Great atmosphere, especially on the back patio when the weather is nice. Good beer selection. Food is good, but the limited menu gets old after a few visits. read more

Boneless bites are awful. Came out room temp, and more than half of the pieces were inedible fat bites. Writing a review both to warn y'all seeking advice and because the bartender never asked how things were (not busy). Blah! :-P nice atmosphere though, and fat tire is my fav read more

Good draft selection but a few too many harder-core specialty beers on tap. Need a regular selection of pilsners and a few more lower alcohol ales, IPAs on tap - all year. (I'll drink more, eat more and stay longer.) One note on the beer list... Odd that you list beers by inside bar, outside bar and growlers. I don't care where you're pouring it from. If it's on tap, just bring it to me if we order one. Food is pretty darn good. Would like a few more healthy options though. And why no sweet potato fries? Front room could use a little lightening up and softening of the decor. Rear patio is a great downtown sanctuary when it becomes open-air in the warmer months. Servers always seem to be very pleasant and efficient. All in all, a go-to place. read more

Always a cool spot to hang out , great list of beers , and awesome chili. Burgers are also delish

Your typical bar establishment with a decent food menu. Atmosphere a 3, probably closer to a 4 when the back patio is open. Beer selection a 5, draft menu was impressive. Food menu a 3, your usual bar fare nothing that really stands out. However, place was packed, bartenders were friendly and social. Great place to grab a beer and basic bite. read more

Scranton is a city mixed with the best and the worst. My family came to visit my son at TCMC last weekend and we had the most God awful meal of my life at a seafood restaurant (unnamed but with an octopus on top) that sickened us and ruined our Friday night. We love B&B's and stayed at the most charming one ever called the Cleland House and they recommended the Backyard Ale House and did say the owners are related. My son also said the place is great so we went. On Saturday night, still quesy from the bad seafood meal of the night before, we walked the few blocks to the Ale House and I have to say it was one of the best times we ever had. We were blown away by the pages and pages of beer selections and were even more shocked when the very sweet and stunningly beautiful bartender entered into a knowledgeable conversation with us about the intricacies of many of their offerings. If I wore a hat it would be off to the management for training their staff so thoroughly. This isn't a negative but I did pick up a hint of disinfectant from the obvious deep cleaning that the place must have had. I swear we didn't call to warn them about the disgusting seafood experience from the night before. The place was as spotless as any I have ever been too. It was a fun atmosphere and my husband was thrilled he could actually smoke his pipe on the outside patio. The atmosphere was great, we loved the beer selection and time and time again we were asked if there was anything we needed. The service could not have possibly been better. The only negative was that we couldn't get any food but our bartender said that the kitchen will be opening within a few weeks and the owners were working on perfecting the menu before they were ready to open. If the food is half as good as the rest of the place than it will indeed be perfect. Highly, highly recommended. read more

Any traveler making his/her way through the Scranton-Wilkes Barre area would do well to visit here. The company is true and the serving girls are pretty. The beer is off the highest quality and the brewmaster, a true genius, always has a special selection of day brews available. For example, the day we visited the brewmaster had Coal King Porter, a brilliant beer on it's own, that had aged over sweet cherries, fresh vanilla beans, and Costa Rican coffee beans. Truly a work of art. And finally, a big shout out to Susan who provided incredible service and have some truly interesting insights about the area. Cheers! read more

My favorite bar for weekends. You will enjoy light music and inexpensive drinks in a friendly environment. If you visit Scranton, it is a Must See place. read more

I understand it is for a younger, college crowd, but going early before student's want to party - or when I go for their fundraisers, it's always so loud. There's no reason for the music to be pushed way up when there are only a few people there before 5:00. Also, oddly, they have tons of beer, but last four times I was there - the one I select was "just out". Strange.... Food is 'meh'. Presentation looks good, until you dive in - then all very greasy! read more

Didn't have a great experience here, sadly. The beer list is impressive but our waitress was kind of rude to us. I asked her what beer she would recommend for me and told her the beer my husband had suggested. She named a beer that we don't care for and when I said that she got upset with us and snapped that maybe we should just go with the beer he suggested. The whole exchange up a sour taste in my mouth and spoiled our visit. read more

