The ambiance in this restaurant is delightfully impressive, well in keeping with the tenor of the adjacent attraction. Sadly, the food does not. Designated as French cuisine, it fails to have the wow! factor expected from properly executed French creations. Having just visited another french restaurant near New Hope, PA that met this expectation, my family of three unanimously agreed that Rats was lacking. In its favor, the charcutueri appetizer was especially memorable. read more

Located right next to the Seward Johnson sculpture ground with marvelous outside courtyard based on Monet's paintings. However the interior decor and lighting looked quite dim and the statues inside could be a bit freaky. Pleasant seating beside the pool with lovely ducks walking all around. Had the Moroccan lamb stew, tender pieces of lamb generously seasoned and cooked thoroughly, literally melting in the mouth. The waitress successfully convinced us to order a round of ice cream and sorbet; ice creams were excellent, and the sorbets had a....somewhat intriguing flavor profile (black pepper strawberry???). Overall, satisfied. read more

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What a Lovely restaurant with unique sculptures all around the property. The food was good however the atmosphere was the best part for us.

Yes yes the food is great !! Just enough portions. Classy & absolutely love their holiday menus !

We had a (mostly) lovely evening. Just wish you had other vegan options Very expensive... Mezze and dessert was lovely My friend enjoyed the scallops. The cauliflower was in exciting 3.5 would be more accurate read more

Rat's Restaurant - French Near Me - Hamilton, New Jersey

We ate food outside and food and vibe was perfect(service Somalis great) but the mosquitoes were also hungry I guess

Normally I would recommend RAT's for its craftsman style architect, great bar, and great food. But last Saturday, 12.2.23 was not normal. Four of our ten guests had been there before, 6 were new and there for the experience. Service was slow, and 9 of the 10 meals were luke warm, not hot. To pay $38 for short ribs and have them luke warm was so disappointing. The waitress seemed over booked with tables but pleasant and trying to appease us. The manager was nice on the approach to our problem and resolved the issue with10% off the check. 10% off did not do anything to impress us, it was nice, not really enough to get 6 people to return. I would return, not on a Saturday night and not for a while. read more

I don't expect much from a place tethered to an attraction, but since I was going to the Grounds for Sculpture to see Night Forms, I made a reservation at Rat's for Valentine's day The menu was limited for the holiday, which was fine. Started with the pear salad. It was decent. But for my entree, I got the Valentine's squid ink pasta and it was awful. Undercooked spaghetti with zero seafood. There wasn't a single piece of crab in the sorry excuse for sauce. Truly disappointing. Everything else was good but hardly great. Honestly the best part was the poppver and herb butter. The diver scallops were good but again not great and very small. After salad, dinner, sides (brussel sprouts), and dessert (chocolate creamaux), plus several drinks, one shouldn't leave hungry. read more

Beautiful setting & lovely patio to eat outdoors. Nice presentation & food is good. You can walk around the grounds after you dine.

We saw this restaurant as we wondered through Grounds of Sculptures, came on a Saturday. We made a reservation online at their website. Overall the inside looks very pretty and the outside was very nice as you can look over to some of the sculptures. They also have a pond of koi fish exposed to the outside area. We just wanted something small to snack on. We got the Cheese and Charcuterie board for 24 dollars. It came with 3 cheeses, and 3 meats. For refreshments, boyfriend got the pomegranate drink and I got the thyme lemonade at $6. Both of these drinks came out AMAZING! Overall it was very good the whole environment and vibes to it was very nice. read more

Rat's Restaurant - Thyme lemon aid Pomegranate Refreshment drink and cheese and Charcuterie board - French Near Me - Hamilton, New Jersey

Terrific dining experience! Great cocktails and food! Service was focused, attentive, and professional!

