This is a quaint dive with a new owner as of 6 months ago. Very clean…read more In a way we were lucky b/c we got there at 12:45, and learned that the kitchen opens at 1 pm. They have a laminated menu-front and back and a paper one with the specials. This made the selections very interesting, and many to choose from, without being overly ambitious. The owner/server was the one who helped us chose lunch. I got the hamburger, med rare with provolone, this came with french fries. I was a bit disappointed with the hamburger, it had a flavor of added seasonings or too low fat content, i am unsure. It was beautiful in the presentation, but the flavor and texture were off. I could eat about 1/3rd of it. The fries were perfect, fresh and hot. My husband who is easy to be pleased, he said his meatball sub, was pretty good and he would order it again. We will be back, sometime,

Love this place!!!…read more Amazing food, very spacious, good people, great owner/management, and lots of fun. Whether you call this a dive bar, neighborhood bar, or anything else, it's fun, with great prices, and got pool tables and karaoke. Love it!

Brewers Landing We love to go to Brewers Landing by boat. It…read moreis right on the water in Essex, Maryland and you are surrounded by nature on three sides. It is a casual, fun funky kind of place. There's plenty of car parking in the front and there are several jet, ski landing pads, and a pier with plenty of cleats for boat dockage. The draft (water depth) into and out of the cover is shallow outside of the channel so be certain to stay inside of the markers. We have gone there for brunch on Sunday mornings several times. The food is so good in the morning. Their breakfast menu has the full compliment of everything you might like for breakfast. We usually get omelettes and basically something similar to a grand slam breakfast. Breakfast is very fresh/cooked to order. Extremely reasonable prices for all of the food. Another thing we like to do is to visit Brewers Landing for the live music. It's usually pretty busy but we've never not been able to find a seat. Everyone is there listening to music, dancing and having a good time. You can get hot fresh steamed crabs or a pit beef sandwich like we did on the day that we went to see the band Experience. Their menu is extensive. The food is always very good. It's a casual, laid-back place, so it's not fine dining, but it's always good for an afternoon of fun. The staff is always friendly and it is always busy (the sign of a popular place with good food), but they hustle. Everything comes out as ordered in a relatively fast time. It's a great place to go if you love to watch sunsets on the water, too. Convenient to the 695 Beltway as well, you just get off at the Eastern Avenue exit and head towards Essex. We hope you can make it there some day.

This a very low key bar vibe spot, but it got the job done for what it needed to do. They have a…read moredecent outside patio area and a good amount of parking. The view was nice and you'd be able to see the sunset. I cannot comment on the food directly because I didnt eat, but they have plenty of bar food options and crabs that other people seemed to have enjoyed. At 9pm they started music with a DJ on the inside and at 10pm the music got better with more of a party vibe. At 10pm, apparently 2 for 1 drinks also started.

We love Natalie! Smittyoke on friday nights is a great time. Place to be on the weekend for sure.read more

I started coming back to this place since I heard there were new owners. I was hopeful things…read morewould turn around. It looked promising there for a little bit with the new bartenders and new menu. However, I have been in lately and the new bartenders aren't there anymore and it seems to be back to the way things were before. I will say though, the food was good so the new menu at least lasted. Won't be going back!

Hella disappointed tonight beyond belief!!! I love this place but tonight I showed up a few minutes…read morebefore closed being as though I WALKED UP THERE about 10 minutes & it WASNT EVEN 2:00 I knocked on the door only to be greeted by some fat fucker that doesn't even work there only to be told I wasn't going to be served .... I would have been a lot more understanding IF IT WAS THE BARTENDER WHO TOLD ME I WASNT BEING SERVED. Didn't really appreciate a customer coming to tell me that... especially one that I see in the bar everyday & he was super combative like he wanted me to get out of line so they can do something to me or something terrible experience.

