Garlic Rose Bistro
“Everything was great from the bread with their famous garlic dipping sauce to the pork chop that was cooked perfectly.”
“We also had a pitcher of sangria which wasn't anything special, but complimented the meal very well.”
“From the harvest chicken to the brie en croute OMG the goodness this place produces is insanity.”
Garlic Rose Bistro
Takes Reservations: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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We have been here twice and have enjoyed it but the most recent time we came must have been senior citizen night because they overtook the restaurant. Yes, most dishes have more than a bit of garlic in them but we like garlic so we don't think it's overly done. We did not make reservations on this visit but did not have to wait very long even though the restaurant was fairly crowded. We usually enjoy the pitcher of sangria (red) with our meal. The big pitcher gives you about 5 glasses. We both enjoy the roasted garlic that you spread over the warm bread as you wait for your meal to come out. We ordered the Gnocchi, Hot Cherry Peppers & Sweet Italian Sausage for $18 and Whole Wheat Penne Pasta & White Truffle Oil Primavera for $17. Both were very delicious and the portion is large enough to doggie bag and enjoy for lunch the next day. We did not have dessert on this trip.
For as long as I can remember, this restaurant has been in existence at least ten years. I must say my taste buds has changed quite a bit and this time around, the food was astounding.
They always serve a complimentary garlic dip which comes with a pesto type oil and a whole roasted garlic… Yum.. I think I ate more bread than food.
We ordered the Angels shrimp appetizer which was shrimp wrapped with bacon and stuffed with crabmeat… Hmm
Then we ordered braised short ribs which came with a house salad.. Wow, was this phenomenal! Great taste and full of flavor.
I also ordered the lobster bisque which was tasty but a little pricey or just a cup.
We ordered a bottle of merlot for $32. The wine was ok …
This place is really a sit down and relax place. I'd say it took us about two hours for the whole ordeal, but well worth the wait. Can't wait to come back again for a relaxing and lovely evening.
I like this place but the obnoxious diners sitting at the table behind my group ruined our experience. They must've been sailors the way they were cussing up a storm. It was like they were the only ones dining that night.
I'm surprised no one else complained about the experience. I'm not saying I don't cuss but there was a older woman whose every other word was, "F*ck, MF & Sh*t". I mean really? Come on now. NO ONE wants to dine out and hear someone's personal conversation.
I digress.
I had the Eggplant Rollatine as an app, it wasn't tasty at all. It lacked garlic and pepper. For my entree I had the crab cake dinner. Now that was very tasty. I'm not sure what kind of dressing they use for their house salad but it was simply amazing.
Three bottles of Wine later and I was feeling extremely hot, giggly, and happy.
I have been here several times and it is always a great meal. They serve everything with lots of garlic. If you are not a fan at all, do not bother going.
They start you off with a loaf of bread with a dipping sauce with garlic of course. Very good.
For appetizers, we ordered littleneck clams, Italian long hot peppers, sausage, and eggplant rollatine.
The littleneck clams ($12.95) was the only disappointment of the night. They were in fresh garlic, cilantro, thyme and white wine olive oil sauce. There was about 15 clams or something. The ones I had were sandy and salty. When I dipped bread in the sauce, that was extremely salty too. The Italian hot peppers ($8.95) were solid. I would have liked the peppers to be cooked a little more, but they were tasty. They gave at least 10 peppers. They were cooked in garlic, salt, pepper, and olive oil. The sausage (not sure of price) was the best appetizer I had. It was Spanish chorizo sautéed with garlic and white wine sauce. The sausage was very tender and the sauce was phenomenal. The sausage had a nice little kick to it as well. The eggplant rollatine ($10.95) was good. The eggplant seemed fresh and the tomato sauce was not too over the top. It was filled with ricotta, garlic and basil. The abundance of cheese was something I enjoyed very much.
I ordered the salmon St. Michelle ($24.95). All meals come with a fresh house salad. The salad consisted of lettuce, tomatoes, croutons, parmesan cheese, and a homemade vinaigrette dressing. It was a straight salad, no complaints. I liked the dressing a lot. The salmon was broiled with garlic and red peppers in a lemon veoute sauce with saffron rice. The piece of salmon was a good size. The seasoning along with the veoute sauce was delightful. The rice was cooked to perfection too. I did not think the red peppers fit with this dish, but they were good regardless. I also tried some one's filet. The dish was called Romeo and Juliet. The filet was cooked medium and was unreal. It was one of the best filets I've had in a long time. I wish I ordered this dish instead because of how good this filet was.
