Atmosphere is awesome! Late night karaoke, even better! I enjoyed the music people sang.. Neil diamond, journey, etc. but when they started to sing country music one right after another towards the closing of the bar/restaurant.. I have to admit I wanted to shoot myself (obviously not a country music fan.) Great place for a drink after dinner and for some karaoke.
Review Source:Not good.
The server was bad.
Sat for about ten minutes before he even offered us drinks. Â By then we were ready to order food. I had the salmon but it had no flavor. My mother in law enjoyed the fish and chips. The pepperoni pizza was gross. The ribs were tasty.
So we liked 2 of the 6 dishes we ordered.
We had a child and the server gave us a drink without a lid.... This is asking for trouble with a 4 year old, asked for a lid never got one. Â Asked for water and he forgot, but did bring it eventually.
I'm sorry that food was eh and the server was not good.
This was one of the few places open Tuesday night at 10pm, so we walked in when we saw all the lights and the crowd. Turned out they have karaoke there from 9-midnight, so that's what all the fuss was about. I'm not a huge karaoke fan, but it was apparent to me that not a lot of places were going to be open, so we decided to order some drinks and stick around to watch the "singing" LOL
A little expensive...$21 for a beer and caddy margarita.
Also, it was a weird layout for a bar. There was a huge space with booths for dining, but you couldn't see the karaoke from there. They had benches set up right in front to watch, but not enough of them, we couldn't all sit next to each other. For a place that looks like it does really well with the whole karaoke thing, they need better seating.
Pretty good karaoke setup. Some of the singers were horrible, but that made it funnier.
Kamlyn was the host. She seemed nice, but I would have liked her to try to pump the crowd up more...and maybe encourage the singers to sing songs people have actually heard of. You know, dissuade them from singing stuff that killed the mood for all of us 20 and 30 year olds since we were the majority. Â She also said a thousand times to make sure and "tip the waitresses, bar staff, and me who have been working so hard." Probably shouldn't ASK for tips...and I never had a waitress come and ask me if I wanted another drink, we had to get up and go to the bar.
It seemed like a cool place, don't know how the food is, but at least it was open.
A group of friends and I were looking for a fun place to eat on our last night in Catalina and we saw the funky decor and thought it would fit us perfectly. The place wasn't packed at all and service started off well enough. Everything just went downhill as the evening progressed. We managed to order our food without much trouble and mine was actually quite tasty (calamari with french fries and a sprite). My friend's fettuccine alfredo had a bit too much sauce and the potato skins were not at all like normal potato skins. There was no bacon, hardly any cheese, and altogether were just wedges of potato with sour cream on them. During this time our waitress very quickly stopped caring and sounded very bored when she asked if we needed anything. I'm sorry if you don't like your job, but don't take it out on the patrons. It was only 8pm, anyways. As we finished up our food and requested our check, she refused to give us separate ones (as we were all paying individually), and so we wrote down the last four digits of our debit cards next to our order so she'd know who to charge what. We probably spent a good 5-10 minutes explaining this concept to her, as it went right over her head. Some people received receipts back with their cards, but people like me who paid with cash did not. We were also quite surprised (in a negative way) that we were charged gratuity on our bill at 13.5-14% of the total cost. At this point we were in poor spirits as our fun evening out was now trying our patience, and then as we were leaving the waitress had the audacity to tell her fellow waitress as we passed by "they didn't leave a tip!". Well, honey, had we not been forced to pay that gratuity charge (which is the damn tip), you should up your service skills before you complain about not getting extra money. We will be avoiding this place on our next visit.
Review Source:Bad, bad, bad. The fish in my Fish Pasta was cold, the broth was like fish broth with a touch of butter, and the noodles were like straight out of a box (Noodle Roni or something similar). The flavor was bland but made me feel sick and I only ate about 1/3d of this terrible dish.
My wife had the ribs and she only ate two of the 6 ribs (they don't give you much for $22) complaining of bad sauce, there was nothing "luau" about them, the meat was not "falling off the bone", and it "tasted like a 16 yr old had cooked them".
