Inexpensive meal with a below average beer selection and attentive service.
The ribs are not real deal BBQ. They are obviously parboiled prior to whatever cooking technique they use to finish them. While they lack that true flavor they are well seasoned and fall off the bone tender.
The bar food is pretty good, especially their onion rings.
It's a nice local establishment where many an off duty cop or fireman hang out, where you can get some inexpensive eats that are just about good enough.
This place is a typical dive pub....but it is one of my favorite places on earth. I love it! The food is awesome....of course the ribs, but friday night specials are awesome! I have literally never eaten a bad thing there...ever! Everyone who works there is nice. Do not expect frills or ambience....but do expect a good meal. I will always go back to this place!
Review Source:Moving around the corner from Obal's was one of the best things to ever happen to me. It has everything you want from a neighborhood bar: it's cozy, the drinks are tall and cheap, the food is great, the staff is super friendly, there are old photos of boxers and Yankees and the Three Stooges, and they have pool, darts and free shuffle board. If there are any other requirements I've not heard them.
Review Source:When I was a young guido living in Bloomfield, I loved loitering on Broad st.
There was so much ish to do...liftin mad weights at World of Fitness (while droolin from the smell of McDonalds next to it), chowin down on Gencarelli's "gahnolis" across the street, chillin with mah asian peeps at Brookside Thai, eatin pizza at Parkside and Vinnie's with mah guidette gfs...and gettin ripped at Obal's Inn.
The deelish, inexpensive ribs are the draw but hangin and bullshittin with the elderly Bloomfield residents...that was just gold.
Every time I came here, I heard this line from the born-n-raised-old-ass-patrons, "kid, when I grew up here, there were no blacks, hispanics and none-a-you gooks"....WTF, I'm Asitalian!
I love those vietnam vets.
Checked this place out tonite w Roger B. and a friend. Â Roger has been mentioning checking this place out for rib night for a few weeks now, and with the bulk of the holidays past us, and a friend wanting to get some time out, I gave in.
This place is not much from the outside, I'd think it was just a bar if I wasn't told otherwise. Â Upon walking in, as others have pointed out, it is a little divey, and anybody who follows my reviews knows I am down for divey, but prefer ethnic divey. Â This is a small local place, more bar then restaurant.....but joints like this can almost always be counted on for some good quick grub n eats at a good deal......and in that respect they delivered.
Its got a small bar with booths down the side and a back dining room, it seemed to be a seat yourself affair, so we did just that.
We pretty much knew what we were gonna order before going in. Â We started with an order of wings with the teriyaki honey garlic sauce. Â The wings were good. Â Nice and crunchy and the sauce was pretty tasty.
Roger and I each went with the rib special ($9.95 each). Â The special included a nice meaty half rack with fries. Â I opted to order mine with sweet potato fries with horseradish sauce, and Roger for onion rings (extra charge). Â Our friend went with an order of stuffed mushrooms and a bacon cheeseburger w set potato fries. Â Â The ribs, as described, were very tender. Â For the price they we're a great deal....pretty meaty, nice size. Â The sauce was OK, nothing special, but not bad. Â Altho they were very tender and fall off the bone, the edges were a bit dry. Â If they were just a little more moist this would be a solid thing for us and be going on our list of regular places........moist ribs is a must, its a shame to have a good sauce and so tender, but dry. Â Both of the orders. Â I'd def try them again tho to make sure it wasn't a fluke,
Our friend seemed to enjoy his shrooms (a no try for me due to allergy). Â His burger seemed cooked to his liking.
The onion rings were really good beer batter, and a nice mix with the horseradish sauce. Â The sweet potato fries in Roger and It's opinion were great. Â Well done and VERY crispy, which makes all the difference to us, nothing is more offensive when it comes to fries then soggy sweets. Â Our friend however, isn't so into well done fries........his loss. Â Lol. Â I've never had sweet pot fries w horseradish mayo before. Â It was very spicy. Â The mix was GREAT, and is gonna be something I always want with them from now on. Â As I said before, it went great w the onion rings too.
I also had a Guinness. Â The pour was perfect, and it seemed to be nitro tap. Â They had a few craft ales on tap too, nothing that caught my eye tho.
Service was very good and attentive. Â Very friendly, even if a tad slow bringing the check, the girl was great on refills.
All over all, Roger and I are down to come back and try more stuff out......give the ribs another try. Â I'd also like to try that cheeseburger with the horseradish sauce (I do LOVE me some good horseradish sauce. Â Its a serious addiction and I need help ;) ). Â If your down for a quick burger and beer, check this place out. Â If your down for a great deal on some ribs, check this place out.
