Axton’s By Chef Anton Testino

Went for lunch and loved it. The shrimp risotto was amazing as well as the chicken parm sandwich. Looking forward to going for dinner.

Have tried Axton’s twice now and want to award a higher rating but just can’t. The food isn’t hitting the mark and that can’t be overcome by nice ambience and BYOB aspect. Service is inconsistent; Fran is great and definitely knows what she is doing but other front end staff don’t seem to get it. The unfortunate reason I’ll never return to or recommend Axton’s is the food.
Food experience had a few positives: Jekyll Hyde calamari was tasty and unique (albeit a little dry), my chicken scampi was pretty good and the homemade bread was good quality. Serving the bread warm would have been a nice touch. Other dishes though were very disappointing including the scallops (no taste), steak special (sent back to be cooked to the requested medium well temp, even after that many portions were still rare) and vegetable pizza (lacking taste, very doughy). We also had a forgettable chicken entrée which lacked in taste.
Finale was desert where we ordered two different crepes (one apple, one strawberry) and waited 20 minutes for the manager to eventfully bring two cold and messy versions of the exact same thing.
The restaurant looks great but sadly has too many misses on the food side to recommend it.

WOW! This is not to be missed. Fantastic from appetizer to main course. Service (Jillian) was top notch and very attentive. BYOB. Huge portions and very well prepared. Just south of thatchers.

Not sure how we missed this gem of a restaurant that was right under our noses for the last several months.
Our food was very good! We had the Caprese salad, Sicilian pie and chicken parmesean. All three were well presented and very tasty and the portions were so large that that doggy bags were a must!!!
Service was great! Jillian was super attentive, polite and went above and beyond to make sure our first experience was a good one and it was.
We will definitely be back!

We recently moved to Ringwood and are so happy to have found this gem in Pompton Lakes. My husband took me here for my birthday and it was just perfect. Our waitress Jillian was just a doll and our service was impeccable. The food was super flavorful. We had the calamari, filet and the grouper from the menu and all were exceptional. Also BYOB which is a plus. We will definitely be back!

Would I go back? Yes! The food here is worth the trip but the service was not impressive except for the very sweet busboy who kept checking us us!
The fresh mozzarella app was wonderful, melt in your mouth house made goodness! They served it with fresh tomato basil and olives. The portion was huge.
My boyfriend liked his cod and I loved my risotto dish. It was enough for three meals! Next time I want to try the pizza.
The service was lacking a bit, the hostess was a young girl who looked frazzled and slammed down our menus on the table and took off. Not a good first impression. Our waitress was nice but when we asked what the specials were she just pointed to a board on the other side of the room that we couldn’t even read!

The jekyl & Hyde calamari is superb! The best I ever had. All the dishes are extremely flavorful. Anton combines all the right spices and flavors together to make every dish mouth watering. This is a five star eating experience!

Meh. Overcrowded, we had to wait a half hour for our 7:45 reservation. Then I had to stand and wait for a chair. Yes a chair. It took a half hour for our waitress to arrive, another 20 minutes to get an ice bucket that only had water. Then our waitress came to take our order again, after we had already given it to her. Food was ok, overrated. It was basically lots of over salted tomato sauce. If you do not like mushrooms you will only have about 3 options. Apparently Anton really really likes mushrooms in everything. It was worth a shot but I wouldn’t go back for overpriced loud and hot for food that was just ok.
One other thing he is way over proud of being yelled at by Gordon ramsey.

We were very excited to try this place but were sadly disappointed.
Service: We made a reservation for 7:15 and were told we would be seated in the covered patio area. We arrived to small tables squished under a couple of umbrellas. Fortunately it stopped raining but definitely expected more coverage for the outside seating.
We were given only one menu for three people to share, until finally we went inside to ask for more. Although they were busy, it seemed as if our own server was too busy for us. We asked someone else for assistance and she said she wasn’t our server and couldn’t help us.
Food: We ordered the Jekyll and Hyde calamari. The sweet/​spicy sauce that is poured over the top was really good, but there wasn’t much of it and many pieces were left plain and dry. I would have asked for a side of sauce if anyone came to check on us before we were done with it.
Fortunately, after the appetizer and a small side salad we were not as hungry, so the super long wait for the entrée wasn’t terrible. My mom and I ordered two different risotto dishes and my dad ordered the skirt steak. The risotto was way undercooked and crunchy. Although the sauces were flavorful, it was really heavy (a lot of cream). The shrimp risotto was greasy (could have been from the bacon but it settled on the top). My dads steak was not cooked to temperature and none of us were really satisfied.
Overall, the portions were huge, and the flavors were good, but the undercooked risotto ruined it for us.
Pricing: Although the portions were good size, we didn’t feel the overall experience was worth the price. We were there for 2 hours and were maybe checked on 2 or 3 times.
I am not sure had it been less busy if it would have been different, but we don’t eat out enough to take a chance on this place again.

