Excellent ambience. Modern Euro design and lighting. Clever revival of and nod to some olden Brookline pub "Punchbowl." Top shelf around rooms is decorated with many punch bikes and cups. The king your grandma had and left to you and now stored away. The crowd can be a little depressing some nights as mostly Hilton guests from Dana Farber and Brigham Children's hospital. Bandaged or here for chemo and out of town stories. The menu is very expensive. And they don't have a decent glass of champagne. However the chef is creative and dishes are on the healthier nouveau cuisine side. The lemon sole with potatoe gratin's is my recent fav. Small pizzas are perfect thin and crispy. Avoid the Hawaiian pizza because the soggy ham is placed under the cheese and pineapple, instead of being caramelized and curly on top. Do not order the popovers, dry and dark brown always a disappointment. Help varies and perhaps too young seeming to discuss themselves therapy-like rather than engaging talk about customers. Maybe it's the hotel one time customers that causes the lack of local pub vibe. Too bad. If they would drop prices and recognize this years long regular customer it would be a five star review. read more

the food was very good but the service was fair. the place is beautiful. I didn't want to hurt your feeling but waited more than an hour to get our food read more

Not a solid in hotel dining option as said before. Hilton diamond member, 80+ nights a year in Hilton. This was terrible. It is definitely selling itself as upscale dining. Waiter was fine, not great but it was late. Place was clean and felt upscale. Bar was almost full. Ordered the popovers as an app, looked great on the outside, butter was sweet and great. Inside was refrigerated solid dough. Ordered the burger. Tons of fries is a plus, but the burger was clearly processed and probably frozen, tasteless. Calamari came with a great romulaude sauce - but the menu said lemon aioli. As much as I liked the sauce, there were only 4-5 calamari rings and one body. The rest of plate was filled out with pickled pepper slices. $80+ dollars with 4 drinks (after the pop overs came off the bill) for a burger and an app is not crazy for Boston, but portions should be medium in size and food should be well made. read more

If you're looking for a solid on-property restaurant or are just in the Brookline area, you have to give Punch Bowl a try! Punch Bowl is located on the lobby level of the Hilton Garden Inn. It is in the Brookline area, close by all the world renowned medical institutions. Punch Bowl is known for "contemporary New England" dining. On their mid-day and dinner menu, you will find something for everyone! They utilize fresh, local ingredients and even offer a phenomenal raw bar! We decided to stop in for an early dinner at Punch Bowl. We stopped in before the dinner menu. They do offer a "mid-day" menu that is a bit scaled down version of their main menu. Their raw bar has a solid and impressive selection for an on-site restaurant! You'll find raw oysters, raw clams, jumbo shrimp, and caviar. If you want a little of everything, they do offer seafood towers. The best part about their raw bar: $1.25 oysters until 6PM daily! They also have an impressive craft cocktail program! There is a solid selection of craft cocktails & craft beer. The offerings are unique and equally delicious. The pours are generous and the unique cocktails are mixed to perfection! Aside from the raw bar, they offer a solid selection of contemporary New England cuisine. You'll find fresh lobster rolls, clam chowder, popovers, fish and chips, swordfish kebabs, and house made pizzas. If you're looking for more American-style options, they have you covered. They have a solid selection of fresh salads, expansive charcuterie boards, nachos, chicken wings, roasted chicken, sirloin steak, hamburgers, and chicken sandwiches. They also offer a solid selection of fresh sides. The portion size is generous. If you have the young ones in tow, they do offer a kid's menu! They also offer a small dessert menu for those with a sweet tooth like myself. We decided to start off with the raw-bar! I am a huge oyster fan and I am highly selective in where I choose to consume raw oysters. I decided to start off with half a dozen oysters. At $1.25 a piece, that's an awesome deal when everything else around us is going UP in price! The oysters were cleaned perfectly and there were no issues with any "grit" or bits of shell. The oysters were incredibly fresh and presented beautifully in a hammered-copper serving platter. The oysters were incredibly fresh and delicious, not overly "briney". Appearance and size was on-point. For $1.25 a piece, they were incredible and I'd absolutely suggest them for happy hour! They were so good I decided to order a second round! Next, we decided to order the clam chowder and some fresh-baked bread and house-made butter. The clam chowder was easily one of the better that I've had in New England. It was filled with chunks of clams, vegetable, and potato. The soup wasn't overly heavy or overly thin, it was just right. It was a generous portion for the price. The fresh-baked bread and house-made butter was so good I also ordered a second round to the table! Beverages were incredible as well. Mixed to perfection and a generous pour. We each ordered the "La Morra Mora". It is a mix of citrus vodka, cassis, fresh lemon/lime, sprite, simple syrup, and muddled blackberries. It was mixed perfectly and we both were tempted to order another! Their entire craft-cocktail selection is incredibly unique and I look forward to working my way thru the menu! The only downside is the service could be a touch more attentive. It can sometimes be tough to snag your waiter to order more food/drinks. However, the kitchen is efficient in getting food out quickly and piping hot! If you're staying on property, I'd absolutely recommend it to guests. The menu offers local flavors, along with upscale classics that everyone will love. The menu truly offers something for everyone. I also find the prices extremely reasonable for the level of quality, freshness, ingredients, portion size, and flavor. You would end up spending more ordering in fast food on a food delivery app. If you're at the hotel, it's certainly worth stopping down for a bite. You can also bring your meal back up to your room. I'd also suggest this spot to locals in and around the Brookline area! The menu selection is phenomenal, as are the craft-cocktails. You won't be disappointed! read more

