What a wonderful dining experience! From the moment we walked in, the restaurant felt so clean, comfortable, and inviting. The rustic fireplace vibes added such a cozy, welcoming atmosphere that made the whole experience even better. Our server, Alivia, was absolutely fantastic! She was friendly, attentive, and made us feel so well taken care of throughout our meal. And the chicken piccata... WOW! It was absolutely delicious--perfectly prepared, flavorful, and easily one of the highlights of the meal. I would definitely order it again! And I have to give a HUGE bonus shoutout to the bartender because they made the best espresso martini I've had in a very long time! It was seriously THAT good. Great food, wonderful service, a beautiful atmosphere, and an amazing cocktail--what more could you ask for? We will absolutely be back! read more

873 Cafe and Tavern - Restaurants Near Me - Ashby, Massachusetts

The menu online isn't the same as what they offer. AND the menu they hand you isn't correct, either. They excuse it simply by saying, that's an older menu that needs updating. I ordered something that was supposed to included various things that didn't come with it, nor was the 'calamari' the small bodies you usually get. It was chunks of some seafood thing, maybe the squid is says on the menu, cut into chunks like little pillows. Weird. No coleslaw (which would have cut the grease). Again, the waitress said, "the menu needs updating." Mediocre taste and portions for lunch. And for a lunchtime in summer, they don't carry iced tea or lemonade? I know everything costs a lot these days, and i don't mind paying if it's good, but I doubt I'll give this place another try. And BTW, I hate posting anything negative, but they need to get their act together because it's a nice atmosphere and location. Really too bad. read more

Service was wonderful, Crystal is an amazing bartender! Very attentive and outgoing. The dining room and the tavern provide two different vibes, yet both are equally as beautiful. Menu has a variety of options to choose from, and many cool specials. Definitely worth checking out!! read more

873 Cafe and Tavern - Live music in the dining room - Restaurants Near Me - Ashby, Massachusetts

My wife and I came here randomly and absolutely loved the place. Good service and amazing food. We highly recommend the pizza and fried pickles. read more

Friendly and fast service, good food, good drinks, good vibes. I ordered a medium rare Rib eye steak with asparagus and loaded mashed potatoes and it was delicious. I will definitely be bringing the family back! read more

went with my son for dinner,i got fish and chips my son got steak tips. waited over an hour finally the owner came out with the food and said sorry i lost your ticket. i don't know about anyone else but who can eat cold fish ? my son was so hungry he ate some of the steak.anyway they did nothing for us charged us $100 . so i gave the girl $125 not her fault but then again why doesn't the waitress check her orders? they are sitting all done for over an hour and she says nothing? i went home and made macaroni and cheese i was starving. thought about it for a few days and called them. i said is this the way you want to leave the matter totally unsatisfied? he said no and took my phone number to send me a gift certificate. he never sent anything and probably laughed at us as soon as he hung up. i've given them so many opportunities and kept trying the over the past few years but never again. read more

First ambiance very nice. Though music is playing it was quiet. Bar is located in a separate room. Outdoor tables if you desire to eat outside. I have been coming to 873 since it opened. It changed hands a number of years ago. Chef Sean is now the owner and Chef. He can be found not only in the kitchen but mingling amongst the diners. Ensuring everything is to their liking. Chef Sean is very personable and an excellent chef. My waitress today was Crystal W. She was delightful. Very attentive to my needs and checked in with me periodically. The food is always excellent here. Today I tried the fried haddock. Crispy and delicious. I always get the sweet potato tater tots. They are the BEST of any restaurant I have ever eaten at. The accompanying aioli mayo dip is superb. These tater tots are also crisp yet tender inside. The coleslaw was very good as well. Dressing on it was perfect. For dessert I ordered the pumpkin crème brûlée! The pumpkin was season perfectly and the topping was done just right. I always look forward to eating at the 873 Cafe and Smith Hill Tavern. read more

We've been here a few times and it's been the same every time! We sit at the bar and watch the bartender to do everything she can think of instead of asking us for our order. To the point where we left and went somewhere else. Which is what she wanted, I think. If you're local and come every day, she'll take your order. It's wild that a business can thrive like this! Such a bummer! read more

Always great! Go on a Tuesday, Kaitlin will take great care of you. Angela will take great care of you on the other days

