Go to the restaurant minimum once a month and there's a reason…read more Quality of the food is one of the best in north jersey along that's a BYOB MUST TRY

hands down the best food in Montclair. i have been here several times and each time its always…read moregreat. i have been trying to work through the menu, but its hard not to order the lasagna, its just that good. it is always busy but never cramped or crowded. being byob is great and there is a liquor store not far away. highly recommended

Beautiful views of the city. Good place to relax…read more Have a drink, meet people and sit outside. I enjoyed coming here and would come back

My wife and I went to the Highlawn for our anniversary. It's not a restaurant I would generally…read morechoose, but we had a gift certificate to use. It has been quite a few years since I last visited and was pleasantly surprised by the upgrades to the place. Initially, we were shunted off to a side table and had to ask for a window one, which we were reluctantly given (there were many open ones). The wait staff was pleasant enough (the water and bread service being the best), and we proceeded to order drinks. This is where the issues started. They grouped sparkling wines with roses, which made me think I was ordering a sparkling one when I wasn't. No biggie, but they should change that; I can't be the first or last to make this error. Now to the food. We were very excited to order the tomato & stone fruit salad, and very disappointed when what we got was a tomato salad with three (very thin) peach slices (at least I think they were; not very tasty, so I could not tell). One strike, so I was hoping for better luck with my entrée. That was not much better. I ordered the lobster ravioli, which came with a dense sauce and pasty ravioli, and an overcooked lobster claw buried in it. Not what I expected from a 5-star place. My wife's sashimi was much better, even if her double order of Hamachi was strange. We were not charged for that, and she was given a new choice. The dessert menu listed bread pudding with a 30-minute prep time, but if the staff did not inform you earlier, it's not really a choice, so I ordered the cheesecake, which was acceptable but poorly plated, with not enough fruit or sauce. I see that all the 5 stars are from people who call themselves foodies. I have real reservations about any of them having real five-star food outside of NJ; they should consider trying Manhattan to get an education. In the end, the view is the best part of the place (must give the hard-working staff credit for a nice evening). Will I be back? Probably not for another ten years. (it will not let me upload photos)

Enjoyed a birthday dinner here and everything was pleasant! The food was all very good and large…read moreportions. The staff are professional and the ambiance is high-end. The octopus was my favorite! All the seafood was very fresh.

Here's the deal. I went to the monthly flamenco dance performance. It was very enjoyable and on its…read moreown would be a 4. The only thing I don't understand is why they miked the guitar in a smallish restaurant so Smartwatches kept flashed "louder than 90dB" warnings. It really wasn't necessary. But you go to a restaurant for the food. And my food was a 2 with the wind behind it. I had the Chicken Extremena, which is chicken filets with onions, red peppers, potatoes and Spanish sausage. Yes, all those ingredients were in the dish. It was too salty although it did have a bit of a kick. All in all, the ingredients didn't blend well, it sort of seemed like they were thrown together and doused in a generic . A friend had the Veal Corunesa, which is veal and mushrooms sauteed in brandy sauce. She stated that a fine piece of veal was cut into little pieces, overcooked and swimming in brandy sauce. Now, the people who ordered the pan fried filet of fish and the pork chops had good meals. But the chef should be able to do something other than panfry and broil. Last point, I had a chocolate brownie with walnuts and vanilla ice cream for dessert. I am know for my proclivity to eat anything chocolate. I took a bite of a dry brownie and ate the vanilla ice cream. I heard the tiramisu was good. But I didn't have the tiramisa. Service was prompt, surroundings pleasant. So here's the deal. The quality of the food was too erratic to be three stars. The entertainment was very pleasant, so averaging a 4 + 2 equals 3. I have no desire to go back and try again. There are so many good Spanish restaurants in Essex County even outside of the Ironbound that going here for a dinner just seems to be a waste.

