I had an unbelievably bad experience at Owl Bar that I need to share so that nobody ever goes through that experience again. My friend called the manager to confirm we could be seated at a table when we arrived while we awaited our third person to join late because we were in a rush to get to the nearby Lyric Theater. The manager confirmed that this was fine. When we arrived, we were told that the table wasn't ready and we couldn't be seated until the third person arrived, even though the manager promised us that wouldn't happen. We weren't able to be seated until fifteen minutes after our reservation time because of this, and we had to beg the server to let us sit. The experience only got worse from there. Our waitress checked in on us once in 25 minutes. She took our order, and the food didn't come. 10 minutes... 20... 30... 40... no updates from her and no food. It got to the point where we had to leave before our entrees even arrived. The only thing that did come, the duck fat fries, were inedible. The duck flavor was so aggressively strong and pungent that you couldn't even taste the fries. We asked our server, the hostess, and the manager for help during this experience, and nothing was done for us. We were told as we were leaving that they were extremely backed up and that the kitchen often has a 50-minute wait time. This isn't true, however; other tables received their food even when they ordered after us, and there were many open tables in the restaurant. Worst of all, they still made us pay! We had to tell them that we wouldn't pay for food we didn't receive. Not a single person who works at Owl Bar offered us anything or tried to turn our night around in any way. I cannot stress this enough: NEVER go to this restaurant. If you're ever in Baltimore, do everything in your power to eat anywhere else--or even just go to your show hungry! This experience was one of the worst I've ever had. Shame on Owl Bar. read more

The Owl Bar - Duck Fat Fries - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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My husband and I came to Owl Barn on Saturday for a date night before we went to a show at the Lyric. The reviews looked good and with how formal and classic the Belvedere is, I had elevated hopes for our dining experience but was left feeling disappointed and underwhelmed. I made a reservation, and upon arriving the young lady at the hostess station (Kimberly) did not greet us. She seemed frazzled and all she said was 'do you have a reservation?' She was rude and not welcoming at all. Our server (Amelia) was prompt taking our drink and food orders, but at no point did she make us feel welcome nor did she use any manners (please, thank you, enjoy your mean, etc.). She had multiple star stickers on her face and it was very off putting to see her with a lip piercing. After we told her we were ready for the check she still went to four other tables before delivering it. Based on the ambiance of the establishment, I was expecting a certain level of customer service and wait staff appearance. Our experience had so much potential and we were excited to dine at such a unique restaurant. Being in a beautiful and historic location, our expectation versus the reality of what we received was very disappointing. I would suggest providing additional training to your hostess and wait staff on how they present themselves their interactions with guests. read more

The Owl Bar is such a lovely place to go. The Belvedere is a beautiful and iconic building. We had brunch there in Saturday and I can't begin to describe the food and service. The food is always good and the bottomless mimosas and Bloody Marys are fabulous! The server was great and considering that he had 10 women to take care of, that's saying something! We will definitely be back. read more

The Owl Bar - Belvedere Brunch Squad - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

Owl Bar is a great place to grab a late night drink or snack in an intimate, funky setting. The ambiance is what really stuck out to me about this historic bar. Stained glass windows, owl decor, and the speakeasy vibe really make this place an interesting spot to hang out. The drinks are well made and feature seasonal offerings, while the food is just okay. Service is great and we were not left alone for long at all. I went for Christmas Eve dinner and got their prix fixe menu. Overall, great atmosphere and delicious drinks make this spot a must-hit on a late night out in Baltimore. read more

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Fun bar with good drinks and old timey vibe. Love that they brought the prohibition owls back. Duck fat fries and fried flounder were a hit.

Owl Bar is an excellent hotel lobby bar. It gets PACKED so be ready to not have much wiggle room. The ambiance with the decor is really cute and romantic. It kinda feels like a speakeasy without being one. The drinks are well made. I have never eaten here but will come back one day to try the food! read more

The Owl Bar - Bar area - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

The Owl Bar is a bar just off the lobby of the Belvedere Hotel. The hotel opened in 1903. The hotel has probably seen better days, but the Owl Bar is still a very good time if you're in the neighborhood. Stained glass, a long bar, bricks, dark wood - the Owl Bar has great old school vibes. The Owl Bar offers a full menu of food (classic American bar food), but the couple of times I've visited the Owl Bars (last week, more recently) I've stuck to drinks. They don't have the best drinks in the city, but they offer a large menu so there's sure to be something for everyone (incluidng NA drinks), and the service and vibes are really great. Definitely a great place for drinks if you're in the neighborhood for a show or some other event or just if you want a drink at a place with history! read more

