I like where the vibe of the restaurant is going, but something is inherently off. Â It feels like a juxtaposition of too many ideas: seats by a fire place, flat screen TVs, clean but oddly decorated bathrooms, etc. Â The food seems confused as well. Â If you want some great people watching, there are a variety of fun people who populate this bar. Â It's good, but nothing special. Â If they find their identity and make a commitment to that identity, this place could be amazing.
Review Source:My experience here was interesting. I actually really enjoyed my meal (shrimp scampi pasta) and really enjoyed the ambiance and set-up of the restaurant. The waitress was very friendly and so was the bus-boy. The only downside was that we were kept waiting for 15 minutes just to bring us menus and our meals took 45 minutes to come out. I don't hold that against them though because it was quite busy despite it being a Wednesday night.
The reason I am giving them 3 stars is because there was nothing remarkable about the place. The food was good and the service was good but nothing was GREAT. It was just good. I don't highly recommend it but I don't have anything really negative to say. But I want to emphasize that it did NOT suck. Â I just don't plan on going back. It just didn't wow me to wanting to go back. It was very 'whatevers'.
Four stars for HAPPY HOUR!!!! I had a hot dog ($2) because I was hungry, but over all drinks are pretty inexpensive. AND they can make pitcher's of anything shot you want (we didn't pay for it though :)). We ordered a lemon drop and I posted a picture of it so you all can see.
I can't comment on the food but I'm sure it's worth the try. The place is in a commercial area with lost of businesses so I would not expect fine dining; seems like a place to go after work and booze it up!
We come here every other month or so. Â It's close to our friends house, so if we are hanging out over there, it's usually our first choice. Â I can't say I agree with the comments about the service. Â I can't recall a visit where I recall terrible service, but we also don't go on super busy game nights. Â They have some pretty good deals on happy hour. Â My husband and I like the 4 ribs for $5. Meat falls off the bone and I like the tangy sauce. Â My dinner favorite is the beef dip with the sweet potato fries. Â I would come just for these fries. Â They are always very accomodating for our kids. Â I will keep going back.
Review Source:On the rocks is getting better and better! Â We finally tried some menu items that were more than bar snacks. The jambalaya was fantastic! Â Great sauce served over pasta and cooked to perfection! Â The wedge salad was cold, crisp, big and the blue cheese dressing was the best I have had in Orange County. The staff is friendly and efficient which is why we have continued to stop by for a cold one or a snack. We were greeted by Lindsay at the bar and she spent some time telling us about the menu. General Manager "Mike" introduced himself and was pleased to hear how much we enjoyed our meal. A very personable man who explained the positive direction the restaurant is taking. We WILL be back and we will bring some friends!!!
B&J
FINALLY tried this place. I had the stacked ribs & fries to go. I'm really picky about my ribs & let me tell you these were cooked to PERFECTION. Although, I didn't dig the sauce. Too much spice for my taste. The fries needed a bit of salt... Overall I liked the place & will stop by again.
Adding to my original review & gave the place 5 stars. I actually had the chance to go in for dinner this week. The service was great, the waitress was very friendly and attentive (a very petite blonde, I'm sorry I don't remember your name). The prices on are excellent. I couldn't decide what to order from their speciality cocktails, they all sounded lovely, but I eventually settled on the "sexy beast". I was very citrusy & delightful. I will definitely be coming back for a lunch or brunch.
I am down in GG often for work and was so glad this place opened!!!!!! The chicken tacos are my favorite, and I am into healthy food most of the time so the taco and the turkey wrap is the way to go!!!! But I did try there pizza for my cheat day and it was great! Must try the pizza! Supper fresh they actually make it there thats what sold me on it! LOVE the happy hour its soooooooo cheap! Will be back soon for sure.
Review Source:On the Rocks is much improved. Â Must be some new management in this place. Â Great location and easy in and out from the freeway. Â The happy hour prices and special menu are a big improvement. Â Nice porch with heaters and the waitstaff also seems to have picked it up a bit. Â The $2 pork sliders & $2 hot dog are legit. Â I think domestic drafts are $2.50.