Crappy Dive bar, almost no food!!…read more The category calls Skip's a restaurant... okay, you can eat a pre-made frozen pizza (you know the one that fits into the small 7/11 pizza oven) about 8in round for $6 or you can dine on chips, pretzels, or popcorn. That is the extent of Skip's delicacies. Skip's will let you bring takeout food into their place!!! That's the only thing going for them. The place is right off of middle river road, and while everyone calls it Skip's (look at my picture), on the sign you can barely see Skip's name in the fine print, but Checkered Flag stands out monumentally!!! This seedy little establishment has a humongous bar, a small packaged goods store, Internet capable jukebox, a dartboard game and a single crappy pool table. Alas it is that crappy pool table that brings Sheri and I here on occasion as this place is in our division for APA 9-ball. The beer and soda are overpriced (last night a bottle of Yuengling and can of diet coke cost $4.25, a bit much, unless of course you count the pristine ambiance of Skip's atmosphere, yeah right!!! You wouldn't catch me dead in here, except for once in a blue moon pool night. This is another rendition of: "If you don't expect much, you won't be disappointed"!!!

We stopped by this bar after kayaking at Mariner State Park on a Monday evening. Dugout Tavern is…read moreout of the way from the rest of the busy streets, but it is worth stopping by. They have one pool table where APA league members usually play, a shuffle board, and a number of TVs for sports games (although they are not HD). I could tell this was a local go-to for many of the customers at this bar especially since they all seemed to know each other. Our bartender was very friendly with helping us decide what to order. We got the Belly Buster Fried Fish sub ($8.99), with a side of fries (an extra $2) and Italian Cold Cut ($9.50), with a side of chips (free), along with a Loose Cannon ($5.00) & Grapefruit Crush ($6.00). The subs were pretty good. The fried cod (I believe it was) was nice and crispy and the tartar sauce paired perfectly to cut the richness of the grease. The portion was definitely money's worth. The cold cuts in my sub were fresh. There was enough acid to not make the bread soggy. The grapefruit crush was very icy. I noticed the bartender made it by blending a grapefruit fruit cup with ice and some grapefruit-vodka. When I was done with my first drink, she poured the rest of the mixture from the blender into my glass, which I thought was very nice. All in all, dugout tavern is a hidden gem that has great food and service. There is also parking on site and outdoor seating.

I will agree with most of the comments I have seen about the food. Everything that we have tried…read morehas been very good. The Chicken Parmesan sandwich I had last night was on point and my girlfriend had a very good chicken quesadilla as well. Prices are pretty reasonable. My only beef is with the service. The bar is a little "cliquey" from several observations. The regulars seem to get waited on immediately and a newcomer gets a "I'll be right with you". No placemats, no silverware, no napkins seems to be the norm. Had to ask for ketchup when my fries came out after getting chips by mistake. We will most likely go back though, especially since The Bird River Inn changed their whole menu and did away with most of our favorite menu items. Everything is smoked now and very salty. If you're looking for ambience, you may want to try somewhere else. The Dugout is a hole in the wall dive bar and has been for decades...just the way the regulars like it!

Was aiming for 4.5, but you can't do half stars. It's 5 stars for the kind of business that it is…read more Super-friendly, very welcoming, and great and affordable food. They even have good events like karaoke a lot! Used to come here all the time before I moved from the Baltimore County area. When I visited over Christmas, I got the Fatties Cheeseburger Steak Sub with corn on the cob and a sweet tea. I intentionally got the most expensive Fatties Sub because it wasn't that expensive; total of all that was about $17 (including the $3 drink that almost all bars charge that for).

We were greeted by Sharon when we first walked in, she was outgoing and very customer friendly. We…read morefelt welcome. Seating was fast and drinks were delivered with equal speed. Now onto the food...I ordered the chicken fingers and they were offered 2 ways, either crispy or regular, all from scratch, nothing pre-packaged. I ordered the crispy Panko breading, they were good, moist and tender, a generous portion. I asked for ranch dressing. My husband ordered the shrimp salad sandwich, it was fresh and seasoned just right for him. Again, a generous serving. It came with a pickle and a bag of chips. The homemade macaroni salad was perfect, complements. Later Sharon's husband (Mike-aka Chalupa) came up and introduced himself, what a character! He is a perfect complement to her and this place. We'll be back.

