I walked across the square to eat at Josh's for the first time in a year or more, only to find the restaurant closed for vacation. I had my mouth set for some blackened shirimp tacos, but it was not meant to be.
I should have walked back to my car and gone home for lunch, but instead, I followed the crowd heading into Olde Hickory Tap Room.
The waiter let me sample a shot glass full of two IPA's, one from Charlotte and one from OHB. I didn't like either one, so I ended up ordering a OHB Ruby Lager. It was pretty good, but nothing to get excited about. FYI, the OHB Hefe-Weizen is pretty good, but I wanted to try something different.
For lunch, I ordered the Rueben with house made chips and ranch dip.
Damn, this is a BUSY place at lunchtime, a completely full house! The army of servers are scrambling like ants - entering orders and delivering food. The food flowed out of the kitchen at a brisk pace, so the restaurant must have an army of people working in the kitchen as well.
I was seated at a booth in the bar, so I got a chance to glimpse all the food that was shuttling out of the basement kitchen - headed towards diners' tables. The salads looked really good, big plates or bowls of fresh looking ingredients, topped with chicken or whatever protein the customer chose.
My sandwich took a good ten to fifteen minutes to reach my table, and by then my Ruby Lager was pretty much history. I followed the Ruby Lager with something that I KNEW was going to be good - a plain ole' Guinness.
The Rueben was just meh, "OK." There was waaaay more kraut on the sandwich than pastrami, which was a total letdown. Having eaten at a REAL deli, like Katz Deli in NYC, where one has to physically take off a piece of bread and eat the pastrami down to a level where the sandwich will then fit one's mouth, a single thin layer of pastrami just doesn't cut it in my book. I will NOT be ordering the Rueben again, maybe a salad next time.
Total cost of lunch with two beers, was $14.97, plus a $3 tip.
Service was excellent, and the main reason for the three star rating.
This restaurant is doing a BOOMING business so I'm sure that my imput means little to them.
This was a bit confusing as I ended up in a restaurant related to the Old Hickory Tap Room, but across the square and tracks from the Tap Room. It appears to be an old train depot, but rather lacking in ambiance. However, it more than makes up for that in a good burger and local brewed beer.
Review Source:Was driving to home to Winston-Salem from Brevard last Monday and stopped in Hickory for dinner. Â Got to downtown Hickory and found it pretty quiet but the Olde Hickory Tap Room was hopping. Â For a Monday night, I was surprised and, apparently, they were too.
It took awhile to be seated and the service didn't really improve from there.
I ordered a beer (their Hefe) and some chips. Â The chips were ok. . .nothing special. Â The beer was good. . . . once I got it. Â Apparently they had to change the head and then wait for the head to subside. Â I can understand that, but it took a LONG time.
For dinner I got the BBQ Chicken Pizza. Â It was good. Â Tasty BBQ sauce. Â I wish there had been more toppings on the pizza but everything on there was good.
Just to clarify, when our server was at our table she was VERY nice, but I think they may have been understaffed so service was slow.
Next time I'm in Hickory, I may try another restaurant before going back to Olde Hickory Tap Room.
Stopped in for a beer on a Saturday afternoon. Â The pale ale didn't disappoint. Â Great selection of beer, but a bit odd that the 'beer menu' we were given was a register print out of what they've got with the prices. Â I'd think they would have something that better describes their brews, which are great. Â I believe that the actual brewery is located just on the other side of the RR tracks. Â Spinach dip with pita and veggies hit the spot too.
Review Source:I've been going here for years, but lately I have become more and more disappointed. My latest disappointment was lunch with my family. The restaurant was about 50% capasity but food was taking way too long to arrive. The servers were applogizing to all the tables for the wait, but had no explanation as to why. We ordered a dozen wings, a kids grilled cheese, spinish and artichoke dip and a barbeque sandwich. The food arrived 50 minutes after placing the order. This is becoming more of the norm rather than the exception. It is a shame, this used to be the premire spot uptown, but it appears they have lost their desire to take care of their customers.
Review Source:Went there last night with friends that we rode with all day.
Should have known what dinner was going to be like when I had my first problem at the bar. Asked bartender for two cocktails - gin tall with
Lemon, whiskey  with lime and two beers.
Bartender served the two cocktails regular size and put a lime and a lemon in the gin. I reminded her that I had asked for the gin to be tall with lemon and she said she would fix it. I removed the lime from the drink. After talking with another customer at the end of the bar and cleared away some dirty dishes from the bar counter she return and took the gin away, made it a tall and put another wedge of lime into the drink. I reminded her I had also asked for two beers and eventually came up.
Waited about 30 mins for a table. When we sat down we were greated by a waitress who seemed to know what she was doing.
I ordered the NJ Strip - and asked for it to be cooked Pittsburg Style.
The steak came out light brown in color ... rare to med rare in the middle.
Biggest problem was that the steak was COLD - as were the mashed potatoes and veg that I had ordered. My wife's steak and one of my friends steaks was not up to par either - so three out of four entrees were send back.
The food returned - and my steak went from cold to cool and my mashed potatoes were replaced with fries. I mentioned this to the waitress - and a few minutes later the manager arrived to the table with the mashed potatoes which like the steak were cool at best. The manager said that the kitchen was not set up to cook steak Pittsburg Style - which if I had known from the beginning I would have ordered the steak that way.
My entee was comped - but I would have rather paid for what I ordered and expected.
Wish I could post with no stars ....
All in all a terrible experience....WON'T BE BACK
So, I was driving back to Raleigh from Asheville and managed to convince my fiance to stop here for lunch and beer.
And it was awesome.
