Lido Cafe

Waited 15 minutes for a waitress — never got helped. The service was so poor that we gave up.

Purchased a couple steak & sausage dinners to go. Food was very delicious, but the portion sizes were VERY small compared to other restaurants in the area, especially for the price.

I was looking for a place to grab decent fish & chips between work and attending a film out in Nahant at Northeastern U’s Marine Science Center. I pulled over in front of the Lido to get onto Unilocal and look up any nearby place, not looking for fancy, just fresh fish. I had blocked in two cars parked on the side, when a waitress got my attention so she could get her car out. Off the cuff I asked her if the seafood was decent at the Lido. She assured me they get their seafood fresh daily. So on a whim, I figured why not (and I wasn’t having any luck finding anything on Unilocal either!) I was there just before the dinner hour; after I was seated and had ordered, the dining room started to get busy (on a Tuesday night). My waitress could not have been more attentive. I noticed she knew many of the incoming, as well as what they liked to order, and what sides they enjoyed. She also made a point to learn my name — I only wish I could remember hers to give her kudos on the personal service she seemed to provide not only me, but all of her tables. The haddock was very generous, and all the pieces cooked perfectly, even though one was particularly thick. Awesome job. (See photo posted) And it was most definitely fresh fresh fresh. They have sweet potato fries, handcut fries, and crinkle fries. They may also have had tater tots. The menu is down home with items like turkey dinner. It reminds me of the Mt Vernon in Somerville, both the menu, and the layout — big bar side and separate dining room. The one suggestion I would have for the kitchen is to go with a much lighter coating on the fish. The coating is too thick and heavy for fresh fish that you want to savor the full flavor off — not have it overshadowed by heavier coating. If they could do a panko, or a light coating, this order would have been perfection. If the fish is not fresh, it would make sense to obscure with the heavy coating but the coating was not worthy of the fresh flakey haddock and perfect frying. I would go back again. And the service was exceptional. $ 18 for this full plate of fried haddock, chips, and coldslaw (which I enjoyed and I’m not very big on slaw).

Melissa B’s review was spot on! One does not come here for ambiance; it is a local, casual bar/​restaurant. The bar side is separate from the restaurant, in fact, I was here twice in one week and I heard no noise or anything from the bar. Totally forgot it was even over there.
Our pizza was delish, and like others have said, totally reasonable. I had a combo plate the second time with fried scallops, which I had been craving, and steak tips, also which I had been craving. I was surprised when I found I could get both on the Surf and Turf. The portions were huge, and they had my favorite beer, served ice cold.
Annabella is my favorite waitress! She’s just delightful and has the right sense of humor to handle the crowd in this place.
I saw a review about waitresses doing delivery. I sincerely hope that is not the case, and I didn’t witness anything like that.
They serve breakfast now. Looking forward to giving that a try too.

One of my husband’s old haunts, and one of the first places he brought me to in Lynn. As I have said in other reviews, I like the places with «character», where the regulars hang out and don’t mind if you aren’t one… where the bar has an open seat and a good view of the tvs… where the draft beer is flowing freely and the food is decent. I like neighborhood bars without the frills… yep, I like it here.
Saw a review that said the food is «horrible», but I disagree. Decent food at reasonable prices, that’s what I have always found here.

the worse place i have ever been in, the oil should have been changed 2 weeks ago. f bombs every other second which includes the drunk owner that also owns a some kind of catering business, the waitress over charged us. i was in the army in nam and have been in a lot of dumps but this is by far the worse. i went there for my 16^th birtthday and when i got out of basic training in 1971 i loved it. u had to wait to get in, now u cant wait to get out. only gave it 1 star cause there was no other option.

Is the Lido a dive? Of course it is. You can’t compare a dive bar to a high class restaurant, it’s apples and oranges.
The beer is cold, the mixed drinks are good. You can play some Keno and, if you’re there around 7:30 PM on a weeknight, you can shout out the answers to Jeopardy. You’re not paying an arm and a leg for your food and drinks. The pizza is really good (crust is on the thin side and it is saucy) and so is the seafood.
I am concerned about the other reviewers who complain about the atmosphere and the service. If you want ambiance and a maître d’, don’t go to a dive bar in Lynn. If you want to chill out after work with a couple drinks, some pizza, and entertainment in the form of the regulars at the bar, the Lido is a great place.

