I wish we would have checked these reviews prior to visiting this restaurant. With a decent ambiance, I really wanted to like this place. Unfortunately, food was mediocre to poor and it was very, very overpriced for what we got. My wife ordered the country fried steak with mashed potatoes and greens. The steak was mostly overcooked batter with almost no meat inside. It was priced at $13 and was very poor. I ordered the fish and chips. Three pieces of fish, while not huge, were okay. The coleslaw was good. But the fries looked like they were the frozen string fries you get from the grocery store. Very disappointing. Both the Ale House and Oh'Mulligans serve fish and chips that are much, much better. And this entre cost $14. Both the kids got burgers. They were okay, but nothing special, and they cost $10 and $9 respectively. And those terrible shoestring potatoes were back again. Through in a draft Sam Adams and two sodas, a %15 tip and the total for the meal was over $70. No way was this worth the price. This restaurant won't last long if they continue to serve food at this price with this poor quality. We won't go back, and I would recommend to others to try the Ale House or Oh'Mulligans for similar menu but much better food at a better price. read more

Don't advertise "half priced margaritas on Wednesday" nights if: 1. Only the house margarita is half price. 2. Only the house margarita by the glass is half price. We ordered beer instead. I've had this "house margarita" before, and its just pure mixer. I ordered a "Build Your Own" pizza. I selected the gorgonzola, the pears, and the chicken with the garlic sauce. Flavor was not a menu option, but perhaps it should have been. The pizza came out swimming in the "white garlic cream sauce", but it had no flavor at all whatsoever. I immediately ordered balsamic vinaigrette to dip the pizza in. We gave this place another shot, but will have to pass on coming back. Service was slow, curt, and inattentive. Food was sub par. Sorry. read more

Great decor love the remodel It really opens up the space but couldn't watch any of the games. Bummer, maybe it's not their kind of crowd. Was told the owner was cheap!?! So they would not get those channels too bad with so many TVs the other customers did not mind. They place was pretty full , we only stayed for a bit. read more

My friends and I stopped at the Gatehouse for lunch before beginning our trek from Wake Forest back to Philadelphia. My buddy who lives nearby said they had really good burgers and pulled pork nachos ... which was really all we needed to hear. Unfortunately the pulled pork nachos are no longer on the menu and he was abused mercilessly for such a grave food error. Luckily there were plenty of burgers on the menu and the Dubliner was calling my name. I ordered it and it was really good. The burger was perfectly cooked and the Guinness Onions were awesome. I'd definitely recommend giving it a try. The service was acceptable and the price was reasonable. The biggest negative was that it was Sunday afternoon and a bar loaded with TVs couldn't put on a good football game. I don't care to watch the Panthers and judging by the empty seats at the bar neither does anyone else. I wouldn't hesitate to stop there again for lunch if I was in the area. read more

Loud. Sums it up in a word. And not a good bar scene loud, just a SHUT UP loud. Sorry I can't give this place a better rating because I want to. But it is a bar/restaurant that just has average at best food and the service lacks. I understand people go to a bar for some fun, and that loudness is OK if you are at a place like this. But the room acoustics does everything to amplify the noise. The number of people, TVs etc. isn't the biggest issue, it is just designed to amplify the noise from the ceiling down! The restaurant area had too many screaming kids which did not help. So is it a bar? Or a family friendly restaurant? It is basically both which is the issue also. They have a somewhat limited menu with a lot of burgers and a few entrees. I went to get a burger and it was OK. I have had better at Red Robin. My wife and I both ordered medium burgers, mine came well done and my wife's was medium rare. Neither was correct. The fries same, better at Red Robin. Also, the burgers come in 2 sizes, which I do like, except don't insult me calling the smaller one girly damn it! So if I want a better burger/fries, and actually less noise I can go elsewhere. Service was bad. Young guy came over and asked for our order before we could look at the menu. Then after we said we needed some time didn't show up until we had to call him over. Poured water so hastily it spilled all over the table and me. Asked how our food was before we had taken a bite. Then again couldn't find him to pay and had to ask someone else for the check. If they upgraded the service and food a bit and softened the room, it could be a nice place to hangout after work or with friends. The restaurant next door which is by the same owner is much nicer and better food. Don't understand the disconnect. read more

