I was in Florida for a vacation to visit friends and family over the summer, and I found myself in Ocala on a Monday evening in July. I was with my in-laws, and we were looking for a place to eat dinner in downtown while waiting for some other family to join us. It seems like on Mondays, there is not a ton open in the downtown Ocala area in terms of restaurants. This makes sense, but we chose to eat here primarily because it was open on a Monday, along with recommendations from those I was with. They had eaten here before, but it was my first time. The restaurant is located on a corner in downtown Ocala, near the square. Since it is in the city, there is no dedicated parking beyond what you find on the street. However, I have never had an issue finding parking in the general area when visiting this part of town, so unless it is a crowded evening or special event, you should have no issues. When we arrived, it was still early in the evening and we had no issue getting a table. As the night progressed, more people started coming in for their Bachelor viewing party. It seems like this draws a big crowd. They even announced that they were doing giveaways and other fun activities for the series season finale the following week. I imagine they hold other types of events as well, so that might be something to look out for if you are planning on stopping. We sat at a table near the front, and waited a couple minutes for the server to come by. She was, honestly, somewhat aggressive and not very kind. I tried to order a beer on the menu, and she went to make sure it wasn't out of stock. Then, I asked her about the Monday special on the menu, and she acted like she never even heard of it before. She stated that she didn't normally work on Mondays, but the manner in which this was communicated made it feel like it was my fault for inquiring about this. I ended up having a Garage Beer on tap, and it was serviceable. I also wanted to order the advertised $10 Grilled Cheese and Fries special, and got the D-Nice Way Grilled Cheese with this. I actually very much enjoyed the grilled cheese, but the fries were the star of the plate. They were crispy and crunchy, but not very thin. I had never had a fry quite like that! Would highly recommend giving them a try here at least once. Our food came out in a reasonable timeframe after we ordered. It was not too quick, but did not take forever, either. Besides what I mentioned previously, I was satisfied with the other service received. I thought the prices here, in general, were fair and on par with other restaurants that are similar. They run different specials during different days of the week, as outlined on the menu. For example, Monday is supposed to be $10 Grilled Cheese and Fries. I ordered this, but I am not confident I got it for this price. Someone I was with paid the bill, but the waitress did not seem to be aware of what this special actually was. So, if you are wanting to order a special, I would explicitly say that when ordering to be sure you get it. Overall, I enjoyed the vibes and the food at this place. It seems like they have activities several nights a week to bring in different crowds, along with specials on food and drinks. The service left a lot to be desired, as our waitress was not very friendly nor knowledgeable on the specials. I would be willing to give this another try, but hopefully with a different waitress. read more

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Thought to give this place another shot but it was another reason why we haven't been back in a year. Service was rude. Ordered two Guinness' and left. The demographics of this place is also unwelcoming. read more

Orders came out made right for a party of seven and yes....the fries are excellent! The live music on Friday evening was enjoyable! read more

Came in(2:05), sat down not a soul came over. Finally a weary guy came and asked what we wanted to drink, no menu's, luckily I was ready because of a chalk board, ordered a beer, came with 4 drinks, one not needed. Asked for a menu, never got it, after 15 minutes went to the bar and asked but still no one has come by. 2:56. If I get invited to come I think I'll decline. Each time I come I am usually disappointed. I have hopes each time, but usually am disappointed. Sorry guys, you need some serious help. read more

The Lodge is place to get wings!!! Chelsea is very attentive and a great bartender!! I would highly recommend!!

Great corner spot in historic downtown Ocala. It used to be the home of a Starbucks years ago. Now it's a restaurant/bar/music space with ample indoor and outdoor seating. There's also a speakeasy upstairs. I'd have enjoyed it much better had it not been freezing cold with equally as freezing cold drinks. Nonetheless, a great spot overall. Check out the dates for when Houston Keen will be playing at the Lodge! read more

Great food, great service! Between the apps and other creative things on their menu, nothing is a hit or miss!

