Barge Inn

The Cod puttanesca was incredibly delicious. The strip steak was tender a juicy. I like broccoli rabe which is the best I have ever had.

Excellent food excellent service. My wife and I truly enjoyed. I had the chicken parm. A+. My wife had calamari over angel hair. The eggplant rollatini as an appetizer was so good we could have ordered another and just had that for dinner. Felt very welcome there. Will definitely be back.

Yah this place is great for heaping servings of Italian food, which we all need sometimes. Friendly service, relaxed atmosphere.

We just took my mom here for her 65^th birthday. My family is Jersey, old school Italians and the place delivered. Their red sauce is really good — perfect mix of sweet and savory — and hit the spot in the mussels marinara as well as a side linguini.
My family ordered a bunch of appetizers — mainly calamari and seafood — and all were pretty tasty. They had an eggplant rollatini special which was excellent. The staff says «galamad», «pershoot» and «moozalell» so you know they’ve been at it for a bit.
I had the Chicken Marsala which was good but not my absolute favorite — the sauce had a little more of a gravy consistency and I like mine with a bit more of a glaze. The mushrooms were fresh which was a nice touch (many times they seem canned).
We had a nice time and I would go again. It was the perfect location to meet up with my family as my husband and I live in the city and they in NJ — it was a 10 min walk from the Grove St path.

you walk in and take a dingy and fantastic trip back to 1970 NYC/​NJ. staff is old school friendly service, knowledgeable regarding the menu and casual. fresh pasta is a real plus. the spaghetti and meatballs is a bargain and delicious. soup to nuts, drinks, meals, side, dessert and coffee for board specials runs about $ 100.00 for two. you can do much less expensive and have a very satisfying experience. it’s a wonderful find to take friends for fun and good food. Love this place

Fantastic food in a locally owned place. Nothing fancy about the décor but the food and price is fantastic.

Authentic delicous Italian food with a warm cozy atmosphere; and you can’t beat the prices. The staff are friendly and aim to please. Definitely looking forward to going back!

My friend Emma G. told me that this place will cause a revolution and uproar amongst Unilocalers once more of them know that it and Jersey City as a whole exists. I work downtown so its not incredibly inconvenient jumping over on that mythical Path train. She only had to whisper $ 10 all you can eat pasta and I was sold.
You enter this little hole in the wall ramshackle dive looking inn of sorts. Once inside you see everything in life that is adorable and accompanied by 50-​year-​old folks and couples. Warm candle light, fireplaces, antiquated fake wood paneling you find in your parents’ 1970’s styled basement, wooden chandeliers, giant old clocks, maybe some elk antlers and a christmas wreath. Fresh parmesan and red pepper flakes on the table are greatly appreciated. The waitress comes by and my old roommate looks up and says «I don’t even need to see the menu» with great glee. I look around confused and say «I want the unlimited pasta thing». Which causes both my roommate to spit up laughing and the waitress to correct me that its not «unlimited» but «all you can eat». Isn’t that the same thing though?! Right?! Like yeah, I’m probably not going to eat four helpings but if its all you can eat and I can get more and more theoretically they probably aren’t going to run out any point soon of noodles to boil. I digress.
She went with penne and I went with linguini. I think you get a choice of marinara sauce or garlic and butter or something and whatever pasta noodle: penne, spaghetti, linguini, fettuccine. You can add on meatballs for an additional $ 3. A glass of wine is wait for it — COMPLIMENTARY with all of this. When normally its about $ 7. Pasta isn’t fresh but its still pretty good, the sauce is pretty classic. They even give you a fresh loaf of bread that has a hint of buttery garlic parmesan to it. My friend asked for another loaf of bread I think partially out of curiosity if we’d get one. Amazing service. Amazing deal for what it is and so old school. Only complaint is that the bathrooms aren’t the best but you can’t win them all. This place is a hidden gem and its full of old people. WHAT IS NOT TO LOVE?!

Solid local place. Great pasta deal on Thursday. Glass of wine and unlimited pasta for under $ 10. Was a little annoyed last time i went as waitress refilled my wine without asking. It ended up on the bill which was kind of disappointing. Nonetheless, linguini with white clam. sauce is awesome and bread is delicious.

