Rails Steakhouse

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

Rails Steakhouse has built a firm reputation as a destination steakhouse in Morris County, New Jersey, where the standard is set by an in-house butcher and dry-aging program that few restaurants in the region can match. USDA Prime beef is selected, aged on premise for 28 days, and hand-cut daily — a process that defines the kitchen's identity and delivers the depth of flavor that keeps guests returning.

The Kitchen Behind the Cuts

At the helm is Executive Chef Francis X. Falivene, a New Jersey native whose résumé reads like a tour of the region's most ambitious dining rooms. After graduating from the French Culinary Institute, he trained at the Hotel Pierre in New York City before spending time at Restaurant Korso in Vienna — a Michelin-rated kitchen where he sharpened his technique. Back in the States, he opened Hoboken's City Bistro, led the kitchen at Salute! Ristorante in New York City, launched Ora in Morristown (named one of New Jersey's top ten new restaurants in 2005), and served as Executive Chef under the celebrated Terrance Brennan at Artisanal Bistro. That breadth of experience shows in a menu that extends well beyond the steakhouse canon.

What's on the Plate

The steak cuts range from a 16 oz. dry-aged Prime NY Strip and a 28-day dry-aged Porterhouse for two, to a 14 oz. Snake River Farms American Wagyu NY Strip for guests seeking something richer. Beyond beef, the menu takes fresh seafood seriously — Chilean Sea Bass in a lemongrass-coconut cream, Scottish Salmon with cucumber kimchi, and a raw bar featuring East and West Coast oysters, Maine lobster, and a full tower for larger tables. Starters like Steak Tartare with crispy sushi rice cake and caviar, or Spanish Octopus alla Plancha with cracked pistachio and lemon-garlic yogurt, signal a kitchen comfortable moving across influences. House-made desserts and a wine program recognized with a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence round out the experience.

A Restaurant Built in Layers

The physical space is as considered as the menu. Rails is organized as a series of distinct rooms — the Main Dining Room, the Rafters Lounge, the Library, the Vista Terrace, the Wine Cave, and Thirty3, a speakeasy that operates Thursday through Saturday evenings. Outdoor terraces overlook the surrounding landscape, and a smart casual dress code signals the tone: upscale without being stiff. Private dining, catering, and large-group menus extend the steakhouse's reach beyond the dining room itself.

For anyone looking for a serious steakhouse in northern New Jersey, Rails is exactly what it presents itself to be — consistent, well-sourced, and worth the trip.