I couldn't wait to get home and review this place. It took mediocrity to a level so high that it somehow jumped over into the category of "Laughably Awful Eating Experiences." As soon as I walked in I was assaulted by the dulcet tones of cliched music from 1996. No joke, we played the guessing game of what's coming up next and nailed it three times with Sublime, Hootie and the Blowfish, and Red Hot Chile Peppers. Don't get me wrong, just a few weeks ago I was on my fifth sake cocktail at Rock Box and queuing up Goo Goo Dolls for shits and giggles but this reeked of someone so out of touch that they think this stuff is ironic, musical catnip for hipsters or something. ( I also burst out laughing when the few patrons were fine with Haddaway's "What is Love" and Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" only to yell at the bartender to skip some N' Sync or 90 Degrees song. Really? You guys just sat through 45 minutes of someone's 90s Now That's What I Call Music collection and a boy band is unacceptable to you?) Enough with that and on to the food. It was terrible. Just ridiculously inedible and let me tell you, I am willing to eat a lot of awful junk. We split a wedge salad, chicken tenders basket, and nachos and those three things made up most of their menu. It's very small (at least this applies to the lunch menu). The wedge salad was completely boring with a small sprinkle of bacon and tomatoes that had clearly been sitting around for a while. I ate two bites. The chicken tenders were fine but they were not notable in any way and the accompanying fries were limp. The nachos made me laugh out loud. We got a smallish basket of cold, stale chips with a couple blobs of gritty, dried out, unmelted cheese. There was a spoonful of weird chili on top that was gone in a couple of bites and, no exaggeration, a single tablespoon of browning guacamole in a little plastic cup that is usually used to give you a sample of something at a grocery store. No salsa or anything else to help deal with the mound of dry, unadorned chips we were faced with. We abandoned ship 1/3 of the way into our food and booked it. Never again. read more

Continually ignored at the bar. Busy night, watched the bartender stand back...intentionally serve none of her customers, and sip on a drink as she casually smirked at the situation. It was a slap in the face to everybody who'd been waiting (over ten minutes at the bar). One of the rudest things I've ever seen in the service industry. First and last time - never again. Too many other options, this place is in dire need of better management... read more

I honestly don't know how to describe Sam's Tavern. Maybe I'll just say it's not my type of joint. But what is my type of thing is the endless fries, and burgers they have! The place itself is clean and ample. You have to order at the bar so watch out! I walked in on a Sunday evening after finishing some shopping and family visiting so as i was expecting the place was empty so granted i sat at the bar and got serviced right away! Full bar and beer on tap. If i remember correctly i ordered the Sam's burger which it was a good decent tasting burger along with the buns, perfectly paired with fries and PBR :) I'll be coming back on a different day so i can update my review from 3.5 to maybe more? read more

Great food / worst service in Seattle. On this lazy Sunday morning I go for brunch, it's slow - still took 10 mins to get a menu. Then our waitress (tall brunette with long hair) takes my drink order and totally forgets. 15 more mins until I flag down another server for a beer. Got got my food, it was great! This is the only reason you would come here... They do have good food even if their burgers are pretty greasy. I Finish my drink and the server takes it without asking if I'd like another. She is never seen again - disappearing to hang out with a table of friends. 15 minutes later I ask the bartender for my check and naturally, its got a few extra beers on it that I didn't order - wtf. Seriously Sams get it together! Your bad service is killing an otherwise great new addition to cap hill! read more

