). Dipped in olive oil with a little salt. Omg delicious. My husband had the blackened cod and enjoyed it. I had broiled salmon, very good. But my daughter had penne vodka with shrimp and peas. I could do without baby shrimp, but the pasta and sauce were phenomenal. I will make sure I get a pasta dish next time. Service was confusing. Over the course of the meal we had 4 different servers checking in. When my husband ordered the tomato salad as an appetizer, the one waiter asked if that was on the menu. We opened up the menu and showed him. That was a little weird. All the other yelp reviews rave about service so maybe we just had an off night. I definitely will be back soon. read more

Robert's Scratch Kitchen - Penne vodka with peas and baby shrimps - New American Near Me - Totowa, New Jersey

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Hidden Gem! This is a great, terrific, wonderful, fabulous place where the food is great, the service is great, the prices are great, the ambiance is great ... this would be a Michelin restaurant if it were in New York City or on 5th Ave (but of course the prices would be 10 times higher). This terrific restaurant is tucked away in a shopping mall, hiding in plain sight. It's small so make reservations but oh my goodness gracious - this place is good! First: I am allergic to gluten and this place has many excellent choices for gluten-free. (People sometimes think "gluten-free means tasteless and this is usually true for bread but NOT HERE! I had HOT, home-made rolls that I put ice cold pads of butter on and let the melting butter ooze over my fingertips and melt in my mouth. I am talking excellent, hot, bread and gluten-free. My husband and sister and brother in law confirmed the regular, hot, home made rolls were great too!) Gluten is like glue that holds things together so having free breading on crab cakes, fish, etc. actually makes a crisp crust that lets the flavor of the crab, etc. lighter and more robust. I had crab cakes that were full of fresh crab and hot when they arrived! When was the last time you had food delivered that was HOT when it got to your table. And they did this for every dish. Like Mama took it off the stove and gently placed it under your nose! The crab cakes and rolls were plenty for lunch but that didn't stop us from ordering the short ribs and noodles (my husband seriously LOVED this dish) and I had the short ribs and hot, home made potato chips. I also had arugula and goat cheese salad and it was terrific. (If you have never seen the old movie "My Blue Heaven" with Steve Martin, may I suggest you watch it? You will never look at arugula or the merengue the same again!) Our relatives got mussels, clams, etc. and my sister-in-law ordered extra bread to sop up the sauce. Does this tell you how good the food was? Sauce sopping good! And then dessert. We loved that the waiter had a large tablet with photos so we knew what we were getting (had this for all the dishes) so the chocolate lava cake and vanilla ice cream were the final dishes (non gluten free but they did have it gluten free also but I was too full to get dessert.) Our waiter was prompt, courteous, polite, efficient, and seemed like he was happy to be there doing a great job! Well, we have to go back. Crab cakes, rolls, lava cake.... Don't let the location fool you - this is a great restaurant! Go before it is discovered! read more

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Second visit here. Excellent food, among the best in northern NJ. Great service and exceptional food.

Delicious food and atmosphere! It's a BYOB and man do I love a BYOB! Staff is friendly and welcoming. Great spot!

So I hate to say I didn't take pictures of the food! We just dug in and ate and I was like oh no! And I'm so sorry too because it was soooo good. I had a greens salad and my friend had spinach and they were both so fresh and delicious. Then she had the diver scallops over spinach with fingerling potatoes. And I had the sea bass in tomato sauce. Both were so delicious. What a quality restaurant for such a reasonable price. With very professional and attentive service. Try it. You won't be sorry - unless you forget to take pictures read more

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Great choice for DELICIOUS gluten free food. The best restaurant in the area if you are on a strict gluten free diet for medical reasons.

Atmosphere, service and food was phenomenal. This is definitely our new go to restaurant. It is in a strip mall but don't let that fool you.

Had this restaurant for a while on my list to try out, and boy, are their pasta dishes to die for. Everything tastes so fresh! Huge selection in general with all different dishes, many various specials, but is a BYOB. Thankfully Total Wine is around the corner, but I definitely should have made my research more thorough. Parking was nice an ample, even with other businesses right next door. Strongly recommend making reservations, as they do generally run busy. Thankfully wait staff is generally on top of things, and the kitchen prepares food pretty quick. The ambiance is a bit on the romantic side, so if a date night, this is definitely the spot for you! A girl's night isn't a bad idea either, the food truly is good. The short rib pasta was nice and tender, the gnochhi bolognese very rich in flavor, and the peanut butter dessert, which the name escapes me, was mouth watering delicious. Would definitely come again, with a bottle of wine, to enjoy more read more

