This is one of my favorite spots on Main Street! I love the bartenders, I love the bouncers, I love the atmosphere, and I love the live music. The best part is 1/2 price apps after 10. I love to stop by after work for wings, which are my favorite of all the restaurants on Main Street (including BWW, wings to go, And Kate's). They're crispy and flavorful. The bartenders and bouncers are awesome, I can't emphasize that enough. Furthermore, one day a week they do half price burgers (can't remember what day) but I had the one with an egg on it and it was SO GOOD. My server Megan B was cool, friendly, and attentive. I'll be back! read more

I've never been treated less than great by the staff at Deer Park Tavern. The food is great and the beers are cheap. I do, however, try going there during the day to avoid the bar scene and all the college kids. At a certain time at night they have a bouncer come man the door and check everyone in the restaurant's IDs, which is kind of annoying when it happens mid dinner, after you've already shown the waitress/waiter your ID. I understand it's a college town and they probably have no other choice. All and all I highly recommend Deer Park Tavern! read more

Nice tavern, good use of a historic building. Good holiday specials, mother's day brunch, for example.

For a true and historic tavern which could get away with poor food quality and still stay busy, the Deer Park actually has really decent food. They make several items in-house which most other restaurants don't, such as mozzarella sticks, crab cakes, hummus, and a few other items. Vegetarians should try the homemade hummus -- a large portion, excellent, and comes with artichokes, olives, and feta. Plenty of salads and soups, too, and they are very willing to customize. During Sunday brunch, their bloody mary bar is outstanding. Very family friendly before about 10pm... free self-serve popcorn and a Bimini Ring game (to the right of the back bar) usually keep our kids occupied. Staff are always very friendly. read more

Brunch: love the make-your-own bloody mary bar. The food however, always comes out cold. Maybe go for the drinks but pack a brown bag in case you get hungry. read more

Food is exceptional imho. Place always has a good crowd, college kids, professors, business, family. Usually a band or dj onthe weekends.

Ate here with my mom and sister for dinner. Awesome place, old-fashioned structure and great food. I ordered French onion soup (which was amazing) and the chicken fajitas. The fajitas were alright but I wish I chose a steak, my mom was practically drooling over hers. read more

My friends and I went to Deer Park on May 6th, and we had a reservation for 6:30pm. We were not able to arrive until 6:45pm, due to traffic, and when calling to let them know they told us our reservation was cancelled. We were still able to get in when we got there. Our waiter, De'Markus L, brought two extra drinks than we ordered, and he said "they were on him." After putting in our food, we waited about 20 minutes and most of the food came out, but two of us were still waiting on our food. After two of us went to the hostess to ask for our food, De'Markus said it would be about 5 minutes until our food is done and that "the kitchen was very busy." After 20 minutes still no food, so we proceed to go inside and ask the hostess again and to say that our friends had gotten their food for a whole hour previous. De'Markus came out, and said "Would you like to go back in the kitchen and look for yourselves?" Then proceeded to bring out a regular beef burger with tomato for my friend, who ordered a turkey burger with no tomato, and I ordered plain chicken fingers. As we did not have to pay for our food, the receipts were split and those two extra drinks were charged for one of my friend's receipts. After correcting that, our waiter admitted that he thought he lost our credit/debit cards and threw them out. Not to mention that we saw him maybe two times the whole night at our table; when he asked us our food and drink order and to bring us our drinks. We saw the waitress for our table next to us more than we saw our own waiter. We also met some girls that were there the same night, and said they had the same waiter and that they also barely saw him all night and the service was not good. Not sure if it's just the waiter or the whole place, as we have had better experiences here in the past. read more

If you watch the specials, Deer Park is a great lunch spot. I'm a big fan of the upstairs balcony (except when the train goes by). Free popcorn while you wait, which makes it feel like an old time place. The burgers are pretty good. Monday half-price pizzas are very good for Delaware pizza. The best part is Monday night trivia upstairs. It's fun and oldschool with pencil and paper. The guy that runs it is a fun guy too. read more

Decent Food, Decent prices... Kinda Crazy Crowded on the weekends... Great for when the students are out of town... Parking lot is small... Sometimes hard to get drinks if really busy. read more

Go for half priced hamburgers on Tuesday and for Edger Allen Poe's raven. Yes, he stayed here when it was once a hotel.

