The Maiden Publick House

Not sure what this place is trying to be. The name and décor suggests an English Country Pub but the chubby barmaid wore those sleeves that make you look like you’ve got lots of tattoos (going for the biker bar look?). Music was American trad jazz and on tv was a black history month program that no-​one was watching. Weird combination.
Service was so-​so and not particularly friendly (especially the flat-​hat wearing ginger bearded barman). Food was reasonable and reasonably priced but the beer is a total rip-​off. They have a blackboard full of «Draught Beers», but they are actually a mixture of Draught and bottled. Most of them come in small glasses (e.g. 7 or 12 fl oz) instead of the pint you would get elsewhere. Also, there are no prices on the board and there’s a reason for that. I was charged $ 14.00 for a big bottle of Racer 5 that costs $ 4.99 in my local liquor store.
Total rip-​off. Never again.

Came in on a Thursday night at about 7:30. Had a great time! We were staying at the Big Sur River Inn and this place is a short walk away from there. Definitely recommend it!
It’s a smaller place but had lots of character. There were about 12 – 14 various craft style beers on tap. They had the usual selection in bottles as well. I had a couple of different styles and they were all good.
Sadly I had just eaten so I’m not able to comment on their food.
Shout out to the bartender Matt that night. He did an excellent job. We had fun a conversation with him as we watched some old Kung Fu movies on the TV.
Overall, a nice place to grab a beer after hiking or exploring Big Sur.

Stumbled upon this place as a recommendation from the park rangers after our hike.
It is hidden from the highway but you see the sign from the road so it could easily be missed.
Parking is ample even for a Saturday evening-​ish.
There is indoor & outdoor seating. We sat outside & it was nice
They had two TVs by the bar.
They also had a list of beer choices on two separate chalk boards.
I absolutely loved the atmosphere, so laid back & chill.
There was one guy running the whole joint, I didn’t get his name –_​–
He has gauged ears is the only thing that could possibly set him apart from other servers.
He was super busy but still managed to offer the best customer service. Take note people!
He was suuuuuper friendly & was very attentive even if he was running around like a mad man, this guy was the bartender, the host, the waiter & the busboy. No joke. One man show!
I will say, I was surprised at the selection they had for vegetarians. I was soooo confused as to what I should order as there was so much I wanted. Not used to this many options, lol.
What did I order?
— Beer battered Onion Rings: So yummers! Greasy & amazing!
— Macaroni & Cheese Bites: OMGGGGGG, my first time having this & it was BOMB!
They had brew suggestions for each entrée. The brew suggestion for the onion rings was the North Coast Old Stock Ale & the brew suggestion for the Macaroni & Cheese bites was the North Coast Scrimshaw Pilsner. I opted to try the North Coast Old Stock Ale which the waiter/​bartender gave me a little hard time about it being one of the strongest beers… I decided, why not? Go BIG OR GO HOME! lol. &&&&& it turns out that it was sooooo good. It has become one of my favorite beers :)
All in all this place is AWESOME!
I would definitely come back & totally recommend to anyone who is making their way to Big Sur.

This is such an amazing little local spot!
My friend and I had an all day adventure driving to Pfieffer Big Sur State Park from the East Bay. We stopped a few places prior to hiking all day. So it’s safe to say when we were done with our hike we needed a nice place to relax and grub! The Maiden was the perfect spot for it!
It wasn’t too busy but there also wasn’t any seating (it’s a fairly small spot). As soon as we walked in we saw one guy behind the bar, who also ended up being our waiter too. He was a bit of a smart ass but not rude about it. I’m an extremely sarcastic person so it was a good time!
We opted for outside seating because it was just a beautiful November day. Each item on the menu had a beer paired with it. When Mr. Sarcasm came to take our order my friend ordered some dark beer which he kind of chuckled and made some remark about it being strong, so I ordered the same thing. I never got his name which is a shame because he was just overall great and really made our experience!
What we ordered:
BLTA w/​Fries– I’m always iffy on ordering these because I feel most places don’t cook the bacon long enough but not here! It was AMAZING! The fries were okay, not sure if i ate them slow but some seemed a little cold.
Fried Macaroni — AMAZING!!! No words can really describe these
Onion Rings — AMAZING!!!
It’s killing me because for the life of me I can’t think of what the beer was that we ordered, it was like a 12% or something crazy.
!!

Great beer. Chicken wings were on point. Happy hour makes everything even better. We’ll be coming back.

