Carroll’s

I’m looking to move to the neighbourhood so I’m trying out different places. When I first tried to eat there I was confronted with a private party. No big deal. The Carroll’s website says the restaurant doesn’t open till 3pm. But if you Google or Unilocal!it says it’s open for lunch. My advice to anyone would be to call ahead. But, there is a new sign promoting lunching hours.
When I walked in the noise from the bar was so loud, all I could do was go that way. There was no one in the dining room so I approached the bartender. «Can we just sit anywhere?» The manager was distracting him. I waited. He approaches me; «Huh?», «Can we just sit anywhere?» He responds; «What is it you want?» At that moment I relaxed. I was there to have a nice meal.
We got seated & were taken care of very well. Communication in the kitchen could be better. I got my oysters before my lunchmate got his clams. Heck, we got our salads before the clams came. The House Dressing is YUM!!!
I really like the lemonade & the bread. This place has quality product. The service is sincere.
I ordered the Chicken, spinach, sundried toms over linguini. The chicken was tough & resembled boiled chicken. The spinach & toms were fresh & very tasty. The pasta was cooked to perfection & if the server asks if you want cheese, YOU SAY YES. I want more of it, sans chicken.
I let the server know I didn’t like the chicken. She offered to have it remade but, I was getting full on the pasta. I just wanted to let her know. I took the rest home with me, ate it all, & I’m kind of jonesing for more.
I look forward to my next visit to Carroll’s.

I enjoy this place, it is a reminder of the Historic Carroll’s Restaurant which closed in the mid ‘80s and this new version is owned by some of the progeny. You can very easily feel at home here, chat with the staff and you will find yourself in that old time experience of being adopted by a neighborhood. I find it great that my mom still talks of their scalloped potatoes and their butternut squashed is equal to the Wayside Inn (and the Wayside is renown for their version) almost a year later. I have been there a few times since due to travel issues and I must agree, you will not be disappointed. I met an old friend there on 8÷17÷15 and when we delayed over ordering, the bartender was attentive and did not mind we took our time

Was really hoping this place would out Medford back on the map but no luck, first time there I got a shrimp/​pasta dish with 2 small shrimp? Unacceptable! Service was slow and place was stark and unimpressive, I have since been back twice and can’t say there’s been any improvement. The owners were a Medford institution but those days are over and they need to step up they’re game before it’s too late!

Excellent food! I have been going here with my dad frequently for about a year. The place is beautiful inside, staff always have been friendly, and don’t miss out on their specials! Would recommend for this for sure to anybody passing through the Medford area.

Over priced. Saw a nice Grey mouse that was enough for me. Food wasn’t even good took forever to get a drink and bar waitress wasn“t knowledgeable on the menu. Our meals took forever. For a place so big only three people on the floor. Something is wrong. Would never go back. Honestly hate to even give it a star but Unilocal rules.

I want to love this because of the name and that it’s in Medford, so hopefully they come here to read these tips.
Location is great, décor is very nice, and the bar is spacious. Staff is already very friendly. I’ve been maybe 6 times total now. What needs some serious help if they want to stand out and keep people interested is a menu overhaul. Please take this all because I want you to make it, so ahead is very blunt review of your menu. Where is your head chef??? This menu can not be his or her idea.
For a more upscale looking restaurant, you’d want something special. Add a cheese board or more trendy apps. Devils on Horseback, Charcuterie, something wrapped in bacon. All of your apps could be found at any local chain like 99. Don’t be a 99, be an 2 155 Carroll’s!
Salads are B O R I N G. Get crazy and put one with fruit on the menu and perhaps non iceberg lettuce. The mac and cheese was meh. If it’s homemade have it be way more flavorful, on the menu describe what kind of mac and cheese it is.
Keep ya burgah’s as they ah… but add a couple interesting combos on there. blue cheese stuffed or something for the people who like different.
Entrees, if you want to keep the white tables, do this entirely over. What comes with the filet? Why would I order a $ 27 filet? What makes your filet better than Sal’s, etc… Why is the schrod everyone’s favorite? The entrees could be great, but I am not likely to try any and in 6 visits haven’t because they sound dullllll… first time i was there I actually fell asleep at the second mention of a «tip».
For the Italian Specialties, I’d go to Bertucci’s for the same exact menu but more. I would just take that out all together. Stick to steak and seafood, just add a lot more interest.
And get a pastry chef :) Having house made desserts could be a big seller in this city.

