A neat, out-of-the-way spot with a barn-like feel and tons of horse/farm decor. The food portions are big and they are known for their homemade potato chips - but the meals are nothing fantastic. Stick to the basic bar foods and you'll be fine. Beer selection brings down the rating - very few options on tap, and no craft brews. read more

As a local, I want to like this place - even love it. I love the look of it. I love the location of it. But I wish they would just bring up their game. The decor, while supposedly rustic, is Dusty and dated. The food is not reliably good, and the service is often wanting.I will try it again, because I want to be good - I really do read more

We received a lot of recommendations for this place, including Yelp reviews. We choose the must have Homestead burger. My husband and I both asked for medium rare (pink inside) and we both received hockey pucks. How can you enjoy an overcooked, tasteless, high priced burger? To boot, the French fries were soggy, and the chips tasteless. Sorry to say, but not worth the hype. Save your money and go elsewhere. read more

So Joyce, our server was Great!!! Our Drinks from the bar were Awesome!!! & our food was ice cold. Total bummer, my 4yr old son had ice cold noodles, my 17yr old daughter said her burger was hot. My chicken was luke warm, probably would have been awesome if it was hot,ice cold mash potatoes & my husband had a cold prime rib roast. Total Bummer, the place has a nice cozy feel, if only they could get the food out nice & cozy. read more

Came here with my parents for dinner last night and really enjoyed it. The chicken fried steak was absolutely amazing!

It's kind of hard to rate this place since I came here for a rehearsal dinner. My friends wanted everyone to just sit back and relax with some good food - so here we landed. Being that it was a buffet, I only tried the rib and pulled pork. Everything was extremely good - moist and packed with flavor. I usually don't like pulled pork and I actually went for seconds. Oh and I had the apple carmel pie with ice cream on top for dessert. It was okay - not the best but not the worst. read more

12/30/16 Had lunch there today it took 55 minutes to get our food and there was only 10 other people there. After waiting 50 minutes for our food I asked the waitress "how our food was coming" she had a attitude and spoke in a condescending manor". The other 10 people had their food and were almost finished eating. When the food came the french fries were uneatable, either the oil was not hot enough when the fries were cooked or they were reheats. They were very greasy, one look at them and you knew "don't eat them". To top it off, our food wasn't hot but merely luke warm. Also it was freezing cold in there we had to keep our coats on and we still were cold! I've eaten there many times and I must say the quality of their hamburger meat is excellent, BUT you only have a 50/50 chance of it being cooked the way you ordered. The quality of the cooking is VERY inconsistent! I've had to send my "med. rare" burger back several times in the past because it was "well done" after I asked the waitress to PLEASE stress to the kitchen that I want it medium rare. I'm done! Today was the last time I'll eat there. read more

Decent food but no reservations - don't bother trying on the weekend. Service is apathetic as well.

The homestead has the best happy hour around. 3-6 everyday but sat. Half price well drinks. $2 drafts. And half price nachos, potato skins, and wings. Secret: ask them to mix the hot sauce with the honey BBQ for wings. It is soo good. My boyfriend and I have been finding ourselves there every sun. It's convenient, foods good, flat screen TVs , and good happy hour deals. read more

It's been a while since we had been here...usually more of a wait time than my husbands deals with. We were seated within 5 minutes. I got The Wrangler, a burger with pulled pork, bacon and cheddar cheese. I ordered it medium rare, which is how it arrived. The burger was heat but the pulled park was incredible! We go to Georgia regularly and this pulled pork was The Best Ever! Service was great, food all incredible. read more

I live nearby and go occasionally in a pinch. The menu reflects a style of good old American pub food with hamburgers, ribs and sandwiches being at the forefront of their specialties. Recently they have been smoking many of their meat and chicken dishes which has added more flavor to their entrees. The meals still aren't anything special and they have a tendency to provide you with more carbs then one needs in the form of a overabundance of French fries which are good or in the form of oversized rolls. Is this to compensate for nothing else really standing out? They could benefit from improving their beer selection as it is limited to mostly bland major brewery offerings. Wish it could be more of a go to place since I live so close. read more