I've been here a few times before shows at the Lyric, just a few short blocks away (10 min walk). It's inside the Belvedere Hotel, a historic hotel, and the bar/restaurant itself has a cool vibe with ironwork, brickwork, super high ceilings, stained glass, etc. Our server was great. I didn't grab the check or I'd mention her by name. But her suggestions were super helpful and she worked hard to make sure we could eat and pay quickly to make our show. They have a decent happy hour until 7pm with burger specials and a few drink/app specials. The vegan potstickers were good. The calamari was excellent. The Maryland crab soup didn't do anything for us, and it was more chunky like a stew than a soup. We ordered a side of duck fat fries, which were I thought supposed to come with aoli and rosemary or seasoning of some kind. I couldn't tell if we got regular fries (it came with ketchup) or duck fat fries. Couldn't taste or distinguish a difference. I've had their brick oven pizzas and their truffle burger before, and both of those are delicious. I decided to try duck tacos with a peach salsa, and that was a swing and a miss. The duck was not flavorful at all, nor was the salsa honestly. It was just a soft flavorless mess of a meal. Cocktails were great. We had the spicy Paloma, which had a bit too much ice but it was well crafted and nicely balanced. My friend had the sangria HH special, and she said it was tasty. The peach margarita HH special was very good as well. All in all, a positive experience and a great location with cool architecture and ambiance. Avoid the duck tacos and you'll have a great night. read more

The Owl Bar - Duck tacos - look nice but very flavorless. - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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Fun spot to go with family or friends - went with husband and two teenage boys and we all really liked our meal. Wish I could remember our servers name because she was great! read more

Our server Zoe was AAAAAHHHHHMMMAAAZZZIINNGGG!!! The food was DELISH and let's not forget the ambiance... Fantastic.. Thanks ZOE!! Happy Holidays read more

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Well I wish I could be writing a review on the whole experience of the business, but unfortunately we didn't even get to try it. A business that is too lazy or incompetent to bother updating their hours or posting something if they have to close early in an emergency isn't a good sign. We had heard good things about the history and just The Owl Bar being a fun place to check out. We parked and walked up the block to find it. It isn't easy to find the entrance and we weren't sure we were in the right place. All the doors were locked. We walked around the block in case there was another entrance we were supposed to use. We finally saw a woman come out of the building and asked her. She said well this is where you would go but it's closed. They were supposed to be open for another full two hours. We double checked their website and Google, both which matched the Yelp hours. We had made the trip and left disappointed. read more

Ambiance was definitely worth the stars. The food was good. The service was alright, it was later in the evening and shifts were changing, so a couple things were missed but corrected kindly. read more

Verdict: come for happy hour or a late night drink Really cool setting and vibe in a beautiful and historic hotel. Drinks and app were good. We ordered two pizzas for entrees, both over $20, and they were disappointing. Both had cardboard crusts and were piled with greasy cheese without much else. I had the caprese and it had minimal tomatoes and basil. read more

Came on a Wed. evening with a friend. After 6pm, you're able to park on the street for free and in the bike/bus lane. Bar is on the 1st floor when you walk in. The have dining seats and a bar area. I didn't make it into the bar area. They also had Trivia night starting at 7!! I'd love to come back for this! We had the chicken wings and duck fat fries. Both were just okay. The wings felt cold in the middle and not as tasty. The duck fat fries were just not my liking Cocktails were good Trivia music DJ was great! read more

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Ummmmmm..... Help me understand what happened to the TVs???? It's FOOTBALL season.... In BALTIMORE . Also.... It's now closed on Sundays. No more October movie nights to celebrate Halloween either. If it wasn't for trivia night, there is really no other reason to go. It's a shame too - incredible bartenders and servers - but does it even count as a bar without TVs??? Come on Sondra, let's do better. read more

I was staying in the area and stopped past for happy hour. It's like a dark kinda old school vibe. I joked that I thought Jack Nicholson would be sliding up at the bar (you know his The Shining character). The wings were really good and the sangria tasty. I didn't care for the chicken sliders. Definitely would come back for wings and a cocktail if I'm in the area! Service was great! read more

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First time here. Signage was inadequate and had to ask staff where it was. A hallway off the lobby with some twists and turns led us there. Nice space. Two glasses of wine were adequate. However, my partner ordered the roasted cauliflower to take the edge off his appetite. This was awful. Six virtually room temperature, undercooked, minimally browned florets; for $12 friggin dollars. I could buy 3-4 heads of cauliflower for $12. Ridic. Wer'e out of towners. I know B-more has more to offer, but this was convenient to our hotel. Not coming back. Inconsistent reviews always a red flag. read more

OMG, the food, the drinks, the service, and the atmosphere. All were great. We went there for Saturday brunch. Had a great experience.

