Loch Bar Reviews

DO NOT COMBINE DINNER WITH YOUR SHOW! We sat 90 minutes before show, restaurant staff aware of 7:30 show, had entire meal picked out ahead of time and ordered immediately. By 7:15, we were given 4 oysters, glass of wine, a lemonade and $20 app. We had to cancel our entire meal that we were looking forward to all day. We went to the show starving. And somehow still charged me $77. Ruined my special night with my son for his 1st broadway musical and celebration of starting 8th grade. No one seemed to care. Very disappointed

What a delightful visit! We were checking out City Hall and the Wanamaker building and wandered through the Arts District looking for a snack. Their menu and decor looked nice, so we bellied up to the bar and had a fantastic time. First, the place is beautiful—classic elegance, comfortable bar, beautifully-designed menu. I fell in love with the Lafayette Railroad cocktail. (Many thanks to manager Marissa for sending the recipe after we returned to Oregon!) Tea was a fun, personable bartender—lots of laughs.

Our server, Kira, was professional and engaging. The atmosphere was pleasant and the restaurant was crowded but not noisy. A musician began playing around 9pm. The two of us shared the Oysters Rockefeller (delicious; 6 total) and the Cream of Crab Soup (tasty, heavy cream, splash of sherry and not much crab). My husband ordered the Branzino (excellent). I ordered the Crab Cake (tiny, bite size, lots of filler, little on the crab and served with shoestring fries. So unimpressed! ) Beware - the handheld computer configures the bill, so you will find that the tip is based on the total, which includes all the taxes. This is the restaurant's way of giving the server more money. Wrong.

Sadly, a miserable dining experience. We sat at the bar for dinner like many other nights. When I asked for my favorite bartender, Eli, the bartender playfully asked “What can Eli do that I can’t do?” It seemed funny at the moment, but sadly, the answer was: “serve dinner!” After my wife finished her entrée, the bartender diligently checked on my swordfish for a second time. The kitchen supposedly told her it would be served any minute. It did not arrive. She was apologetic. Then the manager checked on my swordfish, and told us “any minute” but again it did not arrive. It only takes between 6 minutes and 12 minutes to cook swordfish. I was being served a large portion of BS! We decided to leave. The bartender was sincerely sympathetic. The manager offered a perfunctory apology. Even during the protracted time it took for the manager to check us out (it seemed like forever), he could have (1) expedited and served the swordfish, (2) offered takeout, or (3) offered a gift certificate in an attempt to retain an established customer. But instead we got “BYE!” This place is a national chain. They are very busy for now, but Philly is a small town that does not easily forgive lousy experiences like last night. It’s just not as good as the other neighborhood alternatives.

We had a great brunch at Loch Bar today. I had the vegetable frittata and my husband had the shrimp and grits. Both were really delicious. Plus we had a really good and friendly table service from our waiter Gianni. It was a perfect way to start the day.

From the moment we walked in, everyone was very friendly. We had no reservations on a Friday evening but we were seated immediately. The vibe was very lively but not overwhelming. David our server was phenomenal. This was our first visit to Loch Bar and he made us feel right at home. We chatted it up with many of the managers, servers, and busboys throughout the night and they all were very kind. Chef Quincy even stopped by our table and we enjoyed a nice conversation with him. Very nice guy. His halibut special was delicious! Overall this was a great experience. The restaurant is in a great location. I'd love to pop in again during a future visit to Philadelphia.

The food is always good the service is quick The managers are rude and unhelpful.My umbrella was taken off the back of my chair while in bathroom I should of taken it with me But when I asked the manager for a bag to protect my hair from the rain she said NO period How dare her say that to me it was the least she could As much as I enjoy the happy hour I will never go again and I will strongly advise against any of my friends to go either. It's the little things

It's cute here! Came here with my sister and my mom for restaurant week. Now as yall know this street be jam packed so be prepared to pay for parking in a garage or just Uber fr bc parking be hard. Also know the Kimmel center is across the street. So started with drinks and I got the one with gin and my sister got some other one. I think service is slow bc it's restaurant week so give a bit of grace fr. But drinks came out and both had hairs in it so we had to send it back. But drinks were good. A cute cocktail place- running you 16-20 dollaz! Not bad but one ain't gonna get you lit so do a little pregame if you tryna feel something- lol kidding. But drinks are good. They brought us new ones. So onto the next. We got the calamari, gumbo and the salad. Salad slapped according to my sister. Gumbo slapped according to my momma and I. And so I got the calamari and I love the honey drizzle on it and a them spiced accents but it was room temp when it was brought to me :( my sister wouldn't let me complain so I ate it but woulda been so much better if it wasn't room temp. Second course the table for the steak frites, loch burger and the salmon. So the steak was pretty simple, great gravy and love that they don't have the those skinny fries. That burger has two patties so ofc foodie sister crushed. Then there was the salmon and the base is good with a crunchy top. We definitely did enjoy the apps more than the mains tonight more. But well food was solid. We ended with mango sorbet and the cheesecake and we were happy! Overall would come here again! Our server name was Antoinette I think? That's what it said on the top of the check but she was Spanish I believe and super nice and so patient and accommodating. All the hardships we had she did her best to resolve so girl thanks for keeping a smile on your face ! Would love to come back for the happy hour. Also love their inside and outside seating and them bathrooms cute too bc you know we live a good mirror!

