I've gone to this restaurant multiple times and was always more than impressed with the quality of food and the service! The staff is very friendly as soon as you walk in the door. I started off with the Jeklye and Hide calamari. I highly recommend it the sauce is amazing. For my dinner I had the linguini and clam sauce. I was extremely impressed by the appetizer and by the entree. The servers are great as well as the food. I highly reccomend coming to axtons the food is amazing and I will definitely be coming back! read more

First time at this restaurant what an awesome experience! Food was delicious, service was fast and staff was extremely friendly. Hands down the best chicken parm I have ever had, I had to personally thank the chef. Will be returning soon! read more

Great restaurant!! The food was delicious can't wait to go back big portions which was perfect loved the Hell's Kitchen set up. Friendly staff highly recommend read more

I've been wanting to try this restaurant out since it opened and finally did. "Disappointing" is the word I would use for this establishment. I am not going to tear the place apart mainly because I think it has wonderful potential to be greater, but unfortunately my experience was just plain "disappointing." Front end of restaurant: I'm not sure if someone called out the night I went, if they are understaffed in general, or they have very poor front end management; but everyone was visibly scrambling and grasping at strings to keep the evening moving forward. I'm not quite sure why we made a reservation because we were sat 45min after it. I understand the restaurant dynamics and have no problem waiting, but the hostess did not even acknowledge our wait nor informed us they were behind. This is most likely due to the fact she was trying to run the front end, but was clearly sinking the ship. She was visibly and outwardly stressed. The food: Mussels were the best we've ever had... hands down. This left us highly excited for our meals. However, I ordered a medium rare veal chop special and it truly came to me well done and rubbery. Such a huge disappointment! I had to fight to chew it. I left unsatisfied and hungry. All in all, I am not sure if we went on an "off" evening for them, but it was surely a poor first impression. The only reason why we want to give it a second try again is for the mussels marinara. Yes, they were that good! But I will pass on the dry veal chop! And someone get that hostess a drink! read more

The only reservation we could get was for 5:45. We were a party of 4 and seated at a huge table for 8, but they said there was no other table, even though the place was totally empty. Soon some people came in, but at 7:15 when we left the place was still half empty, so we could have had an appropriate table. Service is so-so. Plastic glasses., etc.....the seem to be on a tight budget. Food: Very good antipasto (menu should say that it's enough for 3 or 4) dreadfully salty pasta fagioli (not edible), dreadfully salty pork, left uneaten. Good salmon with so-so risotto puttanesca and mussels ok We didn't bother with dessert. There was one big problem with the place. It was so smoky that it made our eyes water. They need some type of ventilation! My guess is that the place will close relatively soon. read more

What a great meal last night, the filet mignon special was out of the world and his mussels with his red sauce is to die for! I could of just had his homemade bread dipped in the sauce for a meal! We enjoyed our dinner out on the patio. Anton was personable as usually and we just love his mom, Francesca! What we love about Axton's besides all his delicious entrees is that they never rush you out no matter how busy they are. We were able to sit and finish our wine without anyone breathing down our necks. Can't wait to go back! read more

Still love the food here, but have to drop a star due to the fact that they stopped serving a salad with the meal. $22.00 for chicken parm with no salad is a little high. It doesn't really cost that much to throw a salad in, and keep the customers happy. Other than that, no complaints. Good food and good service! read more

Went last month and it was ok. Nice, comfortable, small dining room. Unable to accomodate reservation time. Mixed opinions on the 6 dishes at the table. Another group of friends interested in trying it due to Anton's name in the industry. My husband and I agreed to go back. Very bad 2nd time. Again, couldn't accommodate reservation time, dishes were over or under cooked and there was an imbalance of ingredients to the dishes. The waitress and manager were very pleasant when we explained our disappointment. The menu on line looks very exciting as does the offer to sit at the counter where the food is being cooked. But that seating is in the entrance vestibule where people are opening/closing the door and then waiting impatiently to have their reservation honored. Overall food was sub mediocre. read more

