It's hard to believe I haven't reviewed this place yet. My husband and I decided to come here for…read moretrivia nights to be help quell my depression when the kids go to their bio dad's for the weekend. Then I saw the concerts, the art nights, the craft nights. It really is a social space with a ton of personality and the service is excellent. Often, I am mean girled with small businesses. Heck, I am mean girled in big business but that sucks less because it's cheaper and more convenient. The women who work here are kind to me and my family, even when busy and overwhelmed. The vegan cod is excellent. It's become a team name with my husband. I am eating the broccoli salad right now and am literally making love to it with my mouth. Is it the sunflower seeds? The red onions? Man, it's refreshing, small and guilt free (unlike my double screwdriver). This is a positive space. They help the community, no matter what they look like coming through the door. HIGHLY RECOMMEND

Wild Child was a place I had in my list to try. Compared to a lot of other places I didn't have it…read moreon my list too terribly long. Now if I remember from what I read correctly the folks that run this place were employees of Wild Man Brewing which had a location here (but closed). After studying the tap list it looks like what they carry here primarily is guest tap beers and meads from local breweries and meaderies and doesn't appear that they make their own like the predecessor of this space. But that's okay as it's a really cool place. The guest taps they have are good... nice and cold. The food is good as well. I got a pulled pork sandwich... something that I haven't had in a really long time. I enjoyed it... it was nice and tasty! It was a nice sized lunch along with the fries. The people that work here are nice and friendly and the space here is fun. Definitely a cool place to come and hang out in!

This is a cute space with great food and service. It would benefit from some cozier decor…read more We came in on a Sunday afternoon and were the only guests there. We tried the Sunday School Iris wine flight, which came with four 2oz pours ranging from white to red (I loved the chardonnay; my partner loved the Rogue Valley Pinot Noir). We also split the Filbert Sandwich +turkey, which I cannot recommend enough. It was delicious and even came with a side of beans. Despite splitting the wine flight and sandwich, we both left satisfied. It was the perfect amount of food for 2. We loved the dark decor but think it needs more. Some dark hanging curtains would go a long way. We think the hanging art should be lower, with shelves full of intentional books and accoutrement up top. Maybe more of a dog-theme to match the name.

We really enjoyed our visit. Kind staff and the food we shared was delicious. The chopped salad…read moreisn't actually chopped which was confusing but was still quite tasty! Not pictured great wine selection but that was to be expected. Look forward to going back when we can also enjoy the patio as it looked like a great space.

My friend and I arrived close to 11am and were seated right away. I'd ordered the mini volcano…read morewhich was 2 large pancakes, 1 egg, 1 slice of bacon, 1 sausage. The pancakes were huge and sweet , I took more than half home, it heated up well. Coffee was good, waitress kept our mugs full. All in all it was pretty good. I'm so happy there's another diner in town. 5 stars is a bit too high but 4 is a bit too small. I'll be back to try other menu items.

I had never actually eaten inside a Black Bear Diner before, even though I've heard people rave…read moreabout it for years. The only other time I tried it was for takeout from a location in California, and honestly it was pretty underwhelming. After moving to Washington, though, I figured I'd give the Olympia location a fair shot and try it as a sit-down breakfast spot, though they do offer breakfast/lunch all day. My husband and I came by for a little breakfast date around 9 a.m. It wasn't busy yet, but the parking lot was starting to fill up and it looked like the morning rush was on its way. One thing I did notice right away is that the parking lot feels a bit compact when it starts getting busy, so it's probably a good idea to be mindful of your surroundings when pulling in or backing out. We were seated right away with no wait, although it did take a couple minutes for someone to bring us the paper menus. I will say the menu design was cute -- it's styled like a newspaper. I also liked the aesthetic of the restaurant itself. There were bear decorations and forest-themed designs throughout the place that gave it a rustic, oaky cabin-type vibe, which fit the theme really well. Once we decided what we wanted, our server (I believe her name was Amy) came over. She was an older lady and seemed nice enough throughout the meal. I ordered what I think was the Big Grizzly breakfast, which was about $20. It came with three eggs (I chose sunny side up), sausage, bacon, one side, sweet cream pancakes, and a country ham steak. Since I'm not a big pancake person, I substituted the pancakes for a Belgian waffle instead. The food itself tasted good, but I'll admit I expected the portions to be bigger for the price since I had heard Black Bear Diner was known for huge breakfasts, but they were more moderate than I anticipated. The country ham steak in particular surprised me because it was just a small square piece rather than a larger cut. Maybe that's how it's normally served and I just didn't notice on the menu, but it was a little disappointing considering the price point. One small mix-up happened when our food arrived -- the server accidentally swapped my plate with my husband's. We didn't say anything about it since she was very friendly and it wasn't a big deal to us; she realized later when she stopped by for refills and apologized. My husband ordered a burger (I can't remember which one), and he said it tasted okay. Nothing amazing, but not bad either. It was decent enough for him to finish his meal. I did like that they offered bottomless soda refills, which was nice since I could steal sips from my husband's Pepsi lol. I also liked that there were options for some pepper sauces and condiments already on the table, which made it easy to customize my food without having to request it from my server. Before we left I stopped by the restroom, which could have used a little more attention. The stall I used didn't have a toilet paper holder at all, so the roll was just sitting on the floor. That felt a little unsanitary, but I made do. When the bill came, we were told that card payments are handled at the table, while cash payments have to be taken up to the front register. I paid with card and Amy came back to run it for us without any issue. Including a 20% tip we chose to add, our bill totaled out to $57.71 for our food and one soda, yikes. By the time we were leaving, several families had gathered at the entrance waiting for tables, so it definitely seems like this place gets busy as the morning goes on, probably closer to the brunch crowd around 10 or 11. Overall, the experience was just okay for me. The food tasted fine and the service was friendly, but the portion sizes didn't quite match the price in my opinion. It's a decent breakfast option in the area, but personally I think I might just stick with IHOP next time when it comes to chain breakfast spots.