I have loved and been an advocate for Owl Bar for many years, but this past weekend's dining experience left much to be desired. Our friend had called previously to make a reservation, but when we got there, they had no record of it on their books. Luckily they were able to seat us anyway but, not a good sign. We were a large party and our service seemed to struggle. Food was overall good but ok. Cocktails were good and beer selection was decent. I ordered a burger and added an upcharge for fries from chips (a noted option on the menu, not something I asked for special). Somehow this was the most complicated thing that's ever happened. Our waitress brought the burger with chips, and put it in front of me, I touched it - but I mentioned I had ordered fries. So she took the whole plate back!? What! What was she planning to do with those chips? A food runner came back 2 more times to ask what my new side was... I do not understand the confusion or the complication. Finally she brought back my burger, the same plate, which they had scooped the chips off and put fries on, so now my burger was room temp. At that point everyone else was already eating and I wasn't going to argue, but the entire experience was pretty ridiculous. Hopefully this was a one off but this was not the Owl Bar I remember! read more

Love the ambiance here. The sliders were okay. The drink was a seasonal cocktail and pretty good. read more

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The bartender Riley is very personable. The pizza and baked Brie are always delicious. Speak easy vibes and period decor make the ambience! read more

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Attended a wedding after party here. Really loved the decor of the bar, nice and cozy! Pizza was 10/10 and I'm not just saying that because it was 12:30 in the morning. I thought about this pizza for days after eating it. Bartenders were great and kept the music going a bit past the closing time so we could hang (or should I say sing) a bit longer. I'll be back for that pizza!!! read more

So I've been to Owl Bar plenty of times and usually only get drinks during happy hour. This time I actually tried the food and ordered the duck tacos and the crab cake dinner. The crab cake came with a heaping pile of aoli on top which I scraped off but it wasn't terrible and actually complimented the crab cake. The asparagus and roasted potatoes were great. Seasoned well and cooked perfectly! I really enjoyed the crab cake dinner. Now, the duck tacos are another story. They were so bland. The duck was tender but had absolutely no flavor. The tacos came with a slaw on top and I think some type of aoli. Either way, it was not satisfying to my taste buds. It was missing some acid so I even took the lemon from my drink to squeeze on top to give it some type of umph. Womp womp, it did nothing to help. I would not suggest the duck tacos unless you appreciate bland food then this is the meal for you!! Overall, the drinks are good and the food is decent. Try it out for yourself. A cute, happy hour spot!! read more

The Owl Bar - Crab Cake Dinner - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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The first time there and the last time there. We ordered appetizers, okay, fine, we get the appetizers finished eating them, waited another 15 mins for our waiter to come back so we can finally order food. We ordered, and my friend's allergic to mushrooms. She ordered steak, which had mushrooms on it, and there was NOTHING about it coming with mushrooms. So she reorders something else. The waiter says my manager is comping all beers on ur tab. okay, cool. However, when we got our tab, only 3 beers were comped. For a 20.00 meal? Seriously? The night was a complete disaster at that place! Will not be returning! UPDATE: SOMEONE RESPONDED TO MY REVIEW, ASKED US TO CALL OR EMAIL. WHEN I CALLED I GOT NO ONE ON THE PHONE, I E-MAILED AND THEY SAID SOMEONE WOULD CONTACT ME WITHIN THE WEEK. NO ONE HAS, SUCH POOR MANAGEMENT. I WON'T RETURN! read more

Came here for dinner & drinks! Parking was not too difficult to find with street parking a few blocks away, but usually harder on Charles st. I have been here before for happy hour, but this time I decided to get some food! I've heard great things about their pizza, especially since they have a brick oven! The vibes are great, it feels very cozy and it's nice to come for a date or close friends! My friend got the tacos and enjoyed them, while I got the veggie panini, which was solid but nothing special. Drinks wise, I got the espresso martini which I enjoyed as well. This place is good for bar food and a nice ambience for drinks! I don't think they have a happy hour anymore. read more

