Passing through Madison, NJ on my way to Manhattan Friday night I was surprised at what a fantastic dinner I had at 54 Main! The restaurant itself was packed and lively, however you could not tell by the smiles, and smooth operation of the staff. Our server Carmelo was an absolute rockstar, super attentative and professional. My girlfriend and I started with the house salad, chopped and plentifully tossed with cranberries and crumbled cheese, and generously portioned. The Ribs fell off the bone with a sweet tang, probably my favorite part... besides the wine I had the special that evening, a well Marbled NY Strip steak, grilled medium rare to juicy perfection and accompanied by sautéed vegetable and house cut crisped potato wedge. Delectable. The owner Joseph visited our table during our entrees to introduce himself and inquire about our meal- a touch of hospitality that takes a normal dining experience to the warm, refined comfort that will detour my travels back to 54 Main! Bravo to the ladies and gentlemen at 54 Main! See you soon. read more

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This place was extremely loud. Granted, it was a Friday night, but geez you had to almost yell to talk to the person right in front of you. I don't believe there was an actual lobby/waiting area, so the bar was packed. Servers and patrons both had to squeeze through the crowd to get from point A to point B and back to point A. I was part of a large party that had a reservation for 5:30 pm. Our table was not ready for quite some time, and we were eventually asked to accept smaller tables that split up our party until our actual table was ready. After placing our orders for dinner, we were asked to move again, but at least 5 of us remained split from the party at a round table a few feet away. I wasn't the host of our party, so I remained quiet and tried to enjoy myself. I ordered the pan seared salmon with summer corn, edamame and French bean salad, arugula, baby spinach, and lemon dill vinaigrette. The salmon was overcooked for my taste; although, it had a nice flavor. Something in the bed of vegetables was not easy to chew, so I gave up on that. Side note, the paintings on the dining room walls were beautiful. The service and food may be much better earlier in the week. Also, our party may have just been too large for their staff to handle on an already busy Friday night. read more

54 Main Bar and Grille - Sports Bars Near Me - Madison, New Jersey

Service was attentive and friendly. The food was just ok and very expensive. Nachos were more like nacho soup - so soggy and not enough chips. The fish and chips batter should be crispier and they shouldn't serve that slaw. Just bad. Chicken tenders were flat and out of a freezer. My husband liked his prime rib sandwich. The burger was just ok. We were hungry and able to sit quickly, which has its value. My Moscow mule was $13, which seemed pricey, but it was good. Women's bathroom was clean. Atmosphere is loud. read more

We were in town for a football camp at Drew University. We decided to go to 54 Main for a later dinner Friday night. Upon arriving to 54 Main we were greeted by 2 smiling waitresses who instructed us to sit where we would like. Next we were greeted by our waitress/bartender who made some some drink and menu recommendations. I had the tiramisu martini (pictured) which was delicious!! We had the Bourbon Street Pasta and Flounder and shrimp basket, again both great and wonderful flavor! We also had the pleasure of having a waiter half way through the experience because our waitress also served as the bartender and the bar was getting a little busy. But what most impressed us the most was we witnessed the General Manager jumping in to help his team where needed. We told our waiter how impressed we were that we saw him wiping tables, cleaning tables, wiping the bar, polishing glassware, running food etc.. the GM (Frank) came over and spoke to us and we told him how wonderful that he is part of his team. And his response was I wouldn't ask my team to do something that I wouldn't and we are all in this together, if I work hard my team will work hard.. Because of this experience if we are ever back in town we will definitely stop back in the 54 Main. Good Job GM Frank and his team for being all hands on deck type of team!! read more

Absolutely phenomenal place my service was absolutely incredible. 10/10 would definitely come again and I was blown away . Ps. Mike is a great bartender. read more

Such a fun place! My family and I go pretty often when we just want a nice, casual place to have dinner. This weekend I went with college friends that were visiting and we had such a nice time. They were able to accommodate our group of 8 and find us a reservation last minute. So many options for all dietary needs and plenty of options to choose from. A perfect place for a nice dinner and drinks, while also being casual! read more

