I decided to visit Calandra's after seeing an Instagram video showcasing how festive the place was for Christmas. I was really excited to check it out! The location itself is nice and spacious, with plenty of parking, which is always a plus. However, I have to say the decorations were not as I thought they would be. Based on the social media hype, I expected a lot more effort and detail to match the festive vibe I saw online. It felt like they could have done better to bring that magical holiday atmosphere to life. As for the drinks, they were unfortunately disappointing. I tried the hot chocolate and the Paloma, it wasn't good at all. The Paloma was extremely strong and just not enjoyable. I actually left it behind. I appreciate a strong drink but it was too overpowering. On a positive note, the food was great! I had the fried calamari and eggplant, and both were delicious. I'd definitely come back for the food alone, but I'll be skipping the drinks next time. Overall, it's worth a visit for the food, but don't set your expectations too high for the drinks or holiday decor.

Everything was great! I met my friend here for a Christmas dinner. It was beautifully decorated. They have a lot of decor in the bar area but we sat in the main dining room. It was "pasta flight night" so we had to try it. They give you like 5 different pasta options and 3 lasagna options to choose from. We had the rigatoni with sausage pasta, the vodka lasagna and the vegetable lasagna. They were all great. Especially the rigatoni. We also got a chicken Milanese dish (they call it something else) which was huge. It was good but thought the pasta was better. Our waitress was very nice but she did seem like she wanted us to go after we were there for almost 3 hours. We did pay earlier but stayed to chat since the restaurant wasn't busy anymore. I'd love to come back again.

Looking for a good place for lunch, definitely try this place. There's plenty of seating indoors and out. I love the decor and the outdoor tables have unique designs which fit in with the asthetics. The staff are super nice and attentive. The lunch menu is perfect. It offers an appetizer, entree and dessert for a great price. Even in this economy it's so worth it. They don't skimp on the portions. I will be coming back for more. Enjoy!!

This place is a hidden gem! The desserts are fresh (and pretty!) and their hot dishes bring me right back to my Nonna's kitchen. The eggplant rollatini is my personal favorite. That sauce is spot on! Highly recommend you make a visit, with a hungry stomach, of course .

Completely awestruck by their ambience & vibe! We went there on a Tuesday night for the pasta flight and to our surprise, the restaurant was full and buzzing by 7pm. The host, the workers and the floor manager were all so friendly and caring. The wine flight is definitely a good option if you really love your wines and can't decide what to choose. We ordered a red and white flight. And for the pasta, we ordered the bucatini, penne and the linguini- oh my the taste was out of the world!! Truly a great experience and will definitely come back soon!

My friends and I came for the cake tasting experience. I believe it was two beverages and then all of their cakes to sample for $50 per person which was not bad. Overall we had a great time. The cake trays I think have 25 different flavors and at first I thought the 3 of us would easily be able to finish it all but we were struggling to get through! I had the espresso martinis and they were wonderful! my friend tried their wine and it was also very good. We were in a private room and I think we were allowed 2 hours total, Which was plenty of time. Everyone was really nice and I saw there were many other things there, like a nice restaurant, and a wine room, so we're definitely interested in coming back!

I visited here on a Thursday evening. We had a reservation and got seated on time. The restaurant wasn't busy at that time. We were a group of 11. Our waitress greeted us shortly after we sat down. I unfortunately do not remember her name but she was great and extremely patient with us. We all tried the limoncello spritzer which was good (& strong). I ordered the chicken francese which comes with mashed potatoes and vegetables. They also gave the option to add pasta instead of the two sides. The food had good flavor and it was a good portion. I enjoyed my meal. The restaurant itself is really nice. Even the bathroom was nice. I would love to return especially to try their lasagna/pasta flights on Tuesdays.

Honestly some of the best Italian food in NJ. I came here for a date night dinner and drinks. It was great. I'll let the images do the talking. We sat at the bar on a random day of the week and the bar service was great. I like they are always adding new speciality cocktails and their specials menu changes every so often.