Middleton Tavern

Total fail. How hard is it to make steamed shrimp? I mistakenly ordered a pound as it was the best option for me. I’m in Annapolis at one if the oldest continuously running pubs in the country.
So out come the shrimp and they are hard to peel — but worse they are rubbery in texture and in some cases taste of chlorine. I’ve never left shrimp on a plate before, but I did.
It’s the only thing I can speak for on the menu but it will keep me away for good.

This place needs to step up the service game. I was here earlier today for Father’s Day brunch. The service was pretty slow. We had to flag our waitress down just to get water refills. I am a big water drinker and it was annoying that I had to keep asking for more water. The food was pretty standard. My sister did get the pancakes which looked good. I ordered the country breakfast with sausage and got bacon. I did t bother returning my food because it probably wouldn’t have taken longer. The outside seating is really tight. I get that it is an historic building but still.

This place was alright. The food was good but service was just decent. We did get seated right away which was nice but crowded. and I waited a long time for my Bloody Mary and had to ask several times for water. I got a salmon Benedict and my boyfriend got biscuits and gravy. Their home fries were delicious!

Middleton Tavern has been one of the anchors of historic Annapolis for longer than I can remember. It really caters to tourists. Accordingly the prices are a bit dear. Food is fine — nothing memorable but not disappointing either. Usually but not always the service is prompt. It is always polite.
The back bar is fun, especially on off nights when it isn’t too crowded. A small table or the bar is a nice way to spend an evening, or part of one, with a friend or two.

Great oyster shooters give a fine taste of Annapolis. A real icon of Maryland! Been going here for 30 years and it still is great. A must visit which reflects the culture of the area.

Had the ribeye steak. It was actually cooked right and tasted delicious. My wife had the Caesar salad and liked it as well. Overall I good meal. The inside theme is cool and is typical of historical downtown Annapolis.

I had higher expectation but food was ok, I order for crab midlenton and I was expecting something better but it’s a ok place to eat

We came here aiming for fish. Initially the menu looked promising, but after sitting down we realised it was pricey and sort of limited. Should’ve pulled the plug then, but had two younger kids that needed feeding, so decided to make the best of it. The food came in good time, service was average, and the food was definitely overpriced. Sesame seed encrusted salmon was missing the sesame seeds, cod was greasy and looked like it had been left to sit in the kitchen for a bit. Apparently the crab cakes were ok.
I enjoyed the hot chocolate under the heater watching life go by, but don’t expect to be going there again.

I love this place and the Rockfish with crab. They have great seafood and wonderful salads. The beer and drinks are awesome. I have been here over 50 times and only had one bad experience (problem with a new employee who was clueless). Definitely worth the money and time to park. Love it.

My wife and I had a $ 50 gift certificate to here from our son. Went on a sunny Sunday afternoon. The outside dining room was jammed packed with drunken tourists so we opted to eat inside, which was surprisingly empty considering that every other restaurant in the area was full.
The waitress was fairly good and we got our drinks fast. ($ 9 for a mediocre glass of Shiraz.) My wife is allergic to seafood so we didn’t order an appetizer as all of them were seafood based. I was a little surprised to see that they had USDA PRIME (aged 45 days) (basted in butter) sirloin steaks on the menu, so I ordered it. (Cooked Medium)
My wife ordered the Stacked Caprese salad. Wait time on the entrees was fairly quick. (15 minutes)
Well, my wife and I looked at each other as we were served and both of us saw total disappointment in each others eyes.
Her Caprese salad was indeed stacked tomatoes and mozzarella, but the tomatoes were thick pink slabs of unripened tomatoes. No garnishes or sides came with it and it looked very bare and unappetizing.
As for my $ 43 market value USDA PRIME sirloin… It was a joke.
For one, it came out on a platter with nothing but the steak. The waitres saw my dismay and said she would be back with the two sides that came with it. She came back with a small dish of green beans and a small dish of 3 baby potatoes slathered with some kind of bright yellow cheese sauce.
(The menu indicated I was supposed to get spicy aioli fries with the steak.)
There is no way that that piece of meat was Prime. I have had a Prime cut of beef and this was way off in left field. (And if it was, it was Prime Shoe Leather.)
It was over cooked and tough, and the flavor reminded me of a Golden Corral steak.
The green beans were VERY undercooked and the potatoes tasted worse than they looked.
My wife and I discussed the experience on the drive home and no surprise, we will never go back here. There are too many great places to eat 10 yards away from this restaurant.
What a waste of a gift certificate.

There was a long wait at the Iron Rooster, so we ended up coming here. Their menu is sort of pricey and they don’t have many vegetarian options. I ended up getting the penne pasta with vodka sauce and fries on the side since I really wanted fries. Their fries have skin on them, which I don’t like, so it was just okay. The pasta was really good but I still don’t think it should be $ 16. My boyfriend just got a regular burger because it’s hard to go wrong with a burger, but he said it was terrible and he couldn’t finish it. The meat tasted like it was microwaved. For the price and quality of food, we won’t be back here.

I have been to Middleton many times over the years and the food has always been solid in my experience. Steaks are top notch and my kids have never had a bad meal there.
Some may call the service slow, but remember, this is not a chain restaurant and the whole meal is made to order. So when I see people clamoring about the slow service, I say… slow down and enjoy life a little. If you have a drink in your hand and a nibble on the table… enjoy each other’s company.
But, my review is on what I learned was a new crab cake. I have not been a seafood fan. well forever, and was pressured to try their new crab cake. Without knowing what the old one tasted like. this one was impressive. Good sized lumps of crab and there was something different (in a good way) about the filler. The sauce was also very mild and worked well with it. Our server told us that the crabs were local crabs, so that is a plus to support local fisherman and businesses.
My dining partner also had the crab cake and does eat them a lot and she said it was one of the best ones she has had in a long time and compared it to Edgewater Restaurant that I have heard is «the bomb» for crab cakes. She said it as just as good… and maybe a wee bit better than Edgewater. So take that for what it’s worth!
I personally still prefer the landlubber offerings, but will definitely not shy away from the crab cake here.
I am not absolutely sure how new the recipe is… I suspect less than a month, but was told that it is the recipe that they now use on all their crab dishes.