I waited and waited for this joint to open since reading about it on the Capitol Hill blog. My friends and I have long been lamenting the lack of a rocking burger joint that's both on Capitol Hill and convenient to our homes and places of work. Well, the lament continues. Owned, as it is, by one of the Red Robin kids, I expected something of the Red Robin caliber here. Alas, this was not the case. Realizing that this joint has only just opened, though, I remain guardedly optimistic. I was greeted by a cute girl behind the bar, and placed my order for the 50/50 Club burger (to go), and was offered a Pepsi while I waited. This, coupled with my admiration for the gorgeous, masculine build-out was the best part of my experience. When packaging my to go bag, my server asked if I wanted catsup and mustard "to go" as well. I answered the affirmative. She came back to tell me that I'd have to deal with the house's "special sauce" (still not sure what this is), as they didn't have mustard there (a burger joint without mustard? Hmm.) Got the food back to my office and opened the box. I should have taken a photo, but wasn't really planning on writing a review. For the $10 price tag, the burger was a great deal smaller than expected. The fries look spiral cut, are rather thin, and are surprisingly greasy. They could also have used a little salt. The "star" of the meal - the burger is a tasty mix of ground Kobe beef (they say) and ground bacon. The bacon flavor was very strong (not necessarily a sin) and overpowered any other tastes that may have been contributed by Gouda cheese and the House "Special Sauce". All in all, a truly uninspired mess of a burger! Totally sucks because I was honestly hoping for so much more! I'll go back and try the barbecue, I guess. If that's as much a flop as this go 'round, I know I won't be back. I'll keep you informed. read more

One star for the bloody mary with a tiny burger attached to it. One star for the golf video game. Minus 4 stars for having shabby and clearly never-thought-about decor, filthy (FILTHY!) restrooms, grumpy bartenders, and pretty terrible food. I heard this guy is re-opening the Canterbury soon. Please don't ruin it. read more

Pretty middling service and pricing. The one star, though, is for the fact that the bouncer barely glanced at my (white guy) ID, but my latino boyfriend and our blasian friend both got the flashlight in the face, the UV penlight, "confirm your birthday and address" sort of treatment. Flash forward to a few weeks ago when I find a message on Facebook from the owner asking details (I had left a quick blurb about the racist bouncer on FB because it wanted a review based on my check-in). I told him what I remembered and then shortly thereafter got a message that my account was flagged and that they had removed my review of Sam's. I went to send a message to the owner only to find he had blocked me. Doesn't quite strike me as a business owner that has fair treatment of potential patrons in mind. If you're not quite white, you might want to find a different bar. read more

Wow.. Went in for the bloody with the slider. Amazing.. I should have stopped there. I ordered two, one for me and one for the friend that was on their way. The server said that they take about 20 min. I was so delighted when it came. All of the items on the bloody were awesome. The burger was so crazy good, it would have been enough for lunch. The bloody had a bunch of garlic, which was good. I mean really good. This would be a great bloody without the burger. Now onto the actual food. We got the Hawaiian, the Chili and the regular old 50/50. All were really good huge burgers. None of us could finish, so two meal sandwich is awesome.. I was surprised by how incredibly nice the server was. My friends were way late, and she didn't make me feel uncomfortable taking up a table. She made some insanely good coffee. And kept all of my drinks refilled. The staff was awesome for us. My only issue was the price. Almost 100 after tip, for three people (one non drinker) to have a lunch of burgers was a little much. I am not unhappy with any part of our service or meal, but if I wanted to pay that much for lunch, I should be getting something more.. My suggestion, do go here for the bloody with the slider. Then leave, and get a burger from dicks if you are still hungry. Also the whole Rainier for a buck is awesome and perfect. They totally got an extra star for the music that was being funneled in. It made life better, and we all commented on how great the music was. read more

This is a review about the nightlife scene at Sam's- not the daytime restaurant which I'm sure is more pleasant. The service here was poor. It was my first night here and the bartender was continuously short with my boyfriend and me. She asked what we wanted, and we wanted to try their signature slider Bloody Mary with bacon vodka. She kindly explained that they can't do the full out slider Bloody Mary because we "can't expect [them] to with all these people" in the bar. Then everyone will want them. Even though it was 10:30pm and the kitchen was open. What? Also, my friend tried ordering at the bar for 5+ minutes. He kindly asked two ladies to order his drink for him, and they were able to order it instantly. Maybe he's just bad at getting the bartender's attention. Riiight. Plus side- the bacon vodka Bloody Mary was very spicy and flavorful- it's incredibly filling but I liked it. If you're bar hopping, I'd come here to try it out but don't expect good service. read more