Went to Gatehouse Tavern last week on Friday for my mom's birthday. Everything was great -- the food, the service and the atmosphere. I ordered the arugula salad with apples, walnuts, goat cheese and vinaigrette. The arugula was fresh, the apples were crisp, the goat cheese was nicely flavored and textured and I wish they sold the vinaigrette to go. My mom loved the chicken sandwich with chipotle sauce. My brother very much enjoyed the chicken fingers, which had a large portion for the money. Our group was split up arriving and we took a long time to decide on our orders, so our waitress had to come back many times. She did so cheerfully, which we really appreciated. She also helped me with my wine order and was just very down to earth and made us comfortable. The pub style atmosphere with nice big, private booths is very cool. Over the last few months, we've been to Gatehouse Tavern 3 or 4 times and have enjoyed it every time. read more

First, let me say I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the restaurant Parizade in Durham and when I saw the owners opened a place in Wake Forest, I was anticipating great food and atmosphere. Sadly, that was not to be. Really, I do NOT understand how someone can own a restaurant that is so well run and this place - because I know from going to Parizade that they know better! Anyways... 1. It was really loud to the point where we almost left when we entered the restaurant. I get it had a sports bar feel and there is gonna be tv noise, but that was too much. We decided to sit in the dining room area to avoid the noise the best we could. The decorations had a really cool vibe, but it was a wash given the noise. 2. When we had questions about the beer menu, the young waiter said - oh, I don't know about that because I'm only 18 and I can't drink. Wow, it made me think, yet you work here and can't tell us about the menu. So, he asked the bartender, ok. 3. When he brought the beer, it was very, very good. The 1 star is for the beer. I am not a beer drinker, but the Hells Belles (local brewery) was excellent. 4. Fried pickles as app. The first 5 or 6 were good. But, given they served them in a big pile and they were sliced long and thin, the remaining 10? (It was a large serving) were gross. Greasy and all the coating was falling off. 5. The ketchup bottle on the table was dirty to the point where I wanted to ask for a clean, unopened bottle from the back. 6. The hamburger was just ok. Bun a little tough and after the first 4 or 5, the fries suffered the same greasy fate as the pickles. But, I have to say, the surrounding tables seemed happy/glad with everything. Maybe we simply got an off meal and service. Given the problems we experienced, I would not give it another try. read more

I went to this restaurant with my girlfriend for a nice night out. I was so embarrassed by what we got. I ordered the steak tacos and they were a mess, the tortillas were not toasted and as if they came out of the package. The steak was ice cold. The beans were burnt and the rice was served in a tiny plastic cup. You couldn't identify a signal Rice kerne. We used to like this place but it's a garbage fire now. Avoid if you want edible food. read more

I have been to the gatehouse tavern quite a few times and it had always been one of my favorite pub foods in the area. Their burgers are all grass fed beef and have great toppings for options. I am partial to the sombrero burger, although I have tried plenty of others and none disappoint. Now the bad... Initially I would have given them a 4 or a 5. They had these Philly cheese steak egg rolls that were incredible (as an appetizer), great burgers, and great service. Lately, it has all taken a little step down. They changed their recipe on the egg rolls and now it's like cheese from a can instead of fresh. The service has been very poor the last two times. The burgers are still great but it's getting harder and harder to justify going there with all the other good options around. I will go back a few more times to see what it is like on a slower night of the week and see if their old service is back and attention to detail but as a whole I would say it about average for other places in the area at the current time. It is a little disappointing just because I liked it so much when I first started going about a year ago. read more

Our favorite place in Wake Forest, both for quality, yumminess, and price. Need I say more

The absolutely incredible Southern Crunch burger made up for the ok service we received. Will definitely be back soon for another one!

