Chakra Restaurant

My wife and I love Chakra and the food is always great. Last Saturday, however, we had service problems. We waited so long after our meal that we had to skip desert and head home to relieve the babysitter. Not what we expected after a $200 dinner for two.\r more

This is such a trendy place in you want to impress a date. The Asian fusion cuisine is innovative and... more

went early on Friday night to dinner with my husband. We are normally disappointed with many of the restaurants in Jersey. We started with the grilled octopus on a bed of white bean puree - it was amazing. If you have ever eaten octopus you know cooking time is everything. A minute too long and it is rubbery. This was just right. My husband had the 40 day steak from Colorado- it tasted like real meat and was cooked exactly to order. I had the crab cake entree and was delighted by all delicate flavors on the dish, there was only crabmeat and no filler. Our waitress was lovely and very helpful. I will definitely return. more

This place was needed in Bergen County. It is an interesting lounge-type setting but with all seating... more

the drinks were good, but pricey. $12 for a rather small martini. As soon as we sat we told our server that it was really cold because we were right under the vent. It didn't seem to matter. The sushi my friend ordered was ok, but the rice was kind of hard, and there was hardly any avocado in it. I'm not cheap but for $14 dollars a sushi roll should at least be fresh. My fish was good and I enjoyed it, however my friend ordered lamb medium and it came out rare. we asked several more times about the temperature and everyone seemed to have the same response that they couldn't control it. The bathroom was freezing also. I might go back but probably only for drinks and I'd wear a sweater for sure. Pros: nice decor and ambiance Cons: it was overpriced and the restaurant was freezing. more

Chakra is one of the nicest restaurants in NJ; the lounge in beatiful andcomfortable, with the best drink prices in town. The food is superb and the decor is breathtaking. You will not be disapointed Pros: Best Lounge In Town more

Went for the first time a couple weeks ago for their $20 3 course early dinner which was great (appetizer, entree and dessert - all beautifully prepared and presented. Was impressed, so we returned to give the regular menu a try - to be brief, it was spectacular start to finish -- we spent most of the time saying ""here, you have to try this...no here, try this."" Great food in a very unusual setting - a fun departure from our usual NJ haunts. And for the wine lovers out there, they had an extensive and varied list. We're adding Chakra to our regular rotation. I highly recommend it. Pros: Great Atmosphere, Impeccable Menu, Varied Wine List more

The atmosphere here is very cool.The food was just okay. more

If I had read some of these old posts before I went, I probably would have passed it up. We're glad we didn't. As soon as we stepped inside, we knew we were in for a treat. My wife said Wow and if you know my wife, she's not easily impressed. Between the lighting and the decor, plus the size of the dining room, it was definately unique. I hate to feel like other tables are right on top of me. I didn't there. Service was good. Our waiter seemed more informed than we usually expect. We couldn't find a complaint with the appetizers or the entrees. I'd recommend the lamb, it was perfectly tender. We skipped dessert, but it all looked worth a try, almost. Pros: Parking, Ambiance more

In one word Chakra is terrible. Some of the worst food I have ever eaten anywhere. I am up right now, on a Sunday morning, after brushing my teeth several times and drinking lots of water, and still cannot get the horrendous taste out of my mouth. The place is very lovely to look at but it's also very loud and the service is terrible. After we found a hair in our steak tartare our waitress didn't even apologize. A gentleman came out of the kitchen, apologized and told us he would remove the charge for the steak tartare from our bill; BIG DEAL. Little did we realize the worst was yet to come. I can't imagine that anyone thinks this food is even remotely acceptable on any level, I'm sooooooo serious. My husband and I joked about what Chef Ramsey would say if he were there. Do yourself a favor and skip this ""dining experience."" Can I give it NO STARS? Pros: romantic look Cons: terrible food, terrible service more