Stopped for dinner while traveling on vacation. Food is great. Atmosphere is relaxed and casual. Prices are reasonable. We would definitely come back. read more

This is by far my favorite place to go for a drink. They have tons of craft beers on tap and about 500 in bottles. Prices are pretty good. They just did some renovations and added a kitchen but I haven't been able to get back to Scranton to try out their food yet. Pretty mellow, chill place on summer weeknights. Love the outdoor patio too - open year round! read more

We came up for a short ski trip and found this place on yelp. Thank goodness for yelp!! This place is fantastic. Everything we ordered was top notch (chips and dip, pretzels, pulled pork, buffalo chicken nuggets.... Not to mention the fabulous beer!!). Our waitress Jackie was so attentive and even picked up on the fact it was our sons bday and put candles in his dessert! Would recommend this place to anyone who visits the area!! read more

Amazing happy hour! Great food for the price and love the constantly changing beer list!

Best bar in Scranton. Wide selection of beers and ever changing draft list. Food is delicious, and I've never had a bad meal here. Weekends can get crowded, but always a good time. Brunch specials can be pricey for an omelet but you also get a mimosa or a draft beer with it, so it's worth it. read more

I recently moved to Houston and I can say I miss going to Backyard already! I love going there and experimenting with new beers. I'm always going to miss the Cucumber Cream Ale I had there once haha that has been forever burned into my memory! read more

Bartender was VERY rude to my friend. She's not an American citizen and she tried to use her passport to order a drink but the bartender refused to take it and got very angry with my friend when she tried to ask why. Such a shame, I usually enjoy Backyard but I don't think I'll be returning after the terrible way this bartender treated my friend. read more

Best Bar in Scranton! Great crowd, awesome beer list, and outdoor area is awesome.

Went here for brunch on saturday and sat out back at the upper deck bar - lots of room and a great space. Staff was friendly and attentive, and the beer selection is GREAT! they updated their draft list while we were there, and have a good variety of all styles of craft beer, plus the mass market stuff. My husband had the breakfast sandwich with a coffee stout and I had the Hawaii Five-O sandwich with an IPA - OUTSTANDING!!! They have a lot of drink specials with brunch, and the best part was that our 3 beers and 2 sandwiches came to an amazing $26 - can't beat it. Highly recommend it, ad I am sure it is even better when it is really warm. read more

Beers and scenery at this place is great and bar service is usually good but dining here is a different story. Warning ...I LOVE brunch! Bloody Mary and breakfast for $10 sucks me in every time but the service... Or lack thereof is such a disappointment. Once you finally place an order and get a drink... 20+ mins after seating .... Food takes a while and then you're still waiting on toast or something else that forgot .... And then you don't see your server again....ever. Now big Part of the brunch appeal for me is getting drunk accidentally and forgetting that you have work tomorrow.... This is best achieved by enjoying the leisurely attention of someone willing to seduce me with champagne and pastries.... that zen place is hard to find when you have to go on an expedition to get a refill and no one is offering up alternatives to rejoining a productive life. Upside is the bill is always low because no one waited on you so you don't order much..... Which is a shame because the quality of food and booze is great.... Just not easily acquired or enjoyed. read more

Tonight I had a taste for a hamburger, which I rarely eat. So I called Backyard Ale House and ordered a Cowboy Burger medium-well and french fries to go. I immediately exited out of my HILTON hotel room and walked two blocks, less than 5 minutes, to get my burger. When I walked in the door, someone was bringing my food to the bar. I thought to myself, that was fast. So I paid and walked back to my hotel room. I sat down to eat my food. The french fries and the burger were room temperature. Even the onion rings and cheese on the burger were room temperature. What was even more disappointing was that the burger was cooked well done instead of medium-well. The food had to have been cooked before I called to order it. I have gotten food from McDonalds and drove miles to get home and my food was still hot. I had my mind set for a good burger and had to settle for a less than subpar burger. This is unacceptable!! read more

Terrible service to many people to be able to be taken care of properly and not enough bartenders. Bartenders are rude and just plain a**holes 85% of the time but they do have hell or high watermelon so that's why I gave it three stars. read more

Solid Food. Beer menu is exceptional. Service was good. Atmosphere is what you would expect in a Ale house, lots of TV's with Sports.