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So we came in for appetizers and drinks . Everything was good and the price was not bad. Parking is available so no worries . The service was great. The vibe is welcoming. I actually thought this restaurant was part of the hospital for some reason. I think because of the furniture from when we drive on our way home . Glad we tried it though , and we will come again . read more

Good restaurant in the Hilton Garden Inn. Tried the arugula and winter garden pizza which was thin, crispy, and nicely topped. The Affleck was a refreshing non-alcohol drink that paired well with the pizza. Service was prompt and helpful. read more

I just came for breakfast this morning and it was so good! I ordered a veggie omelet with sausage, home fies, and toast. Sounds ordinary, but it wasn't! You could tell the ingedients, especially the sausage, werevery high quality. And the home fries were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Delicious! I usually ignore home fries, but these I ate. The service was really nice. I asked the server what his name was so I could put it on Yelp and his boss would see it, but it turned out he was the general manager and was working so his employees could have Christmas off. How nice is that?? His name is Nick, btw. read more

Punch Bowl - Yum! - New American Near Me - Brookline, Massachusetts

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I had a bloody mary (flavor mediocre), shrimp cocktail (4 big fat shrimp), and two pizzas....pepperoni with mushrooms and sausage with tomatoes and onions. Best pizza and crust I've had in the last 30 years. Perfect, crispy crust, not too thick or thin. Honestly, I ate the whole sausage pizza myself. Mom scarffed the pepperoni up, and she's not a big eater. read more

Punch Bowl - Best pizza I've had since Germany!!!!! Sausage pizza. - New American Near Me - Brookline, Massachusetts

Upon arriving, I was promptly directed to our group table. I had the 12 oz NY strip steak. Overall, the food was good but could've been better. For example, the steak was seasoned well with herb butter, with the roasted mushrooms perfectly complementing the steak's flavor. Nevertheless, the steak was slightly overcooked. For dessert, we had the donut holes. While beautifully presented, I did feel that the donut holes tasted a bit burnt, with the frosting being somewhat bland. Overall, I feel that Punch Bowl is one of those restaurants that's decent but takes itself too seriously and attempts to present itself as a Michelin Star restaurant. read more

Punch Bowl - New American Near Me - Brookline, Massachusetts

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Thanksgiving am! We should know better. Terrible !! Inadequate wait staff. We waited to be seated (2) and left since restaurant could no tseat us. I understand it is a holiday but that is a poor excuse. Mark B read more