54 Main Bar and Grille - Nachos (guacamole on the side) - Sports Bars Near Me - Madison, New Jersey

Nice place in Madison. We sat outdoors for lunch. Ordered the Tostada Salad comes with chicken, and the Chopped Salad and added Shrimp. The Tostada salad was very good, the shrimp on the chopped salad was slightly over cooked. Service was great! Drinks were very good. I ordered the white Cosmo and my friend ordered the cranberry mule. I've been here 2x before and I've had one good experience and one so so experience. After today's visit, I definitely would come back again. read more

54 Main Bar and Grille - Chopped Salad with Shrimp - Sports Bars Near Me - Madison, New Jersey

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My best friend took me here because it's her favorite place. It was such fun vibes right when we walked in. We got the honey mustard salad but instead of chicken got shrimp. It was SO good. Also the fries were the best I ever had. We also got margaritas which were amazing, good price, and huge. Such a fun, good place! read more

Exceptionally poor service and really sub-par quality food. The location is good. The bar is cool and they have a good selection of beers on tap. It was a good start. We sat at one of the tables near the bar area. Our waitress came and brought us a round of brews then things exponentially went down hill. We asked for 3 waters and she brought back 1. She came and literally (REALLY) threw 3 sets of silverware and napkins at my friend, like it was his job to divide them out to the rest of us... We had to re-remind her about the waters and it took probably 5-10 minutes to finally get them. As the evening went on, and the place filled up, her service continued to deteriorate. (I would like to add that due to her lack of attention we got the attention of another server for routine things... napkins, more water, another round of brews...) There was no follow up on "how is the food". When we were ready to leave it took forever to get her attention for the check, borderline we had to get up and ask her for the check. Really poor service, dismal. The food: way way sub-par. Pretty much sucked. The chicken fingers were the standard, frozen, mass-produced, re-heat in the microwave high in sodium could barely eat them. (ref picture) and the burger... well, I use the "quality of bun" benchmark and the bun was cold, and the bottom portion of the bun was soaked with grease. It led for an unpleasant dining experience to the point that I couldn't / didn't want to finish... i.e., getting half way done with the burger and biting into a soaking wet bun was simply GROSS. I left dissatisfied and hungry. (the fries sucked too...) Also, there is a bit of a frat boy scene here. Hats on backwards, loud yelling at the television. If you don't want to surround yourself with 22-year-old testosterone then don't come here. The horrible service combined with the rancid food overwhelmingly brought this solid 2 star rating to a flat 1 star. Highly NOT recommended. read more

54 Main Bar and Grille - Poor quality - Sports Bars Near Me - Madison, New Jersey

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My husband and I stopped in for an early dinner this evening and were quite impressed by the food and service at this bar and grille. We were warmly welcomed and then promptly seated at a nice table by the window. The bar was busy for a Monday around 5 PM but the distance of the dining room from the bar made it easy to feel relaxed. Our server, Ivan, was attentive and knowledgable and seemed to come back to the table at the exact right moment each time. He had great timing which is hard to come by in most restaurants. For appetizers, we sampled the Thai-style wings, fried calamari, and pierogies. All three appetizers came out in under ten minutes, had great presentation and were hot and delicious. We cleaned the plates of everything but the calamari, which was a huge portion! For entrees, we went a little lighter. My husband had the chicken & kale pesto panini and I had the french dip. Both came with delicious, crispy fries and pickles that had a great snap to them. The panini was nicely pressed with fresh, moist chicken. The kale pesto was a nice, somewhat healthy twist to your more run-of-the-mill chicken panini. After eating all those apps, I couldn't believe I was able to finish the whole french dip sandwich, which was piled high with flavorful, thin sliced hot roast beef and served with a really tasty french onion au jus. Somehow, we still mustered up the courage to order dessert after cleaning our plates of all this food. We had the chocolate lava cake, which was out on the table within moments. It was hard to choose between that, the ice cream waffle and the bread pudding, but we'll have to sample those on our next visit! Overall, a great experience. I can see why this restaurant is so packed all the time! We look forward to coming back again soon. read more

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Great food, great service, definitely coming back. Recommend to come here heavily, it is an amazing experience!!

