Ok, so it's a matter of setting expectations. Defining "Good" is a personal perspective, and today…read morea good "dive bar" with a fantastic chorizo bratwurst was what was craving on our trip to the cabin. The owner is super attentive and helpful, suggesting several options for adults and children from Mac and Cheese to onion rings. Certainly well worth the small detour off the highway to find this hidden gem!

The service was excellent and the hospitality felt like you were eating at a family members house!…read moreI would highly recommend coming here for a quick lunch with the family or some brats and beer with the boys! I will definitely be coming back.

We had family visiting from Oklahoma and spent the day in Mille Lacs. We were starving on our way…read moreback to Elk River and decided to stop in at Rough-Cut. The Saturday prime rib special was one of the deciding factors. Within the first few minutes, we learned that they were completely sold out [mind you it was before 7pm]. The two biggest disappointments were service, or lack thereof, and the amount of time it took for our order to be filled. For context, after ordering, we waited over 45 minutes for our food to be served. And when it did come, it was luke warm and not served at the same time. My husband was nearly done with his meal before I received mine. While completely outside the control of Rough-Cut, we sat, very, very hungry listening to some loud mouth drunk talking about how many girls his friend "banged". Mind you....we were sitting on the restaurant side, not the bar side. Just added to an already bad experience. Rough-Cut needs more and higher quality wait staff and a smaller menu that they can actually fill. Timely and of quality. For extra context, the dining room was busy, but we did not wait to sit down and there were open tables the entire time we were there. My recommendation for those traveling along 169 ....keep going. Sorry!

Second visit- still awesome! Had the Cheese Blocks, wing basket, and the Outlaw Burger. Our server,…read moreBrenda, was fast, helpful, and pleasant.

Terrible have gone in twice only to be totally ignored! Waitress on both occasions looked at us and…read moredidn't even acknowledge.

Legit delicious!! I file this under hole-in-the-wall or dive-bar - and those terms aren't…read morederogatory in the least! This is on the edge of "the middle of nowhere" (unless of course you're one of the fine folks that lives nearby). But disregard all of that - the service and the FOOD were both top notch! Different daily specials every day (see the picture) and the regular menu is HUGE! Hubby had a Peanut Butter and Jalapeño Jam burger - big 1/2 pounder - with fresh fries. I thought the fries were a little soggy (literally the only negative) but they were deliciously seasoned. I had a shaved beef with Au Jus. Now I know that sounds dull but it wasn't! The roll was super-soft but lightly toasted with a buttery taste and the beef (I'm told by the VERY fabulous waitress) is sliced from their weekly prime-rib special. I had it with a slide of slaw and GOOD LORD they actually know how to make excellent slaw! Again - same fabulous waitress says that the dressing is house-made. It really, REALLY was good. Add three tap beers and our lunch was a sweet $33. I wish we had an easier more frequent reason to stop because the menu has me intrigued! I definitely recommend it!

Cute American/Country style restaurant…read more They have maximized seating space, so if there is a wait you will be outside or in your vehicle. They take down your number and call you when your table is available. Our server was very friendly and on top of things. We ate there for brunch - Pro tip: come early to ensure you can get their made from scratch caramel or cinnamon rolls, they sell out! It was big enough for 3-4 people to share. Our food was good and the price was great considering they make from scratch. I would gladly eat there again!

The food was just ok. Started off gok with the apps. Cheese curds were a huge portion and good and…read morethe poutine was also decent. The main courses were just meh. The French dip was just average. It needed more cheese and the sliced meat wasn't our favorite in texture. We didn't enjoy the stroganoff at all. It used the same beef as the French dip and the poutine and just didn't have any flavor. Service was really slow. The inside is separated into 3 areas, which made the vibe quite quiet.

When I first arrived on Friday I was greeted by one of the owners Merle. I was told where my spot…read morewas and informed it was pretty wet from this past weeks rain which I was prepared for. They have lots of great activities including a rubber duck race where the donate 1/2 of the money raised to the local food shelf. Everything was going great until yesterday(Sunday) when I decided to walk around the campground to check out more of the area. I was on the road at the far end of the campground when a campers 4 dogs spotted me and started running and barking aggressively. I stopped to try and give the owners a chance to call them off as well as hopefully deescalate the situation. That is when the German Shepherd came around the back of me and bit my bum. I said ouch. The owner finally got the dogs attention and put him in their camper. I left and went back to my camp site. I saw the skin was broken and soon I had a large bruise. I called the office and asked if the campground owners could please stop by my site as I wanted them aware of what happened. 2 hours later still no contact from them. I then went up to the bar and restaurant and located Merle and Laura. I told the what transpired and only had one request which was to please find out if the dog is up to date on vaccines. They said they would. That was 6 pm last night. I left the campground at 10 am this morning and still have not been contacted. Dogs off leash when so many children are around is an issue. If the campers next to me had encountered this dog with their 1 and 3 year olds I do not think it would have been I so minor. Again loved the campground and activities but disappointed that this issue was not followed up on. Worst part is the dogs belong to a long time seasonal camper at the facility so I'm afraid it won't be addressed.

