Pop’s Garage

Family friendly environment with good food on the boardwalk! After having a horrible experience at the Cubacan this place saved the day and took care of us. We will be back! Hola muchachos!

A absolutely horrible experience. ONE hour to get food., no draft beer (it was out) no STRAWS, server couldnt make the rum drink we wanted, no GUAC (even though employees wear shirts with a Guac saying, there was 6 tables out in front where they couldnt use because kitchen was backed up. There need a good manager!!!

Tried to eat here today. All the tables on the boardwalk were open. But the hostess said the wait was 20 – 30
Min because the kitchen had just changed over. It’s 115 pm on a Saturday. Get with it pops. Your food is great but your service is horrendous. There is a lot of competition in Asbury park now. I want to keep eating your great food but you would make more money if you managed your floor right. Your walking business.

We went here on Saturday night based on high recommendations from friends. We arrived around 6:30.
I have never experienced more disjointed and haphazard service. It was like Pop’s did not know it was a restaurant. We could not locate a hostess to seat us, so we asked one of the waitresses. She said they had no host and we would need to find a table on our own. Given that all the tables were taken, she said it would be about 15 minutes. Fine, we would wait. Luckily, we saw a table about ready to leave within 5 minutes. It felt kind of funny to be standing over the table as they gather their items, since there was no hostess. We began to seat ourselves as the waitress had told us. Along comes another employee, who was wiping the table down. He rudely told us to move. Then he said, you can sit down, but it will be at least 30 minutes until any waitress will come to serve you. We repeated, 30 minutes? He confirmed, 30 minutes. We had a bit of time before our show at Convention Hall, so thought we would stick it out. Not long after that employee abruptly spoke to us, within 5 minutes a waitress came to take our order and our food arrived within 10 minutes of that.
Waitress: Our overall service from our waitress was good. She was prompt, efficient and courteous. But our first 10 minutes in Pop’s was quite strange to say the least.
Food: The food was just ok. I was not too hungry so ordered, the Chicken Quesadilla. It looked good placed in front of me, but it was very bland and contained only chicken and cheese.

while the service was great, the strange mole sauce left me a bit surprised, but not in a good way. It tasted exactly like hoisin sauce. Mole should not taste like hoisins sauce. I asked for light on the cheese and it was completely covered in cheese… I love their drinks, the guacamole, the service, but hoisin sauce and extra cheese left me wondering…
That being said, my niece and husband enjoyed their meal. The rice and beans were also delicious.

Excellent food including guacamole that pleased my guacamole snob daughter. Super nice staff and great ambiance.

I have lived in NJ for 2 years and this is the first time that I have had some really good Tex Mex! The margarita was perfect — don’t order the top shelf, just get the house and enjoy!
We had chips n’ salsa with guac. The salsa and guac were so fresh! The chips were warm with just enough salt. Yum! For dinner we had the pork and the chicken tacos, just wow! There was no need for excess toppings that come at other places, since the flavor was just right.
Overall it is a perfect spot to grab a bite before heading to Stone Pony for a concert!

So I have been to two locations of Pops garage. Shrewsbury and Asbury Park. BTW shrewsbury location has closed down. No surprise. Both locations lack service and basic 101 food services procedures. For example. I was seated after 50 minutes to wait for a table that seats four when the entire time a 6 seat table was open and not being unused. I could have been seated and done in 50 minutes. Next disappointment was my server. She took smoke break and I had to wait upon her 20 minute break. And to top it off she smelled like cigs. I will not be returning.

This was a nice restaurant with a great location and wonderful vibe. The location is well decorated and well poised along the boardwalk. The food was enjoyable, but did not live up to the hype or pricing. I would definitely come back here, but I don’t know if I’d lend a hand to all of the hype that its been getting.

Service was unacceptable. Blue haired waitress Jess complaining about being busy, but had time to tell me I had negative energy & not welcome in «her establishment». My asking about food after an hour outside as she shut doors leaving us with a baby & started to get cold?

My daughter loves Pop’s and I only eat here cause she always suggests it when in Asbury. So off we went…
I do like Pop’s but two things on this visit… who runs out of probably your most popular dish (corn on the cob) at 1.30pm on a Saturday? Second is who runs out of Bloody Mary mix when you have two other bars connected (and owned by the same owner)?
The food is good, not the BEST Mexican food in the area but it’s cozy, on the boardwalk and the service is good (I don’t care what other reviews say, we had great service).
I’ll be back cause my daughter loves those flautas and cause they do make a good margarita, they should for $ 9.

Going to the Stone Pony last night. We wanted to have dinner and drinks before the show. I decided on Pops Garage, I have been here since the previous Italian restaurant closed. Very low key, casual atmosphere. Great service (Leanna is an angel) very friendly and accommodating. I had the LaPlaya Burrito (which was huge) and my GF had the Chicken Quesadilla. Food was excellent, after we sat at the bar to sample some Tequila. A good restaurant experience had by everyone, we’ll be returning our next time in Asbury Park.

