There’s No Place Like Home (Marsilio's Kitchen)

Marsilio's Kitchen, 71 West Upper Ferry Rd, Ewing, NJ
Lunch: Tu-F 11:30AM - 2 PM; Dinner: Tu-Su 4:30PM - 9 PM
(609) 882-8300   Website    Google Maps

Gravitas:   Decor:   Cost:   Proximity:

(Covid Update Dec 2021 – in business) Marsilio’s was one of the old-line Chambersburg Italian restaurants, located on Roebling since 1951, owned by Alan Meinster since 1986, and closed in 2007.  I always thought that Marsilio’s was the best of the Chambersburg eateries, and it nearly broke my heart when it closed.  The Marsilio’s name didn’t disappear from the Mercer County food scene, as Alan continued to operate a catering business.

Marsilios Dining RoomNow the catering business has relocated to West Trenton (in the space formerly occupied by Batibecco), and the restaurant has reopened.

The menu is a mix of old-line “red-sauce” Italian dishes, with a fair number of more ambitious items (and specials) mixed in.  The quality is good.  Prices are higher than the typical Trenton-area Italian eatery, though not exorbitant (e.g. $19 for chicken; $27 for a veal chop).

The decor is lovely.  Alan used to present his best customers a ceramic wine pitcher with their name glazed on it, which he’d hang on the wall of the old restaurant until they returned.  The pitchers have returned, though it’s impossible to completely forget that you’re sitting in a Ewing strip mall, not a house in Chambersburg.

Alan has continued to be a significant contributor to the Trenton community, and we wish him well in his reborn venture.

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Catering | Italian | Restaurants | Services

2 thoughts on “There’s No Place Like Home”

  1. I looked forward to dining at Marsilio’s Kitchen for a long time. I finally got the chance a few weeks before Christmas. I was pleasantly surprised at the comfortable interior and decor. The menu looked great. Then the food came.

    My pumpkin ravioli were completely submerged and swimming in some kind of oil sauce that was very sweet…and very messy. The ravioli pockets were about the size of a quarter, while the whole ravioli’s were about 5×5″. Looks like someone forgot to trim them down. Waaaaay too much pasta for a tiny little bit of stuffing. The stuffing was pretty bland too. Elsewhere, this is my favorite dish, not at Marsilios’ Kitchen. Never again.

    The menu looked like every other Italian place in the Trenton area. So I took a chance on a special…pork tenderloin with figs. Sounded great. The pork was sliced into small pieces, also DROWNING in a cloyingingly sweet sauce (more like a sweet fog syrup). I ate some of it… the meat was very good, but I didn’t want a dessert for dinner…especially after the oil-logged “raviolis”.

    Service was attentive, but a little over the top..and we felt very rushed. It’s Marsilio’s NOT LeCirque.

    This place is extremely expensive for the poor quality of the food and the overbearing service. The chef walked by numerous times but never asked if we enjoyed the food. We didn’t.

    Also, the way the dining room is set up, I felt like the lingering staff was just standing there staring at us for the entire meal. Can’t you all stand somewhere a little more discreet? Very uncomfortable & awkward.

    Spend your money at Sal DeForte’s…this place seems to be running on olde tyme arrogance. But maybe that’s what their best customers want. I won’t ever go back. Lots of friends seem to have had similar experiences to mine.

    Tip: Lighten up on the OVER SAUCING. Relax the service a lot. Let me grind my own dang pepper. This is NOT a place for dining drama, unless the food improves drastically. Oh, and try being competitive on your prices…they are WAAAAY high for a little place next to a dry cleaners in a remote area of Ewing. Antonio’s was right on the mark….I miss them very much.

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