Dad Watsons

Simple, if you don’t know how to fry some fries you should not be a cook.

Dad Watson’s is another in the long line of McMenamins establishments. This means that the beer will be meh and the food will be the same as all the other McMenamins that are out there.
It wouldn’t have been my choice of places to go, but we were meeting some folks here and they chose it.
The beer is still meh. We didn’t eat as I’ve eaten in McMenamins before and if you’ve eaten in one, you’ve eaten in all.
Great part of town. Next time I’d like to explore around here a bit more.

I visited Dad Watson’s a couple of weeks ago at Happy Hour for a friend’s birthday celebration.
For a cool-​looking bar in a great location, it was oddly empty at 5 PM on a Friday. We were one of only a few tables there. Service was friendly and fairly efficient. Between the six of us, we tried several of their beers and liked all of them. I think they only have their own McMenamins stuff on tap, so if you’re loyal to European beers you might be disappointed, but it really was good. The $ 4 cheeseburger was good and a great deal for happy hour; we also shared multiple orders of tater tots. Seriously addictive.
Maybe not a stand-​out, but definitely a high quality happy hour in Fremont– good food, good beer, and low prices all make me happy.

Don’t expect much
Having eaten there a dozen times, I should know what to expect. Still, though, it’s always startling that the food is so lame. Today, I ordered a salad that cost $ 10. I got back about 40 cents worth of food. It was a bunch of lettuce, four little grape tomatoes, and maybe 7 halved olives.
I like to think that most people are smart, and I like to think that most businesses want to give their customers a sense of satisfaction. One or the other isn’t working at Dad Watson’s. Either the whole kitchen-​to-​table workflow is lacking on brain cycles, or they are just apathetic to what their customers expect. Since everyone that works there seems to be a grad school wannabe, I’m voting B. The only sane explanation for the trick they pulled today is that they really believe the «kids are starving in Africa» ruse and they don’t want to waste good olives on someone who ordered a salad where olives are the main ingredient, for fear they’d have to throw them away.
Bottom Line: These people are just getting through their shift. This place lacks heart, plain and simple. Service is friendly enough to generate tips, but that’s about it.

There are a lot of things I liked at Dad Watsons, starting with the free Wi-​Fi and beer, and a comfortable place to sit. The food was decent, but nothing to write home about. I had a veggie sandwich which I think could have used more cream cheese and less crumbly focaccia. But the Stout was nice, and there was plenty of room in our booth to curl up with the iPad.
I am planning on visiting this place several times, so I will update this review as needed.

It’s funny how you can live in a place for a long time and never notice the bar across the street.
I came here last night (that would be a Monday night) and ended up drinking and playing trivia. Their trivia night is super fun (and free!). It’s a McMenamin’s so if you know about their food and drink menu then you know what you’re in for.
Considering how much of a brodeo Fremont can become on the weekends I imagine this place keeps its cool.

this is one of my favorite Fremont bars (restaurants). it can be difficult to get the servers to warm up to you, but I am originally from the South so I find it a nice challenge. BUT I can see how other people would complain about the waiters /​bartenders ignoring them.
I always get the tater-​tots and have only been disappointed one time. the happy hour menu has a cajun version, so if you order tots during happy hour, make sure you request non-​cajun if you don’t want ‘em spicy!

A couple of coworkers and I got here late one night for an impromptu meeting. We had a few drinks, discussed business and left. It was in a word underwhelming.
Not a bad place per se and I can see it being pretty cool earlier in the day maybe when there are lots of people around or maybe durring one of the many festivals… but overall I was kinda bored.
The drinks were weird… like they wanted to be really good but they just couldn’t be because there’s only so many cool things you can do with well liquor cause at the end of the day it’s still just well liquor.
I did like that they played with bourbon a fair bit though, at least two drinks on the menu were bourbon based and ok at best. Won’t go out of my way to go here but if I’m in the area and just want a beer… yeah I’d do it.

