Wallaby’s Bar and Grille

Great onion rings, mixed drinks, and sweet chili wings! Some menu items are delicious while others are just okay. I got a steak sandwich that I didn’t realize was open-​faced until it arrived, and having no steak knife, it was impossible to eat. It has an upscale sports bar vibe and wonderful rooftop patio. The service doesn’t really match the upscale vibe and is a bit more casual/​underwhelming, but it’s never been awful and they do get pretty busy, so it’s understandable. If you have want alcohol, atmosphere, and American comfort food with a twist, I would recommend Wallaby’s!

I was recently in Ames to visit family and we happened to come across a local sports bar, much to my surprise it exceeded our expectations! Great atmosphere and menu selections, I was extremely satisfied with our server Caitlyn. With many years of restaurant experience and my mom being a restaurant owner we couldn’t have asked for a better server! She was knowledge, friendly, and her wonderful personality made our evening! The only reason for giving this restaurant 4 stars instead of 5 was because of the $ 1 up charge for ranch which seemed a bit outrageous! I loved her recommendation of the creole tenderloin, all in all we will be back and hopefully have Caitlyn as our server again!

One of the staples of any visit to Ames, Wallaby’s is still one of the few restaurants that we always make our way too. Try the Wallaby Dip, it is quite delicious!

Above average food for a bar, lots of HD TVs for watching sports, comfortable bar stools, purse hooks, and very friendly staff.

Coming from Socal where us residents can be quite picky about our restaurant choices, I was surprised and pleased to find such a great dinner location in Ames. The décor was nice, the place was clean, the service came fast, the food was great and the place was buzzing with people engaged in the sports teams playing on the screen. I had the corned beef & cabbage option for St. Patty’s day (though I couldn’t find it on the menu anywhere, I saw a local get it) and the mac and cheese. This mac and cheese, WAS-​THE-​BEST! And since it came in such a big portion that it was great to enjoy with another person or the entire table. Overall, our experience here was great. The vanilla vinegarette dressing for the salad was also amazing, perfect for those sweet tooth people trying to eat healthy. Visit Wallaby’s for dinner (& get that mac and cheese!).

It’s a bar and grill without a happy hour which is unfortunate. Nice atmosphere, several TVs in the bar area. Good, solid food. I’ve had the «nachos» (not a plate of chips like you’d expect) and asked for avocados on the side because they don’t have guac. I’ve also had a really good burger. Limited bar as far as what’s available to make cocktails. I had a good Long Island here after hand picking the liquor combo I wanted though. Bartenders and waitstaff are friendly and will talk to you while you’re at the bar.

It’s a college town sports bar and grill, where if you go there with your family during a game, good luck finding a seat or trying to bleep out the rowdy drunks cussing in front of your kids. Only reason for 3 stars, other than that, great food and service. Get the surf and turf, you won’t go wrong, the cooks have a handle on how to cook meats. the wait staff are always friendly and helpful, and well deserving of the large tips I use to give them when I lived in that area. I recommend them, just go there on a day (or night) when no college game is going on, less questions from your kids later about what that word they heard at supper meant that way.

Awesome service for our large table. Very friendly staff. Food was really good and a large portion.
I can’t express enough how awesome our service was. We are a bit nosy and energetic and they embrace it. Great for getting us drinks. Very accommodating. Thank you for being awesome!

We came to Wallaby’s to bring some out of town friends for a low key night out. The grilled cheese on rye bread is amazing! The turkey club was just as fabulous! Unfortunately the Mahi tacos were super fishy and were not good. Other than that, our visit was amazing as usual especially the service.

The new location in Somerset has a classy/​modern sports bar feel. One of the few places in Ames with outdoor seating. Absolutely love the upstairs patio. The food is delicious with my personal favorites being the spinach and artichoke dip and the fish and chips, the tartar sauce is delicious. Sometimes the waitresses can be slightly oblivious to drink refill etc but it’s understandable with how busy they usually are. My only complaint is the knowledge of the bartenders, they pour good drafts and give friendly service, but need a little more practice making more upscale drinks like an Old Fashioned, etc.

