I've only been here a handful of times but it's a great restaurant. It has a full bar with craft beers and they do tapping events for there beers. For example, today I saw an event on Facebook about the bar tapping the red velvet nitro beer from Ballast Point and that is a flavor that catches my eye. It was tart but very delicious. I was also craving food so I ordered the cheese curds and the Italian beef sandwich which was pretty good and pretty good portion of I say so myself. The service from the bartender's were great. I was told they've been working together for years and we're very "nsync". I can tell the chemistry was great just the way they fed off each other and how they reacted to the customers. Overall, food, customer service, and ambiance was great. I really had a good experience. read more

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Great food, great service, and one of our few remaining local restaurants truly going above and beyond to attempt to accommodate state health and safety mandates. read more

Had a great dinner with my wife there tonight. The food and service were great but I want to call out their commitment to enforcing the state COVID guidelines, especially around enforcing the wearing of masks. When many establishments crumble under pressure of customers who ignore the rules they are standing tall. On behalf of everyone who believes that we need to do all we can to save every life, thank you! read more

Olympic have really upped their food game since we were here about a year ago. It's not fancy but there's a lot to be said for super fresh salad ingredients, great service and fun atmosphere. Bar stools were full but we were seated immediately at a booth. I had a prime Philly sandwich - soft hoagie, excellent Philly steak and cheese sauce, super crispy shoestring fries. The prime rib was really good too. The servers knew the beers inside out, were friendly, fast. read more

I really like to eat at Olympic, but todays lunch was a great disappointment. I ordered the $8.00 lunch special soup and sandwich. What i got was a plain plate with a half ham and cheese grilled and dry with a cup of tasteless soup. The presentation was stark. If i was the owner i would reconsider serving this on the menu. Price was good but the food wasn't. Anyway i like the place and the service was good I will try again with a different choice read more

I have been here a few times now so I think i am comfortable giving a fair review. I have now had their lunch and dinner and can say i was a fan of them both. This time around i had their Jambalaya and poutine for lunch. Both were very good. something i would order again. I am always very impressed with their beer selection! They not only have a large selection but they have very good, somewhat difficult to find beers available which is very cool for someone who appreciates beer as much as me. The only downside i have found about this place is how loud it is. Ive been there for a packed dinner and now a barely busy lunch and both meals were accompanied by noticeable noise, we were speaking much louder than necessary to hold a conversation. Not sure that is that big of a deal, just thought it was worth mentioning. I recommend this place and look forward to when i return. read more

I'm very reluctant to give the Tavern such a low rating because the food is excellent and the drink selection is top notch; however, the service is terrible. If I could rate the food and beer without the service, it would be five of five; conversely, if I could rate the service without the food and beer, it would be one of five. Though the staff is friendly at times, it's the lack of promptness, speed, and efficiency with food and drinks that makes this experience disastrous. I don't want to feel rushed, but I also do not want my food to take 45 minutes to come to my table, nor do I want it to take 10-15 minutes to get a beer. Overall, for people who are new to this place, expect great food and beer, but also expect to sit there for over an hour and a half, primarily waiting for your server to actually tend to you. UPDATE: I went with my family last night, and was so impressed with the service. Not only was it a Saturday night, it was homecoming weekend, and the place was packed; even with a full house, the service was impeccable and prompt--not to mention, the food was, as always, amazing. read more

Love this place. Always been a local favorite of mine. Buffalo chicken sandwich is ridiculous and the beer selection is truly best in town. If the weather permits ask for a spot on the patio. Can't recommend this place enough. read more

I love the variety of beers and specials! The dinners are perfectly portioned and everything is cooked perfectly. Wonderful patio in the summer and a nice ambiance inside for the winter. read more

Great place to have lunch or dinner. The atmosphere is nice too. A great bar and grill with more than just bar food.

