Stopped in late one night after a long work day. I was traveling for work and was alone. Brought a book to read because being alone at a restaurant is a little unnerving. I had the mussels and broccoli rabe. Both were excellent. Cannoli for dessert, because when you're in NJ why not. My waiter was very friendly and put me at ease. We had a great conversation which was nice. I will go back next time I'm in the area. read more

You want to taste dishes to remember please go! I live 1:30 away and yesterday I went back. I apologize for not posting pics but everything was beyond! Seafood salad excellent seasoned with a lot of seafood and 3 huge prawns. Fried calamari crispy and soft The dish of the night was the House Rigatoni with seafood..... a dish to remember!! Husband had the lobster which was excellent as well. We finished our dinner with the flourless chocolate torte which was awesome too Just go !!!! read more

OMGosh!! We are from NYC and the food and the service was spectacular!! Jessica was AMAZING!!! Friday night 11/4 Thank you Jessica!!! read more

Love the happy hour menu! It's such a warm cozy place especially in the winter when it's cold out. Never disappointed. Warning it's very crowded for happy hour and sometimes you might have to wait for a table but most of the time even if the bar is full they will accommodate. read more

Johnny Piancone's - Shrimp and Shrimp & Scallops Pomodoro - Italian Near Me - Long Branch, New Jersey

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I love this restaurant. I felt like family the minute I walked in. They have a great happy hour, where a large variety of dishes are available for less than you might find on the menu. The items change every week so you just have to show up to see what is available. I had the house made rigatoni with broccoli raab and sweet red pepper dews. I asked them to hold the sausage and they were happy to do that. It was delicious with just a perfect amount of garlic and the pasta was done al dente, just right. read more

Went for late lunch and happy hour but learned hh is only at the 7 seat bar. Sorta of a lost leader of a hh. So we sat and received below avg service by an obviously inexperienced server and mediocre food. Prices were higher than should be based on the above metrics. Found something black in our drink twice and was told it probably something in the bartenders ice bin. Yet the ice bin was not cleared?? Need I say more? read more

Came here to celebrate a friend's special occasion with some ladies. They have a great menu with lots of options I had a hard time deciding! I finally settled on the rigatoni vodka and added chicken. It was quite delicious. Overall it was nice ambiance and everyone loved their food. However, I know they were very busy on a Saturday night, but the staff wasn't particularly personable or friendly. When we asked someone to take our picture real quick, they seemed annoyed and replied "I guess but I am kind of busy." That was a bit disappointing, but I rated it well because the food was really quite good. read more

Johnny Piancone's - Rigatoni vodka with chicken - Italian Near Me - Long Branch, New Jersey

Ambience very nice with soft lighting, art. Service was excellent, perfect martini and great wines on wine list (along with decent pour) Place is smallish which makes it even nicer. There's one large, elevated round table for larger parties up front which looks like a fun spot to sit with a group (8?) Menu was not extensive & no specials. Seafood fresh & delicious. Only complaint here is that there was almost nothing interesting for a vegetarian which is surprising for an Italian restaurant. I think ziti with vodka sauce was my only option. Since it was a weeknight & they weren't slammed, I asked if the chef would make a pasta primavera for me which he did. It was great but I don't like making requests. Johnny P, if you read this, add another meat free dish for us veggies ! Primavera, white bean w/ broccoli rabe & garlic (my fave) or even eggplant parm. Pasta with vodka sauce just doesn't cut it for a nice dinner out. Our server was wonderful! She made the superb martini, gave top-notch service while managing her adorable little baby who came in with daddy. This appears to be a real family operation which I love even more! Overall, a great experience & we'll be back. read more

Johnny Piancones is a Super gem. My go to #1 place, There's Sundays sauce blows away anybody else is gravy in town. From seafood steaks and everything in between Johnny's really is the best. read more

Johnny Piancone's - Italian Near Me - Long Branch, New Jersey

Fantastic dinner with family before a wedding -- tiny restaurant, little hidden gem of Long Branch. Everyone ordered something different: I personally had the octopus salad and stuffed figs. The octopus was delish but needed a little something, some lemon to brighten it up. The figs were stuffed with raspberry mascarpone and prosciutto- 10/10 would recommend. Also had the flounder francais -- was decent, a bit too much batter on the fish and lacking enough sauce. Hubby had the salmon, delish but came half raw so we sent back. Came back perfectly cooked. Great atmosphere and would eat here again read more