Definitely one of the best places to get a burger every time I've been in the lodge and gotten one it was amazing "the Humpty Dumpty " burger is one of my favorite 10/10 read more

The food and vibe during the day. It's very chill and family friendly. at night time. It turns into a very lively bar that is also host to a speak easy. second floor. Is a nightclub mostly urban hip-hop and on the third floor it is a Latin nightclub. all you would ever want in one building for a night doubt. read more

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Great place! Very chill, at least on a Tuesday afternoon, and Sara was awesome. Huge craft beer selection and daily specials. The burgers are very very delicious! Check them out! read more

The burgers here are amazing, tacos not so much but looking forward to trying other items from here. Staff always very attentive and pleasant. read more

The Lodge - Rocket burger w bacon - Gastropubs Near Me - Ocala, Florida

Terrific service is the hallmark of this food and beer restaurant. There are many brews to chose from. My cheeseburger was a tad over done. Wife reports her fries were cold and soggy. Her pulled pork sandwich came with jalapeños, which she pulled off after her nose started running from the spicy taste. Our server was delightful and attentive. The food menu is small. That makes choosing fast, but I'd like to see a wider selection. read more

The Lodge - Interior. - Gastropubs Near Me - Ocala, Florida

The atmosphere and the solid beer selection makes this a three star establishment. The rude bartender really isn't necessary. You know those kind of people who hate their jobs and want you to know how much they hate it? Yeah... They got at least one working here. From not wanting to be bothered to answer questions on the beers, to eye rolling, to questioning whether I understand that the beer I chose is 10.5% and telling me that i should probably be drinking water with it. I'm a 45 year old man that has been drinking craft beer over 20 years and was on my first beer of the night. Relax Hombre! I got this. I do like that you can scan their menu on the phone so I didn't have to squint to see the selections on the board. The vibe was chill. Didn't try the food so I can't comment on that, but judging on other reviews, the service needs some work! And I agree whole heartedly. read more

We went to a speakeasy and let me tell you!! The drinks were AMAZING!!! I had the Orange Creamsicle Martini.. it was super tasty!! I also did peanut butter cup shops. I'm not a big PB but those I would happily have again!! read more

The Lodge - Drink Menu - Gastropubs Near Me - Ocala, Florida

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*Rude Service* Went to the lodge to eat, lady at the First floor bar on (Friday apr 12 4:30 pm) told us food opens At 5pm so we used the restroom and headed outside to wait 30 more minutes and come back in and eat. She rudely screamed across the bar in front of other customers "BATHROOMS ARE FOR PAYING CUSTOMERS ONLY" which I said, oh we are coming back. She rolled her eyes and said "sure you are". She said something to the customers in front of her and we were laughed out of the establishment. Very inappropriate and poor customer service. Was looking forward to eat here but after that interaction it's a no. Don't recommend. read more

Go Knights and Charge On. What else do you want? Best beer selection in Ocala. Pure Gastropub type menu. Staff is on it and location is smack dab on the Square. DrinkLocal352 Thx again Nigel for taking good care of us. Walking by or staying for some music, hit up The Lodge on your next visit to Ocala. Go Knights!!!! read more

The Lodge - Venison and Gator - Gastropubs Near Me - Ocala, Florida

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What a great night! I can't imagine why this place has such a low score. Six of us reserved a table for the Dueling Pianos and six of us LOVED it! The bar was hopping, great atmosphere and generous food helpings, the shrimp were off the chart and the burgers/pizzas were standard quality. They kept our table flowing with drinks and with everyone singing along all around us, it was just the best night we've had in ages. We would definitely go again and again. We do recommend you get a table though as it would be a long night to stand and it would be hard to get to the bar as busy as it gets. Oh yes! GET THE SHRIMP COCKTAIL! read more

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Very yum. I got a bacon cheeseburger cooked perfectly. It came with a side of fries. Their french fries are are incredible; they have a unique batter I have not seen anywhere else before. Lots of different craft beers to choose from - and outdoor seating. I also got a sneak peak at a new corn beef hashed based dish which was delicious. Can't wait to come back and try it out. read more

The Lodge - Bacon cheeseburger. - Gastropubs Near Me - Ocala, Florida

Had a totally enjoyable evening at the Lodge! Our server, Ariel made sure we loved our beer and cider (there's about 200 brews to choose from) and made some excellent recommendations from the menu. There was live music on Friday night which was fantastic bluegrass/country type but was so loud we couldn't hear each other... at all. Dishes were beautifully plated, delicious and portions were more than generous! They have a wild game section that I can highly recommend! Venison, wild boar and rabbit all prepared really well. Try a new beer or cider, experiment with the menu and check out the Lodge! read more

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Food is really good and the portions are huge. Service is usually pretty good. Drinks are good depending on who makes it. I don't like the fact that everyplace that serves food in Ocala closes so early though. read more

Never had a more unpleasant bartender in my life. Good ambiance, but the food was terrible. What a waste of space in downtown Ocala.

