Tryst

Good brunch food paired with possibly the worst bloody mary I’ve ever had (no mix, no garnish, just tomato juice straight from the can with some horseradish) and let’s say lackluster service at the bar to match (which is putting it mildly). I had to convince my dining compatriot to not leave before our food arrived. We will most certainly not be going back.

I finally made it to the famous Tryst and am planning to make it a regular hang. We sat at the bar and enjoyed our drinks along with the taco of the day. It wasn’t very busy when we arrived or when we left, in fact there was so much open seating in the dining room area it seemed a little hollow. I think I will return to the bar on my next visit.
The drinks were tasty and the bartender was accommodating to my friend who wanted her drink made less sweet.

We had a delicious experience at Tryst last night. We met a group of dear friends for dinner. The food was outstanding, encrusted salmon and the beef short ribs were big hits with our party of 5. The kale and brussel sprout salad is so good.
This is an awesome neighborhood resturant .
Our server was very attentive and pleasant.
This is not our first time here and we will return.

One of my favorites to date in Arlington. We had burger, stake tips, calamari, pig under a brick, truffle fries, the entire meal and service were top notch.

I really enjoy this restaurant. I was treated to a 50^th birthday celebration here and have now been back several times. Even when this place is busy, I never feel rushed or pressured to leave.
The last visit I got the brussels sprouts (my latest veggie obsession) and the Cuban sandwich. I opted to get the salad instead of fries (which are awesome, btw). The sandwich was very good — not dried out like it can be and ample. I had to take it home to finish. I have had many sides and dishes over the last few months — all unique and all tasty. I also thought the prices were reasonable compared to other restaurants of the same quality.

This restaurant would be great except for the manager Katarina. She was horrible and nasty to her staff & customers, I will never go here again.

This is probably or 9^th or 10^th time coming here since moving to Arlington late July. Most of our visits have been Sunday brunches but also a couple of dinner. We find the quality of Arlington restaurants to be pretty good so you understand that we really love this one.
Tryst is a pretty typical New American style restaurant; great kale & Brussels sprouts salad, fresh shrimp and fish tacos, lobster sliders, and an amazing chipotle bacon burger. They have a good selection of cocktails, nice wines and Boom Sauce IPA on draft.
The kids menu is great, even considering my picky vegetarian kids. Delicious cheese pizza, buttermilk pancakes, good pasta marinara. The kids love to color with the coloring sheets and abundance of crayons provided.
The waiters are nice and helpful, always greeting us with a smile and remember what we like and that I like to be seated so I can watch the Patriots game if it happens to be on.

As Arlington residents and supporters of local business, we have been to Tryst at least 20 – 30 times in 2 – 3 years. Generally like the location, vibe and food. Recently the menu got a lot better with some new additions and «Taco nights». Seemed great at first! Tried Taco Night (both times Wednesday) twice in past 6 weeks. Both times, it took OVER 45 minutes to get the tacos — these are tiny «2 bite» (according to the servers) tacos. I am not criticizing the tacos or portion size. The tacos are actually delicious. The first time this happened our waiter was also very aware of the timing and offered two free future desserts.
The second time, however, was very different and very disappointing. We sat at the bar, and experienced a rude and inattentive bartender who couldn’t have cared less about the timing of the food service, seeing that we had finished drinks and were ready for another, or even checking in to see how the food was. Instead he was busy chatting with a friend at the bar and reading texts messages, re-​stocking the bar, and filling the dishwasher. This is when the restaurant and bar is not even half full.
Spent $ 100 on dinner (+ 2 drinks each). Not unusual for us, but what was unusual was being forced to leave a less than 10% tip (generally a 20% tip is automatic for us). Had to do it to send a message. Hopefully it is received because eventually we’d like to go back!

Great meal at Tryst. There was something for everyone on the menu here, everything was well prepared, good presentation and very tasty. Drinks were creative and delicious and our service was very attentive. We’ll be happy to return here

I didn’t know the ‘old Tryst’ but this one just became my new go-​to resto. Friendly and easy going guests in every corner, cheerful staff all around, fair pricing for a foodie caliber restaurant (stole Dave Rs expression because how else to describe it?). I didn’t see any TVs. Truffle fries — never had them before and I’m not a ‘fry’ fan, but keep me away! Excellent. I see fried calamari as a benchmark for a restaurant’s care for their food prep, and the calamari ($ 12) was perfect — tender, sweet, very light but crunchy and savory batter. It’s a small place and has upper scale pub feel but I liked that. I like a bit of posh when I go out, but it wasn’t snooty a la Cambridge.
Waitress gave us several samplings of wine upon request before choosing a bottle; we did land on a Pinot that went with everything at table…$ 48. She was lovely and friendly; I did think she should learn more about what wines pair with what foods — lacking there but that was the only
My G&T was $ 10 though. I still can’t get used to the inflation of alcohol at restaurants and bars.
Give yourself time to find parking. And location is across from the Arlington library… not where I was expecting a restaurant to be, but so convenient. Right downtown.

Haven’t been here in a while & Tryst has changed a lot. It’s very pubby, which is great if you want a pub, I guess tonight I was wanting the Tryst of old.
1^st change is the TV’s. Loud enough to interfere with talking. Tryst has always struggled with noise and the TV’s overload the sound dynamics. Music from one room, basketball and soccer from the next room and the usual restaurant sound. Fortunately we’d had a very long day and came prepared with books.
The food is good. Not what it used to be but very good for pub food.
I guess the most disconcerning was the new perky staff attitude. Now, don’t get me wrong perky is fine if the staff is alert to whether or not the guest is charmed by perky or totally discombobulated. I was discombobulated, I’ve never we been called sweetie before. Actually as a human I trend more toward cranky. For heaven’s sake, I’m 65. It’s my job to call people sweetie.