Okay this is why im giving them 3 stars.
The waitress sucked, there wasnt wine glasses she made us drink out of small water glasses and she made us get sparkling water to buy (beware)
The calamari was good im not gonna knock it but it shouldnt be tampered with, it wasnt bad just to weird for me.
My boyfriend got rigatoni but it wasnt rigatoni it was penne and had no flavor and sauce was burnt.
I got the «famous chick n scampi meal» hmm i had 2 bites, tasted like mush.
Im not here to bash anyone but come on, at least u can do is have the waitress give us 2 wine glasses and 2 plates to eat our bread on.
I came tonight despite the past reviews but i have to agree with them all.

Beware if people giving low ratings to axtons. Look what they have reviewed and loved. They rate crap chain restaurants and love them. In one word, fantastic. I have been there twice this week alone and both times were phenomenal. Mussels marinara, spedini, and shrimp bisque are some of the best I have ever eaten. A must have. Working on getting a taste of everything on the menu. It might take some time. There is nothing I have eaten there that wasn’t great. Be warned though, bring an appetite I have yet to not take home food. No complaints on that. Remarkably affordable and service was great. It unusual for a restaurant to be open only a month and nail it nearly perfect. Only reason for ⁴⁄₅ stars is that it’s in a strip mall and has drop ceilings, that causes it to lose some of the ambiance. ⁵⁄₅ for food. Go here you won’t be disappointed. This is a great, true Italian restaurant Pompton has been needing. As an update: I have been here 3 times this past week again to try new menu items. All fantastic. I just want to warn you of the few one star reviews. Just look at how many reviews they have done previously and judge the legitimacy of them. It’s sad when competitors write bad reviews because they are afraid of competition.

This place may have just moved up to my top favorite place. Great menu. They have the normal dishes and a little twist on others. The twist is what I look for. I had the filet with risotto. Everyone else had the scallops, chicken parm and steak special. Not many times do we all look at each other and keep saying this is amazing. We knew it was going to be good when we walked in and everyone leaving was telling the waitress it was so good. Can’t wait to go back and try the interesting pizzas they have. Please don’t change the menu hahah and please keep making food that brings a smile to everyone’s face. Axton should be very proud of his father.

In spite of the mixed reviews we gave Axton’s a try and had a great time. The attractive layout with an open kitchen and oil bar give the space a casual and kind of bistro feel. We were promptly seated and the server was very sweet and helpful. A loaf of home made bread was hot and fresh. The entrees come with a very nice salad that had a sweet and tangy balsamic dressing. My wife enjoyed the shrimp over risotto and loved the herbs and seasonings. I had the sword fish special which was over artichokes and kale? with mango, amazing. The portions were large and beautifully presented. A lovely crêpe served as a cannoli was perfect. Prices are in line for this level of quality and service.
Very glad we gave Axton’s a shot and we will return.
Richard

This place is fantastic! You get served delicious, warm bread and the bread is probably the best bread I’ve ever had. I went with two other people and everyone enjoyed their meals. I got the shrimp risotto, which was OUT OF THIS WORLD! It was the best meal I’ve had in a very long time. The other people I was with had the filet mignon special and the scallops, which were both delicious! Service was good, everything came out in a timely manner and Chef Anton came over and was very hospitable and wanted to make sure everything came out to our liking. The place is also a BYOB, a huge plus! Overall, I definitely plan on returning very soon! I would absolutely recommend this place. I can’t wait to try the other options on the menu.