This was absolutely amazing. We went for their restaurant week $49 3-course promo and everything was phenomenal. The decor, service, and food was top notch! read more

Food was fantastic and we loved the building itself! Definitely left full and my favorite was the octopus

Before dinner, I had the opportunity and pleasure to explore the beautiful grounds. Apparently the Grounds for Sculpture are 42 acres! Come dinner time, I ordered the Tuna Tartare, the Roasted Short Rib, and the Torta Barozzi. The vegetables that came with each entree were out of this world! I tried the green beans with a saffron and chili paste sauce and the broccoli with a red wine, peppercorn, and horseradish sauce. I don't think I've ever tasted such delicious vegetables! Who can truly brag about veggies?! The portions that were served were perfect. This gave you the chance to really enjoy your food and drinks without over eating, looking forward to the next dish that's on its way. After the gluttonous meal, we received a short tour of the kitchen. The chefs were so knowledgeable and personable. I cannot wait to come back here! read more

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Subpar kind of lunch, the rating is for the food which was good but nothing out of this world for the price. Can definitely go somewhere more simple for just as good of a taste. Limited selection on the menu but the nice part was the little walk through in the back with some statues and art pieces plus garden. Overall, nothing that had a wow factor for the prices they had like some reviews had said but it is also a time of COVID-19 so their menu probably isn't the best at the time. read more

Rat's Restaurant - Lunch menu - French Near Me - Hamilton, New Jersey

I've been to Rats before - and thought it was exceptional, so I was looking forward to a birthday dinner for my wife (and her brother and his wife.) We had bought tickets for the Grounds for Sculpture light show for 8:30. Our reservation for Rat's was for 5:30PM. We were seated promptly, off in the quieter room, which has a larger group at a large central table, and one or two smaller groups at smaller tables around the edges of the room. Trying to seat myself, I attempted to move the chair I was to be seated in. Apparently "quaint" was more important than safe or comfortable. The chair was coming apart as I tried moving it, and I ended up severely straining my shoulder. No help was offered by any of the wait staff. Our waiter seemed a genial chap - and he left us with menus, eventually (!) returning for a drink order. Mistake 1 - do not get the Watermellon-Cucumber drink. It has a very odd and not particularly nice flavor and was served lukewarm. Not pleasant. And we each got 1 piece of bread. After the drinks arrived - which was now about 30 minutes since we arrived - we managed to place our dinner orders. We also ordered the "Cheese and Charcuterie" appetizer for the table.- it arrived after another 15 minutes or so, and we made short work of it. The cheeses were excellent, the meats were questionable - sitting at room temperature on an open plate. One diner ordered hanger-steak, two had the duck breast, and after some discussion with the waiter - I had the "Diver Scallops". I had no idea what "Diver" meant when attached to scallops - but I was later to learn. After another 30 or so minutes of munching on the bread, we finally saw a chance that our dinners might be coming out. The server had no idea who got what, but we managed to get that sorted out. On my plate were 8 small scallops, 3 rough lumps of something, and small cubes of something else floating in a smear of some red goop. This was $36.00. The scallops were browned. The scallops also tasted a bit odd. I never figured out what the lumps of leafy stuff was supposed to be - the menu said kale, but I've never seen kale stalks served, with no leaves - and that's what I got. The 3 of them were uniformly inedible. The small cubes might have been the "red potato", diced up and floating in goop. We finally finished dinner and considered getting coffee and dessert, but our waiter was nowhere to be seen. After about 10-15 minutes he wandered back to the table and inquired if we wanted dessert or coffee.. at that point we'd been there for 3 hours, and were now late for our timed entry to the light display at GFS. So we passed on it. The bill for this meal for 4 people was a bit over $250 including tip. The light show at Grounds for Sculpture was exceptional and I'd highly recommend it. What I won't recommend is anyone eating at Rats. The next morning I awoke at 5AM in extreme gastric distress, exploding from both ends of my body. I could see remnants of the scallops, the cubes and the strange bitter leafy stuff in what came out of me. This continued for 24 hours. I was the worst case of food poisoning I've ever experienced. I would have to point at the scallops as the probable cause, especially since on the website I made the reservations on (Open Table) I found 3 more reviews with similar experiences in the month before we went - who ALL had the scallops. The venue - as others have noted - is quite attractive. It seems as if the staff leaves much to be desired, as does the food preparation - those scallops should never have left the kitchen. As I mentioned I believe - I'd been to Rats before and had a pleasant meal. This meal was marked by inattentive service and not particularly great food, and some really BAD food - and all served up at a quite high price. Next time I'm going to GFS - we'll stop at Toscano's in Bordentown first - it's an outstanding restaurant. I'd suggest others do the same. Disappointed. BTW - I wrote a review on the other website - the one that does the seating/booking for RATS - apparently, there is some editorial influence by the restaurant over there - the review hasn't appeared after 4 days. I expect it never will appear. read more

