NICO Kitchen + Bar

Good food - a great place to go before a show. Happy hour and Friday nights can be live for a restaurant of it's size. It doesn't have an extensive menu but likely everyone can find something they like. Solid cocktails and wine available as well.

Nico Kitchen + Bar is a very nice restaurant. When we arrived the atmosphere was very nice except for the female hostess. She had an attitude and was not friendly at all. Once we were seated our server came a greeted us. Jasmine is a breath of fresh air. Very friendly, informative and personable. She gave us a perfect fine dining experience. My husband and I were in town July 22, 2018 for a concert at NJPAC which is connected here and made a reservation for convenience. We made a great decision. The Nico burger was perfection. The beef was top quality. The beers on tap were fresh and were served at the right temperature. If you know beer you will definitely tell the difference. Jasmine suggested the creme brule' after we enjoyed our cappuccinos. It was delicious. I wish I had of got my own instead of sharing with my husband hahaha. I definitely reccomend this restaurant. Ignore the hostess' attitude and ask for Jasmine. Jasmine will surely take care of you! Jasmine and the quality of the food are why I am giving 5 stars.

Stop in here on the recommendation of the theater staff since I had time to kill before my show. I ordered a Cuban sandwich with french fries it was very good our waitress was nice and friendly. The whole place and menu oozed elegance without being snobbish. The food was amazing and I loved the French fries I would definitely stop in again even if I wasn't going to a show

Incredible dinner before our show at NJPAC and the best waitress we’ve ever had, Surayyah. She is so attentive and made sure we had everything we needed.

Visited last September, and had the best experience after a rough day. Meshon totally turned my mood around! He was so kind and attentive, and we had some wonderful conversations. The fried catfish dinner and the “bla bla bla mojito” was amazing! I highly recommend you spend your evening here.

Amazing place and very good Service from Amanda

Great place, classy.. A little pricey for food. Drinks were great.. Highly recommend the lemonade drink!! Bartenders were awesome, place got really busy as the show was going to start. I'd 1000% go back if I was in the area or went to a show near their again! Had a great time!

Had a wonderful time at Nico after seeing Neil Gaiman today. All of the staff from the hostess who sat us to the bus folks (and especially our server Tania) were kind, friendly, courteous, and gracious. The food was excellent. My husband had black-eyed pea soup and the gnocchi - both bowls were close to spotless when he finished. I had a Caesar salad (perfect amount of dressing and deliciously fresh shredded parmesan) and the skillet fried chicken which was just the right balance of crispy skin and juicy meat and the sauce was delectable. While we didn't even notice, Tania came to the table and apologized for the delay in out entrees as there had been a mix up in the kitchen and informed us our dessert and coffee would be on the house. Needless to say, we'll be visiting again.

We were happily surprised by the entire Nico experience. My wife and I were seated promptly for our reservation. The staff was pleasant and made frequent visits to our table to make sure we were taken care of. Our meals were excellent and our drinks were great. We will visit again.

Food menu wasn't as big as I hoped. All though I love having many things to choose from I can appreciate Nico kitchen for perfecting the selections they do have and by asking What can they do to make it better which tells me they care about their customers opinions. The catfish amazing it was so fresh, mac and cheese needs a little help, stake and shrimp was really good. Hands down one of the best places to go for drinks they were amazing 🙌🏾 best bartenders ever and the atmosphere can be for anyone couples, friends or adult family dates cant wait to come back and try that chicken sandwich or maybe the pizza 😊 😉

Went to Nico's for a friends bday on 7/13/24. The bartender served our food and drinks . He was attentive, professional, and polite. The service was great. He even added alittle extra touch for our friends bday. I wish I would of gotten his name to give him a proper shout out. Thank you for making our evening great.

The duck prosciutto and pear salad and lamb stew and the maple glazed salmon and Brussels sprouts and squash were delicious and fresh, seasoned perfectly and cooked to perfection. I plan on returning again. You will not be disappointed.

We went before Yo Yo Ma and were so touched by the effort the staff put in to get us a table to eat. Everyone is so friendly and genuine I highly recommend eating here.

Nico was surprisingly good for a restaurant in an event space. The prices are very reasonable, food was great and the service was prompt, friendly (& funny) and we really enjoyed it. We went to a concert and made reservations before the show. It was a great way to start the evening, enjoy the company and the food. We will be nack

Chef Courtney’s food was top notch delicious! We recommend this restaurant to anyone who likes good food, great service and a beautiful atmosphere.

We stumbled across Nico because we were staying nearby and looking for something within walking distance that had reservations available immediately as we were headed to an event at the Prudential Center. I am so happy we did. The food was excellent. Since we were in a little bit of a rush, we ordered a lot to share. The buttermilk biscuits with sweet butter were amazing. The Ceasar salad was really good. And everyone really enjoyed the Steak Frites. Our server Bridgette (sp?) was really wonderful as well. We also got to take advantage of their great happy hour so added bonus.