A rhyming poem for Punch Bowl: Punch Bowl is a phoenix that rose from the COVID quarantine ashes. My second time here since the quarantine. Have we forgotten how to socialize? What if my friends and I have clashes? Not much into cocktails or liquor, so I go for the wine or beer. Takes forever to put in an order. I'm here to eat and drink. Is that not clear? If you sit indoors, you might smell oil. All that frying, maybe switch to the broil? First time I came here, I only had time for the calamari side dish. Second time, I kept with the seafood theme and got the hake fish. Calamari was a nine out of ten. Better than the fact that my surroundings were mostly men. For the hake dish, they overdid it with the salt. But we've all been there, it's not all their fault. After more than 30 min, I had to chase down staff to put in our order, so service was lacking. I don't get it, are you slacking? Once we were done, wait staff was no where to be seen. We needed our check so I had to find wait staff again -- good thing I'm no English Queen. Would I return to Punch Bowl? Yes, and I promise I'm no internet troll. read more

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Dont do it stay away. Never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever again. I bought my 88 year old Mom for brunch and we were seated for 1hour waiting for our order. Servers serverd all the other tables that arrived after us. Come to find out they never placed our order. The ownership constantly understaffs the restaurant and on previous occasions they always get orders wrong. I have always given the benefit of the doubt but this time i decided to spot and say something. read more

This is a typical not so good hotel restaurant. That pretty much sums it up. We read the reviews and still went! We were staying in the hotel and were tired and didn't feel like going anywhere. Don't make the same mistake we made. Go the one mile into Brookline Village. There is a ton of great restaurants to choose from. read more

I died and went to heaven the other night on punch bowl's patio. went with 3 friends and ordered: jumbo shrimp cocktail $12 for 4-the shrimp was delicious and fresh!!! not the best shrimp cocktail i've ever had as the sauce didn't have enough horseradish for my taste but still recommend. painted hills beef & pork belly burger $20-I can honestly say BEST BURGER IVE EVER HAD do miss the opportunity to have this bad boy. punch bowl fries $7-me and everyone at the table agreed these are the perfect fries. not too salty, perfectly seasoned, perfectly thin, perfectly crunchy, not too greasy. Seneca falls (large format cocktail for 4-6) $75-the price tag seems steep but the drink tastes like that perfect fresh punch you dream of in the summer. it took us a while to finish and its the perfect thing for a hang out instead of ordering multiple drinks. I will dream of it in my sleep :) Overall; amazing food amazing amazing amazing service (we are sorry we stayed so late we were really enjoying ourselves!!) lots of options and that gourmet flavor and experienced. read more

Punch Bowl - New American Near Me - Brookline, Massachusetts

The service was horrible, for context I am a young man traveling solo to the Boston area for business and staying at the Hilton the restaurant is located in. I wanted to grab an easy dinner after a long day, shortly after being seated I received no service for a period of over 10 minutes, I was able to finally get my order in and while I waited several different servers approached me wanting to know what I wanted for drinks, dinner, and if I was waiting for someone, I was asked each multiple times by several servers after I had already answered each in the beginning. The food was only decent and was not worth the high price point, throughout my dining experience the wait staff lacked any communication with each other whatsoever and until the end I didn't even know who was assigned to me. Wait staff was disrespectful and overall inattentive, I do not recommend! read more