My fiancé and I went Axton’s a few weeks ago for our 6 year anniversary. We were both equally excited to try a new restaurant. Anton Testino, the chef, worked with the famous Gordan Ramsay, handled his own in Hell’s Kitchen and Chopped, so I was jumping for joy to be able to enjoy the food prepared by someone with such talent.
We arrived at the restaurant early and were promptly seated. The ambiance inside is beautiful with faint lighting, neutral colors, and an atmosphere that could appeal to romantic and casual diners alike. The open kitchen was also a nice touch.
The service was great. The bus boy was fantastic and attentive, and the dining room attendant was very friendly, caring and attentive as well.
We were served bread with olive oil and balsamic while we reviewed the menu. The bread was nice and airy, however it wasn’t warmed which took away from what could have been something great.
Being eager to try our favorite dishes from the menu, we quickly ordered our appetizers and meals. We started with the Spiedini, which is in all of its glory, a fried Italian and mozzarella cheese sandwich covered in a lemon caper, sherry wine and anchovy sauce. The Spiedini was a bit too oily for our liking and the inside was warm but not hot. Unfortunately this appetizer was more like an oily slab of bread with cheese inside rather than a delicious crusted Italian bread pan seared and baked to perfection. The saving grace of this appetizer was the sauce. The sauce was absolutely fantastic and I was hard pressed not to spoon it off of the plate by itself.
We ordered our entrees which came with a salad, but I opted for the Stracciatella soup instead. I ordered the Shrimp Risotto and my fiancé ordered the Skirt Steak Bistecca. The Stracciatella was phenomenal! The eggs inside the soup were poached to perfection with a velvety and creamy center similar to the texture of custard. The broth was warm and had an amazing bitterness to it that was balanced by the slight saltiness in the broth. I kept eating bits of the spinach and tasting the broth with the bread and mixing bites until the entire bowl was empty, and I was so sad to see it gone.
The Skirt Steak Bistecca was served with sautéed onions, garlic and capers and sauce. Accompanying it was a Portobello mushroom, roasted cherry tomato risotto in a lemon sherry wine sauce. The steak was ordered medium-​rare, but came out medium-​well to well-​done. It was a shame because my fiancé ordered it knowing how tasty a skirt steak is when cooked perfectly but this wound up being chewy and dry. When we received the bill we recognized that it was at the fault of the server, who put the order in as medium.
The Shrimp Risotto was prepared with caramelized shallots, shitake mushrooms, diced shrimp, smoked bacon, and roasted cherry tomatoes in a Marsala wine sauce. The dish was topped with grilled asparagus, MORE bacon and seared shrimp. Now before I continue, I would like to say that I love salt, and it is extremely rare that I deem something as too salty. This dish was too salty for this lover of salt and luckily I politely declined the server asking me if I wanted parmesan cheese prior to actually tasting the dish. To my surprise the only flavors of the dish were salt, bacon, bacon and more bacon. The bacon flavor overpowered everything else and I was hard pressed to find any tomatoes in my risotto. I took two or three bites from the risotto and couldn’t bear to eat it any longer. I wound up rummaging through the bowl and found literally a palm full of fairly large bacon slices, and some that may have just been torn up through the cooking process, and I’d have to say there was about ¹⁄₃ bacon to everything else in the risotto. I was so disappointed in this dish. I was surprised that the server didn’t care to ask why I didn’t touch my risotto or want it wrapped, especially since the bites I took were so tiny.
We finished with a vanilla gelato which was delicious. The texture of the gelato was a bit off, reminiscent of the frozen edges of ice cream in the fridge that has been in there for too long, but the perfect amount of sweet so overall we were satisfied with the outcome.
The total bill only wound up being $ 75.97 without tip so the prices were very reasonable for the portions. However, there seems to be too much done at times and the additions to dishes or sides were extremely heavy handed without much quality control by the chef through tasting the dishes before they were served. I had high expectations going in that were not quite met. I will visit Axton’s again and give them another shot.