My roommate grew up just down the road from the Homestead-- from the first time I went I loved it. In fact at times we will drive all the way up (45 min) for a burger-- oh the burgers are amazing by the way. Wait staff are always really ice and very friendly. There is occasionally a wait, but the food is always worth it. My family (from Ohio) were there once, and they loved it, now when they come out this way they want to go for dinner-- what can I say, my family likes good, simple food. Great place to eat! read more

Although almost all of the reviews talk about the delicious burgers, and indeed my husband had a thick and juicy burger grilled perfectly, I opted for one of their dinner specials- lamb chops. I asked for it to be medium rare and it was cooked to perfection. It was served with mint jelly, a good portion of roasted potatoes & a medley of perfectly prepared vegetables. Dinner also came with a choice of salad or soup. They also have a nice variety of beers on tap. We were impressed by their variety of different potatoes as well as home made chips. There was also a very tempting tray of desserts to choose from though by the time we had finished we couldn't eat another thing and I had to wrap up the rest of my dinner to enjoy tomorrow! Besides good food, the staff is friendly, helpful and the ambience is wonderful. read more

The atmosphere is slightly odd with a bar and dinning room filled with locals and pictures of horses. I suppose that is to be expected at a place called the Homestead Rest that looks like a barn. The place is a bit off the beaten path and as a result can get quite busy. When I was there the busy dinning slowed the wait staff to a crawl and the wait for two burgers came to about 35 minutes and this was on a weekday so I can only imagine the wait on a weekend. The burgers were delicious and far from ordinary. They offer a variety of different burgers that are surprisingly unique for Sussex County, NJ. I had a burger with brie cheese and water cress, The burger was quite good, not the best ever but serviceable burger none the less. The french fries were a little disappointing, they were small and overcooked. and the beer (a Yuengling) tasted a bit flat. Over all the Homestead Rest has some tasty and unique food if your willing to wait a little bit. read more

Homestead Rest - American Near Me - Sparta, New Jersey

Great, unique atmosphere. Incredible burger...one of the best.

Found this little gem up in the mountains. Expecting a dive bar from the looks of the outside but the food is outstanding and the service even better. read more

Great burger and service. Atmosphere was super cool. If you're in the area you must stop by. Owner was on site and checked in on our party.

Overall good food, service and atmosphere

We started going to the Homestead about 13 years ago and have found, sadly, that the recent change to the menu is sad. and quality of food has gone down hill while the prices have gone up hill. Last week I ordered the Pale Rider burger, rare. I got a medium burger with melted cheese and one piece of onion skin. The fries used to be fresh cut, hot and crispy. What I got what looked like fries out of a box and were totally limp with grease. A guest ordered the Chicken Spurs which were chewy and too large. I said nothing at the time as I did not want to make a comotion. I would, on occasion, stop in at cocktail hour for a drink and an order of Bullets. The Bullets are gone and three Mozzarella sticks go for 9 dollars. I predict the Homestead's restaurant trade will diminish and the business will have to survive by the bar business. Good Luck, read more

I'm not a country person but I like the atmosphere in the place. It is a bit loud at times especially in the new addition where the sound echoes. The food tastes good but last time made me sick. read more

A group of friends and I went to the homestead.The burgers were terrible. They were over cooked and the buns fell apart in our hands and the service was terrible. Our waitress came to our table to take our order and to bring our food and that was about it. She also forgot two of our orders which was very frustrating. read more

I have only recently been going to the Homestead, but everything we have tried their has been delicious! Especially the homemade Mozzarella sticks.It is a very warming place to go into with friendly staff. Always greeted as soon as we walk in Our waitress Tammy, who we had last time was fantastic. She is very nice and made sure her customers were taken care of even when she got busy. Haven't had a bad meal yet and can't wait to go back! read more

My family has been going to the Homestead for years and it is a great atmosphere for some great bar food, cold adult beverages and great conversation. Our Server Nancy is always wonderful and we have got to the point where we don't even have to order our food or drinks anymore. When you have someone that works in this type of setting and learns about their customers that well, they truly are an asset to that business. Thank you Nancy for always taking care if us!! We will see you soon read more

