THIS WHOLE EXPERIENCE WAS INCREDIBLE!! 1000/10 recommend. The ambiance was unmatched. The lake view was gorgeous!Shoutout to Arthur, the best dancer I know. The food was scrumdiddlyumptious. The cheese curds were smoking hot, the root beer float was scrumptious, and the burgers and fries were top notch. Don't listen to these Karen's out here saying the foods not hot and their food took forever. It's a family owned shop and you have to be patient for good quality eats. Best experience ever. GO TO BARNEYS!!! read more

WIN #360 Over Labor Day Weekend 2024, Barney's Drive-In, located in Waseca, Minnesota, was offering their "All In" burger challenge. The challenge consisted of a one pound burger, 4 strips of bacon, 4 slices of cheese, lettuce, onion, tomato, mayo, & ketchup on a hoagie bun. In addition, a pound of fries + a quart of root beer were required to be finished within the 15 minute time limit. I finished in 6:26 minutes. For winning, I received a tshirt. This challenge is a pay-to-play, which costs around $30. For winning, the restaurant also gave me a free pint of their homemade cherry chocolate marshmallow icecream. I was the first person to attempt & defeat this challenge. I believe three in total successfully completed the Barney's challenge over the holiday weekend. A large amount of their food is locally sourced. The beef is from a local cattle ranch. Their fries are fresh cut. read more

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New owners, new season, new review! Gosh this place has gotten a lot better. The burger tastes much fresher and the buns were so soft. Loved the hand cut fries and they were seasoned well. I'm happy about the addition of hard ice cream and an excited to try the honey vanilla, and be heard it's even better than the blueberry! I'm going to be frequenting Barney's all summer. read more

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Very expensive, mediocre food. Very greasy and very slow service. Won't go back again.

Very disappointed. We drove here as a special trip for a drive-in. The rootbeer was excellent. Service is slow and they never came back to take the tray. I even called in but had to take it in myself almost 15 minutes later. I was feeling nostalgic and tried the pizza burger - DON'T. It was a dry breaded patty that was supposed to have cheese. It must have ran out. Nothing on top. The soft serve is very runny. The cook wasn't wearing any protective gear and the waitress kept taking off her mask. read more

Barney's Drive-In - Menu August 2020 - New American Near Me - Waseca, Minnesota

Please please please find Barney's recipe for (steak burger was original name) bar b que/ coney meat and rootbeer. Had a horrible experience on our annual visit over Memorial Day. I have been eating at Barney's for over 56 yrs by the way. There was no taste to the steak burger and they were luke warm - had to send back to be warmed. Cook said they cool off quick - this is untrue. 56 yrs and never had to send back to be warmed. The coney was all crinkled like it sat overnight on rollers - I couldn't even try it. Rootbeer tasted like syrup water - no carbonation, no spice and too sugary. Didn't taste like it was even from a tap. It took 45 minutes to get lukewarm warm food and the cost was OUTRAGEOUS. There were 4 servers who walked by a table w a tray full of used cups napkins etc for 30 minutes not bothering to clean up. Patrons weren't served all food at same time, had to ask for napkins, etc and It wasn't even busy. New owners - find original recipes- and FOLLOW them. I know it's hard to get good workers but only 1 out of 4 seemed to actually hustle and didn't walk around with a scowl. Barney's is an institution- you've got to do better and rise to the standard that Barney and Nita set over half a century ago. read more

Great nostalgic food. Service was prompt considering everything is freshly made. We really enjoyed the burgers, fries, and especially the cheese curds. read more

We stopped here for root beer floats, which were delicious. I'm a big fan of the classic drive-in style. It had just rained the night before so the Cadillac/picnic-table (see photo) looked a bit too wet to sit in, but that seems like a fun thing for next time. Speaking of next time, I'll definitely be back to try the burgers, many of which sound delicious. Bonus tip: the root beer is homemade, and you can buy it in gallon jugs to take home! read more

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We ordered 3 TO GO meals( 1 pizza burger, 2 bacon cheese burgers) upgraded w onion rings and curds. My pizza burger had NO sauce cheese inside the burger but VERY dry. No travel pop container, no ice in pop. $44.00 was To high for the quality of food. I will travel to Owatonna to Lava Burger or Applebees for my nxt burger addiction. read more