They were a bit rocky in the beginning but it seems lately they have found their footing. If you come here, you must know that the food does take a while to come out. All of the food is homemade, fresh, and made to order and most of the time I would say that it is worth the wait. It is a good spot for a date-night or a relaxed lunch/dinner. I would probably not come here with impatient kids or time restraints. The atmosphere is nice. I like the giant fire place in the dining area however IMO the lighting is too bright and the service can be slower in there as tables can go overlooked. Maybe this is a result of being short-staffed. I don't mind waiting for quality food but I would like a drink refill in the meantime. The menu has some pretty unique offerings and not what you would expect in a small town like Ashby. Some things are better than others. I love the calamari steaks with kimchi; BOMB. Their flatbread pizza is good as well; the dough is soft with a perfect amount of char and a slight buttery flavor. Maybe a bit like naan bread? Either way I love it, and it's a nice change from Greek style which is abundant in this area. (Not bashing Greek style pizza, but sometimes you want something else.) read more

First off service was terrible ... our waitress was barely alive ... didn't say more than she needed to. She didn't even introduce herself. She asked if we wanted drinks, but offered no drink menus! Food took forever and there were maybe 4 couples in the entire restaurant. The food finally arrived after about 15-20 minutes. (The waitress never came over to check on us.) First off ~ The Cobb salad ... didn't look appetizing at all! Especially for the mention of local and scratch made ~ it looked like a grocery store bag of lettuce ($18?) the chicken on top was ok, the bacon came separately in a tiny plastic cup, no egg and no cheese present. We did mention thus to the waitress... but no response... just kinda "oh" and "it's supposed to come with Asiago" not blue cheese like I thought. Next, the fish tacos ... they were also just ok couldn't really taste the fish because they were overpowered by the batter they were fried in (2 tiny pieces per taco) the slaw was soft and overly dressed, no seasoning present. Overall experience was disappointing ~ it's really too bad... I had such high hopes. Everything online sounded wonderful and again we're always looking for fresh, local, and made from scratch. Maybe it was an off day? The dinner menu online looks promising, but not sure I'd take the drive out there again. The bar area is quaint and cozy. read more

It is a shame two people wrote such scathing reviews of this place which moved the stars to 3.2, while 22 other reviews were 4.5 or 5. This place, as mentioned earlier is a gem! It has gotten more popular over the past few years because folks are finding out about it. The food is great, atmosphere in both rooms (dining and lounge) wonderful and cozy. Dining room has a large fireplace but I suggest they lower the lights a bit. Too bright! Wonderful bar. Great staff. You will not be disappointed. read more

The inside of the restaurant is beautiful with exposed beams and a lovely fireplace. The bar area is in its own room, cozy and perfect for a beverage. I had the soup of day which was delicious and my friend had the Cobb salad which was beautifully prepared. They also have a smoker outside which is fun to see and of course smells delicious as you walk in. The chef is friendly as is the wait team. Highly recommend. read more

My first time coming here. Nice atmosphere with a beautiful fireplace going. Had a nice menu with starters, salads, tacos, pizza and full meal options. I got the pizza which was large and cooked perfectly. Other diners got the haddock which was well liked. Our server welcomed us as we entered and took great care of us. read more

873 Cafe and Tavern - Nice large fireplace in main dining area. - Restaurants Near Me - Ashby, Massachusetts

See all

Good food great portions. Buddy and I split a pizza, each got a side, was 37 bucks total

Phone order, was ready in 35 mins. I ordered the pulled tacos. Good size satisfying. Very good , with guacamole! Salsa was okay, chips were great. My wife ordered the ragatoni. "Good flavor, creamy sauce, very tasty. I recommend." Overall solid 4 stars. Would come back! read more

Wonderful buffet delivered! Easy to talk to, ordering was efficient. Food was absolutely delicious!

This place changed ownership in June of 2021. All I can say is YUM! Fantastic food and wonderful presentation. Menu is small but crafted well. The ambiance is wonderful. Our waitress was GREAT. Please give this place a second chance if you had come before the new ownership. I promise you will not be disappointed. I highly recommend trying any of the tacos. They make their own tortilla chips and they are wonderful. read more

See all

lunch recently, have been here a few times, both in current and previous iterations, but today the food (brunch menu) was great, I had a burger as good as any I have had and I do enjoy burgers, and the home fries were wonderful also, also had the steak and eggs special which was also wonderful, though pricey, we were very impressed by the experience!!!! read more

Love this place! The trivia is fun on Tuesdays. Good food and drink. I want to try their brunch.

This place is a hidden gem. Amazing food. Sorry no pictures available as everything was so good we didn't get the chance to take a picture. Must try if you enjoy great food. read more

No drink menus. Hostess ALWAYS asks if you're being helped when you wait at the hostess stand. Food is meh.

