Gencarelli's Cucina & Dessert Lounge

Had dinner & dessert there last night with my boyfriend. Wow. Wow. Wow. We had an awesome evening from start to finish. Great food, Great service. Recommend the shrimp fra diavolo and don't leave there without trying their tasty coffee.

I ate at Gencarelli's saturday night. The BEST mozzarella en carozza I've ever had!!! The portobello ribeye was cooked just right and melted like butter in my mouth. My girlfriend had the veal, and loved it. Even though the place was packed, the service was top notch, and the tartuffo was the perfect end to one of the best meals I've had in years.

One Word Amazing The ambience warm and cozy the Food from appetizers to dessert,very reasonable, And the service was great. Definately going back, would highly recomend it to everyone.

One Word Amazing The ambience warm and cozy the Food from appetizers to dessert,very reasonable, And the service was great. Definately going back, would highly recomend it to everyone.

One Word Amazing The ambience warm and cozy,the Food from appetizers to dessert,very reasonable, And the service was great. Definately going back, would highly recomend it to everyone.

One Word Amazing The ambience warm and cozy,the Food from appetizers to dessert,very reasonable, And the service was great. Definately going back, would highly recomend it to everyone.

Absolutely amazing, i only went in for lunch and i cant WAIT to go back for dinner. The soup was great, the fries were amazing, and the steak sandwich was phenomenal!! The staff is so friendly and the owner is so nice, i highly recommend eating here.

I went there for lunch today and it was excellent from beginning to end. Wonderful warm tuscany atmosphere, warm friendly service and a gracious and engaging owner. Had the eggplant and zucchini panini wthich came with a side of greens. Delicious! Also the chicken soup was a great starter. I will definately be back for dinner next time.

Now we know what the owners, staff and their family think. Has anyone actually eaten there that is not related?

Why, jwjojo, do you smell a few SHILLS? Shocking.
But I couldn't agree more--if there are any folks who are in no way connected to the place we'd love to hear what YOU think.

I work in the neighborhood and have had lunch there twice. The first time I had a penne with vodka sauce that I thought was pretty good, much better than the average from a local pizzeria. The second time I had a rigatoni bolognese with a side of turkey meatballs, the rigatoni was good, the sauce was great, but the turkey meatballs were the standout. I'm looking forward to going for coffee and dessert, i hope they have some of the offerings from their bakery in Bloomfield, and my only concern were that the prices were a bit high, I hope they expand their lunch menu to include more of the offerings from their dinner menu, and i made it very clear that i needed my delivery by a certain time, ordered in advance and it was still 20 minutes late. Other than that, congratulations, a welcomed addition and I wish the restaurant much success.

Thanks 3rdwarder! THAT'S the kind of info that we can actually use.
Yes, people, it's obvious when you're connected to a place or the people who own it. It doesn't mean that there can't be/won't be rave reviews--just that we can see right through the ones that aren't from family-friends-employees.

Ate at Gencarelli's earlier this week. The owner, Debbie, came over to introduce herself and was very warm and enthusiastic, and when we were leaving the chef came out to ask how the food was. Overall, a real friendly and homey feel. The caprese salad and veal were good; the tortellini soup with escarole and beans was outstanding, and a meal unto itself. The crostini that came with it was a nice touch. Order a cannoli for desert - the shell was a bit too hard for my taste, but the filling was fresh and tasty. Would definitely go back.

Shasta, did they fill the cannoli when you ordered it (I hope)?

I'm ME,

Yes, they did fill the cannoli when I ordered it and it was good, but the shell was a bit too crispy for my preference. Even though the family that opened the restaurant is related to the Gencarelli family that has the bakery on Broad Street, the owner explained that the majority of desserts are made fresh in their own kitchen,

Is this the same Gencarelli's that originally was in the Egan's spot on Walnut, many, many years ago?

We went to Gencarelli's last night for desert. Cappuccino was good, but the real knockout was the Chocolate mousse cake. While it didn't do anything for my diet, it was absolutely delicious! Friendly service, and Debbie, the owner, came out to say hello. Prices were fair. I am sure we will go back to try out dinner one night.

We went for the dessert lounge two times. The second time with a group of six. The desserts were horrible. The tiramisu was not eaten, the red velvet cake not eaten. The chocolate peanut butter cake was average. I was expecting a above the average dessert - this is upto par of a standard jersey diner. GO to the bakery on Broad. The tiramusi is much better.

I was disappointed- i was looking forward to a nice dessert lounge. The owner mentioned the dessert are not baked on premises but brought from vendors. Change the vendors. Have a dessert lounge quality of standard.