Finally got to come in for the Thursday night unlimited pasta! Yay!
Here’s how it works: you get to pick 1 glass of wine, either Pinot or Merlot. Then you pick the type of pasta you want: linguine, penne, rigatoni, and something else probably spaghetti. NOTE– there is only 1 type of sauce, the Sunday sauce (they also have a regular marinara option if you’re a vegetarian). I was a little sad they didn’t have more sauce options, but for $ 8.95 you can’t really be too demanding.
The wine is good. The bread is crusty and warm and good. The pasta is good. It’s not gonna be the most amazing pasta you ever taste, but it’s yummy.
Here’s the embarrassing part: I can usually put away a ton of food… and I only got through 1 plate! My bf only got through 1.5 plates (they’ll bring you a mini plate for the 2^nd helping if you ask, so you don’t feel bad about wasting).
All in all, it was a good meal for a good price and I would come back. The outside of the place looks a little rickety, but the inside is really nicely decorated and charming. Go!

The few times I’ve been here, they’ve seemed a bit unprepared, It’s a shame but I guess it’s cause they’ve gotten used to not having a lunch crowd. If you have time to wait a little and you’re craving Italian, it’s worth it.
I’m writing this review only for lunch hours because that’s the only time I’ve been here, although I hear they have a nice unlimited thursday pasta /​wine night that is pretty popular.
Anyway, real authentic place that’s been around since the 1960’s. The food is all home-​made and they offer a great deal for lunch with soup/​salad and an entrée all for $ 10.
Check it out.
BTW, the reviews about the place smelling a little old are true. The place is old and needs a little updating so they lose a star.

I want my review to have a lasting impact:
THURSDAY ALL YOU CAN EAT PASTA OF YOUR CHOICE WITH A GLASS OF WINE (RED OR WHITE) FOR $ 7.95
I could just stop there and finish my review but this place deserves more. First off I am definitely coming back for not just the unlimited pasta but for the other items they have on the menu. I also was very hungry that day and got meatballs on the side and my girlfriend got sausage on the side. Both were very delicious and tender. It’s up there on my list with the meatballs and sausages I’ve tried.
What really made the pasta really delicious was the sauce. They do have a vegetarian option but I got the meat sauce which had great depth of flavor of tomato, herbs, and seasonings. I barely needed any salt and pepper.
I personally had 3 plates of pasta and each time was a different type of pasta noodle. Not saying they skimp on the food because it was the total opposite of that. I just wanted to see how far my body would be able to take.
Oh and they also give fresh toasted bread with butter prior to the meal to let you know your going to eat carbs anyway might as well start off the meal with carbs. I’m Tarantinoing my review but after the pasta we (I don’t know how I had room) ordered mini cannoli’s which came in 3 pieces. The filling was perfect and it was drizzled with chocolate syrup.
The Barge Inn has character that you rarely see anymore especially with all the other restaurants popping up in DTJC. I hope it stays the same and does not go out of business. According to our waitress the’ve been in It’s been in business in the same location for over 20 years.

I learned to make sauce (gravy) from my best friend’s Nona and I’ve been making it almost weekly for over 30 yrs which is why I rarely go out for italian.
Few places deliver on flavor and authenticity.
These guys do.
Go on all you can eat night, family style.
Get the order of meatballs.
Wear stretchy pants.
Vibe the décor, its part of the charm.

Unsuspecting from the outside, even unsuspecting on the inside… but once you are greeted by the friendly owner and take a look at the menu that all changes!
Everything is made there, and made right– the way my old Italian grandmother would make it (If I had one!)
On Thursdays they have all you can eat pasta with a glass of wine for about $ 9… can’t beat that! My husband and I like to supplement the pasta by splitting a side of meatballs. The meatballs are amazing! Soft, juicy, just the right amount of spices! If you are nice they might give you a free limocello… it is made there and has a good strong kick of alcohol but not too much to knock you out of your seat!
The décor is a bit «retro»… I don’t think they have changed much since they opened! But I kinda like it, I feel like I am on set of the Sopranos. The owners know the regulars by name and I love that too!

