Don Pepe II

My husband and I have been visiting this restaurant for 10 years now. We love it there. The food is always excellent and never disappoints. Manny the bartender treats us like family each time we come in. They have seasonal appetizers that will blow your mind. And the sangria is the best in the area. Add to that the great family style dining experience and it’s just perfect. We love it!

It started out 1 star then became 5, so I gave it a 4 because it was overall an excellent meal. We were a party of 5 with a 6:30 reservation to celebrate my in-​laws 50^th anniversary and fil’s 7^th bday. My mil is unstable on her feet and needs a cane and assistance. We got there at 6:30 and they told us 25 minute wait. It was very crowded and no place to sit. My poor mil had to go back to their car to sit and wait. We were not happy and were about to go somewhere else but not a lot of options at this point. They seated us @6:50 and the evening turned around. Our waiter was helpful, funny and patient with us. All of our food was delicious, including garlic shrimp, calamari, seafood stew, salmon, lobster, sangria and desserts.

One of my top 5 restaurants. Order red sangria, garlic shrimp, sausages for appetizers and paella Valencia. Staff is professional.

Stopped in for early dinner and ate at the bar. Bartender was great (Manny).
Started with the octopus, it was awesome. Cooked perfectly. Also had the red snapper fillet which was good, it came with mixed vegetables which were great. Really good experience.

Made reservation for 7:30. 8:30 and still not seated. Watched many people seated before us. Will never come here again.

I have been going to this prestigious restaurant for many special occasions growing up especially with my family! This place never ceases to amaze me with their outstanding food and beyond satisfactory service where more often than not they will even refill your drink alcohol or not out of their own friendliness and initiative without you requesting a refill. Food is fairly priced and beyond delicious and I even once had perhaps the priciest meal worth every penny 2 lobsters stuffed with crab scallops and shrimp! The bar is small but is a nice setup and they even serve Portuguese beer though I wish they could serve beer from Spain as well. But nevertheless expect nice service from the bartender as well! They even have behind a glass case that requires a key a liquor so exquisite you had better savor just one shot with their asking price which I leave for anyone to discover themselves for it is named after one of the kings of Spain! They deserve 10 stars my highest recommendation!

Haven’t been here in years, and it’s nice too see not much has changed. The food is still just as good as it was years ago — only better. Had Manny as our server, and for an incredibly busy Saturday night, he never missed a beat.
Our appetizers came out and there was plenty of time between that and dinner, which is nice. So many times places bring out your appies, then two minutes later out comes dinner. We had a great time getting together with old friends here, and will be returning soon.
Highly recommend the clams casino. 6 people, appies, plenty of drinks, dinner and dessert. And everything was perfect.

Don Pepe is our go-​to spot. The sangria is my favorite (obviously) but the food doesn’t disappoint either. The seafood dishes are delicious, try the garlic shrimp app! The paella is really good too, flavorful and fresh seafood, not too moist and not dry. Portions are shareable as well! The waitstaff is friendly and talkative as well!
Sorbets are my favorite part, partly because I’m a carb and dessert person…
The coconut flavor was amazing and it’s served in a coconut, makes it feel like you’re in Cancun!

Why I didn’t know the place earlier. The Chilean sea bass is the best. period. It’s so perfectly done. I can feel the buttery fish melting in my mouth. Paella is another reason we want to come back. Big portion, be prepared!

Made a reservation called to confirm the reservation got there and had no reservation. After waiting an hour and manager telling us just 5 minutes 9 times finally sat down. Not even an apology. Never again food was crap service crap valet crap.

It is okay to say the least. It is of my opinion you can tell a good place by the bread they bring to the table. The bread was not good at all. The bread tasted and had the consistency like wonder bread from the 70s. It was soft white and warm… Not a fan.
We started with the classic Martini & Wine. The waiter brought my Martini with 3 of the smallest olives on a plastic sword. I was expecting more from this place maybe 3 BIG olives with a twist of blue-​cheese.
My wife ordered the T-​Bone. It was a big thick cut of steak. I was expecting a Bone-​in Strip on one side and a portion of Filet Mignon on the other. The Filet Mignon was missing. I asked the waiter where the Filet was and he just brushed me aside like I was 16 and taking my girlfriend out to eat for the first time.
I ordered the Veal with lemon butter. I asked for capers also. The veal was thick and sometimes a bit chewy. The capers were not washed of the brine before they were added to the dish. Needless to say the salt level was through the roof.