My son says that the 'Turkey Burger' is the best in SoCal. Â Not really my thing, but if you are into Turkey Burgers or are some sort of Communist then you may want to give this a shot. Â I'll stick to the beef.
First time customer.. I missed happy hour by 5 min and the waiters were pretty stern about it. Food was mediocre; dessert was unmemorable. I went on a girls' night out and I think the best thing was the cosmo martini. We ordered a creme brulee but it was fairly bland except for the sweet glazed topping. We ordered a chocolate cake but it was extremely sweet. For the money I spent, I rather go somewhere else to dine where there is a better atomsphere, better tasting food, and more variety than your typical burrito, nachos, and sweet potato fries.
Review Source:my friend is the groupon queen. sometimes i reap the benefits of that, but unfortunately this wasnt one of them.
what i ate:
- seafood tacos: two shrimp, one fish: the shrimp were mini frozen shrimp. :( the fish taco was way better. came with chips and salsa. the salsa definitely had some heat.
- i tried to fish and chips: decent. but not outstanding.
pros:
- full bar, great for watching games. seems like everyone was there to grab a beer and watch the game
- service: servers were all pretty friendly
- decor was nice. think dark wood, stone fireplace, cozy booths
cons:
- loud: its a loud loud loud sports bar. i could barely hear my friend over the loud sports game on
- food was not the best. maybe i ordered the wrong thing?
would i come again? no.
Ok,  I want to start by saying that On The Rocks Is a  great place.  They have good food and  great drinks, I'll go with my girl friends for happy hour.  Every time I have gone I had  great service.  The bar has a great atmosphere. The patio is real nice with the little creek and waterfall.  The inside has a real nice stone fire place and  couch's.  My husband likes the 27 TVs  to watch the game.  Great place to go on a date , with friends  and with your family.
Review Source:First timer at On the Rocks, ordered 3 appetizers ,pork sliders not very flavorful, cheese quesadilla could they spare cheese it looked more like 1 small tortilla folded in half with a quarter cup of cheese cut into 6 small wedges and an order of Rocks dip with a baguette for dipping, by the time you tore off one of the pre sliced pieces of bread it was so mangled there wasn't anywhere to put your dip. All said and done $30.00, Very disappointing, we wont be back and oh yeah our waitress was pregnant and tending bar.
Review Source:My family and I went to this place for lunch and out was alright. My Son ordered the chili cheese nachos and they were definitely smothered in Chili cheese! I ordered a Supreme wedge salad....and there was NOTHING supreme about it! It was small wedge of a very small head of lettuce with a few  cherry tomatoes and bacon bits sprinkled on top. The bleu cheese dressing did NOT have any bleu cheese crumbles at all. It really looked like a joke! My hubby had the Cobb salad and my other Son, a toddler) had a grilled cheese. His fries were the best out of it all. Service was very good.
Review Source:Decided to try this place out after they opened up down the street from our house and I was pleased.
Each time we've been here the food has been consistently good and the service was friendly!
On the Rocks has become one of our regular dinner options and we often suggest it to friends.
I've been going to OTR once or twice a week since it opened. it's a cool place. lots of locals and newbies. (seems all are welcome) Â great patio, big party room upstairs, free UFC fights, plenty of TV's, good drinks, ok food, nice owner, decent but slightly higher prices, pretty servers, fast bartenders(some), Â bad? managers... they just don't seem to have the experience or friendliness needed. (rarely a 'hello how are you' even when they see some of us regularly) Â Â sometimes it gets packed, but usally not too crowded....
worth a try!
I came here one night just for drinks. Â I ordered a Don Julio blanca, rocks, and then another one. Â Didn't taste right.. Â Too grassy. Â Asked about it and was assured it was what I ordered.
OK... Â Now cut to the bill.
I was floored. Â They charged me $16.50 each for my drink. Â Are they out of their mind? Â They claim that they gave me "more"?? Â Gave my waiter a hard time and probably should have called over the manager, but I just wasn't up to it. Â I have subsequently asked around and could not find anybody who would have charged me more than $9 for a Don Julio rocs.