We have dined numerous times at Axton's since it is very local to us. If I had a bad meal or didn't like something we ate, I wouldn't bother writing a review as everything you order can't be great. Up until now everything has been. Until our last dining experience. I had the David for dinner. Which I thought was fine. Within 10 minutes of arriving home, I got very sick and David ran right through me with stomach pains. I didn't say anything to Axtons as who knows why I got sick. We froze half my dinner. 10 days later my fiance took it to school for her lunch. Shortly after eating it she has to run to the bathroom and had the same issue I did. She was lucky she made it to the bathroom. Hmm, must be the David we ate. So she emailed Axton's and they replied that no one else notified them they got sick that night, so it must be the flu that is going around. No apology. That response has lost them two customers. read more

My wife and I made reservations for our 13th anniversary. We arrived three minutes early and waited for 15 minutes in a very hot and small waiting space. Two women without a reservation came in behind us. We watched as two table sat empty for the 15 minutes. When finally seated, our waiter seemed disinterested. We never heard from the Head waitress, who seemed very social with frequent visitors. The two women sat at one of the two empty tables within two minutes. Our waiter read from a piece of paper the specials of the day. When we received our diet sodas, there was no ice in one of them. I asked the wait staff for a glass with ice. She brought it back with two melting ice cubes. We ordered the calamari. It was soft and soggy, not crisp. By the time we received our entrees, we had been at the restaurant for an entire hour. Additionally, the two women who cam in after us had ordered, eaten, and had their bill before we received our entrees. The head chef continued to look directly at us, knowing very well that we were getting impatient. All we received was a half-hearted 'sorry for the wait' from the waiter. The entree was delicious, but the treatment by the staff would not make me want to go back, nor recommend anyone to visit Axton's. It was obvious that they care more about their taste than taking care of customers. The decor was nice, but every string of lights had one or two bulbs that were burned out. We were looking forward to having a nice night out, only to be frustrated and disappointed by poor management and customer service. read more

Second time here.... first time was almost a year ago. First time waitress was horrible and our wait for salad after appetizer was 45 mins, food was good when it eventually came .... this second visit, Valentine's Day was a pleasure and the food was great! A few subtle changes to the entrance area and the kitchen area also helped the atmosphere. Definitely recommend for those who like gourmet dishes! read more

Been to this restaurant several times and the food is good and prices are reasonable until this last visit. 2 orders of the Cod special that supposedly had horseradish, crabmeat and shrimp. Got the bill and they charged $40.00 per dish. I couldn't believe it, I never question a price but this was outrageous for COD. The waitress kept saying the cost was due to the crabmeat and shrimp. My cod was breaded, I tasted no horseradish or crabmeat. The shrimp was 50 count (does that even exist?)and they were cut in half, so there were just a small amount of shrimp nuggets. When I kept pressing about the price she came back and said the other reason is because of market price for the Cod. Seriously, Cod $40.00. My Cod was dry and not worth $40.00. read more

Amazing. Have dined there 3 times and loved it every time. Such a cozy restraunt and absolutely amazing food.

There were 8 of us for dinner. All of enjoyed what we ate. It would of have been nice if chef Anton would come out from the kitchen and greet some of his guests... read more

We recently moved to Ringwood and are so happy to have found this gem in Pompton Lakes. My husband took me here for my birthday and it was just perfect. Our waitress Jillian was just a doll and our service was impeccable. The food was super flavorful. We had the calamari, filet and the grouper from the menu and all were exceptional. Also BYOB which is a plus. We will definitely be back! read more

