I used to go to this bar when I was an assistant counselor at a camp up there. The best camp. I'm James' age exactly. The bar was great before they owned it. You ask for bar food or drinks and they gave them to you. I haven't been there physically since they took control but can assure any weary indecisive loons using yelp to make simple decisions for them that it will be a great time. James and Billy know how to work and are very friendly. I'd love to go back and will soon. They love it up there and I'm sure it reflects in the bar. So many yelp reviews come from people that don't know how to have a good time. They always botch their nights out and blame their surroundings. Then they toss up a pissy review as if they are some shitty critic. Critics suck and yelp is amateur critical central. Any bad reviewers here should give it try again. Sounds like you need to be assertive in the bar. So be that or head down to the lake skip rocks for a bit. I've had this app for 3 years. This is my third review. I try to ignore the app wherever I see its presence. But I'm an app boi. Have trouble letting any go. 5 stars. Until my next... suck it yelpers read more

Very friendly on moon lake. Silly quarter game my kids like to lose money on. Nice space- a little drafty. Great food but wish there was salad option. Would definitely come back. read more

Pizza was good. I would recommend ordering it well done. The fish tacos were tasty and not really heavy. We ate outside and had a wonderful server take care of us. Very nice establishment. Will be back to try more. read more

Service was good, food could have been better. Burger was good, Wings not so good, mixed within the wings was a part of a chicken I could not identify. read more

My favorite bar in the Northwoods, we always make it a point to visit. They have great pizza and friendly service.

Everyone working there was friendly and fun to talk to. The burgers were excellent, absolutely huge. Will definitely go back next time we are in Rhinelander! Thanks!!! read more

Great service and great food. Nice family friendly atmosphere. Great gyros and wings!

Great food! Wife had nachos which were really good. I had a mushroom Swiss burger. Cheese curds and onion rings for apps. Great northwoods stop! read more

It's the best bar got the best kitty cocktails I've ever had and got the best buffalo chicken rap I've ever had and the server was really good read more

Amazing food. Great atmosphere with a friendly staff and awesome owners. Live music on Sundays

Horrible service! We ordered an appetizer (chicken quesadilla) which we wanted prior to our sandwiches. The picnic table behind us arrived after we did, placed their order and were served before the waitress came out to inform us the chicken had not even been cooked yet. Why we weren't informed of this upfront is beyond me. After we were served our food (mediocre sandwiches) I had to go back inside to the bar area and ask for the bill as she never returned to our picnic table outside. We will NEVER go back! read more

The Birchwood and its hosts never disappoint. Been going to Birchwood for many, many years because the food is very good, beer is cold and help is friendly and fun. Pizza is very good. You've got to try the "One that got Away" burger topped with gyros meat and tzatziki sauce. Summer Sunday's live outdoor music and BBQ is awesome. I'll definitely being going back and back. read more

Excellent bar food, great view of lake from outdoor deck. Can boat up to dock. Good bloody Mary's.

Great food and great fishing information. Very friendly wi stay at those cabins again as well

Amazing! A random person we ran into twice in town recommended we go. Staff is super fun & friendly. Food was SO GOOD! There were 12 in our group and ALL of us were blown away with how good everything was. We are already discussing coming back and we haven't even left yet! read more

Great place to go to get a quick burger. Food is quick and yummy at the same time. If you are with kids outside is the better option, due to the fact that the inside is kind of a dive. Service is great and very helpful. read more

