First off, the owner Cale is a true renaissance man....Secondly the setting and food is second to…read morenone. As a food connoisseur who has tried no less than 50 daily specials and eaten their virtually every Friday since it opened... If you are familiar with Cliff's and live in Linn County you are missing out. I would still like to reconsider the fireman's pole idea to connect my office to the restaurant for those cold winter days....

I love a good dive bar. This place may be the perfect dive bar. I absolutely loved it. Great layout…read morewith bar seating and dining seating spread throughout the facility. Clean bathrooms, entertaining decor and the service was terrific. Great variety of beers. And the food while just "dive bar food" according to the owner was both creative and excellent. We tried a variety of stuff and everything we tried was awesome. The owner Cale stopped by and had a decent conversation with us. Great guy shortly after his wife stopped by and couldn't be more friendly. I can't say enough about this place. If you're in the area, it's a must see! I was in the area for a couple of days and tried to go back the next day, but it was Wall the wall packed so we moved onto another place that didn't nearly live up to this one. I hope you get to stop in. I'm sure you'll enjoy!

My last review of this place was 8 years ago, this place has changed quite a bit. The inside was…read moretotally redone and it is much brighter and cleaner. The food is much better too. I had the grinder and it had some wonderful flavors, the coleslaw was kind of plane. There is a local lunch crowd but they have plenty of seating if you want to bring a small group. Service with a smile and a friendly word, what more can you ask for. Definitely a place to come back and enjoy as the menu has plenty to offer.

Great food and service! Haven't been here since the remodel. It's larger, appeared cleaner, and had…read morea lot more room. Went here to watch football with some friends. The employees were attentive and fast. You never had an empty drink. We ordered wings and pretzel bites. The wings were big, crispy, and hot. I liked the sweet chili sauce on them. The pretzels were just ok. The only thing I think to work on is making sure all the football games are playing since a lot of people come to watch games that aren't on local. I didn't see pizza on the menu, but looks like it was a special and I saw some people get a large pizza. Looked good! Will be back!

" It is good to be good at many things. It is sublime to be truly great at one thing."…read more Lil Grove is great at doing a smash burger. No lie. Their sign does not lie "Best smash burgers in town". Their menu is one page, one side, two entrees (chicken strips the other) and some starters. At lunch recently I stuck with a double burger, no cheese, pickle and onion and fries. My test menu. The burger had a nice crisp crust on the outside and tasty, not overcooked beef the rest of the way. Simple. Nice. Very nice. Tasty, piping hot fries completed the basket. The bar is a small space but modern, clean, friendly, with well-placed TV's and full service bar. Lil Grove is an (almost) one year old hidden gem (to me at least) on the near SW side. Highly recommended.

Second time here, came in for drinks on New Years Day and this time came for breakfast. Breakfast…read moremenu has so many options. Service was great! I had two eggs scrambled, 3 pancakes, bacon and breakfast potatoes. Make it a point to stop by and try it out! True Dive Bar setting!

A nice local bar close to Coe College and the Interstate. They serve can/bottle beer (no on tap…read moreselection), and decent selection of hard liquor. Teresa "T" and Amanda are excellent bartenders and will keep your drinks cold and serve you up a basic list of warm food from the kitchen. Prices are respectable and there is a nice mix of patrons.

Mary provides excellent service!!! 6 beers on tap with frosty mugs! We were looking for a new dive…read morebar to try and we stumbled upon it. They even have food here and then roasted chicken was great! Mary makes all kinds of cocktails and they have really cool glasses that hold the shot and chaser all in one. Activities and specials every night. Pool tournaments on fridays. Nice music set up too. Great local bar with friendly service! We'll be back!! Thanks Mary!!!

The locals already know what I am about to tell you: The Map Room is truly a perfect restaurant…read more The intentionally eclectic menu offers something for everyone, so long as they like a LOT of flavor, and the burgers in particular, are *REALLY* good. Service is exceptionally welcoming and friendly, and if I lived in Cedar Rapids, I would be here at least twice a week.

