Agricola, Princeton, NJ: A Restaurant Review

Agricola is one of the best Central Jersey restaurants. It sets the pace as a trendy, industrial chic style restaurant serving healthy food using fresh farm to table local ingredients sourced from Certified organic farms.

Agricola is owned and operated by Jim Nawn with the kitchen run by Executive Chef Alex Spitale. Chef Spitale received his formal culinary training at the Art Institute of Philadelphia, and prior to becoming the Executive at Agricola served as chef de cuisine at the famed Bernards Inn; and the Cargot Brasserie in Princeton.

Chef Alex is deeply committed to working with local farmers in sourcing fresh, farm-to-table ingredients . He oversees the kitchen that serves a well executed, artfully presented , seasonal menu.

The seasonal ingredients are locally sourced from sustainable farms and purveyors that provide antibiotic-free, hormone free ingredients

The seasonal menu is printed with a description of what produce to expect from the farm during each season. Food is fresh with the freezer only used for storing ice cream.

The restaurant's 200 seats are comfortably spaced apart in six areas with an attractive, casual, farmhouse, chic ambiance. The areas include the bar, the parlor, the kitchen, the family room,the root cellar, and the the courtyard.

The "kitchen" area is a room next to the kitchen with a view of the cooks in action. The kitchen is also viewable from the sidewalk though a window with passersby looking in at the cooks at work.

The dining areas are rustic, trendy, with exposed brick walls, rough pickled beams, tile floors, wood ceilings, wooden benches, industrial lighting, and pegs on the wall for hanging jackets

The vibrant bar is set with a background of ceiling high glass shelves and a casual dining area with large windows that look out onto Witherspoon St.

There is communal table dining, and seating for 16 at the bar and 22 more at the high tables, It tends to get noisy and crowded with people standing and waiting for their table in the dining room to become available. For quiet conversation, ask to be seated in the root cellar or the parlor room

Some of the tables have quaint backless, metal tractor seats that can be uncomfortable for seating, especially during a long dinner. For more comfortable dining, ask to be seated in the family room

During the warmer months there is outdoor dining in the small courtyard.

Parking is available on the street and in nearby municipal lots.

(updated November 2024)