Went there in Christmas Eve with a friend. The decor and atmosphere was nice. I guess we may have had expectation since the chef was on Hell's Kitchen under chef Ramsey.. we were expecting at least an excellent risotto... not! We were welcomed with some bread and a dipping sauce , the bread was delicious, the dipping sauce. It bad but heavy on balsamic vinegar. My friend ordered the caprese, it was under seasoned and that side of sauce came in handy. I had the crab cakes. Which were a disappointment. They were drowning in a sauce overpowered by tarragon and you couldn't taste the crab. My friend proceeded with a vegetable risotto. The wine was not reduced properly and fat pooled on the side of her plate. No good. I had a filet mignon with a port wine reduction sauce, roasted Fingerling potatoes and a risotto... the filet was already sliced and drenched in that awful sauce overpowered with balsamic vinegar. The risotto was disgusting and soaked in balsamic as well. It was supposed to be topped with bacon but you had thick pieces of it all limp and fatty within the risotto. 3 limp asparagus were also present. It's a shame because the beef appeared to be of good quality and very tender but drowned in a sea of grossness and never have I had such an awful risotto. When I told the waitress about my crab cakes she apologized and asked if she could get me something else which was nice if her. I politely declined. When the next waiter came to inquire about our entrees I told him it was subpar and his answer was " those dish too????!" Like he was surprised explained the sauce situation and he said it wasn't the first time he heard that. Out original waitress came back and asked if perhaps I wanted to try something else or for them to make another dish with less sauce and I declined politely. Let's face it, after 2 bad appetizers and worse entrees I wasn't about try anything else. The hostess even came and apologized it was sweet but she didn't cook that mess. The chef himself should have came. Seeing as he was 20 feet away cooking behind a glass it would have been the right thing to do. Told myself I should have went with the calamari and shrimp risotto instead but it was on the table next to us and didn't appear any better . Calamari looked like perfect round frozen rings. Needless to say we skipped on desserts. I am giving it 2 stars for the kindness of the staff and the warm atmosphere , the good bottle of champagne we brought also the glasses on the table were plastic. That was ominous of what was to come. The portions are however generous but we were looking for quality over quantity. Chef doesn't seem to care what he puts out nor how his customers feels. Too bad. I don't think chef Ramsey would approve either. Guess that's why he didn't make it really far. Would I come back? Hells no! read more

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We had a really good dinner here. The food did not disappoint ! Our server was the chef's mother and she was delightful. My only criticism is the area where you must wait for your table is cramped and noisy. On the positive side, once you are seated at your table, there is plenty of breathing room and we enjoyed ourselves immensely. read more

Although the night had some bumps, the service was exceptional (especially Francesca). The food was good, not great, but the wait staff was awesome. We ordered the calamari to start, was really good but took a while to come out. As far as dinner, my husband and I order the same plate, the filet. While his was perfectly cooked and delicious mine was smaller, meat overlooked and risotto under cooked. Once we complained the server was very apologetic and offered us a complimentary dessert. I would give it a second shot after they have some time to work out the kinks. read more

Very Disappointed ! Waited weeks for this reservation and was totally let down, they totally drop the ball . 1st the wait to get served was almost an hour and a half. There was no acknowlegement by the waiteress that we were even there. Then when the food finally came out, Steaks were not prepared the way anybody wanted. Pork was dry and tough. It was a total dissappointment. Probably we will never go there again. Good thing we had lots of wine ! read more

Went for lunch and loved it. The shrimp risotto was amazing as well as the chicken parm sandwich. Looking forward to going for dinner.

We have tried three times to make reservations for this restaurant. Each time we are sent to the voicemail of the reservation department and we are told they will call us back hours later. I don't understand why the person answering the phone doesn't have access to a reservation book and could let us know if were able to get a table read more

Disappointing service. Since Axtons opened the second room next door, the service stinks. We have eaten there many times, but last night was truely disappointing. Anton opened a second room and we were seated in there. The maitre'd told us we needed to share our menu as they were out of them (WTF?). The busboy filled my wife's water glass and not mine. 10 minutes later, the waiter introduced himself and opened the wine we had brought, then we never saw him again. There was 1 waiter for the entire room (including a big party). We waited for 25 minutes with no sign of the waiter, then we left. We walked to the other building and let the Maitre'd know what happened. He didn't even know what to do (another indication that the service stunk). If you want to expand your business and be recognized as a finer food establishment (which Anton's high prices indicate), you should provide the service too. With so many other Italian food options in the area, this is a BIG mistake on his part. read more