We went there for a nice birthday dinner and wanted to try a new place. Apparently they haven’t got their shit together yet. It took roughly 35 minutes to get our appetizers out, but only because I had to pull aside one of the waitresses, and when she brought them over, she admitted that they were just sitting there for the past 10 minutes. We were pretty hungry at that point, so we just ate them. Then another 20 minutes had to pass before our salads that came with out entrees came out. About another 20 minutes later, we asked them where our entrees were. There were already 2 other parties who had come in after us, and were already done with their dinner.
At this point we were done waiting for our meal and wanted to know why it was taking so long. We asked the waitress to get the manager, who apparently is also the head chef (which shouldn’t be the case. In any good restaurant you have a manager). So it’s Chef Anton Testino, and he comes to our table, looks us all over, and says «Yes?» as if we were bothering him. Any good manager, or chef, would begin by apologizing to his patrons and asking what he can do to make the situation better. Not this asshole. He comes out like WE’RE the ones wasting HIS time.
So we tell him what happened and he starts to make excuses like, «We’re short staffed tonight.» That’s not our problem. If you’re short staffed and can’t serve your customers, then you close the restaurant for that night. The next excuse was how long our order was in. He said that it’s been 53 minutes since the ticket was submitted, and wanted to argue with us about it and bring it out as proof. First of all, it was 90 minutes since we ordered, so the waitress fucked up by not putting it in on time, and second, even if we forgave that, how is 53 minutes a reasonable amount of time to wait for an entrée? He continued to argue with my mother on her birthday, which we explained that all we wanted was a nice birthday dinner for her, and he starts to talk down to her like a fucking dick.
After realizing that Chef Testino was one of those asshats who always needs to be right, we just said to give us our bill for what we ate and we were going to leave. Only then did he say, you know what, I’ll do you a favor, you don’t have to pay. Wow, Chef, what a guy. This place has been open for only 2 months, and I assume it’ll be gone in another 2.
Avoid this place at all costs. If you have any complaints, the Chef will come out and argue with you instead of trying to make it right.

Went here Saturday, after trying to get a reservation for 3 weeks. The appetizers were «good» not wonderful but good. There were 4 of us and we shared calamari, mussels and spedini. The calamari that everyone raves about was our least favorite. We all had a pasta for dinner and they were awesome. Each one of us brought home half for the next day so I can say the portions were huge. The men had the cannoli crepes for dessert and loved them. The service was good. Prices are a little high. My only two complaints were trying to get a reservation was like pulling teeth, they need to get it together at the front desk. They accidentally hung up on me, one woman told me I had a reservation than another called me back asking if I was trying to make one… The other thing I didn’t like was the open kitchen. Everyone seems to rave about that but after we ate having all of the smells and smoke coming from the kitchen made a couple of us nauseous. I would go back but ask for a table in the back and see if the kitchen smells bothered me less.

Yet again another incredible meal! I have been to this restaurant multiple times over the past few months and they never fail to disappoint. Chef Anton greets each family at their table, bringing this restaurant a professional family vibe! My personal favorite is the shrimp risotto, no questions asked! Everything on the menu is exquisite. So happy to have found such a great restaurant!

FABULOUS!!! Have been to Axton’s many times and have had nothing short of an amazing experience every time. The environment is inviting and comfortable, the open kitchen is one of a kind and the food is incredible. Chef Anton is a world renown chef, his experiences on Hells Kitchen and Chopped are clearly reflected in the food in both presentation and taste. I HIGHLY recommend Axton’s and will be back soon and frequently!

What a disaster! Chef Testino was an a-​hole. I could easily go into a long rant detailing the ridiculously negative experience we had here tonight, but it boils down to this — get your front of house in order!!! I can’t comment on the food, bc after 90 min all we had were bread, salads, a sad clams casino app and a mediocre caprese app. Chef Anton, learn how to speak to people and run a business. So rude and unprofessional. This small restaurant was not packed, so short staffed is not an excuse. And any successful business person will advise — don’t make excuses, fix the problem and don’t behave like a jerk.