Was looking forward to finally checking Sam's out given the initial opening hype. Extremely limited beer list, somewhat overpriced for a dive lodge. Didn't find Sam's particularly inspired or unique, as prior reviewers have noted. You do have to order at the bar, which doesn't make any sense since there are booths lining the wall. Standard bar fare. read more

I'm not going to lie, the taxidermy is a little disturbing when I'm trying to eat my veggie burger, but I also know what I'm getting myself into when I come here! That being said, their hazelnut veggie burger is the BEST veggie burger I've ever had. I swapped the fries for a wedge salad - excellent blue cheese dressing btw! My friends had chicken fingers and meat burgers and no one left unsatisfied. The steak fries were also rubbed with something and were a nice treat - they give you more than plenty of them so I was able to try the leftovers from everyone else's plates :) I had the blackberry beer - perfectly refreshing on a night with humidity in the air! Also I had my free Rainier for checking in on Yelp and ordering a burger! Nice way to top off the meal! read more

I want to like this place more. The location is great and so is the size. They also have classic bar food.. But the service is always mediocre. Once there was a fly in my bloody mary and the lady looked at me like I was a child, then said "do you want me to get it out for you?" Uh yeah I guess. Came in this weekend around 8pm and no one greeting us told us to get service at the bar or anything. Just bizarre. Maybe that's the vibe they are going for. :-/ Otherwise everything here is just A-OK. read more

Sam's is alright. It's not horrible per se, but it's not great either. There's really nothing remarkable about this place that makes you say, "Oh I'd totally go back for that". I've never tried the food, but the whole place smells like a greasy spoon on steroids. There's a reason that the tables above and adjacent to the kitchen are the ones that are occupied last. I made the mistake of sitting near the kitchen last time I was there (2 months ago) and I just got the fried onion smell out of my jacket. The drinks have been pretty underwhelming for the most part. Not particularly strong. My double rum and coke just ended up being an $8 coke. The second most recent trip to Sam's, my whiskey ginger was pretty soapy. I was pretty hammed up when I ordered it, but the taste was distinct. My friends confirmed that the thing tasted more like an Ajax Ginger rather than a Whiskey Ginger and that my drunk mind was not inventing flavors. The crowd is fun if nothing else and it's not overly expensive. I wouldn't necessarily actively partition to visit Sam's if I was on Capitol Hill. But if you're looking to mix up your Capitol Hill routine from Unicorn/Cha Cha/Big Mario's, it's not the worst you could do. It's probably a good idea to take a sip of your drink before you leave the bartender's sight so you can promptly get any soapiness removed, though. Be weary that the upstairs can get absurdly hot as the bar fills up. read more

Bartenders are friendly, the rest of the staff is not. Frozen food and limited tap. No real reason to stop by unless you are trying to catch a game and have no other option. read more

I really enjoyed my time at Sam's. Clean space, cheap & delicious burgers, all day happy hour, bottomless fries, sounds good to me! I got a burger (can't remember the name) that had a delicious special sauce on it. We had a very attentive and friendly server who took our order right away and came back to our table multiple times before we paid and left. We'll be back! read more

I loved Sam's and their happy hour deal. 2-for-1 drink special? Awesome. Chicken tenders? Awesome. Bottomless fries? Awesome However, after going this past weekend I have vowed to no longer support their business. My friends and I were given absolutely HORRIBLE service. I am seriously not one to complain, but my goodness our waiter and waitress were the absolute two worse people working. One of them started out by serving us and then literally disappeared for the rest of our stay. However, he had time to dart outside and talk to our other waitress. After about 20 minutes of waiting for one of my friend's drinks to show up...one of us decided to go up to the bar and ask the other waitress that was working. The other waitress, rolled her eyes and then proceeded to give us even worse service. We were willing to spend more money and get more drinks, but after the horrible time we were having, we decided against it. Sorry to give this place up, but the people who work there need a reality check. Do your job. read more