I've been to the Olympic multiple times and have usually had the same if not similar experience every time. This last weekend I went with a large group of people. We had some issues with our reservations, but I believe there were some misunderstandings and I'm going to chalk that up to a miscommunication, however this wasn't the first time they botched them up on me. The service was okay. We'd go long periods of time without seeing one of the wait staff that was assigned to our tables. Some will say that I'm a fast drinker, and I may be, but I do expect my glass to be refilled in a somewhat timely fashion. Even after ordering a beer, it would take a long period of time before it was brought to me. One of the ladies I was sitting with had placed an order for a drink; others that were ordered after hers were brought first. She had to remind the server about it. Again, we did have a large group so it could have been lost in the confusion. It doesn't make it right, but it is understandable. The food was okay. I had their all you can eat fish fry. It was light and flakey, but that was all it had going for it. I've had much better fried cod in other local restaurants. It was bland and flavorless. I didn't enjoy it all. My friends that were sitting right next to me both ordered steaks. Before ordering we were joking that one of the ways they let you order it was Super Rare or something like that. One of my friends ordered his steak rare, because that's how he likes it. His girlfriend ordered it medium well, because she doesn't like rare meat. When they brought their steaks out his was so rare it was almost like a cow with a sunburn. He likes his meat rare, so he was fine with it, but he joked that he was glad he didn't order it Super Rare as it would be steak tartar. His girlfriend's steak came out medium rare, which she hated. I would say they delivered her the wrong steak, but they went out of the way to state that it was Medium Well. She didn't send it back because she doesn't like to complain in restaurants. I would have. The Olympic prides itself on its beer selection, and it does have a nice variety on tap and in bottles. I think they are one of the more expensive places to get craft beers on tap in town, but they aren't too far off from a chain that is known for its beer selection. It's their non-craft beers that are really steep. They had advertisements up for 4 bottles of Corona for $14.00. I looked at their beer list and they normally sell them for $3.75. Not much of a deal for beer drinkers. If you're looking for good beer, there is much better in town, selection and price. read more

Wonderful evening out with friends. Lovely decor. I appreciated thar despite seating lots of guests, it was a quiet environment to have intimate conversation. Great pub food. Reasonably priced. The Spicy Buffalo Chicken Sandwhich was huge and my friend enjoyed it. The Reuben was great. Cubano was ok, I have had better. read more

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The Olympic Tavern hands down, has to be one of my FAVORITE restaurants in Rockford. They have amazing, fresh, and filling fish selections, they serve local meat from Eikemans, the service is great at the bar, or in the dining areas, and they have one of the greatest patio's for those cool summer nights, and a huge fire place I like to sit by when I am freezing in the Rockford Winter. The menu pricing is give or take about the same as any chain american food restaurant, however the food is much better quality, and the servings are huge. I have never heard anyone I have eaten with say, "I'm still hungry" but instead I see lots of take-home boxes whenever we dine there. They are going through some major architectural renovations right now and I can't wait to see the final result. One major perk, Monday nights are $5 burger nights. How can you beat that? read more

Always a great beer selection... Last night I had the Butcher's Burger, which was huge and delicious (I should have ordered it medium-rare instead of medium). One kiddo ordered fish, the other one pasta with cheese sauce (props to Olympic for not serving a popular name brand instead of home made). My wife got the fried cod. The down side was the portion my wife received was the same as my daughter's kids portion. Service was good, prices were in line with expectation (except on the fish), and the atmosphere was pleasant, but really hot. In general, The Olympic is a fine place for dinner, but an even more fine place for drinks. read more

The food is not "typical pub food". That reviewer should be banned from Yelp for having a low I.Q. Great, diverse menu from steaks and chops to seafood, salads and burgers. Probably 15+ appetizers and one of the best draft beer selections in town. This meal won't disappoint: 1/2 order of honey Siracha wings, potato skins, or volcano shrimp. Pastas here are very good, I like the shrimp alfredo, and if burgers are your thing The Grinder is the best on the menu. One of the best decks in Rockford as well, don't forget about this west side staple. read more

