It was good, but nothing stood out as great. Expensive for good.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
natalie
Amazing food. The vodka rigatoni and pizza are literally to die for. Cutting into the burrata on the rigatoni is like opening the gates to heaven. Charkol is excellent. I highly recommend coming here with all your friends and family
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
AHMED abdel megid
Very nice atmosphere. The food is great except for the fact they had an offer on lobster tails and they told us it’s actually good but it wasn’t fresh at all. Our server was great. The host who seated this in and couple of her colleagues had major attitude since I did not like to sit at the booth. This is more of an upscale restaurant, not a diner. I expected to have better seating which was available. But they give us a hard time until they seated this and it wasn’t crazy busy even at that time. All in all, it’s a good experience, good food, good atmosphere. Maybe some of the younger staff needed more training on better customer service. That’s why it’s a four not a five.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Jenna Ciappina
First time here this weekend and definitely will be back! Our waiter Sebastian was the best! He was very helpful in offering his top choices for apps, which were amazing! Definitely ask for Sebastian if you want great service and laughs!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Dani B
Visited Charkol for a Christmas party with coworkers. From the beginning, the customer service was excellent, the host was friendly, and we were seated within minutes of our reservation. Our server thoroughly explained the menu and offered great recommendations, such as the Seafood Tower and Wagyu Meatballs. We shared a porterhouse, a tomahawk, and some pastas. The steak was cooked to our requested temperature, and the pastas were flavorful and satisfying. To end the night, we shared a dessert charcuterie board, giving our table of 8 a variety of sweets to try. My expectations were exceeded. The manager checked on our table regularly, and Kayla was especially helpful in ensuring our evening went smoothly.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Chris Borek
We had made reservations weeks ago but ended up being seated in their upstairs outdoor/overflow room. What was supposed to be an intimate holiday dinner with old friends was quite forgettable….and at a $600.00 price point for 4 (without liquor), simply inexcusable. This plastic walled room was likely their covid-era seating but is no place to enjoy this type of meal. Food was very good but we won’t be back.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 5
Service: 3
Rachel Dimitro
AMAZING company dinner party at Charkohl on Thursday night. Marissa our server and Kayla were absolutely fantastic. They attended to everyone with service that was above and beyond,and the food was exceptional. Thank you so much. We will definitely be back.!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Candies Hidden Gems
Very cutesy. Great service. BYOB. Everyone enjoyed their food (5ppl). As an NJ native, that pepperoni hot honey pizza was probably the best pepperoni pizza I have ever tasted. Definitely would come back! Municipal parking lot directly across the street with ample parking!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
J N
Best food, best service, best prices in the area ! The spot to go !
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kristi Brown
Extremely Disappointing Experience — Won’t Be Returning
My friends and I made a reservation at Charkol in Freehold three months ago (back in September) for December 5th because we heard the Christmas decorations were beautiful. We were a party of 9 celebrating the holiday together, and we were excited. Unfortunately, the experience was unbelievably disappointing.
When we arrived, the hostess Bella placed us in the screen house outside of the main restaurant. This area was not decorated at all, and the ceiling heaters constantly flipped on and off, swinging the temperature from burning hot to freezing cold. This was absolutely not what we made a reservation months in advance for.
I politely asked if we could be seated inside. Bella was rude and dismissive, telling us it would be a 30–45 minute wait. We said we were willing to wait, and then she suddenly changed it to “actually it could be much longer, we’re overbooked and have a lot of bigger reservations going in that room.”
Not only that, but the table they gave us outside didn’t even fit our group. It was clearly meant for 7–8 people at most, and when we explained we couldn’t physically fit, she acted annoyed that we asked to be moved. The general manager was also unhelpful and made zero effort to accommodate us inside—even though we booked months in advance.
Bella also told us we “should have called every day” asking to be seated inside. How would we even know there was an outdoor screen house? This was our first time there, and that comment was absurd and unprofessional.
The only saving grace of the night was our waitress, Danne. She was phenomenal—friendly, apologetic for the poor treatment we received from the hostess and management, and incredibly helpful. She truly tried her best to make our night better and gave great menu recommendations. She deserves praise that the management does NOT.
As for the food: • The dry-aged tomahawk steak was extremely fatty. • The lobster tail was cold and very overcooked. Overall, the food was mediocre at best. This place is essentially a glorified Texas Roadhouse with pretentious pricing.