Not worth it, even if the Happy Hour menu looks good. Â I just never know what they would try to slip in.
Do not go here.
Me, my boyfriend and our 2 year old son ate here for lunch on Tuesday. Is this place for real?! They obviously hire their servers based on breast size, not brain size. If she can't handle more then one table at a time she shouldn't be a server. What was surprising was the owners or managers where sitting at a booth next to us. If that's how she serves with then watching i hate to be here with no supervision. The food is actually really good! But i will not be back or recommending this place till there is new servers. This is our second time and the first time we had to go find our server to pay the bill and he told us he was a supervisor!! I am a server and this is not how it's done. Oh and the place was empty at lunch time on Tuesday. Where i work is slammed at the same time. Says a lot. Don't waste your time or money
Review Source:I purchased the $10 groupon ($20 value). Â Waited 30 mins in an empty restaurant with my husband before getting our food. The food isn't that great, not sure why they took so long. Service was horrible, Â some customers left because there was no one available at the front to help them. Â If you purchased the GROUPON, you may experience the same.. .
Review Source:I guess there is not much to say about this place unless you are a local patron. Â I would have to say that the locals keep this place alive, and of course major sporting events.
It is 100% completely obvious the local crowd runs this place. Â The service is extremely slow or non existent because most of the servers are interacting with the local customers, so it is hard to get their attention. Â
For example, we asked for some water after working to flag our server down. Â A table next to us called the waitress by her name after we asked her for some more water. Â Every time the waitress was about to leave, the local customer kept calling her back to ask her questions about some other customer and their drama, meaning the waitress would not leave to just get us a simple water refill.
As for the food, it wasn't amazing but definitely not worth the prices being charged.  I mean perhaps we came on an off night, but the place does make you feel like an unwelcome d  guest.  Oh and to top it off, the server added some drinks on our check that we did not order, we had to ask her to remove them before we paid.
3.5 Stars to be correct. =)
Happy Hours:
M-F @ 3PM -7 PM (Certain drinks, beer & food; they have a whole menu section for this)
Here are the specials that they have here:
<a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ontherocksoc.com%2Findex.php%2Fspecials&s=cf30dbbc18f4031fb9d42ba3f37b719d250aa7e438b815a550808255827cf11b" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.ontherocksoc.…</a>
Lots of TV screens here..they show the UFC & Lakers games here so that's great =) +1
Food is just OK, average. I ordered chill cheese fries & it came out cold. They NEED to get a better chef/ cook  =( -1
Service can be SLOW here..waitresses disappear for long periods of time & don't come back for who know's for what ever reasons...-1
They REALLY REALLY need to work on their service here..management needs to get on the waitresses cases about this & about being nicer & warmer to customers. =(
It would be a much nicer place if service was much better -1
Layout & ambiance is nice..classy, warm decor & they have an outdoor patio area with TV screens & heat lamps with waterfalls.. =) nice touch +2
I asked about the karaoke room that they were SUPPOSED to have opened up already but it seems that they have NOT opened it up yet...that sucks... =(
Other Specials:
$.35 CENT CHICKEN WINGS WHEN THE LAKERS OR CLIPPERS PLAY. FROM TIP-OFF TILL THE END OF THE GAME. GET THEM IN ORDERS OF 10 OR 20.
I came here last night for a drink and some very unplanned desert. Thank goodness I can appreciate beer because that is exactly what I had! Newcastle with oranges.... Oranges? Yea... I like oranges. Unless I am having a Stella, or a Corona then I will squeeze some lime and I am a happy girl. Ok...moving forward! This place is pretty happening and the best part is that I don't live too far from this place! We started at the bar, but the noise level got the best of us and we moved outside. It was cold! BUT in no time, a waiter came out with two heat lamps and I was golden!
Now lets talk about the desert!! ONE HUGE ICE CREAM SANDWICH!! Please see picture. We killed in I think 5 minutes! My date is a cross-fitter so needless to say he rarely indulges and well.... all I can say is that try. ;0) Good times!