Typical American bar. We sat outside and the service was great. Main St salad is my go to with salmon and it didn't disappoint. Only real complain was the onion rings were something you can purchase at your local supermarket. Definitely expected a bit better quality on them (not my order but the one who ordered complaint) read more

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I hate giving below 3 stars, but I gave this spot two tries and was dissatisfied with each visit. The first time, we came here and ordered drinks and nachos as an app. I believe I got steak and fries and it was decent.... I remember they were out of some of the beers, service was slow, and was just kinda eh. The second time, we sat outside because of Covid. The tables were set up nicely and the umbrella gave us a nice shade. The service was mediocre. We started off with two diet cokes. I ordered a Cobb salad and my boyfriend ordered a chicken salad but with NO ONIONS AND GRILLED CHICKEN instead of crispy chicken. His salad came out with tons of raw onion chopped on top and get this, the crispy fried chicken sliced open and with grill marks on it. I wanted to return it, but he isn't the type so he just stayed with it and picked off as much onion as he could. We ordered two more diet cokes and got a Diet Coke and an iced tea which was returned. The avocado on the salads weren't ripe enough to enjoy them, really. All in all, I don't think I'll be coming back if not only for some drinks. read more

Beautiful outdoor dining area with a great menu and professional services. Madison main street mainstay .

This one's for Steve. Stopped here again with coworkers, picked up a couple tables near the back of the bar area and crammed in fifteen of us. The dark polished wood fit in quite well. A coat rack to one side of the back bar was helpful to keep our longer winter coats out of the way. Waitstaff was attentive and quick to take orders and clean the table - however, twice we were given beers that weren't ordered, and once my beer came and they called it something else entirely (confusing the entire table). Tried a couple new appetizers and an old classic - the french onion au gratin soup was delicious as usual. The two new ones - disco fries (basically cut potato skins with a huge dollop of sour cream and some bacon) were soggy at time they started on the table and this new chili hot dog w/ potato chip strips was interesting, but fell apart far too fast. Another fun night, though, and again, the draft selection didn't disappoint. The cranberry ginger beer was delightful. read more

The food is great and it always a reliable spot to go to with friends and family. 4 stars instead of 5 on account of an odd reluctance to change channels on the TVs in the bar area for customers, especially on key game days. read more

Best chopped Greek salad, the dressing is delicious. Service was great. Only suggestion is they should make their own fries. Why use coated frozen fries when the quality of all the other food is top notch. read more

Needed a burger place for lunch with a buddy. This place came up. Made it to the restaurant and were greeted by a gentleman who asked if we wanted to sit outside. We said no. Than he said dining room or bar. We chose dining room. Than another person sat us where there were tables vs. booths. Kinda up a few steps from the booths. Kinda weird to have a host and hostess. They place was not packed or busy. A waitress came over and took our drink order. I ordered a hamburger no cheese, lettuce and tomato on a gluten free bun. My buddy ordered a cheeseburger with lettuce and tomato. She asked him how he wanted it. Than I asked for medium rare. Both of us got fries with our burgers. It took forever to get our food. Either the kitchen was backed up or she was the only wait staff there. One of the host people should've helped waiting tables. When the food came out it was brought to our table by another person. My burger was medium to medium-well. My buddy's was medium well like he asked. They never came around to ask how the food was or to refill our unsweetened ice teas. When the waitress came over to ask for dessert we asked for refills. When we ordered dessert, it took almost as long as like waiting for our meals. I ordered cheesecake which was good. My buddy ordered a chocolate lava cake. There was no lava in it, it was just a mini chocolate bundt cake with ice cream and whipping cream on it and chocolate sauce. I will not repeat and don't recommend it to anyone. There are too many good burger places in the area. read more

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We came here for Sunday football. The food and service were exceptional. The music ruined everything. The owner only plays big band, jazz which makes it a place where you fall asleep instead of enjoying the game. Other customers felt the same way. Will be going elsewhere on Sundays. read more

This place has a great environment. Our server was wonderful. The Philly cheese steak rolls were delicious as was the Buffalo chicken wrap. We will be back for sure read more

