Craven BBQ
“Growing up close to the Newark area, I have had garlic shrimp many places and this is hands down my favorite.”
“The french fries were hand cut and hot out of the fryer and the rice was perfectly seasoned.”
“Friendly staff, large portions ( I ate the Sautéed Cube Mix twice) and reasonable prices.”
Craven BBQ
Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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So we came to Cranford again for more open houses. We might as well start checking out the businesses nearby;) You can park in the back of the store, there's a mini parking lot and just walk around to the front. The people here are very friendly, service was speedy and efficient. We ordered Portuguese sausage, rice and beans with ribs and chicken. My hubby seemed to like his ribs, my chicken was very dry, but I was expecting that. I think the chicken needs a little more spices, it was bland, but pair with the delicious rice and beans, it was good. They give you a huge portion of rice so we had it to go. Overall, it was a great value for the price and I will probably be back here and try other dishes.
Ordered from here a few times and definitely our in town go-to Portuguese spot. I like the name change to Craven, because I'm craving another steak sandwich right now. Their steak sandwich with peppers and onions in a Portuguese roll is perfection and they are the only like place that asks how you want it cooked and when I said medium rare, knowing Portuguese places love to over cook their meat, it came out a perfect medium-rare! Combine that with their picadinho, just wish there was more chorizo and meat than potatoes, and a serradura for dessert and you've got a perfect meal!
So I found myself in Cranford this week, and walked upon this spot. Yes, there are a million and one Portuguese BBQ spots in the Ironbound in Newark, but I am very glad I gave Cranford BBQ a try! Conveniently located in the middle of town, this restaurant adds a nice touch to all the other choices in town. Cranford BBQ offers your typical Portuguese dishes such as costela (ribs), febras (pork steak), picadinho (pork cubes), bitoque (steak), and bacalhau (cod fsh).
As soon as we walked in, we were immediately greeted. The staff was super friendly and welcoming. The restaurant has a nice rustic vibe, with cute wooden tables, steel chairs, and hanging tin lights, which really gave it a cozy atmosphere with a modern twist. Good enough for a casual dinner, but also cute enough for you to go on a cozy date.
They brought out Portuguese bread (only the best bread ever!) and butter to the table. The bread was super flaky and delicious. For appetizers, we decided to share the Chourico (Portuguese Sausage). The sausage was served in a typical Portuguese clay tray and was cooked perfectly.
Within minutes of getting our appetizer, we were served the main entrée: a whole chicken with two sides (rice and fries) for $13. (Yes that's correct: $13!). You can also choose from other sides such as beans, carrots and cabbage, or salad. Portion size was huge! The chicken, rice, and fries were more than enough for three adults to feast on. The chicken was perfectly cooked, juicy, and flavorful! What I really liked about the chicken was the crispy skin. Most Portuguese restaurants I've been to don't serve chicken with crispy skin, but it kind of reminded me of the crispy skin on the traditional Portuguese roast suckling pig. The french fries were hand cut and hot out of the fryer and the rice was perfectly seasoned. By the time were done, there was still a ton of food leftover. What I really liked about the food is that it wasn't greasy and I didn't feel heavy and lethargic.
They also have typical Portuguese desserts such as flan, serradura, and pasteis de nata, which I didn't get to try. Our bill came out to be $30 between 3 people. Do the math: that's $10 a person for a whole lot of awesome food! Not only is the food extremely cheap, but it's delicious too!
I would not hesitate to come back here again anytime soon! Definitely a must try in Cranford!
This place was good. We ordered the double BBQ (chicken and ribs) and the sautéed cubes mix. We got take out and the fries were totally soggy. We also got a ton of yellow rice which was good.
What a great find! I'm not typically in the area, but found myself there after getting lost one random Saturday afternoon. We were starving and I was doing my best to avoid the fast food route.
The servers were so fantastic. They were friendly, helpful, they smiled and they were lightening fast. The place is also really casual. I really enjoyed the Brazilian soda, which oddly reminded me of Inca cola.
The sauteed cube mix was just spectacular. I even added a side of rice, which was just as delicious. My husband got the steak sandwich and fries and kept sneaking swipes of my dipping sauce (not cool).
For all that deliciousness, it was $21.40 sans tip. What a steal!
Strengths: very good good chicken; good salad; excellent value; large portions; bargain lunch options.
Fries could be crisper (but were fresh) and ribs would benefit from more spices.
Simple decor; nice staff.
Clark BBQ may be slightly better among area Portguese bbqs–and the ribs at Blue Bayou in Clark are much better–but this is a solid option.
Very popular for takeout–and much more efficient than the old Rebel BBQ.
While on my way through Cranford around noon today, I suddenly recalled a glowing review for Cranford BBQ. Pulled over, checked my bookmarks, got the addy. Turns out I was a two blocks away. What luck. So, off I went.
The place is really nice looking and the staff, friendly. Placed my order. Two full orders of Ribs and fries for me and my son and chicken with rice and beans for my wife.
Headed on home. I'd be lying if I claimed I drove the posted speed limit on every road home. I was excited and hungry.
Imagine my disappointment when I ripped the foil open and discovered tiny ribs, more like rib scraps/burnt ends. Only they were not burnt. Just small ribs with tough gristle, connective tissue and bone running this way and that. To add insult to injury, the ribs were so over salted that my lips and tongue began to burn midway through the meal, sort of like what happens when you eat too much buttered movie theatre popcorn.
I've been weeping silently to myself all afternoon.
When my wife came home from work, she tucked into her chicken rice and beans. Cranford obviously does chicken right. Everything was delicious.
Thank goodness. I hate being so negative in my reviews.
I had high hopes. But they were dashed. I'll continue to patronize Backyard Grill and Clark BBQ. I can get my wife excellent chicken there.
Ordered from here for hubby's birthday. He was worried we didn't order enough food. Yeah, that wasn't a problem. You will not be hungry after eating at Cranford BBQ, guaranteed.
We ordered the Chorizo appetizer and split the combo of chicken and ribs with sides of salad and fries. We both loved the chorizo but still ended up only eating about half of it. The chicken and ribs were great though we preferred the chicken a bit more. It's flavorful and not dried out which is rare when you get chicken out. The salad was fine and I appreciated that they packed it separately so it didn't get warm from the other food. The only thing we didn't love were the french fries which were underdone for our tastes. You could definitely tell they were fresh, they just weren't as crispy as we like. No worried – we'll just ask for them well done next time. Great food and service here – looking forward to adding this to the regular rotation.