I have been here about 10 times..each time southie is getting to be a post college kiddie crowd. yawn. Â The sports screens are very good hereand the layout of the place is good too....but booze is over priced..and the bartenders are varied..from mediocre to decent. There was a bartender here who seriously might be the worst bartender ever and couldnt get a drink correct..he acts as if he is doing you a favor..and quite frankly his hair and beard is a weak effort to overcompensate for his non masculine frame..he was inattentive and kept trying to talk to the girls next to us..the hostess was really polite and friendly as was the door guy who held the door for us and greeted us warmly. Â The good thing was the drinks were stronger depending who made it. I would say the food is typical bar food. Â By no means was anything amazing in some of these reviews whatsoever. I do like seaport sister restaurants much better and would recommend the post college kiddies go back to brighton. If you want more mature stick to local 149 or the franklin in southie..lincoln was quite cheesy.
Review Source:Standard higher-end bar, a la Tavern in the Square, Boston Beer Garden, etc. Drinks were moderately priced and the music was good on a Saturday night. Some people got up to dance, that was pretty cool.
Crowd is mixed between younger people new to Southie, younger people from Southie, and older people from Southie. Still, it is a good time.
I'd actually give it 3.5 stars if I could, but the laws of rounding bring it up to 4.
Didn't have the food, so this is purely based on a Saturday night drinking session.
DELICIOUS. As per usual, I was that person at the restaurant and asked them to alter another sandwich to fit with my whole vegetarian thing I've got going on. So instead of a chicken and pear panini, my sandwich consisted of the following:
-Melted Brie Cheese
-Tiny slivers of pear
-Sautéed spinach
-Herb aioli  Â
All toasted on rosemary ciabiatta bread, which was a pretty tasty carbohydrate in itself.
Much to my chagrin many restaurants that serve sandwiches with Brie tend to go easy on the amount that they include in the sandwich due to the naturally strong flavor of the cheese, but this establishment did not commit such a horrible atrocity. Unfortunately, this wasn't the most powerful tasting Brie cheese I've had, but it definitely satisfied my cheese fix for the day. That's right, the day. Â People underestimate how much I love cheese- just last weekend half my grocery bill went to a wide variety of cheeses. Expensive cheeses. I'm in graduate school, I should be more responsible with my finances.
Anyway the herb aioli added a nice flavor, and of course condiments are almost always necessary on sandwiches to keep them from being dry and scratching the back of your throat. Â Even though I love me some mayonnaise, too much of a condiment can really detract from a sandwich, but thankfully the Playwright didn't go overboard with the aioli and the flavoring of the herbs was soft enough to compliment the rest of the sandwich rather than overpower the other ingredients.
The tiny slivers of raw pear added a nice, sweet flavor contrast to the rest of the savory sandwich, and additionally added a nice change in consistency from the softness of the brie/cooked spinach. Â
Bottom Line: Even though the bar/restaurant was a wee bit loud for the likes of this old lady, the food was actually a lot better than I expected and I would recommend stopping by for a bite if you're in Southie. Plus their coleslaw is pretty bitchin'
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Southie, I love you. Went here the other day with a bunch of friends and had a fantastic evening. Place gets packed quick and stays crowded until it closes. Really nice wait staff that you can joke around with made our experience much better.
Admittedly I did not eat food here, I just came here for Friday night which was A LOT of fun. Place is conveniently located right near the bus and right down the street (not walking distance) from the Broadway T-Stop. Â Lots of people in their mid-late twenties that live in the area, I'd definitely say this is a breath of fresh air compared to the typical Fanieul trips my friends make. Stop in, meet some new people, and have a lot to drink, you won't regret it.
I went here for lunch mid week. Â The service was absolutely terrible. Â The bartender's were the wait staff during the day and the place was very slow. Â The food was however decent for bar food. I have never been here for the nightlife but I have heard it is a decent place on the weekends for South Boston. Â When it comes to the restaurant I would say try one of the other places in the area.
Review Source:Definately prefer this bar to all the other typical ones in Southie.
