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Operators
Cory Checket cory@battellojc.com
Darren Conway
Fia Berisha fia@battellojc.com
Executive Chef
Ryan DePersio
Chef de Cuisine
David Viana
Designer
Anthony Carrino


- Cory is from the Turtle Club in Hoboken
- Darren is from Pier 15 Hoboken
- Ryan is chef/Owner of Fascino in Montclair
- Fia and Dave are from daryl Restaurant in New Brunswick (two year back to back listed in NJ Monthly best 25 restaurant)

So the food and service will be good is Ryan's track record is anything to go by

They are aiming to complete the renovations by mid Jan 2014... and will be doing catering (I guess after the holidays)

Here is our post about the new Battello restaurant on the pier in Newport, replacing Michael Anthony's.

Battello Restaurant to Replace Michael Anthony?s on Newport Pier in Jersey City

Best,
thejerseycitylife.com

I tasted Battello's offerings yesterday. Very nice.

Battelo had a stand at the recent Project: Market, and while I didn't have a chance to sample their food, it seems they want to make the efforts to become another top-tier eatery in JC. On display were some renderings for what they envision for the space, including prime views and a lively bar scene.

Good riddance to bad rubbish. This place was a dump. I invited some friends to meet me there once after work (before having been there myself, BIG mistake) and was totally embarrassed that I had suggested it.
It's a shame that a place with such a prime location can't seem to be managed by people who know what they are doing. Under the right leadership, this place could be a gold mine.

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http://www.battellojc.com

Does anyone have info on who bought Michael Anthony's?

I got a coupon for a free appetizer at Michael Anthony's in that Clipper bundle we get in the mail. Thought it was worth trying for drinks on a nice wknd afternoon.

Is this the place that is right on the water? Do they ever have live music?

I can say now with all honesty that I loathe this place. As a Newport resident, I am disappointed Michael Anthony's couldn't improve over the last couple of years. We are in need of a good Italian restaurant. But Michael Anthony's doesn't know what it is -- huge identity crisis. Menu still makes no sense. Bartenders ignore you. No one ever smiles. Food rates mediocre to okay, and the service still rates from bad to bad. And the night crowd it draws on the weekends is horrible...cops are there at least once each weekend. I don't know how they get away with blasting music until 1 a.m. either. Isn't there a noise ordinance in Jersey City????!! Oh - -and the driver of the little golf cart tram thing that they run back and forth across Washington Ave almost ran me over on the sidewalk the other day. That guy has to be going about 30 mph.

Saw Gilbert Gottfried here tonight awesome show 2 thumbs up, great venue.

Anybody know if Michael Anthony's has anything going on for St. Patrick's day? I have a client in town, staying at Westin, who wants to have a good time.

Anybody see the coupons-in-mail advertisement from them? They want $50pp on Valentines day! What is it with all the restaurants hyping up a second rate holiday? For this reason alone my honey and I are spending a quiet night home with a nice home cooked meal. And for a romantic weekend getaway we'll go next weekend to VT.

The highest endorsement for this place seems to be "can't complain" about the food and "good value." It seems to me that there should be a GREAT restaurant on the water. This place doesn't sound great.

Here's an update to the original posts on Michael Anthony's...

The view is still spectacular...even in the dead of winter!

The pier parking and close proximity to PATH and light rail make it easy to enjoy the view, and you can't beat the cordial atmosphere presented by the host, Mike Ryan.

Oh, BTW... The outdoor bar and patio is enclosed, so you can still stay warm while enjoying the skyline.

Hey! If you're a storm chaser, I'd suspect you'd get a bird's eye view of these Nor'easters! (One is coming up on Monday, Presidents' Day, but Michael Anthony's winter schedule is only from Wednesday through Sunday.) At the rate we're going this winter, we might just have another chance! LOL

BUSINESSMAN'S SPECIAL

I live in south Jersey, near Toms River, but I hail from Florida and appreciate waterfront, business casual dining.

I go to Jersey City about once a week for work and entertain clients for lunch and sometimes dinner. I have been back and forth to JC for about six years and have tried no less than three dozen restaurants.

I have been at Michael Anthony's several times now and really can't complain about any of the experiences. I agree that late summer was tough with everyone learning everything - might have had a meal or app that I didn't love in the beginning, but lately, I think they've done a good job.

The place is physically and visually spectacular and it never fails to impress the clients I bring. The bar is great, sitting inside or out is a nice upscale casual environment.

I like the tapas plan - it's not for everyone, but it works for me to order four or five different small items, get them on the table and share with my guests while we discuss business.

I have been for lunch about 8-10 times and I've eaten dinner at Michael Anthony's twice. Once with my wife and once for business. Both times were great.

I don't particularly care for a loud, bustling bar scene, so the environment suited me perfectly - I guess if your looking to pick up singles or for a jamming band... but anyway.

I think it's a great add to the JC food scene and agree 100% with whoever said that it beats eating in a hotel.

One last thing - I think the place offers a great value compared to your alternatives. For a business lunch my checks usually don't have more than one or two drinks, but I can get away with about $20 a person, including the drinks - for where you are, what you get and the service that brings it - you'd be hard pressed to find an equivalent alternative.

Every time I go it gets better - the kinks seem to be worked out. I have no problem recommending this restaurant and will continue to visit!

Went here two weeks ago on a Friday around 8ish. The crowd was so-so, mostly people out from after work still. The band was not my scene...typical cover band stuff. The food was definitely not worth a return visit. I'll stick with Bar Majestic for a place to go on a Friday/Saturday, but that's just me...

