Johnny's Cafe

My friend and I stopped there on a whim. And was so delighted to find Johnny's cafe. The food was phenomenal. Yes, we were only there for lunch, but the prices were great friendliness. On a scale unbelievable we will be going back to have dinner soon. I would recommend this place anytime to anyone.

Food incredible!!! Staff and service out of this world. Atmosphere excellent, but a little loud 8:30 pm for dinner. Music was great. Wouldn't stop us from coming again!

This morning we hosted a brunch for my daughter’s bridal party. The service was outstanding and the food wonderful. Nina went above and beyond to ensure we had a beautiful, fun and non-stressful morning. She took care of setting out little gifts for the bridesmaids, and even decorated with flowers that matched the color scheme of the wedding. The food and mimosas were yummy and again, service was outstanding!!!

I don’t know how this place doesn’t have a 5 star rating - it is amazing! I went there to dinner with my sister last night (on a Monday) and maybe it’s because the service was so bad at our dinner at a different restaurant the night before, but I think the service at Jonny’s Cafe and Lounge was so great and accommodating. Our waiter (I wish I could remember his name) was so chill and awesome I think if there had been a hurricane going on and the power had gone out, he would have been like, “I got you.” The food was amazing, and between appetizers and large portion sizes I had a great second meal today. I can’t recommend this place enough and will definitely be back the next time I am down the shore.

My husband and I, as well as our friends, have been going to Johnny's for years. Never had a bad meal. Service is always excellent. Staff are friendly and accommodating.

We loved it! great diverse menu. quieter in off season. loved eggplant rollantini and veal dishes l. great bar menu. very nice waitstaff.

Always a great time with music on the weekends. Food is always good. Definitely recommend for a fun night out for dinner. Only complaint.. they sat is next to rear exit door that everyone kept going in and out. We asked if they could just put something down to stop in from slamming. They said no. So we had to keep feeling and hearing a door slam throughout our dinner.

My experience here was great I had a wonderful breakfast. Steak was on point just how I like it, the eggs was on point as well as the fresh orange juice. Breakfast while at work on my break, I will most definitely bring my wife to check it out, they have a very nice dining set up the wait staff gives great vibes warm and friendly made sure everything was on point. Have to check this place out for a night out with my wife.. Oh they also have outside seating and they have a very nice bar set up. Thanks for your service. And shot out to the cook great job.

Food came out quickly and our server was awesome! We went on a Wednesday night, which is their day - long happy hour. This meant a packed bar and the music was a little too loud in the dining area. We couldn't hear each other speak! I would go again, just not on a Wednesday,

Best in town…Jenny shows much hospitality…drinks & food is good…highly recommended!

We hosted my daughter’s baptism lunch here this weekend. Nina and the team were SO kind and accommodating, and made the whole planning process so easy and stress free. The food was also delicious (as usual)! Would absolutely recommend for any private parties.

This was our first dinner experience at Johnny's Cafe, and we left feeling very contented. The price was $60 a person, and that seems quite in line with today's dining out prices. Our Server was fantastic. He started us off with a bread basket and a small plate of sweet green peppers... a nice touch. Our entrees were delicious!! My wife had the Seafood Lasagna and raved about the taste. I had the Ziti Bolognese and was very pleased with my selection. The plus on our meals was that the portion were large enough for us to take home leftovers. The beer and wine prices were appropriate for today, and we listened to music by The Rat Pack, and that topped off the evening. A very pleasant first dinner experience.

Our office is very close to Johnny's and we go quiet often. The owner Johnny is always there and sometimes you will see him walking around the dining rooms checking on things. His wife is also present usually and ensures everyone is having a great time. The food here is amazing and the best Italian on the island. I recommend the Calamari or any of their Veal specials. They also make an amazing Chicken Parm. We love the atmosphere, it is classy but relaxed. Also, they have a DJ there that is out of this world (I believe his name is also Johnny) and our office loves to come when he is there! Fun for all. I would not bring kids here, that is not the vibe at all. They are also open for breakfast, and I think that is one of the best on the island as well. I recommend Johnny's to many of the people interact with on the daily, it will always be my go to spot.

My friend and I had a blast last night at the bar. I don’t go here often but I seem to get the same awesome bartender (I really should know his name!). He’s just great and so funny! Glasses, dark curly hair. Anyway, we had a great dinner and drink! Thanks for always being consistent.