The Owl Bar - Espresso martini - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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I love a historic bar and this didn't disappoint. I was killing time after a pedicure down the road and found this spot, lucky me! First of all the service was stellar. Greeted, suggestions made, served promptly. I really was here for a drink, but decided to nibble and I got the duck fat fries. Divine! Heaven! And they pair well with Chardonnay. Crispy outside, perfect inside fluffiness with a touch of truffle. Parmesan flakes sprinkled about. A plentiful basket enough for two. Mmmm! The vibe here is truly historic. I think it kind of reminds me of the bar at Château Marmont. I met some interesting people here. I guess this building was an old hotel and now is converted to apartments and this is the residence restaurant. Pretty nice! I'd be here daily. I think this bar is amazing! read more

Food was mediocre at best. Slow service. Music was too loud. Room too cold. Meh. I went here decades ago when it was still fun. Not worth it now. read more

Owl bar has been on my list for a few months now and I was so excited to try this place out finally! Located in the historic Belvedere Hotel this bar is one of the oldest in Baltimore. I stalked their IG for months that showed photos of amazing food and drinks. The atmosphere is very chill and relaxed. The staff is very friendly and helpful as well. We started off with drinks which were really good. For food we first ordered the crab dip and the calamari. The dip was delicious! This was the most crab i had ever seen in dip. I would recommend maybe adding a little salt to the dish but overall we wiped the bowl clean! The calamari was just okay. Nothing amazing but still good. We then ordered the truffle burger and the mozzarella panini. The truffle burger was just okay and the duck fries were cold sadly. The panini was good but had a little too much going on for me. The regular fries were good as well. I would definitely give them another try. Maybe for happy hour instead so that I could try more from the menu. They seem to have a great happy hour menu from what I saw. I think this would be a great place to have an event, meet up with friend or just stop in for a quick drink. The staff were a 10/10, drinks 10/10 and food 8.2/10 for me. read more

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Really great atmosphere - highly recommend going as it's a neat bar and has trivia on Wednesday's.

This is in the Belvedere Venue - used to be a hotel, now an event space and condos. The ambiance of The Owl Bar is worth the visit. Happily our brunch was also very good, as were the cocktails and the server was very friendly!! The beignets were worth the calories!! read more

Came after an orchestra concert at Peabody so we were part of the late crowd @ 11pm and they were only serving pizza & drinks at this point (rest of menu not available). Service seemed to be a bit off -- two times someone came to our table to ask for our drink orders & then to confirm what we ordered. Ordered the Anna's pizza and honestly, it was really good! (they have a pizza oven on the far size of the restaurant out in the open) Very interesting vibes -- can be a bit loud but the bar/ambiance was great. Oh & check your bill at the end. I started to look at it & the server came & mumbled something, took it away. When it came back it was $20 less. ************************ On a side note: the history of the building had me intrigued so when we went into a local bookshop (The Book Escape @ 925 S. Charles St.), where I found "An Unexplained Death" by Mikita Brottman. They're a writer & lives in the building -- telling the tale of a death at the residence from the past. Worth the read!! read more

I came from out of town and had wanted to try this place out and visit the historic Belvedere. The food and mimosas were delicious. Our waitress was alone, as someone had failed to show up, and she was still very attentive and friendly. Definitely will return on my next trip to Baltimore! read more

If you want to submerge yourself in history, specifically the era of prohibition, The Owl Bar has the historical facts, ambience and photographs to showcase. Some of the rich and famous who have visited, dined and stayed overnight here are: Al Pacino, Patti Labelle, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kenny Rogers, Roy Rogers, David Copperfield, The Duke & Duchess of Windsor, Presidents Theo Roosevelt, Taft, Wilson, Hoover, Franklin D Roosevelt, Harding, Truman, and Eisenhower. If you look closely at the hotel's walls leading to The Owl Bar you can see some of these patrons via the photographs showcased. The restaurant is located inside the Belvedere Hotel and is the original speakeasy which opened its doors in December 1903. It's worth visiting to take a step back in time. Duck fat fries and a glass of sparkling wine does the soul good. Take in the ambience, sip on some bubbles and be thankful that we don't live in an era without alcohol. It does get VERY crowded here. They have a massive and loyal happy hour crowd which can make it hard to locate parking. read more