Okay, I gave the place another shot for dinner. Forget about it. Wednesday is a ridiculous karaoke night, by the way. Get this -- at the table next to us were two couples. They got their drinks, and ordered their dinner. Not long after, a bus boy comes to their table with a bag and a pizza box. Apparently their order was put in as a 'take-out', and the bus boy brought their entire order in takeout containers. The customers were speechless. I was laughing my butt off. Did any of the managers know about this??? They were all at the bar drinking it up. Sheesh.

I had lunch at Michael Anthony's today. Food and service were great.

The cocktail party for the Barclays PGA Tournament was also handled really well last night. I had 3 great matinis and the food brought around by many servers was terrific - Oysters/clams/mussels/quiche/lamb chops, etc.

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A typical glass building in Newport kills hundreds of birds a day. It's a bit late to complain about one of the smallest buildings in the neighborhood.

200/day/building:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4134773/

100 million to 1 billion total / year / all buildings:
http://www.awea.org/faq/sagrillo/swbirds.html

Ugh. I shudder to think it was the same bird there since Tuesday. Then again I shudder to think it was yet another one. Sometimes it's a pigeon, but also I've seen blackbirds there. What can be done? I have no idea who to complain to about this. I did bring it up to the restaurant, but the management there is just a rat's nest...I have no idea who is running the show.

Bar is really nice. Bartenders are great, except for one inside guy. He was terrible. Maybe he was just having a bad night. I?ll give him a onetime pass, and that?s it.

Love the mix of JC people, Downtown people and Boater people.

The food is not very good except for that stewed tomato/basil brushetta stuff (?canned plum tomatoes?) I Loved it. But, then again, I?m Irish, and apparently we have no culinary expertise, so try it at your own risk....

My husband loves the fact that he can smoke at the outside bar.

Will go Back for drink...Maybe one night after some Haute Italian at the Olive Garden.....MMMMmmmmm! Now, that?s Italian!

Food's just ok but the location and bar are worth the trip. Will go back just for the drinks and atmosphere.

Made my first visit to Michael Anthony at the Newport Marina and was very impressed with the place. A lot of
money was spent in rehab of this 100year old building.
Its modern, clean and takes complete advantage of its
location. You can drink or dine, inside or outside and the
ambience is a far cry from any of the former restaurants that were at this location.

Only looked at the bar menu...and had an excellent spinach salad and the house Pinot Grigio..but food was tasty and the service satisfactory...Definitely would go back..

My neighbors dragged me there last night - after reading some of the comments here - well........

It's not the Sandbar II. I loved the bar - it was a grown up place - a diverse crowd. Drinks ok. The building is stunning - not fully complete but still stunning. We sat and ordered most of the appetizer menu to share.

The good: Crabcake - spicy and still could taste the sweet crab. Excellent. Calamari with a spicy sweet sour sauce - excellent. Linguini with clams - perfect - not oily, but clammy, perfectly spiced, garlicky, served hot. Everything was pretty much at serving temperature. The owner working the room - always nice.

The not so good. Razor clams - skip it. Rubber band-like. Yech. Bread - desperately needs work. Guys - hook up with Pecoraro's please. Or TomKat. And get it on the table before taking orders.

So - we will go back. This is what a soft opening is. The service, while not perfect (one dish got lost in the kitchen) was pretty good. Enough servers, some obviously still learning, but working hard and eager to please. Water refills without asking, plates removed, new plates and tableware arriving when they should.

Not perfect - yet - but a welcome addition to the neighborhood. They are changing the menu and training the staff. I wonder if some of the really nasty comments were fired ex-employees? Anyway, if you hate it, you hate it. Me, I'd rather eat dinner there than in a hotel restaurant any time.

Good luck guys.

Service, food and timing of food hasn't been great. Hoping they iron this all out. View is amazing but we go back where we are treated well and enjoy what we are eating first. Good luck!

The pasta dish I ordered (the one with sausage, paprika, and broccoli rape) was pretty good. While I was not blown away, I was not disappointed by any means. Service was a little questionable, but they had just opened. I'll be back. Great spot to pull up to in your boat.

I plan on having an event there, so I have watched the opening process, and I have dined there twice already, and I really like it there. They are still in the soft open, but the place looks amazing, the food I have had has been great, and it's refreshing to have a nice open waterfront venue in JC. If there is an issue, why don't you kindly give some feedback to the manager or staff? Were you perfect on your first 2 weeks of the job at your current position? Give them a chance. There were 1 or 2 things that I might change if I was the owner, but they were small things like the size of the paper that the menu was printed on (huge), but I'm sure they will work all that stuff out, and if I get the chance I may mention it to them. I have also met some of the staff, and they have all been super nice. I definitely recommend it.

As for the Italian comments, read http://www.mar-jc.com/aboutus/ourchefs.html for the info on the Italian chefs, and they also had an Italian manager once when I was there, but I forget his name.

Curious to know where the high maintenance whiners and professional complainers on this thread are currently eating in a similar price range that is obviously so superior. It's often the very casual diners that are the first to get out there and stick the boot in, it seems.

So the bottled beer and wine by the glass list are a little sad at the moment. The food has varied between OK and very good although I have only tried a few items in two visits.

no need to crack on the Irish .. they will get it right their heart is in it just hard to get good staff these days give it another shot the place that is not somebody's heritage!

Stopped by tonight. Took 10 minutes to be acknowledged even though I was the only patron at the bar. Asked for a menu, ordered the fancy $15 burger, and was informed that I was given the wrong menu. Of course. Who would order a burger for dinner at a bar? Order a lamb loin medium, came well done within 8 minutes. That means they're par searing the food and then sticking it the broiler for heat when somebody asks for it. Had eat it with a butter knife. It also came with bread and a side of tomato sauce. Because I just love pumpernickel bread with tomato sauce. The beans were good though.

This is what happens when Irish people attempt haute italian.

I'm sad.