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Been coming here for over 20 years. This place is simply fantastic. First rate food and drinks with generous portions. First class. Check out the tomatoes mozzarella or desserts! read more

Johnny Piancone's has the most impressive happy hour menu I have ever seen. Happy hour is limited to their small bar area. The bar area contains approximately 6 bar stools and 3 high top tables with 4 stools. Tonight we sampled a Margarita pizza, eggplant rollatini, fried calamari, artichoke franchaise, meatballs and pasta, peas, prosciutto in cream sauce. Everything was great, there tomato sauce is very good....especially the spicy sauce that came with the fried Calamari. I saw another patron enjoying a beautiful plate of grilled lamb chops that I am kicking myself that I didn't order. I am going to make a point to come back for dinner. Brian at the bar took excellent care of us, I cannot wait to come back. read more

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Although food was pretty good I was underwhelmed by entire experience starting with getting a phone call 5 mins before my reservation to confirm I am still coming in with my family. Not necessary. I asked about acknowledging my anniversary somehow previous to coming in but that didn't happen and I had to send my drink back which was missing ingredients, only to get attitude back by server. Decided to pass on dessert as it took half an hour to get the drink made properly. You can do better than this place. read more

We decided to go to dinner to celebrate my wife's birthday. It was a rainy day so outside dining would be impossible. The seating inside was very well set up and not near any other tables. Our server Jessica was exceptional and her service really made our night. We ordered the calamari and it came out 5 mins later. It was perfectly cooked and seasoned to perfection. I went with the lobster ravioli and it was amazing. My wife has the salmon and it was moist and cooked very well. We ordered two drink specials and the bartender made them super strong both times. The manager came to our table plenty of times to check on us. The food was perfect but I was wowed by the customer service. I will be returning and recommending this place to friends and family. Check it out!!! read more

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Great italian food! Go for the happy hour or regular meal and you'll leave more than satisfied!

I had reservations for a party of 12 for a family reunion. I had read their Facebook page and saw happy hour prices for drinks and small plates. After arriving and setting up the poster and favors I asked about the happy hour drink specials and was told that that was only at the bar. the food specials were only for parties. The manager was called and he rudely informed me the menu was all that was offered. I proceeded to pack up and leave without so much as a compromise. it was so important for me to have this reunion I Long Branch since that was where my Grandfather settled after coming to America and started his family. We went to VIc's in Bradley Beach and were welcomed. We really enjoyed our night after a very stressful time at Piancone's. read more

Foraging for food late at night, we were so glad to have stumbled across this place. Every dish that my party ordered was a pleasant surprise. They did have an unconventional menu for an Italian restaurant and we were apprehensive on ordering experimentally but so glad we did ! Totally recommend this place to anyone who loves good food. We have a little 3 year old toddler with us and our server lady was very kind and considerate in providing us options and coming up with helpful suggestions read more

I went to Johnny Piancone's for a party friends were having upstairs. The atmosphere is great and the food was classic Italian. The wine is good too! I had a delightful time. Parking is a little difficult as the location in Long Branch doesn't have much street parking and the parking lot in the back is usually full. I guess that's what happens when you are popular! read more

Great happy hour food at a decent price. Between 4:00 and 6:00 pm every week day Monday tru Friday read more

I have to admit although good on certain things I felt Piancone's fell short on others. Three of us had a reservation for early evening on a Saturday. They've been at this location for several years and have amassed a solid 4 star Yelp rating. So they know what they're doing, right? Well.... perhaps they did, but now I wonder. We had a waitress that was very efficient and we really wanted for nothing during the entire meal but I got the distinct impression that she'd rather be somewhere else. A perfunctory greeting and then asking us 3 times if we were ready to order until we finally succumbed. I ordered a Caesar salad to start; it was good. For an entrée I opted for the pork osso bucco. It was accompanied by risotto, and sautéed spinach. Although my entrée was good, it wasn't hot the way food should be. The outside of the pork was probably heated up quickly under the broiler but the interior was near room temp. I know that osso bucco takes a while to prepare and has to be done ahead of time but it still should have been served hot. The spinach and risotto were equally tepid but at this point I didn't want to send anything back. We split the choc, peanut butter tart; it was fine. Maybe an off-night, maybe too rushed in the kitchen on a Saturday night, and maybe the worse, complacency in managing. I doubt if this restaurant were starting out they would not serve less than hot food. Obviously this is my take on it, yours may differ. If you are a gourmet restaurant and you sell tap beer, why on earth would you offer such bland, mundane, & tasteless beers with your food? Considering the prices I probably won't return. I included my tab in the pics. read more

Johnny Piancone's - Dining room - Italian Near Me - Long Branch, New Jersey

Great , place. Terrific happy hour. Good service food consistently good. Traditional Italian fare. Love the homemade gelato.