Great little restaurant located in the middle of the Grounds for Sculpture. Make sure to request a seat outside, especially if there is nice weather! Situation right on a pond the outdoor patio also overlooks some beautiful works of art from GFS. It seriously feel like you are in the middle of a painting, unreal! We came here for lunch while exploring the art installations. They have some nice salad options like a baby gem salad, a chopped salad or a seafood salad. There are also burgers and sandwiches like a Reuben, ham or shrimp. If you are looking for something more hearty they have entrees that include mussels, trout, steak, quiche or chicken. We went with the burgers and the Reuben sandwich. The portions were very large and filling! My cousin said the Reuben was one of the best Reuben sandwiches she ever had before! It came with house-made pastrami, gruyere cheese, alsatian sauerkraut on a nice white russian bread and served with fries. The sauerkraut had so much flavor and paired perfectly with the gruyere cheese and pastrami. Our burgers came with sharp cheddar, an amazing secret sauce and topped with lettuce. Juicy and full of flavor. The price tags are a little hefty. $17 & $18 but for the convenience and flavor, I think it was well worth it! They also have an interesting drink menu! We enjoyed some summer mixed drinks that really packed a punch! I really enjoyed having the Watermelon Sangria! Rose Wine with Watermelon and Melon Liquer , great for a warm day out! My cousin went with the Blood Orange which is a Spiced Rum with Cointreau splash of lime some Blood Orange and Agave. She said it was just the right amount of sweet and nice with the spiced rum. My Aunt went harder with the Pina y Paloma which has Tattoo Tequila, Pineapple Syrup and Grapefruit Soda. She said it was stroooong!! We also had to splurge and have desserts! Make sure to get the donuts and dipping sauces! THEY ARE AMAZING! The sauces are even better and it's great for sharing or being greedy and enjoying all by yourself! Service was pleasant and prompt. read more

Rat's Restaurant - Views - French Near Me - Hamilton, New Jersey

Rating: 3.5/5. Our group of fourteen enjoyed the bar and clean venue. The highlight of the dinner was the indulgent homemade crème brûlée. The backdrop of the lovely garden was soothing. For appetizers to share, the size portion of the mash aubergine, hummus, olive, quinoa and cheese trays were small. The situation was identical for the traditional $32 branzino with couscous. The service was efficient. The parking was free. read more

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Had a very enjoyable lunch with my friends in the outdoor area overlooking the lovely pond and gardens. The seafood salad was delicious, and so were the peach ginger fizzes. One complaint: the entrees came out way too quickly. We had just received our drinks and bread, and less than ten minutes later the entrees arrived. It felt rushed. read more

The food is delicious and well executed. The wine list is pretty impressive. Our server was great and attentive. A wonderful place to eat after a day at the Grounds for sculpture. read more

My wife and I have been eating at Rats for many years and have always had a wonderful experience. We were there for dinner on Friday 2/18 and had our first bad dish ever. My wife ordered the hangar steak which was excellent. I ordered the duck breast, rare. In my experience, duck breast is usually served thinly sliced on the bias with the skin crispy and fat rendered. This was served in two large chunks and was almost raw. The skin was not crisp and the fat had not been rendered. It was inedible. I asked our server Peter to have the kitchen cook it a bit longer, to medium rare. It came back in a few minutes but was still inedible. One of the managers was stopping by tables, asking how everyone's evening was going, were they enjoying their dinner, etc. Too many restaurants don't bother to do that but Rats usually does. I told her about the duck, she was concerned and said she'd look into it. When the bill came, she had removed that dish from our bill. That was unexpected. Many restaurants would do nothing or maybe comp a dessert but Rats has always made a point of service and customer satisfaction. We appreciated her doing that and we will certainly return. One poorly prepared dish in twenty plus years is not the end of the world. read more