After reading a review in Bergen Magazine (and passing it on Rt. 4 everyday) we had to give it a try.\r \r We were welcomed by valet parking and entered the restaurant. It was Friday night at 7:30pm and there was no wait. Perhaps b/c the restaurant was not even 1/2 filled to capacity (try going to Houstons on a Friday night around that time). We were seated promptly and we had no immediate complaints with our waiter - BUT - the food was terrible. \r \r We started with the Boston Salad [$7] which was fine. My husband ordered the steak and I had the grouper. The steak was also passable, but not at the expense (as the previous review stated - we would have been better off at River Palm) and the grouper was terrible. The fish itself was fresh and meaty, but the side items was just tasteless. The leeks were watery and I'm not even sure what the fish was sitting on top of - polenta maybe? (If this were Top Chef, whoever cooked the meal would have surely packed up their knives.) I mentioned to the waiter that my fish lacking and he offered us coffee and/or dessert on him. But after picking at my meal like a bird, I just wanted to get a slice of pizza on the way home. \r \r After spending $117 (for 2 drinks, 1 salad, 1 side of asparagus [average] and two entrees) I was annoyed with my subpar meal. In retrospect, I should have made a mention to the management staff but you live and learn. And I've learned that we will never dine here again. Pros: Great ambience, Valet Parking, Centrally located Cons: Food, Expensive more

went with a group of 8 saturday night. the service was HORRIBLE. the waiter didn't write anything down and half the food/drinks came out ok and the other half we had to ask again about. The food was very bland and barely had any taste at all. TGI Fridays had way better food. Even the dessert was bad b/c it seems like they just dumped a bag of sugar into each dessert. The bill came to $500 for 8 people with apps, entrees and drinks. My $500 would have been much better spent across the street at the River Palm Steakhouse. The atmosphere is pretty nice, but the horrible service and horrible food will keep me away forever! YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!!\r \r Food 3/10\r Service 1/10\r Decor 8/10 Pros: Decor, empy on a saturday night..... Cons: SERVICE, FOOD, VERY EXPENSIVE!!! more

My wife and I went there this past Saturday night. We had an 8:30 reservation and had to wait about a half hour for our table which we didn't mind since we could hang out at the bar and have a drink. It was packed and probably a bit too small for the space though. No complaints as far as the service goes and our appetizers were quite good but we were not impressed at all with our entrees. I ordered the lobster special and my wife had homemade ravioli. Her dish didn't have much flavor to it and mine was not any better. The lobster was 1/2 a small tail and a small claw over bland white asparagus and polenta with some mushrooms. I was quite disappointed in it, especially since it was $42. The chocolate cake for dessert was decent but did not make up for the entrees. My wife and I agreed that we would give it another shot (just 1) especially since the ambiance was so nice (a bit of downtown NY in Paramus, NJ). I wouldn't deter you from trying it and I hope you have a better experience than we did, but be warned. Pros: Ambiance, Service Cons: Taste more

i have not yet eaten here, but my husband and i like to come here for drinks sometimes when we want to go out, but don't feel like driving all the way to the city and looking for parking. it's got a nice ambience for New Jersey and you can almost fool yourself thinking that you're in Tribeca if you don't look too hard at the people around you. yummy drinks and delicious desserts. Pros: nice drinks Cons: it's still NJ more

Unbelievable. The atmosphere of this restaurant is beyond anything I've ever experienced. Who knew a place like this is just off Rt. 4... it's a diamond in the rough (of chain restaurants! haha). \r As for their wine, I was highly impressed. Chakra knows what they're doing when chosing the perfect wine pairing. I asked for a suggestion with my sushi dish (so fresh), and it was the perfect choice. The manager was the one to suggest it. I was later invited to a wine dinner they have every month. I'm absolutely attending.\r \r Service was on top and friendly. Noise was tolerable (got a little noisy at times but our private couch-surrounding table made up for that). Food, delicious. Romantic. Bravo! Pros: Ambience, Food, Wine List Cons: Noise more

It is unfortunate when you vist an establishment and you are greeted with non accommodating service. When the establishment is full or it is prime time you can anticipate not always receiving the serivce you would desire, but when it is empty and you receive poor serivce , that says a mouth full about the establishment. Pros: ambience Cons: poor service, poorly trained staff more