The Squire at Branches 123 Monmouth Road, West Long Branch, NJ 07764

"It’s difficult to know where to begin. I had heard many good things and was excited to try this restaurant. We arrived promptly for our reservation and there table wasn’t ready, so we were told to please have a seat at the bar. Since there’s no other seating, this is what we did. We don’t drink, so when the bartender approached, I explained that we were waiting for our table. He walked away without offering water or anything. A short time later, he approached us and asked if they were going to text us when our table was ready. I said yes. He said that he had people waiting to eat and drink at the bar. He made it clear that he wanted us to get up since he had paying customers waiting to eat and drink. He told us he was going to check with the front desk. We were appalled and I also went to the front to share the bartender’s rude behavior. The manager, Faye, was properly embarrassed and seated us immediately and told us she would comp our appetizers and desserts, which was appreciated. Unfortunately, it didn’t get much better. After our appetizers, we waited almost an hour for our food. Then, it was served to the wrong table. As my food sat in front of another customer, there was confusion. I realized what happened and told the runner. He was going to give me the food, but after it was sitting under a stranger’s nose for several minutes, I wasn’t comfortable eating it. Our server arrived and ushered the food away. However, I asked if they will be just keeping my partner’s steak warm and they said no, he would get a new one. Our food was out again in 8 minutes. I wasn’t confident that they cooked me a new meal and my partner’s food was now clearly not just off the grill, one side was cold and another missing. Eventually, it was explained to me that I received the next person’s food but by then my food was cold. Our server, Marissa, and all the staff other than the bartender were very sweet. I did have dessert and that was delicious. Sadly, the experience was poor and ruined our evening. I would like to give the restaurant another try but I’m not sure that I can convince my partner to do the same."

"Delicious food and phenomenal service!! We came for a birthday dinner but the event space for weddings also looked beautiful. The staff were professional, warm and thoughtful. The food was excellent - highly recommend the meatball appetizer, calamari and chicken wings. I needed to feed my baby during our dinner visit and the staff was so incredibly accommodating, allowing me to use the bridal suite to feed my daughter. The absolute best experience I’ve had to date being out with my baby and needing to feed her. Will definitely be going back for a multitude of reasons: food, atmosphere and amazing staff!"

"Love the Happy Hour. Good drinks, Excellent bar staff. Lively, festive atmosphere (all decked out for the Holidays). The Squire Sliders, Calamari and Hummus plate were all delicious - especially the Whipped Feta (amazing) . Kudos to the chef and management. Will definitely be back- this could be habit-forming!."

"The Squire at Branches is a new neighborhood restaurant that is in the same building as Branches catering hall. It has a big dining room, the furnishings are a bit sparse making the acoustics loud. They have a bar and plenty of locals gathering around, which is nice to see. The food was good. The special corn and crab dip appetizer was delicious. The pork chop was cooked really nicely. I would definitely go back."

"This restaurant is beautiful! For appetizers, we had fried calamari ( my ultimate favorite!!!) , clams oreganata ( yummmm), shrimp cocktail ( fresh!!!). Husband loved the homemade mozzarella sticks! Codfish Alla Nonna was delish. Chicken parm is big portion and also delicious. For Dessert, husband’s favorite is the chocolate lava cake. Mine’s vanilla bean crème brûlée. Definitely coming back!"