Overall sentiment across the reviews is mixed but shows clear patterns. The strongest and most consistent positives concern the physical environment and social programming: many reviewers praise the facility as brand-new, beautiful, and spacious with an impressive layout and a swanky, hotel-like feel. Multiple accounts note bright, cheerful rooms, a large dining area separate from activity spaces, and a generally welcoming community atmosphere. Family members and some professionals reported a thorough assessment and appropriate placement recommendations, an active welcoming committee, and a variety of daily activities and outings that include walking groups, crafts, music, dancing, trivia, chair yoga, and more. Dining receives favorable remarks from numerous reviewers — many describe great or amazing food, varied menus, and social dining features like happy hours. Several reviews highlight compassionate, professional staff who go above and beyond, offer education to families, and create a sense of feeling at home.
However, an equally strong and recurring set of concerns centers on staffing, consistency of care, and management stability. Multiple reviews report chronic understaffing and overwhelmed aides, with high turnover that in some cases includes leadership (memory care director quit, head nurse quit, executive director terminated). These staffing issues translate into inconsistent or sub-par care for some residents: reports include memory care residents being left unattended, inadequate one-on-one attention, staff not understanding specific resident needs (for example, a spouse requiring more assistance), and general concerns that the environment is not suitable for residents with severe dementia. Several reviews recount serious operational lapses — rooms and sheets not being changed, rooms left dirty, broken equipment (a wheelchair) not promptly replaced — pointing to variability in housekeeping and maintenance.
Food and activities also show a split in experiences. While many families praise the dining and menu variety, others report greasy or sub-standard food, limited meal choices, and the removal of desirable options (a la carte). Likewise, although many reviewers describe a busy and varied activity calendar and frequent outings, a number of families felt activities were sparse or not sufficiently exercise-focused. This inconsistency suggests that resident experience may depend heavily on timing, staffing levels, and which team members are on duty.
Management and transparency emerge as notable themes. Several reviews describe leadership turnover, a lack of on-site management at times, and instances of hard-selling from admissions staff. There are also repeated comments about high costs and extra fees that feel excessive relative to the level of care some families received. Taken together, these patterns paint a picture of a relatively new, attractive community that offers strong social programming, good communal spaces, and many caring employees — but one that is still stabilizing operationally. The variability in reports (some families having very positive experiences while others encountered serious problems) suggests the facility may be in a transitional phase where service quality fluctuates depending on staffing, leadership presence, and how well systems for cleaning, maintenance, and memory-care oversight are enforced.
Practical takeaways for families: Ciel of Princeton appears to be a good fit for residents who are fairly independent or need only light assisted living services and who will benefit from an attractive environment, active social life, and solid dining options. Families considering memory care or one-on-one intensive assistance should proceed cautiously — ask specific, concrete questions about current staffing ratios in memory care, turnover rates, on-site management coverage, cleaning schedules, maintenance response times, and dining options (including whether a la carte choices remain available). During tours, verify who will be the consistent point of contact, request references from recent families, and consider returning at different times of day to observe staffing and mealtime routines. The mixed reviews indicate the community has a lot of strengths but also areas that need sustained improvement before it can reliably deliver high-acuity or consistent memory-care services.
