Seabra Marisqueira

Very disappointed. There was no hostess, and nobody was able to tell me how long a table for 3 was. The food is good but very poor customer service.

If you go, sit at the bar as it’s a great place for people watching. Tons of old-​school Portuguese men hang out there, and sometimes they bring their wives (or who knows?) Stick with the seafood and fish, and save the meat-​eating impulse for another joint in the neighborhood that specializes in feeding insatiable carnivores. Try the cold octopus, the cockles, and the garlic shrimp. Try the hake or branzino (they often have it), or a seafood dish for your main.
The desserts are nothing special, so save your sweet tooth for somewhere else.

Great food, and possibly the only good thing I experienced in my three day trip to New Jersey. Customer service is gracious if you’re not a regular, and mafia family-​esque if you are a regular.
It seemed like the stuffed lobster was the hot thing to order ($ 25 for normal sized, all the way up to $ 65 – 75 for huuuge ones that take up the entire table). We got the calamari, mussels in the house broth (white wine, parsley, garlic, etc), red sangria, and a few beers to drink.
The mussels in the white wine broth was amaaaaaaaaaazing. I couldn’t stop going back and I wanted to drink it. The stuffed lobster was also great. Place is a little pricey but not steakhouse-​serving-​seafood pricey and the portion for any item on the menu is most certainly for two. The bread wasn’t great and we were for some reason served with two giant plates of chips that were tasteless. We both ate one and let them take it back. Get rid of this nonsense.
Dings — the service can get disorganized. I would highly recommend slotting minimum 2 hours to eat and a reservation because the wait can be long and the service can be slow. I would recommend the restaurant tighten up profits by getting rid of the potato chips and upgrading the quality of the bread and butter.
Parking — there’s a lot next to the restaurant where a sketchy looking dude sits at the entrance. There are copious numbers of signs warning you to not leave valuables in car and that the restaurant is not responsible if anything happens. It really makes for a relaxing experience when you first pull in, it really does.
If the Clermont Lounge back in Atlanta is where strippers go to die, then Seabra Marisqueira is where lobsters go to die.

Food is good but service is terrible. We waited for ever to place order and forever to get check. They can use some extra help. We decided not to order dessert due to the wait during our regular meal!

Come to Seabras to feed your seafood craving! This place has free parking across the street after validation, which is a definite perk in Ironbound of Newark. I came with a group of 8 total and we were seated in the far end of the restaurant, as opposed to the area with the bar. I believe the menus are different too (more burgers in the bar section, more real getting hands dirty seafood in far section).
The menu is a bit on the pricier end, but their portions make up for it. My dish, paella, and a few other dishes are double portions– our server explained that as we looked pretty clueless. I split the frutos do mar na cataplana which was $ 35, and the paellas range at around $ 16 – 18 apiece. My dish was seafood in shell– lobster tails, lobster body, crab, scallops, mussels, and oysters in a sauce with rice on the side. Our server brought lots of metal seafood crushers and picks for the whole table; super helpful.
All in all, great seafood, very friendly and professional service, with everything you need to eat the food as nature intended!

All I can say is «wow.» If I could choose one restaurant to dine in for the rest of my life, it’d be Seabras. I may be a bit biased in that respect, since I love fish and am growing to thoroughly enjoy most other seafood, but everything we had was fantastic.
The Salada de Polvo was great (first time time trying octopus) with the simple dressing of olive oil, garlic and cilantro. It complemented the taste and texture of the octopus while letting the centerpiece of the dish speak for itself.
Lulas Fritas was incredible, probably the freshest calamari I’ve had in a while, and the sauce was excellent as well.
Then there was my Salmon. I’ve been craving a good baked/​grilled salmon for days, if not weeks, now. Oh man, they didn’t disappoint! Seasoned plainly and cooked to perfection, the portion size was gigantic, I’d say 12+ ounces of Salmon. The butter served with it was an excellent complement and went well on the spinach and potatoes also!
All in all, a great experience. The servers could be a bit more enthusiastic but they’re prompt and accurate, which is all you need as long as you have great food. I will surely be back frequently, and soon.