One of my favorite places in Newark! Great surroundings, multiple bars (cheap Yuengling), excellent service, decent food. Half priced hamburgers on Tuesdays. (Love the historic building by the railroad tracks!) read more

Living in Delaware and graduating from UD... Deer Park and I have logged more than a few hours together. In light of that, message to management. Please clean your beer lines and taps. Pennsylvania's oldest brewery was pretty bitter the last two visits. I had to change over to a bottle. BTW, happy hour chow was great the last two visits. read more

Been a long time Newark Native and visiting Deer Park since 1992 when I became legal to drink. It's always been a nice get a way, old town bar with good folks and have a lot of memories there. Took my entire family there this past Friday at 5:30pm. With total of 5 entrees, appetizer, and regular beverages. My bill with tip was $125. We were sat next to bar in room by the Rooster. It was sooo freaking loud from the bar music being too loud. People in bar were yelling at each other which magnified the issue. Our family couldn't talk and had to strain voices to talk and hard to listen. Finally my family went to their phones since talking was too tough. Food was ok, crab bomb was good, burgers were good and portions reasonable. Just didn't have the dining experience we wanted at that time of day. Paid $4 parking in UD lot since DP parking lot was filled. Oh well, I'll know better next time. read more

Horrible service. Horrible management. Floors are sticky. The place smells bad. Bathrooms are disgusting. Drinks are weak. Food is mediocre. Don't go. There are plenty of half decent bars in Newark that are more worthy of your money. read more

My husband and I had both heard awesome things about this restaurant from some coworkers of ours. We tried out their sunday brunch for the first time and it was just okay. I ordered the huevos vera cruz but there wasn't much to my meal and I was still starving after I left. My husband ordered a western omlette that he liked. The best part for him was the bloody mary bar. They give you a glass half filled with vodka and let you make your own bloody mary from a huge bar filled with mixes. He loved it. Not sure if we will be back, it was just an okay experience. read more

The quality of the food at this restaurant changes from one day to the next. If you happen to hit it on a good day you may get a decent meal. The beer selection is very limited. This place caters to the local blue collar smoking crowd. It's a great place to sit on the big porch with a cheap beer and a smoke. If you're want good food and drinks look elsewhere. read more

Hi. Where can I find your dress code? I was told that it exists however I can't seem to find it anywhere. I want to know before I try to enter your establishment again read more

Food is so-so (though the pizza is terrible - small and thin and overpriced) and the service poor. The hostesses always seem bothered to have to seat you - once you can break through the crowd of wait staff hanging around the hostess station. Nothing to recommend this place. Lots of better choices in the town. read more

Great food, great brunch, casual place you can go with your family or out with friends for appetizers and drinks. Service is decent, though it could be better, but they are very personable there. It's a nice place to go for a low key meal. read more

Really enjoyed the atmosphere and had a great meal. Traveling through on out way home up north - stopped at a hotel and yelped restaurants - glad we came here! Great crab corn chowder - super roast beef sandwich. Loved beers on tap. Will come back! read more

Smoked salmon is garbage. It was not smoked. Plus it was served with what looked like raw ingredients for an omelet and hard boiled eggs. Fried calamari was ok. Awesome place for beers but food was horrible. read more

Kevin was our server and was fabulous. He has a great personality and will do well in restaurant management. We'll be back and ask for Kevin. read more