The price is SOOOO high for this low quality food. That food was about $60 and it tasted like crap.
New Orleans meets Christmas meets 4th Of July, nice place to sit at the bar or outside and ppl watch. The German beer and food come in handy too! They serve beer by the half litter, the Heff was really good, I had 2. Had kielbasa with onion rings, it's kind of too simple, I had to combine it with my wife's turkey sandwich and fries. Not too crowded, fast service, great location close to the beach
Review Source:Disappointing ... The fact that our order came so fast leads me to believe there was no thought in cooking our food. The "Santa Maria" tri tip had absolutely nothing to do with Santa Maria, my parents lived in Santa Maria and no Santa Maria seasoning whatsoever. And, what was so "special" about their "famous" mashed potatoes? It was burnt mashed potatoes in a patty form. The artichoke spinach dip -- really?? A clump of gravy with spinach bits, no chips ("use the bread") .... The $29 prime rib had a very tough edge around it .... scratch this one off our list ....
Review Source:This is our go-to place for dinner on Catalina. Yes, I'm sure we could find a more upscale place, but I like this quirky restaurant. I love to look at the confused Marti-gras,/nautical/tike/nostalgia decorations. The service was wonderful and you can walk in right off the beach or after a hike.
My husband had the seafood cioppino and it was stuffed full of crab legs, shrimp, the little scallops, clams, whitefish and salmon. The broth was tasty. The"sheese" bread (check the menu spelling) and the bread they put out as a courtesy is crusty and chewy and GOOD!!
I had the panko zucchini and a bowl of scallop chowder. The chowder has a fine flavor, but it needed more potatoes and more scallops. It was a bit empty. The zucchini was great - hot, crispy and light.
All in all, a great end to a fun day.
Five stars for the service!
I brought my Mom there on her birthday over the long weekend. She is disabled and cannot get up from her scooter. The staff cleared away a table that is not usually available and made her happy and comfortable.
The decor is a mix of nautical and Mardi Gras with plenty to look at during your meal.
The food was good. We had a few appetizers and I ordered the fish (mahi mahi) while my Mom enjoyed the fish and chips. She had her first Buffalo Milk which was huge and more resembled a dessert. Because it was her birthday, they gave her a free sundae.
A big thank you to the staff for taking care of my Mom!
The decor and location drew us in. But the service was slow, and the food was way over priced for the quality. The waitress completely forgot to bring us the drinks we ordered, and after reminding her some 20 minutes later she still charged us for them. Then we ordered a chicken dish that it turned out they were out of. When the bill came we had been charged for that dish that we never got. All in all there are a lot better choices on the island.
Review Source:Went in on a Monday afternoon so it was not busy at all since there was no cruise line visitors. We were there for drinks and appetizers before our boat left back to Long Beach. I like this place because of the big bar you can sit at inside or open air seating with a view of the ocean. Was happy with the beers (cant screw up a cold beer) and with the appetizers. I have never had a problem with service either when it is busy or empty like this time. And it didnt hurt our server was easy on the eyes.
Review Source:Yeah it is average... Â All things considered.
DECOR: Â Very interesting. Â Confused but cool... Â Dark wood, 60's Spanish, Pirate, nautical-themed. Â When I say "60's" ...I mean it is like how people did theme decorations those days with say a "Tiki - Island" look. Â This is a Spanish/Nautical look through 1967 eyes.
FOOD: Â "Okay." Â The menu is as busy as the decorations--all over the place. Â American Burgers, Chicken and Ribs, Prime Rib, Asian Dumplings/Pot-Stickers, Mexican, Spanish, Seafood (Fish & Chips; Crab Cakes), just a bit too busy for me.
In all it is a place to eat on the island. Â Everything is quite literally average. Â It is an okay sit down place. Â I could see my self going back but I could see myself walking right by it too.
My friends and I came here for a noon snack and opted for the tri-tip nachos.
The nachos were good, but the salsa was spicy.
I ordered a Pomegranate Lemonade and I can't say I was thrilled. It tasted like cough medicine and I did not finish it for that reason alone.
