Tavern At the Armory

went there for breakfast and was staying at the inn. simple breakfast that came within 20 minutes. potatoes a little uncooked but there was no rush or bustle with only 2 people in for breakfast a friday morning.

Had breakfast this morning after staying the night. Excellent buttermilk pancakes and the potato hash was amazing…

Living in Middletown, we have a choice of many fine restaurants. Unfortunately, that means that I have never made time for this little restaurant inside the Inn at Middletown. Taste of Middlesex Country rolled around and we were planning to visit a different restaurant, but found they were closed on Mondays. We decided to try Tavern at the Armory and we were pleasantly surprised.
I had previously looked at the menu and thought the prices were a little high. So going during Taste of Middlesex County week gave us the chance to try it out for a little less money. They were busy when we arrived, with a few larger parties waiting for tables, but we got right in as a party of two. I thought the dining room was lovely, dim lighting, fireplace going, perfect for a nice dinner on a cold winter’s night. It was so inviting.
Our waitress kept apologizing, as she said they were short staffed, but she did such a wonderful job. She was really nice and our dinner had a nice leisurely pace. Sometimes during restaurant weeks you get rushed through dinner, but not here. We had a bottle of wine and relaxed and enjoyed the meal.
The food was wonderful as well. I started with the pumpkin and crab bisque and my husband had the pork shank drumettes. I’m a huge soup fan, but actually like his better. The sauce was just so good! A little spicy, a little sweet. For dinner, we both had the filet with mashed potatoes and vegetables. It was perfectly cooked, but did need a little bit of salt. The veggies were good, a good mix of quality vegetables that were cooked perfectly. We were so full by dessert, but ordered it anyway since it came with the Taste of Middlesex county menu. I got the apple tart with caramel sauce and cinnamon whipped cream. It was amazing! I love a good warm apple dessert, and this hit the spot. I only wish I was able to eat more, I was just too stuffed. My husband got cheesecake, which was fine, nothing special.
Overall, we had such a nice experience at Tavern at the Armory. Now that we know the quality of the food, we will definitely be back. Their regular menu prices now seem a lot more reasonable. And I could definitely use a few more nights in front of that fireplace before the winter is over!

Visited one night a few weeks ago for a cocktail and some of the Inn’s advertised HAPPY HOUR bites. Middletown has not taken advantage of its historical buildings to create fine eateries, so its a surprise to find a quaint tavern within a former armory. A well done property. The bar counter seats about 15 and looks towards the gas fireplace in the tavern [one of many sites on property]. The barkeep was affable although he kept disappearing from the bar [perhaps doing double duty] The food bites were ok. My happy hour tiny bbq pork ribs were overdone and not warm. [Sort of what one expects from a buffet table set up one hour before]. My clam chowder was served in a huge soup bowl. Very very creamy and very very thick. Having tasted clam chowder in several CT bistros this summer, I am not a fan of the spoon-​standing-​up consistency. I’d rather my chowder be less gelatinous and less filled with starches to bind it. Nevertheless, the clam chowder is a virtual cornucopia of clam pieces, giving most hungry Middletown visitors a happy chew. The wine I drank by the goblet was acceptable. The Inn is a lovely venue for many happy moments and from what I understand the other dining rooms are kept busy with all sorts of affairs. Continued success.

Ate here a couple of times for breakfast and once for dinner while staying at the Inn at Middletown. I would definitely recommend the place for breakfast as those two meals were excellent. My dinner, which consisted of pork tenderloin, was also good, but nothing special. Service was always very good and overall, no real complaints. The next time I find myself staying at the Inn, I will definitely be coming back here for breakfast.

Great place and surprised not better known. Food, staff, bar atmosphere and drink selection all great

American cuisine with a New England vibe! Old style 1800^th century feel. Every time I treat myself here I leave very content. Custom dishes that will excite your palate for sure!!!

Service was average, food ho-​hum and overpriced. Spend your money elsewhere. Judging by the fact that there were only two tables filled on a Sunday afternoon, I guess others know this already. Burger was on a roll that was kind of dry. French fries were very good. My glass of wine was overpriced. Décor is nice.

The clam chowder is literally to die for. Service sitting at the bar is always fast and friendly. I LOVE the bartenders. Went in with the hub a month or so ago for lunch and was disappointed with dining room service so I lost a star. The waitress never came to refill drinks. We waited over 15 minutes for her to even come to our table. However, I could see that they were short staffed that day but there was still not too many people in the restaurant. I’m calling it a fluke and moving on.
There is never a wait when I have gone for a table or seat at the bar. Their happy hour is great. Their specials are awesome. I highly recommend!