After living in the South End for 20 years I moved to Belmont. I realized that after I get home I am not going back into town for dinner. I would like the same goods and services I had in the South End only close to «BelBurbia». I have found my go to in Tryst. The food is fantastic. The menu changes constantly. The Kale and Brussels Sprout salad rocks. Andrew at the bar always remembers your drink and the whole staff makes your meal into a fabulous experience. Don’t miss Thirsty Thursday.

I’ve been to Tryst for cocktails and brunch. Both were great experiences with fantastic food (eggs Benedict) and drinks. It was a bit pricey, though.

Note quite sure what Tryst is trying to be: sports bar? family restaurant? Whatever it is, they just have not figured it out. The TV screens in the dining room are just not okay – they distract from the overall experience. The service and food were fine, but the ambience is non-​existent. I was hoping for more but was sadly disappointed.

I’ve been to Tryst a number of times now largely because it is the only «foodie caliber» destination in Arlington that I’ve found (I could be wrong about this /​would love to find others).
I have enjoyed every visit.
The only complaint I have is that their vegan/​vegetarian choices are somewhat limited. Luckily, I am a flexitarian (I prefer vegetarian or vegan, but if I don’t like the choices I’ll eat pretty much anything). Unfortunately however, during my latest visit I was with a friend who is a strict vegetarian. As a result of the limited choices we had a couple glasses of white sangria and moved on to another destination in Cambridge for dinner.
On previous visits I’ve tried the Lobster Slider, Shrimp Taco, P.E.I. Mussels starters. I’ve also tried all of their salads at one time or another. I’ve enjoyed all of them.
In addition, Tryst has a great wine selection and a knowledgeable bar staff that can help you with a choice (s) to accompany your food. On this particular visit my date and I enjoyed the house White Sangria. It was excellent, and not too sweet.
If you’re ever looking for foodie-​quality eats in Arlington, head on over to Tryst.

I applaud the omelettes made with egg whites! Most places you have to pay an extra dollar or two for egg whites but they do it be default. Love it.
Lobster omelette was awesome. Huge portion and generous with the lobster.
If you’re ever in Arlington and want some brunch, definitely check this place out.
This also had 21^st Amendment water melon beer on tap in early April. Yes yes and yes to that.

Found my second time here a completely different experience. Glad I gave it a second chance. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING (drinks, service, menu, food, and overall restaurant) was on point. Actually — not everything. Parking took a while because it was cold and I refused to walk more than like a block, but that doesn’t really count against the restaurant.
The guacamole was outstanding. They had a special pizza w/​five different types of meat that they initially said they were out of, but said they could do it as a flatbread instead. In a word — YUM.
My boyfriend didn’t like our entrees because they were not the usual way you would expect. (Chicken cacciatore and «fried» chicken). That’s what I actually love about Tryst. They have a creative and innovative way about how they do things. The menu changes, the food is not just food, but a creative, l and original spin on the dishes they serve. Additionally, the quality of the ingredients and food is amazing.
The service (my second time) was impeccable.
I love tryst. It’s like a culinary happy place in a humdrum dark cloud of restaurants. I wish I would have come back the 2^nd time a lot sooner.

Interesting culinary delight. You walk in and notice a very understate décor. a bar with a small crowd but a soft or low level of sound. A very attentive hostess walks you to a table and you are handed a small and limited menu similar to what one would expect in a «bistro».
Our table of four ordered the majority of the menu and to our delight each dish was above our expectations. The steak tips and «flat iron“steak was perfectly prepared. The clam broth was perfect. The salmon was delicious.
Did I mention a very good wait staff.
Go here for good food in an understated restaurant setting.

We really liked our experience at Tryst.
Hesitant as it was Dine out Boston and normally that means over crowded restaurants with lackluster quality to the food the hostess assured us the menu was of their standard fare and the kale and brussel sprout salad was one of their most popular appetizers.
I ordered al a cart, my companion opted for the three course menu. The kale and brussel sprout salad was amazing! I’ve already looked it up on line to make this at home. Delicious and I do not like brussel sprouts, at all. Not even a tiny bit but I didnt taste the sprouts. The lemon dressing was kind enough to out flavor the cabbage like brussel sprout flavor! I was sold on the healthy greens!!!
For entrees we ordered the braised beef short ribs and the roasted chicken breast. The beef short ribs were the best of the two. Not overly salted, and the meat fell apart easily. My companion actually was jealous and commented yet again I picked the better meal. ;)
His dessert was the triple chocolate pot au crème. It was devoured in a few minutes. Between bites I think I heard this is so good.
Overall the staff were super nice, knowledgeable about the food and extremely efficient. We’ve been looking for a nice place to come and happy to know we’ve found one!!!
It was great!

this place is a hidden gem in arlington. I’ve gone here about 5 – 6 times, eaten different things each time, and everything has been absolutely delicious. The burger, the hot dates, calamari, pig under a brick (pulled pork under a thick crust of duck fat), the bourbon steak tips, truffle fries and the gin martinis are all absolutely awesome. The service has always been great and the bartenders remember you even if the last time you were there was 6 months ago.
highly recommend this place to take a date for intimate dinner or with a small group.