I recommend it for a quick bit, not sure about their meals. If you want a drink, definitely do not get the Pomegranate Lemonade.
It's rowdy and fun and fabulous! This place gets rockin at night, its an absolute blast. Boo to all the negative reviews, this is not supposed to be five star restaurant, it is exactly how it should be, an eclectic, hilarious karaoke bar. Never eaten here, just dranken ungodly amounts.. why not? No ones driving :)
Review Source:We would have given this restaurant more stars, had the service been better. The servers seem bored and annoyed with guests, though hostess Erica is a gem. Shes new and a total sweetheart. Made the experience much better. Food was very good, although the oysters were smaller than advertised. Would definitely recommend trying this place out but ask your server to smile. Oh and the heaters outside don't work so don't plan on going if you want to relax on the patio in cooler weather.
Review Source:We went specifically for the Prime rib, which was advertised on their menu and on a pamphlet we received from our hotel.  We were on the island for three days and decided to wait until Monday to try this place.  Immediately upon being seated we were given a list if things they were out of or didn't have which included Prime rib and mashed potatoes.  Really?  Why advertise things on your menu that you are not going to serve daily?  The waitress said they mostly only serve Prime rib on the weekends but their menu doesn't state this. Who ever heard of a restaurant running out of or not having mashed potatoes?  I settled for a rib eye steak but found myself reaching for the steak sauce, salt,  pepper and ultimately hot sauce to try and add flavor to my pricey piece of meat.  We spent well over a hundred bucks for two people and would not  go back there again or recommend it to anyone.
Review Source:Came here for the food, so maybe the nightlife or bar is better.
Tried the clam chowder, it was ok, but being on an island thought it would be more special. Had the Steak Burger, because it stated it was the best burger on the island. The burger was a bit overcooked and the bread was just overpowering and too much of it, that I felt I was eating alot of buttered bread.
Maybe I should of gotten a buffalo burger, but was curious about the steak burger being best on island.
Probably when I go to Catalina, I will try another place.
This place is terrible ! My food was absolutely disgusting and the waiters were kinda creepy. The bread they brought out tasted like it had been sitting in a plastic bag. My friend ordered the shrimp scampi: the pasta was so mushy he couldn't even twirl it on his fork, the shrimp were super chewy ( I dared to take a bite ,) and it tasted overwhelmingly of lemon. I will never eat here again. I should have had ice cream for the 5th time that day at Big Olaf's...
Review Source:Service is not their strong suit ... been 10 minutes and still haven't taken my drink order.... Â then they brought us someone elses drink order and their bread. Â Sucks for the other table I guess??? Â Food shows up and it's just mediocre. Â artichoke dip is VERY GREASY, scallop soup was good- very creamy, ribs were tender and well seasoned.
We only went here because EVERYwhere else was closed... Â prob wont return. Â I am not a fan of paying for something I can do better in my own kitchen... Â and the lack of service, OMG, my dead grandfather could have served us faster
So after posting a review of this place I start getting messages from I'm guessing the staff that works there. I'll find away to post the messages here but here is the one that made me laugh the most.
"My Compliments
Just a Note1/22/2013
1 friend
0 reviews
Beto J.
Avalon, CA
Send Message
For your review of: El Galleon
Simplemente querÃa decirte que...estas pendejo pinche amargado"
ROFFL!!!
If you didn't believe the review about how bad the customer service is you can see for yourself. This isn't the only message I got now all of a sudden I start getting calls from an Avalon based number... interesting. Harrasment much??? I'll be posting more as they come in.
For a small island full of tourist their menu has extremely large portions. Who wants to have a bunch of leftovers on vacation? I had the chicken alfredo, and although it tasted fine, it had so much sauce it was almost like eating soup.... Nice decor and bar area. Only beer on tap is some unknown German brewery though.... Not a bad dinner experience but not somewhere I would go again.
Review Source:The decor and the kareoke lured me in but the food made me swear never again!
Our fish and chips were over done.
The clam chowder tasted like paste. They would do a better job if they just reheated a can of Campbells soup.