The bar isn't too bad overall. Food is good, drinks are decent and cheap, and bartenders are good as well. The biggest issue is by far the bouncers. They are absolutely horrible and tend to kick people out constantly for no good reason. I was once kicked out because I was "too intoxicated" and when I asked why they said I was "leaning on a railing." I was leaning because I was simply waiting for my girlfriend to get out of the bathroom. I also asked if I could wait for my girlfriend to come out so I could tell her I was being escorted out and they told me I could not. Absolutley idiotic. On another instance I walked into the bar, went upstairs and used the bathroom. Upon walking out I was immediately told I was again "too intoxicated" and needed to leave. I hadn't even had a single drink at that point and the bouncers gave no explanation or evidence as to me being too drunk. Another instance of the bouncers idiocy was on St. Patty's Day. This is obviously a very big holiday for Deer Park and a lot of people get there very early to wait in line, as did my friends and I. After waiting about an hour and with a line growing down the street the bouncers decided to come out and merge the line. This caused an immediate bum rush as hundreds of people at the back of the line all ran to the front cutting past people who had been patiently waiting for the doors to open. Instead of a (mostly) orderly line it had devolved into an unruly mob. I truly believe that Deer Park either seeks out the lowest intelligence individuals to be their bouncers or they purposely kick people out at random to have less people at closing. read more

If I could give this place lower then one star I would. Not because of the food or the bar staff. Both are actually really good! But the bouncers at this bar are the most untrained and uneducated people I've met in my life. I walked into the bar ordered one drink and was quickly approached by a bouncer telling me i was too intoxicated to be there. When i questioned what made them come across this conclusion i was told you're just too drunk to be here. After complaining to friends about this I've discovered that this happens very frequently. I don't know what the bouncers are looking for when they're looking for someone being "too drunk" but the same night i got kicked out of the bar my one friend could barely stand on his own two feet but was left alone. Overall the food and the staff are awesome. But please train your bouncers on how to properly spot someone that is "too drunk" to be at the bar or fire them all and start fresh because they are awful at their job. read more

I wrote this review elsewhere and I figured it important enough to find another place to write it, lol. I'm being pretty generous with two stars because the food is really just okay. When I say some entrees better than other, I'm probably partial to the sweet potato fries than anything else on their menu. But you can get those elsewhere too. Anyway, here's the review: First, keep in mind that I'm married to an accountant and we always look for the most bang for the buck. I think this place has okay food. Some entrees better than others. It's just a bit overpriced for what you're getting. There was a good deal they used to have on veggie burgers with fries (2 burgers for 8.95) that is STILL advertised on their site but is no longer the case. I haven't seen a local burger worth 8-10 bucks when it's just one burger-and it's a veggie burger nonetheless! On a very recent order there, I paid more for less than what I used to get with the two veggie burgers and fries there. Unless you're going out for a night on the town, or you want to drink more than eat, save your money and go to Newark Deli and Bagels instead. Tastes better, the burger is just as big, and at this point it's cheaper even if the fries are ordered separately. read more

I go here pretty often and the only time I'm disappointed is when my favorite bar tenders aren't working :( they have good, cheap drink specials, good food with different specials (1/2price) every night of the week, and they tend to keep the crowd like more of a family atmosphere than being a college town bar. Love sitting out on the deck when the weathers nice; the bartenders always make sure to bring your food out there if you order from them instead of waiting for a server. Would recommend to anyone who loves brunch and bloody Mary's as well, cause they have a build your own along with great breakfast food! read more

THIS PLACE IS AWFUL. The waitresses called my friends and I curse words and the bartenders were rude for no reason... Terrible custom service. This place should be shut down. read more

Went their to get drunk with some newly found UDel friends. Sat on the porch the entire night while it was raining out. The Yinglings were $2.50 on a Friday night. Can't beat that! The passing trains can be loud and the traffic outside somewhat annoying when sitting on the porch, but somehow that added to the ambiance. Didn't try the food so I can't comment about that. read more

The waitresses were extremely rude and were calling my group horrible names loud enough so we could hear. I would never step foot in that restaurant again and I wish the owner/manager would do something about their staff. It's actually disgusting how rude they were. If you want a meal with horrible service, go here. read more