The fish tacos were good, fresh and well priced. Service was forgetful and inattentive. I overheard the waitress and hostess talk about how enthused they were about working there. No kidding, it was evident in their service. It’s hard to rate places like this when you have such a discrepancy between the two aspects of the dining experience, but the bottom line is the corn and fish tacos are great.

My love/​hate relationship with Pop’s continues unabated… and as such, I never recommend Pop’s without a caveat. The caveat always being. it’s going to be just ‘meh’, so don’t expect much. or it could be something special. Too, there is no rhythm to that madness of ‘meh’ to ‘special’. so it’s impossible to know when to jump and hit Pop’s b’cause it’s on point… but soon won’t be again.
Personally I go for one reason. Shrimp enchilada with traditional mole sauce. On a ‘special’ night, that dish is better than I’ve even had anywhere in the U.S., or Mexico. and that says A LOT. because I’m obsessed with mole sauce. On a ‘special’ night the shrimp are medium sized, grilled to perfection and succulent. The mole, to die for. nutty, coffee-​ish. smooth, rich. I literally want to make a bindi with it to show my devotion. Last night as the really cool, very patient server explained… Pop’s was out of mole. ‘What the fudge did you just say… that’s NOT possible!”, I yawped in my head. but remained chill and respectful outwardly. thinking there was a language misfire. I asked. «Wait. like you’re out. none, like. steeping somewhere. none like on the side for regulars?». «Yes», said the server. «None yesterday either. we’re all out».
So. ponder that for a moment. That’s like you’re favorite Italian restaurant being out of sauce?.. Or, Festhalle being out of brats & spaetzle?.. Neither of those examples would EVER happen btw. That’s madness Pop’s!.. and a sign of what’s often seen at Pop’s & Langosta (same ownership). Inconsistency, poor organization, shotty over-​sight & quality control. So. we’re there. it’s dinner-​rush hour. to hit another spot on the boardwalk at this point would mean waiting for a table, and though our table argued that point a bit. we stayed.
I ordered my shrimp enchilada… with diablo sauce. It came. it was 2.5 star worthy. baby shrimp, not grilled. boiled or steamed, I guess. To help sooth my hurt feelings I ordered a margarita. SO catoonishly sweet. that as I’m writing I have a massive headache and two new pimples. awful. Such a ‘meh’ experience. all the more frustrating. because in a month. 2?.. next Weds. at Christmas?.. I could go, and have a special dish. a ‘wow’. that I would shout from the rooftops over.
So anyway… I recommend Pop’s. with a caveat.

After a morning on the beach, stumbled in here for lunch and a drink. Seasonal salad was spectacular– I love the combo of watermelon and marinated feta. Fish taco was overflowing with freshly fried fish. Get a side of salsa verde– it’s worth it.

We had a great time at pops garage! My boyfriend got the lobster dish and it was amazing! Our waitress was also very nice and although there was some wait for the food she made sure we were happy until it came out.
This place is right on the boardwalk is Asbury so you can sit and watch the ocean. It’s very pretty. The seating is a little too close though.

Service is ridiculous. The waitress (D) is rude. She seemed annoyed to be at work from the start. My friend asked about the tequila, and D asked her to go inside to look at the tequilas if she wanted to know what tequilas they had.
At the end of our visit before my friend could ask if it was possible to split the check with cards and cash, D cut her off and said that we need to figure it out.. .
The food was decent. The guacamole comes in a small cup. Veggie enchilada was good but could have had more seasoning. The bussers were on top of everything, filling water without being asked and clearing the table.

A very cool place for a low-​key dinner on the shore. The atmosphere’s great (Did I catch the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack playing?), and their guacamole is seriously the best that i have ever had.
That being said, our food took an oddly long time to come out. They’re usually pretty busy, so that could contribute to it. I’m of the mind they should maybe get more staff, at least servers.
By the time our food did arrive, though, any thoughts about the inordinate amount of time it took were forgotten as the dinner thrilled our tastebuds. I don’t know to what degree it’s «authentic Mexican,» but it’s really damn good!

Came here on Sunday night and had a really great meal. Not sure why all the bad reviews, we must have lucked out.
We hadn’t eaten all day so we were starving when we got here.
We started with the ceviche and the chips and guacamole. Both were very fresh. The ceviche was excellent, had great flavor and would recommend. The guacamole was freshly made and was on the chunky side which is how were prefer it.
We the ordered two fish tacos, a chicken taco, and a chorizo taco. These tacos are on the smaller side but were really tasty. We also shared a cheese quesadilla.
This is located on the boardwalk with great views of the ocean and a great people watching spot. It is a little tight with the seating. Depending on the weather I could see were this place could become very busy, the night we were there it had been a cooler overcast day so it wasn’t overly busy. Not badly priced considering your at the shore at peak season. Definitely worth a try!

Service is great if even just for refreshments. Ocean front casual dining and full bar! The food offerings look great and I will check out at another time. Loving the Atlantic Ocean and the breezes and the maximum people watching.
There are lots of couple and families and clusters of friends just chilling out! Nice way to spend a Saturday!