This review is solely based on our experience, or lack there of.
My brother celebrated his 40^th birthday last week. We decided to try Don Pepe for dinner. My sister in law, called earlier in the week to make a reservation. She was told that «you don’t need a reservation». The man she spoke to did not elaborate on any details. He simple said that a reservation was not needed. So, Saturday night, we took the 25 minute ride out to Pine Brook, excited, and super hungry! We walked in and were greeted by the hostess. She asked for our name, and time of our reservation. My sister in law explained that she called and said no reservation was needed. The hostess, scoffed, made a «oh boy» kind of face, and said we would have to wait a little bit. She then informed us that reservations were recommended for parties of 6 or more, and that weekends were a first come first serve. Totally understandable, we were a party of 5, and it was 730 on a Saturday night. As she was explaining that to us, a gentleman approached, the hostess stand, she explained the situation, in Spanish, in which the gentleman made the same «oh boy» face, and they continued to have a conversation, in front of my family and I, in Spanish. A few things are wrong with that. Yes, I understand that we are in a Spanish restaurant, BUT, I find it very rude and unprofessional that they sat there and had a discussion, clearly about us, in front of us! Strike one! As we were standing there, waiting for the two hostess, to finish their bashing session, in spanish, another group walked in. An older gentleman. He approached the stand, and the hostess asked for his name and reservation time, as well. He said that they were 5 and they had no reservation. The hostess made the same face she made at us, and informed him that he would have to wait. The man, asked to speak to, I believe he said Jon. Not sure who Jon is, but within 5 minutes (if that) this man and his PARTY OF 5 WITHOUT A RESERVATION was seated. So let me get this straight, his party walked in after us, same amount of people in his party, and no reservation, YET he is seated before us. So, we went up to the hostess, yet again, nicely asked her how much longer, she said she wasn’t sure. So we asked her how come that other group, who walked in after us, had the same amount in their party, AND did not have a reservation, was seated before us. She said, «Oh they had six people», they did not, they only had 5, we heard them say that when they walked in. She then lies and says «no they are waiting for their 6^th person», no, lie number two. You asked us if our whole party was here, or else we couldn’t be seated, so, you wouldn’t have sat them if their whole party wasn’t there. ALSO WE HEARD HIM SAY PARTY OF 5 AND NO RESERVATION. So, hostess lied to us, twice! Strike 2!!! All of a sudden, a man came up to the stand, must have been the manager, possibly Jon, who knows, comes up and asks the hostess what was going on, she explained, in Spanish again. All of a sudden there were tables ready, he said «Yeah yeah we can sit you now». Please don’t do me any favors, you told us reservations weren’t needed, you lied to our face, you sat a family who walked in after us, simply because the «knew the right person» and then after we made a scene a table magically appears?
Do yourselves a favor, take a class on management and professionalism.

Went for the paella, ended up also trying the chilean sea bas. Both were incredible. Portions are huge; we easily took half the food home. One meal will easily serve 2 people.

Excellent Basque/​Spanish restaurant.
1) I will recommend coming here for the lunch specials Monday-​Friday.
2) Get the Pollo Al Ajillo, it is one of my favorite European dishes.
3) The warm bread they serve is amazing.

Don Pepe II is a great place off of 46, I have been coming here with family for a long time, not to regularly but enough to remember the times in between.
I started off with the raw oysters and they were all very fresh, I also tried the stuffed avocado which was delicious. For dinner I had the steak which was cooked perfectly and a large portion, large enough that what I didn’t finish I took home for dinner the next day.
The staff here was very attentive we had ordered a pitcher of sangria and when we were getting low they came by to ask if we would like a refill or any other drinks.
The atmosphere of this place is very nice, defiantly a great spot for dinner.

food is excellent! I’ve had the prime rib, red snapper, salmon, lobster tail and a few other dishes here. Everything is excellent. Garlic shrimp is an excellent appetizer as wel. Chocolate lava cake and chocolate chip pie are excellent dessert choices here as well. The staff is punctual and precise, but not very friendly on any occasion. Good ambiance inside, full bar that has a great selection. Red Sangria is excellent. Give it a try for sure!

A snowy Jersey day caused my family to cancel dinner plans and get takeout from Don Pepe. After getting takeout from here for years, I can honestly say that the food has gone down hill.
I’ll start with something new to our order: the championes a la espaola or «mushrooms Spanish style» for $ 11.50. You get five tiny mushrooms stuffed with seafood. If they want to make this dish better, I would suggest either bigger mushrooms or throwing some melted cheese on here.
Next appetizer: gambas al ajillo, neustra especialidad for $ 12.95. According to the menu, the shrimp with garlic is their specialty. While this used to be a good dish, it was forgettable. First, what restaurant forgets to devein their shrimp? That’s inexcusable. This dish is also supposed to contain garlic and lots of it. They should rename it to shrimp in oil with a splash of garlic. This dish was really lacking in flavor.
For the main dish, we split an order of chicken. For takeout, the chicken is enough to feed an entire family of five if you have appetizers. However, the pollo al ajillo/​garlic chicken on the bone for $ 19.95 could have served ten this time. We barely touched it. The chicken was DRY. Luckily, it has a great sauce for dipping your bread into. The sauce helped this place earn another star from me.
The rice was just eeeh too. Now the order of chips did help Don Pepe redeem itself. I found the super greasy soggy potato slices to be enjoyable, especially when I sprinkled a little salt on them. I’m not sure if they were as good as I thought or if I was just desperate to really like something other than bread dipped in sauce.
There is one thing that this restaurant always does right; they serve great mints by the door. If they ever take away their mints, they will go way down in my book.

Good Food, Big Portions, Friendly Staff, Nice Experience!
I’ve been coming to this suburban version of the Newark classic since I was a kid. They have been able to maintain their quality of food and service for all of these years.
I remember when they first opened in Pine Brook. My parents were really excited, as were many of our friends in the area, having all been big fans of the original in Newark. In those days, there was an hour wait WITH a reservation. It is much quieter now, and the restaurant has not changed much in the last 20 years, which I consider a good thing. They have been able to keep up their quality of food and service. It is all classic… aka…old fashioned. If you are looking for somehtng more modern and interesting, this isn’t the place. However, if you want good, classic Spanish and Portuguese food, Don Pepe II is a great option.

Only been here once to get paella take out for lunch … but I HIGHLY recommend this!
For $ 18 you can get the Paella a la Valenciana with shellfish, sausage, and chicken. I’m not sure if they changed their portions but MAN, it came in the largest container and I’d say it’s enough to feed 2 hungry hippos and 1 dog. It’s cooked very well and did I mention the portions were very generous? Not sure how you can really mess up paella, but it’s one of the best I’ve had in NJ.

I live within walking distance but don’t get here as much as I used to. Always have the sangria and some kind of seafood. The crowd at the bar at lunchtime always makes it entertaining and interesting