We attended a concert recently at New Jersey performing arts center and this was our first time there. This was the best preshow dining experience that we’ve ever had. And we go to many many shows and have for years. Cassandra was our server and she and her team were very patient when needed, but also extremely attentive. The manager also came by to make sure that everything was all right as well. We were very surprised that there was no drop off on level of service, food quality, etc. as the pre-show crowds came in and filled the place. A very well run restaurant that we will certainly use anytime we are there.

Pre show lunch we did not have reservations but seated at the bar we received great service. Food was excellent. Local beer was great as well

Highly recommend, Amanda was the best host she was very very accommodating to our needs.

We there Friday night for some dinner before our concert at The Prudential Center.. we didn't get the bartenders names but both of them were attentive / knowledgeable / professional as they served us. The white cosmo's were incredible! We got the shrimp bruschetta app ( so good I wanted another ) the wings in the special menu I think they were smoked chipotle and the heat and crisp on them were spot on.. my gf got the chicken pot pie and loved it ( $35 for a pot pie I thought was crazy until it came out and I tasted it ) and I got the short ribs ( meaty / tendu and perfect ) I myself have been in the food industry my whole life and this was one of the best overall experiences I've had going out. We'll be back and highly recommend this place!

Karol is an awesome server! She checked in on us at the right times. She is friendly and patient and didn’t forget anything. We hope she is there the next time we come. Chef Courtney did amazing on the wings. Thanks for the Birthday wishes for my daughter. Great atmosphere even for family with young children. The two hosts were very friendly as well. Next I come I will check out the bar. 😊Thank you kindly for a great first visit. 😊

Ray, the bartender was amazing! He’s drinks are delicious. It was a great atmosphere and music. I highly recommend it. It was a great night was friends. Definitely coming back. I am so excited I found a place in the area.

Pleasantly surprised! Pre-show dinner on a Friday night. Service was attentive and our server was very informative. It was still happy hour when we arrived and took advantage of the 1/2 price patron spicy margaritas. All drinks, draft beer and wines by the glass were also 1/2 off. The food was excellent - we started with the honey bbq wings and the buttermilk biscuits. The wings were extremely meaty and tasty. The biscuits were warm and delicious and the honey whipped butter was fantastic. The entrees, chicken skillet and steak frites were both outstanding. Portions were generous so we had leftovers. The only negative was nobody told us we weren’t allowed to bring our to-go bag into the theater and they didn’t have a coat check or anything so we had to leave the bag in an open area until we left or just forfeit our leftovers.

My friend and I had lunch here before the 2pm performance of Shen Yun. We had reservations for 12.0 noon and were seated immediately at a great table for two. Overheard the hostess telling others that without reservations there was only 1st come seating at the bar. Not an extensive menu but very adequate for lunch before theater. We had the Nico burger w/blue cheese & fries and a chicken club sandwich with a side salad. Both sandwiches had excellent flavor. Only disappointment was the very plain mesclun/spring mix salad. We should have requested a different mix. Very good service and, of course, being immediately adjacent to the PAC was extremely convenient. Nice ambiance in the restaurant. Suggest parking right across the street in the Military Park underground garage. Not cheap ($26 for matinees) but close and convenient.

I'm not sure of how much my meal cost because I went for a dinner with my work but the meal was delicious. I am not one to eat salad but this one was pretty good. The salmon was what I was looking for and I was not disappointed. I got the honey lemonade and didn't need another drink the entire night.

My husband and I went to a comedy show at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center and since we drove from Philadelphia, we wanted to have a nice dinner and be close to the center, so we found out there is a restaurant right next to it. The service was great, our waitress was so friendly and polite. I ordered a pizza and I was good, my husband had a salmon with vegetables and I was amazing, the vegetables were like grilled and caramelized, they had a great flavor... He was so happy with his dish that he didn't let me take picture of it😅 after the dinner we ordered coffees and we took them inside the teather to enjoy our show. It was a lovely night!

Appetizers were good, the asparagus was the best. For the main courses the duck had a great flavor but could have been a bit more tender. The couscous with the demi glace was tasty. The Branzino was very good. The first two courses came out to the table fairly quickly however, the desserts took awhile. All in all not bad.

I was served a drink with a cracked glass and the manager took care of it right away. And our drinks were free. Over all nice place

Good food, everyone was friendly, and I got to meet COURTNEY from Holiday Baking Championship who makes wonderful desserts! It's a bit pricey so know what you want and plan ahead.