Ordered food for the office. Got a veggie burger and it was without a doubt the worst veggie burger I've ever had and I have had my fair share being that I'm a Vegetarian. It was just straight pinto beans, rice and zucchini that tasted like nothing and wasn't blended together at all. It was like no one wanted to help me when I went in to pick up the to go food as well. I just stood there waiting for someone to acknowledge me and I asked 3 different people for my food. Eventually some girl gave me the "come with me signal" with her pointer finger, didn't say a word, walked me over to a table with my food on it and again didn't say a word. I was left thinking...is this mine? It was bizarre to say the least. I served for 6 years and worked in a few different restaurants and the lack of communication with me, the customer was just odd. read more

This place can be so good and it disappoints every single time we go. Problem is that there aren't many options in the area other than River Grille which is stellar to say the least. Got wings here. How do they come out cold? Fryers are hot. Very hot. Not impressed with the use of Frank's hot sauce or something akin to as your Buffalo wing sauce. Hire a consultant to help you make a Buffalo sauce and get a fire sauce in as well or something other than Tabasco. 1985 called and they want their hot sauce back. Food is strange. Specials are like they asked anybody in the back on the line to come up with something. Stuffed flounder with crabmeat. Ok, sounds good. Warm orzo salad with stewed tomatoes and white beans??? Who came up with this, a 5 year old? Their food always is lacking and it's like they just don't care. Beer prices are OUTRAGEOUS. 8 and 9 bucks for a pint in Morris County? I know beer bars in Manhattan like Valhalla, The Ginger Man and Blind Tiger where you don't pay that price. It's not like he's snagging stuff from B. United or catching rares to throw on tap. I get it if you pull in something like Cascade and have to price it out as 1 dollar an ounce or something to that effect, but when you're charging 8 bucks for a pint of beer from New Jersey, you're nuts. I don't care if it's Kane or Carton, it's still WAY overpriced. You get MUCH better pricing at River Grille and a MUCH better selection. I go there and get martinis now as it's just a better option. Staff is very, very good. Yeah, there's mishaps here and there, but they hustle. In today's day and age with service, if you give effort, you get an A+. Sad to say, but this is the standard today. If you need another drink, they're there in a heartbeat. Krystal is aces. If you get a chance to have her, she's really, really good. She's on top of things, very friendly, super informative and very relaxing. Here's my advice: Eat before you come here, drink liquor (wine selection is horrifying. Again, bring in a consultant. You don't need 300.00 bottles, but I don't want to drink cat urine either) and ask for Krystal. TVs are also terrible as well. AWFUL placement and size. You want to stare straight up at a game while at the bar??? I would love to tell you there's better in the area, but other than River Grille, there is not and that's a problem because often it is packed there. read more

Food is only mediocre. If that was the worst of it I would have been fine. Unfortunately, my Avocado Toast had barely any Avocado on it at all, maybe a tablespoon on two slices of bread and the meal was cold. Also, it's bad enough that the children's menu comes with soda and they charge $1.75 additional for a healthier juice choice, but the juice they served was actually water with a splash of juice (we had to return it and request one without water). Is this place hurting so much that they do this to kids? It's certainly not because they are promoting health... they serve and push soda on 8 year olds! My child was given a children's menu and crayons; however, it was already all scribbled on. A huge disappointment!!! read more

54 Main Bar and Grille - Avocado Toast - Sports Bars Near Me - Madison, New Jersey

This is pub food, but better. I came in here with a group and we started with the nachos which were huge! Like seriously, there were six of us and we still had some left over. My only complaint with these is I wish they came with more meat. For entrees I went with the club sandwich with a salad. It wasn't anything special, but a good size portion and pretty tasty. I had enough to take home. The service was also really good and it seemed like a fun place to hang out at night. read more

54 Main Bar and Grille - Bomb nachos - Sports Bars Near Me - Madison, New Jersey

I've gone to this place 4-5 times within the past few months. Every time I go there, this place is always busy, but comfortable enough to get a seat and get very good service. I've order multiple things from the menu and everything was VERY good. They have a pretty good drink menu here as well, and the drinks are good as well. The service is also spectacular and everyone working there is very friendly. I love this place and will be back (again!). read more

Came here to eat outside and would not recommend. We waited 15 minutes and no one approached our table. Waved someone down and ordered. Another 15 minutes passed by and I waved someone else down asking if we could at least get some waters. The food was disgusting. The salads were extremely small. The chicken sandwich was tough, the cheese was too salty and the fries were not crispy but not soggy. Would not recommend coming here which is unfortunate since they have a great outdoor seating area. read more

Nice place but the music sucks and it's way too loud, staff is great. Don't know about the food as we only stopped by for drinks.

