South Orange, NJ

Yanick Ranieri positions me and says, “If you stand under the arches you’ll see the butterfly!” Sure enough… there it was! The Butterfly adorns the bar area of Papillion 25 Martini Bar & Restaurant in South Orange, NJ. As a matter of fact, as you look around the restaurant you’ll find butterflies hidden in different locations - but you have to look for them!

Papillon 25 Martini Bar & Restaurant is one of the more sophisticated bar and restaurants in South Orange, they cater to a more upscale and mature clientele. We visited them on a Thursday evening and the bar area was quite busy with customers sipping martinis. The restaurant was also quite busy with patrons coming in for dinner.

The owner and chef Yanick Ranieri has been in South Orange for the past seven years. With a catering background for over 30 years and her culinary education is home based training from her mother. She is from Haiti - and her menu consists of French Caribbean, Spanish, European and American influence. She has traveled and has taken different styles, tastes, and cooking skills to infuse her menu. Yanick allows you to taste the Caribbean, French and other culinary life experiences she has had through her food.

She features seasonal and weekly specials and while she originally had a larger menu (she professes to love food) she has scaled down her menu to include dishes that are more popular to her diners. Yanick leads her culinary staff with all of the prepared meals and leaves nothing to chance as she reviews all of the food, ingredients, and spices for all dishes. Her husband, Albert Ranieri, partners with her and assists with day to day business activities for the restaurant.

One of the highlights of Papillon 25 is the martinis - hence the name Martini Bar.  The martini menu is quite extensive (with over 45 martini selections). If you can’t decide, ask the bartenders - they are sure to hook you up!

We were then served an array of appetizers to taste - we started with Crab cakes that were delicious and served with Yanick’s own special ginger sauce. Jerk Ménage Trios followed - shrimp, scallops and chicken on a skewer and spiced with jerk seasoning…scrumptious - but has a little kick to it (from the jerk sauce seasoning) and is accompanied by the ginger sauce. The Coconut Shrimp with Hennessey dipping sauce is a crowd favorite - the shrimp (more like prawns) are delicately fried so you have the taste of the fresh coconut on the outside but the moist tenderness of the shrimp on the inside. The Hennessey sauce is not too sweet so it allows you to enjoy the shrimp without overpowering the taste of this appetizer.

Papillon also offers entertainment on selected evenings - with jazz every Thursday, Blues and/or R & B live bands on Saturday - along with Comedy nights every first Tuesday of the month. Papillion believes in featuring local entertainment and allowing them a venue to showcase their talents.

Papillon also have a private dining room which is quite lavish and features a dining table for 16 with mirrored walls and a private wine stock. This room is available for private parties and prices start at about $65.00 pp for a full meal from appetizers to dessert. Definitely a choice for private parties - very upscale and impressive.

Papillon offers good portions, exceptional quality food - great drinks and ambiance.

Check them out … and if you happen to be seated at the bar enjoying a martini cocktail - look up there will be a butterfly over your head.

Until Next Time…Eat Well!

 

Papillon 25 Martini Bar & Restaurant

25 Valley Street, South Orange, NJ

973-761-5299

Papillon25.com

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Dress code - Business Casual (strongly encouraged)

Monday - Friday Happy Hour 4PM - 8PM

Appetizers - $6.95

Assorted Martinis - $5.00

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