Published July 18, 2021

While I could spend all of my time in Montclair, I wanted to explore a new town for a restaurant review. I found an awesome looking restaurant called the Tabor Road Tavern in Morris Plains, New Jersey.

Tabor Road Tavern | Exterior

I nearly missed the turn for the entrance. Tabor Road Tavern shares a long parking lot with two other buildings — Grato, an Italian restaurant, and an outdoor construction service.

We intentionally visited the restaurant on an early weeknight evening. I didn’t make a reservation so this was a test to see if we could be seated.

Tabor Road Tavern has a beautiful building: Window boxes of flowers, manicured shrubs, somewhat whimsical lettering on their sign, and detailed wood moulding.

Tabor Road Tavern | Interior Design

I was impressed with the grand effect of entering into Tabor Road Tavern’s restaurant. On the right, a narrow hallway led back to a private room with a long narrow table. Straight ahead, the two-story ceilings stretched across a dining room with booth seating, a bar, and back to a formal dining room.

At this time of the evening, the bar was the busiest. Pods of professionals huddled in front of the bar stools, chatting and having drinks. We walked the length of the room, back to the formal dining room.

I sat on a leather bench seat that ran the length of the wall. It faced out across the dining room. To my right (pictured above), I could see the bar, the wall that separated the booth seating, and the giant brass lights hanging over the room. The windows across the front of the entrance lit up the space.

The two-person tables to the right and left of us were still distanced 6 feet apart, which was pleasant and provided privacy. Circle tables for four and eight staggered across the rest of the dining room. I could see the kitchen through the farthest back wall, which was a black grid of windows. To my left, casual porch-style seating hid behind doors. So far, the only other table in the dining room was a family of 5 at a circular table closest to the kitchen.

Tabor Road Tavern | Menu

I looked up the Tabor Road Tavern menu online before I arrived, so I had an idea of the offerings. I noticed the in-restaurant menu said, “Summer Dinner Menu.” I’m curious to see if the menu will change for the fall and what type of dishes they’ll offer.

I was surprised to see the large drink menu. The front of this menu was food, and the back was a long list of drinks, including an additional one-page menu which featured specialty cocktails.

I looped my dad into visiting this restaurant with me, because I wasn’t sure if they would seat me as a single diner. We ordered a martini and a Shirley Temple to start.

Appetizers

Tuna Tartare | $14.95

My dad loves tuna, so he picked this appetizer from the menu. At first, I wondered if it would be like The Stage House Tavern’s tuna tartar.

It came with 5 sesame-crusted chips. A dollop of tuna sat on one end of the chip and a slice of fresh ginger sat on the other. A drizzle of wasabi cream sauce patterned the middle.

Overall, this appetizer was light and fresh. The tuna was chilled and of good quality. It had all of the textures you could want: Crispy chips, tender fish, bright bite of ginger, creamy sauce (without being spicy, even for me). I would order this appetizer again.

Sausage and Broccolini Croquettes | $11.95

I was excited to try these croquettes. They were smaller than a golf ball (hello fine dining), so my dad and I had one each and split the third.

The sausage was juicy and the filling was creamy. We couldn’t figure out if the croquette also had some type of cheese or if it had a cream sauce, but it was tasty and unique. I loved the outer crust. I don’t think the Romesco sauce underneath added much flavor, but it was a nice addition of color to the plate.

Entrees

I debated which entree I would order. I didn’t want a burger or steak. Ribs and salmon were two of my favorite proteins. The pork chop stuck out to me for its plum wine BBQ sauce as did the Halibut for its ratatouille.

East Coast Halibut | $32.95

In the end, I went with the Halibut, which is unlike my usual dining preferences. I don’t order fish that often because I don’t feel like it has that impressive of flavor or uniqueness. However, the description for this dish caught my eye. The menu read: Halibut with ratatouille confit, cherry tomato, basil oil.

I don’t remember if I ever tried ratatouille before, and considering the movie Ratatouille is one of my favorites, I figured this dish was worth trying just for that element. Tomato and basil are two of the most common ingredients I cook with (and keep as my staple ingredients), so combining all of these elements made me think that this would be an entree that I would enjoy.

The halibut was about an inch thick with a crispy outside. I added a little salt and pepper. This may look like a small portion, but it was actually filling.