Service is always prompt and much friendlier and competent than other places( I'm looking at you, Stats). Food and drinks are reasonably priced and I've never been disappointed with any of the menu choices.
And from what I've noticed, the crowd here seems just a tad more...normal...than other bars. Not too young, old, obnoxious, boring, dirty, clean...somewhere in the middle.
Fun Trivia on Tuesday, Monday's wing night, and I'm actually never too afraid of being fondled/manhandled by the weekend crowd (still looking right at you Stats).
All in all a solid Southie bar that's become a regular haunt for me and the BF.
22 oz beers for under $10. That is the highlight.
Aside from that...
We were seated at a table near the door. Please explain why TWO doormen on a slow and cold Thursday night were needed and why they had to open BOTH huge doors when letting someone in. Just to freeze the crap out of patrons trying to drink and eat?
My friend's mac and cheese never cooled down while we sat there drinking and me eating my meal. My burger was good. Insanely messy but good.
I guess you can't go wrong with a burger and beer but why put together a huge menu if the other stuff isn't great?
My third visit - still not impressed. It's a 2.5. No bad service. No reason to hate the place. I would just rather spend my money elsewhere for better food and same drink.
My friend and I came in on a rather cold Saturday night for spring. Â She wanted to go out in Southie, and I was driving, so I figured why not. Â Our bartender from Top of the Hub earlier in the night suggested if we wanted to go out in Southie, the Playwright should be on our list. Â Ok, got it. Â
But what's with the interior? Â Even though we were in there at night, the place was so dark! Â Dark wood, dark floors, dark bathrooms, etc. Â
We sat at the bar and had great service from both the bartender and the bar manager on duty. Â Other patrons were nice, but it certainly was an older crowd. Â Overall, it was fun and we will be back!
Was forced to go here last Friday night. Â The food we got was pretty darn good! I was quite surprised! Â Sam Spring on tap and we got a bunch of appetizers, all of which get a hearty thumbs-up from me!
Spinach and Artichoke dip, now a standard everywhere, was good and popular: people were sticking OTHER apps in it.
Boneless buffalo wings were really good - crispy and great with beer (what isn't?).
The Nachos Grande were the big surprise, to me. Â The chips were light and flaky and different from the run-of-the-mill corn chips in these things. Â It was EXCELLENT.
Chicken Quesedilla was HUGE and good too.
The Rattlers were probably my favorite: Chicken wrap thing. Â Really good!!!
-
So, a better experience this time around. Â Who knows with this place?
I recently went to the Playwright for brunch and was less than ecstatic about my experience there. We were seated right away and it was relatively busy. After we were seated, our server forgot our drink order until we reminded her a while later. The food also took a long time to come out and was OK, but not great. I ordered chocolate chip pancakes and they were pretty dry. Our  server was not particularly friendly or helpful either.
In terms of a sports bar, however, the Playwright is a great place to go for drinks and a night out. It is usually busy and the atmosphere is lively and fun. I think the food here is usually decent but the inconsistency makes me second guess going back for a meal. There are huge flat screens all over the place and the seating is very comfortable so I would highly recommend the Playwright as a place to watch a good sports game and grab some drinks with friends.
Went to the play right around 9 o'clock on saturday night. We were seated promptly but that was the best part of the  experience. The menu is fairly limited and doesn't offer many exciting options. In fact vegetarian options are veggie burger,  quesadilla or salad,  that's it.
Every time I've been to the playwright I've had the same waitress who is very nice and helpful. She delivers food quickly and refills soda regularly.
But this service can make up for the playwrights shortcomings.
The place is incredibly loud and the whole time we were eating we got a cold draft from the front door.
The playwright has its place as a watering hole where are you can drink heavily and not care but for a dining experience it's not hey great place to go.
Graduation day. I was hungover from the night before. Sad? yes. College life? Yes. Surprise? No. Needless to say, I was forced to sit through a 4 hour Commencement Ceremony and I was dying the entire time. I exerted energy twice. 50% of my energy went towardslooking decent while crossing the stage since there were big screens EVERYWHERE, and 50% went to getting to the Playwright afterwards.
