Ruoccos Restaurant

Had my daughters first birthday party here after looking at multiple other restaurants. This restaurant had the nicest party room and the food was delicious. The day of the party, I was able to come early to decorate and set up. The owner and his family were very kind and helped set up the room and accommodated our requests. They continually checked in throughout the event to make sure we were happy and if we needed anything. The waitresses made sure we had enough food and the kids were all given kids meals which they loved. My guests raved about the chicken francese and baked clams. It was a great day and I felt very at peace knowing how helpful staff was and didn't have to worry about the party going smoothly. Definitely recommend Ruoccos!

We had reservations at Ruoccos for a large party. The hostess greeted and seated us quickly. Our waitress was pleasant and made recommendations from the menu. The food was excellent and overall the staff was very pleasant.

Ordered a special, a halibut dish, which was not only visually enticing but truly delectable as it was served over perfectly cooked risotto. Although the halibut was cooked with a decadent crust, it was also competing with a luscious risotto. Both were delicious in their own right. I will say that the risotto was probably the best I ever had, perfectly cooked with butter and perfectly cooked tomatoes and spinach. The dish was absolutely delicious. The other dish was “Chef’s choice”, Rigatoni pasta with shrimp, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and spinach in a sherry wine cream sauce. It was very good as well, with a minor complaint of a few shrimp that were a tad over cooked, however, it was aggressively devoured nonetheless. We liked the water delivered to our table with a bowl of ice, a nice touch. The dinner was preceded with warm and perfectly crisp bread with a soft center. The owner also introduced himself and poured a very tasty olive oil to enjoy with that aforementioned bread. The olive oil, we were told, was available for purchase but we passed (just didn’t need it at the moment). The restaurant is family run as both daughters of the owner were present, one was our server, a very reassuring thing to see. I wholly recommend this family owned restaurant (it shows in their attention to detail) for everyone to enjoy. The restaurant is nicely decorated and has a rear separate room for private gatherings as well as an outdoor dining space (not currently set up). The owner also stated that a liquor license is being pursued and should be forthcoming very soon, another plus once it comes to fruition. I will be back not only for the food, but for the fact we felt welcomed and appreciated. It was truly an overall enjoyable experience.

I was really looking forward to trying the food from this place. It’s one of those gray, rainy days that just calls for a warm meal, so I decided to place a delivery order through their website. I even left a 20% tip, hoping that would encourage them to follow my simple delivery instructions: just give me a call or text when they arrived so I could grab my food while it was still hot. Unfortunately, that seemed to be too much to ask. After waiting for a while with no word from them, I realized that my food had been left sitting outside, getting cold in the rain. The delivery person didn’t even ring the doorbell or knock! By the time I figured out what had happened, my meal was no longer the cozy comfort I had imagined, but a disappointing reminder of what could have been. It’s frustrating to invest in a meal and anticipate something special, only to be let down by a lack of communication. I really wanted to love this place, but my experience left me feeling pretty let down. I hope they can improve their delivery process because I know they have great food to offer, and it deserves to be enjoyed at its best.

Ending this year with a bang! We checked out Ruocco's Restaurant in Manalapan, NJ @ruoccosrestaurant and if you like Italian food, this place is a must try! For appetizers we got the Meatball Special, which is served with fresh Ricotta and Parmesan, Fried Calamari, and Spiedini Alla Romana. This was my first time trying Spiedini, and it was by far one of the best things I've ever tasted, I could have licked the plate. The Lobster Ravioli was so delicious, as was the Lobster Beurre Blanc and Jumbo Shrimp it was served with. The kids got the Penne Vodka, which was fantastic. I forgot to mention the bread which comes out crispy, warm, and fantastic. It was so good, and I believe it was noticed because we were quickly asked if we'd like another basket, excellent for dipping in all of these amazing sauces! We ended the night with a tartufo that was out of this world! Ruocco's is a family owned and operated business, and you can tell how much pride they put into their restaurant, this shines through with the level of quality and flavors of their food. Their food is a combination of old world comfort with a contemporary twist. The restaurant is beautiful, both inside and out, and you can tell that everyone there wants you to have a great dining experience. We can't wait to go back and experience the rest of the menu! I definitely recommend making reservations in advance. With the food being this delicious, they obviously book up quickly!