Normally I give this place 4 to 5 stars because their bartenders are great and their food is pretty good... However getting charged 4 extra dollars to put a fourth of an avocado in my salad is ridiculous. Go to the Mexican market in Garner and get avocados for a dollar but don't charge four dollars for a quarter of an avocado. Now you have me just wanting to go to culvers to get the same salad for seven bucks but instead this salad cost me over $16...This is equivalent to the time you were charging a ridiculous amount of money for some fried cauliflower appetizer. Let me know if you want me to get you in touch with my US foods rep. He just let me know a case of 48 avocados runs a little over $50. read more

Gatehouse Tavern - American Near Me - Wake Forest, North Carolina

Good food , wings where an 8/10 but the spinach chicken wrap was perfext. Everyone enjoyed the food Brian our waiter was outstanding and the place was packed good first day in wake foresr read more

Awesome burgers and fries with a great selection of craft beers. Hard to get in on a Friday night. But during the week it's a great place to go. read more

Food is acceptable to say the least. If you try to call take out offset 2 hours before they are closed they say the are closed so they don't have to serve you. Terrible service, I will never come back. read more

This place has gotten soooo much better... We used to go a lot but it definitely didn't really impress. Lately though they have really stepped up their game. Perhaps the new restaurant next door brought in some new cooks, as they are attached kitchens. The sandwiches are really well made and very large. Burgers cooked properly, and the fryolator arts are superb...I know its only pub-grub but it is really tasty. Also two separate places to dine a raucous sports bar area and a quieter dinning room, which is great for us... read more

Way better than Carolina Ale House!!!! I am beginning to despise chain restaurants, and this place is not that! This place is delicious, intimate, and has live music. The fried pickles were the best I've ever had! The burgers were amazing! They even had a burger for the first time we went on St. Patrick's Day :) read more

This is a bar that has really, really good food. The place can get loud, as it is always fairly full of patrons and has a lot of TVs with sports being broadcast. I personally like the atmosphere, as it's very comfortable. The waitstaff has its veterans and newcomers, so it can be a little inconsistent. Yeah, it's not for folks who are looking for a quiet night out. But for folks who like a bustling tavern environment and an extensive menu of really well prepared food, this is a place worth trying out. It's anything but the standard, fried and bland bar fare. If you're tired of places like the Carolina Ale House and Buffalo Wild Wings type places, this place is a welcome alternative. read more

We recently had our Christmas party on a Saturday here and I have to say, the staff was amazing. They were friendly, attentive and ensured we had a nice time. They even took pictures for us so no one was left out of photos. The drinks were good and the food was outstanding. The seafood duo tacos were delicious with a nice amount of shrimp, my husband had the smoked brisket sandwich which he said was delicious. we loved the homemade chips as well. Since we had such a great experience we will definitely be back again to try some of the other food selections. thank you for making our party memorable!!!! read more

Delicious! Wonderful service! Very reasonable prices! Also is just down the sidewalk and around the corner from Whatever's Quilted. When I am there for classes or shopping, Gateway Tavern hs become my 'stop' prior to heading home. (we are over 2 hours away.) This is a wonderful place. Go. You will enjoy! read more

I am here on St. Patty's Day and the food was amazing! I order the Braised Short Ribs and Fried Cauliflower and both were perfect. The short ribs were so tender and the potatoes were amazing with it. Really good food, bartenders have been super nice to me even though I haven't ordered any alcohol. read more

Great food, cute ambience, great service, my only tiny issue is that on trivia nights it is loud and trivia takes over so I prefer to sit outside then or go on non-trivia nights. But then again I'm not a trivia person:) read more

My husband and I went there for lunch. Have never been before and thought we give a local restaurant a try. The atmosphere was good but the food left everything to be desired. We ordered a couple of simple items we thought would be safe, sadly we were very disappointed. My husband order shrimp tacos and they came out heavy with a mayonnaise slaw that was running off the taco. He ate the fried shrimp and left the soggy taco behind. I ordered a grilled chicken club sandwich. The chicken was rubbery. Took that off and just ate a decent BLT. The fries that came with each item arrived cold. Had ordered an appetizer of a chicken quesadilla that came out at the same time as the meal. It was okay. Nothing special about the quesadilla. The wait staff came by once and never asked how the meal was. We left most of the meal on the plates. For this meal we spent around $50. To me, that's a bit high for 2 people but I know the price of everything has gone up. I don't mind paying for good quality, tasty food. Unfortunately, this missed the mark by a long shot. Maybe you'll have a better experience than us. read more

