The tavern is pretty nice and was convenient for us as it was located in the basement of the hotel where we were staying. The staff was nice and the burger was really good. We really went for drinks to unwind after driving four hours to get there and ended up snacking as we stayed for several hours. There are TV's to watch the game and the patio is right there so you can go out for a smoke. If we ever find ourselves in New Jersey again, we will definitely go here again.
Review Source:Hidden behind the Summit hotel.  Decent beer/wine list (NOT BYOB).  standard bar food options.  We sat in the outdoor patio section, albeit facing the parking lot, it was nice to have the option for outdoor dining.  Service was swift and polite.  They  definitely improved in that department.
Review Source:Hat Tavern is a very nice place, located in the Grand Summit Hotel.
You definitely have to stop by this place just to experience their beer selection. They definitely have the best selection of craft and micros in the area. Lots of great beers on tap, and for the less beer-snooby a very good selection of bottles. I try to stop here at least once a month just to taste all of the new beers they get.
The food here can be hit or miss. I've only eaten here a few times, and I always stick with the safety pics. They do make a tasty burger, the product is always well made, well cooked, and pretty fresh. The clams appetizer was kinda oily and just not very good. The calamari was a little rubbery.
They have a good staff at The Hat Tavern, and the decor is very nice. Lots of friendly people here, good crowd. If the level of the food service was on par with the beer selection it would be an easy 5 star rated establishment.
DO NOT GO TO THE HAT TAVERN!! The manager was tremendously rude and obnoxious to us. Recap of story:
1)went in for sunday brunch, hostess  told us no table available, all tables reserved. So we get in the car to leave.
2) As we start the car, a waiter runs out to us and says, come back in, there is a table. We said, but we were just told they are all reserved. He said there is a table for us, no problem. We go back in and sit down, its pretty empty, brunch hadn't started yet.
3)after about 5 minutes, manager comes over to our table and YELLS at us to leave saying, 'this table is reserved, you have to leave right now!This table isn't available, you have to go now!"
How rude! We were in shock.
We told him his waiter told us to come back, we didn't just sit down on our own.
He kept yelling at us to leave, then yelled at waiter to clean up our table (I had a coffee)
Safe to say, we have never been treated like this in a restaurant, or really, anywhere. the manager didn't really care to hear that we were there only because HIS employee told us the table was available.
He could have easily handled this in a civilized manner. Yelling at potential paying customers???? How does he treat his employees? Who will he yell at next?
We complained to the hotel manager who apologized.
Needless to say I will tell everyone about this unbelievable situation.
You've been warned!
If you happen to be staying at the Grand Summit Hotel you might have to eat here.
Otherwise do not make a trip.
I had a gift certificate so I went despite having read some very poor reviews prior, which really had me worried. Well, rightfully so.
We were sat at a table that had one short leg so I stuffed the beer menu under that leg to keep it from rocking.The waiter was all over the place and took 10 minutes to get us our first beer.
He served our entrees without ever bringing the appetizer.
Offered to bring the appetizer for free and then we said "not necessary" he didn't bring it anyway.
The burgers were on the kind of hamburger bun you buy in a supermarket that comes in an 8 pack. The pre-split little 4 inch circle kind of bun that you bring on camping trips. I'm not kidding. The medium rare burger was well done but I couln't bear to let them have a second shot at cooking it.
I got a Dogfish head 90 minute IPA and he didn't bring me a glass. Expected me to drink it from the bottle. I had to ask the busboy for glass and he brought me an orange jiuce glass. It was a Monday night and it sounded as if I was at the cafeteria in Summit grammar school. The place was half full of families with children under 10 banging silverware on their tables and screaming. There was a small cup of some kind of sauce next to the buger and they put a 1/2 teaspoon in the cup rather than filling it to really use as a condiment. The ketchup was in an unmarked plastic bottle on the table, leading me to believe that it was handfilled in the kitchen from a 55 gallon barrel.
Another 15 minutes go by before we are asked if we need more drinks.
We order coffee and hope to get out quickly before our hearing is permanently impaired. The coffee is about 60 degrees and adding the milk actually warms it up.
We leave the coffee. The waiter takes the first round of drinks off the bill because he forgot the appetizer and knows we are choking what is edible on our plates down.
Thank goodness the gift certificate is enough to cover the bill because I don't want to spare any real cash for this experience.
Never, ever again. The one and two stars this place is getting on Yelp are dead on the money.
I had an A-OK experience here. Â They do mislead you with advertising their apps as tapas. Â Maybe American bar tapas, which still technically are tapas (small plates), buuuuuuut you expect it to be something worldly.
Blue plate special. Â Excellent idea. Â I had a very tasty flank steak sandwich with onions, mushees and some sort of cheese. Â Loved the juicy steak.