For dessert, I ordered what I usually order, tartufo ($7.95). It was a good finish to a very good meal.
Will I go back? Easily.
I am a garlic fiend. I eat it just about every night, raw, several cloves of it. I LOVE THE STUFF SO MUCH.
And…I really liked this place. I mean, the concept alone, sits well with me. The food was well executed and enjoyable, not incredible and super memorable but that's rare. It was a great meal overall. The garlic ice cream was delish and stood out for obvious reasons.
The sangria is great and got my mom kind of drunk, which is rare. I got to see my mom laugh finally!!! MAJOR POINTS! Cute restaurant, nice atmosphere, good vibes.
Food is okay, but service is insanely slow. I came here three times and have been happy with my meal, but have never gotten out in less than 2 hours. Unless you're out with a large group, two hours for dinner is just way too long, in my opinion.
Visited madison location several years back and wanted to see how the Cranford location faired. It was really good. The service was excellent, so much so that the mgr/owner took our half eaten side salads and asked if they were okay as we didn't eat much! They were delicious, however after eating a lot of bread and an amazing app of artichoke hearts, we had to save room for our meal!! The gnocchi with lemon sauce And sausage was delicious and plentiful. Although I mistakenly thought it came with red sauce, I still enjoyed. The shrimp in my husbands linguini were large and sauce was flavorful.
Garlic Rose is one of the better Italian restaurants we have visited of late. Will definitely be back.
Having been regulars at the Madison location, my husband and I were saddened when that location closed. We love Garlic Rose, so we decided to check out the Cranford location. It's less than a mile off the GSP, so it's extremely accessible. There is a public parking lot in the rear of the building, so parking is much easier in Cranford than it was in Madison. The restaurant also has doors in both the front and back so it can be accessed from the street as well as the previously mentioned public parking lot.
The food and the service are on par with the Madison location. The food was just as good as I remembered. After ordering, they serve bread, a roasted garlic bulb, and their "bread dipping sauce". The sauce has pesto, grated parmesan cheese, garlic, and oil in it. It is heavenly. Definitely ask for a refill if you use it up, which you will. All appetizers come with a house salad (they will let you sub it out for a Caesar salad if that is your preference).
To date, I've been to this location twice. On my first visit, I ordered the Roasted Rack of Lamb which is served with their famous Gilroy potatoes. The lamb is juicy and superb, to the point where you'll want to pick up the bones and nibble every last drop of meat off of them. And those potatoes! They are scalloped and cheesy and oh so good. You'll just have to try them for yourself. On my second visit, I had Shrimp Garlic Angel. That was my absolute favorite dish at the Madison location, and it did not disappoint. It's shrimp over you guessed it, angel hair pasta. It's served with tomatoes and olives (but I skip the olives).
One big difference is that this location has a full bar, whereas Madison was BYOB. So if you want to partake in some spirits, expect to shell out some more money. On both visits, I had the red sangria. I highly recommend it. On the first visit, I was will a bunch of girlfriends, so we shared a full pitcher. When I went with the hubby this weekend for Valentine's Day, we just ordered the half pitcher to share (since we had to drive a distance to get home). It was the perfect amount for us.
I would be remiss if I did not mention that for dessert, they offer Garlic Ice Cream. Yes, you read that correctly. The garlic flavor is overwhelming in the ice cream. It was tasty, but I could only eat so much of it. One of my girlfriend's absolutely loved it, so we let her devour the rest of it and devour she did.
Garlic Rose has a rewards program called Garlicious Rewards. I highly recommend signing up for it. They swipe your card each time you dine and when you accumulate 150 points, they send you a coupon for $15 off your meal. They also send coupons for your birthday, half-birthday, anniversary, and occasionally throughout the year.
Make sure to make a reservation if you will be dining on a Friday or Saturday night because during these peak times, a table can be hard to come by.