BarrelHouse

The owner reached out to me to find out when i stopped by which was Sunday evening after the long Holiday weekend end-​of-​May.
This place is now my favorite place to eat and drink in Burlingame.
5 stars from Phish.

Blonde behind the bar welcomed me with a warm cunty attitude. It’s nice be back after two years.

place is great and very friendly environment

Tapas were mediocre, but the ambient and drinks were top notch! Will be returning for a night out OR for a post-​dinner drink.

Came here for HH with some friends. There was only 1 bartender, but it definitely was not busy for a Thurs at 430. This guy was so slow, didn’t know who paid for what, didn’t know what anything cost, and then when we tried to pay, he was rude, even gave someone else’s card back to the wrong person (lucky for him they were honest people). He also gave a couple too much change back (unlucky for him, they weren’t as honest and kept a the money).
He just seemed like he could not handle it, maybe he should be a bar back for a bit. Needless to say, we had 1 round and got the eff out of there. Too bad, could be a pretty cool place, but the bad service has got to go.
If you’re looking for a good happy hour with good service, hit up Straits next door!

Great bar, great drinks and great atmosphere. This is the perfect bar to come to on a Friday night after a long work week. Music is low so you could have a good conversation over a drink with coworkers or friends.

TL;DR — Good beer selection and nice staff, but they don’t honor the Unilocal Check-​In offer. Just FYI.
The beer selection is great.
The food is from next door.
The cocktails are weak.
They don’t accept Unilocal check in anymore because its «outdated»
Only the bartender was nice, everyone else had a baaaaaad attitude about working.
Yes I’d still come back, but probably just for beers and to sit outside on the patio.

Really cute laid back place. It is one of the nicer bars in Burlingame if you are not in the mood for a pub or a restaurant bar. They have good HH specials and you can order snacks. Definitely a must try if in Burlingame.

Here on Mother’s day (mine is on the east coast so we skyped earlier). Had the whiskey fix super good. Empanadas weren’t ready yet (make sure you ask what they have) so we ordered some bruschetta from straits — they serve a bar bites menu from there — wow spicy but super good.
The service was really good the atmosphere is chill and relaxing. They have some sports games on TV but today the back patio was perfect mix of sun and cool breeze. It was nice to see quite a few regulars and locals show up (I’m visiting from the east bay) and the bartender recognized them by name.
A great selection of vodka, bourbon and tequila. They have wine and beer by the glass and bottle. In fact Sundays is ½ off bottles of wine.

How have I never been here before?! The happy hour specials and half off wine Sunday through Wednesday will keep me coming back. The atmosphere is inviting without being stuffy. Also… the EMPANADAS from El Porteno are so delicious. Being a vegetarian, I appreciated having more than one option. The mushroom one was my fav. The bar tenders were busy but super nice! I’m so glad we found this spot in the ‘burbs.

The co-​workers and I had wanted to do an urban hike and we decided to hike from our office in downtown San Mateo to Barrel House in Burlingame. When we had arrived, we had just gotten there half an hour after it opened, so it wasn’t as crowded and we were able to get the bartender’s attention. Shout to the bartender who was working last Friday afternoon!
The group of 9 of is was sitting outside so the outside atmosphere was pleasant. They had suggested sitting inside, but it was a little on the dark side for an afternoon and the heat from baking empandas was boiling me under a thick sweater after the walk.
We had order several of their cocktails and I had order a coconut mojito. I don’t go out much to drink, so I’m not the best judge to talk about drink, but the mojito was very easy to drink and the coconut and lemony-​ness was very tasty. We also order two of every savory empanda that was listed on the menu. Unfortunately, they did not have any tomato empandas when we were there, but that means another reason to go back! The empandas very good as they had just gotten out of the oven, but next time I’m not going to share with co-​workers (sorry guys!) Each type of empanadas was very delicious and I would come back again just for them.

Don’t be fooled by the pictures! Place is tiny, limited seating and terrible customer service.

This place is pretty nice and upscale. I really enjoy the atmosphere and the ambience. It wasn’t too crowded and there was sufficient space to walk and stand around. The drinks were however alright only. I ordered the cucumber gimlet and mango margarita. Both didn’t have much alcohol and tasted more like fruit juice. My friend ordered the old-​fashioned and she didn’t like it too.