Really used to love going to this restaurant, we usually go once a year. The gardens are beautiful but it really stops there. We went early to hang at the bar and take in the ambiance. Neither bartenders wanted to engage at all with the patrons. ( they where not that busy). we all ordered French onion soup and all portions sizes where filled half way and warm at best. My seafood risotto was less then warm sent back twice! did not have to be piping hot but warm to touch would have nice. It was my wife's birthday we ordered 2 desserts they both came out of kitchen at separate times. But what became funny was a third birthday dessert arrived shortly after. Ok free dessert as we finished a 4th unordered birthday candle dessert showed up!! But the number one reason I will not forget or return back to this charming restaurant would be this $2.00 charge. I ordered an oban scotch on the rocks, it was $19 fair enough, wait for it... and a $2.00 charge separate line item on our bill for $2.00 for rocks. So whoever the genius in this organization that came up with hey I know how to increase revenue let's charge for a glass of Ice! Brilliant let's leave our guests with that to remember when they leave us! hahaha Joe read more

awesome and beautiful settings! The bread is perfect and super delicious entrees. The waitress is great! read more

Rat's Restaurant - Smoked Duck Breast - French Near Me - Hamilton, New Jersey

Came here for lunch while visiting Grounds for Sculpture one Sunday afternoon around 12pm. The restaurant atmosphere is beautiful, specifically the out door patio area. I was hoping to get a seat outside but the hostess said that none were available and there would be a long wait so we just sat indoors. The restaurant is very upscale and the service was excellent. We started with the watermelon sangria and the blueberry lemonade (non-alcoholic). Both were very delicious and refreshing. Next my fiancé and I split a French Onion soup which was very good and had a ton a flavor. We then got the Reuben and the Burger and split it half and half. The burger was delicious! Really tasty, juicy and there was a secret sauce on it that gave it an extra wow factor. It also came with shoestring fries. I wasn't a big fan of the Reuben however - it came on a focaccia type bread that had an odd flavor and their was a mustard sauce on it that wasn't my favorite. Overall the meal was good, but I don't think the quality is worth the price. The above meal came to over $100 which is well over what I think is reasonable for lunch. It's worth trying for the "experience" if you're having a day at Grounds for Sculpture, but make a reservation to sit outside and be prepared to spend some $$! read more

Rat's Restaurant - Watermelon sangria! So refreshing! - French Near Me - Hamilton, New Jersey

Recently celebrated a birthday with dinner and then a walk through the Grounds to see the newly installed light show. It was beautiful and well worth it. So the evening was a success in spite of a few disappointments. When I intially made the reservation, I mentioned that we wanted to walk the grounds after dinner. Very helpfully, the staff member suggested the Dine and Stroll Package. Dinner and admission to the Grounds. I did not ask the price or the details. I was just happy to have the evening secured. At this point it was the responsiblity of the staff member to explain that the Dine and Stroll package was a three course limited menu and that we did not have access to the regualr menu. The food and choices were good and most of the food was deliciouis so it worked. Service was mostly professional as it should be at this level of dining. So why are the runners so uninformed and seemed so scared to make contact? Two people at a table and not one of the runners can remember who gets the Chicken and who gets the Short Rib? It happend with all 3 courses. It's not a table of 8! The Amuse Bouche came out after our appetizers were served. No big deal. It happens. But the runner had no idea what we were being served! I don't blame the staff. They were young and looked good and seemed intelligent. So why not teach them how to remember who gets what, how to properly serve and remove plates and how to make eye contact and simply say "Good evening"? Our server was terrific and recommended the Soup du jour (at an extra cost) but it was well worth it. (Curry Squash). The Poached Pear and Burrata was refreshing and the Bone Marrow with Truffle was excellent but tres peu. My wife loved her Short Rib but my Griggstown Chicken was so over cooked (probably pre-cooked) it was not longer moist but stiff and dry. The chocolate cake was superior and the beignets like your popovers were also excellent. This is unfortunately, where the train went off the tracks. First the check arrived and as I often do with a fixed menu (and shouldn't), I just handed my credit card over without checking the bill. This time my wife insisted on seeing it. Two additions to the bill that we did not order nor recieve were added for a total of $20.00 Not the end of the world, but I will hear about this incident for years! And at this level of dining, it does not look very good. And finally when figuring out the tip (my usual is 20%) I saw that you very graciously figured out the tip for me. BUT WAIT. Your calculations INCLUDED the price of admission to the park?!?!?!! Are you kidding? I am going to tip a server for my admission to the park? So, I still tipped 20%, but only on the restaurant bill. I have been in food and beverage business for 45 years. Restaurants, hotels, retail. I worked as an employee or manager and for many years, in sales. I rarely feel this way, but printing a tip on the bill that includes an admission price is not only decieving but disrespectfully greedy. We will always return to the Grounds for the art but I question the quality and efficacy of the decisions being at the restaurant's corporate level. read more

