Rode’s Fireside Restaurant & Tavern

Swedesboro staple. We have been here dozens of times in the past, but no longer eat here. The quality of food is good, the selections on the menu are decent, service is usually slow and for some reason we usually seem to spend quite a bit of money whenever we eat here. Overall it never seems worth it for what we had. Maybe we order wrong?

Awesome atmosphere! we went here on a Friday evening and it was packed! Really good energy here!

Easy to find off the NJ turnpike. Food was excellent. I had the seafood scampi & my husband had the meatloaf stroganoff. Will definitely be back while driving through the area.

Takeout order today. Crab sandwich and BBQ burger. The crab sandwich was good as usual. The burger on the other hand was a massive disappointment. I ordered it well-​done so my child could eat some of it. It came out medium pink. No lettuce tomato or onion. Basically, an undercooked meat patty and cheap BBQ sauce. Also if management is reading this please upgrade the fries to steak fries. Those soggy stringy fries taste and look like two-​day old fries from McDonald’s.

I’ll start off by saying the atmosphere in this restaurant is very nice. We had a reservation for 6 and were seated quickly. The crab and artichoke dip and bacon wrapped shrimp are very good and worth a try. However the experience went down hill after that point.
One steak plate was brought out cold, two medium steak plates came out rare, were sent back for review and came out medium rare instead of medium. We asked for the manager, who never introduced herself, thought coming to the table and making a joke would be a good idea. Unfortunately, when 3 people out of 6 have issues with their food it is not a good time for jokes. I guess the 3^rd time is the charm because they finally did come out correctly.
We were comped for the two plates and we were also offered desserts which was very nice. I would also like to add that my medium rare steak and crab cake Were cooked perfectly and tasted amazing.
The food when cooked correctly is easily a 4 out of 5, but the manager’s overall attitude towards our table was a 1.5 out of 5.

Tucked away this little place has nice atmosphere. Staff could have been more attentive and didn’t get the order correct. Food was decent and priced fairly well. Not sure if I will hit this up again though.

This is a great restaurant, but there are some pros, and very important cons.
First, the food is great. Wait has usually never been more than 20 minutes on a busy night, and the restaurant is very cute décor wise.
BUT, and a major but, the service is EXTREMELY slow. Enough that even the bartenders will comment on how slow the kitchen is. We have sat at a table before, and have not even seen a waitress for at least 15 – 20 minutes, almost to the point where we wanted to walk out. By the time you get to order and get your food, you are usually at the restaurant for about 2 hours. Ive even gone during my lunch hour, where there were about 2 other people in the place, and still the same!
I understand if they are cooking fresh food, and perfecting it, but you don’t always want to consume this time at a restaurant, sometimes you just wanna eat and leave. You definitely cannot do that here.
Great food, just be prepared to wait, so don’t come starving!

Rodes is quickly becoming one of my favorite places in our township. They just remodeled a few part of it and their menu is always good.
Food is fresh. They can be a bit slow at times when ordering take out but that’s because they are always so busy. I’d say the best in the area for American food, bar food and even some real nice steaks. All around goodness.

Been here a few times. I always enjoyed my meal. But my last visit, I got their beet salad. I had to pick thru the salad because a large amount seemed wilted, yellowish and just rotten. After realizing most of my salad wasn’t good, I asked for Romain lettuce and I didn’t care for the look of it either. Would I go back?
Maybe… leaning toward no.

Just had the best ribs in a long time. Service tonight was genuine and excellent. Burgers are always good too which is my wife’s go to meal here. The crab bisque as usual was delicious as well as the appetizers. Draft menu is adequate but not extensive.

Great food hit or miss service. I love the crab cakes and chicken pomodoro. Gorgonzola salad is amazing so is the calamari. Good draft beer selection. Steaks are somewhat under seasoned not the worst thing in the world, but could have a touch more flavor. All in all A very good choice for dinner in south jersey!

Giving this place 1 star is a bit much, the food is just mediocre the service is awful boy do i wish i read these reviews before taking my date to this place.
I came here about 3 years ago and had a fantastic experience i have no clue what happened but it has gone down hill big time. The manager needs to weed out all these bad servers and re staff this place because my biggest complaint was my server honestly just rude she should have came to our table chewing gum saying what do u want no personality at all.

Came here with a fairly large party for dinner this past week. The ambience was nice and the food was delicious, I recommend the open face turkey sandwich, the brisket and crab cakes :) the only thing that hindered our experience a little was that our server was very unpleasant and rude. Which all in all is a pretty easy fix.

A friend said the ribs were good and after looking at the menu I was skeptical. Its not a BBQ joint and many places just sauce them up but the ribs were really good. Not too much sauce and just the right amount of tenderness.
The wife got some angel hair pasta with a mix of seafood in a butter wine sauce and it was terrific.
The service is very sketchy. While we waited for a table at the bar, we ordered two drinks and I gave the bar maid my cash but she never came back with the change. I was going to leave the $ 5 as a tip anyway but I thought it was rude. The other bartender actually made my drink… it was just a Manhattan but he did it right.
Our waitress was really nice but the food took a long time to come out. We were in no rush but the service was slow. I dont know if it was the waitresses fault or the kitchen.
We will go back and give them another try since the food was really good.

Since our first visit we have been back here a few times recently. Once for a breakfast buffet after a Christening. Found everything to be hot and fresh, even if the buffet itself was kind of small.
We had dinner here a week ago for our anniversary and we were pleased once again. Our first time here we split a shrimp cocktail appetizer but it’s no longer on the menu. Same with their «Land and Sea» filet and crab cake dinner I had before. My wife was able to get her favorite Chicken Pomodoro and she loved it, just like the first time. I ended up getting Eggplant Florentine which was more than I could eat in one sitting so I took half of it home. Both entrees came with salads and their house dressing was perfect.
Our server was friendly and attentive and our drinks from the bar were nice. My wife had 4 margaritas! We just love the atmosphere here. While our entrees weren’t on the cheap side, we found them to be worth it. They also have a Monday night burger deal and happy hour specials on weeknights. Will try something like that next time.

