O Imperial Bar & Restaurant

Horrible ! We went there for dinner after a long day! We drank some sangria that was, ehhh ok. Chicken in garlic, paella valenciana and mussels in hot sauce… Let’s start with the chicken in garlic: I grew up in a Spanish restaurant and ate this for lunch almost daily because it’s my favorite… Imperial’s was ok but not the classic chicken n garlic flavor and had soggy chips… Onto the mussles… Well, frozen half shelled mussels are easy but wen you toss it in a can of tomato purée and call it sauce… Bitter does not equal spicy sauce… The we have your paella… my boyfriend could of been really sick if I didn’t stop him from eating the raw shrimp on top! (There was also a raw clam, and the one I tried tasted like the ocean itself). When we addressed waiter, he told us «you see the shrimp is very difficult to make, first they fry on the side and then put on top» I wanted to scream are you kidding me! The shrimp in a paella are placed last and cooked from the steam of the food… And here is a hint, try putting in the oven for a bit before serving… As a daughter of a retired Spanish chef, I was embarrassed for them and worse that my boyfriend had to eat rice for 25 buck… I didn’t think the prices were adequate for the place or for the food… Ridiculous!

Key takeaway: one of the best sangrias you will ever find. We went with a pitcher of the red, and it was delicious. Eating the wine soaked apples at the bottom was only icing on the cake. Here are the highlights:
+ Garlic shrimp is a great app choice, super garlicky.
+ Paella is very tasty, flavorful with great quantity of seafood.
+ Huge soft bread served warm.
+ Nice place, old fashioned décor.
+ Good quick service, but you have to ask for water, and they will not re-​fill it up unless you ask.
All in all, a quality place for a low-​key meal that will fill you up and leave you satisfied. Highly recommended.

Good food and service .I had the fried calamari for appetizer and paella for the main. Good place for a date.

friendly, casual Portuguese bar-​restaurant with Affordable prices, a pretty good food selection on the menu, and many Portuguese wines, beers, and liqueurs to choose from. The place has a very Portuguese feel. friendly staff. Try some great Portuguese brandy! an easy place to hang out for a long time at the bar, they have TVs with sports, there are some outdoor tables on the sidewalk, a casual neighborhood bar feeling. The food is very tasty!!!

A perfect hidden gem in Kearny. The sangria is refreshing. The staff is helpful. The food is delicious!

For a dive bar I was pretty surprised how good the food was. I ordered the chicken picadinho. A huge portion and it was pretty tasty. Ambiance is a little gloomy but I guess that’s what you would expect from a dive. Service was equally good. Overall a good location for a casual bite to eat if you’re in the neighborhood.

We have been customers of O Imperial for over 20 years. Food was always fantastic. However, the last few times that we have eaten there have not met their previous high standards. Tonight’s dinner was dismal. The beef used in tonight’s Picadinho was stew meat; tough and without flavor. The potatoes were nothing more than steak-​house fries. Very disappointed in this one-​time landmark restaurant.

O Imperials has the best mussels I have ever had and I was never a big fan of them until I went here the sauce is incredible not to hot but just enough kick in it, there food is great and the staff is very nice, and a nice cold beer is good also, it is my favorite place for mussels,

We had pork chops, chicken in wine sauce, stuffed mushrooms, shrimp… All was amazing! We also had plenty of the sangria… We will def be back here soon! Staff was amazing and welcoming!

Food was good but some of the food was not hot. Sangria was delicious. Service was good. A good local spot when you don’t feel like trekking down to Ironbound.

Nothing really great. Service is ok. Food is mediocre as well. Sangria is light. I had the chicken and rice with sausage, not too appetizing and I usually love this dish. My friend had the salmon with shrimp, she did like hers. Won’t be returning.

I agree parking in Kearny is awful. But good luck for me is that I can walk there. Food is fantastic, wait staff is a little slow but their beer is the freshest I’ve ever had at a local bar. Shrimp in garlic sauce is better than anything on ferry street. Worth the ride around the block to park

Sangria pitchers! So awesome! I remember the food being good. Can’t remember what I’ve ordered though. Every time I go here I don’t remember much… Probably because of the sangria!

Amazing garlic chicken and spanish rice. I could eat here everyday of the week. Service is great and drinks are affordable. Great sangria!

Hey I’ve been coming to this spot for a couple of years now and it never disappoints. They have really good Portuguese food, and the sangaria is really good! Ask for a slippery nipple… get your mind out of the gutter it’s a shot! Haha but on a serious note the waiters are always pleasant and there is never a wait for a table which is a plus! Have fun and remember nom nom chug chug lmao

I’ve eaten here at O Imperial a couple of times and I always get the same thing — bitoque a portuguesa (steak topped with ham and egg with a portuguese sauce) with spanish style french fries and a pitcher of red sangria. Its a great place for a low key night but not the best. If we are judging based on food alone then I’d give it 4 stars but because the inside is outdated and looks very much like a dungeon then I’ve dropped it to 3 stars. I heard from a few colleagues that the owner is looking to sell, if this is true maybe the next owner might give it a face lift.

