Old Castle Restaurant — Restaurant in Riverview

This was my fourth time visiting Old Castle Restaurant, and up until now, it’s been one of my favorite spots. The food has always been excellent, and the service consistently great. My very first experience was memorable because I had the pleasure of meeting the owner, Stewart, who left such a positive impression that it kept us coming back.

Unfortunately, this past weekend’s visit didn’t quite live up to the usual standard. It seems like there are a lot of new and younger staff members, and, to be honest, they appeared confused and unprepared, which affected the overall experience.

For example, we noticed another customer waiting over an hour for her to-go order because it had been forgotten. She struck up a conversation with my husband and me while waiting and asked about our past experiences. We reassured her that this was out of the ordinary and that the food is usually worth it—but I couldn’t help feeling embarrassed on behalf of the restaurant.

As for our own experience, it started off rocky. It took over 20 minutes for our server to ask if we wanted drinks. When she finally brought them, she poured the wrong beer and had to ask a colleague to confirm which was which—even though the taps were labeled. On top of that, we didn’t get menus with our drinks and had to wait another 30 minutes before encountering Meaghan, who truly saved the night.

Meaghan was a breath of fresh air—attentive, efficient, and clearly experienced. She noticed we didn’t have menus, brought them immediately, and checked in on us within minutes to take our order. Despite the restaurant being only half full and having 5-6 people working, it felt like Meaghan was the only one keeping things running smoothly. If it weren’t for her, my husband and I might be questioning whether we’d return.

Thankfully, the food was as incredible as always. But while the quality of the food remains a strength, service like this can overshadow it. I hope the owners take a closer look at training and staffing because the service we experienced this time just didn’t align with the high standards we’ve come to expect.

We’ll give Old Castle another shot because of our past experiences and Meaghan’s efforts. However, I’d encourage the management to address these service issues soon—great food can only carry you so far if the service...

After reading the reviews my husband and I were excited to try Old Castle Restaurant. Unfortunately, it was not a positive experience at all and we won’t be returning.

We arrived around 6:40 and were seated within a few minutes. Our waitress took our drink and dinner order and then we didn’t see her again at all for over an hour. She never checked back with us and we didn’t get our food until about 8:25.

When trying to ask our waitress about the wait she didn’t make eye contact with us or even stop to talk to us and just went into the kitchen. We sat and watched all these folks who came in after us get served and leave and we sat there.

When she came by to tell us they were working on our food my husband tried to ask her if this long of a wait was typical for this restaurant but she didn’t stop to even talk to us. Eventually, 20 min after first trying to find out where our food was and telling our waitress we needed to leave, she brought our food.

She didn’t apologize. She didn’t make eye contact with us or even talk to us. When my husband tried to talk to her about the wait she mumbled she gave us a discount and ran off again.

The food was definitely not worth the wait and had very little seasoning or flavor. We ate quickly and had to flag our waitress down once again just to get the check.

I hate to make assumptions based on one visit to a restaurant, but everyone else in that restaurant was white- and my husband is not. In the climate we are in now, one can’t help but wonder where it is safe to eat as a person who isn’t white. We were definitely not made to feel welcome while we saw the waitress being kind to others and serving them quickly. I hope it was just a bad night, but when you keep having these kinds of issues of not feeling welcome in certain areas, you stop wanting to spend your money in places that make it clear they don’t...

The food, drinks, and ambience took me back home. Upon walking in, I was greeted by a man clad in lederhosen who welcomed me to Germany and began playing the accordion. Nice touch, I admit.

Ambience: It genuinely felt as if I was in Deutschland. The live music, decorations, seating, it was all authentic.

Beer: I ordered a favorite of mine, the schwarzbier. It was most definitely up to par. I have not had this beer in years. I forgot how excellent it is. I highly recommend trying.

Food: I ordered the potato pancakes to start. I am exceptionally picky with these due to growing up with a father who made them from scratch frequently. I would give these a 4/5. They came out a tad too greasy for me and a spot on the bland side. When coupled with their applesauce, all was forgiven. They pair remarkably well together. My main course was the farmer’s pan. This meal really shined. First and foremost, the sauerkraut really stood out in this dish. It was undoubtedly one of the best sauerkraut-based entrees I’ve ever had. The bacon was crispy, the pork was tender, and the sausage was flavorful. My only gripe was the potatoes, which were much drier than I was accustom to. I would also suggest the addition of a fried egg to blend with the potato/bacon mixture. Also, try the strudel. It was about as authentic as it gets.

Overall: This is one of the best German restaurants I’ve been to in the United States. In terms of authenticity, it is hard to find any substitute in this country for the real thing, but this place does it well. You’ve earned a loyal customer. I am excited to come back and try more of the menu. The food, bier, ambience, and service were all up to par.

I would highly recommend giving this place a shot. They certainly did...