This is not the Barney's I remember. The food tasted the same kind of but there was less meat in the Barney's bbq sandwich. The root beer is spot on and cold. Price is ok a little on the higher side maybe. read more

Barney's Drive-In - Menu - New American Near Me - Waseca, Minnesota

We waited almost a half hour even though it wasn't busy. My friends' burger was cold. Mine didn't come until after she ate, and it was so disgusting I threw most of it away. All around awful experience and total waste of money. read more

Seasonal restaurant, catering to tourists primarily, but enjoyed by locals. Portions are smaller than expected, but decent for price. Great for families with kids. Must try floats. read more

I was working in the area, saw this place and thought the idea of an old school drive in was cool. I ordered the fish dinner and was shocked by the taste. It was fried but had a horrific funk taste, smoke type or brine, not certain, possibly liquid smoke flavored...? It says beside fish dinner(our own breaded cod) so I don't know but it was NOT like any cod I've tasted and I didn't eat but one bite. Terrible. read more

Barney's Drive-In - Fish Dinner - New American Near Me - Waseca, Minnesota

What is this, a coleslaw for ants?! It's literally barely an ounce of coleslaw they give you out of a disposable dipping cup. No literally, you would have to refill it for your fries if it held ketchup. Other than the coleslaw debacle I actually liked the burger. It was a very standard drive in style burger, but it was definitely better than anything you would get at McDonalds or even Wendys. The people working here seem to all be 12, so communicating with them was a little difficult. They all seem to want you to order from different boxes depending on where you are sitting, and the food doesn't all come out at once. All in all, it wasn't bad by any stretch of the word, but it wasn't terribly good either. I'll probably come back to try some of the other stuff on the menu. read more

This place is great!!! Atmosphere is chill and cool but the staff is also really friendly!! They know what they're doing and know what they are talking about and you can tell making the customer happy is their main priority!!! Their chicken strips are out of this world!!! so so so so so good!!! You have to stop in and get some!!! Your missing out if you don't! Their prices are 100% worth it!! do yourself a favor and visit this lovely drive in!! read more

Stopped for malts and fries. Fries and onion rings were cold so they went right in the garbage. The malts we did not get straws with. After 8 minutes of waiting for straws we left. Young lady that delivered the food had a mask on the older lady that went to get straws and take our tray did not. read more

First off, they have great root beer. I would say it is comparable to the old A & W drive-in root beer. The food is mediocre... sort of hit and miss. I have gotten sick twice after eating there so I stayed away for a couple of years. I tried it again and it was a lot better. It is a bit spendy, and you don't get a lot for your money. Service is sort of slow, but the workers have always been nice. It has a fun atmosphere and drive-ins are so scarce now-a-days, it is fun to go to just for the experience, and the great root beer! read more

Food is good (I had a bacon cheeseburger and a "Large" root beer) The portions are very small, if you're actually hungry get two or three burgers read more

Way overpriced sub standard food. The root beer is what keeps us coming back. Save your money and eat elsewhere. However it's a nice view of the lake with a glass of root beer or an ice cream. read more

I went to this place once and i was discussed. First off I went there in the summer of 2010 when the BP oil spill was going on. They advertised "Fresh Gulf Shrimp" I did not have the shrimp but I'm fairly sure they do not have fresh shrimp of any kind and at the time the gulf was in quite disarray. I ordered a cheese burger and fries with a Pepsi. It was then I also found out they do not take debit cards, but they do have an ATM on site. When i got the food the burger looked gray, the bun was cold, I was very disappointed, but not as disappointed as i was when i started to eat it. it was gross! I can say i will not go back to this place again, i love drive-ins, but the food is just bad. read more

This is your standard drive-in burger and root beer joint that has been a part of the local scene forever. The decor isn't fantastic, the service is high school girls like it had always been and the portions may not be huge, but the root beer is top notch! Hamburgers are usually grilled well and the onion rings and fries are good. There isn't a lot of variety - the chili dogs, burgers, chicken or fish sand which are what you can get but you can enjoy from your own car or at a table. We like to sit in the old Cadillac with a table installed. Check out the view of Clear Lake while you dine. Summer begins here! read more