We brought in a big group of bikes on an off Tuesday night and this place delivered!
Lake view? Â Check
Hawks game visible and listenable outside? Â Check
Clean, nice bathrooms? Â Check
Bike parking area? Â Check
Plenty of outdoor seating for a big group? Â Check
Great beer? Â Check and double check!
This place has a few great beers on tap outside. Â Anti-Hero and a couple of other good looking IPAs. Â I didn't get a better look at the taps inside, but I imagine it continues.
The food was pretty good in general, but man the nacho plates were HUGE! Â They came with a non-puny side of sour cream and guacamole and the chips must have been on a ~12" plate piled 8" high with all of the usual fixin's. Â A friend also shared a patty melt that was pretty darn good (for a patty melt). Â Well cooked, bread toasted, and not too greasy.
Wait service was great for showing up unannounced with a ton of people. Â The waiter did a great job to help us with anything we needed and get our orders out fast without bugging us too much.
Service at the outside bar was a bit slow, but there were a bunch of us there. Â The waiter service was a bit faster. Â I wasn't clear at first that there was waiter service outside, so if you are out there just have a seat and make yourself at home.
Great place to hang out and have a beer, showed up tuesday night with about 16 other people after a motorcycle cruise, staff was very accomodating, and they had great beers on tap. Â They made the group feel very welcome which is not always the case when a restaurant sees 15+ people pull up on motorcycles. Â Patio setup is perfect and they had the blackhawks game on the TV. Â Food was pretty good too, although I only tried the nachos and calamari. Â Will definitely go back if I find myself up that way again.
Review Source:I'd like to counter some of these harsh reviews... something about preferring Taco Bell in a sweaty sock? Not quite.
First, before I get to the food, this is the #1 spot for patio dining/drinking in the NW suburbs. Great view.
I ordered the Prime Rib Sandwich and subbed in onion rings instead of fries and WOW. AMAZING lunch. They have Revolution Brewery's Anti-Hero on tap, the sun was shining, and both the sandwich and the onion rings were stellar. I'm sitting here at work right now really kicking myself for forgetting my leftovers at home. I want to devour the other half of that beast. Generous piles of tender prime rib on soft garlic bread with a side of au jus and a smokey chipotle/horseradsish dipping sauce oh my. .... Â I have to stop now I'm getting hungry.
I had an ok experience here, I wouldnt necessarily run back but it was ok.
The view of Bangs Lake  is gorgeous. We went for an early Friday dinner. Two people at my table got burgers and they looked really good and I was told they were good. I got nachos with ground beef - they were ok except they used the cheap nacho cheese you get from a concession stand in addition to a little shredded cheese. Seriously?!?! Just give me all shredded cheese - I paid like $12 and you give me that stuff. Not cool. The flavor of the meat on the nachos were good except for the cheese. The other food that was brought out of the kitchen during our stay looked pretty good. Their desserts looked decadent but we didn't have any.
The major problem with Dock's is their prices, they are WAY too expensive. We had three people at our table, purchased no drinks, two burgers and nachos and the bill was almost $40. This is crazy. The cost of a pop is $2.99 - I can get a pop in the city for cheaper. The dessert that looked awesome was $10.
While I would want to try the food at Docks again I probably would not because of the prices, I don't want to spend $20 on a meal that I may or may not like.
I want to say that maybe I'm spoiled from all the lavish meals I've had in the city...but I'd like to think I'm easier to please than that. Especially since I'm pregnant and eating is one thing I look forward to these days...
BUT...Sunday is all-you-can-eat prime rib at Docks. For any carnivore, this should bring a sparkle to their eye. Not so much...
I think we came at a time when they were shutting down their brunch buffet service and transitioning to lunch (1pm). Well, we all ordered from the Sunday lunch specials. Two prime rib AYCEs and two Sunday chicken dinners. And a round of bloody marys (virgin for me!). Initially the server was attentive, bringing our drinks/water promptly. But then she disappeared and left us sitting there for like an hour. Waiting for our food. Not sure if she didn't come back because she knew our food was taking forever and she didn't want to explain (she certainly wasn't slammed) but she didn't come back.
A good hour in, our food arrives. The two chicken dinners (were supposed to be half chickens) were actually cornish hens...with no breasts. Mashed potatoes were yummy, but you can tell they had been sitting in the food window because the gravy on top was hardened. And nothing was hot. My father's highlight of the meal: the biscuit and corn. Wow. And he's the easiest to please of us all.