The food was very good when we had dinner there. Very fresh and we enjoyed our meals. Another time, went for happy hour and did not think the food was as good. Very cramped sitting in the bar area. read more

Sorry no way to leave ZERO STARS. CAN YOU SAY RUDE!!!!! Called the restaurant to ask if we needed a reservation for Happy Hour with a party of 5. Was told no need for a reservation and we were told there was no wait. We parked and walked in through back. There were several empty tables outside and inside. The manager asked us if we were there for dinner? We said we were there for happy hour and he said we couldn't sit. I explained that we were told that we could come over and he said we couldn't sit and walked away. No apologies. F this restaurant. read more

Great spot, food was fantastic! Service was great and awesome deserts! Great food and drink menu.

Wonderful food! Great service! Awesome happy hour! This is one of our go to places. We have never had a bad experience here. A+++

Fantastic dinner and service. All of our meals were served hot and were delicious. The lobster raviolis and shrimp and scallop dinner were amazing. We could not ask for anything more! read more

Johnny P's is consistently friendly and delicious! Salads excellent! Appetizers excellent! Entrees excellent! Desserts delicious ! Quality, natural ingredients.... Even the cocktails are great! I recommend for a nice night of Italian food!!!! Love this place! read more

Food, service and ambience all terrific. The server was attentive and nice. The food was delicious. Try the watermelon salad or any pasta. Highly recommend. read more

Wifey and I went April 8th for dinner. We sat at one of the bar tables they have instead of sitting at the bar due to COVID restrictions. Kristina was our waitress. She was acting as waitress and bartender, and did a fantastic job at both. Very personable, accommodating with good eye contact. From the time she asked us for a drink order to the time she gave us our check, she was always professional and attentive. To start I must rave over the Antipasto salad!!! Its served on a good size wooden Charcuterie board, not in a bowl loaded with lettuce as other places do. This culinary masterpiece is created by slicing the prosciutto, capicola, and Italian dried salami to order, then they add fresh mozzarella, provolone, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers and cherry peppers stuffed with prosciutto and provolone cheese. Outstanding!!! Wifey ordered the Rigatoni Bolognese, her favorite. I like it too, cause she can never finish it, and she lets me have left-overs. I ordered the Halibut special. Fresh and seared to perfection with a light white wine sauce and spinach. We split dessert- Italian Cheesecake, and finished off with a fresh, hot Cappuccino. Has to be one of the best meals I've had in a while. I highly recommend Johnny Piancone's, and we'll go back often. read more

Great atmosphere and service. The food.......AMAZING. This is a place I will be coming back to on my return business trips. read more

We had a repass there on Monday for our small group. Food was delicious. Service was fantastic. I would absolutely recommend them for any gathering. And dinner as well, delicious every time, my favorite "Chicken La nonna" . read more

Phenomenal food, superior service Highly recommend this restaurant to all. Great dinner out!

Excellent, old school Italian restaurant. The service was wonderful and the environment made for a superb dinner.