Was in the area for work with my wife. We Unilocal everything and Seabra’s reviews looked promising. First thing we noticed was they only had Miller Lite, MGD and Heineken… something aint right. So I had a draft of MGD and then we ordered a pitcher of white sangria. Since this was a Portuguese restaurant we thought the sangria must be decent. WRONG! It tasted like EmergenC! Then I found out they used SUNNY-​D in their sangrias! This is the main reason for the low rating.
Now we were getting scared. But the food looked plentiful and appetizing looking at the others. We tried the Sardines special and the Mariscada entrée. The Sardines were tasty and cooked well. The Mariscada’s sauce tasted of cheap ingredients, definitely not worth the price.
I wished we went somewhere else (like Top’s Diner which was a hit in every way).

³⁄₅ stars due to lack of space, very small restaurant gets busy and extra crowded (personally not a fan of the having that stranger on top of you feeling while you eat)
Food is good service is fair pricing moderate

I Absolutely love this place. Few years ago friends of mine took me to a great Portuguese restaurant in Newark but I didn’t remember it’s name or address. Yesterday while in NJ I’ve decided to look up a Portuguese restaurant in Newark and lucky me I found «the place». The food is amazing and so is the staff. The only thing i wasn’t very clear about is the seating, they don’t have a hostess or anyone at the front seating people, we stood around for about 15min before someone told us that we had to sign our name in the book. But it was well worth the wait.

Went on a busy Saturday night. Terrible service. Shared a seafood platter for 2. Looks better than it tastes. Shrimp and Mussels over cooked, not impressed. Fish was salty, lobster too chewy. Would not recommend.

I came here with my family before a Devil’s game and the rock and we were not disappointed. To start-​make sure if you have ANYTHING planned afterwards, you make a reservation ahead of time. This place is packed even at an awkward time on a Sunday afternoon. That being said, we walked past the very long line of people waiting for a table to be seated right away in the back of the room.
The restaurant is very «no frills.» There is no fancy décor, there are big, long tables that are packed closely together, and the walls are covered with minimal décor. Our waiter promptly set down a basket of big, soft Portuguese rolls, and we we went to town ordering a ton of seafood. We had two different preparations of octopus (the salad and the entrée), a plate of oysters, a huge huge huge bowl of seafood paella, a whole lobster, a plate of snow crab legs, an appetizer of garlic shrimp, and last but not least the seafood soup. The huge paella was a lot more flavorful than I anticipated, though the dish in general is a little boring. My lobster was on the smaller side than I would have liked, though of course I was given the option between «small» and «large.»
All of the food was pretty solid. No frills, no fancy preparations-​just huge plates of simply flavored and well cooked fish and shellfish. We also enjoyed both the red and white sangria, though I admit the red was way better and I wouldn’t recommend the white as it was too sweet and kinda tasted more like whatever juice was mixed in there than anything else.
The service was about average. For the volume they do, they really are moving quite quickly. This meant that at the end of our meal we sat for quite awhile awaiting some help and to pay. This normally doesn’t bother me too much but we were indeed on a time line to get to our game. When the check came, there was a «miscalculation» of about $ 30 over what we ordered, so be sure to check your bill. Though this could absolutely be an honest mistake, it’s a little annoying, but when I have that large of a bill I almost always do a double check to be sure.
I honestly don’t have a huge amount of experience eating in this neighborhood, but the other restaurants I’ve been to in Ironbound were not as good as Seabra, so I would definitely recommend this place over others. Just make that reservation!

Never disappointment at this restaurant. Thank you for having fresh seafood always. I loves octopus! !

Wow, all I can say is wow. The bread, the portions, the seafood, the waiters, the bar area, the location, everything is perfect.
You are guaranteed to have leftovers and everything is delicious. I inhaled everything and will 100% return again. Come early because you probably won’t get a table or even a bar seat (where I sat). The flavor is out of this world and they have so many specials it’s impossible to get bored with their menu.
I heard this restaurant has been here for over 40 years and that nothing’s changed, but that’s what’s great about. It’s the real deal. Check this place out.
Amazing Portuguese food

This may be one of my favorite restaurants in Newark. Hence I am writing my first review on Unilocal.I went with three of my friends and we shared the frutos do mar (hot version) which is certainly a portugese delight.
The lobster, clam, shrimp, oysters, fish were all cooked to perfection and the seasoning was spot on. I had a glass of the portugese red wine which paired surprisingly well with the hearty seafood platter.
I would definitely go again and recommend this place to anyone who may visit Newark.

