Michael's Tavern — Restaurant in McDonald

I stopped by here on a Tue night for an early dinner with my husband after hiking nearby on the Fossil Cliffs trail. We found it on Google and decided to try it based on Google reviews. We both ordered burgers with the house chips and shared an appetizer of Mac n cheese bites (menu posted on here is not up to date), and the food was excellent. Everything we had was super good.

There were about 15 patrons here with only one server/bar tender, but we felt the service was pretty good given there was only one person working. The server came to our table fairly soon after we sat down and food came out fairly quickly. My only service gripe was that the appetizer was served as the same time as the entrees which kind of defeats the purpose of ordering an appetizer. Food was very reasonably priced and on the cheaper side for dine-in of this quality.

In terms of atmosphere, this place was very divey with few windows, but it was nicer than we expected compared the dumpier look on the outside. While it's clearly in an older building, the place was very clean and clearly has been remodeled somewhat inside to be more modern for a dive bar. My one complaint would be the chairs and stools were a bit cheap and dated looking with some chair backs having rips on them and a few wobbly tables. The place also had a faint musty/smokey kind of bad smell when we walked in. My nose got used to it pretty quickly, so it wasn't too bad, but was noticeable when walking in. This place also has a number of gambling machines and a pool table in the back which gave a divey feel, but would be a plus for those into those things. In terms of parking, there's ample street parking outside.

I'd give the food here 5/5 and would definitely recommend this place for good burgers and bar food and cheap drinks. The only reason I gave overall 4/5 was bc of the cheap/old ripped chairs/stools, a few wobbly tables, slightly musty/smoke smell, kinda dark inside, and the appetizer not be served prior to the entrees detracting a little from the vibe a bit. This is a great place to stop for lunch along the...

Yesterday I was invited by an old friend to check out Michael's Tavern in McDonald. I was promised some of the crispiest/delicious wings around and was told the burgers are best of the best as well. So I grabbed a wingman (lol), and my parents to go check it out. My dad pretty much gets a burger everywhere and absolutely loves a good old fashioned regular burger. Mom doesn't order burgers out very often, but they both decided to order based on the recommendations. Well they both absolutely loved their burgers!!! Dad's not easy to please when it comes to his burgers either lol. So thank you!

Now for the wing's. My buddy and I split 3 flavors of perfectly cooked and crispy wings. Makayla and Ethan (a sauce named after the owners kids), Steel Curtain, and Crazy Cajun Garlic Parmesan were our first timer choices. BOMB!! Crispy outside and tender inside covered in incredible homemade sauces. That combo of crunch and deliciousness pushed them into my top 3 favorite wings I've had since coming back home to Pa. I'm so glad Josh messaged me to check them out! Appreciate it man. You guys are putting out some great stuff!

Shout out to Renee, our bartender and server, who was absolutely outstanding. Thank you for taking care of my parent bc I was an hour late... oops! We really enjoyed the hospitality and the warn welcome from the regulars.

Go see for yourself and pay...

Couldn't tell you anything about this place other than...there's parking...I think they serve food...but the bartender ran past and greeted us with a smile and then pulled a Houdini. Disappeared somewhere in the back and never returned. We sat at the bar for a few long minutes. She still had pre-bussing and clean up to do around the bar area and at a couple high top tables.

If it was taking this long for her to reappear, wipe down a spot, throw down some menus, give a proper greeting, and hopefully, take a drink order.... We were in for, at least, a two hour lunch.

So, we copied her trick and disappeared.

But I'll give it four stars for being a scrappy, resilient, little, neighborhood bar, still thriving after covid. Maybe I'll be able to try...