The prime rib...ordered rare to medium rare came out lukewarm and well done. How they managed to do this I'm not sure...maybe they tried to cook it too fast? But it was tough, grissly and served as basically a "hunk" of meat. The thickest piece I've ever been served, but that was to no advantage to this meal. It only made it harder to cut, harder to chew and less edible. The best part: the peppered crusting on the outside. We sent both back...and expected to have to wait another at least 30 minutes for new ones...but within 5 minutes, the manager brought us out new cuts of meat...more toward the medium rare, but definitely still tough and full of grissle. Served on the same exact bed of veggies we had just sent back. So we received a completely disheveled plate of food.
Not good. And not going back. Period.
Hi,
Few nights ago  it was our 5th visit, as before service was good and food was very tasty. You just can not beat the deck bar ( it's huge) and the lake view with great sun sets. Few nights ago  it was even better, every Tue Docks offers a theme "Dine with your dog" yes you can bring your dog to dinner with you, is that cool or what.  I noticed some had issues with slow service, you guys need to chill and relax. Need fast? try a drive through! After a hectic work day Docks is a place to chill and relax.
I really dig this place!!! I came here for a lunch date with a girlfriend this week, and it was my first time! Â There was no parking on the upper level, and I really didnt feel like driving my car to the lower level, so I did the "free" valet parking. Â They have a very nice and spacious outdoor seating area...it was super hot outsie, but at least they had plenty of umbrellas and our adorable and awesome waiter Ethan kept our waters coming.
They have a pretty solid menu and all reasonably priced. Â My friend and I both ordred the veggie panini...very tastey...I do wish they put it on different bread though because it was getting soggy from all the grilled veggies...we just used our knife and fork to eat it instead! :) Â Very yummy! Â The fries (with ranch of course) were awsesome as well.
The service is good and the food is very good as well! Â I plan on coming on more lunch dates here in the near future!!
My husband and I have been here several times in the last year and the food is consistently good. Â Everything we've tried has been tasty, although a bit overpriced. Â We've enjoyed eating both outside and in the bar area, and have experienced decent service. Â Overall, it's a fun place to go for a yummy meal.
Review Source:Fries were very good. Burger was completely burnt/charred. It was awful, all I could taste was the char. They seated us even though they were closing and the server was super friendly. The outdoor deck is huge, even though it gets packed, you can usually still find a seat. Very long tiki bar. Beautiful setting by the lake.
Review Source:The only reason they get three stars is because they have a great patio. Â The service is sub-par and they won't make any changes to your order. Â I wanted to order a veggie wrap, which wasn't on the menu, and they wouldn't do it. Â Although they have tons of other wraps, they said that they wouldn't make any changes. Â My friend also has a severe nut allergy and when she told the server, she rolled her eyes. Â Wouldn't go back!!!
Review Source:My 1st time at docks. Loved the Tiki bar , the place is quiet clean with great views of the lake. Food was below average. Cocktails were over priced and filled with ice. The waiter was quiet rude. The live band was pathetic. Maybe they should just make it Karaoke and skip the band. Â I will not go back again.
Review Source:During the winter months they had great deals on Tuesdays ($.50 appetizers and beers). During the summer it's fun to hang out on the outdoor patio and watch the boats drive by while listening to live music. But other than those two great things, this place is average. The food is very inconsistent and the dining room is nearly always empty. The service is average at best and can sometimes be a bit rude. Perhaps that's due to the "biker bar" nature of this place... I'm not sure.
Overall, it's a fun summer BAR, but not necessarily a place to eat.
My gf and I have been here on a few occasssions... all for weekend lunch. First time, we just stopped in because we've never been there. The next was a complete surprise, as we went for breakfast to find they had an all you can eat buffet/brunch. This final time was on Memorial Day. Incredible weather and a beautiful view while overlooking Bangs Lake. Food and drinks have always been GREAT and service usually pretty good, but on this day... not so much. Â I don't know if our waitress was new or ready to end her shift, but she seemed irritated. My gf usually gives me a hard time about leaving an "appropriate" tip (I'm pretty hard on the service industry)... but with this waitress, my gf was the one saying she shouldn't get anything.
Dock's is a great casual place to dine (only been outside on the deck). Great food and drinks and usually good service. Â I WILL give them a chance to redeem their 5 star rating...
Note: Â You must try the Strawberry Spinach Salad (comes with chicken, but should substitute grilled shrimp)
So for being one of the only prettier places to have lunch in Wauconda it's not too bad.
Had lunch here with the bf on a lunch break... called in the order ahead of time because they do take a while to get food out. It was ready a few minutes after we sat down.