Great find in Pompton Lakes. Tonight I had the opportunity to visit this excellent addition to Pompton and wasn’t disappointed. It’s BYOB which is always a plus. Made reservations on Tuesday for the Friday evening dinner.
We stated with the Jekyll and Hyde Calamari for appetizer. Calamari was cooked perfect, but I’d prefer less sauce as it overwhelmed the Calamari. Fortunately, this was my only part of my meal I was unsatisfied with. The fresh bread was on point and tasty. Our meals came with house salad and balsamic vinaigrette dressing. No complaints!
Main course. The wife ordered the Pamela which was excellent. Lots of flavor! I had the Grouper which was cooked to perfection. The risotto under the Grouper was cooked to with lots of flavor and the assorted vegs of artichoke, carrots, broccoli was cooked a delight!
Overall, I’ll be returning to Axtons and looking forward to ordering the scallops or seafood marechiara.

Great find in Pompton Lakes. Tonight I had the opportunity to visit this excellent addition to Pompton and wasn’t disappointed. It’s BYOB which is always a plus. Made reservations on Tuesday for the Friday evening dinner.
We stated with the Jekyll and Hyde Calamari for appetizer. Calamari was cooked perfect, but I’d prefer less sauce as it overwhelmed the Calamari. Fortunately, this was the only part of my meal I was unsatisfied with. The fresh bread was on point and tasty. Our meals came with house salad and balsamic vinaigrette dressing. No complaints!
Main course. The wife ordered the Pamela which was excellent. Lots of flavor! I had the Grouper which was cooked to perfection. The risotto under the Grouper had lots of flavor and the assorted vegs of artichoke, carrots, broccoli was cooked a delight!
Overall, I’ll be returning to Axtons and looking forward to ordering the scallops or seafood marechiara.

Last week I heard about this new addition to Pompton Lakes by a neighbor and me, along with a party of five decided to go for dinner.
I had never seen reality television’s Hell’s Kitchen or the episodes of Chopped that featured Chef Anton Testino, so I went with an open mind. Being a «foodie», I am always interested in trying new and innovative dishes and the raspy voiced tattooed restaurateur did not disappoint. This is one of the best new restaurants to come along in years.
Our table started out with two types of calamari, traditional Italian with a marinara sauce and Jekyll & Hyde, which is tossed in a sweet apple balsamic glaze topped with slivered almonds. As the traditional selection was what I expected, crispy yet tender, the J&H version knocked my sock off! AMAZING BITE. The clams casino were perfectly seasoned and tender with savory bacon and tart lemon. My choice for entrée was filet Mignon, port wine balsamic with bacon and mozzarella. (Risotto, asparagus and the sweet mashed potato accompanied with the filet.) The sauce was a perfect compliment to the tender beef (mine was done «Black and Blue» style, seared dark on the outside with a bright crimson interior).
Dessert was an excellent lemon tiramisu.
The restaurant (BYOB) which is tastefully designed with an open kitchen motif was a bit understaffed, but perhaps they were not prepared for such a crowd on a Wednesday night.
I hope to have many future meals at Axton’s but you can bet I will always start with Jekyll & Hyde.
4*s
BYOB
Prices: Reasonable
Closed: Tuesday
Crowd: More adult (GET A SITTER!!!)
PS-​I went back for lunch today with a good friend With the J&H calamari as our appetizer, my friend ordered the chicken Caesar, which looked amazing, while I had the delicious crispy «Donna’s Famous Sicilian» personal pizza. Let me say, Anton’s portions in general are humongous. It may have been a personal pizza if you were Oprah Winfrey, but it can literally feed four people with a side salad or appetizer.
Note: This pizza has a lot of mozzarella, almost like if you ordered extra cheese, so keep that in mind.
Hint: If you like the top browned, ask for it more well done.

Had dinner here last night and it was fantastic. The bread served was thick, soft, and seemed homemade and was served with some of the best olive oil I’ve ever had. Clams casino appetizer was fresh and delicious, the caesar salad was authentic and the filet mignon in demi glaze with mushrooms and onions served with risotto was amazing.
I’m not a sweets person and rarely have dessert out but the rest of the meal was so good I had to try the chocolate fondant cake — it was excellent.