Excellent beer selection, it's ridiculous. Beer tastings on Tuesdays are a great way to sample out-of-the-ordinary beers and find new favorites. Staff is always friendly and attentive. Saturdays are packed with a mixed crowd. Definitely an area favorite! read more

We had brunch at Backyard Ale House for Father's Day. What a treat it was, from the outside patio, to the food, which was fantastic, to the Bloody Mary's. The staff really hustles, everything is clean, people are friendly. Great place for Brunch read more

Great outdoor option in Scranton, the patio in the back is very spacious with a lot of seating. The beer selection is huge, but the 21-35 crowd is drinking mostly Miller lites and Vodka cranberrys. Music can always be better and never put money in the juke box, it's never on. 4/5 on a relative scale. Great atmosphere, awesome patio and always a good well dressed crowd. read more

Went to backyard for brunch for the third and what is sure to be final time. The service was painfully slow. I'm still not even sure who our waiter/waitress is. Backyard is nice in warm weather but it resembles a warehouse in the colder months. read more

Came here with two teens prior to an indoor soccer tournament. Very good burgers and beer. Friendly staff. College scene but accommodating. It's a locals bar so snobs shouldn't bother.... read more

I love the ale house. I go there frequently. But unfortunately being a regular there (unless you're another local bar owner) makes you low priority. I tip well. I'm a loyal customer. & I'm often neglected. Excellent beer selection. Nice, but neglectful staff. I would stop in if it's your first time. But don't make it a habit. read more

Absolutely the worst service I've ever received. Male server in a red shirt and baseball cap was incredibly rude to my entire table. He accused us of confusing our checks when in fact the checks were wrong. It also took an exceptionally long time for our food to come. Waiter was rude on other occasions. Extremely unhappy with the service. Manager was the only redeeming quality. read more

Nice place downtown especially if you want a beer considering it's a ale house and have a large selection. We went for brunch and I ordered a Tex mex omelette. It was tasty but the omelette was seriously wayyy too small. It only had to be one egg considering the size of the omelette and the thickness of the egg was paper thin. I mentioned it to the waiter and says it's a 3 egg omelette as if I'm wrong. The hash browns I got with the dish took more than 3/4 of the plate. The bacon on the side was SOPPING and dripping in grease.Was too much to try to soak it up with napkins . I had to return it. I've worked kitchens in the past and it seems this place is missing someone working the pass doing quality control. The service was a little slow and non professional as in bringing stuff incomplete. Coffee and no sugar, then no cream, no napkins, missing condiments. It's the small stuff they need to fix. I'm not one to complain and only want to see this place succeed but please don't skimp on .10 eggs and be more detailed in what your bringing to the table. Bloody Mary's were awesome and the manager was friendly and comped my baco read more

All around well done, vast choice of beers, menu items and nice staff. Supportive throughout the community as well.

This place is a great space. In the winter, it has a cozy pub feel. In warmer weather, there's a lovely fenced-in patio that even has its own bar. The happy hour specials are amazing, and they have tasty food to go with their drinks. Great find in downtown Scranton! read more

Pretty cool spot...I'm from New York so I was skeptical when a friend suggested this place....it's actually very popular and they have so many beers that I was lost on what to order. Def a spot to check out if you're in the area. And there's a club right next door which everyone seemed to go to when it got later. They also have an outside bar . read more

Great selection of beer. Ordered the veggie flatbread pizza and soft pretzels with spicy mustard. Food was on point and cooked clean. Really wanted to try their house made veggie and grain burger, but when asked if the veggie burger was cooked right on the grill with the beef burgers we were told they were. Kinda defeats the purpose huh? I don't want my veggie burger cooked in the juices of a beef burger. Would definitely swing by again for a craft beer and some snack food. read more

Always great food! Have had most everything on the menu. Some American tapas bar food. They have lots of specials during the week even half price apps. Its a great place for some brews and a meal especially after a long day at work! read more

I enjoy the outdoor scenery and the music is always very good. Drinks are good as well. Really, no complaints.

We love this place!!! Great college hang out, great food, great atmosphere! So much fun

Banjo Pig Cuban sandwich was huge & delicious. Nice back yard patio. Huge beer selection. Highly recommended.

In the warmer months, nothing beats brunch on the patio. Do yourself a favor and try it!