Was in last night for a night cap and some food. the lady working had the worst attitude Ive seen in a long time. I asked her what they had for wine and she said "we have a white and a red" and when I asked her what the red was she rolled her eyes and said "its a blend, the bottle just says red blend!" like I had asked her 10 questions about it? I bartend myself and I get when its the end of the night and youre over it and this chick was way way way way over it. I didnt notice we had ketchup already and when our food came, I grabbed one from the condiments area and she came over, snatched it up like I had done the last offensive thing I could Possibly do to her on a Sunday, told me I already had ketchup at the table and she didnt want to fill another ketchup up again! (Cuz that would take, dunno, 25 seconds) Lol ugh lady... I cant imagine you on a busy night. read more

Beh. Hard to get service, even when seated at the bar. Every time someone walks in the door be prepared to hear bartender shriek SIT WHERE YOU WANT! Drink was weak, food was disappointing, & the music is basically the same sad set of oldies playing down the street at QFC. When they first opened the staff was really attentive, there were tasty skinny fries served up immediately, with a side of special sauce. None of these things remain. I wanted to like this place but I really don't, & just can't recommend it. read more

Fuck this place. Their sign out front literally says open til 2, and at 1:30 they were forcing a sober handicapped guy to leave claiming "bar hours are different" despite their very clear sign. Pathetic move on a Friday night. Easily the worst place in cap hill. read more

The sign of a solid establishment is that word of mouth gets around. Sam's Tavern has a well-earned record for being a great place to meet up with people in the high-energy neighborhood of Capitol Hill, and their 2-story location has room to pack the crowds in. You wouldn't necessarily expect a tavern to have outstanding food, but here it is. They have a variety of burgers on the menu to choose from, from your basic "Made in America" hamburger to their version of a Juicy Lucy. This obvious nod to Seattle's recent wave of transplant yuppies (myself among them) is what I ordered and it was outstanding. The meat was great, and cooked with skill. The cheese oozed everywhere, in a good way. The bun was as unobtrusive as possible, doing the bare minimum to hold everything together. The fries that came with the burger were among the best I've had in Seattle. This is the place to come when having a bite to eat is expected to start your night, not finish it. Get in early to secure a good table and beat the crowds! read more

I have to say I wish that a 3.5 existed but I'll tell you why a 4 is valid in my book. Sam's captures the Seattle dive bar vibe extremely well from the graffiti/writing in the bathrooms to the dollar bills hung on the walls. Whenever my friends come into town they like to stop in here. The drinks are decent, and happy hour well prices are a bargain for a stiff drink. HH food is also cheap. We had the loaded fries which were fries with nacho cheese, chili and bacon. I thought they were alright (would have been better if I was drunk) but my boyfriend loved them and for a plate of loaded fries for 5 bucks I was okay with it. It's a small place and gets crowded at night but it's worth stopping by and taking in the vibe. Come expecting a dive bar and you won't be disappointed, but don't expect more than that. read more

Sam’s Tavern - Loaded fries - Bars Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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I still think this place has the best burger in town...no question. Went in on March 2, 2014 and grabbed a seat on a very 1/2 busy afternoon. As nine minutes later approached, I was still waiting to get a beer and a burger. The two women on shift were having a great time behind the bar laughing and joking among themselves. Still waiting here.... Finally the server with black hair and shaved on one side came over and asked if I wanted a menu. There was no "Hello" or "How are you?" or "Can I get you a beer?" The other server, a young lady with blond hair just walked on by a number times and never made eye contact. Every place has a bad day. I get that....... I got two beers and left...NO burger. So, wanting a burger, I came in on March 3, 2014 and thought we could try again. My Mistake! Came in and didn't wait as long but when the time to order came I was only able to place a portion of it because our server was busy walking away each time she would stop. I still don't know why she stopped at all. Needless to say, I only got half the order and we didn't stay for another round of beers. I would have had to catch her to place the order. The food is still great, but the service isn't what it used to be, CLEARLY!!! I hope SAMS doesn't turn into the tragedy around the corner, but the service seems to be headed that way. Manhattan has a great burger too and I will return to SAM'S another time. read more