Ever since Punch Bowl opened up in the new Hilton, I was excited to try it out. I was hoping this could be my go-to for drinks or dinner, since it is the closest sit down restaurant to me. My boyfriend and I made a reservation for a Saturday night and were excited for a nice meal and drinks. Unfortunately, our experience was lackluster and I won't be coming again for food, only for drinks. Ambiance: We requested to sit on the patio, which is lovely and large enough. It is blocked off and on the side street so there was no traffic close by. The weather was nice, and many people were dining on the patio with us, but there were still a few empty tables. Because it is a hotel restaurant, the other guests were a mix of families staying at the hotel, locals, and older adults enjoying a meal. Definitely far from a young, hip vibe. However, we wanted a quiet, relaxing meal for our date night so it was perfect. Drinks: We ordered the Muddy River mule and the Riverway. The mule came in the cute, traditional copper mug and was raspberry heavy, but not very sweet. The Riverway was also not very sweet and slightly sour. I couldn't taste the strawberry flavor as much as I would have liked. Both drinks tasted very strong, yet we didn't feel the buzz that would correspond to the strength of the drinks we believed we had. Not very impressed overall. I will say, I had the sangria during a previous visit (just for drinks), and it was very good- would recommend. Food: We ordered a few things to share, but felt the menu was quite limited so we weren't overwhelmed with items we wanted to try. We started off with the cheese board. It came with 3 different cheeses (1 of which was a blue cheese :( ), about 4 pieces of grilled bread, some strawberry preserves, candied walnuts, and dried strawberries. The menu lists "housemade jams and preserves" but they must've made a typo and meant to say "housemade jam or preserves" The portion was on the small side, with a measly amount of accoutrements. We also ordered the Mezze platter and the potato gnocchi. The Mezze platter was by far the best thing we got. It was huge, with generous portions of delicious bread, whipped feta, and hummus. Lots of veggies, with the pickled cucumbers, sautéed eggplants, and olives. There were many combinations to try out and we enjoyed this dish. The gnocchi was very disappointing. It was on the small side, and the texture of the gnocchi was more boiled potato than pasta. I'm not sure it was cooked correctly. Additionally, it was room temperature-slightly cold which definitely didn't complement the South Asian-reminiscent flavors. From the description, I was expecting Italian. Pesto, pine nuts, squash, gnocchi. However, it tasted like an Indian vegetable dish our parents made for us at home. Not what we were expecting or wanting. To top it off, we ordered the almond streusel cake. This was pretty good. I'd give it a 8/10, since it hit the spot after an otherwise mediocre meal. Service: For a fancier, more expensive meal, I was expecting a certain level of service. Unfortunately, I felt that the mediocre service negatively affected the meal. I'm not one to normally care about how positive the service is, but when it detracts from your experience, it is worth noting. It wasn't even about our waitress; she was great. The overall experience created by the waitstaff was not very pleasant. We were sat down and introduced to our waitress. A different server brought out our water, and said not a single word to us, not even hello. I knew we were off to an interesting start with that awkward encounter. Our original waitress came to take our drink order, and came back later for our food order. She was friendly and went out of her way to take a picture of us, which we appreciated. Midway through our meal, they started putting away the patio furniture. Tables and chairs from around us were being dragged inside, and it was very distracting. There were still around 4-5 other tables occupied on the patio too, and it was around 2 hours before their closing, so I'm not sure what the rush was. About 30 mins after our meal we realized that my boyfriend forgot his umbrella at the table, so we went back to see if they found it. We asked a waitress if anyone had seen it while they were putting away the furniture (at this point all but 2 occupied tables were gone from the patio). She said she'll check and came back and told us no one had found it. She took his number down and said they'd call if they found it. 2 weeks later, and still no umbrella. Can't blame them for his mistake, but it's surprising that they didn't encounter the umbrella when it was right on the chair at our table. Overall: Punch bowl gave us an expensive meal ($100+ for our meal and we didn't order many items), not very tasty food or drinks, and meh service. I would not go back for dinner, although if I was wanting to meet a friend for drinks 5 minutes away from my place, I would consider it. read more

Punch Bowl - Mezze platter - New American Near Me - Brookline, Massachusetts

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Fun new bar/restaurant in Brookline! Multiple options for both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. It's definitely pricey, but that isn't unexpected for a hotel bar in Brookline. Would come back if I was looking for a place in the area, but not sure I would go out of my way to stop by. read more

Friday, October 22, 2021 - Dinner seating around 9:00 p.m. I ate at the bar and it a was good experience... Cheers to the bartender for the great pours and the attentive but not intrusive service. The food was delicious... Oysters for my appetizer and NY Strip steak for my entree along with french fries and homemade chips. Definitely worth a try if you're in the area. read more

Worst service ever. We arrived for lunch on a Saturday, it wasn't busy at all, only one more table outside, and a couple other tables inside. By the way sitting outside is not nice at all, looking over a busy street. We waited for 45 min for our food to arrive, a simple french toast and pizza and left without eating. They were still making the making the French toast after a 45 min wait! They didn't even apologize, and even charged us for the drinks. Such a shame, will never come back. read more

I went there for Sunday brunch around 12:30 and it was empty. That should've been a sign right there to not eat there. Service was so slow and food wasn't anything special. read more

Really underwhelming $18 continental breakfast with basically cereal, a few bagels, and some scrambled eggs (all bland looking). There's other breakfast places around here, and since Hilton didn't actually include breakfast I preferred to go to those. Same price better quality elsewhere. read more

This restaurant has potential, the drinks were very good, as were our entrees. We had the Bass and Trout. The ceviche and sausage appetizers were only what I can describe as odd tasting. The servers were very nice and attentive. We will try it again. read more

I stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn and thought it would be quick and easy to have breakfasts at this restaurant downstairs. Sadly, when I arrived at 8:30 am they have only offered very sparse continental breakfast for $18. They also had no staff helping customers. Yes, if you have no other choice, I am sure you won't leave hungry. However, if you have time to spare, find another place for your breakfast. read more

Went for a weekday breakfast here with friends. Food was outstanding, as was the service. Really great ambiance too! Strongly recommend!!!