This was my wife and my second visit to the Olympic Tavern. The beer selection was excellent and the food choices were interesting. Upon arrival, the entire place was at capacity; however, we found a spot at the end of the bar. The staff was prompt and friendly throughout our visit. The food was a bit slow coming from the kitchen, which we learned from other patrons was unusual. We didn't mind as we enjoyed the inviting environs. For this visit, we opted for appetizers: crabcake, seared ahi tuna, baked goat cheese and the bacon date special. Each one was delicious, well presented and offered an interesting variety. I still haven't mentioned the beer. Whomever selects it is doing a good job of offering choices that are pleasing and challenging. I especially enjoyed the Revolution Uncalled Four 2014, a bourbon barrel Belgian quadruple ale. I didn't rate 5 stars due to the slowness of the food; however, it really didn't detract from a very nice evening. We will return! read more

I'll get right to the point: Our food was terrible. I had the prime rib sandwich which fell apart as soon as I picked it up. There was entirely too much horseradish sauce on it. My wife's chicken was over cooked and dried out. We talked to a manager but she was absolutely no help at all. read more

We stopped by The Olympic while we were in town visiting my inlaws this week. I was really impressed by the vast beer selection and resonable prices that the Olympic offered. Coming in from Colorado I was hoping to try some local beer and the Olympic delivered. While we didn't eat, we did get a chance to chat with the owner for a while (turns out my husband went to high school with him), and it sounds like they are doing some really amazing things -- the menu looks fantastic and they have lots of fun events on deck for the summer. I really excited to hit up the Olympic on our next trip to Rockford! read more

To me the Olympic Tavern gets the tavern feel spot-on. There is an excellent beer selection that is constantly rotated and it is well-publicized when they will be getting something new in so you never miss a great pour of a beer that is hard to get. Whoever runs the bar and beer buying does a great job of keeping a diverse selection of things on tap that will appeal to almost anyone who likes beer at all. The food is excellent, but I must say that since I've found my favorite menu item the breadth of my exposure to their menu is fairly limited. The bison burger is always great - don't be a health-nut, add the bacon. I've also tried mussels here, which we're surprisingly pretty good for a place so far from any open salt water. Service has always been great and the environment is awesome - especially in the summer. Make sure you check out their outdoor seating. The pergola provides a good amount of shade. read more

Great food, great beer selection, wonderful features and the bow on top is terrific service to show case all this wonderful spot has to offer. Will be coming back again and again read more

WARNING: Yet another bad review. Took family out at 4:30p for a supper, (only 8 of us). Asked for a table for 8, the replay was shocking! We where told "...We have a reservation for 40 people, we are not going to be able to seat you..." Being that this is 4:30p and on a Saturday, I was taken back by this. No effort was even made to accommodate, not even a seat at the bar! I work in the service industry, my dad is a retired Executive Chef and this to both of us was unacceptable and unprofessional. Before we could respond, we where asked to leave since no seating was going to be made available. I Will go out of my way not to return and to make sure any social media is made aware of this transgressions! read more

Splenda mojitos are my newest frenemy. Thank you Olympic for your fresh mint and your willingness to cater to my need to avoid all real sugar to prevent myself from running laps around the room and eventually collapsing into a pool of sugar-crash sadness. The clientele here can occasionally be dicks but who am I to talk? I'm one of them. read more

We went there with our 2 small dogs for their Monday night Pints for Pups night which happens every week. The waitresses were rude and refused to wait on us. One of the waitresses said there was rain coming, they would not wait on us and that the gate to the patio was supposed to have been locked. Then she yelled at another waitress, "Go lock that gate!" They treated us like we were bums coming in off the street. After we walked back out through the gate out of the patio I told the waitress well you just lost a customer. She just had a sarcastic smirk on her face like she didn't care and like she was thinking oh well for every 2 customers lost there's 10 more coming in to replace you. We went somewhere else for dinner and 5 hours later it still had not rained. Very sad that one of the oldest establishments in Rockford employs wait staff that treat customers like this. We are generous tippers also and she would have gotten a very good tip but somebody else got her tip that night. Oh well. We probably won't be back. read more