Meeting a couple of friends for an early dinner 1/2 way between locations they suggest the long standing Johnny Piancone's in Long Branch for our annual summer dinner. Heading through an Interesting area of Broadway I passed the place twice as it is really if you don't know here it is stuck in the middle of the street with no noticeable signage other than the black awning. Later to find that there is plenty of 2 hour parking in the rear where you can enter from as well. Entering this old style bistro you can immediately see that this is no new comer to the restaurant scene as everything about it, is old school. From the open kitchen to the mini preparation bar, to the array of about 20 tables I'm told there is a downstairs for banquets as well, to the slightly musty smell, this place is at 1st glance Interesting. Bar of about 15 seats with 4 small round tables adorn it, it is crowded as we enter the tail end of Happy Hour where a special bar menu and drink pricing is available. We choose a bar table & off we go. You can immediately see what is going on, as they have 1 bartender, the owner is taking dinner orders in the dining room, there is 1 helper in kitchen and 1 helper at the prep area that slices prosciutto, makes Cesar salad etc and a couple of food runners that is it. Thinking this is going to be a disaster, I soon see this is the Norm and Justin behind the bar and everyone in between know their jobs and roll through everything rather quickly and efficiently. Hot Delicious bread is provided with whipped butter while the house wine "Sycamore Road" is simply awful. I opt after a taste for a more upscale glass but they really can up their house wine as there are far better palatable house wines out there than that. Let's get to the food. Note these are the bar menu / happy hour size platters which were outstanding for trying or sharing. Fusilli Bolognese Spiral pasta, meat sauce, grana padano cheese $6 - Pretty tasty stuff here, very temperature hot when served though the pasta was slightly overcooked. Mezza Rigatoni Prosciutto, peas, grated cheese, garlic & oil, cream $7 - Put this in the rotation top shelf tasty dish again piping hot, though again pasta overcooked slightly, but flavors were outstanding. Sautéed Escarole White beans, garlic & oil $7 - Don't tell my mother or grandmother this THE BEST IVE EVER HAD Simple as that. I could have eaten a bucket full and not stopped. More of a soup than a side dish but really outstanding. Meatballs Two extra large homemade meatballs, marinara $6 - Very good though you can tell they were made outside the gravy baked then put gravy on top as marinara was not though the entire meat ball. Flavor was top shelf though and marinara was very good. Not many restaurants do it my way fried then cooked balance in marinara as it is time consuming but there is a concern able difference. Caesar Salad Romaine, homemade garlic croutons, shaved parmesan cheese $6 - This unfortunately was a failure as croutons were homemade and tasty the salad was as I watched freshly prepared and tossed but the lettuce was warm and limp and dressing lacking something I'm not sure. The one failure on the menu. No deserts or coffee were tried. To Sum it up it is a neighborhood bar with lots of "character". Cleanliness in the bar area and prep area needs a bit of clean up as the floors were in desperate need of a once over while the prep area looks like it hasn't been moved and cleaned in some time. The lighting in that area does not bode well for its upkeep as well. The dining room although we ate in the bar area was quaint and looked very nice for this type of establishment. Happy hour drink pricing fine, see previous comment on house wines by the glass while there regular pricing for wine and drinks were about a 200% retail markup on a bottle of low priced wine with a 100% to 150% markup elsewhere. Take out the Cesar Salad, give them a pass on the slightly overcooked pasta and you have an array of really delicious food to try. The Price points are really spectacular on the happy hour menu. All and all this was a surprising visit to a local place that its review was much higher than expected after 1st impressions. The food for the most part much better than average to outstanding in some cases. They overall appearance and upkeep could be a little better but it certainly would not deter me from visiting here if in the area in the future. BRAVO! read more

Stopped by for happy hour last night with friends as I've heard a lot of positive feedback about this place. Very happy I did! The place is small, & old. Reminds me of an old house. It is a bit dark though. The bartender was multitasking & was also the server in the bar area. Made for a little slower service but he was personable. My friends & I sat at a high top in the bar area (tiny area) & ordered a couple of drinks. One in particular, a melon martini was excellent & made with cream. No need for more than 1 of these babies but it was delicious (we shared:) Next up I ordered a salmon dish with asparagus from the happy hour menu ($11). When the dish came out, there was way more food than I expected (dinner portion for me). It was delicious! The rest of my group enjoyed their meals as well. I understand their prices for dinner are 'pricey' but it seems the quality is there. I will definitely return for happy hour & hopefully dinner at some point. Yum! read more

Johnny Piancone's - Nice place - Italian Near Me - Long Branch, New Jersey

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great atmosphere, great food... reasonable prices... limited bar seats but no matter what, you'll have a good time

Delicious delicious delicious. Stuffed artichoke and roasted peppers were amazing. And THE BEST fried calamari I have ever eaten. Highly recommend! read more

Awesome food and service. Authentic cuisine, nice menu, awesome Server. Great fine dining experience.

Food was okay could be better, the bread sucks, it was cold and hard, not sure about going back

Awesome Italian place in Long Branch! We came in for happy hour and were blown away by the food, service, and prices! The caesar salad and tomato and mozzerella salad were fresh and so tasty! We also tried the mac and cheese, rigatoni, fried mozzerella...also delicious! This place is amazing! read more