I want to start out stating I was here for a couple of beers and have not tried the food, so this is not a review of the food. I was down in Ocala to visit my dad and I got out with my wife to run a few errands. We decided to find a place to grab a drink and ended up at The Lodge. First impression? Nice older building. Hardwood floors, althougha bit different from the older Florida style (more parquet tiles than boards). Very rustic looking. Long bar (awful seats?). Small area to sit down more comfortably near the side door, which is where we went after grabbing drinks. In short, good first impression. The beer list is rather extensive and the bartender knew his craft beer game. After having an experience in a brewery where the guy could not tell me the distinguishing points of the different IPAs ("some people like this, others like that" type of answer), it is nice when someone understands hop forward, hop back and well balanced. The list also appears fairly well curated (of course, then, one of the best places to buy beer in Ocala is not far from here in a convenience store, so things are a bit different from where I live. LOL). I would gladly return next time I am in the area, as I know they are rotating a decent amount of their draft picks. Perhaps next time, I will get some food, as well. I like the game type of menu, with some bison, venison and gator. And Poutine? My former coworker from Canada would love that. read more

The Lodge has good service and ok food. It is a pub / bar so that makes a little sense but the cleanliness of the restaurant isn't so great. Me and my family walked into the restaurant and saw 3 tables not cleaned nor wiped down. We sat down at the 2 cleaner tables and found them to be sticky. The bathrooms also have toilet paper strung all across the floor and that is disgusting on its own. The beer cheese that comes with the "Giant" Bavarian Pretzel tastes so horrible and has a liquify texture. It isn't like beer cheese at all. read more

The upstairs is wonderful Matthew is such a performer with exquisite cocktails Definitely recommend Check out their face book for the password promise you won't be disappointed read more

We went to The Lodge for Father's Day Brunch with my husband and FIL. It's a pretty unique place with game on the walls and quite a few TVs. I got the Biscuits & Gravy, and the guys got the Redneck Benedict. All three of us were pretty disappointed in the food. The Biscuits & Gravy were pretty boring, definitely more side-worthy than a main brunch dish. The guys said the Redneck Benedicts were very bland, and said it felt like the food had been sitting around all morning. The home fries were the best part of my husband's plate that I tried, but even though the flavor was good, they were completely cold! And there were only three other tables sat besides us. Lastly, it appeared to be a sports bar with all of the TVs turned to sports, but we asked to watch golf, and no one ever came back to change the channel. Overall extremely disappointing. The guys wanted to give the place 2 or 2.5 stars, but I gave it 3 just because it might be a good bar during lunch or dinner. They definitely missed the mark for brunch, though. read more

the food Is so good I love the decor and the service! its honestly really good definitely think you should try there food!!! read more

The Lodge - dog bread - Gastropubs Near Me - Ocala, Florida

We visited The Lodge because of the great reviews. In short, they ain't lyin'. We walked in to a dimly lit, classy yet industrial atmosphere. It was Sunday night, so the NFL was on. With the game and the crowd, it was loud, but not overwhelming. We sat at the bar, ordered our drinks (excellent suggestion made by the bartender), and looked over the menu. Pricing is reasonable, with a menu that is somewhat limited, yet offers a diverse selection. In the end, we each settled on our old stand-by. We both had a cheeseburger & fries. Sounds boring, right? Far from it. The fries had a unique flavor, being oiled and baked with seasoning (did I taste parmesan?). Fantastic fries! I would be back for these, if for no other reason. The cheeseburger was made from fresh beef. It was juicy, tender and flavorful. Excellent burger! Being made by hand, the meal took a little time to arrive, but it was worth the wait. Can't wait to try the wings here, now! I can definitely see hanging out at The Lodge. Loved the atmosphere, the welcoming staff, and the delicious food. They definitely earned 5 stars tonight! read more

