Carvao BBQ
“Would like to go back and try out some additional items and maybe hang out by the bar where all the tv's are and catch the football game =)”
“BBQ and cocktails in McGinley Square?”
“The ribs here were better tasting, bigger and juicier than any other rib I've had in the Portuguese section in Newark.”
Carvao BBQ
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Accepts Apple Pay: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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I gave it 4 stars for the over all experience, even though the food was barely a 3.
Around the corner from our daughter's apartment, it was a good place to walk over for dinner when we were in town. It was not very busy on a Wednesday night and the service was quick and friendly. The space is large and open. Half is a very large bar and the other half has tables for eating, but the tables are spaces widely apart which leads me to believe they must have quite a crowd on the weekends.
When you walk in it looks like it is a counter service place due to the menu items list hanging over the counter, but it is actually table service. We were disappointed that they had no dark beer on draft. The food claims to be Portuguese BBQ, But it is really just plain food. The special burger was cooked nicely and topped with sausage, and came with fries, but it wasn't really worth it's $15 price tag. The 1/2 BBQ chicken came with rice AND french fries, a much better value. I asked for rice and black beans instead, which was cool. It was all perfectly edible, but again, nothing special. The chicken was tender but flavorless. The beans were cooked well to a nice texture, but also bland. The rice was texture but no taste. The portions were all very large.
Skip the desserts.
The food is okay in my opinion. Honestly nothing beats ferry st in Newark when it comes to BBQ Portuguese chicken. The corn used to be good but it fell off as well. I tried the Pat Lefreda steak and that is probably the best thing on the menu in my opinion. The rise and fries are pretty good as well.
The location is not as bad as people say it is. This is Mcginley Square and this area is on a come up. It's not gentrified like downtown jersey city, but it is a close cultural neighborhood. The one downfall is parking can be a challenge, but if you know your away around you can find close enough parking. Some just park on Bergen with no issue as well.
Drinks here are pretty good as well and they have a nice selection. I would say the drinks are the best part. Every once in a while they will have a DJ as well. I will be back for some drinks but not sure about food.
The BBQ here is really good. I wouldn't call it Portuguese though. Maybe it's the flavor. it just doesn't remind me of Portuguese bbq. It's a good flavor though, not over drenched with sauce, not too salty, good seasoning…
The space is awesome. It's big and roomy, has a laid-back vibe. There is a large bar area with lots of TVs – great for watching sports if that's your thing.
Big variety of beers available.
The portions are huge, and the meat is good. So all in all, would definitely be back. You can sit down, take out, or sit at the bar. Lots of options.
I have tried the grilled chicken and short ribs. Very tasty.
The husband & I went to Carvao last night.. Great food! We ordered sangria, soup (he had the Portuguese sausage & kale, I had chicken), and we each had ribs with rice & beans. I ordered a small (2 ribs), he had the medium (4). Our daughter was with us & she ordered the chicken kebabs. She also ate half of my soup. I really, really loved the ribs, and the rice & beans were top-notch. The sangria was delicious, too.
My husband also ordered a side of corn on the cob, which consisted of 4 half pieces. They were fresh, sweet & yummy. Yes, we took home leftovers. We also ordered more chicken soup to go because my daughter wanted it for tomorrow.
Everything was fresh & delicious. We had a Groupon, good for 20 off. The bill before the Groupon was 72. Service was excellent despite the place being really busy. I was surprised at how busy it was for a Monday night, nice to see. We'll definitely be back.
Great spot in the neighborhood. Ordered the whole roasted chicken with rice. The chicken was delicious — flavorful and moist. The rice was tasty too! My only qualm was that I thought there'd be a lot more chicken. While I ordered a whole one, it didn't come whole and was cut into pieces, which is fine; I would have just liked more of it. 🙂 Plus, the cost was around $17 which is a bit pricey when you think about getting a whole and delicious chicken at BJ's for approximately $5, but I somewhat digress. 😉
Staff was super friendly, especially one lady who went above and beyond. I ordered on the telephone to pick up the food and she was super accommodating. To come across customer service like that is hard so I'd give her five stars. Totally appreciative.
