Hudson's Southside Tap — Restaurant in Iowa City

I was pretty excited about this place given other reviews and I must say I was incredibly let down. It wasn't the worst. The atmosphere is good, the service was good but the food (save our poutine) was a major let down. The poutine was exactly what I wanted, no extra globbed on ingredients and a decent amount of cheese curds. Disregarding our local Zombie burger it tasted like a tamer version of their poutine.

The mozz and tomato on crustini was a bit sad, really bland mozz and I know tomatoes are out of season but these were extra mushy and it just wasn't as flavorful as I'm used to. Again might be that we're out of season on tomatos.

My burger was the biggest let down. Mushrooms, green peppers, brie and red pepper mayo on meat (chicken breast in my case) sounds like a sure winner. This was anything but. The mushrooms were canned which if you're into that, you'll like it but it's a huge NOPE for me. I think the green peppers were canned too, super mushy and lacking any flavor. The brie was nice, rind on gave a bit of flavor and the saddest part was the red pepper mayo was good but you'd never know it was there as it's completely overpowered by that 'canned' flavor of the mushrooms and the huge amount of other stuff even the brie was overpowered by the mushrooms. Friend got the Bahn Mi and while it's the same-ish ingredients as one, it's a far cry from one. The pulled pork (it might have been chicken) was super mushy. And the overall taste wasn't what she said she associates with a Bahn Mi, though if it were just an 'Asian Sandwich' as she put it, it would have been so-so.

Again, service was good and atmosphere was good but for a menu that boasts locally sourced meat, you'd expect more.

On the plus side they pay their staff a good wage (or say they do :P ) and it's clean and friendly. Would be a great place to have a drink but I doubt I'll eat...

I'll admit it - this review is long overdue... but it got to the point where I felt like it would be weird for me to post something.

I've visited Hudson's many, many times and I've always had an amazing experience. The food menu is incredible, but it's definitely comfort bar food. If you're trying to be healthy, your choices are limited, but if you want to go home stuffed and satisfied, anything on the menu is a safe bet - I know, I've literally had everything.

The beer selection is solid, with an above-average selection of taps on rotation, many of which are locally sourced. The cocktail menu is possibly the best in the area, in my opinion, between cost, variety, and consistent quality. The ambiance of the bar is fun, but chill, which makes it a nice retreat just off of the University's main campus to watch a game on Saturday or relax on the patio come Sunday.

Most importantly, the staff are phenomenal and the whole reason why I'm writing this review tonight. I was a regular at the bar - hence why I felt uncomfortable reviewing - but the last several months, life led me to be completely MIA. Tonight, I walked in the door and three of the staff excitedly greeted me by name, instantly. Some of the people have changed but the experience has not - the new manager even came over during a lull to introduce himself to me.

It's nice to be back at the best kept secret in Iowa City and I think it's finally time to share it with others. Keep up the good...

I was excited to try this place based on some of the glowing reviews and even more excited to see the wide range of items offered on the menu. I sadly however have to agree with some of bad reviews stating it lacked flavor. I don't understand having such a large selection of different flavors and styles of burgers when they all basically taste the same. I got the weeber and my husband got the Jamaica. My burger stated it had pesto on it but all that was on there was flavorless mayo if you could call it that. More like lard straight from the can. This would have been good had the pesto sauce actually tasted like pesto. The fries were burnt and very dry and also had 0 flavor to them. My husband stated his Jamaica burger had 0 Jamaica to it. Good thing it was 7 dollar burger day because I wouldn't pay a dime over what I ended up getting. I would have sent it back to the kitchen and left. I'm normally not this harsh but I was truly disappointed. I can't imagine paying the full amount for this and walking away feeling like I did. The service was not good also . My waitress came off cold and it was un inviting. I see a pattern to these reviews. I only hope the owner takes notice of these complaints because this place has amazing potential. I will not be back because there is no way I'm paying almost 14 dollars for a bland burger...