Nestled beneath the Feena Boutique — a clothing shop specializing in Portuguese trends and accessories — you’ll find Broa Jersey City, a restaurant so small you could easily bypass it. And that would be a shame, because Broa deserves your attention.
For starters, it has a constantly changing menu. Not a seasonal menu (many restaurants offer that nowadays), but rather a daily menu. So what you order on Monday may or may not be available again on Tuesday. Broa is also one of the very few restaurants I’ve been to where the owner personally greets and tends to every table. Make no mistake, Broa Cafe is charming, unique, and delicious.
I visited on a recent night for dinner and immediately took a liking to the restaurant’s theme. The decor makes you feel like you’re visiting your Portuguese aunt in Lisbon, but the open kitchen and delicious aromas remind you that you’re in fact inside a restaurant. There are no paper menus at Broa, instead you’ll find a chalkboard with the day’s specials. I was lucky enough to sit near the board, but others had to walk up to see the specials, which I imagine could lose its charm if you’re the indecisive type or if you have questions about a certain dish. (Personally, I wouldn’t mind a small paper menu each day or having a bigger chalkboard/menu above the kitchen).
Although the space is small, the tables are set comfortably apart from each other. There’s also a communal table in the middle and outdoor seating up front. The music and noise level is also low, so it’s a great spot for first dates or catching up with friends. For dinner, we tried the chickpea salad, cod fritters, cockles, and cauliflower gratin. Some of our main plates came out before our starters, but once you realize that all the plates here are small and meant to be shared, it really makes no difference. In terms of size, however, even the entrees are small, so getting four or five plates for a party of two sounds about right.
The cockles were delicious, cooked in a garlicky broth you’ll want to drink right out of the plate. The chickpea salad was also a hit and possibly the biggest-sized plate we had. My personal highlight, however, were the cod fritters, served crisp and golden with a wedge of lemon.
Broa is BYOB, so our total bill was very low. In fact, our four-plate dinner was just shy of $50. However, I was still hungry when we left, and on that particular night, there was no dessert option.
My only gripe about Broa is that at no point did we get an explanation of the menu. Had I not known beforehand that the menu changes daily or had I not been familiar with Portuguese food, I might have had a different experience.
Also, if you have dietary restrictions, the only way of knowing the day’s menu is by literally walking into the restaurant and looking at the menu board. (Posting the menu on Facebook each afternoon could easily solve that).
However, despite the few drawbacks, Broa’s charm, innovative kitchen, and affordability make it a destination that warrants repeat visits.
Broa Cafe | 297 Grove Street (btwn Wayne & Mercer) | Facebook
