Char-Kol Freehold

That would be Fonda Bahia de Acapulco, our go-to place on those rare occasions we find ourselves in Freehold.

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Yes it is👍

Hmm Spanish? How far up the block? Don Pepe?

Steve poor description of the place I believe it’s a South American cuisine not Spanish. I am admittedly ignorant with southern America’s cuisines. Don Pepe? Maybe?

Ok fine Steve you shamed me into doing the heavy lifting here and actually Google something for myself like a big boy.

Don Pepe’’s Peruvian Restaurant!

Yo es mucho ignorante’ ! Lol Apologies

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Hahaha no harm no foul whatsoever.
Figured it was Don Pepe ate there once haven’t been back in years.
Must admit I was hoping you guys had some super secret sangria slinging spot Oh well I can dream.
Sorry if I made you crazy.

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Not at all my friend, happy Memorial Day to you and yours!

Same to you :wine_glass:

With a steakhouse called Char already in the area, I’m surprised that they are going with this name. I can’t imagine the operators of Char being too pleased with it. I watch that steak bounce on their website and think “rubber.” Looks like a squirrel falling belly up out of a tree.

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Good god what a vomit inducing phrase.

Call me a debbie downer but what’s with the name of this place??? I feel like these guys need a reality check but then what do I know.

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The wife was down ill, so rather than cancelling I grabbed the 14 year old. Here’s his review:

Seats: Next to bathroom no view- 1/10

Bread: Warn with an interesting charred outside, smoky flavor and nice whipped garlic butter- 5/10

Pasta Flight: Ravioli: Good texture and the short rib filling was nice, Manicotti: Not sure what the filling was didn’t enjoy, Other pasta shrimp: Didn’t try can’t say- 4/10


Oysters: Didn’t try 0/10

Filet Mignon: Good color in the middle but the outside was very charred, too well done and overwhelmed the flavor of the steak- 7/10

Mashed Potatoes: Some of the best mashed potatoes I have had at a restaurant not chunky excellent flavor- 9/10

Mac n Cheese: Also a really good side I liked the bread crumbs and was very tasteful- 8/10

Pork Chop: My dads dinner didn’t try- 0/10

Dessert: No good options (only 3 choices) 0/10

Service: Helpful and nice waiter, food did come a little slow but not to long of a wait- 9/10

Overall: We were sat relatively quickly although it was next to the bathrooms, our waiter was very nice and checked on us often, the appetizers that I tried were only okay but my dad said what he had was good, the main course was good I got the filet mignon which wasn’t cooked evenly although it didn’t affect the taste too much, we got the mac n cheese and mashed potatoes which were both excellent and I would definitely get again. The design and atmosphere of the restaurant were cool but they only played loud EDM music which I thought wad odd. Overall I would rate Char-kol a- 8.2/10 which means it lands in the go back category and recommend category.

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Wow 8.2 I didn’t see that coming honestly. You had me thinking more the 7 range, glad they did enough right. Going to keep on my radar!

I enjoy your rating scale!! Thanks for the review.

Not my review or scale but that of my 14 yr old, but thx.

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Even better!

Love it :smiley:

Solid 14 year old review and the mac and cheese and mashed potatoes fall exactly where I thought they would.

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Love your 14yo’s review. The description of the steak was great also; noting that the char overwhelms the flavor.
On a side note, my 13 yo has been eating raw oysters for years, not sure if that’s a good thing or not since he has no concept of how much this stuff cost and every oyster he eats is one less i get :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

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Great review by the kid! Very thoughtful and fun to read their perspective.

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Thanks for the review. A few friends have also been and have really liked it.
I’m headed there in a couple weeks on a Sat night so we’ll see how the acoustics are…hearing that the loud music makes conversation a challenge…will report on all after my visit.

The patio is now open too per their IG page…

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Party of 6 dined during prime time on Sat night. For those who don’t know, there is seating on the main level and on the 2nd level.

First impressions…a very nice spot with a cool atmosphere and super high ceilings.

We were seated almost immediately and the place was packed. We were seated in a booth along the wall…the booth had ample room for 6 but we are avg sized…we commented that it might not be that comfortable for those with larger frames so something to keep in mind…i did not see other tables of 6 on the floor outside of the booths…but could be wrong.

We immediately noticed the volume in the restaurant was highly energetic and the music was pretty loud…we came to the quick conclusion that it wasn’t a place for our parents or possibly yours ;)…(but they do have a nice outside dining area so that is an option for those who do not love loud volumes)
Conversation wasn’t super difficult from the middle of the booth but those on the ends had a hard time hearing the others on the far side…

Waitress was very nice and attentive…both managers were active, checking in with tables, and helping serve food. Service overall was good…we did have to ask for more water a few times and one waited on a soft drink for quite a while…not a huge deal at all…

Food was very good…and I would definitely recommend and will certainly go back myself and the other 5 in the party agreed as well. Scallops were excellent…shrimp cocktail was the best i’ve had in quite a while. Filet was good…tasty, but I have had better given the $$. Oysters were super fresh and excellent. The pizza was very good…The bread was very good as well (and was no charge…as it should be). It did take a while for our entrees to come out…but it really wasn’t a huge deal as we were engaged in conversation.

Note: the AC did a pretty good job on a very warm evening, however, I was told by some friends that it was a bit uncomfortable on the second floor the same night.

Pricing…it’s byo and that is a huge help. Given steaks and seafood, several apps, several sides and no dessert, it was a bit more than most other byos BUT it was not unreasonable at all.

Parking…i was told they have a bunch of dedicated spots behind the restaurant but i parked in one of the municipal lots without issue.

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Thanks for the report. BYO is huge! Did you guys just have the filet or any other steak?