Just had a great lunch to celebrate a friends birthday. The menu has new and old Italian items …read more The specials are also fun with new interpretations of classics. I enjoyed the baby lamb chops over white bean salad w/lemon vinaigrette after sharing calamari with a spicy mango sauce . My friends enjoyed the grouper and the lobster salad ; all were good sized portions cooked perfectly. We shared profiteroles and carrot cake and everyone was pleased . Service for a large group was attentive and restaurant allowed you to bring your own bottle so the final bill was more manageable . Parking is available out front.

03/30/2026 Came to gather with my wife, my sisters and…read morebrother in law. We'd had a birthday gathering at their Fresco restaurant and went home very full and happy. We were brought downstairs to a large room full of tables and were the only ones in there. We wondered if we'd insulted someone, or if one of us might be 'offensive', (no one was) but as it turns out, it was a 'Godsend'. We're all in our 70's and hearing/speaking can be challenging in a crowded/noisy dining room. We remained the only ones there for almost the entire 2 hours we were there and really enjoyed ourselves without having to yell or ask "WHAT!?" We shared a couple of salads (Greek and Arugula) and calamari, all very good. My wife had the seafood capellini and one sister the seafood fra diavolo, which they both enjoyed. My other sister had a seafood salad and my BIL went for the double cut pork chops, which he too enjoyed. I opted for the Halibut / risotto. Halibut is not an easy fish to make 'moist or juicy'. I make it at home and it comes out 'pretty good' (at least my wife says so) but here, this portion was fantastic! So light an flaky and tasty. Definitely give it a try if you enjoy Halibut. We all shared a couple of desserts... a home made carrot cake and a chocolate cake from 'outside'. Both good, but the carrot cake was served warm, which was a first for all of us... and it was terrific! Without a doubt the best carrot cake we'd ever had, so save a little room for their carrot cake if/when go. Our servers, Alyssa and Dagmar provided excellent service as well as some humorous dialogue while we were there. Made our meal just that much better!. Yes... it's a BYOB!

The food was excellent for all of our birthday celebration. We made reservations for another local…read morerestaurant but they had no record. We called and were able to secure a table for 5. Our server Leslie/Amanda, was amazing, friendly, and very efficient. The appetizers were amazing. Calamari in a basil sweet and spicy dressing, shrimp w/ garlic, and a small pizza, bar style. The dinners were also delicious and huge portions., Veal Saltambucco, short rib paparedelle, seafood w/ linguini, risotto w/ seafood, and lobster ravioli. All entrees were amazing and very generous portions. We sat in a rear dining area that was filled with diners that were enjoying the atmosphere and the company of friends and great food. The service food, and atmosphere were exceptional.

I was so excited to come here for a small Christmas party. There is a nice amount of parking in the…read moreback of the building and you are able to enter from there as well which is very convenient especially in the winter chill. The dining rooms have a nice amount of space so you don't feel cramped and on top of one another. Very traditional Italian restaurant in looks. There were a few challenges with getting a wrong dish and having an extra dessert on the bill. When the extra item was found on the bill there was a bit of a dispute and back and forth but they fixed it in the end. The wrong dish was a compromise on our party's part, one of our friends accepted the plate even though it was not what she ordered, there was no move to fix it on the restaurant's part. As far as the food, it was not my top Italian choice in the area, especially when factoring in price. I felt the food was not as flavorful as some of the competitors nearby, especially the appetizers.

Found this place for a birthday celebration. From outside we could not find the main entrance but…read moreonce inside we had a great experience from the service provided by Juan to the delicious food. We were a party of 8 and ordered from the family style menu (5 appetizers, salad, 2 pastas, 1 beef, 1 chicken, 1 fish, dessert). Everything was tasty especially the balsamic calamari and the anise mussels. We loved the 3 cheese gnocchi and the penne carbonara. There is a great selection to choose from. It was plentiful and we could not finish it all. Will definitely be back!

Okay, I'll be honest: this place needs a serious overhaul. Robert Irvine, please help them out! We…read morewaited at the hostess stand while three men rushed around, taking orders, bringing food, clearing tables, and resetting them. It was clear they were severely understaffed, and we were largely ignored until one of them finally said, "I will check on your table." The food was okay. The bread? Their stock answer was humorous after hearing it recites by all three servers: "It's in the oven" I guess practice makes perfect. Standard salad with balsamic, same as every mid pizza/food place I have been before. Red snapper special was way tough on the outside, like chewing leather that you never would really want to eat?! Best thing here was the pork chop, sweet spicy peppers, with onions yummy brown sauce, although the pork was a tad overdone. Overall, this place is a pass.