There was a pebble in my trout. The waitress didn't apologize for it (she did take it off the bill). The food itself was very ordinary so finding a pebble in the dish without an apology was quite disappointing read more

Food & Service in Boston is pretty much always disappointing. I worked in service industry for many years so I am not just "some yelper". I come here because it is one of the very few place I enjoy being at when I want to eat or drink out. It is very new and I am really happy it is around. It is pricey because it is in a hotel - but I have not had a problem with food nor service. The bar staff is extremely nice and DIVERSE which is something I rarely see in Boston area. I feel very comfortable here and not surrounded by racist like I do at most places in the area. The last time I went that had a new GM. She was very pleasant and everyone at the bar eating breakfast had an enjoyable time. I forget her name but she was Croatian and super friendly! I like this place a lot. read more

I am compelled to leave my first review in many years. The food here was atrocious. Clams Rockefeller were essentially cold, with half cooked spinach and greasy crumbs on top. The "mezze plate" was hastily thrown together from rubbery unidentified vegetable, inedible salty ricotta, bland hummus. Chef, please, go to Sarma or Soffra to taste an actual mezze plate. We left half way, before ordering entrees. You need to find an actual chef, folks... Sorry. read more

Service was very slow. Not enough staff working. Order came out wrong and it was over priced for the quality.

We came for a late lunch and ate outside, so there were less people. The staff were al friendly and the service was good. The chocolate mousse and brittle-like thing was amazing! The donut hole could've been better. We ordered it as a starter but it definitely could've been a dessert. The Benedict was great and the omelette was over cooked but still good. The carbonara was just OKAY, but would not do it again. Besides the chocolate mousse, the potatoes were amazing. I would probably come back here again. Worth trying out! read more

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I was staying in the Hilton Garden Inn the weekend of 4/6 and had a terrible experience at the Punch Bowl. We decided to have drinks and appetizers at the Punch Bowl before going to dinner. We arrived at the bar about 6pm and ordered drinks. I gave the bartender my credit card and asked that he leave at tab open as other members of our party would be there shortly. We stayed at the bar until about 8:15 ordering drinks and appetizers. When I asked for the check and to close out the tab, the bartender handed me the check and asked how I wanted to pay. I told him I gave him my credit card and asked that he open a tab. He appeared to have no idea what I was talking about and told me I didn't give him my card. Then he said he gave it back to me which he didn't. The other members of my party were certain as well that he didn't give me my card back. My group was seated at a table directly across from the bar and we never left the table for the entire time we were there. He continued to insist he gave me the card back and did little to even look for it. This caused me to spend the next half hour canceling my card, being late for my dinner reservation and incurring the cost of an additional Uber. There was no manager present to assist at that point. Later a manager appeared and advised my family members he would look into it. Needless to say I never heard from anyone at the restaurant. The following morning I got a call from the hotel front desk that someone returned my card. The lack of customer service and concern that the bartender had lost my credit card that easily is very concerning. The bar was not crowded and there were about 5-7 people sitting there the whole night. I reached out to the manager/owner through the restaurant website on Monday and of course received no response. read more

Great women owned business! We split the ceviche and had the pork chops and sirloin for entrees. Great atmosphere and friendly staff!

