Dinner was excellent. It's a much needed restaurant in Millburn/Short Hills. Feels like a place in NYC. Small plate of salmon sashimi was delicious as was the steak. Would definitely go back. read more

Very good restaurant - the lamb was outstanding as were the smaller plates - bone marrow, pork belly and roasted brussel sprouts. My biggest issue was that they ran out two of the entrees - both fish. Given how small the menu is, when they run out of two entrees, that really limits the choices. For a Saturday night, they exactly how many people are coming because they're totally booked for the night - seems very aviodable. Overall all though, great meal and I would for sure go back. read more

My wife and I have had the fortune to eat at a few Michelin Star and top Zagat restaurants - the food at the Common Lot is right up there. We had the tasting menu at the Kitchen Pass, basically it is their Chef's Table with their tasting menu. Not only was the food top notch, the conversation with the chefs was interesting and entertaining. In NYC a similar meal and experience would be 5 times the cost. Highly recommended. read more

I rarely write reviews, and when I do, it's only because a place is excellent or terrible. You can lump Common Lot into the former category. The food was excellent and the ambiance was really nice as well. My wife is a vegetarian, so we shared the egg & chips in a bag (I highly recommend this - it is essentially a poached egg shaken in a brown bag w/ homemade potato chips - really good) and the carrots. The chips were the star and the carrots were good, but could have stood to be cooked a little more. If they would have charred them a bit too, I think the flavor would have been excellent. My wife got the cauliflower entree which sounded somewhat tame but had an excellent flavor. I got the halibut. The fish was cooked well and had good flavor, especially when mixed with the sauce. The star of the halibut dish was definitely the sides though. Really good flavor there. We also got the mousse dessert which was great. Overall, I like this place better than any place I've been to after relocating from Brooklyn to NJ. It has the most NYC-like feel and the decor is really nice. I love the open kitchen. Knocked off a star for the following reasons: - It was pretty cold in the restaurant. I was fine but my wife was freezing. - I felt that it was a little too bright for my tastes. If they turned down some of the lights on the side of the dining room (I realize you can't turn them down in the kitchen), it would probably have a more cozy feel. - Small misstep on cooking of the carrots (super minor) We will definitely be back...just hope they change the menu regularly since it is a fairly small selection. read more

For first time here. We booked a month in advance. All good things come those who wait. Exceptional! We loved every aspect, service, decor, food.... The big wooden table is so detailed. I want one like that! The menu was fantastic. I wanted to try it all! I saw the Common Lot as it was being built and had no idea what was coming! We had the grille octopus and salmon sashimi then steak and lobster. I highly recommend this restaurant to foodies. I will definitely be going again. read more

I wanted to love this restaurant and while I did enjoy my meal, it was ok. The egg and crisps were good but got soggy. The steak tartare was just not a tartare. It was good, but the beef was cooked and didn't have the rich flavors I expected. I had the duck for dinner which was well prepared, but over salted and for the price I expected much more duck. I'm glad I tried it, not planning on going back. read more

If you want a fatty steak for $81.00 and to be treated like they are doing you a favor to let you eat here, then this is the place to go. Otherwise Roots is where you should go! read more

I was out tonight with one of our vendors and Nadine (owner btw for insight) was VERY rude in an industry where hospitality should be of utmost importance. We had a 5oclock seating and we're told at 6 o'clock that if they did not clear our small plates we wouldn't have time to eat our entrees. At 615 we were then told that there wasn't time for dessert. Once we got the check we were asked to leave (yes you read that right) at a time when our food wasn't finished. Atrocious service, and Nadine is a poor excuse for a host and deserves to get called out. I am absolutely apalled that this type of service exists where you cant even enjoy your $300 meal in a timely fashion. Keep in mind that this all happened on a quiet Tuesday night where there were only two other tables in the restaurant at this time. Not the first time we have been to this restaurant and it's never at full capacity and they are constantly turning people away. It seems as if they are more occupied with creating an illusion of being busy to create hype that they are forgetting about importance of service! If this is something you are after find a different spot like Moonshine a block away. read more