I’ve been here twice recently for my brother’s wedding and rehearsal dinner.
The restaurant itself has a great atmosphere. Perfect lighting and décor for a slightly upscale dinner. The menu is a little above average price for fine dining.
They have a specialty in bbq, which looked/​smelled great and is tasty from what I’ve heard (I’m vegan, fyi). I love their house salad and homemade Italian dressing! I’m a salad lover and found it perfect. I got plain penne and marinara as an entrée and it was nothing special. The pasta was cooked waaaay past al dente and the marinara was very sweet.
The staff had been helpful and very friendly for the most part in terms of managers and waitstaff, but the event coordinator for the barn (Alyssa) seems extremely disorganized from my second hand experience. So if you’re booking an event at the barn, be prepared to be adaptable and patient.

There are not a lot of options for restaurants in this part of Nowheresville. Culinary adventurousness is not usually rewarded by us locals, so you sort of have to temper your expectations when you come out. That being said, Rode’s does a nice job of delivering a quality restaurant experience with some interesting combinations and lots of expected dishes delivered well. I particularly enjoy the work they have done on expanding, updating, and improving the interior (and especially the bathrooms) with their latest remodel.
To start with, this restaurant started out many years ago as a bar. Therefore, the bar dominates the central dining room. The wings they have at Rode’s are among my Top 10 wings across the country. They have a delicious teriyaki glaze, but I usually just got them dry with the sauce on the side.
Their entrees are also delicious. Last night, I had the Chilean Sea Bass with pineapple salsa. Although the rice was a little boring, the Sea Bass was on point and the seasonal asparagus was steamed to just the right crunch. My wife had the Sonoma chicken sandwich, which I have also had before and is an interesting combination of chicken, cheese, and asparagus. My son had the mac and cheese appetizer — so often mac and cheese can be boring, but this had an interesting combination of 5 cheeses with a little bite (maybe dry mustard?) and just enough bacon to add flavor but not enough to overpower. My other son had an open faced turkey sandwich and the portion was big enough that it probably could have served the whole table.
As usual, the food was a little slow to come out of the kitchen so you definitely need to set aside some extra time when you are visiting this restaurant because they are not known for their speed. However, the service was attentive and friendly and our drinks stayed refilled, which was nice. The manager also stopped by the table to make sure everything was A-​OK.
Rode’s is a great place to come to celebrate good times with a good meal while staying local.

The atmosphere was nice and the staff was friendly but not very attentive. They seemed far more concerned with talking to each other and regulars than they did bringing orders or simple drink requests.
Food was flavorful but both of my sides, vegetables and smashed potatoes, were cold when they arrived. Also split an appetizer of their «famous wings» that were small and not anything to be excited about. The prices were also a bit higher than I’d have liked or expected.
I really wanted to like Rhode’s Fireside. It just didn’t do it for me.

One sure needs to be a fan of pizzerias, Italian restaurants, and TGI Friday’s to survive a roadtrip through NJ. If you’re not content with those choices, then a place like Rode’s is certainly a diamond in the rough, and it’s all relative. Now if it’s brunch you’re craving, as we were, you better make sure you are seated prior to the strict brunch buffet cut-​off time, which my husband and I missed. That was an immediate damper to our visit, and we were surprised that a Sunday brunch buffet would be shut down as early as 12:30.
Nonetheless, we made do with our dinner menus (no lunch menu for the weekend — boo), and with great consternation, chose non-​breakfasty entrees for our first meal of the day. Luckily, our waitress was quite cheery and well-​trained, and even though she had several tables in her station, we were never left wanting for beverage refills.
I opted for a grilled chicken sandwich and the hubby had the same. Refreshingly, the broiche bun was neither toasted nor buttered, which might offend some, but I prefer it untouched by butter/​griddle. The chicken breast was juicy and plump, and the honey mustard sauce on the side was a nice addition. Breast was covered with a single slice of melted monterey jack-​style cheese. Sweet potato fries were just okay. Prices were just and I think we got out of there for under $ 30. I still wish they had offered their lunch menu on weekends, as there were a couple of entrée salads that I would have preferred, but were only available when the lunch menu was available.
We weren’t wild enough about Rode’s to add it to our cadre of «must-​visit» spots off the beaten path when traveling through the area, but it seems like a good choice for locals and there were definitely some regular bar patrons.

Oh, Rode’s, I wanted to like you. Really. The lower Glouco/​Salem County area is a royal pain when it comes to dining out. I mean, you’ve got your slew of pizza places and a couple chains. Coming across a nice place to eat outside of those distinctions? Good luck. (Actually, if you know of a place that I’m missing, please-​please let me know.)
I had tried Rode’s once before in 2009, and remembered a subpar experience. Still, I’m a big fan of second chances, so I ignored the majority of reviews on Unilocal,and headed here tonight with my mom and grandmom for dinner.
First: prices are steep for the offerings. My $ 17 chicken was tough, and I’m surprised it was a «half chicken.» The pomegranate was my meal savior.
Second: I know our server didn’t like us. I know this because when my 84-​year-​old grandmother announced in her 84-​year-​old way that she «didn’t like the rice pilaf,» the server rolled her eyes walking away. GIrl, I saw you do that. Wait until you get to the kitchen the next time, please.
Third: There was absolutely nothing exciting about this place. It was mediocre at best. Even their desserts looked boring.
I wanted to like it. I did. I like giving good reviews. But, just. Nope. Not this time.