Tavern on the Lake — Restaurant in Hobart Township

My husband and I are locals and frequent the Tavern. We've taken many friends and family to the restaurant and have had mostly great experiences in the past. We took our sister and brother in law on Sunday 12/10 for lunch. It was their first time. Sorry to say, they will not be returning and it might be a while before we decide to try again too. It was not busy at noon when we were there, however, it took FOREVER to get drinks and even longer to get our food. The server, Shawn, complained the whole time about the bar tender not being ready, the kitchen being short handed and extra slow, and as we would all agree, a worker should never complain to her customers about other co-workers. We did not need to know all of what was going on behind your scenes. A simple I'm so sorry, or let me get my manager goes a long way. Your problems should not become our problems. We are there to enjoy each other's company and have a good time. Did I mention it was FREEZING in the restaurant and we were far from the front doors?! Drinks: I waited over 20 minutes for my Old Fashioned; something about the ice cube coming from the back of the house. Too long to wait for a drink. My husband ordered a Coors Light and instead of the server relating the specials on tap for the day, she simply said, "bottle ok"? We also had to ask multiple times for water refills. Food: My husband ordered chicken and waffles; chicken was burnt. My sister ordered a build your own chicken sandwich which came the same, burnt. I ordered the T & T that was not prepared according to the menu. There was no swiss cheese on my burger, no spicy pickles, and they added semi-cooked bacon. At this point, we had waited so long for the food and for the server to come back, we decided to just go with it. We were all aggravated already. Menu states "comes with one side". Server states that sides are no longer included. You may want to consider updating your menus or maybe marking out "comes with one side". I'm just saying that when you see a side included and then ask for the side, it's a slap to your customers when the server says they are extra now. Service, obviously, was disappointing. I'm sure she knew we were displeased as when she did come back to our table, it was excuse after excuse as to why we were waiting so long. Coming from a previous bar owner and 2 other people in the F&B industry for many years both working and management, this is a huge no-no. Finally, the check. When the check came, we were over charged. Thankfully, I reviewed the check and let the server know that we were charged 2x for each appetizer we ordered. We then had to sit and wait for the check to be adjusted. Come to find out, it couldn't be adjusted. The card was already ran through the system and now needed to be voided and then recharged. I am still waiting for the reverse charge on my card. All in all, just a very disappointing experience with food and service. We have been several times with several different friends and family. Even family from New York and friends from Fort Lauderdale and San Diego and everything was great. Was hoping this would be another great experience but this time was by far the least positive experience...

We were a bit skeptical after the negative reviews, but we still wanted to try them as we are local. Our friends are moving out of state and this was a farewell dinner. I don't have money to open a restaurant, but I have MANY years of experience and success in food AND people! From what my party saw, the owners here (Tom and Holly?) spared no cost in design or location. 2 criteria that are detrimental to a restaurants success. Our server, Val was professional, fun and interactive. She kept enough distance to let us enjoy our company but close enough to answer our tables needs. If service was bad in the beginning, I assume it's an issue that's been addressed. Food was awesome! Wagyu beef meatloaf?! Poutine?! C'mon...Not on very many menus around here! I enjoyed The Book of Eli sandwich. Drinks are phenomenal! She wrote that menu well! We have yet to experience to patio as it just opened but we look forward to it. Thanks to you and your team! We will continue to patronize your business! Carlos and Natalie

Update We are just about a year since my initial review. We have been back to Tavern many times since and as of our last visit on 4/10/24, I have seen the restaurant decline. Hell, we waited 15 minutes before our server even knew we were there, even though she walked passed us to speak to another table right next to ours! Was that not her section?! Never mind the turbo loud, night club dwarfing bingo games that drown out your tables conversation, or small children in the bar. I've read other reviews of how the food, kitchen, service, or any combination thereof, has failed their guests. Incomplete dishes and a sub par kitchen staff are common complaints that we ourselves have experienced. Excuses such as "we're slow in the kitchen" or "we are out right now" or "we're waiting for someone to get it from the basement." The last one is my favorite!🤣 How are you going to make a customer wait 32 minutes for a drink because the ice cube is in the basement?! When the servers tell us something is in the basement, they stand there with an anticipatory look on there faces as if waiting for us to say "forget it". WHAT?! And if that's not the case, it's another lie or excuse from the staff. I think they have more time learning how to make up bs than they do customer service. Your guests don't want to, need to, and most importantly, shouldn't HAVE to hear truck loads of the same excuses of how or why the restaurant has failed with poor food and super long wait times. At this rate, I wouldn't expect this place to last too much longer. Once you compromise your establishments integrity and settle on poor quality, you loose the trust and respect of your guests. I'm sure the owners will be mad and smug us in public, but WE are not the cause or Taverns short comings. Again, I'm not a restaurant owner but I know what it takes to run a successful store. I hope they...

Holiday Decor 10/10 was sooooo cute. There was no host at the door, so took photos while waiting, not long. Cocktail 7/10 cute but meh. Anti hero beer 8/10 flat but poured to the rim. Fried pickles 10/10 thinly sliced lightly battered with surprise Jalapeños on the bottom. Bang bang chicken 8/10 2 diced tenders $12.00¿ Baked potato soup 1/10 very watery soup with bits of bacon. McLovin burger 5/10 lacked seasoning & dry. However, creative toppings. Fries 8/10 were Fried. Creme Brule corn 7/10 interesting. Meat loaf 4/10 room temp dry with burnt ends. Even plated an additional bit of burnt part to the side of the slice. Almost as to say sorry the meatloaf is barely warm subpart & burnt, here's more to make it better. Meh Mashed potatos 9/10 delicous but barely warm. Not sure if this was a heating issue or a sitting in the window too long issue. As the ketchup covered plate was capped over. The roughage on our plates were wilted. Poor storage or from dying in the window. Candied Sprouts 9/10 Ended up being loaded sprouts 3.00 up charge they were delicous, but not what I actually ordered. An issue if you don't or can't eat pork. Water 9/10 near the end of our meal server took water glass for a refill & never returned it. 🙃 ish happens. Mushrooms 0/0 didn't receive was not charged. Underwhelmed w/ our meals so we skipped dessert. Tab for 2 $104.00 before Tip.

Not many entrées went out. I seen a pasta go out, okay portion no bread w/it. A gentleman at the bar top had a steak, which looked a little difficult for him to cut through. Looked to be cooked medium. Seemed the crowd was splitting an entree or sticking to sides & drinks. No, we did not complain. Gave them a go, and we wouldn't make the drive out again. Bingo 10/10 unexpected. Tough to decipher the host words, but #'s were displayed on a TV. WINNERS won bowls of soup, appetizers & sammiches. There was talk about money, but I'm not sure how often that happens. I personally would stick to the...