Went here for a birthday dinner and the ambiance was very nice and festive…read more For appetizers, we got the goat cheese with nuts and prosciutto, the burrata, and the calamari. The calamari was by far the best. It was crispy and thick and seasoned well and the sauces were delicious. There were some fried onions in it that were flavorful too. The goat cheese was okay, it felt like the flavors did not all go together. The burrata was very fresh and the starter bread is great too. For dinner we got the pork shank which I think was a special, the mushroom ravioli, the eggplant pasta with red sauce and the branzino special with veggies and a sauce. The mushroom ravioli tasted a little like mush to me and I was not a fan of the mushroom flavor. The eggplant pasta was delicious and it came with burrata that melted nicely into the pasta. The pork shank was tender and delicious. The branzino was the star for sure, it was flavorful and delicate and paired well with the sauce and the veggies. For dessert we got the pistachio tartufo and the tiramisu. I didn't think the tiramisu was very special but it wasn't bad. The tartufo was okay. It tasted like a pistachio chocolate ball inside of pistachio ice cream. It was also incredibly small for the price. Our waiter was fantastic!!! Great person who made our experience extremely special. I don't know if I would come back, maybe for the calamari and a drink. Some of the food is amazing and some is not that great.

The atmosphere was very nice. There was a violinist playing during dinner which made the ambiance…read moreeven better. I didn't have time to pick up a bottle of wine but the restaurant had a local store that delivered directly to our table, which was super convenient! My friend and I ordered appetizers and a main course. The food was plated nicely but was really underwhelming. I ordered the tuna tartar. The tuna was fresh but lacked flavor. It really just needed some salt or something. I also had the 14oz steak which was pretty good because it had some salt on it however the steak came out precut and did not look like a $58 steak. My friend hated both of her dishes. She had the burrata and the lasagna. She said they both lacked flavor. We paid over $200 for our meal and I was actually disappointed that I paid so much money for such mediocre food. I gave 3 stars for the atmosphere and service. Our server Julian was very nice and attentive.

Delicious food. Friendly staff. Ambience is casual…read more Vodka chicken park is fantastic.

I really enjoyed my experience here! This place is a little hard to find but once you're inside,…read moreit's very clean and staff is great! If you're coming from the street, you have to walk through ladyfingers. We came on a Friday night and it was very quiet. I was surprised at how cheap the cocktails were and the funny how was delicious! The bread was so good - warm and fluffy and comes with a very tasty butter! Almost reminded me of garlic bread. We also had the zucchini fritters that we enjoyed. The chicken parm was highly recommended by the waitress and did not disappoint. It was huge and definitely enough to share or have leftovers. My friends enjoyed their pasta and shrimp scampi as well.

Came here for their Drag Brunch on Sunday. The theme was Babes of Broadway, and OMG was it…read moreawesome!! They had themed cocktails, which were delicious- priced at around $15 each which was a bit more than in other places, but I understood since it was a special event. The food was okay, I got their Chicken Caesar sandwich which wasn't amazing but was also not bad -- i think i would've appreciated if they used a different bread for it. The service was great, though they did get our food out at different times - we were warned about it, so it was good to have set the expectations for it -. I'm going back next month for another drag brunch, and bringing a friend, because it was SO much fun!!!

I recently headed back to Porta's Montclair location for a friend's birthday dinner, and I had a…read moremuch better experience. First, we were seated downstairs, which had a vibrant bar scene and a classier atmosphere, while the second floor was more like a rowdy beer hall. Even with our table being right in the middle of things, we had room to walk around and socialize without disturbing other diners. For her event, she had ordered a bunch of items for those at the long table to share. While I did not try the few warm appetizers, I did sample two of the three salads. First, there was the Cavolo Nero with Tuscan kale, shaved sunchokes and watermelon radishes, chili-garlic crostini, Parmigiano Reggiano, and a lemon-garlic dressing. Though I did not see or taste any of my beloved sunchokes, the salad was zesty and delicious. I usually prefer my mixed greens topped with more ingredients, but that salad was too good to ignore. Plus, the garlic croutons were great! The Three Trees salad was a shredded blend of radicchio, Belgian endive, arugula, roasted prosciutto, toasted almonds, sliced pears, and a rosemary-shallot vinaigrette. It had a larger variety of textures and flavors, though I did not pick up on any of the supposed prosciutto. Essentially, I really enjoyed both of these salad blends, even though I could not detect all of the ingredients in each. For the main course, there were a bunch of different pizzas we could try. I sampled a slice of the Arugula pie, which was essentially the Marinara version, but topped with fresh arugula and truffle oil. The red sauce was great, and I appreciated the addition of the aromatic oil. I also tried the Betty Pie, which started with a layer of goat cheese béchamel that was seasoned with garlic, thyme, Parmigiano Reggiano, extra virgin olive oil, and sea salt. It was then topped with chopped brussels sprouts. Typically I am not a fan of white pizzas, but this one was phenomenal! Sure, I love crispy sprouts, but that tangy goat cheese spread was the real star that amped up the flavor of the pie. Lastly, after all of the savory items were cleared from the table, they brought out some dessert. I grabbed a piece of Nutella Pizza and adored the creamy hazelnut spread that was sandwiched between two thin layers of dough. It was an indulgent way to finish an already heavy, yet tasty, meal. I should mention that we received excellent service from our friendly server, who constantly checked in on our needs and ensured our water jugs and soda pitchers were full. However, I would also say that I would have loved more serving spoons in the dishes, since they were being shared by a large number of people, including children. I am not a fan of seeing people needing to stick their already-used utensils into communal plates. Despite that, the food remained delicious, but it was otherwise a much better experience in terms of service and atmosphere. Plus, it was a perfect place for a large group event.

