where do i begin.... absolutely amazing, the area is a little sketchy (after all, it's newark). but the street that the establishment is on feels safe, and there are alot of eyes watching (parking staff, customers, etc). the parking staff was very courteous and helpful. upon walking into the establishment, you forget that you're in newark. very interesting and gotchic like facility. crowded in the waiting area, however i was extremely impressed with how they handled my 7pm reservation. i arrived at about 7:11pm on a saturday to celebrate my girlfriend's birthday. when i saw the amount of people in the waiting area, i thought "there's no way they're going to have us seated anytime soon". man was i wrong! they had us seated by 7:21pm, less than the 15 min wait that we were originally told. the seating area was very busy, but warm and happy. families, friends, couples were all dining and enjoying themselves. there is a small salad bar to get your appetite wet, and they start you off with the usual bread, butter and drinks before taking your order. they served us some of the best fried calamari that we've ever had. my girlfriend had the surf and turf and she loved it. ample amount of food that she ended up taking home. my order? the rodizio? all i can say is, make sure you arrive hungry if you're going to order this dish! the rodizio consists of succulent cuts of brazilian styled bbq ham, sausage, prime rib, lamb, chicken, steak, it was a feast for the eyes and stomach. add to that some tasty black beans, white rice, french fries, pico de gallo and you'll have a meal that's worth every penny spent. the waiters come over with fresh skewers of the above mentioned meats and cut it onto your plate until you tap out and can't eat anymore. your waiter will come over towards the end with a very tantalizing dessert platter with a wide variety from which to choose from. needless to say, we were stuffed! we had no room left, so we passed on dessert. most would say that the quality of the food is the selling point of fernandes steakhouse, this is very true. but this also goes without saying that their top notch service and delivery despite being such a busy establish falls nothing short of excellent and impressive.
now on to the fernandes night club right across the street! at the entrance, you're ushered in by very courteous and helpful parking staff. at the door, you're greeted by very respectful and courteous security staff (not no cheap, insecure, steroid charged bouncer). $10 dollars per person at the door that is again, worth every penny. they have live bands playing latin music (cumbia, salsa, merengue, bachata), and the bands and sound equipment just rock! you would think that it's the dj spinning music. i was very impressed with how the bands would sing some of the well known salsa and merengue songs, they sounded just like the original artists. the crowd is a more mature crowd, many of whom were older than me and my girlfriend (i'm 41, she's 35). the setting consists of small 2 seater or 6 seater tables and the place is dimly lit, perfect for the shy dancers or for couples looking to dim the lights for a little romance. very laid back crowd, again, mature group. didn't feel like a pickup spot, people were there for one thing and one thing only, to dance their @sses off! the dance floor is located right in front of the stage and in the center of 3 bars. it was loaded with couples pulling off some impressive dance moves. crowded dance floor, you might bump a little into one or two people dancing, but no hard feelings, everyone is having fun!
my girfriend left at around mid-night and we both agreed that we had the time of our lives. many thanks to the fernandes establishment for making saturday 2/23/2013 a night to remember! we will definitely be back with more friends and for my son's birthday. i can't say enough about this place, keep up the great work!