On the Rocks is a BIG improvement over Jax's Bistro (previous restaurant to occupy this location). As a West Garden Grove resident, I've seen many restaurants go in and out of this location. It's nice to have a local sports bar here with good food . Â Lots of TVs. Â Awesome patio.
I'll say, while the food is good ... it's not consistent. Some of the items are GREAT! (sauteed calamari on the happy hour menu is delicious, if you like seafood); happy hour prices are very reasonable. Â
As others have said, the service is hit 'n miss. Some of the servers are GREAT! Others are slow as snails and not very cordial. Â Many do tend to be rather forgetful when asking for something (ie, one several occassions, it's taken 10 mins to get some salsa or hot sauce). Â There seems to be a lack of management overseeing the service standards. Â
It would be also be nice to see live music here again ......
All of you who wrote bad reviews on this place must be on crack and or retarded (possibly both) first of all the food here is amaze! maybe u lack taste buds in addition to being a mental crack head but literally EVERYTHING ive had here has been yummy! to be precise, my most favorite salad on the planet is on the menu which is the butter lettuce wedge with blue cheese dressing mmmmmmmmmmmm! my mouth is watering just typing that. its hands down the best salad of my life. and as for the service!!!! havent any of u seen that fine ass waitress with the black hair and blue eyes?!?!!? umm gorge! shes prolly the best server ive ever had and not to bad to look at either ;)
bottom line this place is very neighborhood friendly, great happy hour and weekly specials, friendly good looking staff, and food and drinks are bombay saphire! what more can u ask for? they even show the UFC fights for free AND have a movie room for kids. need i say more? i think not...
BYEEEEEEEEE
This place is only receiving two stars because of their awesome patio. Everything else at On the Rocks is not very good. The patio makes this place bearable! The staff is very slow and not very friendly. I've been here at least a dozen times since it's opened and I must say only ONCE did I receive excellent service.
They just don't seem to care. Once we were there late drinking and asked the manager to call us a cab. We waited over an hour for the cab. When we called the cab company ourselves at 2am, they said no one ever called from there for a cab!! WTH! We ended up having to walk home over 2 miles at 3am in the morning. Not a good experience at all.
My husband and brother attend the UFC fights here often and always complain about the service. I noticed a lot of people complain about it. It's a shame, because this could be a really nice place if the staff would get their stuff together.
Ok, it been a year or so since I was last at this place so I thought it was time to give it another shot.
Don't be I a rush because the service is on island time not LA time. The food is just ok but has the look and taste of frozen (Freezer Burnt) pre cooked food. The wings look cool but are dry and blah. Burgers are good and soup is not too bad either. Will I be back? Yes, but only for the beer than the food.
Very cool decor... Â great bar... Â great beer and wine selection... Â friendly staff... Â why two stars? Â They need to seriously work on the GRILL aspect of their name... Â My wife and I joked about how bad the food was as we were walking out... Â and that we must have been the only first timers there because nobody else in the place had any food on their tables. Â Everyone else knew to skip the food menu...
Ordered the chicken lollipops.... Â looked kinda gross, but whatever, gotta have a gimmick... Â the sauce was good, the meat itself had bad freezer burn... Â which made the wings, oh, excuse me, lollipops terrible... Â I ordered the steak sandwich... Â good size sandwich... Â but the meat had the same freezer burn taste... Â
This is a great bar... we loved the lay out, the patio, the drink selection... Â We would come back to watch a game and have drinks... but you guys need some serious work done to your kitchen... Â especially for the prices you charge for food...
3.25 stars
Santa Fe Spring Rolls:
- 6 slices
- not too crispy but I guess it is a "spring roll" but it's really fried
- Pretty flavorful
- Chipotle sauce was not too creamy
- a different take of the Santa Fe rolls they have at BJ's
Beef Shank ($17.95)
- stew taste
- vegetables were burnt
- odd smell; similar to lamb
- wouldn't recommend
Shrimp Scampi ($16.95):
- portions were decent
- jumbo shrimp and very meaty
- angel hair was pretty soft
- dish was okay, but just on salty side
Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich ($6.95):
- choice of either vanilla ice cream and chocolate chip cookie or chocolate ice cream and macadamia cookie
- pretty soft and crispy
- simple but still tasty
Environment: bar and restaurant. More like a sports bar with all them TVs. Good place to hang out with friends and watch the game. Or a good place to make out as the couple in my adjacent booth did. There are also some couches convenient for happy hour; have a drink and chat with a couple buddies. Outside seating available; in the winter they have heat lamps outside. Outside decor has water following "on the rocks."
