Millburn’s new contemporary restaurant, Common Lot, has received glowing reviews recently from The New York Times and New Jersey Monthly. The Times’ food critic Fran Schumer praised every aspect of the restaurant in a July 15 review, saying its appeal was “irresistible” and giving Common Lot the paper’s highest rating, “Excellent.”
NJ Monthly’s food writer Eric Levin wrote in the July issue that the globally inspired food was a “marriage of old and new [that] works.”
Both reviewers spoke highly of their experiences meeting owners Ehren and Nadine Ryan and learning how they landed in Millburn. The Australian and Austrian natives moved to New Jersey to stay close to family and pursue their dream of opening up a restaurant of their own.
Read more about that in this Village Green article.
Schumer’s wrote that Ehren Ryan “is among the most talented cooks in the state.” She also complimented Nadine Ryan’s incredible design, dinnerware and pieces of art. Levin said that the design, menu and layout highlight the “conviviality” the Ryans hope to foster, with customers encouraged to share and enjoy food together.
Among some of the most notable “Smalls to Share” dishes sampled were the Bag of Egg and Crisps, the Beef Tartare, the Poached Chicken Roulade, and the Spaetzle with Duck Egg. The chicken roulade, Levin writes, is “better than the best chicken salad [he’s] ever tasted.” As for the spaetzle, Schumer raved about the luxurious elements that started her meal.
As for the “Bigs” section, both Levin and Schumer say the duck leg ragu with gnocchi and shiitake mushrooms is highly impressive. Levin even goes as far to say that it is good enough to eat “every day.”
Schumer’s favorite, though, seemed to be the 12-hour braised lamb. Not only did she love it at the restaurant, but she really loved it when she ate it as a midnight snack and “[marveled] at its haunting umami flavor.”
Make sure to stop by the corner of Main and Essex to get a taste of the internationally-inspired food and see the “frankness and simplicity” the Ryans have brought to Millburn.
To read the rest of Eric Levin’s review, click here.
To read Fran Schumer’s review, click here.
For more information, visit Common Lot’s website here.
