Reviews for Arugula Spring Lake in Spring Lake, NJ
We have eaten here several times. When It's just my wife and me, service is good. But when it's a large group (seven people) it... can take an hour to get dinner. The food is expertly prepared and there is a very nice selection. However the chef can actlike a character on a Seinfeld episode. On a recent visit our table of seven had lots of questions for our server. When it wasmy turn the chef happened to walk by and curtly announced that the dish I was interested in was no longer available. Our serverrolled her eyes because it was obvious the chef was just trying to hurry her up. My wife and I would still go back (afterdinner the chef did thank us for our business), but his behavior turned off our other family members from returning. It's verypleasant to eat outside. The inside is quite small. This place is great for couples on a weekday night, but large groups shouldexpect to wait. Show less Read more
Overall, the food was great and our server went the extra mile to make sure that my friend's salad and entree were both vegan.... We did have to wait a few extra minutes for our food though. However, I will definitely return! Read more
The Owner is very responsive to the patrons. The servers are wonderful and have a great personality. The menu offers something... for everyone. The food is amazing! Kudos to the Chef and kitchen staff. A must dining experience in Spring Lake, NJ. Read more
My friend took me here for my first visit this was her third and this was her last. Each experience gets worse. It?s always a 2... hour ordeal. We had a 7:30 reservation and arrived right on time but at the same time as another couple who the owner knew. Wewere seated first but were given a very small 2 top with no umbrella the other couple received the nicer table outside with theumbrella. Their order was taken first. We opened our own wine as it took quite a while before we were acknowledged by thewaitress. Finally we ordered our appetizer which was long hot peppers and we asked for water. Peppers were served without anybread and our water never came. The wait staff appeared to be overwhelmed while the owner sat and chatted with customers allnight at different tables rather then helping when needed or checking on other tables. The inside is messy with tables not setor ready for customers. A poor first impression when you walk in. Decor could use some attention to detail to match the priceson the menu particularly in a town that is wealthy and discerning. Each time there is a new staff of servers. Not a good sign.The food is very good and from what we hear probably what allows people to overlook the poor service and ambiance. The fact thatthere are so many bad reviews and nothing changes says the owners not concerned improving his business or the customersexperience. There are too many good restaurants in the area to waste your time here. Read more
From the moment we walked in the restaurant we were greeted by an extremely rude older woman waitress with long curly brown... hair. She looked us up and down and called us ?kids?, while we?re all in our late 20?s. We were given paper napkins rather thanthe cloth napkins every other table received. When asked why they claimed they were running low, meanwhile they were laying onempty tables and tables that came in after us received them. While the other waitress was nice, this woman gave us looksthroughout our entire meal. We have never felt more disrespected in an establishment. I do not recommend coming here if you wantto be treated fairly and are under the age of 85. Read more
Love everything about this place. I always get the special. The wait staff is attentive. The chef is amazing. He will be out... ?working the room? making sure that your meal came out perfect. BYOB and CASH ONLY. Reservations a must. Read more
A coastal charming place. With an italian heritage, this place reminds of little italy in NYC. We wanted to get a light meal... and settled on salads. Generous portion sizes with fresh ingredients. Ordered the orange salad and the burrata salad. Fast,fresh, and friendly ! Read more
A major disappointment. This is a place you're hoping to enjoy, but fails on many levels. We had a mediocre lunch several weeks... ago but decided that we would dinner. On each occasion, we were alone in the restaurant. The owner sat in the restaurant'sseating area on each occasion, speaking loudly to staff, and working on lights. We found his presence off putting and hisdemeanor rather boorish. The wait staff both times was friendly and in my opinion, worked hard to create a good experience. Thefood leaves a lot to be desired. For example, the dish described as "godiva chicken" features two deep fried chicken cutlets,with a runny unappealing sauce. It is my opinion, from the uniformity of the cutlets and the deep bread coating, that they useprefabricated frozen chicken. I feel the same about the eggplant tower, one of the appy selections (prefab/frozen slices). Theeggplant slices are eerily perfect in size and shape; anyone that cooks with eggplant would agree that perfectly formed cutletsthat have their skins, are difficult to create. The intermezzo salad was soggy and over dressed. One of our entrees was ashrimp and chicken with pesto. The TYPE of pesto was not indicated and I believe that it was not basil, but perhaps spinach.Somewhat misleading in that most people immediately think basil when they hear pesto. The pesto was overly creamy and smotheredthe dish as opposed to complimenting (it). One further comment - when we were discussing our appetizers, we decided on Italianlong hots. The owner overheard us and told us from a distance that they didn't have any - apparently none at the market he wentto that day; also he said he didn't have arugula! Arugula is a ubiquitous green, and for a restaurant called Arugula not to haveit's namesake veg is laughable. There is little to say of a complimentary nature about Arugula - it's AT BEST mediocre, andoverpriced for the quality of the product. This is a disappointment to what is a lovely Spring Lake Main St Read more