We made reservations for 6:15pm on Saturday, September 21. This would have given us plenty of time to have dinner then head out to the Meyerhoff for a BSO concert. This was a very special occasion for us and we were told great things about the Owl Bar. We arrived a few minutes early and were seated in the back corner by the bar adjacent to the street. While the bartender came out to get drink orders right away, he told us he needed to get something to write with before he could take our food order. He brought our drinks then did not come back for over 20 minutes and only after we were literally standing up and waving our arms up in the air to get his attention for a couple of minutes. He reluctantly took our order then proceeded to go back to bartending and talking to his customers. He was not totally busy the entire time. We had to ask another bartender, who was actually serving his customers their food, to help check on our food after waiting another 20 minutes for a salad and a sandwich. The other bartender did, then told us that it would be another 10-15 minutes for my husband's sandwich to be made. It seemed like our orders were not even submitted. I asked him to bring us our check right away, even before our food was served because we would be late for the concert. We could only eat half our food and had the leftovers packed. Our original bartender (tall, skinny, brown curly hair in a man bun) swung by to offer an apology but kept reminding us how busy he was with all these drink orders (like it was our problem). We made it to the concert only a minute before doors closed after having to run several blocks to the concert hall after parking. The Owl Bar's neglecting us as customers made the entire evening a stressful disaster. We made sure we had plenty of time to eat prior to the concert start. As a result of all the unnecessary stress, I had an asthma attack during the concert, which a rare occurrence. read more

The best part of our experience was the bar's aesthetic, which really is fantastic. Beautiful brick, tile and stained glass create fantastic ambience. The Penicillin cocktail was enjoyable, albeit an unremarkable whiskey cocktail, but the other - the Say It Ain't So - was undrinkable. It was overly sweet, the flavors were out of balance and the rye bourbon was undetectable; rarely have I encountered such an unenjoyable cocktail. The service was hurried and impersonal. We closed out without finishing the awful cocktail and went elsewhere. read more

We went on a Saturday afternoon as a group after work. The ambience is nice and the service was great. We had some good cocktails and there was a good choice of beers on tap. Great place to hangout read more

The Owl Bar - Crab Mac & Cheese - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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I live in the Mount Vernon area and have been a fan of The Owl Bar since I moved here. I first heard about this establishment in the book /111 Places in Baltimore that You Must Not Miss/. Since then, it has been a favorite haunt of mine. Located inside the historic Belvedere Hotel, the bar itself has a storied prohibition-era history that is worth looking up. I like to bring friends new to the area and out-of-town guests here, and the good drinks with the flair of local history always impress. Dark, but thankfully not quite dank, The Owl Bar is floor-to-ceiling brick, punctuated with Zebra taxidermy and stained glass panels that, if you read into the poem properly, should remind the drinker of this place's true prohibition speakeasy, don't-narc-to-the-feds-about-the-hooch past. October/Halloween is my favorite time to visit, as they really lean in to the spooky vibes of the space and decorate, and have a great list of seasonal cocktails (I had a S'Mores Old Fashioned I still think about to this day). I went for the first time since the beginning of the COVID era recently, and they're serving up an updated menu. I honestly wasn't a huge fan of some of their food previously (very blah fried pickles), so I'm excited to try some of the updated fare. Their burgers are good, but I generally think of this space as more of a cocktail bar and don't often order full meals. I highly recommend The Owl Bar--if not for the crafted cocktails, then the unique ambiance alone is worth a visit. read more

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This bar inside the Belvedere was so fun! My friend and I went in before an event and it was great! They decorated for Halloween and my friends drink even had a spider ring in it! The drinks were delicious. I had a smooth ginger ale and gin and a yummy "Sanderson Sisters Sangria". Service took a bit longer than usual, but it was Saturday night and it was really busy, so we understood. I'll definitely be back here next time I'm in town! read more

The Owl Bar - Bourbon with a spider ring! - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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Love this space! Cocktails were delicious and we were waited on by several people but Jackie outshined them all! Outgoing, silly, and sweet but most importantly Jackie made the perfect drink, thank you! Such an amazing piece of history it's perfect to visit for happy hour or a nightcap. I will say the crab cake was so so, on the small side with ok flavor but everything else was so amazing I didn't really mind or matter. read more

The Owl Bar - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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The crab omelette was delicious and the potatoes were great. Washed it down with a cranberry mimosa. service was great, Zoe was super friendly. Will definitely be visiting again! read more