I don’t have any notes about the basil oil around the plate. It didn’t stand out to me as a flavorful element. think I dipped my fish in it anyway, but I don’t have any exciting thoughts about that.

Now, I know ratatouille is a peasant dish — stewed vegetables in tomato. Since this was my first time trying it, I wasn’t sure what to expect from the flavor. I personally didn’t feel like I tasted garlic or onion as a flavor. If I had eggplant in this, I didn’t notice it. I only remember the zucchini and tomato flavor.

Overall, my entree was good. There was nothing to complain about — the portion of fish was large and cooked well. There was a decent serving of vegetables. But there was nothing about the dish or flavor combination that blew me away.

Harvest Plum Glazed 14 oz. Pork Chop | $26.95

The pork chop, however, was amazing. I wished I had ordered it instead of my fish.

A charred, bone-in pork chop, whipped chive mashed potatoes, braised cabbage, and a plum BBQ sauce. I looooved the flavor in this dish, especially the plum sauce. It wasn’t too sweet and everything worked well together.

I was actually shocked that I enjoyed the braised cabbage. I think it might’ve had golden raisins in it. I recommend you order this entree. It was also a fair portion.

You could order side dishes for an additional cost, such as mac and cheese, french fries, broccoli, etc. I don’t think the pork chop needs extra sides, though I could’ve ordered something extra to try alongside my fish.

Dessert

By now our side of the restaurant was filled. The group of professionals from the bar took the large circle table behind us. A family of 5 in Hawaiian print shirts took the table diagonal to us. A couple to the left of us ordered burgers and constantly took phone calls. An elderly pair of ladies on the right shared drinks and talked through the menu. In the far back 4-top table, a group of older guys shared drinks and dinner.

I was happy to see that Tabor Road Tavern, though it appears fancy, welcomes most diners. I worried I dressed too casual for the evening, but once the Hawaiian print family sat down, my concerns went away.

Cappuccino | $3.95

As always, I ordered a cappuccino. It came in a short mug and was decently warm. Next time, I may try the selection of loose leaf teas for dessert.

At this point in our evening, it was thundering outside. The restaurant lights dimmed and the candle on our table cast an orangey light across our plates.

Our waiter was busy with the larger table behind us, so a ginger-haired server stopped by to assist.

Tabor Road Doughnuts | $9.95

These donuts were the best item I had all evening. Six old-fashioned donuts, rolled in sugar, overtop a berry reduction. They were piping hot, I couldn’t even pick them up, I had to use a fork and cut them into pieces. They were not greasy nor dense. I enjoyed them and would absolutely order them again.

Strawberry Shortcake | $10.95

This was the most unique dessert on the menu, for me. This was a strawberry shortcake with basil ice cream, mascarpone filling and icing, with fresh strawberries and strawberry crunchies.

As you can see, this is a giant slice of cake. I loved the light cake and rich mascarpone icing. I had fun trying the basil ice cream. It was savory and almost bitter, which paired well with the sweet cake. I don’t think I could eat it as a standalone item, but it worked well as an accompaniment to this cake.

The crunchies on the outside of the cake reminded me of fruity pebbles cereal. They were the sweetest part of the dessert, but provided a different texture. I would also order the shortcake again.

My Recommendations

Overall, my first visit to Tabor Road Tavern is an 8/10 for the following:

• Decor and Design

  • I enjoyed the interior design at Tabor Road Tavern. I like that there are a variety of seating options depending on the size of your group — from private rooms to casual bar seating. I felt the space was clean, modern, and had elements of industrial design (similar to Cucina 347), while still keeping the warmth of a tavern.

• Service

  • Our waiter was encouraging with our menu selections and attentive to our needs. It was a little harder to get his attention as the evening got busier, but it was nice that other servers stepped up to make sure we had everything that we needed.

• Food

  • Tabor Road Tavern leans a bit towards fine dining with their portions. However, I enjoyed the variety of options and was impressed with their large drink menu. Our dishes were fresh, plated well, and offered a variety of flavor combinations. Dessert was my favorite part of the meal and I would return as a spot to meet for drinks and appetizers in the future.

Have you been to the Tabor Road Tavern?

Do you have a favorite New Jersey restaurant that you’d recommend I try? Tell me about it below in the comments!