Diners' Choice: Contemporary American restaurants in New Jersey

OpenTable

Updated October 05, 2026

Looking for restaurants with the best overall Contemporary American cuisine in New Jersey? You’re in the right place. Each month OpenTable analyzes more than 400,000 new diner reviews. We sort the results by category to help you discover new favorites. It's a great partnership: you reserve, eat, and review. We listen...and deliver the results for all to benefit. Enjoy!

ONE 53

4.9

4.9 (2711)

$31 to $50

Contemporary American

Princeton

About the restaurant

ONE53 is a ninety-nine seat cozy neighborhood restaurant & bar serving New American / Euro Bistro cuisine in a relaxed setting. We combine local hospitality with traditional & contemporary dishes.

Our menu features seasonally changing specials using only the best and freshest seasonal ingredients.

ONE53 features wines from the U.S. and Europe along with a full bar that offers a variety of traditional and specialty hand-crafted cocktails. We're located in Rocky Hill, just minutes from Princeton, NJ.

We've received glowing reviews from The New York Times, The Star Ledger, The Times of Trenton, and NJ Monthly. ONE53 was named 2019's Favorite Restaurant and Favorite Bar by Princeton's premier newspaper Town Topics.

ONE53 was recently named one of the Ten Best Restaurants in Central Jersey by OpenTable

Top review

HadasGold

Dined on Oct 15, 2026

Their menu has the right size and variety of food. Anything we order is done excellently.

Stella Restaurant

4.9

4.9 (1128)

$31 to $50

Contemporary American

Ventnor City

About the restaurant

Stella is a BYOB offering chef driven quality ingredients in a relaxed casual atmosphere. Owned by father-son team, Nicholas and Vincent LoBianco, Stella Restaurant has earned the reputation of personable service and excellent food over 20 years of being in business. Named Top 100 Restaurants in the United States in 2023, Stella features unique menus in a classy supper club environment.

Top review

Raymond

Dined 4 days ago

Generally Stella is reliable and outstanding. Fresh ingredients, flavorful preparations and nicely presented. Especially enjoy the salmon, veal and eggplant and mussels. Generally have been pleased on all visits. Small dining area can become loud.

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Popular dish

Halibut & Crab

The Station at Mountain Lakes

4.9

4.9 (1156)

$31 to $50

Contemporary American

Mountain Lakes

About the restaurant

The Station at Mountain Lakes is a scratch restaurant featuring fresh seafood, steaks, homemade soups, salads, pasta and a variety of unique entrees created by Executive Chef/owner Bradley Cooper. Owner operated for 27 years, The Station is located in a beautifully restored field stone train station in the heart of Mountain Lakes.

Top review

KeithGold

Dined on Oct 3, 2026

We came here with our extended family to celebrate my mom’s birthday, and had such a great experience. The food was amazing, and the staff went above and beyond to make us feel welcome. They were especially accommodating and so kind and patient with our kids, which we really appreciated. Everyone had a great time, and we can’t wait to come back!

The Circle

4.9

4.9 (908)

$50 and over

Contemporary American

Sparta

About the restaurant

Contemporary American Restaurant located in Fredon, New Jersey

Top review

MarcoGold

Dined on Oct 17, 2026

A hidden gem! Great ambiance and very well curated dishes, accompanied by exceptional service!

F1RST

4.8

4.8 (583)

$31 to $50

Contemporary American

Hawthorne

About the restaurant

Executive Chef/Owner Adam Weiss, known for his creative mix of unique flavors and textures artfully presents F1RST, an Eclectic American Fine Dining BYOB Restaurant on the Passaic-Bergen county border. Focusing on seasonal American Cuisine with a twist, Chef Adam Weiss is bringing his distinctive cooking style to Northern New Jersey.
Diners will delight in the two uniquely decorated dining rooms that are upscale and trendy with avant garde artwork, subdued lighting, soothing background music, and an intimate fireplace with professional, friendly service welcoming all customers like members of the family.
F1RST has received 3.5 stars in October 2024 in NJ Monthly as “First Class Dining” as well as awarded Top 50 Best Restaurants 2026 August restaurant edition.
Our mission is to create a memorable dining experience for all who join us. We look forward to serving you!

