Rum Runner is located right by Lake Erie, making it a perfect spot to watch the sunset while enjoying your food and drinks. Everything we tried today was delicious. All the fried seafood was fresh and came with three sauces (my favorite is the cold sweet sauce). The burger was juicy and well-seasoned. I really love their special cocktail, my go-tos are the Passion Colada and the Rum Runner. Both drinks are refreshing and perfect for summer. The staff is friendly and welcoming. Had a great time here and will definitely be back! read more

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WOW....what a find !! Wish I had more "stars" to give them. Got there early, by the time we left.... ALL outside tables were full !! We were looking for a spot on the water to eat lunch.... We found the best place. It has that "beachy, marina flare and very laid back & comfortable. Right on the water, able to see the Bicentennial Tower clearly. We watched the geese swim around and boats coming into & out of the Marina. We sat outside and Brook was our Server. Delightful young lady with a great smile. Very attentive. We ordered our drinks & the Debbie's Burger with fries & coleslaw. The hamburger was cooked perfectly medium rare and spot on seasoning. Fries were not super crunchy but they were good. Delicious !! Kudos to the Chef !!! Almost wish we lived here just to get lunch here again. Highly recommended. read more

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Cool little spot! It's right on the water so you can hang out for a while. Staff were friendly and helpful! Looks like you can order food but I didn't. read more

Rum Runners - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

My friends and I started our girls weekend in Erie at Rum Runners. We were hoping to sit outside but there was live music and all of the tables were taken. Fortunately there were empty tables inside and we were able to sit down right away. We still were able to hear the live music, which was nice. We ordered the Greek fries to start off with, but we're pretty disappointed when they came out. It was more of a chili cheese type of fries and we were imagining something else. My burger was pretty good. It wasn't my favorite place from the weekend but it was a good start! read more

Rum Runners - Greek fries - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

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I have never came here for the food, purely the drinks and live music. Ambiance is always nice (you get to watch the sunset from their patio). Their live bands are great too. Servers are nicer than the bartenders lol read more

Rum Runners - sunset at the bar - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

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Positive. A Happy place with good food and scenery. More fry's than we could eat made the 2 hour trip home better. Lake Erie Perch and clam strips were both done up right. read more

Rum Runners - The hood of our car. - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

I stopped by to grab lunch and the staff is amazing! Everyone was lovely and the manager Jon was beyond helpful. He even made my lunch. A steak salad. YUM!! Stacked w greens, tomato, onion, egg and fresh French fries and home made ranch dressing. It doesn't get much better than this! Thank you staff for a great pit stop memorizable. read more

Rum Runners - a bowl of food on a table - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

Very casual little place along the lake. We had burgers and they were everything!! Our waitress was friendly, fast, and efficient. read more

This was a nice spot for a quick lunch. My husband and I both enjoyed the perch. The service was top notch, and it was a relaxing experience. read more

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Terrible service. Waited 30 mins before even being acknowledged. Our server did not write down our order when ordering and my food was wrong. My drink was absolutely horrible too. How you can mess up a double captain and Diet Coke is beyond me. To top it off, she split the bill completely wrong (for 2 people) and took another 20 mins to come back so I could ask her to fix it. Do not recommend read more

Was staying at a hotel nearby and was looking for a casual waterfront spot to unwind after a day of traveling. We wandered over to Rum Runners. A casual, dive bar-esq place at the end of the pier. We had a Philly Dilly and a Turkey club. Nothing spectacular. But solid bar food at reasonable prices. Beer prices were great too. I was shocked to get two meals, two beers, and a pitcher of beer for under $40! A great place if you're looking for reasonable bar food, great drink prices and an amazing view. Sorry I forgot to take pix of the food. We were starving. read more

Rum Runners - View of the Bicentennial Tower from Rum Runners. - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

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Top 3 wings I have ever had. Blue cheese was real deal as well. Got the extra hot and it was packed with great flavor. Could have had more heat though. Cool vibe inside and on deck. Laid back spot. Staff was very friendly. read more

Sat at a table for 20 minutes and didn't get served while waitresses were walking around and saw us multiple times. 2 stars because the view is nice but that's it. read more

This review is based upon our experience visiting for drinks and juke box dance fun :) And Josh-- the most awesome bartender EVER - who worked the Monday night shift and was extremely attentive, patient and who I think should be an honorary fellow conference Board member :) We were in town for a conference at a local hotel so a bunch of us came in on Monday evening to wrap up our night with a few rum runners, cherry Lawson's, beers and whatever else people were imbibing. Josh was the only bartender on duty and he had an awesome attitude and personality. He fit in with us really well and we enjoyed having him as our bartender. It's small here -- a little hole in the wall, and I'm not sure how the food is, but we had a blast. A great place to have a drink and unwind near the lake, either inside or out. Rum Runner = Fruity alcoholic deliciousness!! I can't leave out the awesome bartenders from Tuesday evening. We finished our cruise on the Victorian Princess and a bunch of us headed over here (probably at least 50 people). We completely filled the place. This bartender wasn't as awesome as Josh, he seemed a little more annoyed with us, but he did his best to get everyone their drinks so I definitely have to give him and his female co-worker a shout out. They did a great job for the number of people that bombarded them on a typically slow Tuesday night!! Thanks guys!!! I really hope you were tipped well! read more

