1776 Morristown — Restaurant in Morristown

Talk about a staggeringly uneven experience. I came here for the post-First of the Year Hike with three chums, one of whom specifically recommended it despite the fact that it was a little bougie and most of us were wearing hiking clothes. We made a reservation about half an hour ahead of time, which I've decided is one of the reasons we were warmly received and seated without incident despite being very mangy compared to other patrons.

The interior is really something to behold. I got enormously distracted by the 3-D foliage portrait things on the wall (which probably have a sophisticated artistic name), and there were still quite a bit in the way of classy holiday decorations throughout despite the calendar turning to 2025. We obviously had to take an impromptu photo op next to some colonial-themed shizzle on our way out. Very spiffy.

I knew going in that the Clothesline Bacon needed to be procured. How I've somehow managed to go this far in life without eating strips of bacon mimicking laundry is beyond me. Huge recommend both for style and substance - we deliberated over getting two of these orders but ultimately decided that one giant slab each would be sufficient given everything else we were getting, and that was the right call. Juicy, flavorful, amazing. The Lobster Dumplings were also great, and probably the highlight for me - cooked exactly right, with a creamy tomato miso that perfectly complemented it.

Also a huge positive? My entree, the Bananas Foster French Toast. This is typically a heavier meal (which I didn't mind, given that I'd already been on a ceremonial hike and gym visit earlier in the day), but it was actually pretty light - they didn't overly douse this in syrup or anything, and it was maybe even slightly undercooked, which I always think is a huge positive. These weren't giant slabs of Texas Toast, so that helped as well. Definitely would get that again.

It's unfortunate that there were a few significant negatives that dampened the meal overall. The service was honestly strange; our waiter was very nice but not that attentive and did not stop by consistently. There were huge stretches especially in the second half of our stay where he was just not around and we were all craning our necks looking around for him. Beyond that though, there seemed to be a lot of disorganization and confusion in the kitchen. Literally at least four or five times (it could have been more), we had someone stop at our table to ask if the drinks or meals they were holding were for us. They weren't. And one time after we told them it wasn't ours, the guy came back to double-check! Really odd. I don't know if one of their systems was down but it wasn't a good luck and was actually starting to get annoying after the second time. That's just bad management.

The low point for me was the cookie skillet, which was literally the worst I've ever had. I don't think this is a hard dessert to master (if Applebee's can do it, anyone can), and yet when I took the first bite and looked over at my top-tier chum who literally went to the school of hospitality and was chewing pensively herself, I knew it was missing a key ingredient. It basically tasted like a protein bar - it was missing the sugar or the vanilla or something. Just awful. Thankfully it DID have a scoop of vanilla ice cream on it, but we didn't even eat half of it. Huge, huge miss on the equivalent of a food layup. Should not happen.

There was an awful lot to like here, but the bottom line is that for the price and ambience, this didn't hit the mark. You can have the greatest dishes in the world, but if the service and management aren't up to par, it's going to cancel out a lot...

There are several absolutely amazing restaurants in Morristown. This is not one of them. The only reason that I’m giving this place two stars instead of one is thanks to Tom, the beverage manager, who tried to salvage our experience.

We had a reservation for 8:45PM on a busy Saturday evening for three people, but thankfully the restaurant appeared to be fully staffed, with many busboy employees even milling around, seeming like they didn’t have anything to do.

We arrived about five minutes early and were seated right away. 10 minutes went by before our waitress came over to ask what type of water we wanted. We ordered tap, but this is one place that I would recommend springing for bottled. The tap water had a nasty odor and flavor. The waitress herself, who was clearly overwhelmed from the moment we sat down, was oddly the one who kept coming to refill our water throughout the meal (when she actually noticed that we needed it). Why they didn’t have the bussing staff doing this, when there were so many of them milling about, is perplexing.

It took us 30 minutes from the time we sat down to finally get our drinks, and then the appetizers (which we weren’t asked if we would like until our drinks finally came) came out 20 minutes later - 50 minutes after we arrived. One of the two appetizers, the lobster spinach artichoke dip, was awful, and we barely picked at it. The cornbread in the bread service basket was also very odd, and it tasted very greasy. It turns out that it was good that we didn’t like the dip, because the waitress came and cleared it before asking us if we were finished or wanted it to go.

At this point, we asked to speak with the manager. A younger female employee came over, and we shared our concerns with her. She apologized and said that she would be sure to check in with us to make sure everything came out ok (we never saw her again, except in the building lobby as we were leaving 2 hours after we arrived, where she was hanging out and laughing with other employees around a break table).

Our entrees finally came out 70 minutes after we arrived. The steak that my husband ordered was cooked perfectly and very flavorful, and The Imposter sandwiches that me and my friend ordered were good, as well. The truffle tater tots didn’t have any truffle flavor to them at all (they were very bland), the mac and cheese side was good but nothing to write home about, and the onion soup mashed potatoes were tasty. So, much of the food was actually very good, but some of it left a lot to be desired.

At this point, all of our drink glasses were empty again, so my friend went and found another manager, Tom, and he came over to talk with us. He was empathetic and apologized. He ended up comping my wine and our two desserts (neither of which was particularly good), which we appreciated. We pointed out that several other tables were seated 30-40 minutes after us, and they had already gotten their checks and left.

By the time we got our check, which our waitress brought to us with an apology for the “mishaps”, we had been at our table for two hours. That’s when we left, noticing the “manager” in the lobby, laughing and fraternizing with the other restaurant employees.

We will definitely not be...

I decided on 1776 for my milestone Birthday and it did not disappoint.

Location - The location is right in the heart of Morristown. We found the parking garage with the big Golf swing sign and took the elevator to walk across a courtyard to get into the restaurant building. Parking was $9 for 2.15 hours

Restaurant - Is beautiful inside, attention to details are impressive from the Himalayan salt walls to the live moss decor. The inside is modern, artsy , plenty of seating and a bar that commands the room. Colorful. The golf experience area, looks fun and lively. Street parking can be a challenge.

Staff - Our welcome at the entrance was professional but not warm. However, the lovely gentleman Henry M who waited on us made all the difference. He was courteous, professional, knew the menu well and above all, made me feel like a queen for the day. His service went above and beyond as after the meal he gave us a tour of the golfing area and the restaurant and explained a little about the decor which was interesting. He was patient and was happy to make it a special day by taking our pictures and also providing me with a complimentary glass of Champagne. He seemed to take great pride in where he worked and it showed in his service.

The Food and Drinks - The cocktails were tasty and unique, strong and aesthetically beautiful but a bit pricey for a lunch. We fell for the hype and ordered the bacon appetizer, two rashes of the most delicious maple fired bacon came out - it would have been lovely if it was 3 - 4 pieces for the table, at $17 it felt like a bit of a rip off but nevertheless it was fun for my family of 4 to cut away at bits of bacon with scissors! I didn't understand why Sushi was on the menu, but being a sushi lover ordered a roll anyway and while it was not the best sushi i ever ate it was beautifully prepared with top quality ingredients. We rounded out the meal with a the spicy pizza and the Bison cavatelli, all well executed and delicious.We had the macaroon and fresh donut dessert with 3 dipping sauces, which came out with a sparkler. It was a great ending to the meal. Portions were satisfying (except the bacon lol) All in all it was a good experience and a memorable meal. I will return to try some more...