This was my third bad experience at this restaurant. My husband took me here today to celebrate my birthday. Our reservation was at 3:30; we arrived at 3:15. They were out of two main entrees from their limited Sunday Brunch menu: Trout Almandine and Chicken and waffles. How can a restaurant be out of chicken? WTF? We had already ordered appetizers: charcuterie and escargot. Neither was very satisfying or flavorful. We left. Appetizers and 2 brunch cocktails beat us out of $60. We left for Estia Taverna. Our prior visit took place about 6 years ago. I was gifted a membership to grounds for sculpture for a wedding gift. We were visiting the ground and thought we would catch a bite to eat during our visit. WRONG. No walk-ins. Our first encounter involved considering the restaurant for our wedding celebration. The person explaining the process and cost made it clear with his snobbish attitude that our business was not desired. We had a WONDERFUL wedding celebration at the Mercer County Boathouse. We've decided not to try this place again. We're done. read more

Beyond disappointed. Celebrating our 40th anniversary we should have gone to McDonald's. It was awful

Service was great! The ambience is really nice, upscale but with a grounded vibe. Sadly not too many vegetarian options, but the few they did have were delicious! Ordered the mezze for appetizer, and everything was perfectly flavored. The lavash (I think that's what it is called) bread was a hit! The herbed butter to go with bread makes you want to take a bath in it, the flavors were so fresh, oh man! For dinner we had the coq qo vin, loved it! Large portion too! The potato leek ravioli was delish, portion size was a little on the weak side. The creamy polenta was flavorful, but the ratio of polenta to everything else was off, very little polenta if that was supposed to be the main attraction. Dessert we shared the coconut panna cotta was ok, wasn't too impressed sadly. The cake and panna cotta were two different elements that did not really flow as one grand dessert in my opinion, but I'm individually they tasted fine. Overall, I'd visit again since their menu is seasonal and changes often from what the waitress indicated. read more

Rat's Restaurant - French Near Me - Hamilton, New Jersey

Good food , nice ambiance and service. Located in beautiful park. Family friendly place

I had lunch and the service and atmosphere was amazing. The food exceeded all expectations . Seafood salad , humus appertizer and beet salad all were delicious definitely coming back read more

Feels like a Disney world restaurant. Food was delicious and ambience so fun. Free bread too. Only complaint The blueberry cocktail was too heavy on the thick blueberry juice, could have used some bubbles or something clear read more

Rat's Restaurant - Blueberry cocktail, the strawberry one, a regular margarita and a Prosecco - French Near Me - Hamilton, New Jersey

I've been to Rat's numerous times over the years and have never been disappointed. We just went for Thanksgiving and were absolutely delighted that they were able to keep the dinner at their usual high quality with the same elegant atmosphere. The courses were tasty and delicious and we couldn't believe the reasonable price for all of the food we received. Going out for dinner on the holiday is usually a mistake but NOT at Rat's, we highly recommend you try it! read more

It's a real pity that the service and ambience are poor as the setting has much promise. Tonight after visiting Night Forms we decided to eat at Rats. Cocktails were tasteless and boring to look at, appetisers, just odd, pre spread foie gras and onion soup with a pinesol flavour. Nigh on an hours wait for entrées, with no offer of a second drink. Service was non existent. Not sure who Rats is intended for but it was a big miss for our family of 4. read more

It's been too long but happy we made it back. We were there for a timed ticket for the Night Forms exhibit. We told our server and he passed the message along to the kitchen and boy the food did not disappoint and we made it to our exhibit on time. The only thing I would say is that cheese platter was a bit skimpy for the price but otherwise food and cocktails were amazing as always! read more