Had wonderful food and an awesome server named Hop (5 stars for service). Calamari was cooked perfectly and the aioli sauce it came with I could have put on everything (it was that good). Short ribs were huge and very tender. Hubby had fish fry dinner and said it was great. Unique beers and wonderful ambiance. I would suggest making reservations, Friday night was very busy. read more

The first time I had ever gone there I had a great experience! I got the ribeye and it was prepared exactly how I asked for it. The apps were pretty good and the sides were also pretty good. This is definitely more casual dining and a great local spot. read more

We stopped in here to kill a few hours on the way to a friends benefit. We were very surprised at how nice of a restaurant this was. We came in with a large group and sat at the bar and was promptly served by a friendly bartender and staff. They had many local micro Brews and craft beers on tap or in bottles. While we sat there they had a whiskey tasting going on which look to be very busy. We decided after having a few drinks to order some appetizers. So we ordered several portions of the volcano shrimp and shared amongst our group. Everybody loved them they were amazing I recommend you to try them. And we orderd several orders of the loaded fries. Perfect snack to hold us over. We were very surprised at how big, clean, cool atmosphere, that this place was. Definitely a must stop when in Rockford or passing through. In a safe area of town. Menu is very impressive and we will have to stop back to try more our next visit. If you like unique beers and different bourbons, scotches,whiskeys, then this is your place. The owner I believe or maybe the bar manager thanked us before leaving for us coming in to thier establishment. We explained why we were in town and that we were headed to a benefit. Never meeting this man before he offered us a cool ST. PATTY'S DAY photo head cut out for picture opportunities. What a classy guy. We thought it make some cool memories. Thanks sir. Alot people used it and had fun with it. Next time back in town we will be coming here not just to eat but to hang out and drink here. Very classy joint. Rockfordidians needs to check this place out if you haven't already. read more

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Great beer selection, but the food is just average. The food isn't bad, but not anything that you're going to remember. I did love the outdoor seating area, so if you're in the mood to sit outside and have some good beer, this is the right place for that. read more

Have not been here for 3 years, but it's still incredible. Great craftsman vibe, delicious beers and fantastic food. A must for any Rockford visit. Enjoy read more

Olympic Tavern - Ceviche was incredible - Barbeque Near Me - Rockford, Illinois

Perfect place with the exception of all the flies while sitting on the outside patio. Overall ambiance is good, large bar and tons of room. The menu is diverse, from salads, to pizza. It's a place for beer lovers, with dozens of choices. From IPA's today local brews. I myself, enjoyed a pomegranate sangria and also a sparkling wine, delicious. For the pizza lover I'd recommend the black n blue (steak, fresh blue cheese, red peppers, scallions) The Mac n Cheese, the Fish skewers. Service was good and the busser was on point. I'd recommend a few zappers outside, otherwise the perfect place to go!! read more

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Look, folks. This is my family's favorite restaurant. I come for the beer, the oysters, and the bartenders (love you J, K, & A) and their ability to make a perfect Rob Roy. My husband comes for the buffalo chicken sandwich, the fries, and the incredible bourbon selection. My kids come for the crayons, coloring sheets, and chicken tenders. All this to say: The Olympic makes our family feel like we're part of their family. The people running the place are amazing. Support this business and keep the good times rolling at this true gem on Rockford's west side. read more

Pricey but can be worth it! The food is above average here, the service is good and they have some unique menu items that bring me back. It's not the BEST cooked food I've had but I will admit that depending on what you get it's worth coming back for. I've had mostly really good experiences here and always try to stick with the chef's specials and anything they fly in fresh. The oysters I had last time were excellent and you can't beat fresh. Give it a try and maybe you'll find something that will draw you back again and again. read more