Food with a view. The wings and fries were delicious. The waitress was very personable and made us feel welcomed. Excellent view of the lake and paddle steamers coming to port. I also highly recommend the Rum Rummer cocktail. read more

I love this place for many reasons but mainly because it has an outdoor bar in the bay. It is small and I like that. Very good service and very good food. I love the environment in the vibe and I can't wait for next summer to go back! read more

Rum Runners - Outdoor bar on the bay! - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

Cool place on the lake. Relaxed atmosphere, usually has a fun crowd. Typical bar food , pretty good selection of beers

It's a great location with cabanas and seating during a weekday. The margarita mix tasted a bit dated and were served in plastic cups. I guess I was expecting too much from this place though. I ordered the bucket of coconut shrimp and was pretty disappointed. 5 pieces and loaded with fries. The service was acceptable read more

Rum Runners - Spider in my margarita - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

Super relaxed place to grab lunch. The Georgia Rueben was absolutely fantastic, and the fries were nice and hot. The fish and chips we ordered were exactly what we were looking for, and enjoyed the boats passing while eating on the deck. read more

Casual outdoor dining. Good fish and chips. Great service--Brian was very attentive and friendly. Phenomenal view.

Superb coconut mojito and coconut shrimp! I am a chef and extremely critical...the coconut shrimp are simply outf cking standing! A must!!!! Greatest coconut mojito also! read more

Wow. Never thought I'd leave a bad review here. Came for lunch. Asked if we could sit inside since it was very windy. The waitress said sure , sit anywhere. Apparently though there was no service inside, which was not explained. Sat there almost twenty minutes, waitresses passing us almost as many times. Tried to get their attention, and...nothing. Finally left.... Take it as you will. Sad to see a once fun establishment become like this. read more

Tourist location for sure ,food is a little below average bar fare for a bayside restaurant, but price is fair ...scenery is really what you pay for read more

Rum Runners - A ship - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

Went today burger was not good. Fries were delicious. Our server acted like she wished she wasn't there...there was a smiling friendly waitresses we wish we did have....Great waterway view read more

We stop at Rum Runners every time we travel to Erie. We've never had a bad experience. The drinks are always great, bartenders always friendly, and the view is awesome!!! Special thanks to the manager Lisa who went above and beyond to locate and return a lost and found item that we left at the bar. With how understaffed /over-stressed restaurants are, it's nice to see someone still cares enough to make the customer experience 5 star! Can't wait for our next trip back! read more

I'm not sure why Rum Runners has a 2 star rating in this platform, that wasn't our experience. It's a really nice spot to sit outside by the water. The staff was friendly and the food was solid. read more

I would give this place a 0 but that isn't an option. The place from the outside looks inviting and comfortable. You seat your self and supposedly a server comes to your attention. I dont know what you have to do to get their attention because I sat there for 30 min without a single server looking at our table. The people there looked like they were having a good time with their drinks and fat bottoms however not too many people were eating their food. I never got a chance to look at the menu because no one gave me one, but the food that I saw carried was pretty basic nothing to drool over. The only thing I liked about this place was leaving. I don't think i'll come back. read more

Rum Runners - Excellent outside seating! - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

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What a shit birthday experience! Food was terrible, even after we sent our original order back. Then service went down hill, we were never checked on. Waited for everything. Then to top it off, my brand new bday shirt, got ketchup squirted on it by the waitresses dropping ketchup packets and then stepping on them, the ketchup squirted across the room and onto my new shirt, there was no compensation offered! What a Freaking joke! And get a fry cook that doesn't burn everything you order! Highly disappointed. read more

Erie's only true sunset bar that is right on the water and its employees truly have passion for the place and there work. Has great food I recommend the philly dillly and the French fries are all hand cut not pre package trash you can get anywhere. Awesome place! read more

Literally the best fries on earth. Great views. If you are here, you MUST try the rum runner!

Place was understaffed and the employees they had there looked like they couldn't give a shit about their job. Had customers sitting at tables waiting for service and getting up and walking out. The band they had seemed good, but we were listing to them from the bar next door because we couldn't even get a beer sitting at the bar there. read more