This place is a nice addition to Capital Hill. Its located in the major hub of the hill which means that it can get a tad busy in there. I went there this past weekend and we went fairly early in the evening. It was was not busy at all and I must say... quite pleasant. Let me start with the staff. They were super friendly. They were very attentive and were a great help to me and my group. The drink prices were very reasonable. Not over priced a bit and it was a decent size. The over all experience I had was very nice. As for the food. I have yet to try it, but I have been told that its very good. One think I noticed was that the bar is pretty small and as the night progresses it can get very busy. Busy as in the wait time for a drink can be a tad long, but I attribute that to the location of the bar. I will say that this is a pretty solid bar and I will be returning. I would recommend that one would go before 10pm on Friday or Saturday night. It can get a little crowded. read more

This place is great for burgers. We were all happy with them, and they have free unlimited fries, which never hurts! If you're a vegetarian, they have veggie burgers, just ask! Also, they have a $6 all day happy hour portion of the menu, so if you're just looking for a snack, you're always in luck! Would definitely go again! read more

This is the very definition of a dive bar: The drinks are strong and fairly cheap. There are only 4 beers on tap. The place is delightfully tacky. Everything is laid back. They play classic rock music. There are two things out of the ordinary in terms of a dive bar though. The service is impeccable and the burgers are amazing. I couldn't ask for faster food or quicker drinks or friendlier waitresses. But on to the burgers. The 50/50 is amazing, half bacon and half beef. And if you've never tried it, you need to. Finally, you can drink $1 PBR or get 2 for 1 draft beers during happy hour. What's not to like about this place? read more

So, Seattle history geeks may know that the history of Red Robin got started at a Sam's Tavern in Eastlake. That Sam's Tavern became Sam's Red Robin, and later new owners decided to drop 'Sam' from the name and the rest is history. That happened in the 1940s. This place has connection to the original Sam's Tavern. But if you look at the Sam's Tavern Web site, they tell you that anyway. And honestly, I think paying homage to a legendary burger joint is a nifty idea. I've been in there a few times and it's a great spot to start a bar hop on the Hill. LOCATION: Right in the heart of E Pike St on Capitol Hill. The building was constructed in 1913, but you'd never know it after the facelifts. Otherwise, there are surrounding structures that are still intact in what is remains of one of Seattle's oldest retail sectors. PARKING: Street parking. You're pretty much going to have to rely on the parking goddess unless you venture on Sunday while everyone is still hungover. Be prepared to search. AMBIENCE/DECOR: A bunch of rustic junk all over the place. It's like a hipster bar you'd find in a forest ranger turned hippie colony. One of the most impressive things I've seen in there is an antler chandelier. SERVICE: Stellar. I've been in here during Pride and can still get darn good service. BOOZE: Not much on the microbrews (a couple of solid ones). For the most part, you're coming in here for the food that tastes good with the booze you're drinking. They make a good Bloody Mary. FOOD: Hearty American food. They make a darn good burger. Overall, cool great place to go. read more

Don't know what the bad reviews are about. Great bar with excellent service and the bloody Mary's are worth the drive or walk. Don't miss out on this place. Must see and drink read more

Sam’s Tavern - Just above the bar. - Bars Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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I'm a little obsessed with Bloody Marys, so I spend a lot of time hunting down all the different places that serve them. I saw this place on a Bloody Mary blog and knew I had to try it. I'm usually more of a spicy, horse radishy, savory type of bloody drinker, but I was surprised at how much I liked sam's sweet garlic bloody. It also came with a freshly made delicious, hot slider! Honestly, I don't remember what I thought of the food, but their bloodys are bomb dot com. read more