UPDATE: Changing my review to 3 Stars to 1 Star... after my experience on Mother's Day and on top of that, a staff member's car blocked my parked car in by parking in the middle of street behind me for like a good 5 minutes. PREVIOUS REVIEW: The food was delicious and prices are great... but I wish the waitress knew more about craft beer. 200+ beers, she couldn't give me a good choice, she read off the menu (I can do that) and I decide to pick something local from Gainesville, a blond ale... it was meh. I had the venison steak. It was incredible delicious but the steak didn't taste like deer; so, I was thinking the deer was either farm raised or it was beef. My hubby had the wild boar which tasted amazing but again, it didn't have the wild taste more like a perfect pork chop... but farm raised boar is a pig and a wild pig is a boar... The food is delicious and we will return with hopefully a better rating. I'm just upset about 200+ craft beers and wanted something new but good. Maybe next time, my waitress would be better knowledge about the beers that the place serves. read more

3 couples decided to eat and have a few drinks while checking out and visiting Ocala. Would not visit the establishment again. Something anyone in our group wanted to order was not available or they were out of. Waitress did tell us to they were working on a new menu. Food was not really that good and not prepared as ordered. Had to ask for plates for appetizers, condiments and additional drinks. read more

This Gastropub is AMAZING!! They have over 200 craft beers and wines to choose from. They have a rotating selection of 25 taps and most of all the beers (draft, bottled, and canned) are from local Florida breweries. The wines are some of the BEST you can get from regions like Napa Valley, Monterey, and the Sonoma Coast. The menu isn't to big and has only the most DELICIOUS choices to choose from, prepared by a real chef. They have items like Poutine Fries or Gator Bites (try the Tropical Heat dipping sauce, it's got a nice kick to it) Duck Tacos, Bison or Venison Burgers, Rabbit Flatbreads, Tomahawk Steaks and others excellent choices as well. The atmosphere is cozy and comfortable and even includes a fireplace, bar seating and table seating. It also has 8 big screen TVs so that you can watch sports (they even have the NFL ticket) while conversing with your friends or the friendly, knowledgeable bartenders and staff. read more

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Terrible food - flat bread pizza looked like a lunchable and was ice cold; French fries are very weird and lumpy (also cold); burger - eh; spicy margarita no spice. The place kind of made my want to puke. read more

11.16.19 5pm Walked in to have a cocktail. Bartenders saw us, but one played on her phone & the other one was chatting away with the one on her phone. Sat there w/ no service so we left & got immediate service at Marks. read more

I was at the lodge for a comedy show I went to smoke then tried to get back in I had a wristband and they would not let me in. They had all these other people coming in and they were letting in and they told me too bad the date was January 22nd 22 so whoever was at the door both guys told me they wouldn't allow me in even though all my friends were up there my purse was up there and I had a wrist band on I was crying and some girl came up to me and knew the guy in the lodge who found my husband and my friends to let me back and that was a horrible thing to do when I had no phone or anything. Don't go out to smoke cuz you will not come back in. Nasty human beings and it was very cold that night read more

Nightclub with great Dj's, located above the lodge restaurant. Play top 40, really friendly staff, drink specials (1$ drinks till 11pm) cover after 11. Bottle service available in VIP. read more

Friendly service, good food and close to the town square. Their fries and seasoned and oh so good.

Got there at 5:30 and sat at the bar to order food. Male bartender was extremely rude and too busy doing shots with his buddies and they were all throwing around ALOT of F-bombs amongst many another choice words. Needless to say I just paid for my drink (that I didn't drink) and left. Would never recommend this establishment to anyone. read more

Meh. This place has potential but the service is lackluster. The food was ok, but not great, and it took a very long time to come out. Prices are reasonable and the location is excellent. Tighten up the service and it will be amazing. read more

Poutine was good, service was good... burger was over done and had no flavor, maybe a little salt and pepper next time when you cook one.

Always had great food and service here! Definitely a fun place to grab a bite and meet up with friends. My favorite server is Jordy make sure to ask for her when you dine here! She always recommends great beers and specials read more

First off, great beer selection and knowledgeable staff. This is a place that you can find a really wide variety of brews from all over and have a beer conversation. Great soup/salad sandwich specials as well. No complaints at all! read more

The Lodge - Illinois Pilsner - Gastropubs Near Me - Ocala, Florida