Restaurant is quite spacious and hip looking. Looks like a cool dinner spot for any night but particularly a Friday or Saturday night. Can't wait to try their ribs!
You might not expect to find a great Portuguese BBQ spot/bar in McGinley Square, but in comes Carvao.
A low-key, open space with soft lighting and a very friendly staff, Carvao dishes up BBQ standards (chicken, ribs, burgers) with some Portuguese classics (linguica sausage, caldo verde) and it's all prepared with care: the sausage was well-spiced, juicy, and with just enough char. While the burgers looked good, bargain hunters should head for one of their bowls: a choice of bbq pork, bbq chicken, bbq beef, or assorted veggies atop white or yellow rice with black beans or pinto beans and a choice of toppings (cheese, sour cream, lettuce, sauces, and for an extra buck or two, bacon). At $8, it's filling and delicious. Add in a full bar, 8 beers on tap (served in 20oz mugs, no less!), and another dozen or so in the bottle, and you've got an excellent addition to the neighborhood.
Just wished they delivered to Downtown!
If this place was in downtown I would give them 2 stars.
But since they decided to take a risk and open in McGinley Square, I am going to give them my Yelp version of a JC developer tax abatement and give them 4 stars. Cause come on, if we want to lure nice restaurants to open in this part of the neighborhood over downtown, then we've got to cut them some slack and give them some incentives.
That said, the decor is amazing, trendy and awesome. Tastefully hipster and a great bar, we loved eating there and can definitely see ourselves walking over just for a quick bite or drink.
Food however, could use some help. Hubby and I went on a weekday dinner and ordered the (Portuguese?) soup, half rib and half chicken platter, and Mexican street corn (the one with queso on top). The ribs needed more slow and mellow time as it was cooked but not tender. The BBQ sauce tasted straight out of a tub (come on guys, it's not that hard to make homemade BBQ sauce…it'll save you some money AND make you look even cooler than the decor). The corn was blah and the cheese on top was too much Parmesan and not enough cotija. The soup was actually pretty delicious so I am very happy about that, although the broth can be a bit more flavorful and full bodied. The chicken was poorly seasoned and the fries were pretty average.
You ask me will we be back again? You betcha.
We love this neighborhood and are super exited a nice and normal looking place like Carvao decided to take a chance here. In exchange for that, we will certainly entertain a few culinary mishaps in exchange for (the guys at Carvao to fine tune their grilling skills) and that our tenacious support will attract more restaurants like Carvao into our area.
Memorial Day weekend. Staycation. Not one of our friends is hosting a BBQ, damn. So my beau suggest we hit up Carvao. He hesitates. In Journal Square? We take a risk. Besides, it's cool to see such a place around JSQ where quality eateries are scarce. Despite mixed Yelp reviews critiquing the service and awful delivery, we risk it. We order the combo: medium order of ribs and half chicken served with french fries and rice ($18). Needless to say we're glad we decided to check out this local restaurant.
But you should know: Portuguese BBQ is not your average BBQ. There are no mac & cheese or corn bread sides here. It's a dry, fire-pit cooked alternative, the chicken and ribs often made over a fire in a revolving metal contraption, usually manually turned. The result? A charred, juicy meat; sauces are optional (and the bottles are brought with your plate for your pleasure).
The ribs here were better tasting, bigger and juicier than any other rib I've had in the Portuguese section in Newark. Unfortunately the poultry was subpar.
Would I return here? Yes, while secretly hoping the ribs are always just as good as the first time. The service was fine (though we only ordered one combo to share so our table really didn't require much work). There is a full bar and WAY too many TVs which were super distracting (they were all on different channels) and sort of killed the ambiance I was in the mood for but at least this place offers good food around JSQ!