Loud unless you sit outside Would not recommend for gatherings inside. Attempted to meet for a reunion and it was too loud

The worse service in the world. Everyone got their food except for me. The waiter completely forget and never came back to acknowledge it until I told him. I waived it off, didn't get a apology: we had to speak to the manager said they cook ithe food within ten minutes. Waited another twenty minutes for it and as I was walking out, they finally gave me my food. I should've said u can keep it now. Never ever again. Never ever again. read more

High priced mediocrity. Went there with a friend a couple of weeks ago and we were stunned when we received the check. 2 salads (1 with shrimp), an appetizer to share, 1 Manhattan, 1 glass of wine = $78!!! With tip it came to $100. So basically I paid $50 for a salad with shrimp, 3 dumplings and a glass of wine! Looking back I am shocked that this place was so busy. The food and atmosphere were mediocre. I mean, I would have given it 3 if not for the price. Well, that won't happen again. read more

This is more of a bar than a restaurant I would say. It gets pretty loud in here too so don't expect a quiet dinner. We ordered a bunch of appetizers to start. Everything was just ok. The calamari, nachos, and wings were average. The nachos was loaded with cheese which is a good/bad thing in some peoples minds. The wings didnt have too much flavor. They were also kind of dry. For dinner I had the Chicken milanese. The chicken was cut extremely thin which lead the chef to overcook it. It was not tender and the salad on top was very salty. Overall the dish didn't work. Will try something else next time. It gets loud in there so hard to go with a group and all have a conversation. The bar area looks like it fills up. It probably is a good place to watch a game at the bar but I would skip dinner. read more

Ford itself is not that impressive but the portions are very generous. It's open at a time a lot of other establishments around the area are closed. We went here when we had a power outage and the place was pretty packed with likeminded people. read more

Big shout out to Alex, who was an all star during a busy outdoor dining night tonight! He and one or two others took care of all the tables outside and he never missed a beat, including bringing out our kids' dinners first and setting them up with an adorable ice cream treat. Thank you, Alex! As an aside- to management- hoping you are going to expand the wine menu as we head into warmer weather and lots more outdoor dining! read more

Since moving to NJ, I've been coming here for about the past 8 months. To find this level of class, with such an amazing happy hour specials, with staff that are sincere ... it's an anomaly in the food and beverage industry, and for this zip code. Kudos to the management, and the staff! read more

54 Main Bar and Grille - The craziest happy hour deals around ... here especially the mountain of nachos for $6, really! - Sports Bars Near Me - Madison, New Jersey

Great bar food here! 54 Main offers classic bar food options as well as non-traditional bar food dishes (pasta, meatloaf, salmon, mussels) if you're not in the mood for nachos or a greasy burger. The Salmon burger was super juicy, sizable and sat in between the king of all buns, the pretzel bun! The fries were crispy and salty, not hard to finish at all. You can also go for brunch which is great too. I will admit the eggs Benedict left me feeling a little hungry afterwards. Lots of drink options, including the "manmosa" for men who are too proud to drink a mimosa in public! read more

Consistently meh food. Have had the burger and cod here before- edible is the most I can say about it. But it is a nice space inside with room for large parties. read more

There's nothing special about this place. Everything from the environment, food, and drinks was just OK. We had reservations for my sister's birthday dinner but upon arriving, the host looked dazed and confused. After waiting a few minutes, our table for 9 was finally set up. I do have to commend our waitress. She was great...bubbly, friendly, and attentive throughout the entire night. The beers (without the Yelp check-in offer) were $8!? My weak peach sangria was $13. And the fact that it tasted like juice didn't help. I had the Waverly Burger, which lacked some of the cajun flavor the description said it had. We didn't bother with dessert either...that's how you know I want to leave. read more

