Carol’s Cafe & Pub

Carol’s is slightly better than classic Staten Island fare. I’d say it was like eating a lovingly prepared meal by your mother. It wasn’t gourmet but it was tasty and filling.
I came here with my in-​laws for diner on a Saturday night. I called a few days earlier to make a reservation which we may or may not have needed because the place never really got busy.
When we sat down we were promptly greeted by the bartender who was friendly and wanted to make sure we got something we liked. She let me taste two of the wines before settling on one. She made a Mudslide like martini for my mother-​in-​law and then accidentally poured it all over the table which was a bit of a disaster. She put a napkin over the spill and left it so my mom had a wet table the whole meal.
To start we had a few appetizers to share. The 3 sausage starter with rabbit, duck and wild bore (the sausages were nice but the sauce was overpowering), white wine mussels (good) and deep fried ravioli (I didn’t try these but mom approved).
My main course was nice, I had the lamb which was very good as were the mashed potatoes and carrots, my only complaint is that I wish I had more of the sides! My mom ended up sending her risotto back and the server agreed that it was overcooked and soupy. She graciously removed that from our bill along with the coffee and dessert.
The service continued to be incredibly prompt to the point that we had only had our meals in front of us about 5 – 10 minutes and they were offering to pack them up. My father-​in-​law was pretty annoyed by this since he had barely touched his food. I wondered if they were being so attentive because the restaurant was empty and they were bored but husband asked what time they close and the server joked «as soon as you leave» so that added to the feeling we were being rushed.
Overall I thought this restaurant was good. It’s been there for 30 years so they’re doing something right. I would definitely come back if I had the right crowd to enjoy it with.

This restaurant is a gem in Staten Island! I heard wonderful reviews from people I know that frequent here and it exceeded all my expectations! I’m already looking forward to my next visit! I had the carols famous caramel shrimp appetizer to start and I highly recommend it! I also had the beet tart that one was just ok. Both entrees were delicious and everything is seasoned perfectly and in delicious glazes. One was the salmon and the other was the lamb osso buco. The lamb was a very generous portion and fell off the bone. The salmon was fresh and in delicious brown sugar glaze. Desserts were excellent all homemade the carrot cake was amazing with a thick layer of cream cheese frosting the only thing I would of made it even better if they put more layers of icing throughout the cake either way I’d still order it again it was just so good! The chocolate cake was also delicious. Service was excellent and everybody was helpful with ordering. This place is a must try it has plenty of charm and very unique.

Absolutely love this place and the food. Had the best dinner here tonight. My husband and I haven’t had such a great dinner date in a long time. Dinner started with the soup of the day which was the green squash soup, very flavorful, then the mussels in white wine sauce, the best I ever had, oh, and I forgot to mention the amazing oven fresh bread basket they bring out, to scoop every once of that white wine garlic sauce from the mussels. The mussels tasted super fresh and no sand or grit that I have always gotten at other places. I also had only a half order, and it was huge portions for the price. My husband and I shared it. Then for the entrée my husband go the beef Wellington. This was cooked perfectly, served with creamy mashed potatoes and the best glazed carrots I ever tasted. They are made with a cinnamon sugar butter sauce. I ordered the special brown butter gnocchi. So light and extremely flavorful. We ordered our deserts the chocolate soufflé two hours before we finished dinner because they said that it takes awhile. We were all done with dinner and they still weren’t ready. This was the only flaw, waiting for this special delight of goodness. When they finally came out, mine was perfect, but my husbands was completely hollow in the middle, very strange. The waitress came and took it to show the chef, and never brought it back to us. So, I shared my desert with my husband. It would have taken too long to wait for another. Would have taken another two hours. But, hey I can’t complain too much we scraped that bowl clean. They removed the charge for desert, which I appreciated, however I still think they should have brought my husband soufflé back out for him to scrape whatever he could have gotten. We will definitely be back again, can’t wait to try something new but will definitely get the mussels again.

If you want to have a great meal this is THE place to go! It’s a small restaurant with a huge atmosphere and fantastic food. Anything, and I do mean, anything you get is excellent and you will enjoy it. No one will rush you. The food is prepared with love and care. The mussels are phenomenal. The seafood is fantastic. The beef Wellington was like an art sculpture when served, not to mention tender and delish. You can miss the desserts. Get the soufflé, at this point I had vanilla and chocolate, both fabulous! My favorite is chocolate… Ahhhh belly rub please!!! My favorite place to go to put a smile on my face.

If I could give a higher rating I would! This was my first time here, but my parents always raved about this place when I was growing up. They have an exotic menu. I’m a picky eater, but still had the best meal I’ve ever had on Staten Island. We started with a bottle of the house pino noir, and the pizza fritta. Delicious! The tomatoes were so sweet and perfect! I had the baby lamb chops, and my friend had the buffalo rib eye special. Both dishes were superb! The sides were the most amazing carrots I’ve ever had, the tasted like candy, and mash potatoes. Please, get these if you go, you will not be sorry. We finished it off with the chocolate peanut butter cake, and bread pudding. Again, amazing! This will be my new go to spot for a nice evening out. I can’t believe it took me until now to try out this gem!

Great food! You can tell that this place has regulars that keep coming back time after time. Carol changes the menu for the seasons and each special is excellent. You really feel as if you were invited to eat at someone’s home.