Had a family/friend get-together upstairs. Was attracted to the rustic look and had a sweet server who was very helpful (I believed her name was Kristin) but....every picture taken at a certain end of the room had a broom and dustpan in it that was left against the wall. I hadn't noticed it during the party and only hope I can crop the cleaning items out of my pictures. Now the food: if the crab tots were cooked a nanosecond more they would have been completely burned. The mac-n-cheese was very peppery, so much so the kids turned up their noses. Maybe not the best place to have a family/friend get-together. read more

Fun local classy dive with a lot of history. Local brews and decent grub and brunch food. The old Townie Bar is a fun meeting place. Nice food and drink service on covered porch. Expect a waiting list for Sunday brunch. As one would expect in a college town, a diverse clientele. Enjoy the train too. read more

Taco night is a good time. So is the roast beef sandwiches and the mahi tacos. Those are my favs. Plus cheap drinks :D

Been here several times without any issues. Ordered a chicken quesadilla without tomatoes which came with tomatoes. I rarely ever send anything back but I was proud that I remembered to order it without. Waiter apologized, no big deal. A few minutes later he comes back and says, "for future reference, when you order this it comes with pico de gallo, not tomatoes..." Well, for future reference, I'll never be eating here again. Took a look at the menu and it actually comes with a picante salsa which I would say is more of a purée. Needless to say, this particular item comes with tomatoes, not picante salsa or pico, that is why I ordered it without tomatoes. I'd also assume that ordering this item without tomatoes is very common, I've done so before without any issues. read more

We had a party of about 50 catered upstairs. We were satisfied with the whole experience. Were were able to select from a variety of food trays. The day of the party there was plenty of good food and what we didn't eat we were able to take it home. They allowed us to decorate and bring our own cake in. The staff was very friendly and professional. We were able to provide our own music using Bluetooth speakers. But if you don't have that equipment they do offer to rent their blue tooth speakers for and extra 50.00. The over all price was about the same as if we were to rent a hall and do our own food. But here we didn't have to clean up or set up or cook our own food. I would recommend for a party. They also allow use of the upstairs balcony for smokers or if you just want to eat and hang out outside. The building is older and historic so it's not fancy by any means. It's just nice and laid back. read more

The food here was GARBAGE. They brought out a hamburger wrongly cooked; I had ordered medium well, and the burger was pretty much completely rare. As an appetizer, I ordered BBQ wings, which barely resembled edible food. They were abominable. The service was terrible as well. Our waitress failed to come back to our table, so we all thirsted for water the entire time. One member of our party had no meal for the entire time because the waitress forgot to bring it out. Additionally, we called her name 2 times, and she walked right past us. Honestly, the food and service were disgraceful; I would not recommend this place to anyone seeking an actual meal. read more

This place is just a big frat party. Cheap beer and a dirty dining room. The staff was mediocre and the food was BLAH. It tasted fine, but you could tell it all came out of a Sysco freezer and was just heated up. We went there for brunch and there was nothing for under $8. A couple of slices of french toast (obviously Texas Toast) and a slice of out-of-season cantaloupe for $9! Are you kidding me? What a rip off. The only redeeming dish was the Eggs Chesapeake, but even tasted pre-made and came with pre-made hash browns. And soda was priced at $3!!! Ripoff! It was just diner food, but way overpriced. There is clearly no chef in the kitchen! read more

Decent tavern food, but a little bland. Pretty good beer selection. Even though the food could have been better, their desserts were great.

Deer Park is a Newark landmark. They have great drink specials but I mainly go there for the food. I highly recommend the East Shore Pretzels (soft pretzels covered in crab dip, old bay seasoning and melted cheese!) and their crab cakes which are LOADED with lump crab meat. They have daily food specials including half-price apps all day on Mondays. read more

Oldest bar in Delaware! Great atmosphere, excellent beer selection and a nice spread of free food at happy hour. Good food on the menu, too.