After doing a search for some quality rib joints in the northern nj region I kept coming across the baby back ribs at Obal Inn.
Obal is a neighborhood bar, think Cheers, with a large local following.
They have about two craft beers on tap, with mostly your typical big brew offerings. Not really my kind of place to grab a beer, but that is because I usually go for micro brews.
Obal is known for their rib night, offered only two nights a week. Wednesday and Thursdys.
I have been looking to try Obal's fo close to six months now and finnally made the trek with two amigos, Adam M. And our friend Jay.
Adam and me specifically made the trek to try these renowned ribs Jay decided to go with their bacon cheeseburger.
We started our adventure with some wings and decided to go with the teriyaki honey garlic wings which were really really good, kinda reminded me of a saucier version of KFC, Koren Fried chicken wings.
They had a really balanced flavor of savoy and sweet. A bit saucey yet the wings were really crispy and meaty.
Adam and me both ordered a rack as I Mentioned earlier, which is priced really well at $9.95 a plate. Each rack is a bit bigger then a half rack, yet very meaty.
The ribs were pretty tender, yet I found the ribs on the end and ESP on one side being extremely dry. To dry for my taste.
I did not find the sauce to be anything special either, but then again I have been spoiled by the sauces from Baileys smoke house, Houton's in Hackensck, Bistro 55 in Rochelle Park, RUB in the city and Dinosaur BBQ.
The fact the ribs were pretty dry and over cooked throughout half the ribs and the sauce tasting more of ketchup then anything I give the ribs a two out of 5. I will probably get heat for the low rating on the ribs, but there is no reason why the bid should have been so dry. The reason why I believe is as I read in other reviews is BC they prepare the ribs on Wed, and finish off selling the ribs on thursdy from what they cooked from the day before. My second criteria is the sauce, it's ok, kind of reminded me of the sauce from Jim dandys, very ketchup centric. If that's your thing you will like this somewhat tangy sauce.
The ribs lack any form of smokiness, as I believe the ribs are first boiled or braised. They are then finished over a grill.
Perhaps they are less dry on Wednesday. They were not bad, but def not the greatest I have had and did not blow me away. My fav nj ribs still have to be Houton's although its not the biggest rack, they are super tender and just amazingly fall off the bone goodness, but they are horribly expensive over $30 for rack.
My next stop for ribs is the wood pit down the street on Bloomfield ave in Montclair where they smoke their ribs in applewood and said to have amazing homemade sauce.
Jay's burger looked pretty good had what looked like a nice char and would be something I would opt to try next time I stopped by here again.
I opted for onion rings for my side, the beer battered variety, not bad, run of the mill o rings, Adam went with the sweet potatoe fries, which looked to be hand cut. Fried to a nice crisp and served with horseradish sauce. I liked.
Service was very friendly nd reliable.
Would I recommend Obal? Yes, def check them out, they have better quality bar eats. As Pete Genovesse from the Star Ledger states, "it's like Cheers with good food".
If you want to go to try the ribs I suggest trying it on a Wednesday night, likely they are more fresh and less dry.
Otherwise depend on great wings, burgers and great pour of Guinness any night of the week.
Overall a decent local hangout with friendly service, a couple craft brews on tap and good ribs. You can't have an Obal's Inn review without mentioning rib night!
Upon entering, you're immediately greeted by a Ms Pac Man machine and Mega Touch. Bar and 3 flat screens on one side - showing Jeopardy when possible. These guys sure love their Jeopardy. Booths on the opposite wall. The decor is your typical outdated local bar.
I haven't been here since rib night was all you can eat. Back then they boiled the ribs. At least it tasted like it.
Things have certainly changed since. The baby back ribs were prepared nicely. Falling off the bone after the slightest pull. Ketchup based sauce had a sweet tang to it and was nicely charred at various points. Some smoke would have been perfect.
The shoe string fries were overcooked and the coleslaw was a bit too sweet.
The waitress was real nice. It was actually her first night. She did well. My friend George is actually in love with her already. That means more visits - most likely on rib night.
Stopped in here on Thanksgiving afternoon after the big Montclair/Bloomfield football game(Montclair won 14-7 but they could be meeting again in three weeks for the championship) this bit of football info is relevant because we are Montclair peeps walking into the only bar open and it's in Bloomfield... Very much a neighborhood. "joint" - everyone turns to see who is coming thru the door but we  did feel very welcome.... Pool table, darts and tabletop bowling in the back, Internet jukebox.....there is a decent selection of beers on tap and bottles, the kitchen wasn't open for obvious reasons, but it usually serves the typical pub grub, except on Wednesday and Thursday when it's RIB night....YOU MUST NOT MISS THIS... The meat falls off the bone before its barely off the plate
Review Source:Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night! Rib Night!