With the poor management, rude hostess, lack of organization, and completely inadequate seating despite a reservation made months in advance, I can confidently say I will never return. Guests who book far in advance should not be treated worse than those with last-minute reservations.
Extremely disappointing experience from a place that claims to offer something special.
We had a fantastic date night meal at Charkol on Saturday night. The restaurant is beautifully decorated for Christmas and had a nice atmosphere. Our server Sebastian was awesome.
Tried the Whipped ricotta and a clam appetizer. They were good. The Ricotta was enough for 4 people and the Dozen clams maybe enough for 1 person. Keep that in mind. Next time we try the Wygu meatball and something else.
We tried The Fig and Honey Pizza as well. Tasty and sweet... If you order this I would ask to add prosciutto. Cust was great so imagine the other more traditional pies are good.
Finally the entrees, they were a 10/10. 20oz Dry Aged NY strip with a side of crisp fries and the Short Rib Gnocchi. Amazing. Highly recommend.
We were so full we had to pass on dessert but the selections looked amazing.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Danielle Meyer
Always a great meal there, apps, pasta, pizza, steaks and dessert always so on point! Jeff is by far the best server, we started requesting him now everytime. Overall a great experience!
For the price it’s not worth it. I haven’t tried the steaks but the other things offered on the menu is not it. It felt like I was eating a plate from Applebees, which is not wrong but if I wanted that I would go to the source. The manager or owner was not welcoming and felt like he didn’t want to attend to us. Which is understandable because that’s not your job but step up. Anyway from that encounter, no offense to him, I lost my appetite. Also it took over 35 min to get our food and we were the only customers there at the time.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 2
Dylan Smith
I recently had dinner at Charkol in Freehold. We started with the Wedge Salad which was a perfect starter. For our main we split the Tomahawk Ribeye and it was cooked perfectly accompanied by blistered long hots and Mac and cheese. Our server was very attentive and provided helpful suggestions while reviewing the menu. The overall atmosphere felt cozy with a very cool vibe. One thing to keep in mind is this steakhouse does not have a liquor license. We did not know this prior to going and had to walk down to the liquor store to get a bottle of wine. Would definitely recommend for a date night or family dinner.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ray Johnson
Food was.good but it was very loud . Hard ti have a conversation
It was good, but nothing stood out as great. Expensive for good.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Amazing food. The vodka rigatoni and pizza are literally to die for. Cutting into the burrata on the rigatoni is like opening the gates to heaven. Charkol is excellent. I highly recommend coming here with all your friends and family
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very nice atmosphere. The food is great except for the fact they had an offer on lobster tails and they told us it’s actually good but it wasn’t fresh at all. Our server was great. The host who seated this in and couple of her colleagues had major attitude since I did not like to sit at the booth. This is more of an upscale restaurant, not a diner. I expected to have better seating which was available. But they give us a hard time until they seated this and it wasn’t crazy busy even at that time. All in all, it’s a good experience, good food, good atmosphere. Maybe some of the younger staff needed more training on better customer service. That’s why it’s a four not a five.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
First time here this weekend and definitely will be back! Our waiter Sebastian was the best! He was very helpful in offering his top choices for apps, which were amazing! Definitely ask for Sebastian if you want great service and laughs!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Visited Charkol for a Christmas party with coworkers. From the beginning, the customer service was excellent, the host was friendly, and we were seated within minutes of our reservation. Our server thoroughly explained the menu and offered great recommendations, such as the Seafood Tower and Wagyu Meatballs. We shared a porterhouse, a tomahawk, and some pastas. The steak was cooked to our requested temperature, and the pastas were flavorful and satisfying. To end the night, we shared a dessert charcuterie board, giving our table of 8 a variety of sweets to try. My expectations were exceeded. The manager checked on our table regularly, and Kayla was especially helpful in ensuring our evening went smoothly.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
We had made reservations weeks ago but ended up being seated in their upstairs outdoor/overflow room. What was supposed to be an intimate holiday dinner with old friends was quite forgettable….and at a $600.00 price point for 4 (without liquor), simply inexcusable. This plastic walled room was likely their covid-era seating but is no place to enjoy this type of meal. Food was very good but we won’t be back.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 5
Service: 3
AMAZING company dinner party at Charkohl on Thursday night. Marissa our server and Kayla were absolutely fantastic. They attended to everyone with service that was above and beyond,and the food was exceptional. Thank you so much. We will definitely be back.!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very cutesy. Great service. BYOB. Everyone enjoyed their food (5ppl). As an NJ native, that pepperoni hot honey pizza was probably the best pepperoni pizza I have ever tasted. Definitely would come back! Municipal parking lot directly across the street with ample parking!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Best food, best service, best prices in the area ! The spot to go !