Dad Watson’s has great bloody marys (Spicy! Oh yes! Strong! You got it!). And pretty good veggie burgers (They will substitute veggie for any of their burgers, which is awesome!). Plus a really really good tofu burrito — one of the best I’ve had, hands down.
But, like most of the McMenamins (bar, not hotel) establishments, they’re lacking in service. I can say this b/​c I’ve been to a bazillion of them in both Oregon and Washington and I gotta tell ya — the service is about the same.
This isn’t to say that I won’t keep frequenting them, b/​c I will. I just wish the staff were happier.
…shrug…

Dad Watson’s is a mixed bag. Let’s break it down:
Pros:
Awesome late-​night happy hour (10pm!) with cheeeeap beers
Stumbling distance from my friend’s place in Fremont
Cute and sweet waitresses
Tater tots!
Board games!
Did you hear me… Tater tots!
Cons:
Uncomfortable seating
Smells a bit like dirty socks inside
Food (aside from tater tots!) is pretty meh, and overpriced
Drink Reccomendation:
«The Rubinator» which is a mixture of their «Ruby» and their «Terminator»
Yummmmm!

After trekking up to see the troll, my friends & I quite literally smacked into Dad Watsons on our way down. It was getting a bit chilly, and we were a tad hungry, so we popped inside for a quick drink & some small bites before continuing on with our evening.
Overall, I was fairly impressed with the happy hour selections. We all snagged some drinks & looked over the happy hour food menu. My vodka tonic was quite strong & super cheap, which is tough to find during happy hour sometimes. Everyone else seemed to enjoy their drinks, too, be it booze or beer. I’d say it was a win in that department for sure. We ordered a few different things to eat for the table, including tator tots & hummus with pita. The tots were good, but nothing stood out about them. I guess there isn’t much to do with a tot, really. But I was all over the pita & hummus, so much so that I required my own order. The hummus was fresh & the pita bread was light & fluffy. The combo of the two, plus my stout drink, hit the happy hour spot & I was a happy girl.
I liked the long bar this place had, especially since it was so spacious and had lots of seating. If it had been a tad warmer, I’d have insisted on the patio area, but c’est la vie. We plopped down in a nice, roomy booth and had a great view of the TVs as well as those passing us by on the street. We must have lucked out with our server, because she required no flagging down to get refills. She also split our checks & had us on our way before we knew it.
I’d come here again if I were in the neighborhood. If nothing else, it’s got great people watching potential & a decent happy hour to keep you drunk & full if that’s what strikes your fancy.

Dad Watson’s is one of the numerous extra-​Portland McMennamin’s establishments, and one of three in the metro Seattle area. Like all McMennamin’s, there is a certain theme and style to the décor that lets you know you’re now in a colony of the Edgefield Empire, but it also has enough features unique to the facility to not feel overly cookie cutter.
The Fremont McMennamin’s is probably my favorite of their Seattle outposts. It has a couple of lovely patios, nice natural light, a layout that flows very nicely, and I particularly like the ornamental ironwork in the railing that separates the bar from the dining area.
The food is decent pub food — sandwiches, burgers, salads, soups, etc, and their beers are within the McMennamin’s standards that ensure quality and consistency across their brewing facilities: Not necessarily outstanding, but always fresh and on par with other regional offerings. I do like their Terminator stout for a hearty, filling pint from time to time.
Another thing I like about Dad Watson’s is that the dining area is family-​friendly, so you can enjoy an adult beverage and meal with other adults without ponying up for a babysitter. This is something I have only recently needed to appreciate, and I’m glad to have them as an option for when the usual neighborhood standbys just don’t sound appealing.

I was here with some friends just enjoying a Friday afternoon for happy hour. Great relaxing atmosphere with good company and cheap, delicious eats are always nice.
I sampled the usual cajunized tater tots, hush puppies, happy hour burger, and hummus and pita. everything was about $ 2-​$ 4 each (I think). I really liked the tots and hush puppies were golden brown and delicious. The burger was really worth it for $ 4. It was juicy and the bun was crazy fresh.
The service was freaking awesome at this place. Our waitress was very attentive and handled our large party with no problems. She even separated all of our tabs!

Stopped in here after seeing the «Troll». It was a Monday and the streets seemed empty in the area. Lots of restaurants to choose from but my daughter is with us and she’s picky which means no Greek, no sushi, no … so we stopped in this place because the menu had something for everyone.
First of all, the service was great! I have no complaints about the service at all, as a matter of fact our server was very helpful and suggested that the mac-​n-​cheese could have bacon added to it and we all know everything is better with bacon!
We ordered:
Fish & Chips — grease grease grease
Fish Sandwich — more grease and no flavor
Plain Burger and side salad — ok nothing special
Mac-​n-​Cheese w/​bacon and tater tots — tater tots were crispy and yum but the mac was way to creamy and really no cheesy flavor. The texture was buttery and fatty with no flavor. Booo
I would not come back for the food. To bad.