A little late with this review. I hate when I have to post a negative review,I am noy interested in…read morehurting the workers or ownership. I believe they need to hear the truth so they can quickly fix things. I have been in the business so I understand how difficult it can be. The menu is absolutely terrible! There is maybe 5-6 Apps,Almost no salads,and maybe 7 entrees. I went on a Saturday night,the inside was very nice and clean. The best thing on this night was how comfortable I was at the table,we went with like 8 people.Most places in Montclair will squeeze you in on top of people. I thought the Meatball app was horrible,the mussels were ok I just don't like spicy . The Calamari was ok. Like I said they didn't have a choice of a small salad for dinner. Can I at least get a Cesar salad? My entree was the Eggplant,I give it a 2 out of 5 it was pesto infused with marinara,WHY? Also I could not even get a side of pasta with marinara with my dinner ,the only choice was Cavatelli.This is a Italian restaurant and no sides of pasta. Not that it was a issue but our entrees came out at least 30 mins after the apps. They were not even busy. I don't see this place lasting the summer the way they do business. All the great ratings are because of the last owner/chef. Like I said I don't mean to hurt the business,I am truly trying to help. Work needs to be done on the menu!The prices were high while the portions were small.

We dined at Gioia Mia for their Valentine's Day pre-fixe dinner and overall had a lovely experience…read morewith a few highs and a couple misses. The evening started strong with bread that tasted house-made! I even took the leftover back! It was warm, crispy on the outside, soft inside, and perfectly buttery. Such a simple thing, but it set the tone beautifully. For my courses, I had the tuna tartare to start, followed by the spicy rigatoni. The rigatoni wasn't actually spicy, but the pasta was cooked perfectly al dente. The real surprise of the night was the eggplant parmigiana. It genuinely did not feel like I was eating eggplant. That dish was so well done that my husband who normally avoids eggplant completely devoured my plate. It was such a great substitute for chicken parm and easily one of the highlights of the night. Dessert, unfortunately, is where things fell short. We tried the red velvet pound cake and the mint chip gelato entremet. The chocolate crunch layer on the gelato was extremely hard and honestly it felt like it had come straight from the freezer and hadn't had time to thaw. The mint gelato itself tasted very much like fresh herb mint, which wasn't quite what I was expecting. I didn't love it but I didn't hate it either. To me, it just leaned more herbal than classic mint chip. Also that pound cake was a bit dry and again hard like it was from the refrigerator. There was live music for Valentine's Day, which was a nice touch in theory, but it felt more like a performance than background ambiance (unless that's what they are trying to go for). The singer was belting songs (for example, Lady Gaga's Shallow - which for the record I love that song!) however when sang tonight we had to raise our voices to talk. Softer, more subtle background music would have made for a more intimate dinner experience. Still an overall good meal, I'd come back for the entrees.

****Gluten free options available and celiac friendly*** (as of June '26)…read more This place is always moving! Such a great spot for lunch. Banana bread Latte was the star of our visit. Their Matchas were being consistently ordered. It shows they really thought through the flavors of their menu. The salad was fresh and delicious. The peri peri pork sandwich was salty, but fiance and was hungry. Parking is a hassle in this location. Despite the lack of, they are always moving with a line every few minutes. The line goes so quick with all of the staff members assisting, that you don't even wait too long. Certainly much faster if you order beverages and already made items like pastries, fridge items and their cyo bowls or side option if your looking to be in and out. Looking forward to our next lunch date here!

This has been our go to brunch place now. I really like their farmers omelette. My husband…read moregenerally gets a burrito and their fresh squeeze juices are really good too. I also really like their coffee. The overall vibe of the place is really cool and we always have a good time.