Went on Saturday night 8:30 reservation. Beautiful restaurant but service was much to be desired. Overpriced and not worth the long wait for reservation. Wait staff was cold felt like I was at Peter Lugers, rough waiter. We ordered 6 apps they brought out 5. We asked where was the 6th and they said it was sent out. Clearly looking at the table they can see only 5 but insisted we received 6. I guess we must of hid the plate! They argued with us and finally sent us the 6th appetizer. Unreal. After we ordered 1 desert they delivered the check. We hung out about 15 minutes and they actually started turning on and off the lights to let us know THEY were ready to leave. Real pompous. Needless to say, we won't be back. Positive though, food was good but not worth the NYC prices. read more

Service is terrible from the owners down to the servers. They are arrogant, inflexible and not interested in cultivating a repeat clientele. This is not Paris where its cool to be rude to your customers. Good food is not enough. I am local and have dined there a few times and my last experience was so poor, I will never go back. The owner was unwilling to make small changes to the menu to accommodate our special occasion. They really should take a hard look at their attitude if they intend to stay in business. We are close enough to NYC where we can get the best food in the world and amazing service. I try to support local businesses but they will not see me return nor will I reccommend to anyone. read more

The attention to detail shows as soon as you walk past the beautiful outside patio they have set up here. We had a table close to the open kitchen and could see some of the work being done there which was really cool to watch. We ordered 5 apps off the menu and then split a main and every dish was fantastic and full of flavor. The dry aged sirloin was perfect.. amazing texture, perfectly cooked to a medium rare and came with great accompaniments. Service was fantastic from the host to the waitress who was well educated on the dishes and able to give us great recommendations including their citrus dessert that had a ridiculous white chocolate shell on top.. Overall a great meal and excited to try out the chef's table seating in the future. read more

Fantastic new restaurant in Millburn. We made reservations about 2 months in advance and went with a group of 6 friends. Great space - modern, beautifully done. Love the open kitchen concept. The food was surprising, delicious, full of flavors. Chef's creativity definitely deserves five stars. Will go back there soon. What a GEM for our neighborhood! read more

The only thing that differentiates a restaurant from all the others in this rich land of options (Montclair, Westfield, Maplewood and btw NYC) is the experience. How disappointing then to find this "hot" new restaurant in Millburn is failing on all fronts. The service is mediocre. The owner is downright rude. You want to pretend to be exclusive and booked for all seatings, go ahead. But DO NOT come over and ask us to hurry up one hour into service when you haven't served us our entrees. You took your time in serving our small plates - you need to pace the kitchen better. Meanwhile for a 5pm reservation during the week, the place was only half full. Even after the 7pm seating arrived there were still 3 tables open. We were more than open to moving seats to finish our desserts and wine when you informed us that we had to leave. I guess that means you would not like us to return. Note to owner - that attitude might play in Eastern Europe but it's not appreciated in Jersey. We are a loyal bunch when the food and the service are equally as good. I will go out of my way to make sure friends in Millburn and Westfield know that your restaurant is less than Common and not worth the trip. read more

The best meal I've had all year...inventive while still being completely delicious. BYOB is great too - bring a nice bottle to go along with the incredible menu items. read more

The restaurant is nicely designed , but the service totally judged me and my 2 sons . For such an overprice place they really should have a waiter that can describe the food to you and check on you when you get food. Also he should be trained on how to open a bottle of wine. Food good service not on the same level. read more

Albert H.... I totally agree. The staff and hostess were arrogant and unresponsive when we had dinner there as well. Which is too bad, because the over-priced food was pretty decent... We won't be heading back there anytime soon. People like that make it hard for you to support local town businesses. read more