I teared up a little when I was here, because I had almost forgotten what good food, good Portuguese food tasted like. You see I moved away two years ago in pursuit of love, happiness and further education, but I had to leave my hometown and it’s delicious Luso-​cuisine and it has been hard not being close to large metropolises filled with delicious food.
Anyway, my cousins and I meet at least once each time I come home. We find an awesome restaurant and we have a good time with one another. Now I’m ashamed that I was not a frequent flyer before having moved away, but that’s okay, because we have to live in the here and now. She had tasted some Halibut stuffed with crab from a friend, and she said that because it had come from Seabra’s this should be our next date spot. We agreed, because we all have similar tastes and on a Sunday afternoon after Christmas we decided to go. This was an utterly insane idea, because that’s the weekend that everyone who cooks swears off cooking. They’re done, they did their best work for Christmas and that’s it for the rest of the year and we found them all at the tables of the restaurant. We sat down and attempted to figure out what to do. There was a list AHA– BUT it would take close to an hour to get a table and I was starved, having left Brooklyn in a rush to meet them. I can be fancy, but when I’m starved FORGET IT — I need to eat NOW, or I get hangry and it isn’t pretty, I promise you. So against all the things we would normally do, we sat at the bar. We didn’t like it, but hey with a packed restaurant and people looking happy enough around this awkward oval around the bar that could fit at least 30 people, beggars cannot be choosers.
A man named Nuno was our go-​to guy and he was kind, patient, and initially we thought very slow with our food. The poor man had been so busy, restocking various wines and other drinks going back and forth from the kitchen to the bar, rinse and repeat, but eventually he got to us and we were ready. My first cousin went with the Halibut stuffed with crab, she wanted the experience for herself. I went with Sevillian Style Fried Calamari (Lulas Fritas a Sevilhana) and Camarão Grelhado (Grilled Shrimp with a delicious garlic butter sauce) and my other cousin went with Bacalhau because Iberians/​Caribbeans and anyone touched by these cultures know who cooks it well, and Seabra’s did NOT disappoint. I ordered in Portuguese and Nuno was floored, it was adorable and ordered red wine because I didn’t care that I was eating seafood, I was home (damnit), eating some of my favorite food, and for the record there’s no Portuguese anything or anyone where I live now.
When I tell you that I teared up and relished this food, of which we all shared, I felt true happiness. I was beyond happy that I was home, happy that I had such good food, happy to be among family and happy to have experienced some of the best New Jersey and possibly the NYC metro area has to offer in terms of Portuguese cuisine in the area.
Note: Sundays, either make a reservation, prepare to wait a while, or sit by the bar — you classy east-​coasters!

Portuguese food is synonymous with Newark now i think. Seabra is one of my new favorite Portuguese places. A fellow Newarker guided me to this joint and it did not disappoint. While this seafood restaurant is great for groups and large parties, it’s also great to go and chow down on a date. You may want to make a reservation, this place is always packed. They also have a decent sized bar area packed with locals every night. The waiters are old school and maybe slow but really friendly. I think it’s just hard for men to multitask so they always seem very focused at the task at hand and it’s all male waiters over the age of 40 at this joint.
The cooks in the kitchen are amazing. You can see them zip around in the grilling area behind a transparent plexiglass. They are so quick it’s amazing.
The food is phenomenal. They have a bountiful amount of seafood and the prices are very reasonable. Most items are around $ 20 – 25. Except the larger items. My favorite is the seabass grilled with their herbed butter. So delicious. The portions are giant too. You go hungry and leave stuffed always.
The seafood paella is very tasty too. Pork and clams is also a very tasty dish. Their sangria is very good here as well. The only item that I wasn’t too keen on were their soupy dishes. It’s a bit salty. But if you go with their grilled dishes you can’t go wrong.

