The Barn Princeton — Restaurant in Princeton

The Barn Restaurant in Princeton – Where the Only Thing Well Done Was the Steak (and My Mouth) After an afternoon trudging through the mud and murk of the neighboring wildlife sanctuary, my sister and I arrived at The Barn Restaurant in search of something restorative—preferably dry, warm, and edible. The décor, all rustic chic with shiplap aplenty, whispered promises of cozy comfort and elevated farm fare. We were ready to believe it. Unfortunately, like the soggy shoes on our feet, our spirits would soon deflate. We began with the bread basket, lured in by the assumption that a $10 charge for what’s free everywhere else must mean something special. It did not. The toasted focaccia slices were serviceable. But the so-called cornbread? Let’s just say the only resemblance it bore to actual cornbread was its yellowish hue. It was dense, flavorless, and tragically uncrumbly—more like a corn-flavored doorstop than anything a Southern grandma would recognize. It was as if someone had said, “What if we took all the joy out of cornbread and replaced it with white flour and regret?” Still, we pressed on. The steak with mashed potatoes arrived, and here was the meal’s high note: the steak itself, a glimmer of hope. Cooked just right, seasoned with restraint, it was tender and tasty. Sadly, its mashed potato sidekick didn’t get the memo. These spuds were dry, oddly sticky, and more lump than mash. They tasted like someone had drained all the dairy out of them and replaced it with Elmer’s glue. My entrée was the gnocchi in lemon caper sauce, though “lemon” and “caper” were more concept than presence. The gnocchi clung to each other like scared toddlers and had the texture of school paste. When I offered one to my sister, she recoiled and asked why I was feeding her a cutworm. The sauce, barely clinging to the pasta, was so bland it made beige look exciting. Still hopeful (why, I cannot say), we turned to dessert. The carrot cake was acceptable—if you enjoy dodging walnut boulders mid-bite. One piece was approximately the size of my knuckle, and not in a charming rustic way. But we appreciated the maple frosting, which was the closest thing to a flavor highlight we’d had since the steak. Then came the pot de crème. Or as I now call it, Satan’s Pudding. This chocolate pudding masquerade came with an unannounced cayenne payload that lit up my mouth like a five-alarm fire. There was no sweetness to balance the heat, just a slow burn that had me clutching my ice water like it was holy. It felt less like dessert and more like a dare. I rarely write reviews. And when I do, it’s usually to praise the people behind truly thoughtful service or inspired products. But The Barn deserves mention for how completely it deflated our evening. Its ambitious menu reads like a love letter to rustic refinement, but the execution? More like a breakup text written in all caps. There’s not much else along that lonely stretch of road in Princeton. Which makes it all the more disheartening that The Barn, with its promising vibe and pretentious plates, misses the mark so widely. I left feeling burned—figuratively by the bill and literally by the pudding—and just a little embarrassed for having fallen for the...

3/6- In response to the reply I received from the owner, how was my honest review disrespectful? It was my honest experience. As for my observation of the “minor” (not sure what age has to do with it) I wasn’t aware he had been lifting heavy trays for 5 hours straight before we arrived at 6, I thought you opened at 4. Anyway, my issue was with the fact customers were sitting amongst other patrons dirty dishes/plates and glasses. I’m sure the refreshment could have waited while an area was wiped down. How would a patron know how long and hard this employee had been working prior to our arrival? All I saw was a mess and an employee that didn’t appear the least bit concerned.

Basically what it boils down to, is if ones observations are honest and not 100% positive we shouldn’t mention names for fear of the business or the hardworking teams being negatively impacted. Hmm, sounds like you want the good and not the bad, even if the experience was real….got it. My reviews are fair, I always try to include the positives and the negative, unless in a rare instance there wasn’t any positives. In this review, I gave a shout out to Callie for her excellent service, but you didn’t acknowledge that observation or make mention you’d be sure to let her know about her positive impact. ————————————————————- Visited on Saturday February 24th and sat at the bar. It was busy, our bartender Callie was exceptional. She was personable and hustled. The other bartender (Kristin) not even comparable. I had three of the same specialty cocktails and third one was made with minimal effort, missing the lemon and rosemary garnish.

The food took forever, I ordered the Chicken Sandwich with fries and my husband had the French Dip. My fries came out ten minutes after my sandwich. The oil is clearly in need of being replaced ,the first few bites of the chicken was a crunchy and oil soaked mess. The French Dip had a bowl of brown gravy vs au jus.

Another observation, was the young guy Charlie behind the bar. It was packed when we arrived, if he was a motivated, team player he would have been on his A game. There were empty glasses and empty cans, dirty plates and other items ready to be cleaned up while he leaned against the corner of the L shaped bar drinking soda. All in all, a disappointing experience. The bartender was the best part of...

We were a party of 4 & decided to try out The Barn for a second time. The first time was not the best experience, just mediocre, so we thought they were getting the kinks out and decided to give them another try. Place is very nice for a family restaurant with a great view, we saw the sun setting. Because it's all wood it is very loud and hard to talk within your party. The service was great, our waitress was very nice and did her job well. I will start out with a positive on the food. The homemade bread basket was outstanding and delish!! Now on to the not so good, unfortunately, a burger ordered medium came out pretty much mooing. Tomato on it was bad, actually over ripe to the point of mushy. To the restaurants credit, we should have sent it back to be fixed, but decided to power through. Another dinner ordered a short rib and roasted vegetables dinner which was way under seasoned, and vegis were not quite done... actually hard and raw. Another order of scallops and wine risotto, which left the diner loving the scallops, but the risotto had a strange unpleasant taste and was inedible for this diner. We ordered another grilled sandwich, which was a little greasy but tasty, which also came with a squash soup that was not eaten due to no flavor at all. Both orders of fries were so salty that one of the diners could not eat them. We had high hopes with the good reviews, but left not feeling so good about coming back again,...