I cannot explain why it took 7 years after Florence, Italy natives Alberto Buglione and Ivan…read moreGuarducci took over this restaurant for me to visit. It is outstanding! Over the years I have heard nothing but good from friends -- "Excellent" "Exactly like they make it in Florence!" "Best Italian food I've ever tasted." I went with a party of four. For appetizers we split the Polpo E Patate (grilled octopus & potatoes) and Patate Fritte (French fries). The octopus was amazing, tender almost like perfect scallops with a tasty pesto. The French fries with herbs, garlic bread crumbs and pesto were crunchy, tasty, delicious. For mains my companions had Branzino with eggplant carponata, an amazing 4-cheese Gnocchi, and swordfish. I tasted all, and all were spot on; everyone loved their main course. I had Linguini Vongole (clams and linguini); the clams were perfect - tender and tasty; but the star of the show was the homemade linguine, seasoned perfectly and cooked to al dente perfection. We finished with cappuccino and Tiramasu. The service was excellent. Attentive and quick, and our waitress, Merin, was able to answer every question about the menu with authority, and even about the ingredients and preparation. The ambiance is understated, relaxed, and what you hope for when enjoying a special meal. I am quite stingy in passing out 5-Star ratings; I reserve them for the best of the best, for restaurants where I'm confident readers will also enjoy an outstanding meal. Mangia Toscano is clearly 5-Star; it is *the* must-do restaurant in Metuchen.

The food, service, and atmosphere were definitely a vibe! Everything about the experience was…read moreenjoyable from start to finish. I had the Salmon and the Gnocchi Al Pesto, and both dishes were delicious, savory, and full of flavor. The staff was attentive, the ambiance was great, and the overall experience made me want to come back again. Highly recommend!

Michael waited on our table and he was great …read more They serve their homemade sourdough with butter which is addictive. You can buy their bread at the restaurant. We tried a few different things from their menu Strozzapreti- cavatelli with broccoli rabe sausage - very tasty Grandmas pie - simply delicious Minestrone soup - what it's supposed to be like Butterscotch Budino - creamy pudding with chocolate ganache n sea salt - creamy satisfying Loud grand dining area with a bar in the center seating at two levels lots of natural light by h the day and dim lit night vibe with loud music drinks quick service and great food makes this the perfect vibe to spend a lazy evening in an electric atmosphere

We were in Metuchen last week for a street fair and saw this place when leaving, so we decided to…read moregive it a try tonight. First, it is VERY loud in the restaurant, hard to have a conversation without talking very loud. While the service people were very nice, the service was so - so. They took about 20 minutes to come over, we ordered cocktails and an pasta as an appetizer. It took about 20 mins for them to bring bread after we ordered. Then the cocktails and app came out immediately after. Cocktails are meant to be enjoyed before your dinner, not during it. While the cocktail was fine, I wasn't interest in having it at this point. I had a couple of sips. The bread they brought out was fantastic. One of the best breads ever. The pasta was amazing. I really enjoyed it. We had the buccatini with guaclian (sp?). So I really looking forward to the Pizza. We put in the order for our pizza, went to the men's room and when I came back the pizza was on our table. Very strange it was so fast in less than 5 minutes. I am sorry to say the pizza was horrible. Soggy crust and dry pizza, not sure how that is even possible. Crust and pizza in general had no taste. I had this strange feeling the pizza might be premade and maybe they just add the topping for your order I don't know. Overall, it was very much a tale of 2 cities. Iffy service and horrid pizza. Yet great bread and pasta.