The waiter was also very accommodating. Â 5 Stars to him for a few reasons. Â One he convinced the chef to make a shrimp app into a meal with pasta. Â Smart idea. Â
Great beer and wine selection. Â Great list of microbrews. Â I opted for the $2 can of PBR. Â You still should take this review seriously even though I had the great red, white and blue in a can.
I like this place.. For what it is for.. It's a Great place to bring the wife and kids for an inexpensive meal. Burgers, wings and salads. They throw In some fancier fare as well.. Which is a bonus. The beers are cheap and the service is good, when we first started going here.. About a year ago,, this place had some kinks,. Terrible burger rolls, slow service... All worked out. Check it out.
Review Source:I have a love hate relationship with this wildly inconsistent establishment.
First, the good: the beer list is terrific, with rotating microbrews, both on tap and in bottles, with an emphasis on keeping it local. The beers are also priced very well, and there are usually some terrific specials too. Reviewers below who suggest that the beer list is lacking and that one head to Trap Rock for better choices, in my opinion, does not know their beers. Trap Rock brews their own beer in theory (although a conversation with the bartender will reveal they now brew offsite for all the restaurants in their group), and they are decent, but they generally have the same 3 or 4 beers and then maybe rotate 1-2 others. HAT Tavern, on the other hand, regularly has 10 microbrews on tap with frequent changes, as well as a nice ~30-40 bottle line-up, and the prices are outstanding. While The Office might have a similar beer list, I often feel the draft beer there is effected by the tap lines, and I have not had this issue at HAT.
Moving on from the beer...the food specials tend to be creative and when I've ordered them, very tasty. The regular menu food is so inconsistent, it is hard to comprehend. There have been times I've been here and had what might be the best burger I've ever tasted. Other times, the roll has been stale, the meat chewy or overcooked, the lettuce gross and old. The fries are never very good (substitute for the average+ onion rings). On a good night, the basic cheeseburger alone would be worth a 5 star review, but there are far too many bad nights.
In any event, let's discuss the bad: I've already touched on the inconsistency in food quality. This place also unpredictably swings between crowded and deserted, so you never know what you'll find when you walk in. When it is crowded, it is very, very noisy, and I'm a younger guy not prone to complain about loud places. Parking can also be an issue, though I often walk here. I have also been here a number of times when the music/TV volume was so loud, it prevented conversation.
And the ugly: the service here is horrible. This would be a 4 star review if the service were even average. The service is extremely slow, orders are consistently messed up, and no action is ever taken to remedy the mistakes (e.g. a drink on the house). You have to ask repeatedly if you want to order an additional item, need a condiment or a drink, or just want the check. I had a server recently tell me he could not bring the table a plate of "just the hot pickles" (which normally come as part of the while-you-wait mixed pickle snacking plate) and instead just brought an extra mixed plate. Not only is this wasteful when the table only desires hot pickles, but two weeks earlier I had a different server bring a plate of hot pickles without any issue. Sigh.
Too bad, I would probably become a weekly regular if this place was better executed and it does have potential, the concept and space are a good idea, but poor customer service holds it WAY back. I will probably still come in a few times a year, hoping for a "good night," but not more than that.
I only like the Sunday Brunch. TDF!! You can't miss it. Â Plus, they made it cheaper now. It's really delish and fresh. My husband and I go all the time on Sundays. He doesn't really eat. I mean, really just picks at food. It's kind of annoying. Oh, well he's delish too. Shrimp cocktail is TDF and so is their couscous salad.
Review Source:So very disappointed!!  Went in with a friend for dinner, ordered the fried chicken. Waitied over 30 minutes for the food to come out. We asked for bread but they don't serve any so we were starving by the time we got out food. The chicken was dried out and tasteless, fries were just ordinary. My friend ordered the Prime Rib which se said was mediocre along with a baked potato with no condiments to go with it. She asked twice and was promised sour cream and butter but it never arrived. Service was  awful..was really shocked at just how  bland and unexciting it was..hoping someone can give it a rehaul..Chef Ramsey?
Review Source:I was visiting my sister in Summit and we were looking to take the kids to an early dinner. She said she wanted to try this place cause it suppose to have the best burgers.
Best burger? I'm a burger snob however, and after eating at Corner Bistro and JG Melon in Manhattan I m a tad spoiled.
It was a quality burger, thick 1/2 pound homemade, not a patty. Mine was just a tad over cooked but still tasty. Fries were very good and I love the pickle nosh plate. They have two specialty burgers one named after local resident Jim Crammer (mad money) and a Chris Cristie, that's a double 1/2 pound burger, hysterical! ...they have several micro brew selections on the taps as well
It is obvious the place is new and still working out some kinks, but it was very cozy and the staff was very friendly and accommodating to our group of 4 kids all under the age of 6. They brought crayons and such, but even better the two under 3 ate free. Added bonus the chef brands a burger a day with the tavern logo, that means yours is free. My sister got one of those making the bill pretty inexpensive.