I took my mother here the last Mother's Day. Food was excellent. I'd recommend the homemade mozzarella sticks for an appetizer. The wait staff is friendly and accommodating. Great place! read more

Good but not great. Falls short in odd ways. Homestead used to be known for their delicious, fresh-cut fries and use of bakery rolls. I was disappointed tonight to be served a burger on a standard sesame seed bun (not toasted or even warmed) with frozen fries. The burger was quite tasty, but the fries were beyond bland and not fried golden--they were just on this side of "cooked." Easy ways to turn this 3 star into a 5 star would be to simply toast the bun and use higher-quality fries. For the price charged, I should've received better. read more

Been there before and was thoroughly disappointed. But against my better judgment I tried it again. Absolutely terrible- actually got worse. Nachos are stale chips under bulk salsa and cold cheese. Served it without cheese being melted. As fir the rest of the food I really can't get into detail because it will make me sick, but it too was awful. Service was poor and staff seemed angry. Very dirty restaurant. Not recommended at all. read more

Great country place to visit for a Beer and burger. I was hoping for great ribs but came up way short. I have been coming here for years seems like the quality has left the building. Hope they get back on track. Will try again and hope for the best. read more

Great place we found after golfing. We were looking for somewhere with a good bar and found that plus a great restaurant also. Ambiance was casual and fun. Sally at the bar was awesome - helped us w order and very friendly. Lots of beer options and huge menu. My brother raved about the Homestead Burger and I had blackened catfish and shrimp. Prices were reasonable and other customers were very friendly and casual. Will come back for sure. read more

OK so I went back and this time my Burger which I ordered med rare came out well. No biggie, I send it back , no big deal. 20 min later my friends are done I'm still waiting. Comes out again and well done again! ughhh I eat it pay. I hope it was a one time deal. read more

So glad we found this place. You need to go through their tour, but pretty cool- Erik gave us our tour! Beer is delicious. I'm having their Old Village Stout and john had the viva verde, a jalapeño IPA. Yum! Has bar and tables in front and picnic tables back in back brewing room ... And people are sitting back there had pizza delivered! Great place read more

The French onion soup is to die for and if you enjoy spicy food I highly recommend the buffalo shrimp with the homemade blue cheese dressing is so good. But my absolute favorite go to dish is the wagon wheel sandwich! It's delicious! read more

Came here for ribs. Very messy but also very tasty. Got whole rack to have some left over for later.

Surprisingly disappointing. The food was raved about in some reviews, one review even said they were surprised food in Sussex county was so good. I must say, there are 2 other better eateries right down the street on rt 94. The food was nothing to rave about at all and staff made the experience that much worse. We were seated right away, but only after asking if we had to seat ourselves. We asked because no one greeted us when we walked in, although there were a few servers by the computer area which is where I would assume would be the concierge area. We ordered appetizers which took some time to come out but we were still glancing at our menus. When our appies came, we had our menus aside waiting for our entree order to be taken. The waitress placed the food and walked away. We were confused as to whether she thought we were done ordering or if she just didn't care. The food took pretty long to come out and while we were waiting the bus boy asked if we wanted boxes, not minding the opportunity to make room, I wasn't bothered, however my date was annoyed. Our waitress seemed to have disappeared entirely when she wasn't actually at our table. We waited about 15 minutes for a refill on a drink after asking the busboy a second time. We ate our entrees and waited, waited, waited, with no sight of our server. At this point we were never even asked if the food was good or if we needed anything. No one checked on us. After this, I had to get up in search of our waitress, who was no where to be seen, and ask another staff member to bring us boxes and our check. Our waitress brought us our check and disappeared again. My date went to the rest room and no one came to collect the check. The bus boy was supposed to bring me bags for the boxes but forgot. My date already annoyed with the evening had gotten up and took the check to a different waitress by the computer because once again our waitress was not in sight. He left a horrible tip which made me feel bad being that I have worked in the service industry but his reasoning was, if it wasn't to take me on a date some where, it would have been entirely a waste of money. If I could give no stars, I would. Needless to say, we will not be returning. read more