Barker Carl took great care of us. I never write reviews. The beacon wrapped scallops and pork chops was one on the best meals I had in a long time. I’ll be back many times.

Probably my worst ever experience at a bar in my life. I was with a group for a special occasion at this bar for about two hours. The help was unbelievably bad. The bald guy working the bar was walking around all night with a scowl on his face like he was warming up for his next MMA fight or something. We all mentioned it to each other but were not going to let it ruin our night. Getting a beer was very difficult for a bar the size of my closet which was a little disturbing but the real kikcer came at the end of the night. When I got my bill I was shocked. The thing was completely outrageous. I was drinking on my own tab and bought a couple of drinks for a friend and a girl but my tab was so outrageous I could not believe it. If I drank all he said I had I would’ve been dead from alcohol poisoning. I questioned the brooding MMA fighter /​bartender about the tab but he did not even have the decency to discuss it with me. I did not want to take it any further and ruin the special occasion I was having with my friends by getting into a debate with the bartender over the most outrageous tab I have ever gotten in my life so I paid. No tip, and left. I brought it up with the help at the front desk when I checked out the next morning but they were just ushering me out the door. Next step is to call the bar management or owner and then also speak to the hotel management. Letters, phone calls, everything. This is the single worst experience in a bar I have ever had and this bald buy with the sleeve tattoo was the worst bartender /​service industry person I have ever met, and I worked in this industry as a kid so I get it. He has no business being associated with this bar or hotel. Do Not Go Here If You See The Bald, Tattooed, wannabe MMA Fighter behind the bar. Take your business somewhere else! I can not stress how awful this made my whole experience for the weekend. I think they are connected to the hotel too and if that is the case I hold them just as responsible.

Apparently things have changed for the most part in the last couple of years. If you go when KELLY is working, you will be pleased. Also if you go when DEE is working, you will be pleased. They have a burger and brew special during the off season (fall/​winter) that is great. Sunday-​Thursday.
We LOVE it. Generally when Kelly is there we like to come by once a week!

Worst service ever ! After waiting about 45 min our meals arrived and both were wrong ! The waitress had no clue they weren’t what we ordered (from her!). We explained what was ordered she took them away and another 45 mins later we finally got the correct order. Waitress just made a joke about us finally having the correct food and left ! We finished our drinks and called the waitress over for refills… she brought me the wrong wine refill and no refill for my husband. When it came time for dessert she rattled off dessert items while clearing the table, took our order and again we sat for about a half hour waiting for a piece of cold pie ! People sitting behind us were also complaining about waiting so long for cold pie! Not even an apology for the wrong food and/​or long wait for dessert. Would hate to see what the service would be had they been busy! Food was just OK. Will probably never go there again. Very disappointing

Tried to go Tavern for brunch a few weeks ago. Key word– TRIED. Despite having a reservation and being the only group in the entire restaurant, there was no waitress to be had. The host or manager that sat us warned us it would be a few minutes before the waitress would get to us (she was serving a bridal suite upstairs) but that she would be with us. As we sat there, 2 other tables were seated and told the same thing. We waited over 25mins and still had no service– no one so much as offered us drinks, not even a glass of water. Worst of all, we went to the hotel front desk and let the manager know and he didn’t do anything or even seem to really care. When we finally gave up and left, he didn’t even apologize. Seriously I don’t even know how this place is in business.

I am a fan!
In desperate need of a cheeseburger, we first tried to venture to Kay La Mays to discovered they’re closed on Sunday. Where else can you get a good burger in Middletown on the south end of Main Street without having to trek up to Eli Cannons? Obviously I’m about to tell you: Tavern at the Armory!
We walked in and there was a shower of some sorts happening in the party room next door, a few people in the bar, and one family in the dining room (granted this was 3pm on Sunday). We both ordered their regular cheese burger with fries and water.
A few minutes later, the waitress brought out a small plate of hummus and bread. The hummus was bright orange which was very strange to me at first, but it was love at first dip. Seeing that we enjoyed the hummus so much, the waitress brought us more (SO nice but in the future we will wait for the ENORMOUS burger I’m about to tell you about).
So our burgers come out. They are HUGE. We could have definitely split one! It was on a wonderful crusty roll with pickles, onions, tomatoes and lettuce. The beef was juicy, and the burger was cooked very well (I ordered it medium and it actually came out medium).
The fries — OH the fries. They’re served in a cute little dish with a cup of ketchup. Perfect for dipping the moment they are placed in front of you. They were hot, crispy, and a cross between a steak fry and regular hand cut. Not sure if they were frozen (that is a big thing for me) but honestly they were so good I didn’t notice/​care.
Our bill came to $ 20ish bucks with just the burgers… not bad for what we got. We WILL be back!
*Great selection of on-​tap beer.
*Have heard great things about their happy hour — haven’t been yet.
*The other family in the dining room got their food right before us and the father had ordered a lobster roll. IT. WAS. HUGE! I really want to go back and try it because for a lobster roll that big at $ 14!!! With fries (that’s how they’ll get me back in the door!).
*The waitress mentioned some kind of «Armory» card that would get you discounts. The front desk lady didn’t know what I was talking about but she was new, so I’ll go back and inquire again some other day.