Well it all started with a gift card for fifty dollars. I called three times to make reservations, once for my wife's birthday for a large party.everytime I called I spoke to someone and they would transfer me to an extension where I would leave a message for someone else to call me back to let me know if they had an opening. This is customer service at its worse, I have to wait for you to came? Long story short never made it to the actual restaurant so we decided on take out one night. When I arrive the help was rude and filled my arms with blazing hot food in the same cheap plastic bags you get at a grocery store and was sent on my way. I couldn't even open the door myself and know one helped either. We ordered chicken parm, who could mess that up? You guessed it Axton's, next time I'll just order from Pizza One. Don't waste your time or money! read more

Went tonight with party of 14. Dinner took extremely long to come out. Two people had chicken dishes which were sent back because no chicken, just risotto. Steak dishes had lots of risotto, very little steak. Desserts ordered, waitress came back saying they were out of two desserts. Replacement ordered which never came. Overall, very disappointed. Portions were small, except for risotto. Meat was overdone. Salads were overdone with balsamic dressing, way too much dressing. Very disappointing experience. Will not be returning. read more

First time at Axtons very impressed with the food we had apps crab cakes and the long hots excellent!! For main course I had the special goat cheese ravioli with pesto very tasty but pesto was missing husband had the cod over risotto delicious.!! We shared the crepes good but would have been awesome if warm. Staff seems young and not fully trained but overall great experience will be returning read more

our waitress who told us she was also the manager was screaming at the staff while we were eating. also we were a party of 4 and she only placed 3 dinners. my friend had no meal until were all done with our meal and our leftover was wrapped. she then brought out his food and told us i feel bad so let me get you some coffee while you wait for him to eat. i didn't want to refuse because it was already awkward so we took the coffee thinking it was on the house but no she charged us $17.00 for the coffee we didn't even want. she was rude to us . i will never go back there and neither will my friends horrible service read more

I really want to like this place......Again the reservation situation is crazy. There is someone in charge of reservations who is never there I guess. Every time I call they have to check with her and get back to me. This time I had the opposite of the last visit. Appetizers were great, dinner not so much. I had penne with vodka sauce and chicken. Penne is $17.00 and to add chicken was $6 - little pricey. The vodka sauce wasn't great and the chicken was shredded chicken mixed in which seemed strange to me. The most notable part of my visit was watching the servers. There was a lady waiting tables who was obviously older and more experienced than the younger waitress and the busy boys. She was so nasty to them the entire time we were there that I think I sat there with a stunned expression the entire night. I gave it a second try and still left disappointed. They have potential but a lot to learn. read more

My Husband and I went to dinner here last night and we're not impressed at all. We sat down and it took 20 minutes for the waitress to take our order we ordered the caprese appetizer which was a disappointment nothing to brag about could have made it at home with store bought fresh mozzarella. Our entrees were also a disappointment after they took over a half hour to come out after we had finished and we're cleared of our appetizer. My husband had the axtons pork and he said it tasted like leftovers and had been sitting around. I had the chicken scampi risotto which is supposed to be their signature dish and my how it fell short. Risotto was under cooked and crunchy and the chicken on top was cold! My husband complained about his and sent it back they were nice enough to remove it from the bill. I felt bad complaining g about mine so I had them wrap it. All in all won't be back and wouldn't recommend. read more

i love this place. my fiancé and i have been a here a few times and it's been spot on every time. the portions are enormous, we usually get 2 more meals out of the leftovers. you can't go wrong with anything you pick off the menu. the staff has always been friendly and helpful. i love that it is a byob, there's a liquor store across the street which is convenient. chef anton was in the house last night, and offered us a dessert of our choice. the berry crumble was to die for. go check this little place out, make a reservation for weekends, you will not be disappointed. read more