This is difficult for me to write because I've been in the industry for years. This restaurant was recommended by a foodie friend. I am a semi - foodie. I love great food and am unafraid to pay for it, if it's great. On a scale of 1-10 (10 being outstanding), I'd be generous rating it a 6. My girlfriend and I ordered the cured salmon and heirloom carrot appetizers. Sent the salmon back due to complete lack of flavor. The carrots were ok. The Arctic Char was good. Overall, just ok. The service was...ok. No acknowledgement of the disappointment of our returned appetizer, although I overheard the chef instruct our server to take the app off our check (the right thing to do). Even when the check was dropped, the server didn't say anything about our app being comped. I'll try other restaurants before I would return. I was so excited and left feeling disappointed. read more

The positive reviews must be fake. Don't go here. There are much much better options in the Millburn area. The restaurant is overpriced for what you receive and the food and (especially) service is mediocre. The service is so slow that our entrees literally did not arrive for 90 minutes. Save your money... read more

Pretentious with a capital P. Too many words on the menu that require a French culinary glossary. Food just ok. Way overpriced. 75 dollars for a sea bass fillet for 2. Who are they kidding ? Won't be back. read more

Thoroughly enjoyed my meal at Common Lot and planning to return very soon. I'm neither a chronic complainer nor a newbie by any means. I like excellent food, better service and a reason to return. Common Lot nailed it! I've been reminiscing about the duck poutine and vegan cheesecake since I left. The steak was amazing and the staff was exceptional. House-made lemonade and tea selection are a definite bonus. read more

Absolutely terrible! My fiancé and I both left nauseous and sick to our stomachs. We will NOT be back. Don't waste your money.

Had an absolutely delicious meal here last night. We shared the sheep's cheese and the scallops (replacing the shrimp) to start and the flavors were incredible. For the main we had the market fish with coconut curry, jasmine rice, beet raita and pickled veg which was all amazing. Everything was so fresh and flavorful. The staff here are great too and there's a nice, chilled vibe in the open kitchen. Highly recommend this place. read more

New to town and this is the only restaurant we've found so far that we truly enjoy and want to dine at vs. feel resigned to eat at. It's our go-to restaurant for special occasion dining. We would go more frequently if only we could manage to plan ahead and make reservations far enough in advance. Family favorites are the potato chips and egg in a bag, the vegetable dishes and all of the desserts. read more

We had high hopes for this new restaurant. It looks great - a huge improvement for on the old building that it replaced. Food was decent but pricey for what you get. I'd give it 4 stars for the food if a rating was just about the food. It would get a 5 if they brought the prices down a few dollars. But our dinner was kind of ruined by the obnoxious, snooty and rude waiter we had. We had an early reservation and felt completely rushed and judged by the waiter the entire meal. Not all the staff had an attitude - just the one - but all it takes is one bad apple... After that experience, we feel no need to return here again. There are plenty of other nice restaurants in Millburn that treat their customers with kindness and respect. We will happily give them our business instead. read more

The worst experience of my dining life. I was trying to be a gentleman on my wife's birthday and didn't want to make a scene, about the despicable piece of FAT they put on my plate. I tried to find a little bit of meat and left the 85% of fat on the table for the clueless waiter to recognize. However, much to my dismay, he simply picked up my plate without saying a word and I watched him walk it over to the much too visible garbage can and dump its contents into it. When one of my friends at the table recognized that my meal was a poor excuse for a slab of fat, he tried to let the waiter know that it was unacceptable. His response was that he was only a waiter and he could bring it to the attention of the manager. Aside from the fact that, that should have happen automatically, what could the manager have done at that point to make up for ruining my night? How can you consciously serve people inedible food and expect to make up for it, after the fact.... What a disgrace. I have never written a bad review because I am a very positive person. Anyone who knows me would be shocked that I went out of my way to sign up on yelp, just to write this review.... It was that bad! I have a picture, if anyone cares. read more