I met a friend for drinks and appetizers last night. I now remember why I haven't been there in a year. Everything about it was terrible. We ordered three appetizers - Scallops, Pickle Chips and Thai Crunchy Shrimp. I did not try the scallops, so I can't comment on those. But both the Pickle Chips and Thai Crunchy Shrimp were served completely cold. Absolutely ridiculous!! This has been a major problem during past visits. For some reason, staff can't seem to get food out without it sitting long enough to go cold. My biggest gripe is their drinks. Complete rip-off!! In the span of 2 hours, I had 4 Vodka Tonics. Yes 4. And did not even have a slight buzz. I am an occasional social drinker and normally can only tolerate about 1 drink an hour. How pathetic that they have to rip of the customer to this level when they are already charging a hefty price, as most bars do, for their alcohol. I will NEVER patronize this rip-off, poor service, and lacking food quality establishment again. You should be ashamed! Eventually there will be much better "night" spots to go to than this crap establishment. read more

The chicken tenders are AMAZING!!!!! Omg I'm obsessed with these chicken tenders. The servers are very friendly and helpful. We love this place! read more

This place has a weird vibe. This place is dead at 5pm on a Saturday but I am sure it is because of the smell and horrible 80s music. I am sure this is not what Wake Forest wants. Loud rude patrons at bar swearing and causing a ruckus but bartender continues to give him beers. Came here for an drink before going next door for early valentine's dinner. Music went from Tom petty, to jack and Diane, caught in a time warp This could be an awesome place but with all the sports screens and smokers outside it just plain stinks:( read more

Happy with the first visit, all was great - wait staff, time, drinks, food and dessert. Came in in a somber mood as a good friend had passed away that afternoon and I just needed to get out and live a little, you know, appreciate life as it were. We decided on Gatehouse Tavern as we have seen it several times and it is relatively close to our house. The wait staff were very helpful in deciding what to order and got our food to us in quick order (thank you Jordan). I tried the Smokehouse Burger and man was that tasty, sweet, savory and just a little kick. For dessert I had the this wonderful Chocolate Peanut Butter "thing", I don't remember what it was called and all of the desserts are made fresh daily, so who knows, but it was on point. Give these guys a try. read more

Great Bar/Restaurant to catch games at and actually eat great food! A lot of the sports bar types have only standard "American Flare" type items but Gatehouse has a wide variety and they also have several "Veg-Head" options as well. Sports and Great Food?!?! yes please!! read more

Tonight was our first time visiting Gatehouse Tavern, even though we have lived in the area for several years now. I saw that it was listed on the "Bring Fido" app and we always base our restaurant choices around where we can take our boys (our puppers). So, we decided to check it out. The staff was great, the food was amazing, and the other customers were so incredibly sociable and loving towards our boys. I can't say enough about how impressed I was with our experience. We will mostly certainly be returning very soon. read more

It's tough to give this place higher than two stars. Anytime you try to go there you have to walk through four or five people smoking cigarettes at the main entrance. read more

The food is great, the service is better, but the thing that makes this place the best is the staff. I've been coming to this place for years and do not have abad thing to say.. read more

We go to the Gatehouse every couple of weeks, The food is really good. The beer selection isn't bad, but it doesn't change much so the choices are a little stale in my mind. (The beer is fresh, choice is stale.) We did have a recent experience that was a little off-putting. We ordered bourbon on the rocks and when we received our bill there was a $3.50 upcharge per drink on top of the $11 drink price. I mean, $15 for a drink that probably goes for about $10 at any similar establishment is a little much. We were caught off guard and asked about the upcharge. We were told that in a standard cocktail there is 1.5 oz. of liquor, but when ordered "on the rocks" they give 2 oz and hence the upcharge. We didn't order off a menu so we're not sure if this is specified somewhere, but it was a turn-off. Again, same drink elsewhere is like $10. We'll go back, but we won't be ordering bourbon. read more

