Backstage Bistro

Beverly, United States

3.1

Closed now

7 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

QR code, vCard

Telephone:
+1 978-232-7200
Website:
www.nsmt.org
Address:
62 Dunham Rd, Beverly, MA, 01915
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
0.9 miMontserrat
0.9 miSohier Rd @ Tozer Rd
0.9 miOpp 55 Tozer Rd
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
Yes
Delivery
No
Take-out
No
Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Good for Kids
Yes
Good for Groups
Yes
Attire
Casual
Good For Dancing
No
Alcohol
Full Bar
Best Nights
Fri, Sat, Sun
Coat Check
No
Smoking
No
Outdoor Seating
No
Has TV
No
Waiter Service
Yes

Today

Today 5:00 pm – 9:30 pm
Closed now
Local time (Beverly) 03:51 Thursday, 19 June 2025

Business hours

Monday –
Tuesday 5:00 pm – 9:30 pm
Wednesday 4:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Thursday 5:00 pm – 9:30 pm
Friday 5:00 pm – 9:30 pm
Saturday 4:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Sunday –

Description

Specialties

Make a Night of It!

Have a relaxing meal amongst props from previous shows show, walk to the theater, drink & dessert during exit traffic.

Are you a foodie? Would you like to be a Mystery Shopper? Pass our foodie test and we’ll send you on assignment to our restaurants with a FREE $ 50 gift certificate. Email Mark northshorerestaurantgroup@​gmail.​com with the subject line «Yelp Mystery Shopper» to get the test.

History

Established in 2010.

Part of the Serenitee Restaurant Group owned by Mark McDonough and Jeff Cala. We pride ourselves in building unique restaurants that grow out of the community where they are.

We have two foodie, local sourcing restaurants:

15Walnut in Hamilton

Alchemy in Gloucester.

Two «Cheers» bars where everyone knows your name:

Cala’s in Manchester

Hale St Tavern, Sushi and Oyster Bar in Beverly Farms.

And two destination restaurants with live music:

Backstage Bistro at the North Shore Music Theater

Latitude 43 and Minglewood Tavern on the waterfront in Gloucester MA.

Serenitee comes from the Serenity Prayer. The informal «tee» shirt ending comes from our commitment to make places that are comfortable and fun.

Meet the Business Owner

Mark M.

Business Owner

Jeff Cala is Serenitee’s Managing Partner and Executive Chef. He oversees the daily operations of all 6 restaurants with a particular emphasis on designing menus, sourcing top quality ingredients, and inspiring staff to work at their highest level. Jeff is a Mozart in the kitchen. He has an instinct for what works, a palette that can deconstruct anything he has tasted and a drive to be the best. Jeff is a sponge for knowledge and has worked at some of the finest restaurants in California, New York, Florida and MA before co-​founding the Serenitee Restaurant Group.

Mark McDonough is a serial entrepreneur. He oversees marketing, finance, & admin for the Serenitee Restaurant Group. Mark’s investment in the restaurants is an extension of his commitment to weaving community. His biggest philanthropy has been Time​banks​.org. He has a masters degrees in business from MIT and Family Therapy from Antioch New England. Having a degree in family therapy is VERY useful in the restaurant world :)

Backstage Bistro also recommends

Alchemy Tapas & Bistro — CLOSED

171

reviews

Tapas/​snack

Mark M. says,

«4.5 stars: free range meats, local seafood and produce from local vendors. Sexy bistro atmosphere includes couches and named nooks like „The Cave“.»

Cala’s

52

reviews

Mark M. says,

«4 stars: „Homey“ food & „Cheers“ casual ambiance. If the bartender doesn’t know your name when you walk in, chances are he’ll know it on your way out.»

Latitude 43

338

reviews

Piatti a base di pesce

,

Cucina americana (tradizionale)

,

Sushi bar

Mark M. says,

«Contemporary seafood restaurant on the harbor featuring coastal cuisine and sushi. Feast for the eyes with beautiful and green architecture.»

15 Walnut

124

reviews

Mark M. says,

«4 stars: Local artisanal fare using farm fresh vegetables and organic meats. The bar and tables are all made of stone or repurposed barn board.»

Hale Street Tavern Oyster Bar

110

reviews

Sushi bar

Mark M. says,

«Fun local hot spot. The most casual and popular Serenitee restaurant. Daily specials include Burgermania, Kids Eat Free, Sushi, Prime Rib, etc.»