We decided to grab dinner here tonight due to the promise of all-​you-​can-​eat pasta (with glass of wine). After reading the delicious reviews, especially the ROTD from fellow Unilocaler Bloss, we could do anything but resist.
We both went with the special:
I had linguine with marinara.
She had angel hair with marinara.
We had meatballs.
We had bread.
We had red wine.
This place is delicious and simple.
This place is oldschool jersey italiano.
The place is primo when it comes to service.
A perfect spot for dinner tonight… considering the passing of the great James Gandolfini.
Respect.

Gross.
I can’t really comment on the TASTE of the food because the «basement-​y» smell (mildew, musty) of the place overtook all of my senses.
Dark, dingy room that is a throwback (but not in a good way) from days gone by. Staff can be categorized similarly.

All you can eat pasta on Thursdays and a glass of wine for under $ 10? Yes please. This place is old school. Walk in and shake hands with politicians and JCites who have been here since we, or at least I was in diapers, and longer I’m sure. Don’t come here for modern elegance because you aren’t getting it. This place is a wooden artifact left over from the 1970’s, mafia included.
For the food, you are getting some home style simple Italian cooking. Protip: forgo the sausages and just eat the meatballs. These balls were big and oh so tasty. Also, we had a few veggies in our group and just a heads up, you can request a vegetarian sauce which I actually ended up preferring over the regular gravy meat included. Go figure. I gotta give it up though, I do like the sauce just naturally comes with meat chunks in it. Good people.
The pasta is solid. You have a few varieties to choose from which is always nice and it was perfectly cooked. I didn’t mess with any of the entrees since I came for that carbo deal but I can tell you, my party of 10 ate like we were running a marathon the next day, enjoyed a few laughs and had a great time!
Definitely a must do in JC. Kicking myself for taking so long to get here.

Barge Inn is A-​W-​E-​S-​O-​M-​E
A is for All you can eat past on Thursday.
W is for Wine in included (one glass).
E is for Enormous portions, and there’s more if you want it.
S is for Service, it’s amazingly friendly and welcoming.
O is for Oh my god, did I really eat all that?
M is for My pants don’t fit after this meal.
E is for Expect to see me here again.
Great dinner here with Unilocal fam, can’t wait to come back and try some of the seafood specials on the regular menu. On Thursdays is all you can eat pasta night which includes a glass of wine (Merlot and a white option), bread, pasta (linguine, rigatoni, or penne) and a marinara sauce with meat for… $ 7.95! Vegetarians fear not, because they’ll fix you up with meatless marinara sauce as long as you let them know when you are ordering. The meatballs are not included in the special, but I would suggest ordering them as everyone in my group went ape over them. Service here was also amazing, the chef was awesome, and the ladies taking care of our table made me feel at home. This is a walk-​in spot, but do call ahead if you’re rolling up with a large group so they know you’re coming. Thanks Maureen for taking care of us and thanks to the Unilocal familia who came out to make this an awesome UYE and meal!

I was pretty excited about going to try the Barge Inn out. I had passed it a gazillion times in my travels to Second Street Bakery and never knew they served Italian food.
When I arrived (6pm) there were a few regulars sitting at the bar. All the tables were empty. Service was a bit slow since the waitress was also the bartender.
I ordered the grilled chicken with sautéed spinach and vinegared peppers. The meal came with 2 grilled chicken cutlets over a bed of sautéed spinach. It also included a mixed greens salad. Everything was good but I thought $ 18 was a little steep. I noticed the specials prices were pretty high too… all or most were over $ 20.
It wasn’t bad, but a little pricey for bar/​restaurant atmosphere. Might try again to taste some of the red sauce items.

1) How does this place not have more reviews?
2) Why is this place so hard to find online?
3) Thursday nights are all you can eat pasta nights — be there.
4) Come here any night because you can chill out in a place that reminds me of my grandparent’s basement with delicous homemade Italian food.
5) Homemade raviolis.
6) Homemade limoncello.
Seriously though their meatballs and sausage are delicious. They call it gravy not sauce, because it is gravy and it is really, really good. Their broccoli rabe and sausage is great too. Haven’t had anything that I didn’t like yet. They have a juke box with awesome tunes that seals the deal.
Oh and PS for the record I haven’t seen anyone smoke inside here and the place doesn’t smell bad at all.