I still love the boneless wings here. Â And there are other items on the menu that are pretty good -- but it's that it's not the same experience as it was 5 or 10 years ago. Â Even something as simple as the nachos have changed -- they have been brought back over the past year or so, after a few year hiatus, and they had replaced the salsa with a marinara like sauce. Â There's no really compelling reason to go here any more, although as I said, some of the dishes are still pretty good. Â The amazing thing is that it isn't like it's as busy as it used to be -- by any means -- so some of the concerns about service that have been voiced here have to be of some concern to management as well. Â Otherwise, if you catch them on a day after a Red Sox win, it's a very reasonable dinner for the whole family.
Review Source:I can't understand why this restaurant is getting such bad ratings. I've been here maybe 20 times (lived in north andover for the past 4 years) and every time I get the same thing. Try the double barbeque turkey tips. They are well priced and you get cravings for them. Yeah, they are that good. service can be slow, but its usually crowded so its understandable. However, if you come here for dinner, you really should make a reservation. The place gets packed at night. Otherwise, go for lunch and enjoy yourself.
Review Source:Worst food I've had in a while. Â I visited the restaurant for my boyfriend's birthday in February and the food was horrible. Â My steak tips were burnt, and broccoli was over cooked. Â My boyfriend asked for his Burger well done and it was completely red in the center. Â His sister asked for a medium-well Burger and it was far from medium well, she couldn't even eat the whole steak because the center was completely cold. Â I then had the idea to order some coffee...yeah, It resembled dirty water ...just horrible. Â I was sooooo disapointed. Â Will definitely never visit another 99 again, total waste of money!
Review Source:Once upon a time, the service, food, drinks, and atmosphere were terrific. But thanks to some lawsuits and acquiring by some new management chain, the 99 went strait down route 666 to hell.
Atmosphere:
Bright and family-friendly with local high school sports decor. Yuck. The last thing I want to look at while eating and catching a buzz is an old photo of NAHS football coach Mr. Lee staring at me as if he wants me dead for ordering steak tips and a tall beer. And I don't care to look at photos of the old 02' freshman lacrosse team, either. Bring back that old dark, dreary, black-and-red setup that screams "Bull Finch Pub". Fucking loved that setup.
Accessibility:
Small parking lot located on 125/133. On a busy night, forget even going. It still gets busy here due to proximity to the high school, middle school, and town center. After games and special events, best of luck. Busiest nights are Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and late Sunday afternoon through early evening. Lunch is usually accessible.
Food:
Not worth it anymore. Previous to their restructuring, the 99 had an excellent array of home-style entrees, apps, and bar food that was consistent and tasty at a price you couldn't beat. Those of us who frequented the bar loved the steak tips, turkey tips, nachos, and boneless wings. Now, the new "family atmosphere" has taken over and it seems as though the food was prepared straight out of the grocer's freezer. They ditched all the "bar foods" and went with this inconsistent, sodium-laced menu that only screaming children could love. Although some of the old menu exists, I think they changed suppliers as the quality of the old menu is lacking.
Drinks:
Thanks to some lush in Haverhill who elected to drink about 750 ounces of beer before driving home and killing a passenger in another car, the 99's drink policy has changed. Gone are the old  budget "Blockbuster" 30 ounce mugs and "Mondo Margaritas" that were the best value of any chain eatery in New England. Now you are limited in quantity, and if you don't order food with your drinks, expect the bar staff to ignore you for the rest of your stay. Again, this is due to the lawsuits stemming from the Haverhill incident.
Service:
A hit-or-miss. The staff that has been there for years is always excellent and earns their tips. The management seems to be a revolving door; as if this particular location is a training spot for the corporate climbers. It seems as though the management changed every three months, or so. Same for some of the waitstaff. Not sure of the kitchen.
Price/Value:
Slipping. The portions have been reduced- which is fine. I don't need to eat 5 pounds of spaghetti or 36 ounces of steak tips, but for the price, the 99 is barely fair. I can get the same style of food for a lower price with larger portions at the many other so-so establishments for a short drive to Loop. If the 99 wants to stay, they need to compete with these places and maybe improve their menu.
Bottom Line:
Go to the 99 and have a drink in remembrance of the old 99.
The only thing worth going to the 99's these days is for the "Gold Fever Wings".
The quality has gone down hill. The lunch menu is now smaller than ever. I have stopped going to the 99's for anything besides the wings.