We are fans of The Atlas Group restaurants and this new Atlas Group restaurant in Philadelphia, did not disappoint. The service is great and the food is wonderful. Highly recommend this seafood restaurant. Atlas Group is Baltimore, MD based--so they brought the Maryland seafood concept to Philadelphia. Entertained customers here and everyone raved about their meals from the appetizers to the main course.

Loch bar is convenient to the avenue of the arts especially the theaters. However it is crowded, chaotic and overpriced. But the happy hour brings the prices to reasonable. And the food, though mixed and not unique, is often quite good. The gumbo is a yummy standout, and the fish and chips are quite good. Know that without reservations you’ll up up in the packed bar area at best. Service is all over the place: can be nice, can be rude, usually seems overwhelmed.

I do not appreciate a restaurant that rips their customers off you are charged higher prices than stated on the special menu you were given apparently they have a new menu coming out, reflecting the higher prices, and that was their excuse for the overcharge. Needless to say everyone that had their special midday menu was being overcharged. When I asked the manager are they going to let the other people know that this was happening the only answer I got was what we have a new menu coming out so I went to the other tables on the patio and let them all know to watch their bill because they would be overcharged. My dad always used to say to check your bill and he was so correct. I understand what happened that’s not the problem. The problem is when I said are you gonna let all these other people know the answer was basically no he’s not going to tell them so in that case in my mind, they are ripping their customers off. The food was excellent. The service was excellent, but that was only negated by them when I consider stealing from their customers.

With the closing of José Garces’ Volvér this past summer, my companion and I – as well as scores of other visitors to Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center – have had to look elsewhere in search of pre- and/or post-concert gastronomic and libationary sustenance. Not that Volvér was any great shakes. In fact, over time, we had noticed a steady downturn in both the quality of the food and the service, which, coupled with other contributory factors, seemed to make the restaurant’s eventual demise almost predetermined. It was, however, located within the precincts of the Center itself. And that is certainly not an insignificant factor for those who – like this writer – enjoy the convenience of so-called “one-stop shopping.” But I digress… As noted above, our search for a suitable pre/post-concert eatery goes on… the most recent prospect being the Loch Bar. Situated directly across the street from Kimmel Center, it definitely has location going for it. Other than that, well… Loch is yet another entry in the Atlas stable, a wide-reaching – and rather controversial – seafood chain based in Baltimore. As noted above, the Philly location is primo… the ambiance comfortable and casually laid back (with live music adding an energetic touch)… and the service, at least what we personally experienced, seems to be quite good. The food, however, never quite lives up to expectations – especially given the downright outrageous wallet-busting prices. Just how outrageous…? A single, not particularly weighty, Maryland Crab Cake will set you back a whopping $32.00 (double that for two) and came buried beneath a veritable avalanche of salad. The moment it hit the table an old cartoon came immediately to mind. “How did you find your steak, sir?” the waiter inquires. To which the diner replies, “I simply moved my baked potato and there it was.” High price point notwithstanding, however, my dining partner pronounced the crab cake to be quite delicious… ditto the appetizer of Crab Tater Tots. Crab seems to be one item that the kitchen does particularly well… And speaking of starters, the Chicken & Sausage Gumbo Soup also received an enthusiastic thumbs-up. Conversely, my entrée of Roasted Branzino was merely passable. Taste and texture were okay – although certainly nothing to write home about. Presentation, on the other hand, was another matter entirely. Not that every item placed before a diner must be a work of art; but it should, at the very least, be somewhat appealing to the eye. And my branzino, unfortunately, was a good deal less than picturesque – dark & brooding would be a much more apt description – and certainly not worth the $30.00 price tag. While the quality of the cuisine here can be highly variable, since seafood is obviously the name of the game, diners would do well – especially with regard to entrées – not to wander too far from the relative safety of its precincts (in other words, ordering steak in a predominately seafood restaurant is not the wisest of moves). That being said, however, I would still suggest that your entrée selection be made with the circumspection of a minnow in a shark tank. My personal preferences…? I would begin with either the Crab Tater Tots or, as a first-rate landlubber’s alternative, the Chicken & Sausage Gumbo (both mentioned above)… From there I’d move on to the Fish n’ Chips. A rather plebeian choice, I freely admit. And while the fries are generic at best, the fish itself, north Atlantic hake, is both moist & flavorful and lovingly embraced in a delightfully crispy crust. Most certainly one of the kitchen’s better options with regard to both quality and price. One final word… Like the food, the restaurant’s flashy-splashy cocktails, in my opinion, are also quite variable… In other words, they tend to be underwhelming and overpriced. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.