Beer selection is great! Food was less than expected and we weren’t expecting a whole lot. Will try somewhere else next time.

Good beer selection. Plenty of quick bites to grab without spending $$$, but nothing too healthy. Any place that serves tots is good in my book though.

A jem of the area. 12 great beers on tap (including a cider!). Food was good. Great spot to hit coming up or down the coast.

This is essentially a bar with great food. We ordered the wings and an out and in burger. The burger is huge; ½ pound! Huge beer selection. Very relaxed place and friendly service. They have happy hour Mon-​Fri, a few times each night. Outdoor seating too. Highly recommended place!

now the tourist leave and its locals time, a truly a hidden gem where locals go for a beer our a burger The folks you meet and interact with from stars to musicians to locals are pretty colorful and unique affordable places on the coast down in this region. Bartenders are local flavor and there beer selection is very good. thank u

Disclaimer: I didn’t have food, so I can’t base this review on that.
On the way to camp in Big Sur, buddies needed a bite to eat, I only had a beer though.
Good vibe, great bartender with a great playlist. Also a big selection of beer!

We stayed in Big Sur river inn which is only 1 minute’s walk to the pub. The server/​bartender was very nice. We ordered the Philly cheese chicken sandwich, classic burger and roast beef with brie sandwich. The beef inside are good. They are all under $ 15 each so it’s very good price in this tourists place.

Discovered this place only after the bartender at the Post Ranch told us where to find it and what to order. He told us he’d be there after work. We were on a quest for Belgian beer. Set back from the road with lots of little shops to explore. Delightful little find with a variety of beers on tap and bottled and wonderful food to accompany. We visit each time we are in Big Sur. The Bartenders are down to earth and everyone was very warm and friendly to us.

Had the Shepherd’s Pie here. It was like a Mexican twist because the beef wasn’t traditional and there was a cheese mix on top. It was a little underseasoned. I was satisfying but that amazing.
My boyfriend had the Salmon Fish & Chips. It was pretty good. I’ve never tried Salmon Fish & Chips before so it was interesting. Not the best fish to fry since it’s heavy and salmon flavor isn’t carried out well. But I’d say it’s pretty good.
Waitress/​bartender was really nice and informative.

What a gem. Terrific beer list, great burgers, wings and tots, and fantastic service to boot. I’d be here twice a week if I lived in the area.

Hidden from the road this is a locals gem! Was recommended by a local and it was awesome. Grass fed juicy burger prepared and cooked perfectly. I didn’t drink beer but they had an great selection. Can’t wait to come back!

omg, so happy to have found this spot! Great beers and food!
Ordered the Phily Cheese Steak, AMAZING! It was huge too, didn’t think I was going to be able to finish it, but I did, and so happy I did too!
Can’t wait to go back! Service was great as well, very casual.

I go here every time when I visit. I unpack my stuff, and get in the car after the long ride and cruise down to this place. Amazing low key pub. Great beers on tap. Amazing food. Free wifi. Great happy hour deals! But, the main reason I come back is the awesome bartenders. Specifically Matt! The locals are super nice here too.
This is my home away from home beer stop.

Great spot.
We had a great experience at The Maiden Publick House. Great food and great service! I will mention this only because of the previous reviews, but we are not white.
Our food was great. I get fried artichokes wherever I go and these were definitely the best I’ve ever had.
Also don’t be dissuaded if you are a vegetarian when first looking at the menu, they are highly accommodating and the Veggie Burger is great!
Awesome stop on your journey through Big Sur. Would love to come back when we stay in Big Sur and have some beers with the Locals.
Service was great.

If you are of color be aware…
Took a road trip up this summer to Monterey, on our way down decided to stop here for dinner, I am Japanese and I was with my African American friend.
Let me tell you my friend placed his order & the lady ignored us for an hour while she served everyone else around us.
Didn’t come to refill waters, if we wanted to order more food, just out of curiosity. Absolutely ridiculous, as we sat and waited and tried flagging her down just ignored us and treated everyone around us…
No way a damn burger takes 1hr to make when your throwing out burgers 5 minutes for other tables.
While we waited another Asian male came in with an accent & she gave him the hardest time when he said he wanted a ham burger, I was discusted with the way they treat there «customers»
The lady was in her 40 – 50’s white, wearing glasses.
Absolute BS if your not white I’d defintetly consider elsewhere they don’t deserve «our» support.