Bistro 18

The food is delicious here. The service was very good. Overall, it was a great experience. If you are in the area check it out! I would highly recommend.

The food was delicious. Great customer service. Robert our waiter was informative and was served in a timely manner. He was so friendly and made us feel at home. It was our first time here and definitely won’t be our last. The fact that this cute, homey place serves organic is a big deal, especially when I’m changing my eating habits. I would highly recommend.

I’m giving this place 2 stars simply because the food was pretty good however, the ambiance and service was terrible. My friends and I always take turns planning an outing and this time it was my turn and what a disappointment. First of all, the place was empty except for another table across from us. The restaurant is very quiet as there is no background music or any type of ambiance except for the waiter making corny jokes which none of us understood and actually found annoying. We had reservations for 8:30 but some of my friends got there about 20mins late however, as soon as we all sat down the waiter seemed like he was in a hurry to take our order, we didn’t even have appetizers because we felt so rushed. Honestly, I wouldn’t go back to this restaurant again. If you’re looking for a more contemporary, trendy restaurant with good ambiance this is def not the place.

Fantastic! Held a birthday dinner here and they put us in a private room for 11 people.
They have a great contemporary American menu with a variety of entrees: pasta, seafood, beef, chicken, etc. it’s hard to pick because all of the options are appealing. Entrees are on the more expensive side but well worth the quality and portion. If you’re looking for a more gourmet experience– this is it.
Highly recommend the duck with mashed sweet potatoes. Everyone loved their dishes that the table practically went silent as soon as the food was served. Caribbean salad with mango, strawberries, and candied walnuts was also very tasty.

This is our third time here. The first two times were wonderful. One was during the week and the other was Valentine’s Day 2016. We a special salad endive and Gorgonzola, excellent. Then we had a beet salad with very fresh greens and a wonderful dressing. The third time the caribbean salad was off. Awful dressing and just bad. For main courses we had all three times the salmon, the second time had a sesame crust and an incredible soy glaze. Wonderful. However the third time it was the same salmon, it was supposed to be anyway. NO GLAZE, overcooked and awful. I had their lamb chops. The first two times, the were cooked to perfection. The last time awful. They were raw and tasteless. I don’t know about going back.
Btw, they couldn’t keep the table from rocking back and forth. The didn’t seem to care about anything that last time.

Ate their for the first time last night. Nice place and good service. However, one entrée was wrong, but quickly corrected. Table ordered Grand Marnier Napoleon. Excellent presentation, but no Grand Marnier. Will give it one more shot.

We would give Bistro 18 4 ½ stars. Each time we eat here we leave satisfied and happy. Isn’t that what dining is all about? All aspects of dining are well covered-​warm welcome, attentive service and extremely good food that is well presented. We’ve been here a few times and find that the above referenced qualities are consistent. We would recommend for any occasion-​anniversary, birthday, holiday or just to go out and eat well.

Went here for dinner and the menu was good with nice variety. Had oysters Rockefeller that were goo not great. Duck was good my wife had tuna that was very good. I think the service leaves a lot to be desired as it was way too slow and the waiter was really not attentative. I did like to ambiance as we sat in the enclosed sidewalk which was very comfortable.

Great way to start 2016. Fantastic meal included risotto with mushrooms, grilled lamb chops, roasted pear salad and sesame encrusted salmon. Service was excellent. BYOB too! We will be back

A bit pricey but you’ll never have food like this. No matter if it’s appetizers dinner or dessert you’ll be highly satisfied. Weird setting but the staff makes u feel at home! Love love love!

Excellent all around dining experience, from the warm greeting by the maitre de to the overall service this was a wonderful evening. The food was superb beginning with the bread and hummus. Our entrees were fantastic, my wife loved the duck with a side of mashed sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts, and the stuffed shrimp dinner over spinach rivaled the finest seafood restaurants i have been to. The ambiance and service were superb and made for a wonderful evening. What a nice touch to offer us anisette with our coffee and dessert. We will be back.

This little spot is great ! The food was awesome and setting is beautiful. We got the risotto to start (whoa) and the lobster pasta for an entrée was incredible. The service was great and it’s byob– super reasonable for a delicious meal !

WOW… almost a five star, but we reserve that for place like GRAMERCY TAVERN or amazing values. Suffice to say that this was a very pleasant surprise. Food was really good, stuffed pumpkin appy was amazing! Lamb, tuna, steak, all perfectly prepared. Service was very very professional and nice. Nice ambience… and a BYO. What’s not to like. Highly recommended.