I stopped by here for a drink after work with a friend and was pleasantly surprised.
Cajun Tater Tots were great. Seasoned just right. Crispy on the outside, tender inside.
Nitro Stout was delicious
I came in the middle of the week and it wasn’t too crowded. Service was pretty good, unlike the experience some other reviews mention. Maybe because it was less crowded when I was there?

Good beer, iffy food.
We went in around 6 o’clock on a Saturday night, and there weren’t that many people inside, just a few people at the bar and a few people seated at tables. We seated ourselves in a roomy booth and looked over the beer list. I had a pint of the Ruby ale, an unfiltered raspberry-​flavored ale, and I really liked it. It didn’t seem very fruity at first, but it grew on me as I drank more.
I ordered the macaroni & cheese. Our food didn’t take long to arrive. My dinner roll was a little stale, but still worth eating. Aside from a crunchy topping of bread crumbs, my macaroni & cheese was pretty disappointing. There was not enough cheese flavor, and the texture felt buttery and fatty in my mouth. Eew. At least the dinner roll was there to «dry out» my mouth.
Back to the beer… The Ruby ale took on a remarkable drinkability as I drank more of it. The raspberry flavor that seemed weak at first became more refreshing and noticeable, and I finished it easily.
I wasn’t too keen on the dark lighting inside, though I was impressed by our spacious booth and great service.

This was a drinks spot after a Paseo run. I’m in pretty much in agreement with Katy… it’s pretty popular but staff pretty much requires flagging down to get refills.
We just had a few before we peeled out and the bar area started getting packed with people. We were starting to get jostled around and decided more time here wasn’t worth the hassle, otherwise we would have broken down and ordered some food.

Two words: Nothing Special.
Let me explain…
I had heard great things about Dad Watsons and feel somewhat let down based on what I’d heard/​read.
Upon walking in you immediately know that this is a popular place. It wasn’t overcrowded but 90% of the seats and tables were full. This was a both a good sign…
My friends and I sit at a nice big booth and look over the menu, The beers were great but the food service took a little longer than expected. We shared the following foods:
–Jambalaya — really spicy but good!
–Spinach dip & chips — REALLY, REALLY good!
–Fish n’ Chips — Way too greasy for my taste. Needed salt and they didn’t provide me with a lemon. Very mediocre. Don’t recommend.
Overall the experience was very average. Although the beer was good and some of the food was good, service was pretty poor. Our waiter did the «I’m not going to make eye contact so I can pretend like I didn’t know your beer was empty» routine. He must have walked by our table 5x and never once asked if the food/​beer was good, if we needed anything, etc. Pretty disappointing because we would have spent more money and therefore given him a larger tip.
No real reason for me to go back but it’s definitely not a bad place. Just average.

I will preface this review that I love all that is McMenamins. I moved to Seattle from Portland about five years ago where McMenamins are as common as a Starbucks it seems.
Dad Watson’s is our (my wife and I) favorite McMenamins in the Seattle area. They have a nice little outside dining area, the inside dining area is large and for the most part quiet even with kids, the service is better than it is worse. The food is predictable as is the beer and that is the reason I go there.
Dad Watson’s (as is all McMenamins) is a great value. It’s simple with good food and good service and not in the least bit pretentious. I drive from Issaquah to dine here about twice a month… and will keep doing so.

I was having a girls night out with a friend, and we stopped by here for some cocktails at the end of the night.
They were approaching closing time so they were busy cleaning up and we didn’t get much attention, but the drinks were tasty and I’m pretty sure at least mine was billed as being $ 1 cheaper than on the menu I ordered it from. It was kind of odd, actually, because both of our drinks were billed under different names because apparently they were «new and not in the system yet»? Or at least my friends was, and I’m not sure what happened in my case.
We considered food, but decided it cost too much and wasn’t what we were craving. (I did find it weird that they served yakisoba…)
It was a nice and chill place to just relax and nurse a cocktail while waiting for 2am to come around, so for that I’ll say I’m a fan.