Service: friendly staff. Refilled waters, which was really important. Otherwise I would have had to drink a gallon of water when I get home. Cleared out plates as necessary. Parking may be difficult during the daytime since it's located in a business park.
Overall, decent place but more to hang out as opposed to eat. This would be a great place to catch a big game; I can feel the intensity the restaurant could bring. I would only come back to grab drinks but not a place I would dine at.
Look: Only reason it even gets 1 star is because the looks of the place. Woodsy lodge sort of feel with stone and waterfall, etc. classy and nice.
Service: Couldn't get any worse. Arrive hungry, waitress asks if we want something to drink, ask for waters as we look over beer menu. waiter comes over, i ask what the seasonal beer was, he'll check. we order 2 beers and food: sampler platter (which they use on their profile picture) and steak skewers. 20 minutes later he brings the platter THEN ASKS IF THERE IS ANYTHING ELSE WE NEED!??!
'yeah, our beers.'
'oh yeah haha.'
7 mins later comes back 'oh we uh, dont have those anymore.'
'what was the seasonal?'
'oh, i forgot to ask'.
5 mins later he comes back with the beers, food is now getting cold, and says 'was that chicken skewers you wanted?'
'nope, steak'.
then the original waitress comes to deliver the skewers and says 'sorry these were so late, he made the chicken ones you asked for, but when you changed your mind he had to make these.'
the nerve.
Food: steak might as well been beef jerky. terribly tough and not at all juicy. sauce was good though.
their platter had the worst chicken wings i've ever had. about half a bite of chicken and all tendons and cartilage. other items were whateve's.
Price: $40+ for that?!! seriously?
Bottom Line: dont go here if your hungry or thirsty. Do go here for the nice couch by the fireplace.
Atmosphere:  Classic.  There is an outside patio with a waterfall, classy décor with comfy couches and furniture (both inside and outside patio too), lots of flats screens (at least 15), clean restrooms, and even a warm fireplace.  Great for watching the game/fight or taking the wife/kids out for an excellent dinner.
Food: Â The food is high quality and I've gone here quite a few times to try out different items on the menu. Â Good portions and the following are my favorites ordered the way I like it: Â Cheese Steak Sandwich with sweet potato fries, I recommend adding the Au Jus sauce to dip, gives it that extra juiciness. Â It's not a Phili-Cheese Steak, so don't expect it to be, but still very scrumptious.
BBQ Bacon & Cheddar Burger or Rocks burger with sweet potato fries of course (are you seeing a pattern?). Â The burgers are blended with "small amounts of pork" (menu mentions it in very small print). Â This goes for both burgers, so if you don't eat pork, you don't eat these. Â And since there is pork in them, I recommend having them either medium, med well, or well done. Â The meat is also mixed with herbs and seasoning, it has a distinct smell and lots of flavor, and these burgers are phenomenal.
Rock Dip is an artichoke & chicken dip with jalapenos and four cheeses, so friggin yummy. Â It comes with french bread (which is awesome), but I like it with tortilla chips (a little lighter than with bread). Â You just can't go wrong, unless you're dieting ;)
Price: Â Mid range. Â My typical bill for two people, with a few beers each is generally around 30 bucks. Â Fair prices and they have different specials going on all the time.
Service: Â The place is only 7 months old, so you're bound to have some unpredictability with the service. Â That being said, service has been overall really good for me. Â More often than not I sit at the bar, and the best bartender by far is Vlora. Â But when I sit at the tables or booths the best server by far is Carli. Â
Needed Improvements: Â It seems something is wrong with the management of employees. Â They need to work out the kinks as far as consistency goes with the servers and bartenders. Â There are some who are awesome, friendly, and hard-working, but unfortunately, some are not. Â If you ask me it would be easy to remedy that...fire the ones who don't know how to smile, be friendly and take good care of customers, then keep and hire the ones that do. Â I found myself asking my favorite bartender and server when they work so I could only come in when they are working. Â Hopefully this will change over time and they get rid of the "bad apples."