I have never had anything on this menu that was not good. Beet Salad, southwest salad, all of the burgers(have not had them all but have had quite a few and they are awesome), Thai crunchy shrimp, pulled pork nachos...it's all good! If you are in town and looking for good food you have found it. It's a bar but they have a separate eating area that provides a little more intimate eating space. read more

Living in Wake Forest, which can sometimes feel like the Baptist capital of the world, we are not blessed with a good bar scene, or even a mediocre bar scene. We have restaurants with bars, like Mellow Mushroom and The Carolina Ale House, but nothing that suits my needs. Yes, my needs are important, so I was so happy to see someone heard my prayers and decided to open a tavern, less than 2 miles away from my house. The Gatehouse Tavern did not disappoint in ambiance, beer selection, and overall tavern vibe. There are two sides to this establishment: the dining room and the tavern. The dining room is fairly small, with some booths, some larger tables for groups, and smaller round tables for two. The tavern had a good sized bar, and several nice bar tables. It also had a sweet little lounge corner with a couple of nice leather couches, and a nice view of the flat screen. My husband and I decided to try out dinner here because we were looking for a cheap, inexpensive meal, and had wanted to try it out since it opened. We were seated right away at a 2 top and we were immediately stoked by the beer list. Tons of local brews, all the domestic staples, and good imports too; all very reasonably priced. They also have a good wine selection, and they even have a Candy Bar Martini list. It took our server a good 5 minutes to come to our table to greet us and take our drink order (my husband had time to go to the bar and get a sample of beer to try out before ordering it). Seeing as it was a new restaurant, I expected the waitress to ask us if we had been there before, and explain the menu to us. Yes, it is a tavern, but the main focus of the menu was burgers, so it would have been nice to learn more about that (server is not starting out good). After reading through the list of 12 or so burgers (all of which sounded great...think of a type of food you are craving, and they have the burger to fulfill that...Mexican, Cali, Mediterranean, etc.). I decided on The Fish (salmon and lemon dill mayo) and my husband got The Yankee (ground beef, bacon, onion rings, bbq sauce, cheddar). Our food came out in a timely manner, and although I really wanted to love it, it was just average. Nothing was wrong with my food, but nothing was great. Simply put, next time I order something, I will stick with a ground beef burger because that seemed to be their specialty, and my husband enjoyed his. I also think if I got an extra side of the lemon dill mayo, the sandwich would have been better, but I was trying not to be a heifer, especially since I was eating the fries it came with. So, in conclusion (finally) we have decided that this will be our go to bar for a night of drinking good beer, in a sweet tavern with our Wake Forest neighbors. We really did love the vibe of the bar, and I can't say enough about the beer selection. Service could use some improvement. read more

My sister in law and I did lunch here today. This is a pretty nice little spot. It's definitely got a tavern atmosphere. Very clean inside and the place feels cozy.Service was very friendly and helpful. Drinks were kept full and our server checked in with us peridically to make sure we had everything we needed. For an appetizer we shared the fried pickles. Very healthy serving size, could easily be split between 3-4 people as an appetizer. The pickles had a good flavor and the ranch dipping sauce was pretty good. It was a burger kind of day, so we both got burgers. She got the peacemaker (bacon, mushrooms, grilled onions, swiss, lettuce, tomato) with house chips and it looked good. I had the classic cheeseburger (american cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion) with a house salad. The burgers were delish! Not one little bite left over for either of us. I tried one of her house chips and I liked them a lot. Very crunchy and not overly salted. My house salad was very good. Mixed greens, cukes, cherry tomatoes, with a very tasty balsamic vinaigrette. Everything in the salad was bright and fresh. Yummy indeed. Prices were right for the amount of food you get. I would return here any time, I felt well fed and well taken care of at the end of the meal. read more

