Bar Franco — Local services in Montclair

Since moving to the area I've been researching restaurants and cocktail lounges to add to my Yelp Collections to check out for both date night ideas and for when my friends visit and after having read all the reviews for Bar Franco I was set on paying them a visit sooner rather than later because it seemed like just the perfect little chic location for a cocktail.

I finally had the opportunity to visit last night as it was what I thought would be the perfect place for pre-dinner cocktails on a romantic date night .... and I was unfortunately wrong.

Upon entering and waiting to be seated we immediately saw from an ambiance perspective why it received the ratings it did in that category because there's no denying the look and feel is giving sexy, warm and lively. When greeted and finally seated by the manager we were unfortunately literally squeezed on to the end of a bench in a nook right near the front door where we had zero space for our coats and crammed table space to share with the party of six whose laps we were virtually sitting on ... AWKWARD and not cool whatsoever. However, so as to not start the date off on the wrong foot we adapted and decided that since the party of six said they would be paying their tab and leaving shortly that we would ask the manager who sat us if it would be ok for us to scoot down in order to have a more comfortable seating arrangement once the large party left. In attempting to get her attention to inquire about the move, she rudely stated without even looking at me "I DO NOT TAKE ORDERS" as she assumed I was trying to place our cocktail order with her and as if even taking an order was beneath her .... WOOOSAH! (NOTE: Anyone in their right mind could see she wasn't a server since the servers were professionally dressed in white and black uniforms while she was dressed in ill fitting pleather leggings and a tasteless bright red cropped faux fur jacket) .... I again didn't respond how I wanted to for the sake of not ruining the date night vibe, however, my date was equally irritated by her response and said that he wouldn't be upset if I wanted to leave because her attitude and demeanor was completely condescending and unacceptable, but we had actually already placed our order with our server Daisy and decided to stay.

The cocktails themselves were well presented and I thoroughly enjoyed their version of the espresso martini I ordered, but, my date didn't care for the cocktail he ordered which was their version of the Paloma as the entire rim and glass itself was coated with salt which as you can imagine was messy and total hypertension overkill.

Bar Franco won't be seeing us again and it has been removed from my Yelp collection as I absolutely do not want to recommend them in any shape form or...

I don’t know who the young lady is that was greeting people at the door on Saturday, February 1, 2025 around 6 PM but the treatment of my date last night was very concerning. Let me explain: she and I had a great dinner across the street at Cuban Petes. I wanted to show her a good time afterward, and I personally selected this lounge for its ambience, great reviews, and menu. The young lady and I are just starting out, so we took separate cars, I went in after her. As soon as I stepped in I could see it on her face something was wrong. She was sitting at the table on the wall, and told me that the young lady at the front door, barely even greeted her, and quickly almost “shooed” her to that spot telling her that the place fills up quickly. Didn’t ask her if she would like to sit at the bar, didn’t ask her if she actually wanted a table. But then immediately afterward, a group of people came in and she was much warmer and much friendlier, asking them where they wanted to sit, really just being much more accommodating.she was “chick fil a” to the other ppl, she was “McDonald’s” to my date. Micro aggression aside, my day asked if there was valet parking… To which the lady responded “it’s not free, you have to pay for it.” The insinuation that she expected free parking is insulting enough, and It did not help that we were the only Black people in the restaurant. I’m not sure what made her think she would need to make that disclaimer, we were dressed well, we are both white-collar professionals, and have advanced degrees so we didn’t walk in like bums to be treated so dismissively and condescendingly. That implicit bias just cost you two forever customers. I was embarrassed that I even recommended Bar Franco.

Now granted, I was a little surprised to hear that a “greeter“ was being rude, because when I walked in, no one even bothered to greet me. I did hear a woman say “have a good night guys” when we were out the door. My date was so turned off with the poor service compared to the service that the other patrons got that after I went to the bathroom, I decided that we would go to a place where we would be much more Respected.

I recommend everyone go to Papillon in South Orange. NOT Bar Franco. Staff is friendlier, food is better, more seating, there’s live music. Drinks are better too. Great price. More upscale ambience. Trust me I’ve been going there since I was a junior in undergrad, they treat...

This review is based solely on drinks

This tiny little Italian bar is an excellent place to visit for a quick cocktail.

I arrived early on a Friday evening and I was seated immediately. The bar is quite small - we were seated at the table against the wall. The ambience was very nice - it felt like i was transported to an upscale bar in Europe.

After being seated, we were approached and given snacks immediately. Our bartender then approached us and took our drink orders. The service was quick, attentive, and friendly.

I settled on the Pera Caramellata (St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, White Port Caramelized Pear, Lemon Juice). The drink deserves a 10/10 - truly on of the freshest and most flavorful cocktails I have ever had in my life. It was very smooth and refreshing. The price was moderate with drinks at $15-$18 each. They also have mocktails if you’re with people who do not drink.

Overall an excellent experience worth visiting! I will...