I really enjoyed dinner at Punch bowl. I especially enjoyed the quinoa and tofu dish, it was an excellent vegetarian choice, very tasty and filling. The cinnamon donut dessert was also great. read more

I was excited to try this restaurant because there aren't many other restaurants in the area. The service was very good and they let us move indoors even though we'd reserved a table outdoors, since the weather was colder than we'd expected. However the food itself was disappointing. The roasted beet salad was mostly arugula: definitely not worth $16! The charcuterie board was okay, though the choice of accoutrements was a little odd. And the mushroom pot pie had a strange sourness, though the puff pastry on top was good. Overall the food was definitely not worth the price. read more

Great atmosphere with huge windows and outdoor seating. A bit pricey with a burger at $18 but for special night out the seafood looked delicious. I had the pork chop and it was very garlicky. read more

Drinks were good, but overall not a good value. Way too much ice and not enough liquid (finished them in less than 5 min. The food was pretty bad. Had to send back one of the chicken dishes because it was way too salty. The eggplant was fair, I've had better from takeout restaurants anywhere in the Boston area. Would not return. read more

Creative, fun menu. Excellent service (for these Covid-troubled times). Josh Zifkin knows how to produce great food with style. It's informal, relaxed, friendly, and delicious (despite too much A/C and an uninspired hotel). We'll go back again. So glad to have Punch Bowl in our town! read more

We expected more of Puncbowl because it is owned by the same people who own LaMorra, which is a fabulous restaurant. We will give it another try in a few months, hoping that they work out the growing pains of opening a new establishment. The food we had was Ok....nothing special. The cocktails we had were very disappointing, and overpriced. The waitstaff was nice, although a bit unorganized. It was not busy when we were there, so that kind of confused us. And one of the most annoying things during our dinner, were the loud voices from the kitchen. The chef/s were literally screaming out orders, and since it is an open kitchen in the dining room, it was really obnoxious. Maybe there is a better way to manage this? At points, it was hard to carry a conversation among the diners. Hope Punchbowl works out the kinks.....We want to be repeat diners! read more

I just went to Punch Bowl with some friends. We had a great meal. Two people got the burger and loved it. I got the trout along with someone else. We both thought it was delicious. Another person got the pork chop and was happy with his choice. It was a great experience with plenty of seating outside. read more

I initially moved to Boston in the early 1990's, and then returned twenty years ago. While I would agree with the Yelp reviewer who wrote "Food & Service in Boston is pretty much always disappointing" back in the day, Boston has had an amazing burgeoning food scene for about a decade now. I don't know where this person goes to eat, but I can tell you-as serious Foodies-my husband and I have fantastic food experiences at many restaurants throughout the area. The service is sometimes touch and go, but that's the case with all industries these days. We had been looking forward to trying Punch Bowl. It was a huge disappointment, and because there are too many great alternatives in the immediate area we won't be back. The space itself looks like a hotel lobby. I get that it is in a hotel lobby, but given the prices, and the fact it's presenting as a higher end restaurant, I'm surprised more effort wasn't put into separating the restaurant from the rest of the hotel aesthetic. The staff gathered in corners to chat. This happened over and over again throughout the meal. This included a woman wearing a red coat which I assume to mean she is a manager of some sort. There was hugging and pulling masks down to chat (there's an active mask mandate in the area)-though not every employee did this. We were ignored through most of the meal. No one checked on us. And it took us pushing aside used dishes for someone to finally take it away. My first finished drink sat there for the entire meal. We had booked a dinner reservation but sat at the bar, so we literally had servers in front of us the entire time. It wasn't like we were hidden away in some corner. Our glasses were empty for quite a while before someone asked if we could use another round. The drinks were good I got two rounds of a tiki drink that comes in a Pineapple. The problem is they leave so much of the pineapple along with tons of ice, you barely get any drink, which is ridiculous because the cocktail was around $20. The plastic straws were so brittle they split over and over again, making it impossible to drink the cocktail (I could not lift the pineapple to my lips) so we had to get a handful of straws, which made us very uncomfortable given the fact that straws are so un-eco-friendly. We ordered the caviar, which was a hilariously small scoop of mostly unflavored caviar, but the chips and dip were decent. The entrees took FOREVER to come out. My husband said his pork chop was cooked to perfection, but the side was just really weird. My burger was really good, but after a while it was just too "over the top" given the amount of gravy, etc.. on it. It was incredibly messy to eat, gravy was running everywhere. I joked with how I was glad I was not on a first date with my husband, given how borderline gross it was to try to keep the burger and your face together. The bottom line is I doubt most folks have a lot of expectation when it comes to grabbing a meal at a hotel. But given the fact there's so many great restaurants to visit, I would recommend skipping this one. read more