I went there with my parents the last time I visited. It's probably closer to a four-star for me,…read morebut it was the best place in town. I'm gluten free and the burger was good (the bun was great!), if ever-so-slightly too juicy. At first, the menu felt incomplete to me, only really having sandwiches. But the burger menu manages to feel special enough to justify this. The ambiance was delightful, but could use a little polish. They don't have good noise control because the hard ceilings and the hard floor reflect all the sound at the patrons. It's not terrible, but it's a detractor. The tables and booths are comfortable, but feel just a tad cheap. Not bad, but certainly room for improvement. And the back patio is a bit plain, you feel like you're missing out if you eat there. They should add some decorations, maybe a mural or something. The service was wonderful. It feels "Mom and Pop," but also like a well-oiled machine. It's close to being a landmark restaurant, but could use that final bit of attention to detail. So: not perfect, but the best place in town.

Haven't been here for more years than I care to admit to, but I found myself back gor a Christmas…read moreget together. It took me back to the days of goingbto local neighborhood bars. While the place isn't fancy, it's comfortable and quiet. The staff was very friendly and helpful. Might not be the place for trendy cocktails, but its good for a quiet get away

I visited this bar for karaoke on a Friday night and am very unimpressed by the karaoke hosts and…read morethe way they managed their system: Here are the issues: 1. The announcer was intoxicated: A rule of thumb for karaoke hosts is to always be aware and able to run karaoke to the best of their ability. After several drinks, the KJ was noticeably under the influence and being rude while interrupting karaoke singers. He may have thought he was being funny, but it came across to me as rude and unappreciative of the singers. 2. The announcer would interrupt songs with commentary: The KJ would frequently interrupt the singers (on his mic) with commentary and jokes. I found this extremely disrespectful to the singers. It was distracting to the singers, the audience, and made me feel uncomfortable. 3. The announcer was rude to me directly: During one song, he started laughing and made a comment of "well if you were to do it right". I know he somehow meant it as a joke, but I was embarrassed and that was completely uncalled for. At the end of the night, he restated he appreciated me coming out and hopes that I'd return, but as a KJ myself, there are things you just don't do when running karaoke. Being sober and able to make good judgments, respecting people when it's their time to shine, and being courteous to those around you are essential. This will be my first and last time visiting the Red Lion Lounge.

Amazing food pet allowed Great pork tenderloin…read more All food delish appetizer main meal drinks

Good place to hang out and eat some American food! Decent burgers and love the pickle chips!…read morePerfectly fried! The wings were a lil salty for my taste and had to eat them with a side of their garlic dip which I love! Ordered a drink with Tamarindo Smirnoff. It was delicious! Since it was flavored vodka you really couldn't taste the alcohol on that one. They have karaoke Fridays so it was cool to hear ppl sing. The speakers were a bit loud ( reminded me of a club). Overall, good place to hang out.

We went to Emil's last weekend. They were busy, but the staff did a great job getting us seated…read more Their Rueben is the best! The Nachos were also good! We had Danielle has a waitress and she was attentive, prompt and friendly. The atmosphere is great and they flow people through at a good pace! Definitely coming back!

Great experience. Service was on point. Food was terrific. Specials are a great value. Will go back…read morewhen I am in the area.

We have visited this place multiple times and we have not had a bad experience…read more The management is moving in the right direction. There is trivia, karaoke, bingo and occasional live bands. There is even free pool one night. Every Saturday morning there is a loaded Bloody Mary that is fantastic. The staff are super friendly, as are most of the patrons. It is a very comfortable atmosphere. This is a "cash only" bar so keep that in mind. Stop by and have a beverage any time you come you will feel welcome.

I tried this place out on a Saturday morning with friends after we saw their Bloody Mary special on…read moreFacebook. It's really cool! They run a different-themed bloody every week; when we went, it was disco-themed! The whole place was decorated in disco balls and they had funky music playing, and even a photo booth with fun little props! The bathroom was pretty standard for a bar single stall, and was clean. The Bloody Marys were great and filled with cool toppings, and the drink itself was delicious and came with a beer chaser. They were even doing door prizes, and one of us won a giant bottle of tequila! We'll be back!

Our go-to place for pre-show meal and drinks for any event at the Paramount. Short walk to the…read morevenue. Still very affordable and great service. Mike the bartender was great!

I came here as I thought there was going to a trivia night, but my information was incorrect. I…read moredecided to stay and had a club sandwich and fries. The fries were fresh and hot. They hit the spot! The sandwich was fine, the bread was fresh but the meat was too thick and had more fat on it than I would like. The server was very nice and prompt with refills and the place felt clean. I just felt like the experience was 'okay' and I don't know that I would head back there anytime soon when there is a lot more to explore downtown Cedar Rapids.