I am sorry to write this update to my review, because Torino (now Terzo) has always been my "go to"…read morefor fine Italian food in Metuchen. But apparently Torino II has relaunched itself as "Terzo," which according to their website does "...classic Italian flavors and ingredients in a reimagined way, using farm fresh ingredients & homemade pasta." The menu now includes 7 appetizers, 2 salads, 7 pastas, 7 entrees and a few desserts. We were immediately told that two of the appetizers and two of the entrees were not available "today," so even less choices. Thing is, anything resembling the classic dishes in every Italian restaurant were absent from the menu. Ah, but then I spotted "Caesar Salad" -- but it was actually "Summer Kale Caesar Salad." Hey, there;s a time and a place for kale; that would be in a health food or vegan restaurant, not in my Caesar salad. But I figured, keep an open mind. We ordered two appetizers, Salmon & Shrimp Arancini and Wagyu Meatball Pomodoro -- both excellent. But the entrees, and this is the crux of the matter, varied from mediocre to poor. I ordered the Airline Chicken Parm, which was a giant portion of panko breaded chicken breast, with marinara and cheese, and a small pasta on the side. The homemade pasta was excellent, but the chicken -- tough as leather and tasteless. And sadly the other three in my party also felt the same about their entrees. Some were overcooked, others were tasteless. The bill, for a party of four (and we ordered no wine), excluding tip was $220. We did provide a 20% tip as the server was excellent, but the selection of menu items was poor, the food was mediocre at best, and cost was outrageous considering quality of the food. As I said, I hate to write this review, but Terzo leaves me with the challenge of now finding a new "go to" Italian restaurant in the area.

Cozy small restaurant in Metuchen. We were quickly greeted and seated. Service was great…read morethroughout our dinner. The table shared an appetizer: balsamic calamari. Crispy, flavorful and perfectly cooked calamari. Great app. For my main course, I had the chicken parmigiana which comes with choice of pasta. I opted for my favorite bucatini (not often found in menus). The dish was great: al dente pasta, flavorful sauce and crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside chicken. We were too full for dessert! Great place I'd revisit if in the area.

This is my favorite pizzeria to go to whenever I'm in the area! The food is always fresh and…read moreabsolutely delicious. The staff is very friendly and welcoming, and the place is always clean which makes the experience even better. My favorite is their margherita pizza -- it's perfectly cheesy with just the right amount of sauce. I also love that the crust is thin and holds up nicely with no flop. Highly recommend if you're looking for a great slice!

Updated review from two years ago, I tried the a margarita pizza yesterday after taking a…read moresabbatical. I am lowering my rating because the pizza crust isn't the same. Please note that you may like this type of "thin crust". The bottom of the crust felt and tasted like maybe it's over coated with cornmeal; the texture felt gritty crunchy. This would work if anyone prefers this texture. The sauce just tasted like it was freshly ladled over (no oven baked in flavor). The topping left very little space for the crust edge. I am still stuck on how unfamiliar the crust texture was. I am used to thin crust texture from raised bread dough not a corn-meal like feel. Another reviewer was also baffled with the crust. Reheat review: unfortunately, was not convincing to nudge up the rating. From tip to mid way of the slice, the structure was floppy. From mid way to the edge of the slice: structure held up. Flavor was still good, maybe now better tasting bc sauce now tasted baked in because of the re heating. Service was on time.

My family and I love this place! The owner is incredibly kind and made a point to walk around,…read morecheck on every table, and ask how everything was, which made us feel so welcomed. We ordered a variety of dishes, including the pizza, which was delicious, a fresh grilled chicken salad, and the penne, which ended up being everyone's favorite at the table. The portions are generous, so you'll definitely leave satisfied. I also have to mention the bread basket. One of the breads was topped with an incredible tomato sauce, and I honestly haven't stopped thinking about it. It was so simple, yet so flavorful. I could have eaten an entire basket of just that alone! It's also BYOB and has outdoor seating, which makes it an even better spot for a relaxed meal. We'll definitely be back!

Che has the best pizza in town! They have a variety of slice options to choose from for a quick…read morelunch. The crust is crispy and thin - always a perfect slice. On the few occasions where we've had Che delivered to us at work, the pasta dishes and sandwiches were flavorful and delicious. On top of that, the owner is gracious and kind. A true gem of a place in Metuchen!

I went out for lunch with my friend today…read more I had the eggplant Parmesan and a side order of penne. It was delicious. Every time I go there it is the only entree I order because it's very very good. My friend ordered scalloped. She didn't like it and she ordered steamed spinach. She said it was very bland. She would not order this again. Milagros

St. Pattys Corn beef special sandwich. No cheese, no mustard, just bread w/ about 6oz of corned…read morebeef & a side of fries. Cost to produce: probably $4. What I paid: $19.86. Quality 7/10 Speed of service: 9/10 Value: 1/10

I went to the Edison location just the other day, the atmosphere changed completely since the last…read moretime we came, new deals, and friendly staff. Loved the wings, I asked to get a buffalo and garlic romano mix and the staff were unhesitent to make my request and it turns out great. I'll definitely visit again with my family soon.

Food is phenomenal. The service was so nice. Very fast with food. Very clean, and the servers are…read moreso nice