Top review

SusanGold

Dined 3 days ago

Fantastic!!! Food was beyond delicious!!! Can't wait to come back again!!!

Metuchen Inn

4.8

4.8 (1935)

$31 to $50

Contemporary American

Metuchen

About the restaurant

The historic Metuchen Inn has elegant new decor, same fantastic food and service with a creative new menu. Come see some old friends and make some new. Enjoy our Happy Hour with your hosts Constantine and Victor

Top review

James

Dined 3 days ago

Chicken was excellent. Service was great. Will be coming again

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4.9

4.9 (220)

$50 and over

Contemporary American

Hampton

About the restaurant

Wine Bar & Kitchen offering a curated selection of wines and spirits to enjoy on premise or To Go!

Award Winning Wine Spectator Wine List!

Cree Wine Company offers an impeccable selection of curated wines from around the world, and pairs it all with a beautifully crafted food menu. All of this is presented in a comfortable wine bar & kitchen with a beautiful classroom and event space, designed to bring real wine experiences to life.

Our Wine Bar & Kitchen offers hundreds of wines and spirits by the taste and by the glass. From 4pm until close on weekdays, starting at 12pm on Saturdays and Sundays we have a beautifully crafted menu of entrees and shareable plates to enjoy with your wines. We have over 700 different wines on the wine list, plus over 100 spirits and wines by the glass or flight!

Top review

VanessaGold

Dined on Oct 10, 2026

Sammy was amazing and made our night so incredibly special!!!!!

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Experience

Autumn Wine Walk Around

Poached Pear Bistro

4.8

4.8 (4401)

$31 to $50

Contemporary American

Point Pleasant Beach

About the restaurant

THE POACHED PEAR BISTRO

Located at 816 Arnold Ave in the beautiful shore community of Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey

The Poached Pear Bistro is a stylish, yet family friendly, BYO contemporary American restaurant featuring excellent food and reasonable prices in a warm and friendly atmosphere.

Chef-owner Scott Giordano, formerly executive chef at Whispers in Spring Lake, NJ, and sous chef at the Saddle River Inn in Saddle River, NJ, and his highly professional kitchen and wait staff are committed to providing patrons with a truly pleasing and memorable dining experience.

Top review

ValerieGold

Dined 4 days ago

We had a great night as always. Best wait staff in the area, food is excellent and the ambiance has a great vibe. The one thing I love to see at Poached Pear is changing up the specials that are off menu. The Cobia which is amazing should just be a dish on the menu by now.

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Popular dish

POACHED PEAR SALAD

Popular dish

Apple Cider Brined Pork Chop

Popular dish

Petite Filet Mignon

Tisha's

4.8

4.8 (8994)

$31 to $50

Contemporary American

Cape May

About the restaurant

Let us tantalize your tastebuds and awaken your inner foodie.
Come join us for such delights as Halibut topped with jumbo lump crabmeat or grilled filet Mignon topped with grilled lobster tail finished with béarnaise.
Whatever your choice may be, we promise to make your experience a memorable one.

Top review

Cathy

Dined on Oct 19, 2026

What a joy. Sandy was our server. She was excellent. The pumpkin Gnocchi was great. The main dishes, Salmon and , Puttenesca, were perfect. The dessert was wonderful. Flourless chocolate cake.

The Gables

4.8

4.8 (2708)

$50 and over

Contemporary American

Long Beach Island

About the restaurant

The Gables offers exclusively a 3-course pre-fixe menu starting at $148 per person plus tax & tip. Menu changes weekly. Please note, supplemental charges apply to select menu items.

We offer a lovely selection of red and white wines by the bottle from Bellview Winery.

Wear designer socks when dining at The Gables, our Beach Haven, NJ restaurant. They may well be knocked off by the imaginative seasonal fare at our 2007-08 Zagat rated 26
"Exceptional to Perfection"

This historic Victorian Jersey Shore inn is open nightly for dinner during the summer season, and Thursday through Sunday from Fall to Spring. We also host memorable private parties and weddings in this most romantic of settings.

Looking to host a wedding or private event? Sent us an email to info@gableslbi.com

Top review

Marjorie

Dined 4 days ago

Lovely dining experience! The waitstaff, specifically Carley and Kathy were outstanding!

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