Have you ever returned back a drink to the bartender because it wasn’t strong enough? Neither have I until here. I don’t want to sound like a jerk, but in all honesty our Manhattan tasted watered down. Thankfully there wasn’t too much of a problem as our bartender tasted the drink and quickly remade it. They claimed that the whiskey they used was tonic water or I don’t know. Normally people would be quick to review how horrible an establishment is based solely on that one drink. But in the bartender’s defense, they made us drinks earlier that night that were quite satisfying.
Now that I got that off my chest, let’s focus on my review. If ever you’re in the area and looking for a chill night without the hustle and bustle of driving in to the city, then Barrelhouse is the place to be. With their chill vibe, dim lighting, rustic décor, and wide selection of top shelf liquor, you may need to take a step back and remember you are not in the Marina.
Lately I’ve been obsessed with Negronis, so usually I order one at any bar I go to. A negroni comprises of gin, vermouth, and campari topped with an orange garnish. Most bartenders are a bit too generous with the gin (which of course is never a problem unless you hate gin) but the one I had more of the vermouth making my drink a little sweet for my liking. We also ordered an old fashioned, which was really strong which is another plus!
While SOMA has their infamous dirty dogs, the Mission has their pupusas, Barrelhouse serves Burlingame El Porteno empanadas to quench those inevitable late night drunchies. Although I wished they didn’t run out of their pollo empanada, their carne empanada was quite tasty. So warm and chewy that you simply just can’t get one bite. And let’s not forget about their banana y dulce de leche empanada. Oh just the sound of that makes my mouth water.

This is a great place to watch a game or bring a date. It also feels a little more upscale then nearby bar/​sports spots.
It has three tvs to watch the games. It actually serves food from the restaurant next store which is super convenient. And it also has outdoor seating which is nice but no tvs out there.
There typically is only one bartender working so on busier nights service can take slight longer but everyone is super friendly.

Stopped by here recently on a date and it turned out to be a great choice of venue. There’s a good selection of craft beers here, and I love the fact that you can do a sampler platter. The wine selection is fairly good, and there’s a modest cocktail menu too. The food menu is also quite decent, and is several notches above typical pub or bar food. Moreover, the venue is large and quite vibrant.
I’ve also got to note the super, super friendly bartenders and staff here — so friendly, in fact, that I should have jotted down some names so I could highlight them in this review. Definitely recommended if you’re in the area and want a nice, chill environment to hang out.

Update 1÷6÷16: I’m upgrading to 2 stars versus 1 because the manager reached out to address some of my concerns and indicated that many of the annoyances are being addressed (lack of heat, sprucing up, different food option, etc.) I think it speaks volumes when a manager or owner pays attention to the reviews. I can’t quite upgrade to 3 stars yet because he didn’t indicate a willingness to drop the $ 20 credit card minimum, but at least now I might consider given them another chance to impress me next time I’m town. We’ll see.
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I’ve been here a few times over the last couple years to hang out with friends and coworkers. I would’ve previously given 3 – 4 stars, but my most recent experience has me thinking I’ll choose another spot next time I’m in town.
This isn’t a reflection on the bartender, who was great. It’s more of an issue with how the place operates. First, it was freezing. No heater when it’s in the low 40’s? It’s no fun to hang out when you have to keep your jacket on. Second, food comes from Strait’s, which is next door. That’s fine, but requires paying a separate bill. Kind of a pain. They used to have some food specials during happy hour, but that’s gone, so the munchies cost a pretty penny (tasty, though). Third, the place is in need of sprucing up. If you’re going to charge $ 12 for a cocktail, I should not be staring at banged up walls with chunks of paint/​sheet rock missing and tripping over boxes stored below the bench seating.
All the above is annoying, yet forgiveable for well crafted cocktails. However, the crowning insult is what I believe to be the illegal practice of having a $ 20 minimum for credit card charge. I wasn’t informed of this when I gave the bartender my card to open a tab, but as friends arrived and opened their tabs, they were told about a $ 20 minimum. You can imagine how unreasonable and inconvenient this is for groups of people (one friend had to pay for another’s drink just to meet the minimum, even after asking the bartender for accommodation since one person at the table had ordered a bottle of wine). It’s especially maddening because your food bill doesn’t count since it’s charged separately. We live in the age of digital money and plastic. If you don’t want to pay credit card companies their fees, then declare yourself cash only. Otherwise, knock off the BS.
By the way, I might be wrong, but my understanding of regulations on the matter is that minimums can’t be more than $ 10 (see Dodd-​Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, 2010). I strongly suggest the owner rethink this policy.

We were trying to find a great drinking hole after dinner and holiday shopping.
My husband was interested in the drink selections and we were able to plan the rest of our vacation. purchase Basketball game tickets and have a chill night.
We would come back here again for sure and recommend.

Great time at the Barrel House. Great drink selection, modern décor and good appetizers. Definitely a hot spot on the weekends! Good food, + good drinks = a good time

Quick service, friendly bartenders, good drinks.
Plus, our friend had brought her dog and we intended on sitting on the patio but, apparently, there was a gathering of the Bay Area Young Republicans. We ended up sitting right next to the patio door, which gave us plentiful BAYR observation time.
We ordered a Manny’s and an ale named Red something. I had a couple Moscow Mules and the weirdest part was they made me give them my driver’s license to use a copper mug. Apparently, the clientele was stealing these mugs. Some people, right?
I wish Barrelhouse had more beers to choose from, but that is my only complaint.