Had a wonderful time on Saturday July 10 around dinner time! Me, my granddaughter, her soon to be husband, and some grand babies of mine came down from Maine to visit so we wanted something cold to drink and a light supper. This would have gotten 5 stars if anyone but my server would have Acknowledged me and my family we were standing there for about 8-9 minutes servers walked past and looked right at us! The only person who did it was ultimately my server. She was super busy but as soon as she saw me, she saw that I had a cane and she ran to clear off a dirty table for us,that just got up.She was very sweet and welcoming, accommodating and even offered to get my grand babies booster seats which I didn't even know you guys had... after we were sat, our experience was better than I ever remember I've had in my handful of experiences at rum runners. Last time my server was rude and chewed gum in my face I also saw her drinking with a customer when she was waiting on tables!! After my granddaughters fiancé, my granddaughter, and the babies and I sat down we had been walking around the bayfront a little bit before we came and my granddaughter is very fair skinned! The server noticed she was very red and burnt on her face and one of her arms. She ran and went inside to get her some of her sunscreen and some aloe from in the restaurant and even put it on for her. It was such a caring gesture, she didn't even know us! Little did she know anyone for she explained she wasn't from here like my grand babies aren't as well but I am! BUT little did the waitress know my granddaughter was getting married in four days and she didn't want to have sunburn for the ceremony! The waitress was so also happy to hear about the engagement being that she herself was as well! My granddaughter was so grateful for the waitress she is still talking about it!!! (Along with the piña colada's of course!!)So this morning we decided to write the little girl a nice review, since amazingly she said she had just started there as a server! So refreshing to get good service because my last experience with my grandson and I was not the greatest one, and it had me questioning whether or not I would come back! Me and my family like to come here and watch the boats, not to mention I love the virgin piña colada's! I'm too old to to drink liquor nowadays!! My waitress was very knowledgeable about the drinks and the food and made great suggestions, we all had cocktails and mock tails she recommended from the menu and they were delicious! Then we shared some apps she recommended the mammoth pretzel, mozzarella cheese sticks, wings and cheese fries! The were all great to share and she even gave us two little bowls that made it easily shareable, one for food amd the other for sauces!! She hooked us up with ranch too my grand babies LOVE RANCH!!! I was also so sad to see a few things aren't available that I used to love, she informed us it was due to the pandemic which is understandable but which is also why I cannot give FIVE STARS but the service would get TEN if it was possible! I could also have NEVER been able to tell she was new she informed us that it was like her third or fourth shift of all time working there and my family was astonished!! I would have never guessed unless if she told me so! She had many other tables but we never wanted for anything not even a refill! I don't remember her name unfortunately it started with a K or a C and she had bright red hair and looked like a Barbie doll, so thanks so much K or C you were absolutely great I'm sorry I don't remember your name I'm very old, and the cancer treatments don't help my memory get any better unfortunately! U definitely were one to remember I will be back to visit! We all will be back! Can't wait to see u there new waitress you are going to do great! And as we promised we will come with wedding pictures! My granddaughter will be looking fabulous and not burnt thank you you waitress you were amazing!!! Myrtle Lupo/ Christina read more

No pets on the patio!?!? Please reconsider this!! I came here the other night with my small dog to sit out on the patio and enjoy the cooler temps and the sunset. One waitress said it was ok if I brought my dog with me. Another waitress stopped dead in her tracks and said "She can't be here!" I'm visiting from NC and where I live, if they have outside seating, you can bring your well behaved dog. Hell, even a lot of bars you can bring your dog inside. Rum Runners - please reconsider this policy. We were set to spend some money that night too! read more

Everyone was super friendly but the food left a little to be desired the fish was not good at all I was kind of upset I paid all that money for fish and then it turned out horrible the fries were cold the coleslaw oh my goodness the coleslaw it was soupy the flavor was horrible I'll probably never go back unless it is Just to have a beer read more

This place is getting 5 stars only because of the location. Outside patio right on Lake Erie. Very small, inside was dirty, sticky countertops. They have food also, we didn't order any though. Got the rum runner drink, very good and wasn't expensive. If it wasn't on the water I probably wouldn't go back. read more

Rum Runners - Rum runner - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

Nice outdoor atmosphere on the water with really good food! Priced reasonably! Lots of choices on menu from seafood, burgers and sandwiches. read more

Rum Runners - Bars Near Me - Erie, Pennsylvania

If I could give zero stars I would. Waitresses are extremely rude. Would never go back. We felt like a bother to them.

Waitress was amazing she was really quick and efficient and was attending to about 17 tables at the same time. They are short staffed, but her pleasant attitude and our experience because of her made up for that. I wish I knew her name because she deserves a shout out. Whomever the women on 4/27 was YOU ARE GREAT! Thank you read more

We used to visit Rum Runners every summer during our annual trip to Erie. The food was always mediocre, but the restaurant was right on the lake, so that made up for the poor service and dingy restaurant. We returned to Rum Runners last week and it looks more run down than ever. It took 20 minutes for a waitress to acknowledge us. The food was horrible, and the bathroom were completely disgusting. We waited a really long time for our food. I don't mind divey. I don't mind places with character. This is just gross, gross, gross. I don't plan on ever returning. read more

My family and I stayed in Erie for a few nights and wanted to eat at a place on the water. This is a great casual option and met all of our expectations. The food was good, my wife and I each got a fried seafood basket with clam strips, perch and coconut shrimp. Good portion and hits the spot if you're looking for classic bar food. They didn't have a kids menu but the waitress kindly offered to make a half order of chicken fingers and fries, and only charged half price as well, which was very nice. You can't beat the atmosphere, right on the water watching all the boats drive by. They don't take reservations which we didn't know, we arrived around 5pm on a Friday and waited about 20 minutes for someone to finish their meal so we could sit. Would definitely come back here on our next trip to Erie. read more