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7 reviews of Backstage Bistro

No registration required
Place rating: 2
Andover, MA
Meet with friends who were going to see a show. They said it was a bistro, so I was happy to join them. Well, I arrived 10 min late and they had already ate. They pointed me to the row of heated containers and said to just get what you want. Not what I expected, but I played along. A server? Asked me if there was anything I needed and at this point it was a drink. I pointed to my table and she said someone would be over. Soon as I finished my plate desert came and then was asked if I wanted a drink. See, my party was ready for desert. I wasn’t. They show was about to start and I find myself they only one in the restaurant. Lousy experience. Nothing to order and the scraps from the bins, I decided it wasn’t worth it and came home and made myself something to eat.
Place rating: 4
Salem, MA
I’ve now had three dinners at the Backstage Bistro, spanning three different shows, so I feel comfortable reviewing the cuisine with a ‘seasonal’ perspective.
The good: The meals I’ve had here have been truly awesome!
The ossobuco pork shank was soft, tender and flavorful — imagine bits of flavorful meat that fall from bone like a jenga tower — my favorite. The «little gem» salad is also very good, but there’s another which is even better (ate it, but forgot the name… blame the CCR show!)
Critical: Dining room gets crowded very suddenly at 6pm. I know that tables wait too long for drinks/​meals/​service in general from 6−7pm. (eating at the bar minimizes this, but the frustration is apparent).
Overall: The Backstage Bistro is producing meals worthy of a destination restaurant, not just a theater side show. If they could fix the seating rush problems, it would really shine!
Place rating: 4
Boxford, MA
Very good. Interesting challenge getting everyone seated and fed and happy before the curtain call at nsmt. It’s a limited menu but worthy of their other locations. The presentations were great. The best bite was the poblano pepper served with the pork. I’d order it by itself.
Place rating: 1
Manchester, MA
The one thing this place has going for it is that it is attached to North Shore Music Theatre which makes it convenient to go to when you go to see a show … but even with that, we might not be back.
The room is fun — I really like that it has props/​scenery from popular shows on display all around the room. It was pretty cool as we scanned the venue to see what we might recognize.
It goes downhill from here … while the decorations are great, the layout is unfortunate. It is a large room and the climate is hugely impacted by the entrance. Hopefully you don’t have to sit near the door although sadly the majority of the tables are impacted by the door. We sat in the middle of the room and spent the evening with our coats on.
The waitstaff was very friendly but the service is slow — Be sure to give yourself plenty of time if you plan to go to a show — our reservation was for 6:15pm and we barely made it down in time for the 8pm show.
The food was ok but totally overpriced! They are taking advantage of the fact that you are probably there because you plan to see a show and hopefully won’t mind paying $ 20+ for a filet. There is a kid’s menu but I will say that paying $ 12 for what looked like Campbell Chicken Noodle Soup was frustrating.
We were surprised because we are big fans of Jeff Cala’s other restaurants but this one does not make the grade.
Place rating: 3
Wakefield, MA
This restaurant was given a three rating due to the ambiance. This was our first time back since NSMT has reopened. We were annual subscribers but now a little tentative, so we pick and choose our shows.
The evening began with no issues. Decent pours of wine and a very respectable Martini. We were seated at 5:50p. I jokingly told the waitress that we had theater tickets and asked that the service stay in line with the time to get to our seats. We all laughed. That was the last time we laughed until we went in to see the show.
The figs were wrapped in bacon and could have been much better. The bacon was extremely overdone and not much feta cheese as described on the menu.
My short rib, not ribs, as described on the menu, was very good but sad to say portion size was extremely small. Same held true for my wife’s baked cod. Pricing is moderate but should go down due to the portion sizes.
Waiting for the bill, with five minutes to get into the theater, I felt my little joke at the beginning of the evening was more of a prediction of the time needed to dine at this restaurant.
Adequate food and very slow service, this restaurant is much better than its buffet predecessor, but has a way to go before we give it another try.
Place rating: 4
Gloucester, MA
The brand new restaurant at the newly opened North Shore Music Theater is a hit in my book. We ate here the first week it opened. It is another in the group owned managed by Jeff Calas /​Mark McDonough. The tired old building looks great with stage props. The wait staff is friendly and attentive. The Broadway musical music was so fun — kept breaking into song the whole meal. And the food — very nicely done. We shared dates wrapped in bacon with goat cheese in basil, balsamic sauce. So yummy. My meal was an extraordinary coq au vin — the sauce was to die for. My partner had bacon wrapped steak frites and the meat was a perfect medium rare. Fries were snack-​worthy. If you are going to he Music Theater for a show, do yourself a favor and hit this place up. And go back after the show for dessert. A+!
Place rating: 4
Gloucester, MA
Not only was I thrilled to see that the Beverly Music Theater had been reborn, but when I saw that the restauranteering juggernaut of Jeff Cala & Mark McDonough were re-​opening the restaurant there, knew I had to check this place out before there’d be a waiting list 3 hours deep!
Not surprisingly, it was a fabulous experience! The décor (made from old props from prior BMT productions) was fun, the quiet stream of showtunes was tasteful & recognizable, the waitstaff was impeccably attentive, & the food (beautifully made by chef Derek Clough) was fantastic!
For starters, we had the bacon wrapped dates with a feta & balsamic glaze (delish!); for the main course we had the Alsatian coq au vin (tender & scrumptious!) & the steak frites (bacon wrapped & perfectly medium rare!); & the dessert was a fabulous hazelnut crème brûlée. Along with a couple glasses of excellent red wine (a Chianti for her & a Syrah me) & some fresh, hot rolls, this was a wonderful dining experience & one which I will certainly repeat again!
And don’t just make this a place to eat when you go to the show… no, this is an epicurian delight which stands on its own!