This is the place I chose as my Graduation dinner. Not because of the ambience, (which isn't even too shabby,) and not because of the top class service. (Even though they were really nice as well.) But because my ass wanted a huge bowl of Grilled Chicken Mac N' Cheese and a huge basket of Sweet Potato fries. (Oh and a gallon of water to rehydrate myself.) Food has consistently been good, and I just love the atmosphere. It's not a quiet place, but you can still hear people over the TV's on the walls and the great Southie Residents that frequent the place.
Only weird thing is that the music they play over the speakers can be a little weird in theme. BUT, it caused a table behind us to break out into song when Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car" came on. We all started singing along with them. Totally fine. So much fun.
Not sure what it is about this place, but at 4pm on a Saturday afternoon this place was packed with absolutely gorgeous women. Maybe the guys were all at the Sox game, but the beauty was everywhere. When some would leave, more would arrive, even more beautiful than the last. It was at least a 80-20 mix of women to men.
Service was friendly, the food was good (bar food) and the beer selection extensive. But don't go for the food, the beer or the service - go for the view.
Solid pub. Went last night for Stump Trivia (Tuesdays, 8:00pm). We came in second (first place team beat us by 2 points - AND they cheated). But that's beside the point.
- Stuffed mushrooms were pretty good. I wasn't expecting them to be deep fried, but then again, anything deep fried has the tendency to be good.
- Smokehouse Burger (cheddar & BBQ) was tasty. Cooked to order which was nice. The regular fries were alright. Nothing out of this world, but standard, well-made pub-fare.
- Beer selection was great. Had a couple Long Trail Blackberry Wheats and topped it all off with the Banana Bread beer. Yum.
I'd definitely come back (more for the trivia and to try some nachos).
This is a really great place to go for lunch. It's always really clean, the service is pretty good, and the food is fairly decent. I've had the club salad which is quite tasty, the bbq steak tip sandwich which is really good, and their soups are consistently good and not too salty.
I love the setup of this restaurant. High stools and tables, so it doesn't feel as crowded as other Southie eateries. It's a great place to eat during the summer because they open up those huge windows to give you a great breeze.
At night this place gets crowded FAST. The music gets pretty loud and everyone gets pretty drunk (surprise, surprise). I feel that this place boasts a slightly more gentrified clientele than the Beer Garden or other Southie spots, so if I am out in Southie you can find me here. Cause ..you know. I'm cool like that.
I came here this weekend for Sunday Funday kick off, and it is like the Cheers of Southie, in a good way.
The crowd kept growing from 1pm on, and the brunch was served all day as far as I could tell. Â I had the bacon blue burger, medium and it was AMAZING. Â I seriously fell in love with that thing. Â The fries were really crispy too, which is one of my other favorite things. My date had eggs benedict - these were really good, but the burger had me captivated. Â The fried snickers were damn good as well, although I limited myself to like 4 bites ;)
I drank prosecco all morning (haha, lame I know), but between the people we knew and my date many other drinks were ordered and the bill was pretty reasonable.
Great environment to make new friends - we chatted w the bartender's friend sitting next to us, 2 random girls at the bar, and ran into many other people we knew.
Ugh, the Playwright. Kinda h8 u, bro. 1.5 stars.
I've come here for Trivia Night (Tuesdays) with my friends that live in Southie and had a pretty terrible experience. First of all, the trivia is SUPER easy (and not even easy in a Cash-Cab, fun kinda way). If you want real trivia, go to Somerville, kidz.
Secondly, the SERVICE iS AWFUL. When the waitress came to wipe our tables down after a nacho round she literally "tsked" and went "ugh, ew. gross." UMMM??? Seriously? A) what do you expect when 6 people eat nachos and you don't even bring us mini plates? B) WTF? C) The nachos sucked a$$.
Thirdly, the drinks are supppah expensive. Sorry, but the fact that your Bud Light is in a glass pitcher doesn't make it OK to charge more for it. Plus it was warm. My friends got cocktails and the fact that they didn't order seconds (these people love cocktails) was a bad sign.
