Between the big holiday blockbusters and the end-of-year Oscar contenders, we’ll be at the movies a lot the rest of the year, and we already know the theater we’ll be hitting up: the brand-new AMC DINE-IN movie theater at The Shops at Riverside. The Vintage-style Hollywood-esque theater (complete with marble floors and chandelier-adorned lobby) combines two of our fave date-night activities—dining out and catching a movie—at Hackensack’s newly renovated luxe shopping mecca The Shops at Riverside.
You can reserve a seat inside one of AMC’s nine theaters that vary in size from 200 seats for buzzy new releases down to more intimate 44-seaters for flicks that have been around a while. (Those smaller theaters are also perfect for private parties.) The complex’s “Delivery to Seat” dine-in model lets you take your time ordering from the lobby’s food and beverage area (rather than fumbling with a menu in the dark theater) and then get it delivered straight to your seat when it’s ready, usually before the movie starts.
As for the actual food, everything is restaurant-quality, and we’re not just talking popcorn and candy here (though they’ve got that too, of course.) Think market-board charcuterie plates, poutine fries, even sushi rolls, along with burgers, milkshakes and some of the best chicken tenders you’ve tried in years, all of which you can nosh on from your plush power recliner. And get this: Each meal has been road-tested in a dark theater to ensure nothing is messy and they’re all easy to enjoy from your seat.
And last but not least, there are plenty of adult beverages on offer and a pretty comprehensive (read: many ways to get tipsy) cocktail menu. You can pop over to the theater’s MacGuffins bar and grab a glass of wine or a cocktail before, during or after the movie. Or if it’s been one of those weeks, all three.
AMC DINE-IN Shops at Riverside 9, 930 Hackensack Avenue, Hackensack