The Birchwood. This place is near & dear to my heart. I spent many Summers at my Mom's cabin as a kid. A stop here was a must a few times, every time. You see, this bar is located on the shores of the Moen's Lake chain. Third Lake to be exact. My Mom has her property on Fourth Lake. We would, as many others do, boat up the Pelican River to dock at the Birchwood & have a fun evening out. For me, it was always ordering a sarsaparilla. Of course my parents would order an adult libation. Then get some bar burgers with French fries. A visit also included playing video games and pinball. Lastly, looking and admiring the largest Crappie caught on the Moen's Lake chain. It was mounted on a wall in all its glory. Could have been a world record, or at least a Wisconsin record, if it ever got registered. Never did, though. Fast forward 25 years. The Birchwood is still standing strong. New owners. The year before I got in on the skinny that they served an All-You-Can-Eat Friday Night Fish Fry. That's new! I bookmarked it and knew Alyssa & I would be trying it out someday. The Fourth of July ended up being that day. The Birchwood sets off fireworks for the Fourth, so we made a plan. The plan was for my Mother to drive us to the Birchwood. Then later on, the whole gang would boat up and pick Alyssa & I up to watch the fireworks from the boat. We walked in and it's pretty much as I remembered it. It's a Northwoods Bar. Woodsy inside. Pool table. Dart board. Pinball machine. Jukebox. Loud. Busy. The only thing missing was the Crappie. I guess it went with the old owners when the bar was sold. Alyssa & I were able to snag seats at the bar in order to obtain a couple of drinks. They had three bartenders staffed and we were greeted quickly. Alyssa inquired about specials. Our bartender told us that all rails are priced at $2.50 on Friday's. She went with a Vodka Tonic. I ordered a mug of Sprecher Root Beer. When she delivered our beverages, the bartender asked if we would like to order food. We told her yes, but that we would like to dine al fresco. She provided us the menus and told us that she serves outside. So we could go out there when we would like. After taking in the atmosphere for the duration of our beverages, we made our way to a table outdoors. Only one other table was occupied among many available. We chose one and not long after our bartender came out to greet us again. We ordered a second round with her and dove into the menu. Alyssa was looking at the burger options, while I noted that they listed the All-You-Can-Eat Friday Night Fish Fry. It cost $10.49 and is served standard with Beer Battered Cod, Waffle Fries, Coleslaw, & Tartar Sauce. When our drinks were brought, we put in our order. Alyssa went with a specialty burger. One with two different kinds of cheese on Texas Toast with bacon and such. I forget the name. I did the AYCE Friday Night Fish Fry. The wait was average for our suppers. We both got served in a basket. Mine had three filets of Cod included, a good amount of Waffle Fries, and a small plastic ramekin of Coleslaw. Inquiring about what was All-You-Can-Eat, I was told just the Fish was. The Fish is battered so fully that you could eat the fillets with your hands. I tore into the first piece & dipped it into some Tartar Sauce. The Batter is thick & crunchy. I suspect that it might be frozen pre-breaded bagged Fish. The Waffle Fries are the same. They are good. It's just what you would expect out of a frozen bagged Waffle Fry. The Tartar was adequate. Chunky with Dill pickle mixed in. The Coleslaw was good for cutting through all the fried bites of food. Alyssa's burger was okay. The meat was seasoned heavily. Not in a bad way, though. Everything between our dinners seemed so....Sysco. Nothing really stood out. In fact. Most of the food was forgettable. The thing the Birchwood has going for it is it's atmosphere. A wonderful outdoor area to drink & enjoy the weather. Inside it's a great Northwoods Bar. TVs for the game, music for groovin', cheep drinks for tying one on, games for the kids. After supper, we went back inside to get our drink fully on. Hey! We were getting picked up by boat, so we had nothing to worry about. We got fully loaded, then proceeded to get picked up by my parents on the pontoon. We motored out a few hundred yards and waited for the fireworks to start. This is a popular way to watch on the Moan's Lake chain. Over 20 boats were joining us. Thanks for the great display, Birchwood! read more

See all

A really great little spot in the North Woods. A family cozy place with a great atmosphere. A must when going to Rhinelander

Friendly service. Great patty melt and stuffed grilled cheese sandwich. Only lake view if you Ss it outside and it's in the distance. Typical up north bar with shake of the day. read more

Pizzia was excellent. It was a Thursday and it ended up being a buy 1 get 2. Service was a 10! Nice place to have some great pizza. Second time here and will return someday for sure. read more

So happy this place is located near our cabin. Great food. Super friendly owner and staff. I've always felt welcomed and always have had great food no matter what I order. Beautiful location in every kind of weather. Drive your boat or your snowmobile over because it'll be worth the stop. read more