Thanks but no thanks Playwright. CUL8RLOL
I have been spending too much time in this bar and I'm not even offially moved to Southie yet!
This bar has great "bar food". I have yet to try anything off the brunch  menu, but I've been fully satisfied with lunch and dinner. Some of my favorites include the buffalo queso dip, the cobb salad, and the mini rattlesnake things. Good sized portions - great food!
I'm also a fan of coming here to go out at night. They have big screen tv's all over the bar, so you can always watch any game that is on. The crowd is usually pretty good and I've never really had bad bar service. They have a lot of beers on tap and are willing to make shots and drinks based on whatever mood your in.
I have no complaints about the Playwright!
After an afternoon stroll at Castle Island, the hubby and I worked up an appetite. We were looking for some bar food, nothing too fancy. We drove up East Broadway for the first time ever. Tons of choices on this street but came across this cool, trendy bar/restaurant.
It was an early Friday evening so the place wasn't packed but the bar was full of some peeps that just came out of work ready for happy hour.
The restaurant is probably a great place to watch any sporting event cause it has TV's  that take up every inch of the walls around the place. But they do it tastefully.. it's not tacky in any way.
The hubby was hankering for some meatloaf as soon as he saw they had it. And I was craving something more simple like a grilled chicken sandwich and fries. NO WAIT! They offer curly fries.. WELL OFCOURSEEE I needed to have the curly fries!! The prices were good... my meal was about $9 and the hubby's a little over $10. The food came out pretty quick. The hubs really enjoyed his meatloaf and sweet potato fries. And my chicken sandwich hit the spot. I do have to say our fries were a bit cold and seemed like they were sitting for a bit. That was kind of disappointing.
Surprisingly we had room for dessert. I did say we worked up an appetite! We ordered the cheesecake with strawberries. It was interesting. the crust was warm and the strawberries they put on top were warmed up also but the cheesecake was cold. They probably threw it in the oven for a second... The hubby liked the hot and cold, me not so much. But, it didn't bring down the meal. I still enjoyed everything and they've got a new fan in me.
I can't wait to return!!!
Went here on my first trip to Southie this past weekend. We went for a late lunch/ early dinner (5pm?) so didn't have any trouble getting a table.
Service was quick, professional and friendly. I wasn't that impressed with the menu and ordered the buffalo chicken wrap ($8.99). The wrap was good and I didn't eat many fries (but they were good and there were a lot of them).
I thought a lot of the menu was overpriced but was satisfied with the experience.
Thoughts going through our waitress's head that night:
Oh great, a couple in their early to mid 20s on a nice Saturday night... I need a group of men to be at my table, ordering everything on the menu and 10 beers each. It's dead in here! No one cares about the Olympics! Whatever, let's get this over with.
Oh, you need more time with the menu? Awesome. I'll come back in 1 minute to see if you're ready yet.
You ready yet? Okay, you are... good. This guy is cool, getting a beer and some wings. Sweet, appetizer. That's a good start. This girl sucks. "What's on tap," you ask? Well, why don't you turn around in your seat and look at the tap lines... I'm going to list off the beers for you in a very rude manner. Oh, now you want a bottled beer? What, our draft selection isn't good enough for you? Let me guess... you're not getting anything to eat. Yep, I'm right. Don't smile at me when you say you're all set.
Here you go: two beers. I'll throw the coasters on the table rather than put them under the glasses, and I won't say anything to either of you.
Here you go: a plate of wings. Sir, would you like to order anything else? No? Oh, so your getting a plate of wings and a beer for dinner, while your awesome friend here sips on her bottle? Sweet. Bye.
It's been about 10 minutes; they should be done with their beers. Second round, guys? Don't look at each other to make a silent decision; order beers dammit! Okay good... second round, I'm warming up to you two now, but I'm not going to ask if you want the same beer or something different. Instead, I'll assume you want the same thing.
Here are your beers. Now I'm going to take away your old ones even though there is about 4-5 sips left. Where's the ladies room??! Can't you read bitch?! I'm going to point to the door rather than talk to you.