I got the chicken lunch dish and bf got the pasta special. Both meals were HUGE, I wish we would have just gotten 1 and shared it. I really enjoyed my tender chicken with potatoes and veggies, but I wasn't too crazy about the pasta they had that day the sauce was good but the sausage I wasn't a fan of.
The view is gorgeous! Overlooking the lake while having lunch enriches the experience.
The wait staff was super friendly and quick on their feet.
The parking lot is tiny but I somehow managed to get a good spot. When my bf got to his car there was a food truck unloading and blocking him completely! Well ok the food truck was blocking half the parking lot (yes it's that small)... The kind driver did move the truck as soon as we asked him to move.
Overall, not a bad experience for a weekday lunch. Affordable, tasty and beautiful.
Positives - Food is good an the prices are fair. View of the lake is quite nice. I really like the dinning area. There are TV's on all the walls that display images art and intermittently change while you are there.
I have gone there many many times and never had bad service even once. Dock's is a nice getaway from the standard fair in the area.
Negative - Parking. This can be a REAL hassle at busy times. At peak times the cars trying to get in to the Dock's parking lot spill out on to 176 holding up traffic. They do have Valet at busy times.
My band ELIMINATOR played at Docks last night.  All i can say is  AWESOME!!!!!!
Everyone from the moment we arrived  from the  parking staff, to the bar staff, management, food staff,  to the patrons, was GREAT!!
Fabulous views of beautiful Bangs Lake  out on the TIKI deck. Delicious food ( the towering spike of huge hot onion rings were killer). Generous drinks, reasonable prices. Had lots of our friends and fans dancing and enjoying all that Docks had to offer. Â
Docks is now one of our newest favorite places and we encourage anyone to check them out.  THANKS  DOCKS, for a great holiday evening , ELIMINATOR  will be looking forward to coming back next summer, but in the mean time,  I will be bringing my family back for some of that great food  excellent drinks &  top notch service.
Wow!, what a great lunch time getaway. Dining on the deck at Dock's is like you are on a vacation far away from home. I Had a great lunch that was one of the lunch specials. New york strip steak grilled to perfection along with mashed potatoes and broccoli for 8.95. total bill was new york strip, tilapia fillet, and 2 iced teas for a 23.97 lunch. Definitely the place to be on bangs lake.
Review Source:This place is so over rated and their food is average at best. And the tiki bar is only representative of a tropical tiki bar because the sign says Tiki Bar. Please if you are a Tiki bar two sad little Palm Trees does not make a Tiki Bar. Lacks Tiki Decor. It does have a Lake to view but in the area is lots of other restaurants that have the same view with better service, nicer servers, better food and better prices. Way over rated and the service is horrible.
Review Source:I am completely shocked and saddened to see that Dock's only has an average of 2.5 stars! This place is one of my favorite restaurants.
It has a great modern atmosphere and a wonderful location being right on Bangs Lake.
The service has always been fine, no complaints.
I've never had a bad meal at Dock's. Lately, I have been ordering the appetizer of grilled calamari as my meal. Frankly, any place that serves GRILLED calamari will automatically be written up in my book as one of my favorite places. Yet another food obsession of mine. Truly, Dock's calamari is soooo delicious. It comes in this flavorful marinade-not-really-a-sauce-kind-of-thing and is always so fresh tasting and perfectly cooked, not notoriously rubbery as most other attempts at a good grilled calamari dish are.
I love Docks.
On the plus side, this place has a great location overlooking Bangs Lake. Â In addition, the outdoor deck they built is very nice.
Unfortunately, unless you like the suburban meat market bars, this place has a lot of negatives:
Music was loud and obnoxious.
Drinks were watered down.
Service ranged between indifferent and brusque.
Case in point: we had a party of 5 (on one check). Â Our party ordered three Miller beers. Â I then noticed that there was a special on Miller beer products if you ordered a "bucket" of five. Â Since we had already ordered three, and were about to order more, we asked if we could get the "bucket" price. Â Our server tersely said "No", it was too late and our check could not be adjusted.
True? Â Maybe. Â Or, maybe she couldn't be bothered to take the trouble. Â Just like she couldn't be bothered to mention the special to us when we ordered.
After reading the reviews here, I was a little nervous for a business lunch at Docks. Â
I was pleasantly surprised! Â The waitress was friendly and attentive, the busboy was at our table often. Â I had a tilapia with mushroom, asparagus and sun dried tomatoes. Â My meal was very good, although a little shy on the veggies. Â I would get it again though, the fish was cooked nicely. Â The molten chocolate cake was tasty and the icecream that accompanied it was fantastic. Â Also tried the Key Lime Pie and was not a fan. Â
The decor was beautiful and modern in the room we were seated, can't beat the view over the lake too.