I don't even know where to start. We stopped in for an early dinner while our vehicle was being serviced. We ordered some drinks and an appetizer. We received breadsticks being passed off as pretzels and the world's worst margarita. Our waitress disappeared and then a new one appeared to let us know our waitress went home. We ordered dinner and ordered a Reuben and a turkey club - simple right? Wrong. I received a toasted turkey sandwich sans any resemblance to a club and my husband received some shreds of corned beef on bread. It's like they just gave up. My next margarita was sour mix heavy and even worse than the first. $75 dollars later sitting in Pep Boys was a better option than enduring being subjected to the food and loud banter of the Real Househusbands of Wake Forest. It was just too much. This place used to have great food but it was immensely gone downhill the last few times we've tried it. We're done. read more

You know how food tastes when it been cooked in old oil? That blech, need to shake it off sensation? That's kind of how our dinner went the other night. We've been to Gatehouse a few times, and it's always been pretty good--enough to add it to the rotation. This time, though... It's deservedly out of the rotation, and we don't intend to go back. Honestly, in general, food's okay, good selection of beers, etc. Let's get to tonight, though. As background, there are no ACC teams playing that night. It wasn't packed by any means. The tables in the middle were full, but there wasn't anyone waiting for one. When we said we preferred sitting in the middle (and were fine to wait at the bar), the two hostesses had to muddle around for a while to even find something on which to take our name--but if you're a hostess on a Saturday night at a restaurant with more than 2 tables, it shouldn't be that difficult to find a list. Seriously. So we got a beer at the bar (service and draft selection were good)... and waited... and saw 1, 2, 3 open tables in the middle. We could see the hostess stand from where we were sitting at the bar, and there wasn't much activity over there. After seeing a small high-top ready for 10 minutes, I finally went over to the hostess to "check in" on if a table was available. The interesting reply I got was that she had come to the bar to look for us but couldn't find us. The funny parts were that 1. She never came to look for us, 2. There wasn't anyone else waiting for a table, and 3. She didn't have to leave the stand--she could see us from where she was standing. We were finally seated and ordered a burger and fish and chips. Not complicated, and the burgers have always been good. Jeez, though--the "fish" part of the fish and chips was a total throwback to your elementary school lunch-style rectangular, mushy, limp-fried disaster. In the past, it's at least been filet-shaped, properly battered, and properly fried. Also, I believe there were three pieces in the past, but in this case it was a favor to only put two of those things on the plate. Jeez... the most memorable parts of dinner were how terrible the hostess was and the throwback to frozen food from school cafeterias. I was a hostess at a few restaurants, and it's not hard; the main parts about being a hostess: 1. Be welcoming (nope) 2. Seat people (nope) Please, take this suggestion--if you're considering Gatehouse, go to Wakefield Tavern instead. It's a little smaller, but you can bet that the servers are knowledgable, food is good (with a HUGE menu), and you won't have to be responsible for reminding the hostess that you'd like to sit down and eat now. read more

This a decent place that uses fresh local ingredients. We love the Spicy Crispy chicken sandwich & the Arugala apple salad with pistachios and champagne vinaigrette is amazing and huge enough to satisfy as a meal. The BIG DOWNSIDE to this place is that in order to enter the bar or restaurant, you MUST first pass through a smelly, haze from all the smokers. This is not at all inviting or an appealing entrance to where one is going to eat. They need to relocate the smoking area away from the entrance. Sometimes there is some inconsistency in quality , or the way it is cooked. Prices are reasonable and service is usually appropriate for a sports bar. read more

Wow! Where do I begin? Absolutely dreadful! Two things we ordered off the menu they were out of. What we eventually did get was barely edible. I recommend you go anywhere but here. read more

My wife and I used to go at least once a week. After having a very disappointing conversation with the manager concerning my bar order, we now rarely go. The food is OK but I think that with all of the growth in the area, they have gotten much busier and we now frequent other restaurants in the area rather than return to Gatehouse. read more