Sam’s Tavern - Hello! - Bars Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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My friend and I came here for dinner last night and the bottom line is that you should probably skip this place. The service was funny, and not in a good way. We walked in kind of looked around since it was our first time. Despite it being pretty dead in there, there was no acknowledgement of our presence. They might have been overwhelmed by the task of cracking a can of PBR for the single bar patron to notice us. Fine. So we grabbed a table and scanned the menu for a while. I knew coming in that we had to order at the bar so I made the trip where I continued to get ignored. There I am, at the bar with a menu in hand looking to grab someone's attention. Oh hey, look - a man behind the bar with an attempt at an unflattering goatee who might be able to help me! What's this...he is looking in my direction...ok, awesome. Happiness fades as he looks at the group of guys who comes in through the entrance behind me. The look he had on his face as he looked past me screamed, "who are these punks and why are they bothering me, WHY MEEEE, WHYYYYY!" Cue friendly bartender/waitress. She was attentive and the only highlight of our experience. The only odd thing was that although my friend and I had been looking around at our table for a while before heading to the bar to order, we didn't get greeted. But then a couple sits next to us and they got the "what can I bring you" spiel right away. What's up with that? Now, the food. We ordered the 50/50 burger, mac & cheese, and their boka burger (not currently listed on their website). Although the prices are good, all the food was unimpressive and quickly got way too salty. The mac & cheese had an interesting flavor but then we could not get over the weird sweetness it had. Be warned, it is not your standard mac & cheese. The 50/50 burger was juicy but it needed a fat slice of tomato for some salt relief. Oh and the Red Robin steak fries were blah. TL;DR - generally poor and inconsistent service, salty food, don't get the mac & cheese, food is reasonably priced. read more

Bartenders illegally add additional tips on credit card receipts! This has happened to me 3 separate times where I know the exact dollar amount (even taking a picture of my receipt) to find out on my bank statement several days later that the bartender will add on more money for themselves. Know your totals people. Weak poor drinks here as well. read more

Usually come here to meet up with friends on the weekends. Relaxed bar and gets pretty busy. Upstairs is fun to play beer pong but is really small so can't fit a lot of people. Service at the bar goes pretty slow unfortunately but they're always nice! Went to Sunday brunch there today since other places around there had lines and we weren't disappointed! No lines, reasonably priced and quick service. We got a breakfast sandwich, coffee, Bloody Mary and breakfast burrito for $30. Breakfast sandwich and burrito are big and only $6! read more

Sam’s Tavern - Bloody Mary with chicken sandwich, yum! - Bars Near Me - Seattle, Washington

I found this place because of a Groupon deal. The menu has $10 for a burger and bottomless fries. My wife had the black bean burger, and she liked it. It is certainly a better vegetarian entree than a garden burger. The fries are not quite as good as Red Robins, but the beef burgers are better. I was there on a weekday and they had a $1 Rainier special. You can't beat that. I had a Bloody Mary. It was RIDICULOUS. I have not been there at night, so I do not know what the scene is like. It looks like a lot of work went into the decor. I am not a huge fan of the taxidermy or the gun above the cash register. The room upstairs looks like it would be good for a private party. read more

Great dive-ish bar Awesome service and good people. Can't complain about the $1 Rainiers before 6pm! We enjoyed our time here!! read more

Friday/Saturday nights at Sam's is the place to be in SLU. So I decided to celebrate my 30th birthday at the SLU location a few weekends ago. Needless to say, the Sam's crew went above and beyond to make my special day over the top. I think the only person that had more fun than me, was my dad, who woke up barefoot because he lost his shoes lol. Thanks again Sam's crew and see y'all soon! read more

I visited during a really early afternoon to Sam's. Telling by the reviews, I got to experience a great time since it was not a busy night or weekend. The service was very friendly and informative. It slowed down a bit once friends of hers came by and started to talk on the side for a while and it started to get a little busy in the place as well. The food is amazing!!! The burgers are the best I have had..it's addicting!! warning! The mini burgers on top of Bloody Marys are fantastic as well! REAL mini burgers! Note: they are not so cheap drinks at $13 each. But I did balance the bill out with some special $1 Rainier beers!!! overall, a great place, very quaint and personal, funny and eclectic on atmosphere, and clients seem to have a great time, enjoy the music, and are left positive and happy. read more