Sounds like they have a more extensive dinner menu. I'm reviewing lunch which had a very limited menu. One salad - so if you want a salad and font like it you're screwed. Two desserts, neither of which I liked. The ice cream sandwich blondies were bland and dry. The flavors are good but they need to add more choices to the entire menu. read more

Went to common lot for the first time last night. Expectations were high based on reviews. The food is just good. Nothing special. Lacks flavor and they try to present it as fine dining with use of hard to find ingredients and herbs but is lacks taste. The wait staff about as pretentious as they come. A table complained that we were 'laughing' too loud and we were asked to keep it down rudely by the waiter who thought he was a server at per se. In general just a bad experience. With so many great restaurants in the area we will not be going back. read more

The food was edible, not exactly exciting. Overpriced for sure. The space is nice. The waiter however, was pretentious and terribly rude.

We loved all the food. Creative dishes, we had several appetizers, main courses and 4 desserts. I did not give this 5 stars because we asked why there were no salads and the response was everyone has salads we are different. We feel salads are an important part of meals and you are missing the boat by not including them with your amazing food. read more

Very Good, interesting food and unique atmosphere from other area restaurants makes it a breath of fresh air for the town.

Very disappointing experience. My sister had an issue with her reservationin thru open table; instead of trying to address the situation the owner was rude almost kicking us out. Even worse, considering that my sister is a recurring customer. The owner should have tried to assist or offer an alternative. Poorly managed. read more

It was an impeccable experience from start to finish. Every detail is perfect and has been expertly thought out, from the food, to the decor, to the overall ambiance. The kitchen is open which I really like, and you can also see clearly into the kitchen from the outside as you walk by the building, which was very interesting. You can reserve a counter area for four "in the action" facing the kitchen, called the "kitchen pass". When I go back, I definitely plan to try that out. The first floor is the perfect size, very intimate and beautifully decorated. Upstairs there is a private dining room, a library with some of the chef's cookbook collection on display and a dry aging room. It's very beautiful and modern. The staff were very professional and the chef's unique pairings of spices and flavors all paid off to say the least. We tried almost everything on the menu and passed it around the table, and each item was better than the last. My favorite of the appetizers was the grilled octopus, it was cooked perfectly and was beautifully plated. The entrees were all amazing, and the group consensus was that the braised lamb shoulder (which served two) was the best, and it was indeed delicious. The sea bass served over lentils was my personal favorite. For dessert I had the pavlova which was absolutely wonderful. It was served with citrus mascarpone and finely grated dark chocolate on top. The consensus within our group of 12 was that the rice pudding was the best, and it was indeed the best rice pudding I have ever tried. If you are a tea drinker as I am, you'll be excited over the great tea selection that they have. The tea is even served with a timer to tell you exactly when it's been steeped long enough to pour and enjoy. I highly recommend making a reservation here and experiencing for yourself, you will not be disappointed. read more

We were extremely fortunate to experience Common Lot on Friday night at one of its "soft openings." Every element of this wonderful new neighborhood gem has been thoroughly planned, thought out and expertly executed. The idea is to share food. Several entrees are "for two," and the starters are meant to be passed around the table. There were some wonderful surprises with the pairings of different spices, seasonings, and foods. The roasted heirloom carrots with cumin were amazing, and the tuna sashimi was so light and fresh. The sea bass was on a bed of lentils (I've never seen this before!) and the sirloin was ridiculously tender--perfectly cooked and seasoned. We shared a trio of mousse for dessert, and it was perfection. The tea experience is beyond... the choices of exquisite loose leaf teas are brought to the table so the diner can breathe in the different blends--almost impossible to choose! The open kitchen adds to the allure of this very special new spot in Millburn--the diners have the rare opportunity to watch all of the action. We will be back. Often. read more

A first-rate restaurant. Every dish we ordered - appetizers (salmon sashimi, pea guacamole, roasted carrots), entrees (branzino, sirloin with polenta), and dessert (chocolate and peanut butter mousse) was excellent - well-prepared, delicious, creative, and just the right size portions. Service was friendly and attentive but not overbearing. It's not cheap - NYC-type prices - but well worth it. I hope to return - again, and again, and again... read more