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Extremely Disappointing Experience — Won’t Be Returning
My friends and I made a reservation at Charkol in Freehold three months ago (back in September) for December 5th because we heard the Christmas decorations were beautiful. We were a party of 9 celebrating the holiday together, and we were excited. Unfortunately, the experience was unbelievably disappointing.
When we arrived, the hostess Bella placed us in the screen house outside of the main restaurant. This area was not decorated at all, and the ceiling heaters constantly flipped on and off, swinging the temperature from burning hot to freezing cold. This was absolutely not what we made a reservation months in advance for.
I politely asked if we could be seated inside. Bella was rude and dismissive, telling us it would be a 30–45 minute wait. We said we were willing to wait, and then she suddenly changed it to “actually it could be much longer, we’re overbooked and have a lot of bigger reservations going in that room.”
Not only that, but the table they gave us outside didn’t even fit our group. It was clearly meant for 7–8 people at most, and when we explained we couldn’t physically fit, she acted annoyed that we asked to be moved. The general manager was also unhelpful and made zero effort to accommodate us inside—even though we booked months in advance.
Bella also told us we “should have called every day” asking to be seated inside. How would we even know there was an outdoor screen house? This was our first time there, and that comment was absurd and unprofessional.
The only saving grace of the night was our waitress, Danne. She was phenomenal—friendly, apologetic for the poor treatment we received from the hostess and management, and incredibly helpful. She truly tried her best to make our night better and gave great menu recommendations. She deserves praise that the management does NOT.
As for the food:
• The dry-aged tomahawk steak was extremely fatty.
• The lobster tail was cold and very overcooked.
Overall, the food was mediocre at best. This place is essentially a glorified Texas Roadhouse with pretentious pricing.
With the poor management, rude hostess, lack of organization, and completely inadequate seating despite a reservation made months in advance, I can confidently say I will never return. Guests who book far in advance should not be treated worse than those with last-minute reservations.
Extremely disappointing experience from a place that claims to offer something special.
Restaurantji Recommends
We had a fantastic date night meal at Charkol on Saturday night. The restaurant is beautifully decorated for Christmas and had a nice atmosphere. Our server Sebastian was awesome.
Tried the Whipped ricotta and a clam appetizer. They were good. The Ricotta was enough for 4 people and the Dozen clams maybe enough for 1 person. Keep that in mind. Next time we try the Wygu meatball and something else.
We tried The Fig and Honey Pizza as well. Tasty and sweet... If you order this I would ask to add prosciutto. Cust was great so imagine the other more traditional pies are good.
Finally the entrees, they were a 10/10. 20oz Dry Aged NY strip with a side of crisp fries and the Short Rib Gnocchi. Amazing. Highly recommend.
We were so full we had to pass on dessert but the selections looked amazing.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Always a great meal there, apps, pasta, pizza, steaks and dessert always so on point! Jeff is by far the best server, we started requesting him now everytime. Overall a great experience!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Cowboy Ribeye Steak, Wedge Salad, Bread Pudding, Pepperoni Pizza
For the price it’s not worth it. I haven’t tried the steaks but the other things offered on the menu is not it. It felt like I was eating a plate from Applebees, which is not wrong but if I wanted that I would go to the source. The manager or owner was not welcoming and felt like he didn’t want to attend to us. Which is understandable because that’s not your job but step up. Anyway from that encounter, no offense to him, I lost my appetite. Also it took over 35 min to get our food and we were the only customers there at the time.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 2
I recently had dinner at Charkol in Freehold. We started with the Wedge Salad which was a perfect starter. For our main we split the Tomahawk Ribeye and it was cooked perfectly accompanied by blistered long hots and Mac and cheese. Our server was very attentive and provided helpful suggestions while reviewing the menu. The overall atmosphere felt cozy with a very cool vibe. One thing to keep in mind is this steakhouse does not have a liquor license. We did not know this prior to going and had to walk down to the liquor store to get a bottle of wine. Would definitely recommend for a date night or family dinner.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Food was.good but it was very loud . Hard ti have a conversation
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 5
Service: 4
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