Terrible service and longer than necessary wait times with zero communication from their staff. Save yourself the headache and drive elsewhere. From the time we sat down before someone took our drink orders which were only water at the bar it took over 20 minutes. Then to be served two salads with chicken and an order of meatballs almost another hour later. The bartender should have shared they were short staffed and to expect longer than normal wait times and food from their kitchen. We will not be returning, I am not sure how a restaurant like this can expect to stay in business. read more

Ordered takeout from here for some family friends! Ordered a few entrees and a bunch of "sharable's". The portions were huge -- and delicious! However the wait time was extreme, having to wait for an hour for our order (granted, it was a large order, but should not have taken more than 30 minutes). The inside the restaurant was very cozy, however, some of the people outside were somewhat shady. read more

Under new management. I was hesitant to try, as I had an extremely bad experience here years ago. Food is okay, seems to be out of a freezer. The problem seems to be a kitchen that is too small for the available seats. It takes much too long to bring out food that is obviously already prepared. This place is still a disappointment, because it's a beautiful building with no competition for miles. Maybe that's the problem.... read more

If someone ever takes our order I'll post another review, it's not busy, and the bartender has filled the ice , done dishes, straightened the chairs and wiped the bar where there is nobody sitting but hasn't asked us if we want to order read more

Best food and service, worth the ride ! Meals are cutting edge gourmet. We will return! Pete and Sandy read more

Amazing!! Our server Adam was excellent. His knowledge of the menu was impressive and his skills as a server were outstanding. The food and it's presentation was incredible and exceeded our expectations. We will definitely be back. read more

The service has been going downhill every time since we have been going there over the last 3 months. Today it took over 45 minutes for drinks (2 beers and a coke) and 1.5 hours for food. I used to get mixed drinks but that also became worse to barely being able to taste the vodka in a Tito's soda with lime. I really wanted them to succeed but I will not be back with the declining quality in service, beverages and food. read more

Very limited food and beer menu. Service is good. Ambiance ok.

worst prime rib ever!!! waitress was very nice ...BUT Bridgette Had an attitude because of the complaint.... I won't go there again and I will let everyone know.....they even tried to make it better by giving me $3.00 off my bill....save it for the next customer ...nice fireplace though! read more

Some good. Some not so good. Food overall was good. Tacos were good as were the sliders and pizza. Nice pour on the Manhattan drink. On the negative side, we called for a reservation and requested a bar table which was confirmed. However, when we arrived we were told the bar tables were full and it was first come first served (why were we not made aware of this when we made our reservation). Next, there was a bowl of butternut bisque as a special. However, we only wanted a cup as an appetizer. But we were told they could only offer it as a bowl even though a cup of clam chowder was available (weird). Lastly, we asked for a wine list and they couldn't offer one or tell us what wine was available. Only that they had red and white (durr). Overall, didn't feel like they really had their act together from a customer experience standpoint. This was our second time visiting. Not sure if we will return based on these weird quirks. read more

Lots of great local beers on tap. Delicious food. Very reasonable prices. We're so fortunate to have this great little restaurant in Ashby. You can sit in the beautiful dining room with the cathedral ceiling, or in the cozy bar/tavern room. It's really awesome. My friend drove all the way up from Auburn to meet me here for lunch today, and he liked it so much he said he's coming back up soon to take his wife out to dinner here. Thanks to the new owner and everyone who is making this place a success! read more

We sat there for 2 1/2 hours and actually had to take our entrée order home with us. One of the appetizers was rotten - the calamari was actually turned. got home and the muscles were rotten, The manager basically flipped us off. We really need a good restaurant at Ashby - these jerks need to be replaced. read more

Not every restaurant is perfect but when the owner is rude to customers it sets them apart from others. I was a regular customer here even though the service is really slow, the women who is the manager is very nice but the owner is not. I ordered a meal and told the waitress we needed it right away it took and extremely long time (over an hour) and when I asked to have it to go the owner proceeded to tell me that "I should have told the waitress and given them a time I needed it. It is really busy and we don't do take out on busy nights". Well over an hour waiting for a burger is plenty of time and it is now take out because it took too long. If you can't handle cooking for a crowd maybe you shouldn't be in the restaurant business. Customers make your business and apparently customer service isn't his thing. I will not give him another cent. read more

Terrible service!!!! 45 minutes to get drinks, another hour to get food. This place could be awesome, unfortunately I will never be back.