Really amazing place in state college, however since getting rid of the truffle fries, it hasn't been the same. Truffle fries are sexy. Bring them back. Truffle fries + central = utopia ~a tier one vibe checker
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Karl Ahrendsen
The atmosphere is unmatched by any restaurant I’ve visited in State College so far- including pricier options. They really nail the atmosphere in the evening and I think the holiday decorations help to solidify their dominant status. The choice of wall decor is a bit aggressive, but I think that’s intentional. Though the decor might point in the very fine dining direction, that doesn’t seem to be their true intention, as evidenced by the Deadpool cameo that is made in one of the photos hanging on the wall. As an added exercise, see if you can identify the common theme that runs through all of the photos hanging on the wall.
If you’re still reading, congratulations! You’ve made it to the part of the review where I actually talk about the food. My review staple is to evaluate the vegetarian options, and Central Reservation receives passing marks. There is, from memory, only one vegetarian option excluding salads, starters, pizza, and Mac & cheese. Thankfully that beet burger is a winner- a vegetarian option chosen with intention and thought, given the same amount of respect as other meat options on the menu. I would definitely order it again if I return.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
John
Remains a favoite of ours. Bar oriented, but food is delicious and service is very good at the tables!
Zein Chehab
Had a girl dinner there, caesar salad and fries. The fries were perfectly crispy and caesar salad was very authentic, perfect with addition of fried chicken. A little bit disappointed with the service.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Ashley
Fantastic location and setting! Great atmosphere but honestly the worst food ever. Shells in fried oysters, chunk of salt in burger. Had to send food back! So disappointing because was a great place it could be!!! Lost opportunity
Ned
First -- made reservations on Open Table. Got to restaurant and was told restaurant does not accept Open Table reservations only phone reservations. Showing reservation to hostess did not resolve issue. Eventually got seated. Second -- restaurant has gone from good choice for high-end food for older crowd to another one that caters mostly to student dining desires. No high-end food choices from old menu, for example steaks and seafood. Instead now has cheesesteaks and chicken fingers. Did have lobster mac-n-cheese which was tasty but had 1 piece of lobster and was over $20. Third -- table top card with appetizers was interesting until was told that card was old and that menu did not exist anymore. Probably won't go back -- missing the old Central Reservation!
Greg Hernandez
This place is absolute trash. They don’t even let you in on your 21st birthday when you are of age. Terrible boring place the workers suck and no student should ever go here.
Jasmine Gunning
Our go to spot for a pre-dinner cocktail or a nightcap! Easily the best martinis in State College. Would definitely recommend the fries & the ragu as well! My only issue here has always been that the service is so hit or miss.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 2
Nolan Rollo
My wife and I have been trying to get to Central Res for about 6 years but the stars never seemed to line up. We decided to do dinner and a movie and after a short wait to order drinks we informed our waitress we were trying to catch a movie showing at 9. All our food came out perfectly timed and the presentation was on point. I’m not a big fan of pork belly but this had me convinced otherwise! The sangria was perfect and my burger was like a high class Five Guys. Portion sizes were perfect and we made the movie without rushing and 5 minutes to spare.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Melvin Kleinsasser
Decent food and a nice spot for a meal without a reservation.
Good cocktails, and relatively small but great seasonally rotating menu. The beet burger was a fantastic flavorful vegetarian option. Creme brulee was also tasty.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Nawaf Ben Shaalan
Awesome burger
he P
First off, they don’t take reservations even though the place is called Central Reservations. We ordered a shareable lamb lollipop, but they only brought one plate. Since we were a big group, we asked for a few more plates. The first plate was clean, but the other three had crumbs on them and were dirty, which was pretty disappointing. Maybe it was just a one off, but still not great. Then when we checked out, there was an automatic 20% gratuity added without any heads-up. That didn’t sit well especially after being served dirty plates. I paid with a $50 bill in cash for a $47.8 total (gratuity included), and the waitress asked if I wanted my change. I said yes, but she only gave me $2 back without saying anything. She did not served us at all, no greeting, no thank you, no explanation about not having coins. It just left a bad impression overall.
The food was mid.
Sebanti Chattopadhyay
Good place to go for drinks and dinner. Noise and music level is such that it allows conversation. Fries were really good, as were the cocktails we ordered. Seating is great, with a good view of the outside. Very well located in downtown.