What a great new restaurant! We love BYO places to begin with, but add the delicious food and wonderful service, and Axton’s is sure to be a BIG hit. I made reservations a week ago and due to a large party there at 7:00, our reservation for 6 people was at 8:00. We were seated by 8:15 and immediately water and yummy crusty bread with dipping oil was brought to the table. There’s a small silver bucket on each table for everyone to deposit their cell phones. If no one touches them throughout the evening, the restaurant donates $ 1 to charity. Even those of us most addicted to our electronics left them alone for the night, and all commented how great it was to not be distracted.
Although it was a busy night there, our server Katie never rushed us. We each ordered an entrée that came with a house salad. Mixed greens, chopped tomatoes and green olives perfectly dressed with one of three dressing choices.
My husband and I were the only ones who ordered the same entrée — grouper. Perfectly cooked, served on top of delicious risotto with artichokes and broccoli. One friend ordered a scallop dish that was presented so beautifully I wanted a photo of it. I’m definitely ordering that next time. Everyone raved about their meals.
We ordered cappuccinos and espressos and two desserts to share. I didn’t try the chocolate mousse cake or the cannoli crepes, but everyone said they were fantastic.
We met Chef Anton and his awesome mom, Fran on our way out. The excellent customer service we received is obviously a reflection of them.
Our friends live close to the restaurant, we’re only 45 minutes away and can’t wait to go back!

Best food I’ve had in a long time. I will go back again and again! Our service was great. Katie was very pleasant and attentive. Can’t say how munch I enjoyed this!

My wife and I finally got a chance to eat here a little while back when we went for lunch. Food is phenomenal. She got one of the best looking chicken caesar salad’s I’ve ever seen and I had the sweet mango pork sandwich with sweet potato fries. The pork wasn’t ready yet since they were closed yesterday, so it was substituted for steak, which was more than fine. Excellent sandwich. The fries were very crispy without being overcooked, which can be tricky sometimes with sweet potato.
The interior really is modern and relaxing, as nice as it looks in the photos.
We just tried to get in on Saturday and called Friday evening for a reservation and they were booked. We were told that we should call on Wednesday. We were disappointed, but only because we were looking forward to eating there again for dinner. We just have to plan ahead next time.
I hope this place does really well for itself in Pompton Lakes.

I came here for dinner with my mom. I had very high expectations for this place and they did not disappoint. I love the open kitchen. Chef Anton makes sure to say hi and chat with all of his customers even as he is cooking. The food was amazing. I like how it’s not your typical Italian restaurant. They have your normal Italian dishes, but they also have things that you won’t find at other restaurants like risotto based dishes. I will definitely be back. (We had the apple mango salad and the shrimp and chicken risotto and it was perfect.)

Our dinner started with warm homemade Italian bread. Appetizers like Jekyl&Hyde, Long hot peppers, mussels marinara, & speidini were all incredible! Dinner was even more impressive, huge scallops over risotto, chicken pamela & parmesan as well as shrimp & scallop over lunguini fra diovalo style! The portions for apps & dinners are extremely generous. Everything was amazing! We will definitely be back very soon!

We decided to go here for a girls night and we were not disappointed. The staff was warm and friendly and the open kitchen is so cool. I also love a restaurant that is BYOB and does not have a corking fee. We were told about Chef Anton’s challenge to put your cell phones in a bucket on the table so you can enjoy the company and not be on your phone the whole time. He makes a donation to charity for every table.
We ordered the crab cakes as an appetizer and were not disappointed. They were so flavorful and delicious. The bread that comes to the table is also not to be missed. We all ordered different entrees and everybody’s looked amazing! I had the seafood marechiara and enjoyed every bite. I will definitely be back again with my husband for a date night!