Poor customer services. Was brought my burger with regular fries instead of the sweet potato that I order. Server took the whole plate back in order to get the right fries. Wasn’t given my food back until after the rear of my party was finished eating. Everything was very over salted.

The best advice I can give you: order the sweet potato fries. This isn’t so much for the actual fries, but for the delicious basil ranch that the fries are paired with. I’ve never had a sweet potato fry/​dip combination that was better. If you enjoy sweet potato fries at all I recommend checking the place out, just for that reason.
The food is average, not bad but not great. I’ve tried several wraps, a burger, and a chicken sandwich. The chicken has been my favorite so far.

Nice atmosphere. Food is decent at best as it lacks the flavor you’d expect from a restaurant.
The mahi mahi tacos weren’t very good. Quite bland although it looked nice and was plated well. The new Somerset location is rather nice although it takes away from the ‘sports bar’ aesthetic.
Considering the price you pay for the flavorless food, I’d go elsewhere.

Nice interior, warm atmosphere and the food was good.
However when we were served our meal one of the wait staff knocked over a drink shattering the glass. The waitress quickly wiped up the mess and that was it. I was soaked and had a lap full of broken glass and no manager even stopped by to see what happened.
I expected more from the staff. Their high prices did not compensate for the lack of service

My wife and I each had the my Mahi Mhia fish tacos. The fish was overcooked, the taste of the fish was overpowered by the cabbage slaw and $ 40 for two fish tacos and one beer seems quite extreme to me. A pretty ho-​hum lunch, overpriced, left a sour taste in our mouth.

The new Wallaby’s location in Somerset is beautiful, and in addition to the upgraded digs they’ve also upped their game in all other aspects of their business. The food is terrific and presented beautifully and the specialty cocktails are fantastic — the Smash is the best gin/​basil cocktail in town. Despite the fancy new digs, everything is reasonably priced, and service is good. I’m looking forward to checking out the rooftop patio this summer. Wallaby’s is back on the map as one of the best spots in Ames.

My wife and I were excited to check out the rooftop patio last Friday. That excitement quickly faded after receiving our $ 10 appetizer that consisted of 7 chips and a little beans and cheese.
When I said something to the waitresses all I got was an I’m sorry. Not feeling satisfied. I went in search of the owner who we found DRINKING at the bar.
I politely explained our dissatisfaction at the food proportions. I told him 7 chips wasn’t enough for one person let alone two. He was quick to point out there were 7 ½ chips in that 10 $ basket.
I compared the serving size of some of local competition to what we got and was told maybe those other places would appreciate our businesses.
I left feeling berated and was made to feel like We weren’t good enough to be in his restaurant or worth his time.
We have been faithful customers to some of his other businesses for years. We are at Dublin Bay one to two times a month with a $ 50 dollar or more tab each time.
We will no longer support any of his businesses. The owner is a rude little man that should spend less time sitting drunk at the bar and more time caring about the experience his customers are receiving.

The place is awesome until you order. The size of the bowl of white cheddar balls was comical in comparison to the serving. Nachos were a single story affair; I don’t know why they didn’t call them a flatbread. Overpriced and under served. Margaritas were like the color drink you got from the plastic barrel from Donky Kong! We paid our bill and went to El Azteca to reboot.

Martini drinks are horrible made with artificial flavor vodka. The got the drink order wrong with no personal silverware

Wallaby’s is your a-​typical Sports bar with fun local and national memorabilia on the walls, aka local sports legends staring you down as you eat your greasy blooming onion!
I used to go here and watch vikings games! I love that they have speakers on the tables so you can hear the telecast of the game you are watching! Total plus!
Beer prices are good, Food is pretty good, Surprisingly they do have quite a bit of Veggie stuff including a good veggie burger. This is the place to be during ISU games, and it will be hard to get a seat! But on normal Sunday NFL days, you will most likely get a booth and they don’t mind you sticking around for the whole game even if all you are doing is downing Diet Cokes!
Nice staff, and a fun environment if your a sports fan!