Had the chance to visit Dock's on Wednesday which is ladies night, half-priced martinies. I enjoyed the outdoor atmosphere and the drinks. The view is simply beautiful which overlooks the Bangs Lake. The only reason I didn't give five starts is the following: 1. the food wasn't that great. Â I ordered a simple sandwhich and it was cold and it didn't feel like "freshly made". 2. The bartender at the outdoor patio was not very attentive, we had to wait for awhile to get refills.
Other than that this place is not too bad. Â Give it a try if you're in the area is worth going.
I never went to Dock's when it was Mer's, but I did go to it when it was Biloxi. OMG. Â That place was great. Â Upscale southern food.The plantation chicken was to die for.
Now Docks....Dock's is really good at some things, not so good at others. Â Their service leaves a lot to be desired. Me and my husband went there on April 30, my birthday. Â We went through the front of the restaurant, were acknowledged by the hostess, and seated on the deck. Â That's the last we saw of anyone for 30 minutes, until I went back to the front desk and reminded the hostess that we were out there.
The food is great, but very pricey. Â They really need to get that under control. Â There are no vegetarian options on their menu. Â They need to address that. Â And if they're going to charge premium prices for entrees, then I need to see premium quality and imagination in those entrees. In short, this is a restaurant that can't make up it's mind as to what it's going to be. Â A burger joint? Â Or a fine dining place?
You must come here this summer.
I read the reviews, mediocre food. Went here more out of curiosity than anything else. What a find!
First off, the food was good, with a great menu to choose from. Maybe I had very low expectations, but I thought the food was above average for a bar. Lot's of choices and lot's of healthy choices. You will not be disappointed by the menu.
But that doesn't matter. The outdoor area is built on a deck about a quarter acre overlooking Wauconda Lake. Absolutely breasthtaking views. We had an hour wait but loved it. Grabbed a drink and enjoyed the sun starting to set over the lake. You will feel like you are on vacation, no doubt. Great music, great atmosphere, great views. Definitely worth the drive.
Try it, you will like it, and you will thank me, gauranteed.
I was part of a large group of adult professional people who visited Docks to celebrate a birthday. We called several times to set this up and were assured that there would be extra staff on hand to accommodate our group and we would be welcomed.
Parking was a big problem as at 3:30 PM on a Friday their lot was already full. There is street parking in the nearby subdivision but it is necessary to cross a busy street (Route 176) to use it. Nearly all of the prime parking was taken up by "Valet" service (sorry but I dislike Valet parking) and I can only guess that the standard parking lot was filled by employee vehicles as there were not nearly as many customers as there were cars in the lot.
I am sure that I speak for most of our group by saying that our experience was very poor- the manager of the day was not informed that we were expected and had not scheduled additional staff. We were generally hassled without need and treated like our business was not wanted. It was as if the management would have been happier with an empty deck area and no sales.
Shockingly we were told rather rudely that the advertised food specials were "not available" in the outdoor seating area and that we would have to go to the indoor seating area if we wanted the specials. It was a beautiful evening and it was certainly not our intention to be indoors!
I found it impossible to flag down a waitress for a drink order and ended up going to the tiki bar where I was waited on right away. The bartenders were friendly but were unsure of the prices of drink specials but corrected the situation right away when it was pointed out to them.
I would certainly not recommend Docks to anyone planning a group event or to anyone having low tolerance for the rude and indifferent behavior as exhibited to us.
Went here for a birthday party on Saturday. Â We had a large group, and they have a large outdoor tiki bar overlooking the lake. Â Sounded great in theory, considering we were convinced they had propane heating lamps. Â Once the sun went down it was FUH-REEZING and they wouldn't take out the heating lamps because it wasn't summer yet...or something. Â Didn't make any sense. Â BUT--the food was superb. Â French onion soup, philly cheesesteak sandwich, pear brie--all wonderful. Â The drinks were STIFF and *cheap*. Â They had a live band and although they were nothing to write home about live entertainment's always fun.
Review Source:Nice place, decent food, tables had a nasty oily film on them, the waitress was rude and acted like I was over reacting when I asked to move to a table that wasn't covered in furniture polish. Kind of an awkward place to eat, really. You walk in and think it's some fancy place just by the looks of it, but then you notice that it's just regular bar food. Wouldn't go back.
Review Source:Oh my. Â There's some good, some bad and some downright ugly.