I ordered the turkey burger. It was plain and dry, no seasoning at all. It didn’t come with mayo and the waiter didn’t ask if I wanted any, when my order came I had to ask for some. The grilled gluten free bun was good and so were the french fries. The waiter wasn’t attentive.

Went in for $ 1 oysters (as advertised) and was disappointed to find that they are now half price… not much of a difference but they should update the web site. Besides that everything was fabulous! Great oysters, clams, and cocktails. Lovely atmosphere as well.

Food is good, been here a few times with family. Steak tips were always tender and he house BBQ sauce they use is awesome. Burgers are ok. Beers are cold (just as important as the food) and drinks are well balanced. Would definately go back for a daytime burger and beer or dinner.

Word to the wise: on the days formerly designated as dollah oystah days, it is now HALF OFF oysters. So, no, they do not have $ 1 oysters, it’s like $ 1.50 oysters now, which is fine, but not as cool, though they ARE like 1.5x bigger than many dollar oysters I’ve seen/​eaten. (Also, they will not give you the half off deal unless you order a drink and/​or plate of other food.)
They have other fun discounted days, though, like half off appetizers, and they run drink specials — like the other day, they had a Svedka week (?), so our Bloody Marys were Svedka-​infused, and they had $ 7 (!!!) Svedka cocktails of your choice. Pretty chill.
Their bar is long and sweet, and there’s a ton of space, but I’m not sure that I’m clamoring to come back here again anytime soon, especially given no more $ 1 oysters; I want more mollusks for my moolah in the summah!

My boyfriend and I both love oysters, and just found this place just a couple miles from our house. We got in at 3:45pm, and were told that the kitchen wasn’t open until 4, but we could get drinks and oysters at the bar. Great!
I wasn’t surprised, per se, at the price of oysters, but it did occur to me that they, in a family restaurant in Medford, were charging as much for shellfish as, say, Sonsie, a high end bar on Newbury street. Certainly not a turn-​off, but my expectations were raised a bit. The bartender took our order, and started shucking the oysters and clams in front of us.
A couple things surprised me: She wasn’t wearing gloves, and repeatedly went from handling our shellfish to dealing with things around the bar, talking with other customers, and there was no hand washing observed at any point. This wouldn’t be a huge deal, except she was terrible at shucking. I would be surprised if she had been trained at it. Her hands were all up in there. There were huge chunks broken off shells, and oyster shrapnel everywhere. It was a mess.
The presentation was… I mean, what presentation? Oysters and clams stacked on top of each other in a haphazard manner, dirty old ice water (I’m talking visible discoloration and old oyster shell chunks, in mostly water with a few ice cubes directly from the oyster display) on a dinner plate serving as the base, and, to top it all off — a package of oyster crackers thrown on top (Get it?! They’re OYSTER crackers!!!) for good measure. I’ve eaten shellfish at many restaurants in many states and countries, and I’ve never seen anything as jaw-​droppingly awful as this.
To her credit, she did come back a couple of times to ask if everything was okay, but how was I supposed to explain «WTF is this supposed to be? This is how you serve shellfish here!?» I mean, what am I supposed to do? Refuse the plate and leave? I did tell her that there were some shell chunks (to put it mildly) in the clams, and, to my horror, she took the remaining clam, washed it out in front of me, and put it back on my plate. Um… thanks. And then she took the clams off the receipt. Well, that wasn’t really the problem, but whatever.
We were going to stay a while and get dinner after the kitchen opened, but left after that disaster, and went to a, really fantastic, Mexican restaurant across the street. Two stars because it might have just been a terrible bartender, or the wrong time, but, wow, that was an awful experience.

Ordered Spinach Dip, Grilled Portabella and Pasta Primavera for take out. Service was quick. I got my order in just 15 min. My wife loved Grilled Portabella. Pasta Primavera was ok. There were almost no veggies and it was very bland for my indian taste buds.

