Fred's Tavern & Liquor Store — Restaurant in Stone Harbor

When you travel finding a good place to eat is often a gamble. You can read reviews but depending on the reviewer you may or may not be mislead. Some people value size of a meal more than quality and this is most often what happens with bar food. You can go into almost any bar that offers food and order a nondescript cheese steak, hamburger or fries and if you close your eyes you can revisit the last bar you had a meal. This holds true for Freds in Stone Harbor. The food is not bad it’s just more bar food. I ordered a cheese steak and loaded fries. The cheesesteak was good enough but just another cheesesteak. The “loaded” fries were more of a disappointment. I think by loaded they meant the giant lump of sour cream on top. The bacon and cheese you generally expect on loaded were almost nonexistent. I am not trashing Fred’s in particular it’s more of a I should have known better. I prefer quality rather than quantity which of course usually means avoiding tavern food. It is usually just like the last time you were convinced to try a bar. I often see reviews about how huge their sandwiches are or the mound of French fries but they are generally all based on bulk rather than ingredients or prep. If you like bar food Fred’s is a good choice if you are looking for a better meal then...

A bit of a wait at the door, but that was expected and fine. The menu is pretty standard bar food with a few creative twists. We sat down, ordered drinks, an appetizer, and our entrées. It wasn’t too busy by then since a few tables had cleared. Oddly, a table of kids was seated several tables away from their parents, so they spent the evening running back and forth.

Our loaded fries appetizer arrived first, but it wasn’t great. Then came the real issue, we waited over an hour with no word from our waitress and no drink refills. The frustrating part was watching new tables come in, order, and get their food while we were still waiting. It was clear we’d been forgotten. When our food finally did arrive, there was no acknowledgment or apology for the long delay.

The highlight was definitely the chicken parm sandwich, which was enjoyable. Unfortunately, the French onion cheesesteak, which had great reviews, tasted dry and lacking in flavor, so perhaps I just got an off one. In the end, we were there for over two hours, with only about 20 minutes of actual eating before we packed up and left, just done with the night.

Maybe come for...

On a whim, we decided to try Fred's Tavern for dinner. I got the French Onion Cheesesteak, and my roommate got the Mushroom Swiss burger. I was shocked at how delicious my cheesesteak was! The meat was cooked wonderfully and juicy without being too much. The onions were only sautéed, not caramelized, but it honestly worked fine. It was a bit low on the gruyere cheese, but the amount of meat in the cheesesteak made up for it. The roll they used was great quality! The fries were cooked PERFECTLY, they were so crispy. My roommate said their burger was delicious and the best burger they've had in a long while. The waitress was very sweet and took our orders promptly. The only minor downside is that the side of the restaurant we sat in felt a bit like a dining hall and not a restaurant. I'm sure the other side by the full bar was a bit more fancy, I think there's a fireplace on that side? Not sure, but it was fine for a quick and...