The seafood in the seafood cioppino was far from fresh and the broth tasted like sea water. No tomato base or flavor. Straight sea water.
One of the worst lunches I ever had.
This was our favorite place to stop for happy hour on the island.
From 3-6pm every day, they have drink specials and some food specials. They have large 16 oz margaritas for $6.50 which you can get with strawberry or pineapple as a mixer which are a pretty good bang for the buck. We also enjoyed the "buffalo milk" which was made with banana liquor and ice cream and was $8.50 for happy hour.
For food, had $6 sliders that were pretty tasty, though small. However, we asked for chips and salsa thinking they would come with the drinks we were ordering but instead were charged $8!! For just chips and salsa. So for that alone I am taking off a star because you would hope they would say something or at least let you know for $1 more you could order the happy hour version of nachos which is the same plate with meat, cheese, and salsa.
Nevertheless, despite this overcharge, we still enjoyed our time here and even heard that late into the night, the karaoke stage is hopping. Definitely make sure to stop by when you are on the island but stay away from the chips!
Went here for an anniversary celebration with my husband while on the island, MISTAKE. We went towards the end of happy hour and the waiter gave us an attitude when we asked about their HH specials and rolled his eyes if we asked if it was still going (he ended up not giving us the happy hour discount when we got our bill anyways). My husband ordered the Mahi Mahi which was below average (and over $20, so not worth it). Service was terrible, it took us 20 mins to even get our water that we asked for and it was never refilled. However, the atmosphere is really cool and my prime rib was ok for the price.
Review Source:While I'll never be able to afford my own private island, I came close today by staying in Avalon on a Monday in December. Every restaurant was deserted, and strolling the beach side promenades sparsely populated with desultory tourists gave a wondrous sense of exclusivity. We strolled into El Galleon after checking out the scanty lunch options available on a Monday in the off-season, and chose El Galleon after putting in a minimal amount of thought.
I'm really glad we came here, because this place was amazing! The waiter was attentive and kind, and contrary to other recent reviews offered us refills of water and soft drinks no questions asked. As other people have mentioned, anything that comes out of the deep fryer is crispy gold, particularly the french fries. While it's easy to make passable fries, deep frying them until they're perfectly golden and crispy is an art that the kitchen at El Galleon has mastered. The buffalo burger comes highly recommended, especially when slathered in cheese. Their cole slaw is wonderfully crunchy, and the golden raisins add a welcome sweetness.
I can't guarantee that the service is amazing when the place is jam packed with people, but I'd say the food makes it worth the risk. Or you could try going on a Monday during the off-season.
Karaoke here is hilarious.
If you rated it at under a 5 star, I don't know why... there are no places on Catalina that come close to this place for entertainment.
I think that most of the ratings come from people comparing this place to bars from the mainland and not the other options on the island.
It's fun for a night, the drinks aren't crazy overpriced and the people are amusing.
I'd go back.
Also, DO NOT DRIVE YOUR CART HERE IF YOU PLAN ON DRINKING!!! The cops are out on the sneak and WILL give you a DUI.
Don't ruin your weekend, let along your life.
The waiter kept getting our orders wrong. We had a large party and several of us had to send our food back a couple times because they didn't pay attention to our specifications on our orders or got it completely wrong.
I ordered the ribs and they were overly smothered in barbecue sauce and it greatly took away from the meat.
The waiter had to instruct the bartender how to make a cocktail called an Adios which he also got completely wrong and had to send back for someone else to make it.
All in all, the food is mediocre. If you don't eat greasy food, like me, there's almost nothing on the menu to choose from.
Stopped in to watch the Karaoke on Saturday night, as we were passing by, got lucky and found a seat in the patio like area. Ordered a few drinks and enjoyed listening to the people belt out their tunes in front of everyone. Some people were pretty good, others not so much. Service was great until they had to kick us out of the patio to close the doors to the restaurant due to the noise level affecting the nearby hotels. I would have loved to stay and listen awhile longer but it was just too crowded inside, so we got up and left.
I love listening to karaoke music, so I would definitely hit this place up again, but get a seat inside so I could stay longer.