I was initially glad to be here for Annapolis’ Restaurant Week — two courses for $ 15. Plus that free oyster shooter with an itty bitty side of beer? Cha-​ching! But then it all started going downhill from there.
My fried calimari was actually quite tasty. But the clams rockefeller was basically 90% sauce and 10% oyster, which was disappointing. Believe it or not, though, our apps were the highlight of the meal — never a good sign. My salmon main dish was overcooked and a bit flavorless, and my partner’s cod was acceptable albeit boring. We both ate all our veggies, though. Yay?
The service was OK… a bit slow. I witnessed a couple get angry because they basically put baby in a corner and didn’t wait on them for a good 20 minutes since they were first seated. I realize it was busy, but I don’t really blame the clientele for getting up and moving over to the bar. If we had somewhere to be, I wouldn’t have been so thrilled with the shenanigans either.
All in all, convenient location, a bit tourist trap-​y, maybe try to eat upstairs vs downstairs? Not sure I’d come back again, but if I do, I’ll be sure to check in on Unilocal to get that complimentary oysta shoota. :-)

Lousy experience. We just stopped by on our way back to DC for a drink and perhaps a bite or two. It was not exceptionally crowded. We walked in and there was no one to seat us. Mind you a bearded gentleman who was either the host or manager stood by and did nothing until I went up to him and he finally offered to seat us after us standing there for 10 mins. We sat down and 35 minutes later no one had showed to take our order whilst this manager stood around drinking a beer at the host? station. Needless to say we walked right out… I get it. this Tavern has been there for eons and has historical value. However the service leaves a lot to be desired. The food isn’t exactly Michelin starred for me to let the lack of service slip. It’s just bar food so it may work for those who aren’t really heading out for fine dining. I’ll pass.

Hey! This place is terrific as well as historic. Friendly, helpful, quick staff at back bar. Steamed mussels are delicious and extra buttered frenchbread to soak up the delicious juice plentiful. Steamed shrimp is more expensive than Dock Street Bar and Grill, but also very nice. Also, Middletown Tavern (back bar) is much more attractive. Place is bright and cheerful. Clientele at the bar always sociable too.
I have been coming here for years and found each experience to be wonderful.
This is a great place for a beer, a snack, or a good meal. Locals and regulars love it.

Came here with my best friend who so happens to be a very picky eater. After walking around the circle on Main Street and walking in and directly out of Market Place, we decided to sit down outside here at Middleton Tavern. The patio was welcoming and the view was great. We love to people watch and look at the ridiculous outfits that Main Street has to offer on such a hot day – we even saw two girls just walking around in bathing suits?!
Anyways… We LOVE love LOVE oysters so of course we decided on getting ½ dozen to share. The platter came out with two very large oysters and the rest so small in comparison! My friend wanted to complain, but I honestl7y wasn’t in the mood to deal with managers on a day that already started off awful. I ordered the Soft Crab BLT with no Mayo and she ordered the Flatbread. Our food was GREAT! We even ordered a glass of wine each and used our Unilocal log-​in check-​in FREE oyster shooter. THE SHOOTERS ARE THE BEST! They come with TWO oysters in the shot with a baby shot of NattyBoh beer. Perfect lunch.
Bathrooms do need some updating and maybe some more signs? There were a lot of drunk people (even at 2:30pm) that had NO idea where the bathrooms were and kept asking us… we were outside!

So my Unilocal wasn’t working when I was recommended this restaurant. I don’t know why, but it wasn’t and so I trusted the rec and well… you know where this is going. It wasn’t very good. The muscles were sandy and the flavor just meh. The mahi mahi was overcooked. The staff was nice and attentive. Overall… a disappointing food experience in spite of the nice staff.

This place is a total tourist trip but I can’t stay away. I love my free oyster shooter with Unilocal check in and I like that it comes with a shot beer back. There’s oysters aplenty and their huge. I’ve also had the crab cake and the lobster sandwich on visits. I’ve never sat anywhere but the raw bar which is always packed, but there’s ample dining room seating. While the decorations are old fashioned and on point, I just don’t think I would enjoy the quiet ambiance as much as the faster pace of the bar.
I’m also a big fan of the place’s proximity to the water and city center and that there’s always a seat. I’ll keep returning, but I never expected five star dining. Just convenient drinks and oysters.

In such a quaint, tourist friendly town, one would expect a better experience, but this was kinda ehhhh… Unimpressive.
We jumped off the late afternoon lunch with the Tuna Tartare. Not bad! But it was served with soggy, boring crackers. Buzz killer.
The French Dip sandwich was also, for lack of a better description, boring. The meat was dry and there was no special flare to it, no kick, no cheese, no nothing, just boring.
I’ll give the Bartenders Cobb Salad the gold medal for the day. They’re generous with the fresh veggies!

Not sure why this place has low reviews! We enjoyed our oyster shooters and crab cake sandwiches.
I would have preferred a better bun for the crabcakes (sesame bun for seafood? Seems store bought). Also fries weren’t evenly proportioned, my friend got a healing place and I had 10 at most on my plate. Service was great though! Good place for casual lunch outside.