Jeffrey G.
It was fantastic!!! Don't visit it often, but never disappoints. Fun crowd, especially for V-Day.
Really amazing place in state college, however since getting rid of the truffle fries, it hasn't been the same. Truffle fries are sexy. Bring them back. Truffle fries + central = utopia ~a tier one vibe checker
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The atmosphere is unmatched by any restaurant I’ve visited in State College so far- including pricier options. They really nail the atmosphere in the evening and I think the holiday decorations help to solidify their dominant status. The choice of wall decor is a bit aggressive, but I think that’s intentional. Though the decor might point in the very fine dining direction, that doesn’t seem to be their true intention, as evidenced by the Deadpool cameo that is made in one of the photos hanging on the wall. As an added exercise, see if you can identify the common theme that runs through all of the photos hanging on the wall.
If you’re still reading, congratulations! You’ve made it to the part of the review where I actually talk about the food. My review staple is to evaluate the vegetarian options, and Central Reservation receives passing marks. There is, from memory, only one vegetarian option excluding salads, starters, pizza, and Mac & cheese. Thankfully that beet burger is a winner- a vegetarian option chosen with intention and thought, given the same amount of respect as other meat options on the menu. I would definitely order it again if I return.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Remains a favoite of ours. Bar oriented, but food is delicious and service is very good at the tables!
Had a girl dinner there, caesar salad and fries. The fries were perfectly crispy and caesar salad was very authentic, perfect with addition of fried chicken. A little bit disappointed with the service.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Fantastic location and setting! Great atmosphere but honestly the worst food ever. Shells in fried oysters, chunk of salt in burger. Had to send food back! So disappointing because was a great place it could be!!! Lost opportunity
First -- made reservations on Open Table. Got to restaurant and was told restaurant does not accept Open Table reservations only phone reservations. Showing reservation to hostess did not resolve issue. Eventually got seated. Second -- restaurant has gone from good choice for high-end food for older crowd to another one that caters mostly to student dining desires. No high-end food choices from old menu, for example steaks and seafood. Instead now has cheesesteaks and chicken fingers. Did have lobster mac-n-cheese which was tasty but had 1 piece of lobster and was over $20. Third -- table top card with appetizers was interesting until was told that card was old and that menu did not exist anymore. Probably won't go back -- missing the old Central Reservation!
This place is absolute trash. They don’t even let you in on your 21st birthday when you are of age. Terrible boring place the workers suck and no student should ever go here.
Our go to spot for a pre-dinner cocktail or a nightcap! Easily the best martinis in State College. Would definitely recommend the fries & the ragu as well! My only issue here has always been that the service is so hit or miss.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 2
My wife and I have been trying to get to Central Res for about 6 years but the stars never seemed to line up. We decided to do dinner and a movie and after a short wait to order drinks we informed our waitress we were trying to catch a movie showing at 9. All our food came out perfectly timed and the presentation was on point. I’m not a big fan of pork belly but this had me convinced otherwise! The sangria was perfect and my burger was like a high class Five Guys. Portion sizes were perfect and we made the movie without rushing and 5 minutes to spare.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Decent food and a nice spot for a meal without a reservation.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Restaurantji Recommends
Good cocktails, and relatively small but great seasonally rotating menu. The beet burger was a fantastic flavorful vegetarian option. Creme brulee was also tasty.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Awesome burger
First off, they don’t take reservations even though the place is called Central Reservations.
We ordered a shareable lamb lollipop, but they only brought one plate. Since we were a big group, we asked for a few more plates. The first plate was clean, but the other three had crumbs on them and were dirty, which was pretty disappointing. Maybe it was just a one off, but still not great.
Then when we checked out, there was an automatic 20% gratuity added without any heads-up. That didn’t sit well especially after being served dirty plates. I paid with a $50 bill in cash for a $47.8 total (gratuity included), and the waitress asked if I wanted my change. I said yes, but she only gave me $2 back without saying anything. She did not served us at all, no greeting, no thank you, no explanation about not having coins. It just left a bad impression overall.
The food was mid.
Good place to go for drinks and dinner. Noise and music level is such that it allows conversation. Fries were really good, as were the cocktails we ordered. Seating is great, with a good view of the outside. Very well located in downtown.
It was fantastic!!! Don't visit it often, but never disappoints. Fun crowd, especially for V-Day.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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