This Montclair BYO is a bit of an enigma to me. The location is fine… a stone’s throw from the hustle and bustle of Church St and Bloomfield Ave and there is a small parking lot across the street, which is definitely a plus given the challenging parking situation in Montclair.
The digs are nice… sort of unique in that the front space of the restaurant is a fully glass enclosed area that spans across the other boutiques and stores in the multipurpose building. The other dining rooms are quite small and are divided so that they actually appear as two distinct restaurants. The puzzling part was that in spite of some really tasty food, the restaurant was nearly empty on a Saturday night at 8pm. Granted, it is the summer but I just couldn’t understand why the ghost town experience. That did deter from the complete dining encounter since atmosphere was certainly lacking. But they made up for it in simply prepared well seasoned cuisine.
There were a nice variety of specials. appetizers and entrees alike. Between the four of us, we enjoyed the Mediterranean seafood salad, the tuna tartare, the Zuppa di clams and tricolor salad. We also had the capellini, crispy big eye tuna which was a definite standout and a special swordfish over quinoa that was also quite good.
I sure hope this place garners more attention at other times of the year because despite its somewhat small menu, the food is delicious, well priced and the servers attentive and aiming to please. In a crowded sea of dining options in Montclair, this restaurant is a lovely low key eclectic Contemporary dining experience.

I must admit that when it comes to dining I am very picky to say the least. It was my friends birthday party yesterday and she persisted that we eat at Cuban Petes. We were a party of 11 and as I thought there was a 3 hour wait. I went across the street to bistro 18 and although they just sat a table of 20 the manager Tim still accommodated my whole party.
We had our own private room in the main dining area and you would have thought we were the only people there the way we were serviced. Tim stood on top of everything while our waiter Sam was extremely attentive and knowledgeable. He was able to answer and satisfy 9 woman which I’m sure is no easy task in the restaurant business.
The food was unbelievable we shared a variety of appetizers and entrees. The one thing that really stood out was the lobster quesadillas and the braised short ribs. Not myself or any of my friends left without anything else to say than the whole experience was amazing and made her birthday one of the best ever. From the service to the ambiance to the food it is a wonderful experience and my recommendation for dining in Montclair in a sea of competition. :)

A recent date night brought us to Bistro 18, which I’d heard good things about for a while. We were warmly greeted by the waiter and ushered into the intimate dining room where our wine was quickly corked and the daily specials knowingly recited.
I ordered the potato crusted red snapper with spinach and wild mushrooms with a crab cake to start. First of all, the crab cake was generously portioned, well-​seasoned, and delicious. My date’s lobster bisque has equally good and contained so much lobster we joked it could have been a meal itself. The snapper was exquisite; sinfully rich, fresh and light.
Throughout the dinner service our waiter was attentive and gave us plenty of space to enjoy the evening. He succeeded in tempting us with a desert of chocolate tiramisu, which perfectly balanced the meal. If our budget allowed we’d be weekly customers for sure — and probably require a personal trainer. Reservations are recommended, especially for Fridays and weekends, and enjoy a wine of your choosing, BYOB.

We had our Valentine’s Day (actually ²⁄₁₃) dinner here and had a very pleasant time. I will agree with other Unilocalers that this is a good place for a special occasion since the entrees are close to $ 30. There is a different set up at Bistro 18. There are two small dining rooms next to each other, but also a hallway with seating. Its hard to describe.
My seared tuna dish was excellent. The middle was tender and raw (just like sushi) and the outside was crispy! The wasabi cream sauce was also really delicious. For dessert the salted caramel chocolate cake was a decadent treat.
The service was very attentive. I would go back for a special evening.

Excellent food. Tried the beef mushroom barley soup which was amazing! Had a spoonful (or two or three) of the manhattan clam chowder which tasted fresh, albeit a bit salty. Lamb burger was cooked well and juicy. The drizzle of balsamic reduction went perfect with the goat cheese and arugula. Truffle fries were light and crunchy, but maybe a bit heavy on the truffle oil, it was so strong! Good thing I love truffle :)
We sat in the «hallway» by the windows. It’s not your typical setup, as the tables are almost in front of other businesses, but it’s nice.
I will certainly be back!

My husband & I we walking by & saw a sign that said «organic meat, wild fish and house-​made pasta». I was immediately filled with excited & we had to have dinner here! The atmosphere very very unique & inviting.
My husband isn’t a fish man, so we started with the evenings special «cream of broccoli soup». It was amazing, creamy & tasted so fresh! I am now in love with broccoli!
For dinner my husband ordered the Braised Short Ribs w| mashed potatoes & spinach. I order the Potato Crusted Red Snapper w| spinach & mushrooms served in a mustard sauce. Everything was devine! You could tell the chef puts so much love into what he cooks.
For dessert we picked Warm Apple Strudel w| Vanilla Ice Cream.
Delicious! Our experience at Bistro 18 was perfect to say the least. I can not wait to go back and try a new new menu items. My husband & I rarely go out without our children and these was a treat to say the least.

I liked the idea of this place, local, sustainable etc etc.
Service was solid but the food was just average. I can see why we were able to so easily get a table on Saturday night.
Had a greek salad that was blah, followed by duck that was decent. The little lady had tuna that was also sorta blah.
You could do much worse, but you could much better in town.