My family & I went this week to try it out. To my surprise, It was WONDERFUL! I am not an easy person to please. But from th moment we walked in, we were content! We sat in the dinning room, with the fireplace going. And looked out the window as it snowed. Our meals were large and extremely good! All of us needed a doggie bag. And the service was just as good as the food. Everyone smiles and says hello. And not that fake hello where some places here the door open and they scream hello and don't even look up. I wont go back to 2 of the diners in the area because of the yelling & bickering by employees and / or Owner. If you have never been to this place, try it. We did after living here for over 12 years And now, its our favorite place!!! read more

Great food! Too many favorites to list but you can't go wrong with a burger! Always ask for their homemade chips! Yum you'll eat more than 1! read more

We used to come to the Homestead all the time and regularly ordered take out the Buffalo Wings were to die for and a large order of 20 was only $9.95 , The Homestead Burger was always a treat especially with their home made chips. Over the years they added a large two floor dining room to handle the crowds. Tonight Thursday 10/30/14 we arrived at 6:30 PM. There was no line waiting to get in (Hint) but the bar was full, yet the restaurant only had three tables occupied (Second Hint). We both had decided before getting there that we were going to treat ourselves to a nice filet. My wife asked our first waitress (dark haired) if they had coke, she said sure (first lie) and ran off to get our drinks. The coke did not taste like coke, hell it didn't even taste like pepsi. The menu confirmed our fear that it was RC cola. Well not to spoil the night we continued to order our filets both rare, potato and a house Cesar salad. A busboy arrived with some hot bread. We tried only to find it tasted like it had been reheated several times. We finally got another waitress who was just right. and got our order off to the kitchen, Two more tables arrived and placed their orders..Yes you guessed it right, they both got their dinners 15 and 20 minutes before us, It's now around 7:20 PM and my wife inquires how long does it take to cook a rare filet? At 7:30 PM they arrived with some real unusual stick sticking out my baked potato (Had to laugh at this one, had they watched Kitchen Nightmares?) To our surprise both plates had bight green mushy broccoli, several string beans and about 20 kernels of corn. (Now to get Broccoli that bight green you add baking soda while you boil them) Now about the filets, yes they were rare and yes they cut them in half to check but sadly they were no true filets. Websters dictionary defines a filet as : a piece or slice of boneless meat or fish; especially : the tenderloin of beef . Well folks that was no tenderloin as gristle should not be present in large amounts if at all. In short for $54 dollars and change this was not the dinner we envisioned. It seams that Sussex County restaurants have come full circle in 25 years and are back to serving poor quality food, hoping that a good place is just to far to drive on any night. Thank God I had the company of my lovely wife. PS if you come for Happy Hour 3-6 PM you must be at the bar to get the discount. read more

Went in for lunch on a weekend, good attentive service, Ordered a burger, wife had a chicken sandwich. Food was cooked as requested and delicious. read more

Well, This is a Hard one. I know the Owner. My wife and I walked in to a Hostess telling us it was going to be 15 mins. As we looked around there were many tables available. So as we waited, a woman with her mom and child walked in. The hostess didn't even hesitate to sit them. So I walked over and asked the Hostess Why did you seat them before us? She said there were 3 of them. I said 2 adults and a CHILD(8). That's bad Service!! The Hostess said that's what the owner wants. read more

I agree with John. This place has gone down hill. Outside smells like their septic backed up and inside everything tastes like stale grease. I use to like the beef and burgers there. I won't go back. read more

I like rare burgers. I know, I've heard all the supposed horror stories, but I've been eating rare burgers for something like fifty years now with no ill effects. My yardstick for a restaurant that serves burgers is how they do with an order of rare. The Homestead does it exactly right. I had the Homestead burger, which is topped with bacon, onions, mushrooms and American cheese (I substituted cheddar). It was a great, large burger, properly rare. My friend had the potato pancakes (on the "Oktoberfest" menu) and they were excellent as well. The burgers come with outstanding homemade chips. You can substitute regular fries or sweet potato fries for fifty cents or a dollar respectively, but why bother when the chips are so good? We both recommend The Homestead highly! read more