don pepe restaurant & caterers

so sad and disappointed have been coming for years for new years dinner with alargecrowd. 10-15 people typically. this year 2019 was a complete train wreck. waited over an hour and half post our reservation time. unfortunately we were not alone in this circumstance the lack of organization was apparent that they were out of control of the evening. the hostess who was stuck in the firing line of an onslaught of unhappy patrons. i felt bad for her, but her and the old man who is the house manager needs to be put out to pasture. we must of heard half a dozen times " just 5 more minutes" was beyond ridiculous. so we remained patient and were finally seated. as we were being led to our table the old man manager says have a round of drinks for the table on the house. well that turned out to be bs as when the bill came they were charging us for them. i addressed this issue only to find that he was not honoring this. as good as the food may be. the hassle, old staff and disorganization isn't worth the trip. it's an extremely pricey place to have to endure this at any time. after 20+ years of going. we will never be back and i would forewarn anybody going there be prepared or better yet redirect and find another place that will appreciate your business.

visiting from down south and decided to eat at don pepe's as it was very near our hotel. great service, awesome food withlargeportions and very clean. a little pricey but we certainly felt that we got our money's worth!

family style spanish cuisine. i think that the idea is for the items to be served "family style" as each of the dishes is easilylargeenough for two or three people. i went with a party of eight, we each ordered our own meal and left with more food than we consumed. i really wish that the waiter would have said something but i guess that he thought each of us wanted enough food to feed a small family. my shrimp dish had easily 35 shrimp in it and my brother had alargeplatter of pork chops. the food was good, not too spicy, but with rich flavors. i would recommend this place but take a date and plan on sharing. if you are in the mood for traditional spanish food and a decent wine selection this is a place to go.

going downhill. the food is not as good as it used to be. apparently, their policy has changed also. i was there with my wife and mother. i ordered a 3 pound lobster and my wife ordered a steak for us to share (our own surf & turf). my mother, who is older, ordered alargeappetizer as her entree. the waiter informed us there would be a $5.00 charge for sharing as all three people had to order entree's..i found this objectionable and when i voiced my objection, i was told sorry, this is our policy. i replied, cancel our order, we are leaving, sorry this is a matter of principle. there are too many other good iberian restaurants in newark for don pepe to have this policy.