My husband and I were really excited to see a new restaurant in town that we could go to for a date night now and then. We haven't made it there for dinner yet, but we had lunch this past Wednesday. I have to say, it was completely underwhelming. The food just wasn't very good. It wasn't complex or innovative. We had the burrata salad which seemed under dressed. We also had the pork belly which was really just uninteresting. It was literally a few pieces if deep fried pork belly. The grilled octopus was not great either. Mine was sort of dried and salty. That was about it. The worse were the steak tacos. Not that they tasted bad, but for $7 each, I've had better at back yard potlucks. Our total for an underwhelming lunch for 2 was around $75 (we had 1 strawberry lemonade between the 2 of us!) Was not worth the money or the hype. All I can say is that for those who say this was the best food they ever had should get out more. I'm not against a premium price for a premium meal, except this was not a premium meal. read more

Delicious food. The starters are really good - I love the chips and egg dish. The pea guacamole they had in the summer was great too. The place is very modern and has an open kitchen. Very hard to get a reservation, but really tasty food to make up for that! read more

We tried this innovative new establishment and were impressed with the general ambience and design as soon as we walked in the door and were warmly greeted. We shared the 18hr braised pork and avacado salad which were a great start. The pork was a medley of savory and sweet, tender meat and nutty rice...the avocado salad was served warm with a crisp crown of greens presented brilliantly. Our main was the dry aged rib eye which was cooked to perfection, served off the bone with morsels of smokey beef tongue. The broccolini and green beans were served with the dish and were at peak freshness seasoned to perfection! Desert here will take your breath away- I can only compare to deserts at Eleven Madison Park or Per Se in NYC. The blueberry cinnamon sorbet and warm rice pudding are addictive and leave you yearning for more. Coffee served in french press was exceptional so as not to disappoint as a final beverage. One more accolade to be given to the beverages: the homemade sodas- elderflower and ginger is refreshing and bright without being overly sweet (we had two). Will be going back soon! read more

Wonderful, welcoming ambiance; highly attentive, friendly, responsive staff and owners; amazing attention to detail with regards to flavors, preparation, and presentation. A wide range of unique appetizers and main dishes suiting a variety of dietary preferences (e.g., omnivore, vegetarian, gluten-free, diary free). The dishes we ate were very fresh-tasting. Desserts were deeply flavorful and beautiful. A delightful dining experience. read more

This was my first time at this restaurant as I was visiting friends who live not too far from the restaurant. They had been previously and said how good it was. I was a bit surprised that they didn't want to take me to a nice restaurant in central New York being from the UK. However, after having an amazing meal here I completely understand why! The food was outstanding. Being a massive foodie and wanting everything on the menu I was able to sample a bit of everything with the sharing starters and mains. The decor is beautiful and we all found the service to be very pleasing also. I would certainly go back when visiting and I hope this restaurant comes to London soon! read more

New restaurant! My boyfriend was dying to take me for my birthday. Ok you twisted my arm! Very delicate and interesting combinations going on here. Definitely for the sophisticated food snob like me. Grilled octopus appetizer was so unique. The flavors are like nothing else you've ever tasted. I've had octopus before but this was something completely new to my mouth. I think it may have been the oil drizzled on top? Presentation is on point! Everything was so beautiful! Salmon sashimi was to die for. For entrees we got sirloin (solid but still doesn't beat out my favorite steak ever) but the leeks were melt in your mouth insane! and a scallop special which had this amazing succotash (I think) paring. Damn! Finished with 2 amazing flavors of sorbet! I was very impressed! If you want some new flavors you've never had before, try this place! Unlike any other restaurant! PS love that you can see right into the kitchen ... A true first! Can't wait to try the "chefs table" where you sit at the bar and get a special meal! Yummy!! read more