Yum!! So i finally talked the girls into ordering from gencarelli's and to their surprise were hooked on the paninis and it comes with salad so were not totally cheating on our new years res.

p.s. the red velvet is great i had it the first time around running a close second to petite cafe's rv cupcakes mmm!

I've heard so much about this Gencarelli's place that I decided to go with my two friends and their boyfriends. The food was delicious, I had the steak portabella which was good. The owner Debbie came and introduced herself, which I thought was really nice. She explained to us that most of the desserts WERE baked on premises and some came from the bakery. So after hearing that we HAD to try their desserts. We ended up getting the red velvet, canoli, and mango sorbet. The mango sorbet was soooo yummy. But my all time favorite was the red velvet. Befriender, don't know how you didn't LOVE the red velvet because we thought it was amazing. Their prices aren't too bad. Needless to say, Gencarelli's definately has our vote!!

I've heard so much about this Gencarelli's place that I decided to go with my two friends and their boyfriends. The food was delicious, I had the steak portabella which was good. The owner Debbie came and introduced herself, which I thought was really nice. She explained to us that most of the desserts WERE baked on premises and some came from the bakery. So after hearing that we HAD to try their desserts. We ended up getting the red velvet, canoli, and mango sorbet. The mango sorbet was soooo yummy. But my all time favorite was the red velvet. Befriender, don't know how you didn't LOVE the red velvet because we thought it was amazing. Their prices aren't too bad. Needless to say, Gencarelli's definately has our vote!!

We ate here Friday evening. Wonderful food, wonderful staff, and wonderful owner! We're looking forward to enjoying many meals here!

Went to lunch here last week -food was excellent, service was great, and the owner (Debbie) whom I met was pleasant and friendly. Everything was very flavorful and delicious - I had the pasta fagioli, italiano panini, plus sfogliatelle for dessert with a cappacino - yummy! My father enjoyed it so much that he went there again for dinner that night!

Went to dinner there the other day with a group of girls from work, everything was AMAZING!!! I had the mozzarella in corozza we could not believe how good it was. If you like cheese i highly recomend it. For dinner I was told to try the risotto that was a special again so good. We were all so full but had to try the dessert we shared the chocolate peanut butter cake and the red velvet. DELICIOUS!! I liked it so much i went back the next night with my family!!!

I went to Gencarelli's with some friends that live in the Montclair area and I will be coming back soon, and I live in Monmouth county - it was that good. I haven't been in Montclair in years and really want to explore the town again, so my friend directed me to this website. So here's my two cents about Gencarelli's - We shared the best fried calamari I've had, especially with the ginger dipping sauce. The owner suggested we also get the mozzarella en carozza, and it was great! Everyone enjoyed their meals, but we all made room for desert. I had a tartufo rolled in amaretto cookies (not sure what they called it, I will call it "Heaven on a plate"). The other deserts looked great, so I'll have to force myself to try one of them the next time I am in Gencarelli's - I recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a nice atmosphere, genuine Italian cooking, and great cappucino and deserts!

Went to dinner here after hearing my friends talk about the restaurant.I went with my husband and we were greeted by the owner Debbie..It was raining out and I asked her about parking meters..She informed me they rented a lot nearby..The food was great especially the mozzarella which was the best I have ever eaten..Looking foward to going back to try something different..I also like the fact you get to chose multi grain pasta..

On Saturday, my mom, aunt, cousin and I went to Gencarelli’s for lunch. It was a very warm and welcoming place with really good food, which was very fresh and reasonably priced and a very nice waitress who was attentive and friendly. Among the four of us we had a Panini, cavatelli and broccoli, the house salad with grilled chicken and a steak sandwich with fries. All the portions were generous. I also had the soup of the day, which was cream of potato and was so good that I ordered a container to take home.

Just came back from dinner at Gencarelli's. In a word: EXCELLENT. The sole fancese(very generous) was the best i've had in a restaurant and the house salad quite delicious. Owner Debbie was as welcoming and friendly as a host could be and I felt like i was having dinner with family. This restaurant is a welcome addition to Montclair. Highly recommended!

went here last week. food was very good. debbie the owner was super nice and informative. the only problem was our waiter. he was a kid who obviously had never worked in a restaurant before. if this place invests a little bit in training their staff, they will be a great success. actually you don't need great service to do well in this town(see Indigo Smoke)

Dined here on Val's day with the husband--it was far better than I expected. I suppose that I was anticipating a good "red sauce Italian" place, but I was pleasantly surprised to find just the opposite. We had apps, salads, entrees, and desserts (burp) and everything was great. Service was friendly and professional. The place is small and I can see it getting uncomfortably crowded at max capacity, but it was lovely when we were here. Usually holidays are the WORST time to eat at a restaurant, so I can only hope to have an even better experience next time.