Well… I had an interesting night.
Me and the wife had a date night… meaning no kids.
I suggested Tina Louise, one of our favorites in the area. The wife wants to try something different. I suggest Portugese but did not want to deal with traffic going to the Newark’s Ironbound. I come up with Kearny’s O Imperial.
As we drive there we witness a woman hit by a car, thankfully not seriously, so we pull over to help and are there for about 45 minutes. Sooooo, we finally resume our travel to Kearny.
First off, parking sucks in Kearny.
We finally get in to the bar/​restaurant and are seated and we notice the tablecloth is a bit dirty… not a biggie, but it was just something we noticed.
The food took a long time to come out.
Now I understand this is a bar also, but there was a table of 4 senior citizens near us and apparently one guy was drunk. He constantly kept saying out loud, «OHHHH BOYYY». Why the people he was with did not take him out of there was beyond me.
So we finally get our food, and the wife is half way through her picandho (chicken and shrimp dish that was pretty tasty) and we notice a long gray hair in the food. Kind of gross. Its definitely not ours. My wife tells the waiter and he did apologize and I believe he told his boss. They were nice about it, and when received the check, her meal was taken off, which I thought was quite professional. I would have been happy if they took half her meal off.
I had the grilled tuna. It was ok. It came with three broccoli spears and boiled potatoes. My tuna looked a little lonely on the plate, almost like it need a better side dish.
The server we had annoyed me a bit. When I asked him for a refill and later on for the check, he just had a blank stare on his face. I had no idea if he heard me or not because he never acknowledged me… not even a nod. He obviously did hear me, because he brought my drink and later he came with the check.
All in all, the food was just ok… other than the hair, service was meh, and the atmosphere was loud and annoying.
I think I would have enjoyed myself better at Tina and Louise.

After going to this restaurant for a few years I see that the owner is very careful about the quality of the food and the chef is a real professional, consistantly excellent! Try the o’imperial filet minon, it has shrimp on top of the steak with garlic sauce (like a brown gravy) WOW FANTANSTIC!!! and always cooked perfect, the chicken franchese, salmon and shrimp, flounder in lemon sauce and the ribeye steaks are Great. Love the king crab legs but not always available, but always fresh when they are! The wait staff is very hard working and do a very effective job. Don’t expect fancy, do expect Great food!

Their sangria is awesome, their food is delicious and everything is reasonably priced. Its a cozy atmosphere and its a great spot to go out for a drink or bite with friends or significant other. It never gets too loud or too busy, which is also a plus.
Its hit or miss with service. They’ve always been extremely polite to me but I’ve seen the bartenders/​servers not be so friendly to others.

O Imperial can best be described as a dive bar with a 5 star restaurant in it. It serves traditional Portuguese style food along with some other bar specialties. It is an eclectic menu that will leave you hooked once you try it. They also have a nice selection of beer on tap and good wine.
Food: 5 Stars
Everything that I have ever had here is made to order and top-​notch. I have been to this restaurant a dozen times. Here are some highlights.
* The portions at O Imperial are enormous. You will definitely have leftover for a couple of days.
* They have an amazing set of appetizers that enhance any meal. They serve Portuguese style sausage which are fried crispy and serve a la carte. Very addictive and is really salty which brings out the flavor of the meat. They also serve «garlic» soup which is creamy and flavorful. The broth is rich and creamy with a ton of garlic.
* They have without questions the best skirt steak I have ever had anywhere. I have attempted to make it the way they do and failed miserably. It is mouth wateringly tender and quite literally weighs about 2 pounds.
Most of their entrees come with a plate of Spanish style potatoes which have the consistency of a potato chip but thicker. It’s a nice side dish that goes well with the meat. The vegetables that accompany the meal while bland are freshly prepared. A little more seasoning would help a lot.
* They serve the best Chilean Sea Bass you will ever have. They grill it to perfection and put a garlic compound butter on it that melts and turn it into a sauce. Amazing!
* They also serve certain Spanish delicacies that the locals say is authentic.
Staff: 4 stars: The staff is very efficient and thorough. They will accommodate requests and get your food to you quickly. They aren’t very chatty but they do their job well.
Atmosphere: 4 stars: The atmosphere on its own looks rather dumpy but they have nice booths and will leave you alone. The place is always packed on Friday and Saturday and gets very very loud. It’s best to go on a weeknight where it is reasonably quiet. The place has a blue-​collar feel to it and is v very unpretentious. People don’t go for the atmosphere, they go for the food and all the locals know it.
Conclusion: This is an outstanding place that is a true gem. The food is A+ and you will leave satisfied. Highly recommend it.