Sorry, no pics - we ate it all!! Ordered take-out to eat at our beach house in Old Lyme/Hawks Nest. It's about 15 min away ... The amount of time it took to cook, sit and wait for me, and drive back - the food was still amazing and hot! We got 2 dinners to share: Rib Eye, and Baked Stuffed Shrimp. Garlic mashed, baked, and corn on the cob. It was all quite literally perfect ... Even for takeout! Hope to visit again soon. Few notes: I was there on a Friday at about 6pm, it was packed. Huge bar + restaurant seating. They only take cash, but have an ATM inside. Staff was super friendly, even in the short time I was there. read more

I came here with my girlfriend and brother today around 6:50pm. The waiter outside said we could "have a seat wherever". We find a spot we like outside, sit at the table and begin to look at the menu on our phones. We sat here for 25 MINUTES before we ended up leaving at 7:15pm. Nobody ever ended up helping us. I'm not big into leaving reviews but I just thought sitting at table for 25 minutes without any service was a little ridiculous. Yes, I'm salty read more

I don't usually do this. I went there for dinner with my family and we had heard good things. not the case. I found not only just plastic in my entree but a dead fly. This place is not only insanitary and disgusting, but, the older gentleman tending the bar was ruder than anyone i've ever experienced. I wish I could give 0 stars for this experience because it was honestly not worth our time or our money. Don't waste your time. I will give the benefit of the doubt to most people unless they're mean. Don't give money to these people who are unkind and don't seem to care if you're there or not. I don't know who is running this place but it is not my cup of tea. if you're interested in getting yelled at and belittled by the old bartender then this is your place, otherwise, try somewhere else. read more

The Farm gets a second star because the food was good, when it finally got to us. The wait time was over an hour, so long that I almost forgot what I had ordered. The bartenders are rude, unless you are a regular. I recieved zero chit chat, just "what do you want", and "we only a take cash"! The place still looks like the dive bar it's always been, adding tables and a decent menu didn't clean it up much. Oh, and those regulars, over served and rude! Overall, if you've got the time, you're not offended easily and have a strong immune system, the food is pretty good! UPDATE: After the comments from Laura C of The Monkey Farm and reading the comments shes made on other reviews, I find her to be excessively obnoxious and have lowered the rating! read more

The food is excellent, the atmosphere is good. The porch is cold. The drink is good. The service is slow. There are not enough servers and they like to gossip among themselves. If you want to know what is happening in Old Saybrook, this is the place to go. Cash only. read more

We spent two nights in Old Saybrook and both nights we ate at The Monkey Farm. The food was excellent and the people are very friendly. First night was scallops casino with yummy garlic mashed potatoes for me and fried scallops for him. Second night was nachos, pizza and a lobster roll. The service was fantastic. The girls were super attentive. We would highly recommend stopping in. read more

The Monkey Farm - American Near Me - Old Saybrook, Connecticut

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Ordered take-out (wings and nachos), our first time trying it after driving by for many years. Realizing this is a local dive bar, we did try to manage our expectations. When I walked in to pick up our order, the bartender walked over, put the my food on the bar and walked away for a good 8 minutes to serve other customers. I had my money on the bar waiting but he never made an effort to return to my area. There is a lot of local regulars that come here as the bartender was on a first name basis with most of the people at the bar. I quickly saw that at 2pm on a Sunday the majority of the 15-20 people seated were way over-served. As a bartender for years I was shocked at the amount of slurred speech and swaying patrons. The bartender made his way back never saying a word and picked up my cash. He made change, put it on the counter and left. Again, never saying a word. The nachos were in a to go container but were placed on wax paper so that the whole pile had melted to the paper. A total disaster. The wings were fried chicken with little to no buffalo and stone cold. Nachos and wings are two bar items that should be a lay up for a kitchen and easy to do well but these were a complete and total dog's breakfast. Never going back, but I guess if you are looking for a place to get fall down drunk then I guess this is your spot. read more

Before the pandemic outbreak started, my boyfriend and I would come here 3-4 times a week for dinner. Last night we went here for dinner, and it was very disappointing. To start of we sat down and waited 10 mins for the waitress to ask us about drinks and then another 15 mins to receive our beverages. When she came back with the drinks she asked if we were ready to order, qt the point we didn't have a menu and she then said that we had to look it up on our phones or go up to the deck and look there. She could've told us that when we sat down. It then took another 15 mins to get our orders in. Our food finally came out a little less than an hour. My boysfriends wings were soggy and room temperature and my salad had a pool of water underneath it. The chicken on top of my salad also lacked flavor and was very watery. After 5 mins spent on our dishes we asked for the check, it took about 20 mins to receive it. We noticed the table next to us was getting frustrated cause they waited 20 mins for drinks after they asked and waited 10 more minutes for it to be delivered. Took then about 40 mins to place there order since there was no instructions about the menu. The waitress was not friendly and service was poor. She didn't even bother to ask us how we were doing on our meal. She dismissed us when we tried to get her attention. I know this is a hard time for every one, but this couldve been more organized on how they carry out there services. Such as having more waitresses and waiters, telling us about the menu situation, and paying more attention to the customers needs. Anyways, we won't be back for while, not gonna pay for food that is soggy, room temperatured and has a pool of water. Until then we hope that those bugs get fixed, because we do enjoy coming here. read more

Anyone been to The Monkey Farm in Old Saybrook? I took my mom there for her birthday lunch- I was SO disappointed! I just can't undo this celebratory lunch. The waitstaff totally screwed up. I'm so pissed. We drove all the way there cuz she wanted to see The Kate. I'm particularly sad cuz I wanted this luncheon to be special. I gave one of the staff (busboy?) a $10 bill and told him I wanted folks to sing Happy Birthday to my mom on her 79th birthday. She drove all the way from Naugatuck! I addressed him Because there was NO sign of anyone else. I waited before doing this but saw nobody in charge. I eventually saw a waitress, who I explained what I had just done. When it came time for dessert, she asked what we were having. I was so excited to anticipate my mother's surprise! The waitress DID NOTHING! You failed! I'll never suggest anyone come to your restaurant! read more

There's a reason The Monkey Farm has been around since dinosaurs were roaming the earth. Great food drink and service.