Went back to Gencarelli's saturday night and not surprisingly, it was PACKED! Thank god I made my reservation a week before!! It's sooo good to see a new restaurant doing well! I am starting to become a regular at Gencarelli's. The owners even remembered me!! Hope they get used to seeing me because I will definately be back for more fulfilling meals!

went there last night. Thank you for all the previous reccomendations. Calamari was exactly how I like it, and Debbie's sauces are as good, if not better, than from our own italian mothers. I had the chicken Rustica, which is a basic dish (i admit, its hard to screw up chicken) and it was better than expected. Portions were generous, service was pleasant. I look forward to going back!

My gf had one complaint. The salmon dish was too salty, and her sides had a strong salt taste as well. I took a bite, and I thought it tasted fine (using sea salt or kosher salt adds a nice flavor, and you cant compare that to "salty") Thank you again for a nice night out on the town, Debbie!

my girlfriend and I ate here on saturday night. we are a younger couple and drew stares from the rude over 50 crowd who are so bored with their husbands/wives that they have nothing better to do than stare at everyone that walks into the restaurant. a restaurant cant be blamed for who they let in. as for the restaurant it was our second time there and it has improved a great deal. the food was very flavorfull. we shared a portobello mushroom appetizer with goat cheese and roasted peppers very nice. we also had the fried calamari and the ginger sauce on the side should be bottled and sold it's amazing. for entrees very classic dishes chicken parmigana and veal saltimbucco(sp?). they pulled them off very well. the plates that the meals were served on were a bit large for the table but the food was very good. server was a nice kid who was avaliable without being pushy. very nice dining experience despite the nosy people staring. we will definetly be back.

the fact that people were staring at you - supposedly - must be very important to your comments of the restaurant. Glad to hear it was good, sad to hear your sad post.

Ate at Gencarelli's with my family during the week and had a solid meal. The atmoshere is very nice and we will be back. Looking forward to dining in the outside garden when the weather is better.

We had dinner here last night and thought the food was really good. The owners seemed to know everyone in the restaurant but us and our service suffered because of it, but the delicious food made up for the lack of attention. Word to the wise - the portions are enourmous so either skip the appetizer or order two and no entree. There is a steep sharing charge (since everything is big enough for two) and with just 6 people they included a 20% tip - since the service was so slow I don't think we would have given that much on our own. I would go back, but not on a Saturday, and would definitely bring another bottle of wine in case the service was slow again.

THE GARDEN IS OPEN! :-)
Had a great dinner tonight and it was wonderful to sit outside.

After a couple of months I finally got to Gencarelli's on Sunday with Mom and Dad. We were so surprised when they asked us if we wanted to sit outside. They must have been keeping the patio a secret. It's like a terrazza, just beautiful with flowers. We had the Pasta Zingara, Ms. G's Sunday Gravy with Meatballs and Sausage and the most amazing Steak Gorgonzola I have ever had. My parents are from Italy and very picky and they loved the gravy. If you love authentic Italian and want to feel at home you have to try this place. The owners always remember you and make you feel welcome.

Went there for dinner a few weeks ago (early June) and had a nice meal. Service was great, very friendly, both the manager/owner and server. The food was between good and really good, chicken rustica was fantasic. The outdoor patio leaves a little to be desired, it's basically a dressed up parking lot. Compare it to, say, Alan@594's and you're in two different worlds. Overall, really nice addition to the Montclair line-up.

My boyfriend and I have been to Gencarelli's a number of times and we love it! We went last night and I had the Chicken Rustica, and like someone said above me, it was fantastic! Such a good spin on a classic dish. My boyfriend gets the turkey meatballs almost every time because he's in love with them. We sat outside and it was lovely, the weather was perfect and the lights they have strung up with the flowers makes it a very cute atmosphere. We want to encourage everyone to go, but we don't want to lose our secret restaurant!

Last Friday was about the 10th time I have been to Gencarelli's since it opened, and to my surprise, they have added patio seating in the back. As usual, the food is great, and we all had to stuff in dessert too! The steak gorganzola is outstanding, even better than the usual steakhouses. I am so glad they added the extra patio seating, because I didn't remember to make a reservation for our group. We would have been disappointed if we had to go somewhere else because we drove all the way from Monmouth county to eat at our new favorite Italian restaurant. We need a Gencarelli's in south Jersey! I noticed someone above posted about the patio, well , I also thought it was really cute, decorated well, soft Italian music piped in, nice atmosphere all around and I'd rather eat out there than to eat facing Bloomfield Avenue like some other eateries....
Also, get the fried calamari...it's great!