Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar — Restaurant in Montvale

We recently had the pleasure of celebrating my mother's 90th birthday at Fleming’s in Montvale. If you don't want to read the whole review (it's on the long side), here's the summary: the food was excellent, the room was a perfect size, and the service is impeccable, from the management team to every member of the waitstaff, including a follow-up email the next day to make sure that every aspect of the evening had been a success. The event coordinator is a star, helping to plan the perfect evening! Fleming's has recently opened in our town, and since my mother was craving a steak dinner, I reached out to Fleming's. From my first conversation with Shannon, the event coordinator, I knew that we were going to Fleming's. She offered suggestions, tailoring the menu to suit our needs. She was even able to create a special drink for my mother, Bunni, which was Fleming’s take on a chocolate martini, the Bunni-tini! Thoughtful touches like this make the event feel so personal and warm. Shannon continued to check in, making sure every detail was in place for the big day. She is outstanding, and we were so appreciative of her help and guidance! Fleming's allows you to bring in decorations. My brother delivered the balloon centerpieces and, as he was leaving Fleming's, called me to share his impressions. He was impressed by how welcoming everyone was and how well-informed the team was about every detail of the event. This attention to detail set the tone for the rest of the event. As the evening began, the outstanding service team attended to every detail. Through no fault of Fleming's, the number of attendees was off by three. I was incredibly panicked, but there was no need! Tables appeared, place settings magically arrived, and additional platters of food showed up without a hiccup. When I say that we were all amazed by the ease with which the service team handled it, it would be an understatement. Other reviews have mentioned the "vibe", and we agree. Anna and Emily, our servers, and Tom, the operating partner, met every request with, "Not a problem! Let me get that for you!" The food had everyone buzzing. The dinner was from the “Magnificent Meal” menu, and it could not have been more aptly named! The seafood tower was beyond amazing and may have edged out the delectable main courses as the hit of the evening. There was not one thing that wasn't wonderful, and we left completely satisfied with smiles on our faces. As a bonus, Mr. English, Vice President of Operations, was visiting the restaurant that evening, and knowing it was my mom's birthday, he serenaded her with a harmonica version of "Happy Birthday!" Fleming's is a well-oiled machine where the focus is on the patrons and making events memorable in every way. I know this is long, but I hope that if you are considering Fleming's for an event, this review will convince you to book your date. Just do it! You will not be...

Grand Opening of Fleming’s Steakhouse across from Wegmans in Montvale – a work in progress. It’s exciting to have a decent steakhouse so close to home. It’s a beautiful space when you walk in, with white linen tables upfront, 4-sided bar area in the back, and open kitchen for all to gawk at. Manager Bill Kohut and the rest of the staff were super welcoming, and any constructive criticism below is meant to be supportive with the understanding that when a restaurant first opens, it’s always a work in progress.

My 1st restaurant rule is to get the bread right. If you can’t get something that simple right, then you’re not likely to get the tougher things right. The little loaf of bread at Fleming’s was warm and felt like it had been baked on premise, which is a good start… though they should offer dipping olive oil in addition to the two types of butter.

The shrimp cocktail consisted of 5 U-10 shrimp… nice sized, but not quite as firm in texture as the ones at Ridgewood’s Roots. The dollop of horseradish sitting on top of the cocktail sauce was a nice touch.

The filet mignon was tasty and cooked to our request, which is medium well for the Mrs. on the outside and medium in the middle for me. I asked for A1 sauce and they brought it 10 minutes later, just in time for my last bite.

The onion rings were insanely good. The only negative was their 1100 calorie count which appeared on the menu. Talk about an appetite killer… now that’s something DOGE should get rid of.

My 2nd rule of the memorable restaurant experience is for staff to limit unnecessary contact with the patrons. The 7 or so staff members we interacted with were all pleasant and attentive, but too intrusive. In addition, it’s very American to pull plates when somebody’s finished, but to me, it’s rude to clean off parts of the table before everyone’s finished a particular course.

Fleming’s also has to speed up the delivery of drink orders from the bar. I ordered a glass of wine between the appetizer and the entrée, but it didn’t arrive until I had almost finished my entrée. Conversely, they brought my coffee well before they brought dessert, but since they offered a free refill, I can’t complain about that.

After I told the manager that we lived close by, and we were coming back on the 11th, he generously offered complimentary desserts. My better half loved her carrot cake, though why anyone would want vegetables in their dessert, I can’t fathom. My chocolate lava cake was dry and didn’t have enough lava in the middle, but I probably shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth.

Running a great restaurant is very hard, and it’s not fair to render a final opinion of a restaurant until you’ve been there 3 times. So our 1st visit was a qualified success. I’m rooting for Fleming’s ultimate success, and I’ll offer my final opinion after a couple...

I came on Sunday with my guest! I had high expectations and was completely dissapointed mainly due to the service!! If you spend over $300 for a meal I think there should be some kind of value which there was honeslty none!! We sat at a bar table and were greeted 5 minutes after we sat!! That alone was to long! The bartender came over who was pleasant took our drink order and appetizer order because we were hungry, it took an hour to get there! My guests drink came out and mine an Iced Tea did not. She took the main order and did not right it down which is fine, but it better come out correctly!! I told my guest this is going to get interesting. When the appetizers were being brought out by the food runner they were placed at two bar guests sitting at the bar, which I could clearly see and thus realizing the mistake. Obviously realizing it was wrong, brought them over to us. When the waitress came over I had to remind her to bring my iced tea which she of course apologized and brought. As the food runner was leaving, we asked to bring bread to the table. I would expect it to be an easy practice. That when a guest sits water is poured. Bread is delivered and then you move on with the service. The food runner never brought the bread and we asked again. Yes we finally received the bread way after the appetizers were cleared!! Dinner came and looked good, we each had filet mignon. I had mine w scallops and my guest w a lobster tail. 2 problems, no steak knives were given and no butter for the lobster tail!! The waitress/bartender came over and finally brought the knives and placed them in a plate in the middle of the table and brought the cold melted butter, but it was as expected the way the meal was going:(( of course no check back eating the dinner!! My guests steak was under cooked and a simple check back could have corrected that, but we just took it w us!! I usually like a cappuccino after dinner but wasnt going to waste another dollar with what I received!! When I asked for the check another person had brought it, and then after paying that check with my credit card, the bartenders/waitress came back with the check not realizing someone already brought it. It was a comedy of errors. My blame is not just the person taking care of us!! Its the whole organization. $300 for a dinner in whats supposed to be a great steak house!! Lack of training, poor awareness of the server, her collegues behind the bar, no manager touching thr table during any point of our visit!! Inexcusable!! U never know who your guests are unless you make an effort and have the courtesy to be...