Ready for round three? No? Is that a credit card in your hand? Fine, good. I'm going to ring it up in under 30 seconds and throw the check back on the table, without a smiley face and my name. I might not even wish you a good night... yep, I'm not going to wish you a good night.
---------------------------
To be fair, we had no intention of ordering dinner and all that, but were seated at a table and not at the bar, like we asked. The waitress was awful, but I still want to give this place 2 stars because the bar itself is nice.
I'm giving this place a very mixed review. My apologies in advance if it's hard to follow.
There's plenty of beers on tap, the bartenders are quick, and a waitress was right there when I needed another beverage. The space is clean and modern. All qualities for a great bar.
I'm taking away 2 stars for unoriginality. How many ways can Boston do the "little bit nicer pub with a million flat screens"? Answer: Too many for this place to be worth the trek from Brighton.
If you live in the area, great - but not a place to go out of your way for. Sorry!
I've been here twice. Â Once during the summer for lunch. Â I got the chicken pear sandwich which was great and the perfect blend of filling you up, but still feeling light and healthy.
On my return visit, I decided to do the exact opposite and try the fried snickers!! It was good, it's basically a "once a year" thing to do. It's 3 snickers bars, which are fried and topped with ice cream and whipped cream. Â I couldn't eat it all, so I shared with some friends.
I also munched on the nachos which were quite tasty. Â The staff is really nice. Â I had decided to run there from my apt in South Boston to get a little exercise in prior to the fried snickers and the guy at the door let me in for dinner without my ID.
I was pleasantly surprised with this restaurant after we decided to try it for brunch this past weekend. Â The menu was varied with a lot of breakfast selections, as well as their full lunch menu available. Â Two of my friends had the breakfast burrito which was huge and full of everything delicious.
Another asked if he could get just one pancake to go with his omelet, a request that they happily agreed to. Â The restaurant lost a star due to slow service, but it was otherwise a great experience.
Needed a quick dinner and was feeling the need for some Mexican. Hmm. If you've lived here, you know that can be a challenge, but luckily I could get a burrito here, and even though it can't really compare to any REAL burrito, it works for me, in times of need. Next time I might go for the nachos. The chicken pot pie at the nearby table looked really good and was HUGE.
And they have Magners. Enough Said
My review might be a little lame because sometimes I feel like I'm too old for this place but I still like it, mostly because of Tuesday trivia and the brunch, plus it's right up the street from my place. You probably won't catch me in here on a Friday night but it's great for sox games in the middle of the week, plus the food isn't half bad, your typical bar food. ......Let me rephrase that, you wont catch me in here on a Friday night because I am 34, live with my fiance and am broke.......if I was single I would probably be up there 3-4 nights a week.
My only issue, the place gets absolutely packed on Tuesdays (that's not the issue), I have to assume that people pile in there simply because it's trivia night...so make the damn prizes worth while. I think first place is like $30 bucks or something like that.......that sucks, plus if anybody has been there for trivia....that shit ain't easy, I consider myself a fairly intelligent person and the closest we've ever come to winning is a 3 way tie for forth. You have a table of 6 drinking and eating for 2+ hours take $100 off that tab for first place....$30 is weeeeeeeeaaaaaak.
Other establishments please notice, people love trivia, it makes them feel like they are accomplishing something as opposed to just swilling 5 dollar beers.....
Friend: Hey what did you do last night.?
Me: Got shit-housed.....
Improved
Friend: Hey what did you do last night?
Me: Played trivia and got shit-housed.....
See the difference people....
I always want to go to the Playwright because it is a not-dumpy, serving basic bar food that is decent, big tv sporting place. Close To Home.
The service always seems to need work. I had some time off over the summer and the service even lacked in the middle of the day when there were only about five other customers in the whole place. I don't think you should have to flag down the waitress from afar about four times before she will come to re-fill your water in that situation.
It gets extremely crowded. I agree with reviewer Deanna D - the place seems confused, Sports Bar or Yuppie Hangout? Â I don't know either.
The place is a little confused-- Is it a sports bar or is it a yuppie hang out spot?
