Artemio's Prime and Proper

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

Since opening in 2002, Artemio's Prime and Proper has built a quiet reputation along the Greenwood Lake Turnpike in Ringwood, New Jersey, earning its place through what the kitchen describes plainly and confidently: "dedication to maintaining the highest international standards for hospitality and culinary excellence." That commitment has not gone unnoticed — Wine Spectator recognized the restaurant with its Best of Award of Excellence in 2025, a distinction that reflects the depth and curation of a wine list spanning the world's major viticultural regions, with particular attention to older vintages and small-producer releases in limited quantities.

The Kitchen's Philosophy

Execution is central to everything here. The team speaks of it directly: knowledge, training, experience, skill, and the right tools — all contributing to what ends up on the plate. The seasonal menu draws on USDA Prime and dry-aged meats, wild game, seafood, and organic produce, with foraged flavors woven in from around the world. Relationships with extraordinary purveyors are treated as a responsibility, not just a sourcing strategy — the kitchen's role is to elevate what those producers grow, raise, and cure.

What's on the Menu

The menu reads as a confident blend of Mediterranean sensibility and serious steakhouse craft. Starters set a high tone: Grade A foie gras pan-seared and served with French brioche and a wild berry-balsamic reduction; fire-roasted bone marrow with guanciale and calabrian pepper; Iberico Jamón from Spain with truffle crema; and freshly made Gnocchi Truffles à la Parisienne stuffed with black truffle paste and finished with a four-cheese truffle cream sauce.

Entrées anchor around prime beef — a 42 oz USDA Prime Dry Aged Porterhouse, a 26 oz Dry Aged Rib Eye, and a 10 oz Dry Aged Filet Mignon — alongside a Colorado Rack of Lamb with mint reduction, Dover Sole Meunière, and Bourbon Glazed Diver Scallops with carrot-ginger mousse and salmon caviar beurre blanc. The Organic Veal Ossobuco Ravioli, filled with braised veal shank, ricotta, and fine herbs, speaks to the Mediterranean thread that runs through the entire menu.

The Setting and Occasions

The dining room is designed for intimacy — private enough for a meaningful dinner, versatile enough for anniversaries, birthdays, rehearsal dinners, and office gatherings. The atmosphere is warm without being formal to the point of stiffness, and the service is described as gracious throughout. For those looking to mark a moment, the private dining options and attentive event coordination make Artemio's a natural choice in the New Jersey fine dining landscape.