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Been back a few times since my last review. Took a few new people who have not dined here before. They all loved the food and the atmosphere of the restaurant. We collectively ordered Calamari, shrimp peeps, and clams in white wine sauce for appetizers. All 3 were delicious. Not a morsel left. Dinners we ordered (2) Veal chop parmigiana and (2) filet mignon stuffed with crab. Excellent!! Excellent!! Excellent!! We took half our veal chops home.... Lunch today!! Dessert was great!! Didn't take pics but we had the lava cake and cherry cheese cake. Service was excellent as usual. read more

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Visited 05/14/2022 Once again, Robert (or the chef's inside) do not disappoint. We started with the Short ribs and chips/fries which were amazing. I might ask if this dish can be made as an entrée. For my wife's entrée she opted for the Lobster ravioli, which was quite tasty and filling. I went for the Scallops with pappardelle in a lemon cream sauce. Very very good. The sauce was nice although I tend to shy away from 'creamy/alfredo-like' sauces, but the scallops as well cooked and as tender as I've ever had. Do desserts this time... (too much lemony creamy sauce) but we continue to enjoy RSK very much. read more

Robert's Scratch Kitchen - Short ribs and chips/fries. So yummy! - New American Near Me - Totowa, New Jersey

sadly I had a ring of plastic in my mouth that I was glad I caught it before I swallowed it and choked. when I showed it to the waiter he basically said oops I'll take it off the bill not realizing that I was a lawsuit sitting there and fortunate for them I didn't swallow it but swirled in my around in my mouth and was able to spit it out and see what it was management did not take it seriously enough probably one of the more serious things that has happened to me in a restaurant it goes beyond careless read more

guests watch your belongings. reporting theft july 25 ,2024, Friday 1pm my mother's 90th birthday celebration,party of 12. we were the only people in the restaurant. the only FOH staff were two male servers. no host,no owner manager, two other people ,kitchen(?) came in & out briefly into dining room. one couple brought a gift bag with an envelope ,containing an envelope and a bottle of wine,which was placed on the ledge directly behind the table. it was forgotten behind ,left on the ledge. my mother called to inquire,as did my sister. four different calls, each time ,whoever answered ,claiming no gift bag or bottle of wine was seen. fortunately the envelope had a check,no cash,so a stop payment was made.our lovely guest came with another check and bottle of wine to my mother's house. addendum to owners response: i dare!dare! to post the facts. i did not accuse you, or anyone in particular of lying or thieving. you were not even there,and this review was my first interaction with the digital you. i merely stated the facts. the racist one may be you sir, as i am ecuadorian, and yes i am aware your waiter is colombian as he & i had a pleasant conversation after i recognized his accent as being from medellin. great service ,very polite. what will be your next aspersion to cast in our direction? that our table hates colombians because your waiter is colombian? and now we are going down the wrong ,dark pathway of divisive ignorance. back to the path of logic... abate your emotions and consider my statements as the facts for what they are. apply logic into the occurrence of which i am describing. your statement about another review regarding similar occurrence,makes no sense, there is always a first time. is it possible one of our guests took the "check" ,why you put the word check in in parentheses i dont know, i suppose one or all of us at the party may be experiencing age related memory loss, with a touch of kleptomania? we have all known each other going back sixty years or more,all of us ecuadorian by the way. so if you like you may accuse one of us of age related behavior. the event happened,is all i am saying. i dont know if you have cameras, but they are a worthwhile investment. having them avoids silly run on communications like the one you are reading right now, lol in closing , everyone @ the party enjoyed the food and service, Still,too bad about the missing 'check' & 'wine' bottle. i happened to shoot a video of the party that day,the gift bag& bottle can be seen by the ledge ,see screenshot below owner's reply. read more

Robert's Scratch Kitchen - by the curtain, on the ledge i took a video . - New American Near Me - Totowa, New Jersey

Excellent! Great service, food & experience. Highly recommend. BYO and on line reservations are a bonus!

In a crowded north Jersey dining environment, Robert's Scratch Kitchen stands apart. Attention is paid to the most minute details. There are menu items you don't find in typical restaurants. And it's BYOB! read more

Had liked food here till last visit. Got there after 7:30. Ordered rice with red sauce. Sauce must have been reducing for hours and was too salty to eat. They took it off the bill but I was disappointed because they should have taken care to adjust the sauce before serving. That's a no brainer. read more

In the past the food was good but it has gone down hill recently. We ordered 3 entrees for take out and two were in edible. The Penne Vodka barely had any sauce and was bland beyond bland. The Diver scallops same thing no flavor, tried salt, balsamic glaze nothing helped. The Black linguini with crab meat was OK, but too much oil weighed it down. For the prices they charge you should be getting five star food. Editing my review since I got food poisoning from the linguini and crab dish. read more