Regardless the food was good but nothing special and a bit overpriced. The ambiance is odd since its a clash between a wanna be classy hang out spot and TVs sports pub.
The drinks were ok.
The service at the table was good and the waitress was very attentive.
Its definitely a yuppie hang out spot, so keep that in mind when dressing up.
We won't be back for food but maybe from drinks.
Have you ever noticed how the Playwright is reminiscent of the Danny Tanner clan's wacky  half hour escapades?  No?  Ok, let me break it down for you.
Sometimes I'm totally involved. Â There's laughter, some hugging, light background music as life lessons are doled out by an unsatisfied man who's desperately trying not to burst out into a tourette's like swearing tirade. Â And then other times I'm forced to observe with a certain type of apathy, and even a little bit of sadness for what could have been. Â It's a little boring, a lot cheesy, and filled with bad outfits and big hair. Â And that guy in the corner that laughs loudly at his own jokes while drunk breathing way too close to your face and then all of the sudden gets really mean and nasty when you tell him to leave you alone? Â That's totally Uncle Joey. Â I mean, you'd be sort of pissed if you lived in a basement too.
But 80's sitcoms aside, there is the potential for good times to be had here. Â For starters, just check out their menu. Â A buffalo chicken dip that's too good to be good for you. Â Curly fries. Â Tasty tiny sliders (I don't care if they're trendy has beens, that shit's good). Â You'll definitely be able to find the bar food regulars here, done up a bit nicer than your average Southie watering hole cum dressed up sports bar nee' total drunkfest. Â And I'll give a huge "you got it dude" to the staff. Â Friendly, funny, and fast bartenders, polite doormen, competent and smiling waitresses, I've never had a single service related complaint here. Â Is it fair to dock 2 stars for their clientele if the Playwright itself is obviously trying hard to do everything right? Â Maybe not, but life isn't always fair. Â Just ask Kimmy Gibbler.
Good option for Southie. Â Since the new lay out and new TVs it is a great place to watch a game. Â I prefer Playwright to Beer Garden. Â The acoustics in Beer Garden make it impossible to have a conversation.
The spinach dip is amazing. Â They always have a good beer selection and the wait staff is friendly and efficient. Â Overall above average bar food.
This place was alright. Â Food was good, but service was really lacking. Â When you're hungover, and really just need your Coke and greasy burger and fries, this isn't the place to come to if you want your food fast.
Loved the inside of this place, and would be nice to come back and sit at the bar and watch a game while drinking several beers.
This place has consistently good food. Â I'm not a big fan of the remodel since I don't care to hang out with the bunch of 20-something white, Southie hipsters watching sports in the bar, but it's definitely a good spot for meeting up with people.
Love the pastas and the beer selection. Â Friends seem to really like the other dishes as well.
I spent my st. patty's day parade day here and i thought it was a decent bar. BUT:
1.when we got there the place wasn't even half full and the bouncer made us wait outside for appearance sake. that was LAME.
2. $20 cover. I know it's standard for St. Patty's but it still sucks.
3. oh and a special "st. patty's day price list" that was at least $1 more per beer and $10 for a veggie burger. D-bags.
the scene was alright except for some drunk guys who kept saying "why aren't you all smiling and getting wild?! come on it's st. patty's day!!!" - why, because we are just chillin' dude so go rufie someone else.
i'm sure it's a cool bar on a normal day and the service was very friendly and prompt which earned playwright it's 3rd star.
Nice staff.
+ Strong drinks
+ Large Screen TV's
_________________
Sure, why not.
3 stars for the above, but I can't really see myself rushing back. The vibe is just kinda cold and grey, but the manager or owner was really nice and definitely made us feel welcome in spite of the meh interior.
I'm giving Playwright four stars just because it's so much better than the Beer Garden, and I want that kept in mind:) Â I've never gone wrong with the food here, and everyone seems to always be able to find something they like.
Unlike most bars, if I come in for a pint alone, I don't instantly end up with someone talking to me, and that's a good thing.
Not the most well organized space, but a decent stop as long as you miss the weekend night crowds.
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