Johnny’s Café in Margate is one of our absolute favorite spots! It’s one of the few restaurants in the area that’s truly family friendly for breakfast, lunch, and dinner — which makes it a go-to for us any time of day. The atmosphere is welcoming and cozy, perfect for a casual meal with the kids or a nice date night. On weekends, the vibe shifts after 9PM with a great adult crowd and an amazing DJ that really brings the energy without it feeling like a club. The food is always fresh and flavorful, and the service is consistently great. Whether you’re stopping in with the family or looking for a fun night out, Johnny’s really delivers. Highly recommend!

Great food & service! I got the bow tie pasta and it was incredible and my fiancé got the steak and said it was great. Staff was super friendly, however, there were these older drunk men at the bar (about 5 or 6 of them) and they were being so loud, cursing, and just carrying on and making a huge scene. I literally had to yell at my fiancé who was sitting RIGHT next to me. They ruined the whole vibe and experience. The staff did nothing to quiet them and they were just so freaking obnoxious!!

Enjoyed our time at Johnny's will be back to try shuckers. Our server Jenny was amazing and attentive along with others that I did not catch their names we mostly did happy hour apps, everything was delicious however I did question the seared tuna as it was a lower grade of tuna not pink and tasty it was presented very nicely however it definitely would have had more taste and appeal had it been a better grade.

Really nice breakfast. Food was tasty and prices are typical shore town prices. I had Eggs Benedict Florentine and shared a smoked salmon platter.

Walked by and figured its a good breakfast spot. Drink, food and service was good the area is beautiful.

Great, lively spot in Margate. Free parking (with tip) across the street. Everyone was very nice and helpful. Service was excellent all around. Special shout out to Sammy(?)/ Salvatore. He was a really good server and we were shocked that he'd only been there 2 weeks. Food: the caesar salad was old school and very good. The beet and goat cheese salad was delicious. Veal piccata was tasty, but we think it was chicken by mistake. Chicken marsala was fair. Pretty sweet and tons of crushed garlic that I had to pick out. Chicken parmesan was exactly how my dad likes it, but to me there was more breading than chicken. Spaghetti was cooked el dente perfectly. Full wine and cocktail menu with some unique choices. We'll definitely be back.

Amazing food, kind servers. 😃Also a resident pup. ADA compliant potty and a dress code that doesn’t include thong and cover up would be nice 🫣

We had a surprise 60th birthday for my brother there food was good service was good DJ was good. The only thing bad was the parking. You have to drive around the block around the neighborhoods and all the stores won't let you park there they have signs because it's a very popular Summer Spot. Like a Wawa or anything like that you cannot also when you go down the roads the Lions go side by side rather than top to bottom I know that sounds confusing because there's a lot of driveways you can't park in between the slots where the driveways are in the neighborhood.

Food, especially the main courses, is generally very good (& a bit pricey). However, some items were absolute failures - like the complimentary bread - frankly, it was terrible -- small rolls that had the consistency of day old bread and very little taste. Appetizers were mostly good, but I found the arancini lacking in cheese and the sace was only OK (kinda like a pizza sauce). The others in our party of six had mostly good things to say. The lobster ravioli with crab meat was very good, the salmon got good reviews, but the fish special lacked seasoning and the diner had to add salt and pepper. The biggest complaint was the volume of noise. If you don't wish to shout to make yourself heard by those in your party, DO NOT sit in the bar area. It was exceptionally noisy, and the drinkers were not only loud, but obnoxious and rude. Some of them should not have been served drinks, as they were obviously on their way to intoxication!

The waiter was awesome. But your website is awful. Its says you have a parking lot. And the music was to start at 7.. fix your website!

Good food, but service was lacking. Waiter was slow to come take our orders and failed to check in enough with the table. We had to keep asking for him when we needed something or there was an issue. Appetizer order was entered incorrectly and some items never made it to the table.

Our go to date night when grandparents babysit because we can always get a reservation & walkable - conveniently located on Ventnor (main street of Margate). Food is consistently good & prepared as requested (calamari, seared ahi entree, all steak, lamb chops). Service is mediocre. That said, they are always packed @ prime dinnertime & still efficient - try to get tables in and out quickly. More friendly and formally trained wait staff would make experience more enjoyable. Majority of staff seem unhappy & stressed out - some are quite vocal about it, especially at the front bar. Skip cocktails and opt for beer or wine. Last 4 times we have been there, the cocktails have been terrible so, we order beer and wine and make our own cocktails at home.

I love Johnnys Cafe, especially when Bob Pantano was there. Now the DJ plays entirely too loud. The music is good and I wanted to dance after dinner. When they cranked up the volume we bolted.