I thought I would give this dive one more try, thinking possibly they were just having an off day. BIG MISTAKE! I asked for a chilled shot. The bartender (once again this Jennifer). The shot was warm but on top of that was served to me from a shot glass directly out of the dishwasher. Needless to say the shot was not just warm, it was hot! The fruit fly situation hadn’t changed one bit, if anything it was worse. I for one will never step foot in this dump again as long as I live. The owner was extremely rude when I complained about the shot and bugs. His exact words were ««oh well, if you don’t like it go somewhere else». Waitstaff stand around and talk as opposed to doing their jobs. I seriously don’t know how this place stays in business. I’ve driven by on numerous occasions, even on a Friday night and there may be 3 cars outside, probably employee vehicles.

The food was horrible. The service even worse. And the restaurant smelled hideous!

It is what it is. cheap drinks, lousy bartenders that NEVER smile and good pizza, I love this bar, although been coming here since I was a kid, changed owners a couple times, its The Lido. To all the naysayers regarding the food, try the Lido Special. excellent cheese steak sub with steak TIPS, grilled onions and peppers, and cheese!.. mmmm

This is still one of my favorite restaurants. I have been going there ever since I was a kid and eve though it has changed a bit I could never imagine Boston St without it.

I have had pizza here, also chicken marsala. The pizza was nothing special, and the marsala was the worst I ever had. Water logged pasta and chunks of domestic ham… yuck. The environment is pretty shady too.

Waitress’ leave restaurant to do deliveries in the middle of dinner. Sometimes impatient & rude. Food mediocre at best. We waited for over an hour for our food several times. We were glad we just lived locally & had nothing better to do but play Keno & write this review.

I’ve had takeout pizza from here a few times but had the pleasure of visiting for a meal the first time the other day. The restaurant is not much to look at, but has a nice nostalgic neighborhoody feel to it. Our server was quite the character and treated us like she’d known us for years.
As far as the food, I happen to love the pizza here, in particular the caramelized onion pizza. Definitely worth the drive for me to get it once in awhile. The pizza is a bit on the saucy side, but I like it that way. And cheap! Pizzas come in one size, I’d say comparable to a medium anywhere else, and mine was only was only something like 9 bucks. You can’t beat that. One of my dining companions had the haddock, and although I didn’t try it, I was impressed by the portion given for the price. I’m told this place is known for decent inexpensive seafood, so I’ll give it a try next time. The antipasto was just so-​so, but enjoyable for what it was. It was just iceberg lettuce topped with cubes of salami, tuna, and cheese, although we opted to forego the tuna. It would have been nice to see some olives or pepperoncini or something else in there to give it some pizzazz.
If you’re an out-​of-​towner, don’t get confused by the word «café» in the name of this place. The Lido is not a place to come sip an espresso. It is, however, a good inexpensive and super casual sit-​down dining option if you happen to find yourself hungry and wandering through Lynn.

Same as Ryan A. This is a place I grew up with. As a child we went here nearly once a week. Back in the day you had to wait for a table. Not any more. More often than not the restaurant side is nearly empty. The place was owned by the same person for many years. Some time around 2000 it was sold. The new owner tried to turn into a sports bar, he cleaned & brightened it up a bit, but for the most part it is what it is, a neighborhood bar/​restaurant. This place has always been billed as an Italian restaurant. The pizza is good, (some times too much sauce), but always has a good taste to it. They also sell seafood & the regular grill items. For some reason their seafood has always been the best choice on the menu. The most recent owner also owns the locale canteen truck company. Thankfully I think the Lido’s food goes on his trucks, not the other way around. Other than the same regulars that have been sitting at the bar every night for many years, this place just doesn’t feel the same as it used too. However for the money, you still get decent food for about as cheap as your going to get any where. Its easy to get too, and there’s plenty of parking. Its gets one extra star for the memories.

Childhood favorite! I miss the old juke boxes that they had at every table — sorely miss that — though I don’t miss the smell of smoke. I guess that’s a toss up! Veteran waitresses are friendly and do their job well. Don’t get too fancy with their food, stick with the basics. I haven’t had the pizza for a while, but I remember it being pretty good.
It seems like the age of good food at cheap prices is nearing an end. This place is not trendy, just a nice place to hang out on a Friday or to take a family and not spend $ 100. I like those places!
Also, fried pickles! MMM.

went here a few weeks back and i can honestly say that the place hasn’t changed a bit. well, they did get rid of the juke box thingys at each table (BOOOO!).
i remember going here as a kid (i’m a Pine Hill brat) and this was a place that would give out any un-​picked-​up pizzas at closing.
i had the chicken parm and my DC had the steak tips, both pretty decent.
i wanna return and try the pizza but i would have to go past so many other places that would pull my old Lynn heart strings in another direction.

This is so hard to give a rating to. On so many different levels it was just bad. The food, the service, the atmosphere…
Why am I holding back on just one star?
The FRIED PICKLES!
They were amazing. Every time I go elsewhere they just don’t compare. For this little bit of wonderfulness, I will give this place an extra star.