54 Main Bar and Grille - Waverly Burger - Sports Bars Near Me - Madison, New Jersey

This review for my very pleasurable dining experience at 54 Main is long overdue... It was my first time at this zestful New Jersey establishment, but let me tell you, this was more than a traditional bar and grille experience- the owner and his waitstaff gave you a sense belonging and familiarity of which you don't typically find at this style restaurant. With that said, be prepared to feel like one of the regulars. Our server Carmelo and owner Joesph really out-did themselves providing such a memorable experience. The placid service and appetizing food options extended beyond my expectations. I anticipated ordering traditional bar food from the menu; instead my boyfriend and I found ourselves overwhelmed with a diverseness of appetizer and entree items to choose from. The menu ranged from seafood to sandwiches to pasta, and even offered several veggie options. We started with the 54 chopped salad which I was very delighted to see was packed full of cranberries- yum! We also shared the BBQ ribs. This one was definitely a crowd pleaser... the meat was so tender and brimming with flavors. My boyfriend and I each enjoyed the specials of the evening, a marinara-based pappardelle pasta (thoughtfully recommended by the owner, Joseph) and a NY strip paired with a medley of vegetables and seasoned wedge-cut potatoes. Each item brought to the table was too delicious to resist, especially after the second glass of wine. Somehow- after indulging in a beyond satisfying meal- I managed to fight room for dessert, and we were surprised with possibly the best bread pudding imaginable. I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at 54 Main Bar and Grille, and hope to dine there anytime I find myself back in Madison! read more

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CHIMAY ON TAP! Couldn't believe it, 54 Main pours the very good (and expensive) red-label Belgian trappist ale fresh for you at this suburban bar. Ok sure it's $10 for a 1/4 liter glass, but this is the only place I've ever found draft Chimay. If you're a beer geek it's worth a visit just for that. About 24 tap beer selections, highly varied and mostly thirst inducing, with NJ, NY and PA craft beers like Carton, Kane and Troeg on offer, $5-7. Come for the beer! YES I'M SHOUTING and you'll be doing a lot of that in this place. The normal noise level is high and when there's live music it's that much louder. Don't come here for adult conversation, you'll just go home hoarse. Basically this is a TGI Friday kind of place, it's large, has a full bar, lots of TVs, families with kids, basic American fare. But dinner entrees are kinda pricey, like $16 for fish tacos or $28 for a steak, so you're not gonna get away cheap. An appetizer of disco fries came appropriately hot and with lots of cheese and sour cream, but confusingly light on the cheap brown gravy. No need to charge $9 but they did anyhow. Fish and chips was a bit spendy at $17 but for that they gave basically an entire cod fish, lightly battered and perfectly cooked, very good. Gaelic grilled cheese was grilled cheese with bacon and tomato, dunno what makes it Gaelic, came with fries also and was $11. An enormous Chinese chicken salad was a relative steal at $14, easily enough food for two meals. Burgers are not cheap at $11-14, the fries that came alongside were slightly overcooked. Service was about average, our waitress pretty much came whenever we needed something, sure we had to repeat everything three times due to the absurd noise level, but despite that she managed to get all the orders right, kudos. Happy hour is M-F 3-6pm in the bar only. read more

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Got there at 7:15 and there were lots of empty tables outside. They said they would seat us in 15 minutes for an outside table, but we were seated at 7:50. Sat outside and service was terrible. They came to check on us as if we hadn't ordered our food yet. We waited over half an hour for our appetizer. We ordered the nachos and they were were probably the best part of the meal. It then took an even longer time for us to receive our entrees. I got the french dip and it was soggy and lacked flavor. My boyfriend got a burger which he said was dry. We then ordered 2 chocolate lava cakes to go, but only received one which was squished and by the time we got home (2 minutes away) it was basically cake with no melted chocolate inside. Overall an unpleasant experience and I will not be going back. read more

54 Main Bar and Grille - french dip - Sports Bars Near Me - Madison, New Jersey

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