Verdict I m not from the area and don't know what other cozy brew pub tap roomy kind of burger beer spots there are, but if i was a local I would certainly be back. Would it be a destination place if I were a few towns over? But I am sure I will return on my next visit. Being in the Hotel its much easier to park there than town as well. I also think this place will improve with some time.
Verdict! Give it a try for yourself!
First let me state I did not choose this place nor do I think I would have since it seemed to have such a limited menu. Â My friend was excited about it saying "they have tapas!!! yum small plates" Â as I gazed at the Tapas menu I noticed it was nothing but a few minimal appetizers pretty much like you could get at any basic restuarant. Â All they did was name it Tapas in stead of Appetizers
Tapas
French Onion Soup, Stout Cheddar Gratin $6
Soup of the Day $5
Chili $7
Pan Fried Lump Crab and Vermicelli Cake, Tomato Relish, Roasted Garlic Aioli $12
Steamed Littleneck Clams, White Wine & Garlic Casino Butter $10
Buffalo Chicken Wings, Celery & Blue Cheese $9
Crispy Fried Calamari, Spicy Marinara Sauce $9
Grilled Eggplant Roll stuffed with Ricotta, Roasted Pepper, Sundried Tomato on Pita with Cilantro sauce $9
Shrimp Sauté, Chipotle Peppers, Garlic Lemon Butter $12
not to extensive of a "appetizer" menu. They ordered fried calamari, clams, and eggplant. Â Nothing stood out.
Other then that the rest of the menu boasted all different kinds of Burgers and frankly I don't need to go out a spend a boat load of money on a weekend to have a burger. Â They also had Hot dog, club sandwhich, Â really now. Â I had a lamb burger which was pretty good although very greasy. Â They ordered fried calamari, clams, and eggplant. Â Nothing stood out.
The decor is beautiful, the acoustics were terrible very loud. Â The bar is nice. Â The wait was long although it has only been opened 3 weeks I am not sure they have it quite all together yet. Â And a nice little area in the parking lot to sit outside and eat. Â They also had heaters outside which should have been on last night considering it was in the 60's that day unusual for the time of year but I bet people would have hung out to have a drink out there. Â
The best part of the evening besides our company was that Jim Cramer was there. Â My husband is a fan of his show and my son is a even bigger fan who also has his book. Â He did take a picture with my husband which was nice and I noticed that there is a burger named after him so he might own a piece of this place. Â I know he lives in Summit.
We might go back and try it one more time when my son comes home from college just to see if Jim Cramer will be there.
The good: The crab & vermicelli cake tapas...perfection. I will go back for this one dish. Amazing. The "ketchup" that was served on the side of the fries was amazing and I want to put it on everything. EV.E.RY.THING.
The not so good: The service was slow and slightly ignorant to our needs, our timing, and the menu.
The fried chicken was good on the inside, almost as if they had injected it with spices or marinade, but the coating was dry, bland, heavy and overcooked. True Southern Fried Chicken should be light, flaky and juicy, inside and out.
The Jersey Shore Fries were nothing special. There was certainly nothing wrong with them, but after all the mentions of them in other reviews, their website and their menu, I was definitely disappointed. Run of the mill fries.
The (original) burger was horribly greasy (it may have been the bun which appeared to be buttered. Heavily.). The meat itself was a good blend, and I could definitely tell it was a better cut of meat than your run of the mill burger. But the seasoning was bland. There was certainly nothing that made me want to take another bite. In fact, I don't think I even ate half of it. Like the fries, there wasn't really anything wrong with it, but I certainly wasn't wowed.
Their beer selection was lacking for a place that calls itself a "tavern". And while we're on the topic of that name, it felt nothing like a tavern to me. The atmosphere was disjointed. The TVs on the walls said "sports bar" or "tavern" but the stark white walls and odd light fixture said "this was another restaurant before and we just took the shell, added TVs and called it a tavern".
I will go back to try some more of their tapas, and their french onion soup which I try to be a connoisseur of, but I won't go back for a burger, their atmosphere, the service, their clientele or their beer list.
The food? Meh. The service? Meh. The atmosphere? Meh. If you're looking for a good burger, a cozy tavern feel and a good beer selection, head a few miles west to Traprock Brewery in Berkeley Heights and you'll enjoy it all a lot more.
2 Stars is being generous for this place. Yes, it just opened but they have a lot of work to do. The food took 1.5 hours to get a freaking burger. Once it did arrive, it was terrible. Dry and flavorless. We had as an app Calamari which if you bought generic supermarket version, it probably would taste better. The bartenders were friendly and apologetic (since we sat near the bar they served us). I really don't complain about my meals but I addressed my concerns to the manager who was very nice about everything. He apologized and comped us for everything (drinks as well...woo hoo). I might return to this place giving it the benefit of the doubt once it is opened for a while.
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