Great resort on a picturesque lake. Beautiful wedding venue. Good food, fun events and friendly…read moreatmosphere!

Cowboy burger - 5 stars! Sauerkraut & sausage soup - 5…read morestars! Chicken sandwich - 5 stars Homemade BBQ sauce - off the charts. Sweet and amazing. The people - awesome!

100% RECOMMEND!!!!!!!!…read more I & 3 others drive Semi OTR...and always like trying places to eat while out away from normal home things in KS!! Was delivering tanks to Centra Sota Cooperative next door to this place... 4 of Us walked over & loved the place! Plenty of TV's to watch things! Clean entry & floors & nice tables! Not run down one bit!! Very bright signage & good parking lot!! They were busy w/only 2 ladies working...One of which was the Lovely Miss Jenelle O!! Such a Sweet Heart...Cute & Funny!! And sum Pretty Eyes w/nice tattoos!! The fried Mushrooms were FANTASTIC...Very light & the breading was like funnel cake delicious!!! Best any of Us have ever had!! Cheese curds were great & the nachos w/chicken were very flavorful!!! The special of broasted chicken came out as fried chicken, but it was also lightly breaded & not fatty/greasy, was actually really good!!! Beers were cold & kept supplied!! Bloody Mary's were Excellent, very tasty & full of goodies!! They came w/a chaser of beer; which We have nvr had bfor!! Added to the Wonderful evening experienced here!! Have saved this place in My phone & look forward to visiting it again the nxt time I'm close to here!! Bill 620-639-4670

I stopped for a quick late breakfast, noticing the sign on the door said they would be closing by…read more11:00 am (since it is Christmas Eve). It was 10:20am, and the place was PACKED. Merlins is a family restaurant with breakfast all day plus lots of other options. I was seated within minutes. Knowing I would have to be quick, I ordered the Bennie Skillet, which is a layer of hash browns topped with English muffin, your choice of ham, bacon, or sausage, plus 2 eggs over easy, and your choice of cheese sauce or hollandaise. I chose bacon and hollandaise (duh!). I didn't wait more than 5 minutes and the food was delivered, piping hot. It was tasty and my waitress was quite lovely and attentive. I only subtracted one star because the bacon and hash browns could have cooked a bit longer (bacon was chewy in a couple of bites and no color at all to the hash browns). I highly recommend this restaurant, the people are fantastic, and it's an obvious beloved place due to how many patrons there were. I also got a caramel roll to go (it was the last one available) since they were going to be closed for Christmas, and I didn't want the bakery items going to waste. The waitress scraped every bit of extra caramel out of the pan for my to go roll, so I gave her an extra tip on the tip. Go support Merlins when you are in the area, and even if you are not in the area, it is well worth the drive.

First timer! We had family visiting from out of town and…read more decided to grab breakfast together. There was a wait with about five parties ahead of us, but I was honestly impressed with how quickly they moved through the list. We were seated in less than 10 minutes on a busy Saturday. I tried one of the featured breakfast sandwiches, the Breakfast Denver Sandwich. It was $13 and honestly delicious. For the price, though, a side of hashbrowns or fruit would have been appreciated. The biggest reason I'm leaving 3 stars....service. I genuinely felt bad for the wait staff. They were trying, but were so clearly understaffed, especially considering they advertise they recently renovated their space to add more tables. It took over 10 minutes for us to be greeted, or offered a drink. Once our order was in, our waiter tried to be attentive, but simply couldn't keep up. Would I give Merlin's another chance? Sure. We thought the food was great. But, I wouldn't go out of my way, or rush back.

100% recommended we have stopped here several times in the past five years and it's always been…read moresuch a great spot to stop and stretch our legs from the cities to Duluth it's a great stopping point to have dinner or Even lunch ! I have always been pleased with the service that was offered to how everyone is so friendly here ! During the summer outside seating is offered which is so nice to have especially when you have fur babies !! The food is good too ! My favourite meal I've had here so far was the onion smash burger with chips ! ( homemade chips !! ) so good !! It's a great food , great service and great ambience all around !! O

Disappointed with the food. Wife ordered pulled pork. The meat was only like warm. I order the…read morebrisket sandwich. Before ordering I asked our server if the meat is served shaved or chopped. She told me it was shaved. I took a few bites and it was dry and not very flavorful it was then that I noticed the meat was chopped and not shaved as she originally said. I would not have ordered if I knew it was chopped. For the very reason that chopped is usually dry and bland. I brought it to her attention and she said "well 99% of the time it's served shaved. Guess I had the misfortune of being the 1%. Not happy about it

This place is such a treasure, old school diner serving great food! Celebrating 70 years in…read morebusiness, I've been stopping in since I was a little girl and it always makes me smile. Today we made it for breakfast, large portions, yummy and comes out quick. Service with a smile always. And you have to get a piece of homemade pie to take with you.

Service was great, one waitress but she was right there. Bacon was great other than a little…read moreovercooked. I had the hash brown breakfast special while good it was plenty greasy.