Not very caring about guest with food allergies! We were a party of 7 on Saturday night at 8:00. No came to greet us at the table for almost 20 minutes. The waiter Ron was outstanding he apologized about the wait and brought water and said he would be working with Morgan. Well, that when it sent south! She can to the table never introduced here self and had an attitude. Our friend has a garlic and onion allergy and asked Morgan a question about how something was prepared on the grill and then asked instead of putting the grilled verses salad directly on the grill put a piece of tin foil under it so none of the spices that have been used touch the salad? Morgan's response was "at 8:30!on a Saturday night I doubt it". Never even asking the kitchen. Then she start shouting at one of the people in our party. All she needed to do was ask the kitchen the question! She stomped away from the table as my friend was still speaking to her! What makes matters worse, we called in advance and spoke to Nina who know about this severe food allergy and my fires was told not to worry they will take care of it. Needless to say, Morgan didn't wait on us and Ron did and he was great! Only reason I'm giving stars instead of 1 after the interaction with Morgan is because Ron was terrific. Not sure if I will be retuning to Johnnie's as of that is the waitstaff's response to several food allergies. Dinner was not cheap and to be treated like that is unacceptable!

I went to dinner at Johnny's on Friday night October 4, 2024. I have been to Johnny's a number of times in the past. My friend and I ordered fried calamari and lolly pop lamb chops. The calamari was good, fired just right and the tomato sauce was good. The lam was just ok. actually it has a slight smell of fish. could not understand that but I let it go. My friend ordered a veal dish and I ordered the 20 oz cowboy special. That's when things went down hill. I told the server, Jenny, I wanted the steak cooked so that it would be slightly pink inside. The dinners came and was delivered by a food runner. I cut into my steak only to find it was blood red in the center. Now I understand this was not the servers fault, However the server never returned to the table to check on us. I asked several people to find our server that I needed to speak to her. It took over 10 minutes for her to come over to the table. My friend was finished his dinner before the server Jenny came to ask if everything was ok. She took my dinner to have it cooked more. When my steak came back to the table it was cooked ok. But to add insult to injury the 2 sides that came with the dinner were ice cold. When the server finally came back I told her they never replaced or re-heated the sides. She got me another serving of mashed potatoes but never replaced the ice cold string beans. If this meal was inexpensive I would say ok. However the bill was $145.01 for two people with no drinks. I was extremely disappointed on the service and more that upset because of the price of the meal. I knew how much it was and that was not a problem if everything went well. Service was not good.

Very disappointed- went there for gnocchi based on a Facebook food group recommendation. They were the worst I have had. They were as large as scallops and as heavy as them too. Also had veal Marsala which had absolutely no taste of Marsala wine. Although the veal was tender it was over seasoned and over salted. I expected much better especially since it is on the more expensive side with no extras (salad, etc…) The server was way more interested in talking to the bartender and watching the game playing. We had to call him over multiple times. 1st he forgot to bring over my drink and then to get the check to leave. 👎🏼

First time visitor. Arrived at 7:45pm on a Monday. We were greeted by an employee as we walked in. However, he couldn't find a waitress to seat us. After waiting a minute or two, the waitress finally appeared and sat us. There was only two people in restaurant besides us. We were initially served tasty sautéed green peppers and warm bread. We had to ask for silverware and napkins because there was none at our table. As for our order. The beet salad was good. The fried calamari was too chewy. The broccoli rob was perfect. The Brussels sprouts were cooked nicely but too much balsamic glaze for my liking. The big disappointment was my 14 oz angus New York strip steak. It was so chewy, it wasn't enjoyable. I only ate half. Overall, not a memorable experience. Unfortunately, we won't be returning.

Place has really gone downhill. Abominable service. Two of us sat at the bar. Watched barback put chewing tobacco in his mouth. Salad app came out with one of the entrees. (A pasta entree which wasn’t bad, a shame it had to sit and get cold as we ate the salad). The other entree (porkchop) came out 15-20 minutes later overcooked. At that point didn’t feel like eating a $40 overcooked porkchop. It seemed almost like they intentionally wanted disrupt the flow of the meal. Probably won’t be back.

I had a horrific experience at Johnny’s Cafe in Margate City over the weekend. I had ordered the Lamb Lollipops and they arrived significantly over cooked. It was so chewy, I felt like I was chewing gum. The server apologized and said they would cook some new lamb. However, the new lamb they brought out was inedible. It was so RAW, that a great Veterinarian could’ve brought it back to life. See the attached photo, this is not even legally able to be served. To make matters worse, the server nor anyone came to check on us and see if the lamb had been cooked properly. These people don’t have a care in the world. Maybe they will start to have a care when these pictures / videos are submitted to the New Jersey Dept. of Health / Atlantic County Division of Public Health. Totally unacceptable and I advise everyone to avoid this pathetic restaurant ! They couldn’t have cared less if I or any other customer could’ve gotten sick eating food in this condition. Truly SICKening.

