State Street Grill

State Street Grill
9 State St, Bloomfield
973-748-3003
statestreetgrill.com

Hours: Open 24–7.

Price: $/$$

Style: Classic diner meets post-industrial loft space.

Don’t Miss: The menu is massive, in time-honored diner tradition. Spinach dip ($6.95) served warm with fresh-baked tortilla chips is a rich starter. State Street Slam ($9.95) is a tasting dish of four appetizers and various dipping sauces. The menu lists nineteen salad choices, including classic Caesar ($6.95) topped with fresh-grated Parmesan, Greek ($7.95), and steak salad ($12.95), with red onion and crisp bacon. Burgers are served thick and juicy; choices range from a basic 8-ounce beef burger deluxe ($7.50) to nine different 14-ounce Angus burgers (all at $9.95). Want breakfast anytime? There are 21 omelettes, from cheese ($6.95) to lox and onion ($10.95). Among the dozens of dinner entrées, the roast Vermont turkey ($14.95) is comfort food, diner style. It’s served with a huge portion of chunky-apple dressing, two veggies, and a salad. More ambitious are the sautéed dishes, like the tasty chicken Murphy ($12.95). Dinners typically come with soup; the Yankee bean is thick, tasty, and not overly spiced or peppered. Naturally, there are Greek specialties, including a massive spinach pie ($12) served as a large square with crisp phyllo-dough crust on top and big chunks of feta inside. State Street also incorporates a pizza parlor, with seven choices of thin-crust, brick-oven pies starting at $8.95.

Heads Up: State Street is spacious, so there’s rarely a wait. But that doesn’t mean you’ll ever feel lonely. The freshly renovated eatery—located just off Bloomfield Avenue—attracts an eclectic late-night crowd, including state cops, who arrive via the nearby Garden State Parkway, and local chefs, who meet here after shutting down their own ovens.

The Scoop: Portions are huge and easily shared. Don’t forget to save room for dessert. At the gelato bar, you can pick from more than twenty flavors of Italian ice cream. A dish is $4; a gelato sundae, $4.50.