Dock's is located right on the lake in downtown Wauconda, so the views from the dining area of the restaurant are lovely, especially when the sun is setting.  The architect did Dock's right by making sure to include HUGE picture windows overlooking the water.  Gorgeous.  The interior designer, however, should be shot.  The place reeks of 80's décor from the overload of bachelor pad-esque black leather booths, cheesy mirrors on the walls and weird light fixtures.  I'm sure if I looked hard enough I could find some black lacquered furniture somewhere.
The food was good for the most part, but lacked a bit in some areas, mainly appetizers. Â We ordered the Docks Own Spinach & Artichoke Dip which is a blend of spinach, artichokes, mozzarella and parmesan cheese baked, then topped with diced roma tomatoes and scallions with tortilla chips. Â Err.. make that STALE tortilla chips. Â Yick. Â Also on deck were the Bada Bang Fries consisting of waffle fries topped with bacon, scallions and melted cheddar jack cheese, piled high and centered with jalapeno bottle caps. Served with a side of ranch dressing, not only is this dish a heart attack on a plate, but it just LOOKS kinda gross. Â Everything was kind of underdone and mushy. Â Trust me, it wasn't hard to say 'no' to diving into this mess.
Luckily the entrées fared much better.  My Bangs Chicken was probably the healthiest thing on the menu.  Its boneless chicken breast grilled with sun-dried tomatoes, roasted shallots, artichoke heats and green beans.  You get a side of garlic mashed potatoes along with it.  The chicken was cooked to perfection and the veggies were seasoned well.  I'm a huge fan of artichokes so I was pleased to see them live in harmony on my plate with the sun-dried tomatoes and green beans.  The portion was huge, so I had plenty to take home for leftovers.
The ugly part of Dock's is the service. Â Our waitress was inattentive, dismissive, flaky and took FOREVER to do anything. Â And the restaurant was NOT busy. Â We were dining with my two-year-old nephew. Â Any server worth their salt knows that tables with kids, like it or not, sometimes require some extra attention. Â The kiddies need their food right away, so take that order pronto! Â And if the kid is getting antsy at the end of the meal and we're all putting on our coats, chances are slim to none that we want dessert or coffee, so hand over the check please. Â My water glass was never filled, we weren't offered drink refreshers (and we all had wine, beer or champagne) and our gal was really absent the entire meal. Â Just not what I anticipated.
Not a BAD meal, but certainly not awesome.
enjoyed lunch with some girlfriends on saturday. Â i'd love to come back in nicer weather and sit outside...when the ice fisherman leave haha.
food was pretty standard bar fare, drink specials were decent for a saturday ($3 corona/corona lite, $5 mai tais), atmophere was nice. Â the only problem was the service. Â the place was almost empty and our lunch took just under 2 hours. Â not acceptable. Â the waitress was pleasant enough, but it just took too long for the food to get out.
i'd go back but likely for drinks on the dock - not a full dinner in the "restaurant side" of the business.
I dined here in the spring and it was so beautiful. Â Dining outside with the lakeside view was the most pleasant experience, you feel like you are on vacation somewhere. Â The food is ok, but not as memorable as the atmosphere. Â The waitress seemed to be forcing kindness on us. Â When I asked for a refill she made sure I know they only give 1 refill. Â How generous. Â I'd go back just for the experience of dinning on the beautiful deck on the lake.
Review Source:Perhaps one of the nicer places I've been , not the fanciest place, but right off the water and very scenic here. The menu has a nice mix of bar bites and fancier fare, from sandwiches to crab cakes. We went here for lunch, so I settled in on the French onion soup, which was good, not all that impressive. The Prime rib sandwich on the other hand was great. I didn't even have to use the au jus dip because I found it juicy enough. I did get a bite of my mom's grilled cheese with bacon, and wow was it great.
As impressed as I was with the food here, the prices were equally high, disturbingly so. Having always been someone that will pay for good food, I can't take too many points away for being overpriced. So we even out at around 4 stars, a great place I would readily go back to.
Dock's has a beautiful view, and with the addition of the new deck, it's going to be a big hit for the summer. It's location in the heart of Wauconda on  Bangs Lake is very easy to get to. For a sports bar type place, Dock's has a very nice menu. You will find your traditional burgers, but they also had an interesting seafood section. I was feeling a bit adventurous, so I ordered the glazed salmon. The server did recommend the dijon salmon, but said both were good.
The salmon was done very well, especially considering it is a sports bar. Our server was very attentive, and there wasn't that long of a wait for food. Price was moderate, but not outside of the normal for the area.
Definitely worth many return visits!
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