So I came here for the first time on New Year's Eve. I started my night with the Fire Manhattan and wow how delicious is that drink! I also ordered the Juicy Lucy burger - a burger patty stuffed with cheese and loaded up with all the fixin's. The burger was delicious, but the curly fries did leave something to be desired. Fast forward a few weeks. I'm back to Sam's for a lunch and order up the sliders. Gotta say these two sliders really hit the spot! But wait, there's more. The fries have been revamped and are a lot easier to eat, and overall a whole lot better. Sam's has listened to their customers which is exactly what I expect of a new business. The fries are still freshly fried just how I like them, but now they're thicker instead of the shoestring curly kind during their opening. If you came during the opening weeks and weren't a fan of the fries, COME BACK. They're a lot better. I'm a fan of Sam's. read more

I used come here all the time until I started noticing they were charging me more than they used too and more than how much an item on the menu reflected how long was this happening until I noticed? Any ways I get a breakfast burrito which comes with a choice of meet and then when I go to pay hey charge me an extra 2 bucks for meat???? Wtf yo even when I pointed this out the waiter just brushed me off saying that's what happens on the system when they ring me up and try to be a smart ass and proceeded to ask me to look at their register screen like I can't speak English or something forget this place and their weak sauce burritos read more

Unimpressive. Our water glasses (the only beverages on the table) sat empty for about half the time we were there. I wouldn't be so peeved if I hadn't noticed our server texting and staring into space behind the bar while I our glasses sat... and sat... and sat... read more

I came here because I found a Groupon deal and it is close to the NW Film Forum where I was going to see a movie later. It's definitely busy looking on the inside. Not really the sort of joint that typically pops up on Capitol Hill. This isn't a bad thing, it's just not what I am used to seeing. The booths were spacious! The music though, ugh. I'm not sure who is choosing it... but Sublime? Yuck. Maybe if you were very drunk that would be pleasant to hear. Our server was incredibly friendly. I was taken aback because I'm so used to cold, indifferent service from the establishments in the nearby vicinity. It was like she actually enjoyed being at work that day. I enjoyed the small menu personally; it makes choosing what I want very easy. They do definitely lack on the starters though. I would dig a veggie plate or something light to nibble on while I drink my $1 Rainiers and wait for a burger. I ordered the Magic Mushroom burger and my dining companion ordered the 50/50, both with fries. As for the food, it was pretty good. The white cheddar is an interesting choice, it doesn't taste like much but was a good texture. My real complaint about the cheese is that it was over seasoned. They sprinkle some mixed dried seasonings on there and it was a bit overpowering. It smelled very falsely herbal. The same mixture seemed to be on the fries as well, but was used with a much lighter hand there and I dug those. For once I got a mushroom burger where the mushrooms weren't cooked down to a mushy slime that fell out all over the place! Good job, Sam's Tavern. If you're looking for something "gourmet" this is not it, but it was a tasty burger at a reasonable price with good steak fries and the price matches. I'll be back, at least to try out the bar and see how that is since that is what people complain about the most. Our service was great and I can't stress how much I enjoyed that part of the experience. read more

Great place to watch the game. The upstairs was completely empty when we arrived so we were able to lounge and hang out with a huge tv all to our own. It's very warm upstairs so dress lite! Our food was great! Came out really fast and tasted delicious. Our friends came in later on and ordered food from the bar. They forgot to put in the order and didn't get their food until the game was over. They're very busy during game time so I understand a little 'harshness' but the staff is downright rude sometimes. Just a little too much. They were out of Manny's when I went to refill our pitcher so I was trying to figure out what the next best option was and the bartender was extremely aggravated and I could barely get my next food order in with her. Great place to watch the game. Perfect for big groups upstairs--just hot! Don't expect friendly service and it may be inconsistent. read more