Rat's once was a magical place but recently they've really dropped the ball (and apparently dropped the old chef). I've actually been to Rat's about 3 times in the past year (menu never seems to change)...but last night was the final straw. Let's start with the Escargot. This is a CLASSIC French dish that is SO simple, it's almost impossible to screw up. I was served a generous portion of small, black, shell-less snail turds, freely rolling around a cast iron pan. I'm sorry but escargot do not belong in a cast iron pan. There is nothing "rustic" or "lumberjack-chic" about freakin' sea snails. They are a bougie food and should be served on a freakin' escargot plate. You know, the ones with little cups, so your snails stay contained and don't look like free-rollin'-turdletts? Also there was no pool of luscious garlic butter! It was so dry that some of my snails actually stuck to the cast iron. You know what would fix that? Butter...and not broiling escargot on a campfire flapjack pan. Despite the generous portion of snail turds, the Saturday night, $30 "bouillabaisse" special quite literally had 2 shrimp, 2 scallops, 3 mussels and 1 clam. That is 8 pieces of seafood for $30 in tomato broth (with no detectable saffron). Pretty sure you'd get more mussels in the $15 mussel appetizer. Also, classic bouillabaisse is served with a little blob of roux on a slice of bread to stir into the sauce and make it thick. I kid you not, they actually put mayonnaise on the bread. I think that might actually be considered a hate crime against France. If you're going to do an exclusively French menu features the classics, then do the classics REALLY well. There is literally no excuse why dishes with youtube tutorials can't be executed flawlessly by a professional kitchen. If that wasn't bad enough, service has really slipped too. They're all nice guys but they need some refining. When people are spending a chunk of money on a dinner at a place considered to be "fine dining", they want it to be special. Our server last night disappeared when it was time for dessert, and when we finally flagged him down he said "oh sorry, I'll be back, I have a very important call to make". Really? I mean I know, servers are people too, but at almost $60 a head, I would have liked if our server to at least pretended he didn't have a life outside of the restaurant. TLDR: The ambiance is gorgeous but beyond that this restaurant has become undeservingly overpriced. Their execution of classic French dishes could actually start a war. If you want French food done right, go to Manon in Lambertville. Jean Michelle's bouillabaisse is my gold standard. read more

First off : my wife and I are trying to keep to eating plant-based food. So, when we saw "vegan option" as a feature of this rather pricey restaurant, we were encouraged. Vegans beware, a menu of choices for you is slim to none. Agreed salad, was selected -- but you get that in any steakhouse! There was also a corn chowder as soup du jour. but the choice of vegan entree was only a cauliflower steak. I don't know many people who are going to line up for that! I can't! Like a lot of people, cauliflower attacks my intestines with a vengeance! As a result, a chowder and salad was it for hungry bear, till dinner at home. So, vegans visiting Grounds For Sculpture, in Hamilton NJ need to eat before getting there! read more

Combines Toad Hall with and Afghan bizarre set against J Seward Johnson's Grounds for Sculpture and former home to the World's Fair

Amazing views, good cocktails, and decent food. For a restaurant inside a giant sculpture garden, this is the best available. I took off a star for the maitre d's horrible nasty attitude - but once you get seated it is a 5 star experience. The attitude didn't bother us, sometimes nasty angry workers are part of the entertainment of visiting New Jersey. Prices are not great, $14 for a small cocktail, but way worth it if you can get a seat near the pond. Try your best to sit outside. read more

Unique atmosphere, courteous staff, delicious food options and perfect service. We recently had an event in The Pavilion room and it was amazing. We did not need to bring decorations because the room itself had some great touches. All guests found it fun and will probably go back. Thank you for creating a perfect event. read more

We went to the Grounds of Sculpture on a whi, livong and hour away. After looking at the menu we hoped we could get into Rat. We walked up and they gave us a reservation for an hour and 45 minutes later. We were very excited. We explored the rest of the grounds, came back and had the most amazing meal. Everything was perfect. Food so delicous. Service by Amy was outstanding. I wished we lived closer so we could become regulars!!! My husband got the duck, I got thr diced scallops, our son the ny strip and my daughter the kids cheeseburger. Each was outstanding. We had foie gras on toast and watermelon tuna carpaccio for appetizers. Beignets and ice cream for desert. read more