The DJ and the Barmaids are awesome,I love the drinks,but the 2 Tuesdays I been there it was…read morefights,that I don't like but that could happened anywhere.

I've been coming here for a year now and I noticed that the management is disrespectful of the…read morebartenders and belittles them in front of customers. Management needs to learn respect and people skills

I really wanted to give 4 stars, it just wasn't happening. It was about 7;30 and we were hungry…read more This place has many regulars and pre-covid we were part of that scene. Quickly seated and drinks were here in a flash. They have a regular menu and another with daily specials. My husband ordered the cornbread on rye, and it was good. I was not so lucky with my 2 porkchops with french fries and gravy. They used to do them to perfection. These were too tough, I had a difficult time cutting them, my hubby tried to cut them and he had trouble with that simple request. This is the first time I have had to send a dish back. Usually there is some redeeming quality. We plan to come back on Thursday, that's when the offer crabs.

We tried again on 2/1/2026 for dinner. The specials looked good on paper But that's it. Wife had…read moreChicken Cheasapeake that was as dry,over cooked to deatth. When it's hard to cut chicken with a knife you can imagine how the crab topping was. Overall the dish was not eatable. I had pork chops that were also cooked to death. Beyond tuff Shoe leather. Simply put..you can't Make silk purses out of a pigs ear. Yey. I get that the food is reasonable but If you can't eat it what's the point. Plus why would you have Such a large menu when the small volume of food served doesn't support a turn over of fresh Food. If you what cheap and don't care about quality or preparation this place is for you. J

Hard Yacht Cafe was great for brunch after church service. They're right on the docks! Might be a…read morelittle hard to find as the parking is also within a shipyard. I liked how fast my service was and the girls hosting/serving were very attentive the whole time. It's a really nice cafe that really gives you home-town diner mood. I ordered steak and eggs with a side of mozerella and the portions were huge!

My last day in Baltimore I wanted to try this spot after having it recommended to me. I'm really…read morehappy it wasn't super hot or raining because they had live music which I'm not a fan of. I like to talk and joke when I'm eating with friends and family, the music was super loud ( Yes, I'm old AF ) so I'm glad we could sit outside. Everyone from the hostess, to the waitresses were all very friendly. Our waitress Tiffany was an absolute Gem. She had a great sense of humor and even tolerated my constant jokes and smart comments. :) Everyone enjoyed their food and we are everything that was served. I think there was like 3 fried pickles left and that was it. The food was great!!! I ordered one of the Fathers Day drink specials, which I thought tasted good, but could have used another shot or two of Tequila. Then again, I think a shot of Tequila needs more Tequila in it. :)

This place deserves at least 10+ stars! After looking at the…read morelocal Yelp Collection, I said, "Hey," this 1 is nearby, let's go, and so we did. They have a steady flow of customers, many regulars, and of course passersby who see the cars in the lot. Many parked cars mean good food, and this turned out to be a treat. Go up the steps and see the basic menu clearly posted with prices, order at the screened window. Cash discount, but they do take cards and offer a military discount. The orders are prepared as given, and all is fresh. My husband wanted the 2 sausage sub...10", green peppers, and fried onions. It was slightly spicy-Italian sausage. This was the combo for about $15, which comes with fresh cut fries and a soft drink. They were kind enough to give a free refill of Pepsi products. He loved it and half came home. Oops, they forgot the fries, so I went back, and they made them up. I got the Pit beef, rare, raw onions, and horseradish on the side in a little cup. Huge and delicious. I melted into pit beef lala land. Then the daydream began, we ate at a picnic table out front, devouring the fries and watching the busy world go by. Time paused for us. Condiments, many of them, are available on a high bench opposite the order window. Yes, even malt vinegar for your fries! We will definitely be back.

10/10 I highly recommend. OMG the food is really good. And the portions is insane. Definitely worth…read moreevery dollar. I am literally getting 2-3 meals from my sandwich. The fresh cut fries are cooked to perfection The staff are friendly and very courteous. Check them out.