I would love to see better vegan options; if you are hungry and don’t like risotto, you’ll be having drinks for dinner

Great service, good food. Excellent place for a pre-concert meal at NJPAC or just to hang out.

We had dinner before a show service was fast and ok our waitress was cold but the men were friendly. We sat at the bar I had the chicken potpie the seasoning was different than the usual potpie which was good but just a little on the salty side I loved the light and flaky crust . The spouse loved the lentil soup with the beef chucks it was excellent and it ate as a whole meal, my daughter had the margarita pizza she said it wasn’t bad it was just ok but wouldn’t order it again something about the cheese she didn’t like . When I come to another show I will return because of convenience, hot good food , fast service and clean location . No pizza

The salad was a bit too salty for me and lacked different textures. The cocktail was excellent though.

The atmosphere, location, and staff were 5 stars. The 3 star rating is really for the food. My friend and I went there early on Saturday. We both had drinks which were pretty good. We ordered the wings for an appetizer. The wings had good flavor and were not overly saucy. My friend ordered the lamb and I ordered the gnocchi. The lamb was slightly salty. I love gnocchi but this gnocchi was extremely bland. I actually sent it back because it just was not good. I then ordered the Margherita pizza which was ehh. I don’t think I’ll return for food but definitely for the drinks and service.

We ate here in November before a show and had a very good meal with attentive service. We did not have a reservation so we were seated on the "bar" side. We enjoyed happy hour drink prices and a full menu. I had pasta, my dining partner had steak. It was very good. Fast forward to February. We were looking forward to another great meal at Nico before an NJPAC show. We were seated at the same table and noticed the same waiter. This time we sat for 10 minutes before we were offered water by a server. The waiter came over to take our drink order. We declined an alcoholic drink and asked for a full menu. He explained that they only offer snacks on the bar side and he'd be back to take out order. We waited about 10 minutes but he never came back so we left.

Big disappointment since last visit. Strange service rules: they don't serve dinner menu in the lounge area or at the bar anymore. 🙄🤔 You can only order drinks and some kind of snacks. Lounge area is very cozy with dinner tables. Dining are is horrible 😮 It's just a part of theater's hallway with cheap cafeteria tables. Staff is extremely nice and friendly but unprofessional at all. Cocktails are watery. Fish cakes and salmon were tasty but not hot enough. Food looked like it was waiting for awhile on the kitchen to be delivered. Steak was horrible. So overcooked and dry but we ordered it rare. And it was precut because they don't provide steak knives for eating steak. Restaurant management should do something about it. It was such a cool and pleasant place. Sorry to see it falling apart.😪

The food is OK and the atmosphere is all right, but the drinks were horrible. The bartenders don’t know how to mix drinks properly or even know how to make some of the popular drinks. They don’t use the proper utensils to make drinks the correct way. They just pour and hope it comes out right. I don’t recommend buying any drinks but water and soda.

Had reservations at 6:00 yesterday with wife and friend. Food was good. Found crab cakes to be good and Pad Thai also good. Martinis were excellent and as ordered. Wait staff was stressed but did a good job and remained pleasant. They also went out of their way to please us and get food out on time. My only issue was the hostess who was not at all friendly. An attractive woman, tall with head wrap, made me feel as if I was not welcome almost immediately upon entering. Later, when I switched from the bar to our table, she made me feel 2 feet tall with cutting eyes and attitude. The initial interaction at a restaurant with staff can really set the tone of the evening, esp. in an establishment where I'm spending $100+ dollars. Hate me on your time, not mine.

My friend and I went to NJPAC for a show last Saturday evening so we decided to eat at NICO beforehand since it seemed to be the only place nearby. The ambiance was nice and we sat in the back room which was not so crowded. The waitstaff were extremely attentive and friendly. When looking at the menu, I thought the Maryland Crab Cakes looked good so that's what I ordered. I was super hungry and was looking really forward to enjoying them. When my order arrived, there was only one single crab cake on the plate with a ton of salad! It was supposed to come with some spicy aioli sauce too. Found a tiny smudge on the plate underneath the lone crab cake so I had to request more. The salad was good, as was the crab cake, but for $38 I was expecting it to be amazing, which it wasn't. Also, if you are going to only give one crab cake in the order, don't put "cakes," as in plural, on your menu!!!

The restaurant is modern and has an upbeat energetic vibe. The menu is very limited and more resembles a shortened bar menu. The food was over-seasoned and much more spicy than I would have liked. The drinks are fairly priced and the portions were adequate but I still feel this place can do much better. They need to add more real entrees to the menu. A few more appetizers and side dishes would not hurt either. I just felt like this place is not there to please, it is simply there to serve those who stop by for shows. This is a beautiful space that is not being used to its full potential. The owners should listen to the negative reviews if they want to bring in more customers and make more money.