Ever since I moved to NC, I've been a fan of Olde Hickory brews. I had tried all the ones I could find in stores, and I was eager to try some new ones straight from the source. However, I was a little apprehensive, since I'd had over a dozen different ones and was worried I wouldn't find anything new here. But I did. I can't claim to like all the beers (there are just some styles I'm not a fan of), but what I've tried has been of a consistent high quality.
The place has the feel of an old style bar. The selection of food is definitely pub food, but really high quality pub food - much more impressive than I expected. Additionally, the service was rather attentive even though they were in the midst of the post-church Sunday rush.
Though I won't pretend that I'll ever make Hickory a destination, I'll definitely stop back by here if I'm ever driving through.
This place is great. Â We had the most excellent local beer. The chips witt spicy blue cheese are the bomb. And the blueburger was the best burger I had in a long time. Yes, I know that Blueburger burger sounds redundant, but what I can do? Â In addition, this place has the best looking bar I've seen in a long time. Â Go for the burger and chips, stay for the beer and ambiance.
Review Source:The family went and had a pretty good time. The food was alright. I got an inexpensive Reuben, and was impressed with the quality for the good price. The tap selection was pretty good, as would be expected. The waiter was very friendly and got us some crackers to keep the little one quiet.
The atmosphere and location are pretty nice. I'd recommend this place.
The beers were good. When they arrived that is.... My friend and I ordered the full on sample. Every beer on tap. Why not? It was Saturday. So, everyone orders beer and food. Everyone (besides us) gets their beer, then food, then another beer. By the time we got our samples, everyone was ready to leave. So we had to rush through like 20 small beers and head out wasted from drinking so fast. The beers were enjoyable and it was a good atmosphere. However, I wish I could have had my beers, and enjoyed my meal with my friends rather than waiiiiit and waiiiit... I would have taken 2-3 samples at a time from the waitress while they poured the rest. It was ridiculous to wait that long then be rushed.
Review Source:Set in the heart of Union Square, this place is a hit with the local lunch crowd. Good prices, nice selection of items, including some non traditional food stuffs, not seen on bar menus. More on that in a moment.
The setting of the OHTR is dark, slightly crooked wood floors and dozens of beer taps embedded into the dark paneled walls. The seats are wooden and booths padded. A typical tap room/bar feel.
The spicy black bean burger was surprisingly delicious. On a buttered, grilled bun. With three thick rings of red onion, tomato and lettuce. Nice. The side I chose was apple slices (hey, I wanted to get some fiber and vitamins in my lunch!) and lo and behold, a whole granny smith apple, cored and plopped into a small plastic bowl appeared on my plate.
My co-workers had various bar items like chicken fingers and Reuben sandwiches, but somebody got a very fresh looking salad, and saw some scalloped tomatoes. (They also offer Irish Roots...which I presume to be roasted...potatoes or parsnips??)
The only downside, the slightly perturbed server, and the slightly slow service when the place was half empty toward the end of lunch hour. I'd go back again for lunch next time I'm in Hickory!
Once upon a time, I worked in Hickory on what was supposed to be a 1 week assignment (it turned into a 12 week assignment), and I ate here often. Â I hadn't been here in probably 6 years, and tonight did not disappoint! Â
I had the crab cake sandwich and pub chips, my entire bill with tax was $10.10! Â Excellent value, great service, very appealing atmosphere (except for the loud band, fortunately there is another seating area where you can actually talk without having to raise your voice), and an excellent staff! Â I wish I lived closer I'd definitely be a regular!
Had to review this place for how ridiculous it is. Haven't been in a while (I haven't been to Hickory in a while) but consistently for 3 years when I was going here the service was slow. Also, there were several occasions in which my boyfriend at the time found his card being charged more than he had written on the receipt.
That's illegal. I guess our servers thought they weren't getting tipped enough? That's probably because they chatted ten feet away from us while my boyfriend downed my water and his. And then debated grabbing the pitcher, which was also ten feet away.
Food is good though, no denying that. I crave pub chips and beer cheese now that I can no longer have them... sad day.
Consensus: do carry out. They're pretty good about that. Hickory staple, good food, good location, all redeeming qualities. 3 stars.
First, I need to start off by saying that the bartending staff at the Olde Hickory Tap Room are some of the best in the biz. Â I've lived in many different regions of the country and frequently travel for business and have to say this group is top notch.
The beer selection is decent, I would prefer a few more "guest taps", but the variety is still better than most (if not all) places in the area. Â If you're looking for domestic macro-brews on tap you may want to move along (a few choices in a bottle), but that's not why we frequent the Tap Room.
If you're into whiskey (scotch, bourbon, etc.), the Tap Room has more selections than most places I've been. Â They also have a variety of wine to choose from.
I enjoy the food at the Tap Room (the Maui Pizza is great) and the variety of offerings (Hummus!) on the menu.
Live music on Thursday and Saturday and Sunday (Jazz).
In my opinion this is the best overall spot in Hickory for a night out.
It's a rather typical bar. Â
The beer selection is very decent and they have many beers on tap and specials every day. Â The decor is unique with hundreds of thick metallic mugs lining the ceiling over the bar. Â
It's a woodsy-feel vibe, wooden bar and floors, and soft orange lighting. Â They have jazz on Sunday nights, which is nice. Â The crowd is very mixed, old and young alike. Â
Being a vegetarian, the choices on the dining menu are decent as well. Â They have an assorted vegetable/side combination dish, a blackbean burger, and a grilled tomato and mozzarella cheese sandwich on a perfectly toasted bun.
I will be back here, mostly because it's one of just a few places to go in downtown Hickory.
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