Restaurants in Nutley

The food-and-drink connoisseurs behind Giorgio's Wine Bar impart the subtleties of vino as customers sip fine wines and tantalize palates with a menu of classic Italian dishes. Thin-crust pizzas support fresh mozzarella and a choice of more than three dozen traditional and inventive toppings, such as jalapeño peppers, zucchini, and smoked gouda. To pair with the kitchen's crispy discs and other Italian classics—from panini to a gnocchi of the day—the staff cull bottles from an inventory that, like a housecat's stratagem for achieving world domination, changes nightly.

French doors and flower boxes welcome diners into a narrow storefront facing the sloping greenery of Ruppert Park. Inside, black-and-white art photography hangs above the dark, wooden bar, which is back-dropped by wooden shelves lined with phalanxes of fine-wine bottles and a full selection of liquor.

Amid exposed-brick walls, Aegean Turkish Restaurant’s chefs serve up Eastern Mediterranean dishes such as charcoal-grilled meats, seafood, and vegetarian items. Cold and hot appetizers, which range from whipped red caviar to zucchini pancakes with garlic yogurt, ignite appetites or cool heated remarks before they leave your tongue. Bottles of pinot grigio, chardonnay, merlot, and pinot noir prep palates for bites of grilled fillet of wild king salmon or house-specialty Sultan’s Delight, an ottoman dish comprising lamb chunks atop smoked eggplant. Throughout their meals, guests can unwind thanks to the eatery's soothing Turkish music, a belly dancer on Saturday nights, and waiters who sing a selection of Guns N’ Roses ballads.

It could be said that B.A.D. Burger's dining room operates outside the conventional boundaries of time: their grill is hot 24 hours a day and the entire menu, be it burgers or breakfast, is fair game no matter the time on the clock. Cooks fill the crispy grids of buttermilk waffles with syrup before pairing them with pieces of fried chicken and plate omelets with helpings of home fries, grits, or french fries. Fresh-baked buns envelop 8-ounce patties of beef, black beans, or garden veggies that are slathered in toppings such as guacamole, eggs, and marinara. Not a page of the menu is complete without a bevy of vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options, including vegan cheese and grass-fed tofu. Additionally, the diner's in-house sweet-makers Bad Girls Bakery, wrest pans of vegan and gluten-free brownies, cookies, and cheesecakes from the oven.

A royal-red entryway leads to a Gothic-inspired dining room, complete with marble statues, brass candelabras, urns, and oversized mirrors. Re Sette, translated to Seven Kings in Italian, conjures a Tuscan dining experience straight from a royal feast—particularly when seated at their massive, mahogany "King's table" or when commanding waiters to joust for your approval.

Executive chef Luis Gordillo creates rustic southern Italian regional dishes such as the signature lamb meatballs and lobster ravioli that have helped earn the eatery's fare very good to excellent Zagat ratings. Located just a short walk from the Theater District, the eatery attracts guests for pre- or post-curtain revelry with bar bites and specialty cocktails

Stepping into Firebird Restaurant is like time traveling to 1912 Russia. The velvet-cushioned, curlicue-encrusted mansion—where Natalie Portman directed her short film Eve—sprang from the dreams of Baroness Irina von der Launitz, granddaughter of Saint Petersburg's turn-of-the-century mayor. A two-story entrance guards the dining room, just one of the many rooms where gourmet Russian meals and a sea of domestic and imported vodkas slake appetites. The caviar menu is sprinkled with poetic details about the roe's colors, flavors, and textures. Supping guests can choose from the main menu, and they can also opt for a dinner tasting, prix fixe meal, or private dining experience.

Suited for royalty, Firebird's decor is lush and dramatic, with vibrant curtains parting to reveal plump, cushioned chairs and fine porcelain. Marble busts contrast with the crimson wood and dining seats of the library, where gold gates corral avenues of old timey books. The ballroom's domed ceiling centers around a skylight, and the China Room's unexpected green walls, carpet, and curtains serve as a refreshing backdrop for delicate filigree accents.

Amid the whirling of flamenco dancers and lively strumming of guitarists, diners savor and share bites of bright Spanish cuisine presented on minimalistic white plates. The kitchen fills a tapas menu with tasting-size portions of seafood, meat, and vegetable delicacies, enticing guests to indulge in one bite at a time, rounding out each mix-and-match meal with a carafe of housemade sangria or exotic cocktails. Small plates include tzatziki- and cucumber-drizzled bites of lamb, spanish meatballs, and asparagus a la plancha; heartier appetites brave the build-your-own entree option, which allows customers to craft individual meals that include one hearty portion of meat or seafood and one starch, all topped with a choice of sauce or glaze and served with a helping of vegetables. Parties of up to 65 guests can rent out the space for special occasions or have baskets of Spanish specialties brought to off-site locations to add flavorful flair to parties without dousing honored guests in a demi-glace.