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    Romanelli's Garden Cafe

    3.5 (290 reviews)

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    ROMANELLI'S GARDEN CAFE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Dogs allowed
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Romanelli's Garden Cafe

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    Kevin W.

    I really wanted to like this place, mainly because there are simply so few decent places to eat near the resorts in this area ... But sadly the food was just far short of what I'd consider "good enough food that I'd want to come back and pay for". The French onion soup was not particularly good or palatable to be completely honest. The big disappointment was the shrimp scampi which was very pricey and just poor in terms of flavor and quality. The entire dish was watery and oddly lacking in any kind of real discernible flavor, which says a lot for a dish that can be often masked/carried by some simply good garlic action. This was just bad and not something worth remotely what the price was. The pizza was okay. Not nearly as bad as the soup or scampi but I wouldn't say this was amazing pizza either. It's pretty much a place that relies on tourists or some locals that don't want to venture far out or to AC for food. I actually thought the people here were all very friendly and the service was good. They just need to do a better job with the food. I would suggest if you're looking for food nearby, you might want to venture out further ...

    Shrimp basket
    Kristina K.

    Overall it was a disappointing experience ... All sandwiches come with kettle chips - when asked what the up-charge would be for fries - our waiter told us "I have no idea - maybe 3 or 4 dollars." Our waiter could have been friendlier - the place was empty but he only came over once. The shrimp basket came with 4 shrimps and a small handful of overly cooked / burned shoe string fries and a small spoonful of coleslaw - for $15 - there should have been more food. It came with no condiments... I asked for honey mustard... I was not made aware it was $2 charge for it. The dining area had two flies - not a big deal but annoying ... when I walked into the bathroom I was greeted by a dozen fruit flies.

    Paloma
    Jennifer B.

    Ambience is on point here. I love the way it feels and looks. Service friendly but slow as hell even with a empty restaurant. And no one once came to ask how our meal was AFTER we began eating. What is this with restaurants lately that no one asks how your meal is or if you need anything. I wanted red pepper seeds bc this spicy pizza I got wasn't spicy at all bc they were so cheap on the peppers. But I was never approached. It was like they were hiding somewhere. Burger tasteless and hard. Fries were over cooked and tasted like nothing Pizza - sounded so amazing on the menu that I changed my meal to get it and it was thick and bland like a frozen pizza crust. The crust was most of the pie. One of the toppings was long hots. There was barely a speck of peppers on these. I wanted to ask my servers for more but they never came back. Drink was good and good price. Took too long to get the check. Went to stand close to the servers so they would hurry up and print it. But still we waited. Why? There were three servers at least and like four tables occupied. Service - a 2 out of 5 Although polite, it just wasn't enough. We had shitty service. 10 min to get someone to the table. 10 min for the drinks. 20 min for the meal to come. 10 waiting for check and another 10 cash back. A lot of waiting. Worst is someone was training so we had two servers and this guy was def not training her well bc how do we make tips? By giving good service. Part of that service is asking if your customers need something after they have begun their meal. Or maybe if they are thirsty? A tip comes from taking the order correctly, checking on the customer to ensure satisfaction, cleaning table off in timely manner, being courteous and finally, bringing the check and not making customers wait. That's each of the five stars of service broke down ..... Not coming back here no matter how pretty it is....

    Italian Wedding Soup - Cup
    Greg J.

    A nice place. The layout is very odd as there aren't as many tables as you would expect but it is nice looking. Service was good too. I had the classic turkey dinner. I'd say the turkey and dressing were from a food service. Didn't taste like house made. Still pretty good. The wedding soup was very good. My wife had the chicken salad croissant. She liked it (and is very picky about chicken salad) and she thought the fries were great.

    Where is the oil & garlic?
    Dolores A.

    Definitely a beautiful atmosphere although it was quite chilly to be comfortable, definitely friendly host/waitresses! Prices since my last visit have risen significantly and does not correlate with the food quality & presentations. We decided on a burger & a pasta dish. Burgers are always a great choice, right? Not true, my medium well was very well, absolutely no pink in sight. And when bright to my waitresses attention, she just smiled & left without even offering a resolution. It came with housemade chips that were ok, $14. A boring disappointment, as it wasn't hot or juicy to say the least. My friend ordered Cavatappi & Sausage, $26, Italian Sausage, Broccoli Rabe, Cannellini Beans, Oil & Garlic over cavatappi (macaroni). It was very dry and tasteless. Additional sauce was requested which took a while. The bread basket was decent but no parm or additional seasonings was presented. Would we choose this place again?....ABSOLUTELY NOT!