Delicious! Food was excellent, the soufflé was amazing! Romantic atmosphere and the staff was very friendly. Carol Ann was such a sweet host!

Can’t wait to go back! Our next visit will be for carols pre fixed menu on Wednesdays and Thursdays that she personally came out of the kitchen (from personally cooking our meal) to explain.
The ambience is authentic and cozy. It’s a true dining experience and my boyfriend and I made a night out of it.
We started with the homemade gnocchi with brown butter, wow. I had the seared tuna and he had the buffalo ribeye special in a port wine reduction, both amazing! A Staten Island original gem!

Another fantastic dinner at Carol’s. My wife and I lived in Staten Island for a few years during our graduate work and thankfully happened upon Carol’s café quickly, and it became our go-​to restaurant for every type of celebration, and then the «I am craving one of Carol’s burgers tonight» night. We returned last night, celebrating with friends; the food, as always, out of this world… how does Carol do it EVERY TIME? My wife enjoyed ribeye with the reduction sauce, and I tried the gnocchi for the first time. Amazing. Going to Carol’s is always a great experience, we enjoy catching up with the staff, as well as trying what’s new on the menu (or sticking to the staples). Thank you Carol’s, we look forward to coming back soon.

Carol’s Café was refreshing take on Italian cuisine. The gnocchi was absolutely amazingly fresh and the risotto with shrimp fantastic. Fine dining in a delightful atmosphere, we were greeted by the chef and served by a pleasant wait staff. Bravo Carol!

Great place… great food… One of my favorite places… great atmosphere. have never been disappointed.

Love this place. So much respect for Carol and her career. Delicious food — a rare find in Staten Island.

I hadn’t been to Carol’s in probably 7 – 8 years (not sure why) and had been talking it up and promising to take my wife since she is a SI transplant and had never been. Carol did not disappoint. Everything we ordered was delicious. The mussels in white sauce were just as plentiful and full of garlicky bread dipping goodness as I remember. Both of our mains were great (seafood with spaghetti and lamb chop with spaghetti) and of course the Peanut Butter soufflé remains the best dessert on Staten Island. It is so decadent and perfectly prepared. And at about 2 ½ hours from start to finish, It was a great Saturday night date night with the wife. As for the service, the restaurant was crowded and the servers were friendly and attentive.

The best pork chop I have ever had. I loved the chocolate soufflé. Carol is wonderful. A warm and inviting host,. Our guests who are not from Staten Island also lived it!

My boyfriend and I have been back several times and they never disappoint. Like others mentioned, don’t expect to be in and out in thirty minutes. This is truly a dining experience. A three course meal will take about three hours. So sit back, enjoy your cocktails, your company and your food!

Definitely not a place that will have you in and out. Prepare for a long night, however the food is made to order so it is well worth it. The liver is my favorite. There is something about the sauce that always makes me crave this dish. If you like Hot. .try the muscles in the red sauce. Omg so good. Staff is great. A bit $$ but I think its worth it

I feel bad writing this review, because this was only the first time I have been here. But sadly, I was so unimpressed.
I came here for a private party– so we only had a limited menu to choose from.
Décor was very nice, however I am not a fan of the glass display case that were holding their pies and beer, it reminds me of a diner, but that is just personal preference. The place itself was small and intimate, and had exposed brick which i am a HUGE fan of.
The food was decent. I wish it was better, — maybe it was because the party was so large they were flustered? I had the salmon with mashed potatoes, and Im assuming it was caramelized carrots with cinnamon. The best thing about the dish was the mash. Salmon was below standards, was disturbingly pink and not cooked through at all. Fishy smell and super slimy. I looked around at other plates, some people ate it all, others didn’t, but I didn’t want to say anything since I was their as a guest. Carrots were very good as well.
For dessert we had chocolate cake with raspberry filling which was absolutely delicious! Best meal of the night by far. I didn’t like how the servers were cleaning up ASAP, even while other people at the table were still eating. Almost like they were rushing.
I also was not a fan of the bathrooms, they didn’t feel to clean to me and that should definitely be something that is super super clean.
I might come back in the future and try out other items on their menu, as for now I will pass.

Really nice small intimate little place. I am so glad we came here, a friend brought me here because we didn’t want to leave the island. I was happily pleased everything we had was delicious. The wait however was not so fun, but definitely worth it. I would love to come back just so I can try different things on the menu. I didn’t have dessert because we were stuffed, but I saw a chocolate soufflé that I was told had to be ordered when you order your dinner. I think next time I will try and leave room for that. Num num

Stopped in one night to visit our friends. Randomly walked in after seeing few reviews. Yum Yum Yum… SPend about 2.5 hrs from app to desert at the place and what a great time… DEFINITELY WORTH YOUR TIME & TIME

Great place!
Lack of parking but well worth it. I attended a business dinner and the menu, service, food quality, atmosphere are all excellent.
Freshly made mozzarella with basil and balsamic melt in your mouth.
Fresh bread. Fine Wine.
I had a special NY sirloin specially seasoned with these amazing caramelized carrots and a signature mashed. A+
My colleagues raved about the calamari, the homemade pea soup, and many other culinary delights…
Carol, the chef and owner checked in and described every home made dessert. She was very accommodating and truly a winner.
Keep it up!