If the restaurant didn't let us store 100+ pounds of gear on their karaoke stage (classy...), I would say the customer service was sub-par. The wait staff did not seem to care about us even though we were the only group of people in the restaurant. The fact that there was no one in here at lunch hour should have been a warning signal.
Eventually, they decided to take our orders. Again, I was dumbfounded when I found myself waiting inexcusably long for my food. I wouldn't have cared if the restaurant was busy but alas we were the only group in the restaurant and it was Saturday at lunch hour so they should have been prepared. On top of that, none of us ordered anything aside from sandwiches and salads....
Alright, so what about the food? I had the Barbeque Burnt Ends Combo with Fresh Fruit. To put it nicely, this was mediocre AT BEST. It's like buying the cheapest deli meat you can find and putting it on a bun and then drenching it in an overpowering BBQ sauce.
Next time I'm on the Island, I'll pass and so should you.
WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE EVER!!!
I ordered the dry aged steak...medium rare. It was served to me well done!!! I told the waitress this steak was well done not medium rare and I even showed her the steak and she ARGUED with me that it was medium rare....and kept arguing with me that it was how I ordered it!!!!!
AND....the manager didn't fix the problem he made it worse!!! DON'T EAT AT THIS PLACE!!! plenty other good places to eat/drink at Avalon!!!
TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and it was my birthday too which made it worse....and the waitress and manager also knew that!! NEVER AGAIN!!!!!!!!!
For drinks and Karaoke - 4 Stars! You will have fun, its a good time and the patio is a nice escape if you need to take a breather.
For food.... 1-2 stars at best. The food was just really blah, seemed like a time warp to the 70's. Everyone was friendly and helpful, the margaritas were solid. Just the food tasted like cardboard.
El Galleon.. this place was an interesting choice...
I think we came here because we were looking for chowder and something that was close by. The two restaurants we went to before that was either a long wait or only had bar seating... so El Galleon was our third choice... haha.
Staff were friendly, they kinda took long but whatever. What matters for this review is the food. I can't remember now, but I think I ordered the scallop chowder? I don't think it was clam... anywho, it was good at first but slowly near the end, it was really salty. I was thinking because I was so damn hungry? We didn't finish the chowder.
My boyfriend ordered the fish and chips. It was pretty good. Greasy as usual, but nothing about it made any of it a wow factor.
So  I think I would come here again, only, like it was the first time... the only convenient choice.
I gave this place 2 stars..
1 star for the "Killer Bloody Mary" because it almost killed me by how disgusting it was. The other star for the service..
The second star was a bonus for them, because I'm glad I didn't have anything else!
All this place has goin for them is their location. Â That's about it..
I would of passed on this one. Â We came here this past weekend for Cinco De Mayo. Â The Mardi Gras theme is the bigger appeal then their food. Â The service was pretty fast but the food was not so great. Everyone at the table felt similar towards their dishes and there was 4 of us adults. Â What I ordered:
Avalon Bay Cobb Salad w/o Egg  17.95 (Most expensive salad I have ever got)
It was a big portion but it was frozen lettuce like the kind you get a subway. Â It was salty and that's about as much flavor as it had. Â
Clam Chowder with scallops 5.95
Bog portion but salty
I don't know why it all was piled with salt but if they would ease up on it and add some traditional creole flavors to the dishes I bet it could be great! Until then I will stand by.
Wow this place looks different than the other places on Catalina. The Mardi Gras bar theme was fun and flashy. A menu with tons of different types of items to choose from. The drinks come in big cups. The server was extra friendly and helpful with getting me what I wanted.
I had the giant buffalo milk drink. The alcohol wasn't too strong and this tasted like a smoothie. For the food I got the steamed dumplings and white rice. The rice was nice a soft and the dumplings were pretty good. I also got the luau pork ribs. The bbq sauce on it was over drenched. The pork though was super tender! It fell right off the bone! The fries here were nice and crispy. I was pleasantly surprised by the food here. Good stuff!
Recommendation: Luau pork ribs and keep it light on the sauce. The buffalo milk(alcoholic drink) delicious.
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