Tony Roma's- Palisades Center West Nyack NY Review

The Palisades Center, the tenth largest mall in America, now has added Tony Roma’s to its impressive restaurant repertoire that includes a Cheesecake Factory, T.G.I. Friday’s, Chili’s, Outback Steakhouse, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dave and Buster’s, amongst others. The space that Tony Roma’s occupies was formerly a Legal Sea Foods.

The space feels very similar in architecture and design to its mall restaurant brethren, the Cheesecake Factory. The greatest difference, however, is that towards the outer edge of the restaurant closer to the mall, it is not enclosed, and completely visible to the passerby. The ambiance is similar to that of a casual sports bar, replete with a bar surrounded by multiple large televisions tuned to various channels of ESPN.

The menu offerings are impressive and diverse—there are many options to choose from, yet ribs are the brand’s mainstay. A lingering sense of familiarity was clarified when I discovered that a Tony Roma’s branch in Aruba was a popular destination of my family when vacationing. However, it must be duly noted that this is a menu that is not for the health-conscious, and is perfect for wrecking a well-executed diet plan. There are no low-calorie offerings, no low-calorie salad dressings, and nothing that really screams “healthful.” That being said, I skipped breakfast in preparation for a high calorie, high sodium, high fat lunch—I hope that my young body and metabolism can handle it.

After much deliberation, I settled on what was apparently my top choice in my much younger Aruba glory days, a full slab of the Original Baby Back Ribs with Tony Roma’s Original Barbeque Sauce, with a side of steamed broccoli (Who said this would be a wholly unhealthy meal?) and French fries (Okay maybe it will be). Ribs are offered in three sizes—a half slab (six ribs), a Roma Rack (nine ribs), and a full slab (twelve ribs), and mathematically-speaking, it is to your advantage to up the ante to a complete dozen.

On a scale of one to five, zero being a low score and five being a high score, we rated our experience on an index that includes:

• Flavor
• Value
• Intangibles
• Overall Recommendation.

Flavor—4/5: “Tony Roma’s Original Barbeque Sauce is absolutely and undeniably delicious—tangy, yet with a sweet and smokey undertone—perfect for ribs. It practically reaches back into the recesses of my mind and brings me back to the dim-light restaurant location in Aruba. The pork ribs are tender, and seemingly fall off the bone readily. On one outer quarter set, the ribs are slightly overcooked, and burned to a crispy top, but this does not compromise the quality of the dish as a whole. Broccoli is solid, standard fare, and the fries are overwhelmingly salty, but who is really taking notice when it is the ribs that steal the show?”

Value—3.5/5: “Ribs are the greatest offering at Tony Roma’s, however, neither the Roma Rack nor the full slab are without a moderately hefty price tag, running you approximately between $20 and $25, depending on the specific location. However, for the rib connoisseurs of the world, this is the only way to go, and a mostly stellar rack of ribs rewards its beholder greatly.”

Intangibles—3.5/5: “This is obviously a recently opened location, so it is forgivable that the staff, which is presumably new, is not yet completely settled or familiarized with all the nuances of Tony Roma’s menu. Service was largely attentive and relatively smooth; I suspect that it was in fact the ribs that took the longest to prepare and to cook. Despite being a somewhat busy day, we were seated promptly, and on our way to the glorious ribs.”

Overall Recommendation—4/5: “If you don’t mind shelling out a few dollars, and you have an insatiable hankering for some awesome barbeque ribs, then don’t hesitate to give Tony Roma’s a chance if you find yourself at the Palisades Center, especially if you feel like you have tried everything else the mall has to offer. Side note—Tony Roma’s sells bottles of its delectable sauces in individual bottles and in four-packs so that you can continue your grilling and barbequing escapades from the comfort of your own home.”