My second visit, and just as good as the last. All the lovely things everyone else says are true. If you are in the mood for Portuguese, and have the time to relax, this is your place.

So crazy delicious. We’ve been here twice now, and any future stop in Newark will surely involve another dinner here, specifically to order the cockels in garlic sauce (Berbigão à Bolhão Pato), clams & pork (Carne de Porco à Alentejana) and the «dry soup» which is like a white seafood bread stew (Açorda de Marisco), all of which are amazing and unlike anything I’ve eaten anywhere else. I also love the Mariscada, a combo of seafood in a tomato broth. Basically my philosophy is if it’s got a picture in the sidebar and described as a «traditional Portuguese delight» then it’s going to be good. If you like fresh seafood and bold garlicky flavors, then you need to try these dishes.
The ambiance isn’t particularly fancy, and the tables are packed in there, but the bathrooms are nice and clean, the service is efficient, and the food is tremendously tasty. Sangria’s not bad either.
Tips:
–Parking is free next door but the attendants want to be tipped so take some cash
–I recommend calling ahead to make a reservation, even if just shortly before arriving
–Skip the paella. It’s alright, but not as beauteous as the other stuff.
–Go with a group so you can taste more dishes!

The whole experience deserves three stars, but the food four. This is when I wish Unilocal would let us give ½ stars!
When you walk in there’s no sign really designating where to go and you’re not greeted by a hostess. If you want «fine» dining just walk to the back and wait until you’re noticed. If you want more casual dining wait at the bar or find your self a table at the front of the restaurant.
The first waiter we had was really rude. He didn’t introduce himself and just asked if we wanted a drink before the food. Tried to upsell us the seafood for four when we wanted the seafood for two. Then another guy comes over to ask us what we wanted for dinner. Perhaps the first guy just had a language barrier, which is totally acceptable in his defense. The second guy was a bit nicer but really not what I was expecting at a joint in Newark. Typically at places like this there is a «family» like atmosphere, didn’t feel too welcomed here.
Anyway, we ordered the octopus cold appetizer which was very good. A little heavy on the oil, but the fish was exceptionally fresh. It comes within 30 seconds of ordering it because it’s pre-​made, so if you’re hungry get this!
Our entrée was the seafood for two. It was nicely presented. Lobster was a little rubbery, same with the shrimp. The white fish was cooked perfectly with some paprika and olive oil seasoning. The muscles were in a spicy marinara sauce, honestly I’ve had better. The best thing on the platter was the oysters and clams. Woah. If I could have gotten just those I would have. It was over a bed of plain rice.
At the end of dinner my fiancé asked me if I would come back. My answer reflects my experience there, I would but I’m definitely not «itching» to do so, I would explore other seafood/​Portuguese restaurants first.

I’ve been trying to figure out why the reviews on this place are so divided. It really depends on where you’re coming from.
For the record, I could never live in Newark. Having been spoiled by the Philadelphia Center City food scene for four years during university, I chose Seabra as our dinner place during our overnight Airbnb stop in Newark before boarding the plane to head home to Toronto. It’s just a different city, different game.
Honest verdict: recalibrate the five star rating for Newark. This is an honest, middle class family-​friendly plastic table-​cloth, laminated Times-​New-​Roman menus with pixelated photos type of place.
Is it hip? Trendy? Bougie? Beautiful? Refined? Nope, none of those things. There was a party holding a graduation celebration, tacky Mylar balloons and all.
But it is the type of simple, homely, rough-​around-​the-​edges kind of place that serves solid, yummy, large portions of well-​flavoured seafood at fair prices. If I had a Portuguese grandmother I’d like to imagine that she serves me stuff like this.
Staff are friendly and accented. Just some good honest people trying to run a business.
We got the seafood Paella and the sea bass. All of us walked out incredibly full and satisfied. The Paella could comfortably feed 3 people. It was yummy. We had no complaints.
Solid four stars.

Extremely bad service and the food doesn’t have taste at all. The best part of the lunch was the bread with olive oil!

Extremely bad service, tasteless food and no seasoning. The best part of our lunch was the coffee.