I was pleasantly surprised when I ventured into Carroll’s. The pilgrim is a delicious sandwich — soft buttered bread, tasty turkey, and a great combo of stuffing, cranberry sauce and mayo. I go for the onion rings too for an added treat. My girlfriend really enjoyed her lobster roll with sweet potato fries. We’ll definitely be back. I liked the spacious and clean dining room.

Carroll’s makes an excellent burger patty. It’s a solid balance of fat and protein, hand packed, well seasoned, and cooked to the proper temp. They get a little nutty with wackadoodle variations like the BBQ Burger (WHAT?!), topping said patty with cheddar (WHOA!), bacon (LOOK OUT!), and onion rings (HEY-​O!).
Fries are crisp and hot. The full package runs $ 10-​$ 13. Got it? Good. Stick with it.
Because the buck a shuck oysters are gritty, warm (?) and flecked with beard and shell shards. The cocktails are wildly potent, and equally imbalanced. My Over The River Gimlet ($ 10) tasted solely of St Elder, leaving the cucumber-​kissed Hendricks and the citric kick of lime in the undetectable dust.
Solid bar scene, and locals flock to the daily specials (Slider Night!) Go for the burger, favor a beer over the cocktail, and take relish in the on-​point service.

TGIFs in disguise without the generally attentive staff of Fridays.
1. Food is decent, abundant but unremarkable
2. They pour a decent drink
3. The bartender appeared to have little interest in her work and less interest in helping customers.
4. The restaurant is clean with a nice atmosphere.
5.Parking even with all the snow was easy
There is simply nothing remarkable about Carroll’s to make me want to return.

I’ve been to Carroll’s on multiple occasions with my family, its a nice get away after a long day of work. The food is phenomenal and the staff is friendly! I’ve tried several different plates from the menu and they’ve been all very satisfying. Don’t hesitate to try their specials. Definitely worth stopping by Carroll’s!
–Mark

The food here is good, the ambiance is nice and clean. Yet something is missing. It’s just not a place I want to go to again.
Nothing was excellent to the point that makes me want to return.
I’ve been here 3 times, same outcome.

We stopped by for happy hour oysters and drinks. They offer HH oysters and clams on Tues. and Thursday for $ 1 each.
We sat at the bar — it was a little slow. The bartender promptly greeted us and took our drink order. I like how he chilled the glass for my cosmo — not lots of places do that so this was a plus. We ordered a dozen oysters (they were Island Creeks). The raw oysters were set up at the front end of the bar.
The bartender ended up shucking them (not sure how it would work out on a busy night). He did a great job shucking them quickly. The oysters were chilled and nicely shucked. Definitely, decent quality. Next time we’ll try the lobster sliders. =)

Orders:
«Special» burger slider — no good! Smelled like the meat had been sitting for a while. Almost like it was close to being rotton. 1 slider was $ 3
«Special» lobster slider — at $ 7 a peice — soo not worth it. At most it was decent in taste and quality.
Mussel fra diavolo — my niece could have made a better dish. The linguini soo over cooked. I don’t think they even drained the noodles since it was soo watery. The pasta sauce they splattered on only one side of the plate and was very bland. They were lucky I like mussels and ate that portion of the dish.
They price their menu at boston dining prices but served amateur prepared meals.
No thanks.

Food is okay, but not worth the price. Go for the bar, buck a shuck oysters, and sometimes unintentionally hilarious musical acts.
I’ve been to Carroll’s a couple of times, and I’ve had experiences ranging from pretty bad to good. The lighting is pretty dim and they’re definitely trying to go for a more deluxe feel. It’s split up into a restaurant and bar portion. The food at the restaurant is fine, but not really worth the price. The bar portion is better, with relatively inexpensive beers and daily specials. My favorite is the one dollar oysters on Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you love oysters check this place out then.
My experience with service has been mixed here. Sometimes I’ve been served by very nice staff, and sometimes they’ve been almost standoffish. One thing that seems to be pretty constant is that they don’t know very much about their menu. Multiple times one of my friends or I have asked about something and the server clearly had no idea how to answer our question.
One time I went for oysters, there was an open mic, which was manned by a guy crooning Frank Sinatra. He was actually pretty good, it was just that there weren’t that many people there and it was pretty loud. I don’t think he was trying to be funny, but I had to try to not laugh the entire time because he was just so damn shmaltzy. Gotta appreciate his spunk though!