They have a rib night here. Â They are the best ribs in the area. Â And they are cheap.
Our first time in here, the volume was up on the TV and Jeopardy was on. Â And people were shouting out answers when they knew the answer. Â Are you getting the flavor yet?
Outside it boasts of being a craft beer bar. Â If you consider Sam Adams and Sierra Nevada to be craft.. then you will not be disappointed!
There's also rib night. Â Not sure if I mentioned that. Â It's Wednesday and Thursday. Â When I used to swim laps at the gym next door, I could smell them cooking through the window. Â Teasin me just like Tisha did Martin.
I've been here well over a dozen times and for one reason only: the $10 baby back ribs on Wednesday night. Â They run the special on Wednesday and Thursday, but go on Wednesday. Â The ribs tend to be a little more dry on Thursday.
The service has always been friendly, although they seem to only have one server on Wed. and Thurs. nights so if the place is packed for ribs (which I've only seen once or twice) be prepared to wait a little.
As for what to get with the ribs: sweet potato fries.
SHUFFLE. BOARD.
Ribs are good... but what's really good about Obal's?! Â After Montclair closes shop on Sundays, at midnight, head down to Bloomfield - the bars stay open til 2 AM. Â That's right bitches. Â Clifton stays open til three.. but I honestly hate driving to Clifton late night, it's a total pork fest.. (not like Bloomfield is any better, and I certainly do NOT condone drinking and driving)... so yeah, I just prefer to go down the hill - it's a 3 minute drive, as opposed to 10 minutes.. whatever.
Anyway!! Obal's is the shiizz to my izzz, the food is decent to good, depending on the night of the week.. but really, the bartenders are the best. Â Best, best, best. Â They are good ladies/guys. Â Travis is the man.
Draft selection isn't bad - there are maybe 12 selections, 5 of which rotate seasonally. Â Plus drink specials are pretty decent... usually PBR or Bud or something is discounted, depending on the night of the week.
Back area, back parking lot? Â You smoke cigs there. Â Yeah, don't do anything else, like bring your beer.. you will get spanked.
McDonald's is next door.... it's one of the worst in the world, so be prepared. Â You can bring your filthy fast food in and sit at the bar with it if their kitchen closes early / it's mad late and you're piss drunk.
Yeah. Â Go here.
Love Obals! We tried the restaurant week menu and it was amazing. First course I had the Thanksgiving soup which tasted like Turkey dinner in a bowl, so yummy! I had the garlic shrimp 2nd and the Ribs for my entree. The shrimp was delicious and seasoned perfectly. The ribs were amazing! Perfectly cooked and tender so the meat fall right off the bone! Keith is a genius with those ribs! As always the staff is very friendly and welcoming! Will be back every Thursday for those ribs!
Review Source:Remarkably delicious ribs, prompt gracious service, friendly atmosphere, low low prices. Â I love Obal's Inn! Â I've had some other items off the menu as well, and everything's good. Â But the ribs really really stand out!! Â Decent beer selections (but, Obal's, if you're reading this - please please please get Smithwick's on tap! Â It's the only thing that's keeping me from giving you that fifth star!!)
Definitely recommended.
Went here on a Wed night around 7 for ribs. Not too busy for a rib night. Bar was a little busier than the tables. Had a few brews ahead of the food which were decently priced. We were also able to sit outside whiich was nice.
We started with the buffalo and teriyaki wings. Both were delicious. We all got the ribs most of us with sweet potato frys. REALLLLLY good. The ribs were generous and really meaty. The meat fell off the bone. Really good. The frys were also delicious. They were the crispy kind of sweet potato frys, not the floppy ones.
The service was great and very personable. The place is a little divey, but it gives it some charm. I would definitely go again and will bring others with me.
Love Obal's Inn. Â Went there on Wednesday night. My husband had the ribs which they only serve on Wednesdays and Thursdays. He said that they were pretty good. Â A big portion of ribs served with a big pile of crinkle fries for $9.95. Awesome deal. Â I had the cajun chicken sandwich which was really good, Â The waitress was so super friendly. Â Miller lite on tap was $3. Can't beat that.
Review Source:i only go for the ribs on wed and thurs thats the  only days they make them. it's a secret recipe, and the best ribs in jersey, which isn't sayin much. get the " sun sticks" instead of fries if you like sweet potatoes. it a classic dive, with picnic benches in the back room for crowds on rib nights.  now has Guinness on tap!!!
Review Source:
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