Stage Left Steak — Restaurant in New Brunswick

I came here with my wife and her family for a nice dinner. My wife and I have tried most of the upscale steakhouses around the New Brunswick area, and Stage Left Steak was the only one left on our list. I wanted to bring my parents-in-law to a nice steakhouse as I knew my mother-in-law was a little picky about meat, so we decided to give this restaurant a shot.

Located in the heart of New Brunswick, it has a really great location and feel, especially being right down the street from the theater. It's also right across the street from a nice hotel. The overall atmosphere and ambiance is nice and I believe it would be a great place for a date or business dinner. They have an outdoor seating area that was empty on a Saturday night. I found that quite odd but perhaps indicative.

We ordered a scallop entree, lamb chop, and Tomahawk steak to share on the table as well as a couple of appetizers that were nothing to write home about.

Now I'll preface with the good: the Lamb Chop was like nothing I've ever had before. I don't remember the way it was cut, but it had lamb belly and other cuts of the chop that I have to say were amazing. Our server brought us a salt rock to grill the cuts on if we felt like anything needed a little more temperature. That was a really nice touch. If I had to revisit this restaurant, it would be for the Lamb Chop entree alone.

On the other hand, the scallops entree we ordered was ~$35 if I remember correctly, but it came on a large plate with only 6 small scallops that weren't even properly plated. Now the portions don't usually bother me that much, but the presentation of this plate was very poor and led us to believe that they had forgotten half of the dish. The Tomahawk steak was the biggest let down for us. This is my favorite cut of meat. My wife and I both have had a lot of Tomahawk's in our restaurant hopping career and we both agree that this was the most disappointing, especially considering the $139 price point. The size was roughly 36-40 oz and just lacked flavor and texture. We often go to Steakhouse 85 and pay significantly less for a much better flavored and marbled Tomahawk cut. Even when we lived in Manhattan, we went to a Brooklyn steakhouse for a 55 oz Tomahawk that was just marginally more expensive but cooked to perfection.

Service was also just average and undeserving of anything beyond the 3-star rating. Our plates were never changed as the courses progressed and I had to ask twice for bread and butter to be delivered to the table. Is it possible it's because we were Asian and dressed in casual clothing?

Perhaps we had an anomaly of an experience, but I hesitate to come back here when there are several other steakhouses in the area that I...

I’m a chef so if you’re reading this review just know it is genuine. • Let’s start with the good, the scenery. The atmosphere is nice, good art, nice lighting, nice tables, nice bar. • Let’s start with the wrongs… side note it seems they take pride in giving you a great service experience. (I believe it to be smoke and mirrors, just so they can charge you more.) • starting with appetizers, we ordered the calamari and shrimp scampi. Calamari: was very cold and overcooked???, tasted like rubber, and unseasoned. i’ve never had a calamari that i’ve needed to send back. •Shrimp scampi: for a wapping $21.95 you get 6 frozen to thawed shrimp with a broken scampi sauce. • Now onto main courses, meanwhile you wait you can listen to the wait staff relentlessly click and unclick their pens 3 feet from our table. • we ordered the 12 oz flatiron $39.99 , and Grilled salmon $38.95 • starting with flatiron they asked me what temperature I would like my steak. - Medium Rare. it came out seared 30 seconds each side, cut, and presented to me RAW with a butcher block and salt block and then was told i’d have to cook it more for myself. ( why was this not disclosed to me before ordering? why even ask how I want my steak cooked? i ordered the 12 oz flatiron, keep this in mind for when i get my bill * •Salmon: tasted under-seasoned , and left a bad taste of char. risotto was bland under-seasoned less than room temperature. everything should be hot yet nothing was. not even the plate placed in the oven for 30 seconds.

I get the bill for 2. $150.00 and they “accidentally” charged me for Wagu, flatiron which was double the price. I called to get it changed because that’s a big mistake. after trying to fix it, eventually it gets resolved The manager has a problem with my 5% tip. after the service we just had I think everything was appropriate, not disclosing steak would be raw, charging me for something I never got, and all the food was cold.

either cooks were to early to put food to the pass or the waiter let the food sit there. 🤷‍♂️ either way it about my experience and it was not a good one.

food prices are outrageous the steak i ate should’ve actually been $22 and salmon $28 but because of their prime location they can charge that I guess and rob you blind.

on top of everything at the end of the call the manager asked if “I would like to change my tip to a more appropriate amount 😐” wow

should’ve...

I live roughly a seven and a half hour one way drive from the restaurant. So I only visit three times a year. The experence is always one that brings me joy. The staff, menu, cocktails and wine list reflect the love of food and hospitality that the owners have brought to New Brunswick for over 30 years. Real passion and joy for serving others can not be faked. Check out the pod cast "the restaurant guys" to experence this passion, while you plan your next visit.

Ok. On to the food.

This a a specific focus on a specialty appetizer that is not always on the menu. The caviar. Over the past few years, I have had three different opportunities to enjoy this delightful pop of flavor. Stage Left sources the caviar, serving Imperia Osetra Caviar. The presentation is classical in its simplicity, chopped egg, and red onion highlighted by handmade fresh waffle crisps. Honestly, the crisps alone are worth the drive. Together as a single bite the richness of the hard-boiled egg, the sharpness of the red onion with the snap of the crisp provides such a contrast to the salty sweet pop of the caviar that it is a unimaginable to enjoy it any other way. Rarely, will all of the components of a dish work so perfectly together to stand so far above their base flavors. This is what I have come to expect from the team at Stage Left, the aroma, flavor and texture come together to be so remarkable, I will have conversations and dreams of the dish for months to come.

With...