You will die of thirst at the bar unless the bartender knows you.
You have to love the 3% charge for take-out, ridiculous. Â I would not have minded paying if the food was worth it.
After watching my niece's field hockey team win in double overtime, I was cold and hungry. Â So we stopped at the 99's for a late dinner. Â
Although our waitress was nice, I could tell she just wanted to go home. Â I didn't blame her, the place had that "old restaurant smell."
I wasn't expecting much and did not get it. Â I ordered the Wedge salad and Teriyaki Sirloin. Â But The portions were small, but fine for me. Â The wedge salad was fine. Â The problem was with the lack of cooking. Â The kitchen just rushed the meal so my rice was crunchy, the snow peas were under cooked and there was no glaze of tasty pineapple sauce. Â One star here.
No need to wonder why this place is not packed, there are too many better places to go in the area. Â I won't be back.
Here's a quote from Kate G.
"Ninety Nines really have begun to disappoint as of late."
Thanks for the quote Kate, and I agree on all levels.
I'm not a person who sits around in the same town or the same computer chair all day, no, I do a lil' traveling from time to time, I've been to ones in upper Mass, lower Mass, and in different states. However, I will be focusing on the one in North Andover.
I'm not saying this restaurant is bad, all I'm saying is is that I can remember the gold old says (Like five-six years ago.) When they were good. now again I'm not saying this isn't bad, but you can tell they turned down a notch on quality and it shows.
I now usually get the Chicken Parm and a Mountain Dew as my main course, and the chicken is usually always good, the pasta is so-so, and the bread, well, the bread gets old and stale too quick.
So, before I go on an all night rave about restaurant's that I like or don't like, just let's end at this. 99, warm your quality up like the bread you serve.
My wife and I have finally concluded that we must STOP GOING TO ANY 99 RESTAURANT.  Why this change of heart?  Our opinion of both the food and service has dramatically changed ever since the chain was acquired by  O'Charley's, Inc. Enterprise who negatively changed the menu to, obviously, cut their cost and reduce the portion size.. Â
Instead of the quality of food they were known for - at reasonable prices, the chain has adjusted their menu to cut their costs and portion size. Â My wife and I ordered fish-and-chips. Â In the past, the fish served was Cod. Â Now its Halibut - anything but flavorful. Â Interesting enough, when we told the wait person of our displeasure with the dish, she bought over the restaurant manager who said that no one likes the changes - her own mother included. Â Many of the dishes this chain was most famous for are no longer available or, if they are, at far reduced portion size. Â I feel sorry for this well establish New England Restaurant Chain. Â They do not deserve the counterproductive manipulating that's been done by O'Charleys Enterprises. Â Hopefully they'll change the menu back to what it was. Â If not, I'm guessing that they'll shortly be closing down restaurant after restaurant as the community stops supporting the operation and the doors have to close. Â Too bad.
Ninety Nines really have begun to disappoint as of late.
This one has no outright bad experience it's just always the same, the people don't seem genuinely interested and the food is just plain. Nothing spectacular.
It is a good deal but has fallen out of my favorites for cheap, and easy sit down restaurants. This location is always extremely busy and the parking lot because it sits next to a very busy animal hospital is tricky to say the least.
I must be a loser for reviewing the 99's, but really isn't much to eat here at night after 9. This is the best 99 I have ever been to. The other one on Lowell St is closed because their septic tank exploded so we went here and I loved Sarah the waitress, she was so funny, she made my potato skins extra outrageous! The food was also much better quality than other 99's. FYI- the lobster roll is actually delicious!
Review Source:I think there's a law in North Andover that mandates every resident visit the 99 at least once a week. I'm not even kidding.
Other rules associated with this law:
-If you're a senior citizen, you must report before 5:00pm with your son or daughter. Dementia always welcomed.
-If you're in high school, you must report before or after local sports events, and dress like a whore. Be sure to annoy the other customers as well.
-If you're a student at Merrimack College, report for drinks several nights a week.
-If you're a student at a different college, and just home on break, meet your friends here for beers before hitting up The Claddagh in Lawrence.
-If you're a local mom or dad, please be sure to drink a few too many beers or glasses of wine, hit on a local single parent, and then stumble over to the booth where your child is sitting with their friends and embarrass them. This is required for a well-rounded childhood.
-If you're Jenna C or Jeffrey H and visiting your mothers who live in the condo complex across the street from the nines, report here for drinks and popcorn. You're gunna need it.
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