Brass Rail Bar & Grill — Restaurant in Matawan

What Happened to This Place?

We came in on a quiet Wednesday night and were seated right away. From there, everything went downhill. Our server, Cecilia, was completely inattentive and didn’t seem to know the menu at all. We asked for sauces listed on the menu, and she flat-out told us they didn’t have them — which either means she didn’t bother to check or she just didn’t care.

The food? A joke. The avocado on my BLT was so hard it was literally inedible — I couldn’t even bite into it. Ended up eating just the fries, which says a lot about how bad the main dish was. The zucchini fries were passable, but we didn’t get the dipping sauce until we asked, and by then the plate had been sitting empty for over 30 minutes. When we finally got her attention, Cecilia didn’t even seem to realize we were done — even though the plate was cleared.

Let’s talk about the drinks. Twenty minutes to get water. Nearly half an hour for bar drinks. This might be understandable on a slammed night, but the place was nearly empty — maybe 10 tables max the entire time we were there. We watched two parties who were seated after us get their food, eat, and leave before we even got our meals.

We’ve had great experiences here in the past, which makes this visit even more frustrating. What used to be a solid spot has clearly gone downhill. After this visit, we’re not planning to come back — and honestly, we wouldn’t recommend it to anyone until they seriously fix their service and...

TLDR: cute mediocre food/drink joint but don’t go to the bar on a weekend if you’re visibly queer/lgbt+

the bartenders were sweet and drinks tasted good, food was alright; and i’m sure being professional and doing their job… but if you’re obviously queer or different physically you will be very uncomfortable in the atmosphere of this bar on a weekend night lol. me and my friend who is clearly gay in presentation were literally STARED at from the moment we walked in by MULTIPLE people and then this other woman started talking about us so loud that we could hear her. things like “i don’t get why those people have to be here” we didn’t want a problem so we just paid, tipped extra and left since we only had one drink each and little appetizers before we were made so uncomfortable, we had to leave. we’re both from the area and we understand most people here are a little behind but my friend is like.. slightly gay looking and we were ostracized. it felt like virginia. (to be fair, a friend of the woman who was being loud left out of embarrassment, but we still knew we were clearly a disruption just by being there…) we didn’t realize this was a popular spot for republicans age 40-70, it seemed like a locally owned chili’s...

Okay, I've been coming here for years and never thought to leave a review. I do this typically when I find a great spot and selfishly don't want others to be in my seat at the bar when I want a great meal.

I'm not a local and I come here a couple of times a year when in the area. After my meal tonight I HAVE to leave a note.

I had an extraordinary dinner. Really something to talk about.

Couple of things, this is not a fine dining restaurant. It's a local place run by a local family. The type of place you want to be successful. Great food, great value.

Second, I have had the good fortune to be able to dine at many restaurants around the world. This was a memorable dinner.

The prime rib was exceptional.

Not what I usually order but cooked to a perfect medium rare. I ordered a regular cut and believe me when I tell you this was an Oversized 16 oz. Easily the largest piece of meat I've eaten this year! I ordered it smothered, mushrooms, onions and provolone on top +$2!

It was spot on amazing. What a great value for a local place.

Constantine behind the bar always makes me feel welcome.

Excellent experience, very enjoyable...