Summary: Â If you want an attractive bar/restaurant, with a great ambiance (outside patio, tons of flat screen TVs, 15 beers on tap, excellent service (from the right people), high quality food/drinks for a fair price, friendly patrons, and keep it located wear the 405 & 22 meet in Garden Grove, THIS IS THE PLACE! Â Also keeping money in the community and supporting a local ma & pa business is a great economic bonus.
To other nay sayers on yelp for On The Rocks: Â If you go to a restaurant/bar and sit down not getting the service you want, SAY SOMETHING TO THE MANAGER! Â Don't like your table? Â Ask to be seated elsewhere. Â Remember busy bars are loud. Â Also, waiting for your freshly made food to be prepared, cooked and brought to you usually takes around 30 minutes. Â If you want it sooner than that, go get some fast food where the pre-made, highly manufactured, poor quality "food" will come to you a lot faster.
Since we live in the neighborhood, we really, really wanted to like On the Rocks so that we'd have that local go-to place.
The first time we went there it was a Friday night, and we only had drinks, appetizers, and desserts. It was quite mellow, but we could see how fun the place could be. The place has a good atmosphere for a fun happy hour or just a place to hang out and watch a game on one of the many TVs. We were happy with our experience, so we went back.
Everything went downhill on our second visit. When we were seated, we were greeted by the general manager. We waited for awhile before the general manager came back to check on us. We still weren't approached by our server, so he took our drink order. We weren't in a rush and pretty patient, but we were hungry. Our server hadn't introduced herself, so the general manager took our order. When my husband asked him what kind of fish was in the fish tacos, HE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW!!! How can the general manager NOT know the menu? A bit after he left, our server finally came to our table. She took our order again.
After two different people took our order and repeating it a few times to the server, we got our food and it was all wrong. One entree was suppose to come with fruit, but it came with fries. The other order was suppose to come with a side of fries, but that was completely forgotten.
We didn't say anything because we didn't want to wait any longer to eat. I got the chicken tacos, and the chicken was completely bland and dry. The shrimp and fish tacos were bland too. The corn tortillas were served straight out of a grocery store bag as well as the Costco tortilla chips.
So, why the two stars if everything was so crappy? Our server acknowledged the slow service and comp'ed our first round of drinks.
We were so put off by the place that WE DO NOT WANT TO GO BACK AT ALL. We don't even want to go back just for drinks. It was just too bad of an experience.
Ordered the half sandwich/half soup, and a vodka soda w/ lime.. the perfect post-work combination, right?
Sandwich: Chicken Salad (REALLY good! Freshly roasted and shredded chicken, mixed with mayo, sliced almonds, and sliced red grapes) on fresh french bread.
Soup: Tomato Bisque (Drooooool. It definitely wasn't your average canned or boxed tomato bisque soup. It was actually FRESH! You could clearly taste the fresh cream.)
Vodka soda: Surprisingly strong and tasty, and in a normal-sized glass.. not a super teeny weeny one.
Ambiance is great! Located in a business area, but had a diverse group of people.. we even had a table next to us, with Verizon workers wearing fake mustaches and sombreros for their "Fiesta Loca" week at work.. haha. Full bar, plenty of TVs, fancy faucets in the bathroom... you know, all the good stuff.
YES YES YEEEEES!!!!
I am so happy there is a great local place by my house again =0) I've been here twice now since it has opened and it is always packed! Today (Tuesday) there were about 80+ people. Last Friday there were probably 200 heads!! CRAZY turn out =0) The bar food is amazing, especially the coconut shrimp and pulled pork sliders. Also a greeeeat place to watch sports. I must have counted like 14 LCD screens.
I will be coming here weekly lol. Here's one for you kid!!
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