Best ribeye I've ever eaten! Excellent flavor and perfect…read morecook. Impeccable, attentive service. Really lovely ambiance and comfortable environment.

We've been there several times now. Mike, our server was even willing to do a little dance for us…read more It was short but fun. Seriously, the food was excellent, the service, as always, was spot on. We started with the burrata and it was delicious. As an entree we had the Beef Stroganoff and it was better than my grandmother's. Excellent evening out. Don't skip the cheesecake. Light and fluffy. A perfect end to a fantastic meal.

Delish! The guac was yummy. My tacos were good. Mom had to be convinced to order the pompano cashew…read moreenchiladas but she was so pleased that she did. So good!

Went for happy hour. Jessica, our waitress, was fantastic and just the right level of…read moreattentiveness. Had the elote app (bit overcooked) and some excellent guacamole. Chips are homemade. Agree with other reviewers that margaritas a bit sour. Bartender rolled with our next suggested drink and it was good (mescal an d blood orange). He had flautas which weren't as crispy as he was used to but the sauce was delicious. Sis had seafood stack which had a complex sauce and you could actually see the seafood! I had Salvadoran enchiladas with chicken which were flavorful. Portions a good size. We will be back! It's good and ask for Jessica!

There's a Cajun creole on the vegan menu that's to die for, nice and just the right amount of…read morespicy. But as a non-vegan i just had to un-vegan it by having them add some chopped up bratwurst. EXECELLENTAMUNDO! Great food, great wine choices and really great service.

It's a cute diner without that cheap diner feel. I ordered the steak frites, which came as one…read morethick piece of steak with quite a bit of fat. I was a little confused by the cut--it felt like a larger piece with a small section still attached, almost like a chicken breast cut into uneven portions. I ordered it medium-well; the edges were cooked that way, but the center leaned more toward medium-rare. The fries were okay, but a bit cold and sad, honestly . The Diet Coke was flat. On the positive side, the service was super nice and attentive, the bathroom was very clean, and the overall vibe was pleasant. Because of the great service, I'm still giving them 5 stars. I'd definitely come back if I'm in the area and try something else on the menu.

I take everyone who visits me in Olympia to this place for their burger. Hot dang, just thinking…read moreabout it makes me salivate like a dog with a bone. They don't charge an arm and a leg for the 'burg, either, like SOME places do. Beer selection is good, especially the ciders. Something for everybody. There's live music pretty often too. Service is stellar. Helpful staff, friendly like. My old lady ordered a drink and was accidentally poured the wrong beverage. The 'tender apologized and offered to let us have the correct libation along with the mis-poured soldier--no charge. Now THAT'S service. I'll see you again, Ilk Lodge.

I want to give them 3.5 stars…read more The atmosphere here is great. Very much a local Olympia pub. Fits the theme of some sort of lodge/club. The table we sat at was on a slight slope, but not annoying enough for us to move. There was only one server working. All orders went through the bar. Great selection of beer and ciders. The menu was limited. It is pub grub. Went with a smash burger fries and onion rings. Food came out and it looked great. The fries and onion rings were lukewarm warm to cold. I have been told many times that their smash burger is the best burger in Olympia. I don't see it. It's the 2nd time I have had it, the spices are stronger than expected. Edges of my patty were burnt, and it relies on the sauce to make up for taste. It's not a bad burger, but it isn't amazing either. My wife was not impressed at all, and told me she won't be needing to go back. For me, I won't be disappointed if I end up back at this place. But I also won't be making the choice to go back. Maybe for beers...

The big brewhouse salad - I have this salad at least one time a week and I felt I needed to finally…read morereview. Is it the Russian dressing? Is it the ample bleu cheese crumbles, candied pecan chunks, or dried cranberries??? It's all of it. Maybe it's the low lights and inviting sense of brewery in the air. Maybe it's just the beer. Maybe it's the bartender who tries to get me to drink more of this delicious beer... maybe it's just magic.

Decided to have a small quick lunch here at this place. Matt was the bartender. It was very…read morefriendly. I ordered the BLT and had a black logger, which was one of their flagship beers. Place with a little slow, but that was only because I was there within the first half an hour opening. The place is very clean, very organized and they had merchandise and a very visually appetizing from within. The BLT came out and it was very good. The sun-dried tomato mayo was phenomenal. There was a lot of bacon and the tomatoes were very crisp and fresh which had added a bunch of flavor to the sandwich. I would definitely come back again if I live closer and check out more items off the food menu. I did end up buying merchandise which was a tin sign and some stickers to go home with.