Oh! Calamares
“My girlfriend who is Peruvian loves the Seco Norteño.”
“Simple town that's safe and simple to get to – just not during rush hour – avoid going too close to 5-7 if you live on the other side of the Passaic river (near Newark etc).”
“The Lomo saltado, Leche de Tigre and the Anti Cucho are simply to die for!”
Oh! Calamares
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
2 reviews
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I hate having to knock down stars due to service (more like lack there of), but hey, that's the other half of what makes a restaurant great.
The bf & I came here for brunch with another couple on a rainy afternoon. The decor and music were both festive & charming. We were seated quickly, and were handed our menus. No problems at all until we placed our orders.
First of all, our food took FOREVER to come out. Tables that were seated after us ALL got their food before us. We had to ask our server a few times where our food was, and were answered each time with a "It's coming out right now".
Pitcher of White Sangria – Super yummy. Not too sweet or watered down. Filled with slices of oranges & peaches. This stood out among the rest.
Angus Steak – Came out med well as ordered, but the cut of beef was WAY too fatty, and it tasted of nothing but the grill it was cooked on. I had to flag down our server and ask for salt. SERIOUSLY? For $19 at a joint outside of the city, I expect more bang for the buck. The only highlight of this dish was the maduros. ONE STAR OFF.
Calamari, Lomo Saltado, Arroz con Mariscos, Flan – All standard. No complaints.
Tres Leches Cake – Texture was all sorts of wrong. Tasted like they poured thick milky syrup all over a super stale slice of cake. Topped with an obscene amount of whipped cream & a marachino cherry. Ehhh.
When we asked for the bill, it took another FOREVER. The place was pretty packed, but there were 5 servers, 2 of which were chatting away in the corner obviously not doing their jobs properly. I had to ask twice for the bill, failed, and literally had to YELL "excuse me" to get someone's attention.
When the server finally got her sh*t together & brought our bill out, she apologized and said that one of the desserts were on the house. This doesn't excuse all of your offenses but what the hey, ONE STAR BACK for trying.
The man standing behind the bar decked out in a suit & looking over all the workers (obviously the manager) stared us down as we were leaving, offering no apology for his below avg staff. Congratulations, not only do you not know how to run a restaurant, but you now remain at a lowly 2-star rating.
All in all, I will NOT BE RETURNING.
I've been living in Kearny for so many years and passed by Oh! Calamares each time thinking: "Really got to give 'em a try." Well, I finally fulfilled that thought and I'm so glad that I did. The food tastes really good for the most part and the portions are large enough that you'll definitely leave extremely full and with leftovers.
They start you off with these corn nuts instead of bread that comes with a spicy green sauce (gives you a nice kick but isn't "grab your heart and squint everything" spicy). We ordered a mango milkshake that was quite fresh, but I could smell the milk (it didn't go bad, I just have an aversion to beverages when I can actually smell the milk) so that turned me off immediately.
For entree, we ordered pescado a lo macho and then some sort of seafood specialty dish. The seafood specialty dish was the real winner between the two entrees. The first time I tried pescado a lo macho was a much creamier sauce and theirs tasted like a non-fat version of what I was hoping for.
Postre (Dessert): Order the combinado clasico. It is a layered dessert of purple corn jelly and rice pudding. I was hesitant to try at first, but then I started feeling adventurous and ended up ordering it. Really glad that I did because this was really well-prepared and tasted great. It isn't too sweet and has a nice consistency. The purple corn gelatin mixture tops heated rice pudding – SO Good.
A milkshake, 2 entrees and a dessert came to only about $45 so I think the prices are very good here. It would've been at least double in NYC so I actually consider this a great bargain.