    George D.

    While in town visiting my wife's brother Steve and his wife Arlene, they decided to take us to Romanelli's in Galloway, NJ for dinner. We called ahead to make reservations and it's a good thing we did because the place was crowed. Once seated, we were given some bread and our drinks. Kathey began with a salad with blue cheese dressing and I chose the spring mix with raspberry vinaigrette. The raspberry was a bit on the tart side for me but it was good. Our entrees had my wife getting the grilled ribeye with mashed taters and the asparagus. I chose the chicken franchisee over pasta with the lemon butter sauce. The food was great but again, the lemon sauce was a bit too tart for me. Glad we got to try this spot on a busy night.

    crabby benedict
    Sandy L.

    It was my first time coming here in the morning after a 12 hour shift with my coworkers. The restaurant was very pretty and elegant with high ceilings. I did come back a second time in the same week. All of the servers I encountered were very kind and checked in on us multiple times. The service was great as well. I ordered the crabby benedict as my meal which I definitely recommend. We also did mimosas that come in any flavors you want. I will definitely keep coming back here.

    Very comfortable
    Andrew B.

    Sunday on Memorial Day weekend and my family found ourselves out and about so why not grab some brunch. My wife saw this on Yelp soooo. Place looks nice, comfortable and interesting. Can smell the backed goods as you walk in the door. Friendly hostess asked table or booth and we were seated and ready. Great specials, good menu selection and they have scrapple. Not a long wait for the server and the coffee is ok. Now this is breakfast and it's hard to screw it up to bad, BUT I ordered the Italian omelette (it was ok), home fries well-done (they were not), rye toast and a side of scrapple. Now I know how scrabble is made and from what. This was bad enough I couldn't finish even half. My wife said her prime rib omelette was nothing to write home about but my son said his was great. 3 stars but we might come back.

    Blueberry pancakes side of home fries
    Karen W.

    We finally get to eat inside in New Jersey. Server provided outstanding service. There were quite a few flies inside but that's because they're serving in and out I get that part but Eggplant tower was delicious there is absolutely no complaints! BLT not so good bacon was burnt toast was extremely dry and the macaroni salad was extremely runny. Blueberry pancakes were OK the blueberry itself was a little tart in the home fries had absolutely no taste. The corn beef Ruben was OK the bread was grilled fine again just OK nothing special but the pasta salad was really gross If you know my ratings you know I always look at the bathroom it was very clean got no complaints Thx!

    Chicken Focaccia Sandwich
    Liana B.

    Delicious, fresh, healthy food. A variety of options for allergies including gluten free. Order ahead and pick up or eat outside. We ordered a few pizzas, a salad, soup and sandwich to go. The sandwich came with your choice of a side and you can chose a variety of wraps (white, wheat, etc). The chicken focaccia is a must try. It includes whole pieces of fresh mozzarella.

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    1 year ago

    Good food for the price. Service was excellent . They have a neat little bar . Bartender is friendly

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    We have been coming to Romanelli's for many years. The food and the wait staff are fantastic

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    Ask the Community - Romanelli's Garden Cafe

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    The Smithville Inn - Blackened Mahi with rice

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    First time here, and I was expecting better based on the reviews. Entrance, tables, chairs, and…read moreambiance were as I expected. Ordered New England Clam Chowder. Served quickly and hot in a big, wide bowl. It looked good. Had small, irregularly sized potatoes and chopped carrots. The broth was a little thicker than I imagined or had tasted before in other restaurants, or in the one I make. Clams were tiny and, as you'd expect from a can. Not fresh clams. In fact, you can put all the clams found in chowder in a single tablespoon. Even found a whole bay leaf in it, which should have been removed before serving it. So, how is the chowder? I've had better from canned chowder, and the one I make is way better. Zero stars for the chowder. Next up is the Turkey platter with sliced turkey (hard and dry), 1 ice cream scoop of mashed potatoes (ok, nothing special), 1 ice cream scoop of stuffing (totally disgusting, and had corn in it), string beans (with vine still attached), gravy (terrible), and a little cup of cranberries (decent). Total fail. The waitress was ok, though stopping by every 5 minutes to ask if everything was good was quite annoying. The 'ice water gentleman' was great. You never asked for water, and when the glass was 1/2 empty, he was there refilling it. Great job! The final score of 2 stars is for the historic inn's ambiance and layout. We won't be back, and do not recommend.

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    Romanelli's Garden Cafe - italian - Updated September 2026

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