Extremely disappointed in our experience at Johnny’s. It took an hour and a half to get our food after we were served our appetizer, and it was not good. This pasta was $35 and the sauce was so soupy, we basically ended up eating plain bow tie pasta. Soggy and tasteless truffle fries. We wanted to order multiple drinks, but waiter hardly came to our table, so we sat there with empty glasses the majority of the time. Our $22 martinis also came out in plastic cups?? Great atmosphere but definitely not worth the price and we were there for over 3 hours for mediocre food, one main and an app… save the trip, go elsewhere.

Server was good. Owners wife was very rude and disrespectful. Had an absolutely awful experience with her that will ensure we never go back and we’ll be sure to share our experience with family and friends

My boyfriend and I went to Johnny's Cafe last night with no reservations. The hostess said it was no problem and we were seated about 15 minutes later. We were seated at a high top by the bar and greeted by our server Marco or Mark, I couldn't hear exactly what his name was. He took our drink order and that was the last we saw of him. We sat at our table for 30 minutes waiting for our drinks. Our server never stopped by acknowledging our existence or apologizing for the wait for our drinks. It's like we didn't exist! They only had one bartender working for the entire bar and the restaurant on a busy Saturday night. Makes no sense. After waiting 30 minutes for our drinks that never came, we left and went to saltwater where the service was just as bad. Will not be returning.

Located in a lovely place, this place is clearly a favorite with the local summer folk and the restaurant loves them back. I watched as the wait staff took great care of the customers around me, calling them out by name. However, I sat at the bar during brunch totally ignored. I had to ask for water, menu and when I got the food, I had to ask for a set-up. Each time I was given what I asked for, it was met with a disgusted look and nothing said. They never asked me how my meal was, which included a hair mixed with cheese, but the people to ether side were accommodated with smiles and familiarity. I felt horrible being there and began to wonder if I had something wrong with my appearance or something, but I was dressed like the other diners and was polite to the servers. I gathered they don’t like to serve day tourists. I was actually emotionally distraught by the time I left and stifled a cry in the car. It hurt my feelings in a way brunch on vacation should never affect anyone. There are great restaurants in the that area that are nice to day tourists. Go to those. Skip this mean, stuck up restaurant.

The freaking crazy owner followed us from our outdoor sweaty table after done eating and drinking and grabbed my son after the dinner was done and escorted us to the front door and literally yelled at her security guard in front of my family. We were all shocked and perturbed about the whole situation considering we were all adults and had no idea what was going on. She was a crazy case

Very disappointed. Made reservation to bring my family of 10 purposely because they had good gluten free pasta for my 7 year old grandson who has Celiac Disease. After everyone ordered we were told they were out of gluten free pasta. We decided to leave and take pur dinners home. My husband was given a ridiculous bill which included the gluten free pasta dinner, a drink that was returned , an extra milk and the full tip for the server plus 4% not 3% for using credit card. Good thing my husband checks all bills. Disappointed a family dinner I looked forward to was ruined. FYI. The server did the best he could under the circumstances. Called the next day and spoke to manager. Not much help. Only offered to return the servers tip. I would never do that .

I rarely review restaurants unless it is either exceptional or terrible. We ate here last night. At first, I was very excited to see veal saltimbocca on the menu. I missed it so much from home and wanted to try it. We both ordered it. It came with mashed potatoes and a vegetable. I changed to pasta and it was a $5 upgrade. Thinking it came with the vegetable, I agreed. Unfortunately it came out with only boring spaghetti pasta, no option for angel hair or anything more interesting. The menu said it came with a white wine traditional saltimbocca sauce. It came out with a brown sauce, no white wine flavor and tasted almost like marsala sauce. Was not the traditional saltimbocca I had looked forward to and the sauce overpowered the veal. Sadly I paid for the pasta upgrade and did not get any vegetables. So essentially got less food and paid more for it. We also ordered the caprese salad. It was decent (because tomatoes and mozzarella are hard to mess up) but bland with no seasoning and lacked the traditional basil. On top of it, the restaurant was so loud, deafening despite not being packed, we had to yell in order to talk. Due to the very overpriced food, lack of seasoning in anything, and deafining atmosphere, we won't be back sadly.