The food was good but be prepared to wait! This is the first restaurant I've ever been to where there's no place designated to wait until a seat is ready for you. We all congregated around the entrance and I heard another customer mention that the space was very tight. We ended up having a shorter wait for seating than that which we were quoted, which was nice. We waited over 20 minutes for our soup/salad and a total of nearly an hour for our entrees, for a table of four. Our waiter was nice but was rarely seen. We asked for the bill and then waited another 10 minutes for the waiter to take our payment. The food was good and so were the drinks. However, to me it isn't worth the 1 hour and 45 minutes we spent in the restaurant. read more

My mother and I came here on a Wednesday for dinner as we both haven't been here in awhile and figured it would be a slower day, little did we know how slow it would be. We sat here for over 15 minutes and I had to go to the bar to get someone to ask to be waited on. As I was waiting for the lady at the register she said," I will be right with you." She turned to a waitress and poured the drink that she came for after we were waiting. I saw 4 waiters walk back and fourth 5xs and nobody addressed us. When we did finally get waited on the waitress was not very good. Sad that a place that used to be a favorite of ours will never be getting our business again. read more

You NEED to come here. We were skeptical because of the location and it doesn't look that great from the outside but sit on the patio and your life will be changed. It's beautiful inside and out and the food and service has been excelled every single time. It's honestly a hidden gem. We just went on one of our regular visits and after trying their Octoberfest menu, it was absolutely delicious. I had a pork shank which was amazing, the scotch eggs were standard and the sausage was delish! Another time we went their prime rib was huge but average in taste but holy moly can they make an au ju, warm bread rolls and beautiful cinnamon butter. But the primary reason I love it is their beer. It's a perfect pour and it's always so clean and fresh which is a nice change for beer on draft in Rockford. There bottles are great too! There are so many options as well! read more

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Kind of a strange place pulling up to it, but the food was solid. They are doing renovations in the front of the place right now, which makes me want to return when they are done because their food was great. We ate with friends and the meal did take a decent amount of time, but I will say that it isn't Chicago so the hustle and bustle isn't present. The kid's meal chicken was amazingly large and well worth the $5. I had the pork sandwich, which was pretty good -- I always go to Iowa for my pork tenderloins but for Illinois this one was good. My wife had a huge mixed green walnut salad, which looked good and she liked it. My friends had the taco salad...which was massive...and the "Crabby" Chicken sandwich. He said he knew it was imitation crab meat going into the meal, but he still ate the whole thing. I would go there for lunch, dinner...maybe. Once they finish the bar area it might be a decent place to hang out, but who knows. I do know they need to update, but the food was worth it. read more

The beer selection is the bomb. Inventive menu and terrific staff. The Monday burger special is not to be missed!

The Olympic Tavern is the choice for the RHS hospital staff and it's always been good to us. The bar is nice and big, the decor is pretty nice and the patio seating is pretty good too. I have never had bad service or a bad experience in this place. If they were in a better location this place would be killing it. read more

A charming big eatery bar with great fish and shrimp dishes along with the usual awesome beer one can find in the area. This place is historic and building a great pace to be in feeling the rich heritage of Rockford and it is great to see a business like this exist. the service and food was excellent along with the layout of the restaurant and the place is often packed on weeknights with other locals long appreciating a great alternative place to be in the area aside from downtown. read more

This is one of our city's hidden gems! The Olympic is a great spot for dinner with the family, or drinks with the guys. Tonight we went to the second annual Beefsteak and it was a ton of fun. A festival of eating beef, drinking, and eating more beef. Will definitely go back. It was as much a social event as a dinner, I highly recommend the Olympic any time of year, but definitely for their events. read more

had a bad experience last week with a rude bartender but went back bc usually the olymoic tavern is awesome. this time the experience was great. the service was great. the staff was friendly. great experience - glad we went back!! read more