Reviews for Ava's Kitchen & Bar in Kenilworth, NJ
Came in for some drinks and late snacks, our server was awesome and food was delicious (especially the pizza and calamari).
Great place for Italian fare. Pizzas are thin crust and just yummy. Very nice selection of beers and cocktails.
Don't know why this place isn't packed every night. Maybe I just choose to come when it's quiet. Regardless, I hope it's quiet... when my family and I eat there because then we'd have the space to ourselves. Restaurant is accessible, parking is ample infront and behind, there is outdoor seating, service is pleasant and efficient. The standouts are the pizzas and the cocktails. They have an extensive drink list and the drinks are all well-balanced. I don't even ask for top-shelf liquor because theirmixes really elevate the drinks; I'm not sure how they do that. As for pizzas, we tried the King Murphy once and I don't knowif we'll ever try anything different. All of the appetizers have been delicious, too. It's like they can't make a baddish. Maybe the prices are too high? That could be, but the price is worth it for the food. The entry door is also a bitconfusing. You can't enter from Boulevard and the entry door on 21st is nondescript so you might end up walking past it if it'snot open already. Read more
Great atmosphere, great food and a great selection of beer and cocktails. The cocktail menu has something for everyone, and... every drink our table had was great despite each one being so different. The service was also great, which made the place standout even more. I saw a lot of reviews mentioning high prices, but we thought everything was completely worth what we paid. Wedefinitely plan to frequent Ava’s in the future. Read more
Ava's has a lot going for it. The interior has an edgy rustic farmhouse feel (it reminds me of The Barrow House in Clifton), and... the menu has a gastropub/Neapolitan pizza parlour vibe, with some hipster mixology options to boot. It has something for prettymuch everyone, and it's only two minutes off the Parkway with plenty of parking options nearby. My Millennial Chum and I camehere for dinner this past Friday around 5:30pm. We'd only decided on this place in the late morning, so an attempt to secure areservation on OpenTable was unsuccessful because of the time crunch (not a regular OpenTable user, so not sure if that's theirpolicy or if that was specific to the restaurant). As a result though, we didn't have the option of sitting at a table andinstead supped at the bar. I'm usually pretty ambivalent about eating at the bar - the service tends to be better and you caneasily develop a rapport with the barkeep, but it can be a little awkward logistically if space is limited. This experience wasno exception. We had a very good bartender and no service issues, but because it was crowded, I kept bumping elbows with the guynext to me. Everything is a balancing act. I opted for the Red Pie, which was just a standard Margarita pizza. It was prettygood, but I wouldn't classify it as great. I'm a big fan/consumer of Neapolitan pies and I think there should be an expectationthat the crust is going to be a more significant presence than with mainstream pizza, but this was too much - there were sliceswhere I literally had two or three bites with cheese/sauce, and then 10 bites of just crust. That's not a winning formula, in myopinion. It's tasty but could be noticeably improved by adding another inch of toppings around the perimeter. The MillennialChum (who earlier in the day made a big production about how she was going to behave and barely eat) ordered the wood-roastedbrussels sprouts and the wood-fired chicken parm entree. She liked the brussels, though some Read more
Decent spot. Bar was pretty good with a great selection of IPA's. The service pretty good. We had a variety of their pizzas,... which are of the "artisan" type. Pizzas are small, and thin, but there is a decent selection of them. All in all, a good place. Read more
What a cocktail bar gym in New Jersey! Having frequented cocktail bars in NYC I was impressed by the cocktail selection and... execution here. Really enjoyed the “almost late “cocktail, then ordered a bartender‘s choice which was also quitegood. The sausage pizza was delicious thin crust, bursting with flavor and a little bit of spice. The waitress really knew herway around drinks and gave my date excellent recommendations for beer, and helped me with my cocktail. Can’t wait to come backto try some more of their delicious concoctions! Read more
I haven't been here for a long time, didn't realize I neglected to post a review. So first of all, fantastic decor with the... rustic wood look. Also, very good menu, and great beers on tap. I described to the waiter what I was in the mood for based onmore commonly known beers, and he brought me a Untied Turkeytown Oktoberfest that was absolutely perfect. The food wasdelicious. My friend's pork chop was very dry though, and the service was a bit absent at times. So it's not a perfect 5stars, but I'm pretty sure if you go here you will want to come back. Definitely recommended, go and enjoy! Read more