I am a professional chef as well… so anyone who undertakes the monumental endeavor of opening a restaurant has my absolute and complete respect. Opening a restaurant is the greatest leap of faith any chef can ever undertake!!!
I decided to celebrate my son’s BD with a 5:30 reservation on a Saturday night at 6 week old Axton restaurant in Pompton Lakes-​you can observe a lot more at 5:30 than you can at the height of dinner service 7:30 — 9:30. Our server was wonderful what she lacked in skill she made up in personality — I would choose happy and unpolished service over flawless and rude any day!!! As Axton is a BYOB we brought a bottle of chilled champagne to start with and 2 bottles of chilled white for dinner– none were put in a wine chiller– bucket or in the fridge during the entire service – I also did not see any other table with chilled wine service so maybe floor stand wine buckets are forthcoming.
One of the first things I ever had that Chef Anton made years ago was his mussels in green sauce– still to this day one of my favorite restaurant meals!!!
Tonight however — dinner was good — but just good– sadly nothing really amazing – portions are enormous — actually too large– calamari appetizer was tough and chewy — spiedini — too much bread not enough cheese-​egg batter or sauce– crab cake on toast points– cakes were more like the consistency of a hot dip rather than a crab cake you can pick up… but everything had good flavor and was served hot.
We ordered 4 entrée’s and each plate had enough food on it to serve at least 3 adults.
My dad loved his scallop entrée — beautiful, large, dry not wet sea scallops– chicken parm –truly enough for 4 — lasagna with a side order of meatballs declared delicious by our selective eater and the chicken scampi risotto — fine but not one of the best 5 chicken dished in NJ. Again all good but nothing I CAN’T wait to come back and eat again.
Dessert — chocolate fondant cake was good but too perfect seemed like a frozen Restaurant Depot cake and cannoli crêpe was actually the only thing that was not good at all– crêpe had no butter– sugar — pan browned flavor, tasted like raw pancake batter.
The restaurant is really quite nice inside– warm welcoming atmosphere on a chilly winter night– hostess was lovely, charming– well thought out guest to staff ratio– never had to wait to have a glass or dish removed from the table– the restaurant is small — maybe 14 tables– but there is just the right amount of space so that your table is not right on top of your co-​diners table– floor plan was also well planned.
Nice local restaurant, great staff, would come back — fun, casual place for a girls night — BYOB –skip apps and dessert –split an entrée.

What a disappointment, the food was mediocre & the service was lacking… We will not be returning…

Everything was really good. Try any of the risottos! Service was excellent as well and Anton spent some time with us chatting. Good luck man!

My family ate at Axton’s for Christmas Eve and it will be a tradition for the coming years. The food was amazing. It’s obvious that the chef and staff put great care in every aspect of their food. The seafood is incredibly fresh and the pasta is wonderfully homemade. I would recommend Axton’s to anyone.

My friends & I stopped here for dinner tonight. We were amazed at the transformation of the actual space. It’s truly beautiful. It’s no longer a dark, dingy pizza joint.
We were provided delicious bread with balsamic vinegar & olive oil. I could’ve ate just that!
I had the salmon with risotto which was fantastic. My friends had the scallops and capellini. Both were delicious. I wish I had ordered the scallops though. They were sweet and tender.
I would highly recommend Axton’s.

First off, the wait staff is very delightful, attentive and accommodating. My gf and i made a reservation to sit at the counter, we were 10 mins early and were sat with no wait. What an awesome experience. Never thought one of those tv chef personalities would be so humble, friendly and accepting. We brought two bottles of wine (its byob) and received an ice bucket and glasses immediately. We were asked if we wanted to put our cell phones in a bucket to not only enjoy our date but the chef also donates money to charity for each phone placed as so. We glaldy accepted. Then we got the complimentary house baked bread with oil and balsamic Mediterranean herb infused vinegar… i would go back for that alone. Then chef Anton made us feel like family. We asked about his ingredients and influences, which he was more than happy to share, wich led into more personal stories of friends and family. From then on my gf and i were in a great mood. Our cell phones were out of reach and we enjoyed a good old fashioned date night, with the entertainment of our selves and the kitchen staff. It felt great to be facebook and instagram free for the night and create real friendships with new people. Then the appetizers arrived. Clams casino and jekyl an hyde calamari. If youre still sitting home reading this. Get up and go to Axtons now! Incredible flavors, cooked perfectly like you’ve never had before. Amazing spin on classic dishes. We were more than happy with our portions and almost full at this point. One problem tho. EVERTYTHING ON THE MENU SOUNDS INCREDIBLE! So we pushed our selves to split two dinners. Chicken pamela and seafood marechiara. I wont go into detail bc you need to live for yourself. I will say one thing, if you decide to give this place a shot, there’s a great chance you’ll see my gf and I in there chowing down next to you. I’ve been using Unilocal for about 3 years and i have never written a review. That is how strongly i believe in this restaurant. Best food in Pompton Lakes, maybe even North Jersey, by a landslide. Total gem!