Family of four had a lovely dinner. Very pleasant service. Helpful with menu. Our table was a bit small for the number of plates. Recommend the polenta, shrimp in garlic, chef's crudo and baked cheddar. Squash soup was a tad too sweet. Pacific cod in chowder seasonings was delicious. The chef stopped by, we discussed each dish and highly recommended a wind vestibule for the front door.

We will go back soon

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LOVE that almond croissant and yes, the barista is incredibly personable. He showed my 4yr old how to make that heart shape in the foam, which she enjoyed.

I just wish they served breakfast earlier on the weekends. Sampled it during the week and man... is it good.

I should also add that the pastries were INCREDIBLE. Tried four different ones over the weekend: guava turnover, almond croissant, pumpkin bread pudding, and nutella roll.

The almond croissant was flaky, dense and decadent. Really top notch. The guava turnover is very simple in its presentation, but equally impressive in terms of flavor. The pumpkin bread pudding is incredible, as well. Very dense and can be shared by two or more people. The Nutella roll (similar to a cinnamon roll, but with Nutella) was the least impressive of the bunch. Definitely good, but a bit underwhelming after having tried the other ones.

The Mod Cup coffee is, of course, delicious. The barista serving Saturday morning was a cool dude with lots of personality and some incredible skills. He definitely takes pride in his craft/work.

Visited on Friday and thought nearly everything was perfectly executed. Great hostess showed us to a table immediately and our waiter made a prompt appearance to deliver menus and water. We were allowed ample time to peruse the menu, and they uncorked one of our bottles quickly. Waiter provided on-point recommendations and was very personable. Really enjoyed the service, which was attentive but relaxed and never felt rushed. The decor is excellent (comfy, warm and modern industrial) with some really neat touches. The crowd in the restaurant was varied. My only quibble would be that the entrees were brought before appetizers had been finished. It would have been nice to have at least 5 minutes in between dishes. The timing/spacing of dishes was probably a bit off, but given that the place is new and the staff just getting the swing of things, this is a rather minor thing. Overall a GREAT experience. Will definitely be back.

Went last night around 9. Really crowded which was a great sign. Funny that for a restaurant, no one seemed to be eating....I didn't see a lot of food, mostly people drinking and waiting. We were seated next to a couple who were still waiting for their food after 2 hours. We eventually ditched as our food seemed far off from making an appearance. Management was very apologetic saying the kitchen was understaffed for the night. Certainly cutting them some slack after just being open for a few weeks. Will try again, but not until they get things straightened out in the kitchen.

Had dinner there on Friday. Service was friendly, food was great - definitely more up to date and higher quality "new american" than at Marco & Pepe's, for example. Took a little while for the food to arrive, but to be expected at a place that just opened. Glad to finally have a new option in the neighborhood - will definitely be back on a regular basis. Also, the complimentary Torico's ice cream at the end of the meal was great. Like that they're supporting local businesses (like ModCup as well).

I hadn't even noticed this place had opened, but I stopped in for a cup of coffee. Beautiful renovations, really nice people, local ModCup coffee. I hope they do well, especially given their weird location.

Rather than start a new thread on the subject, I will just throw out a question in this thread, as it is being prompted by something stated in the OP.

How are new restaurants getting liquor licenses now? My understanding is/was that liquor licenses were prohibitively expensive because there is a fixed amount of them and so restaurants were forced to buy a license from a current holder and/or wait for these licenses to be available at auctions. Is the city/state now issuing more licenses? I seem to recall that with the official designation of a restaurant row, the liquor license regulations for restaurants were loosened (I believe those are the 33-type licenses) but this new place (or other new places) are not in JC's restaurant row. So, how exactly are they so sure they are getting a license? Just wondering.

Went there on Friday night for dinner. The staff were very warm and welcoming.

The interior decor brings a very welcome change to the area even though the external appearance of the building leaves you with mixed feelings.

The food was generally very good and I think they have struck a price-point that will make it very easy to go back regularly. In particular, the Hudson Valley Duck is probably the best non-ethnic Duck dish I have had. Great job on the braised cabbage.

Had an excellent modcup this afternoon and a great pastry. I expect I will spend some money here on a go forward basis...

the Chef (David Viana) used to be the Chef de Cusine at Daryl in New Brunswick (until July 2013) and subsequently was at Battello until he started at The Kitchen at Grove Station

good guy !

Just got back from this place. 3 of us shared a beautiful meal for 32 bucks a head. Get here while its still a byob. It's kinda in a weird spot but the space is very nice.

Acknowledged on neg. As for pos the place shows diversity in staff and clientele was mixed when I was there.

Place is owned (at least in significant part) by Dean Geibel, the developer screwing over Gull's Cove, previously bankrupted Trump and first payment defaultee on the affordable housing fund payment on his Senate Place project. The food could be two-Michelin star-worthy - you couldn't pay me to eat there.

I popped in last week to grab a coffee and check it out. While drinking my coffee, I chatted with one of the people involved in getting it opened - I mentioned that I'm vegetarian and they went out of their way to say that the chef is veg friendly and they don't mind special requests/modifications to the dishes to accommodate.
They do have some veg items on the menu as it is as well.
Seems like very nice people running it.

I tried it after the review. The place is nice (on marin by grove indeed, where marin loops, not by montgomery as google maps sent me). Tried 2 dishes, all well balanced and seasoned. The sweet and sour lentil salad is great, the perfect mix of sweet, spice, sour, fat and al dente lentils not forgetting cauliflowers. Portions are european size, so expect about $20 if you take 2 dishes+coffee. The chef has previous training in nj, ny and portugal. Will def be back...

Now en route to cocoa bakery for the best hot chocolate in town, better than maison du chocolat and even jacques torres imho.

Anyone try this place out yet? http://www.grovestationkitchen.com/ Discovered it the other day as The Jersey City Project Instagrammed a photo from there. Took over a space that used to be a deli for that office building across from Starbucks. Location-wise, a bit hard to find unless you're told about it or happen to walk by. So far have had breakfast and dinner and both were excellent. The decor is top notch, along with the service. They've got a coffee bar courtesy of JC's Mod Cup, which is some of the best coffee I've had in town. Their breakfast/coffee blows away that of Marco and Beechwood (which still surprise me with the crowds they gather) and their dinner rivals that of Batello and Thirty Acres, in my opinion. Price-points are about the same in both cases. Breakfast and lunch are ordered at the counter and delivered to your table. Dinner is the traditional restaurant/waiter setup. The waiter told us they're currently BYOB, but in three months will be serving liquor, beer and wine once the license comes through. Great addition to DTJC. The Kitchen at Grove Station 299 Marin Boulevard Jersey City, NJ 07302 551-222-4362 http://www.grovestationkitchen.com