One of the worst experiences at a restaurant in Rhinelander area after family has lived here for 30 years. We had 9 of us on a Saturday night where it wasn't busy at all. Our waitress was friendly at first, but some of our food came very late and she never came back to ask us if we wanted more drinks. Food was decent, but we had 8 empty glasses while she stood at bar with her back to us. Flies were everywhere! Absolutely not exaggerating this. Bathroom smelled. We had asked to watch Packer game and the waitress had explained that the owner/cook had Cubs game on in the kitchen so the main TV couldn't be changed. She did put it on another screen. We couldn't all see the game. Almost everything about our experience was representative of a poor business model. An owner/cook shouldn't be dictating what is on the TV. We will probably never return. read more

The Birchwood actually has quite a few awesome culinary masterpieces. Honestly, the sandwiches are all good. Some of the burger concoctions are stellar. The gyro meat is pretty excellent. Try the one that got away burger, or the blackened chicken with jalapenos. The Loretta is an amazing sandwich with bacon or ham, cheese, and some veggies....dynamite. They also have a private boat launch with third lake access to the musky populous Moen chain. Good times here for the game, just to toss a few back, or to shoot a little pool or darts. read more

Excellent service and food. The pizzas are delicious and are served late night. Check out the schedule for music and karaoke. Hard to find but worth it! read more

One of the better bars in the Rhinelander area. Food is cooked very well. Usually staffed by the owners and they care about service quality. It's definitely my favorite bar to eat at. read more

First of all let's get this out of the way...this is an "up north" bar nothing more. Anyone who expects anything else will be disappointed. Yes the bar is rustic, it's up north! It serves bar food folks that means it's not haute cuisine...we have Been coming up here for nearly 15 years...and we love it. Yes it can get noisy especially when there's a live band and people are talking to each other. We started coming here when it was owned by others, the menu has expanded considerably. Yes sometimes you have to wait a little longer, ITS A SMALL KITCHEN and limited to how much food can come out. Given limited cooking space both Billy and James do a good job and yes the bar staff can be a little slow especially on a Friday of Saturday night, the place is usually packed but here's a thought get your backside up to the bar and order...they will bring it to the table. Never been disappointed in the drinks. To all those naysayers get over it or move on. Headed up today for an end of season long weekend...it's Friday and we'll be in the noisy bar, enjoying a drink and the fish fry in the noisy bar one last time this year. Oh yea we're also "out of towners" read more

Chicago owned bar. Tucked away on Moen Lake...super friendly owner Billy, some of best food in the Northwoods. Cozy cabin style bar. Big Blackhawks bar. read more

Have been going to the birch for many years now, can confirm this is the single friendliest bar in the world.

Giving 1 star is too generous. I've been there 3 times and have had same experience each time. They tend to a little group of Chicago folks and ignore other customers. It's unbelievable. 3 out of 3 times. We're done! read more

I've always had a fantastic experience at Birchwood! My grandmother has owned a summer cottage on fourth lake since I was little and 7 years ago we finally stumbled upon this northwoods gem for a Friday fish fry. It's a perfect location on the Moen chain of lakes that allows us to have an evening booze cruise around the lake and through the channel until we get to Birchwood to have dinner. That's right, you can take your boat straight to a private dock owned by the bar. There is simply no other bar and grill that compares. Not only is the food incredible, but there is live music every Sunday afternoon during summer, lovely outdoor space for dining or playing bags, and darts and pool inside for those chilly northwoods evenings. We always plan an evening out here whenever we stay at the cottage. read more

Not friendly if your not a local. Apparently our money isn't good enough!! I don't know if there's been a change over in management but last year when we were there we sure had a better time. read more

Always a good time! Love the Sunday night bands and all the food is great. Chili nachos rock! Great North Woods atmosphere!

Billy and James do such a wonderful job! They have great food, great staff and great cocktails! Right on the Moen Chain and literally steps off of the snowmobile trail, it's the perfect place to spend an evening. read more