This may be my first 1 star review… This place is an abomination. Early on a Saturday evening I was with 2 other friends and we were doing a little bar/​restaurant sampling in downtown Middletown. Our biggest mistake? Wasting our time and $ 18.06 at this place.
Despite our fears of this place a judged by the Unilocal photos, we walked in… and to our surprise we were quite pleased with the ambience around the bar. They had a decent beer selection, the other (albeit, white haired) folks were seemingly enjoying each others company and their meals/​drinks. There was a TV with college basketball on. It couldn’t be that bad right? We may have found a hidden gem! Alas, it all went steeply downhill from there…
We ordered drinks, my friend ordered a Palm, he received a Magic Hat #9, in a Magic Hat #9 glass. We finished our drinks and were ready for another round. The bartender (s) were nowhere to be found! A carousel of different people appeared, poured drinks, and served other patrons intermittently… There was no one to even ask if we could have our check and pay… 20 minutes after we finished our beers finally someone appeared who said «I’ll get the bartender for you»… Five minutes later the «Bartender» arrived saying «Sorry for the wait.» We promptly asked for the check, left no tip and ran as fast as we could from this classless establishment.
In my years of attending bars, I have never sat at a bar with an empty beer glass for 30 minutes. Especially a quiet bar with only 8 other people sitting there. None of these amateur «Bartenders» even thought to remove the empty glasses and ask us if we’d like another round… It took us 15 minutes to pay! They obviously didn’t want our money, and I promise they will never see a dime of my money again.

I came here for brunch the day after a wedding (I was a +1). The rest of the wedding party had already arrived when my friend and I got there. Our party was pretty big, so we were separated into several tables of about 8 people or so.
There is a breakfast buffet (including standard breakfast items like scrambled eggs, bacon, waffles, etc). I opted to order off the menu because I really wanted eggs Benedict. I ordered the traditional breakfast benedict (it was between the traditional or the lobster benedict, but my cheapness won out).
All of the food that came out was generous in portion size. I could only eat half of it. It tasted pretty good as well. I also ordered a black coffee, which was well-​brewed.
Hmm, other than that, not much to comment on. The service was pretty decent, especially given the fact that we were such a huge party. Our waitress was very nice.
If you’re staying at the inn, I suggest you come here for some breakfast.

Awesome. Tavern attached to The Inn at Middletown. Food is Great, decent bar selection. Very happy and kept my wedding party and family drunk both pre and post wedding!

I went here when they first opened and found the place to extremely expensive for what you got. Food was average. Perhaps things have changed since my last visit.

What a rip-​off!
From the prices, and the looks of the menu, you’d expect this to be a fancy restaurant. It’s not; it’s just expensive for expensive’s sake.
They have a $ 27 steak entrée described as «New York Sirloin». It sounds great on the menu, but if you ask the waiter, he’ll confirm that it’s a sirloin steak, not a New York strip steak. Sirloin is a cheap, chewy, mild-​flavored steak, best served sliced super thin, or chopped into a burger; New York strip is a classic steakhouse steak — tender, flavorful, and expensive.
My wife ordered a different steak, still pricey at $ 24. Out came frickin’ sirloin tips! Sirloin tips! $ 6.99 lb. at frackin’ Whole Foods! She ordered it medium, and it came out on the raw side of rare — not even close. Back it went to the kitchen, where they obviously microwaved it. up to well done. Ugh.
We also ordered a Moroccan spiced chicken, described as dressed in lemon, olives, honey and spices (cinnamon, cardamom, etc.). Out came a half chicken absolutely blackened with a thick char, leaving all but the thigh inedibly dry. Oh, and I counted one entire olive.
I ordered a shrimp and crabmeat provencale dish. Our came a shallow bowl of brothy* but undercooked basmati rice with 8 flaccid medium (I’m guessing 26 – 30) shrimp and a fair portion of «special» (small flake — the cheap stuff) crabmeat. (*the broth, of course, was bland,)
On the bright side, they have a very decent selection of beer on tap, beyond the usual boring Bud-​Sam-​Bass selection. Service was friendly, if inattentive.
Bottom line: I can’t think of a reason to ever eat here again. Plenty of other dining choices within walking distance.