Lola's Tapas

[thereuare]

As my last review of a new restaurant (3 Forty Grill) received no replies, i was hesitant to add this one, but here it goes anyway....

We arrived at about 8:30 on a Friday nite and was informed the wait would be "...at least an hour." I'm not fond of waiting that long but since we had walked 15 minutes to get there i agreed to wait. The bar area was already very crowded so we left and went to another bar in the area where we could sit down and have a drink for an hour or so. Arrived back after an hour and was told it would be another 10 minutes or so... this turned out to be another 30 minutes and we were finally seated at 10:00.

The atmosphere is GREAT (if not a bit ketchy, but it's done well). They try to give an outdoor patio environment and one side wall of the restaurant is designed as the side of a house, complete with cellar doors and rooftop overhand. The bar is absolutely beutiful, with lots of natural wood, wine racks, and cut wine barrels. Incidentally, the tabels in the restaurant are wine barrels with a table top placed on top. After dinner we wondered downstairs (my wife said i should see it after she returned from a bathroom trip) and they have done a nice job with some cellar space down there too! It's currently not in use, but houses some vinatage wine bottle (behind a locked iron gate) and i think future plans are to expand the seating area. This section would also make a great private party space.

As the name implies it's a Tapas place so we ordered 4 dishes for the two of us: jumbo shrimp in garlic, filet mignon in white pepper sauce, marinated mushrooms, and chicken in mustard sauce. Most tapas are about $9, while the shrimp and steak tapas going for slightly more. There is also a 'volcano filet mignon' ($16) which looks somewhat like a chinese restaurant pu-pu platter. There is a flame in the middle of a 'foil' mound with slices of steak (4 or 6 pieces?) surrounding the metal base. A small pitcher of sangria was $13 and served 4 glasses.

Overall the food was VERY good. The jumbo shrimp dish were 2 shrimp served in their shell but they looked more like baby lobsters.... probably close to 10 inches from tail to head. I was disappointed to see the chicken dish was served on the bone (i like boneless chicken) and only consisted of 3 'chunks', but the chicken was extremely tender and fell off the bone easily. The steak was a little disappointing as it was a bit tough (next time i'd try the volcano steak as they seemed to serve a lot of it, but if that wasn't good i'd stay away from the steak selections) and the mushrooms were delicious.

Service was very friendly, although a bit rushed which i didn't mind since we were very hungry by this point, but the table behind us complained to the waitress to 'slow it down' as they're "not in a race to leave". Bottom line is that the food was very good and this restaurant is a welcomed addition to Hoboken. Prices are a little expensive for serving sizes and there are better values for this type of food in the area (Tapas de Espana in North Bergen as well as most places in Newark) but we'll return here when i don't feel like driving. Not worth the 90 minute wait (or the inaccurate guess), but worth maybe 30 minutes or so when i want to eat locally. We were told the wait during the week is usually non-existant or 10-15 minutes at the most. The one big downside (IMO, maybe some see as a perk) is there is smoking allowed everywhere, and given the European feel/scene i think they attract a greater than average smoking crowd.

The bar was still crowded when we left with patrons still waiting for tables. The music had been turned up a bit and a discussion with an employee downstairs disclosed that the place gets 'wild late at nite' and the party continues until late into the morning.

For those of you familiar with Hoboken, you wouldn't believe the business the uptown restaurants/bars are doing since the new condos went up in the area!!

Lola's Tapa

14th Streeet (between Garden and Park)

Hoboken, NJ

[Rosie]

Thanks for the report. When did they open and do you have a phone #.

Sorry I did not reply or thank you for the 3 Forty Grill post but be assured I and most everyone here reads all the posts. Especially Tommy.

[tommy]

Sorry I did not reply or thank you for the 3 Forty Grill post but be assured I and most everyone here reads all the posts. Especially Tommy. 

just because we don't reply, doesn't mean we don't care.

actually, i hadn't seen that thread, and i'm glad you brought it back up. you, thereuare, are now one of the most important posters as far as restaurants in hoboken go. of course, that title belonged to me for many many years , and although i still get down there for meals, i don't know about all of these new places.

god speed.

Edited November 23, 2003 by tommy (log)

[thereuare]

They opened 5 weeks ago.

Lola's Tapas

153 14th St,

Hoboken, New Jersey ( NJ ) 07030

(201) 798-2371

Hope i didn't come across as cranky with my lack of comments on 3 Forty Grill, it's just that i expected some sort of reply given i know this board's tastes regarding seafood and raw bars and the lack of this type of restaurant in this area.

I'm not upset by it, i was just surprised by it. Also, running a message board myself, i know how it's not easy to add a reply to every post... so i don't need nor expect any hand-holding in the future. This is still the best restaurant board on the web and i continue to look forward to adding my reviews and opinions!

Edited November 23, 2003 by thereuare (log)

[tommy]

I'm not upset by it, i was just surprised by it. Also, running a message board myself, i know how it's not easy to add a reply to every post... so i don't need nor expect any hand-holding in the future.

for what it's worth, i was out of the country. otherwise, yes, i read every thread.

i'll looking forward to 3 Forty, as i love oysters. i don't think there are many restaurants in hoboken that offer oysters, save the Brass Rail.

[thereuare]

I thought of you in particular because i know you enjoy oysters, but as i said in my review, i'd be in no hurry to get ther as they do have quite a few kinks to work out (but maybe some oysters at the bar would be a good idea?)