Wonderful food. Comfortable ambiance. Great servers! It's our go to place! Everything on the menu is a treat.

Total dive bar. That being said the cajun chicken wrap that we ordered was very good. i was not expecting great food but I was proved wrong. This palce was full of local townies and seemed like a drab place int he middle of winter on a Sunday evening but I still had fun. read more

We have heard so many great things about this restaurant but unfortunately our experience, or rather my experience was lackluster at best. I ordered the Margarita pizza and unfortunately did notice that bacon bits were included, okay my bad. But the pizza sought consistency was a sticky and almost seemed it was cooked as shell. I think the more logical conclusion was that the drought was roughed out perhaps a day before, rolled out and refrigerated. This made for a non-rising doughy pie. Worse still when I indicated by complaint the wait person said I will let the ,,,someone know of the issue. My wife's burger was absolutely great that's the good news. I also mention that I dad the lobster roll which in my opinion was average, not a dish I would order again here. So, I understand the food here is great from a number of family in OS so I will try agIan, but hope the wait staff considers carefully a patrons complaint and the kitchen prepare a pizza worthy of being pizza. read more

My husband and I just moved to the area and come here at least once a week for dinner. At first, we found things like the wait to get a menu, it being cash only etc to be a deterrent. But once you have the fried shrimp and scallop platter you don't turn back. After a couple of visits the servers knew our order, greeted us with friendly smile, and came back to check on us often. Our 2 year old now requests the Monkey Farm for dinner, We are officially regulars. This is a seasonal town, you can't get angry when you go to the busiest spot in town during August on a weekend and don't get served immediately! read more

Mediocre food, terrible staff. Every single waiter/waitress was rude. Food was extremely mediocre. Atmosphere was that of a dive bar so not sure why the cash only when there are a million dive bars out there that at least have better food and service and I can use my credit card! Come to find out after eating my mediocre food and dealing with the wait staff that it's cash only. Maybe I missed a sign but as a millennial I honestly do not expect this. In this day and age with Venmo, PayPal...etc for a place to be cash only just seems like an IRS scam to get out of paying taxes. Bill's Seafood in Westbrook is cash only, which is annoying but at least they have the atmosphere, food and wait staff that I am willing to stop by my bank first. This place is not worth the effort, nothing on their menu is unique/special. read more

My NY strip steak was awesome! I have to say a little divey in appearance coming in, but local was at the bar and assured me food was good, service was great, family run and to definitely try it out. Glad i took his advice! Great meal, interesting crowd, obviously a local gathering place which is always a good sign. Another great pic with help from fellow yelpers! Oh when i cashed out they did not take credit cards, just by the way.... read more

We moved walking distance from this place last month. However, if you are not a regular customer here, don't expect anything, including service. Last two times went in, we could not even get acknowledgement from the waitress. The very last time we could not get a menu from the bartender. We did our drinks but that was it. I get it is a "hole in the wall bar" but I will never go bac9k. Check out the rabbit hole down the street. Better food. Much better service. So much cleaner. read more

Great for late night. We were able to order off the full menu at 10:30pm. The Reuben sandwich with their house-made thousand island dressing was delish. My husband loved the burger. Very friendly staff. Skip the wine if that's your usual go-to and opt for one of their wide range of beers. P.S. They only accept cash. read more

Sorry, don't like giving bad reviews but I went as a single. Ordered the Seafood Chowder and grilled Pastrami and Swiss with fries. Didn't get the chowder after being served the sandwich. Accept it anyways to be served after. I know why they didn't want to serve it. I had three spoons of it and couldn't stomach it. The sandwich was great. Fries perfect. Service horrible. Living in Old Saybrook for the next 6 months. Good bye! Not going to support mediocre! Whatever you do, don't order the Seafood Chowder. They should be embarrassed! read more

Absolutely disgusting! The staff was super rude to us and mean and nasty because we were from NY! They should be ashamed!

Last week was my fIrst time inside - have ordered take out a couple of times during the pandemic. It is a neighborhood dive bar, nothing more. But, the service was great, the drinks were cold and the open face ribeye sandwich was good. It was crowded and loud, just like you would expect from a dive bar. They are not trying to be something they are not - kudos to that. Will definitely return. read more

Food was amazing! Stuffed clams are giant and the best we've ever had! Highly recommend.

My husband and I took a spontaneous road trip to Old Saybrook and were looking for a place to have lunch. Someone had recommended Monkey Farm to me several months ago so we decided to give it a try after taking a look at ratings and the the menu online. The interior and exterior are pretty unassuming. Definitely a dive bar vibe. The building itself is pretty old so you can still see the original beams on the ceiling and the old fireplace which was really cool! We started with the stuffed clams. Clams were a bit chewy but overall the taste was great and the portion was HUGE for an appetizer. My husband had the scallops casino and raved about it. I actually ended up eating most of the scallops...they were that good. I went with the Ribeye salad which consisted of sliced ribeye, avocado, roasted peppers and crumbled blue cheese. I opted for the cucumber wasabi dressing. Overall it was amazing. Ribeye has a little too much fat on it but that is just personal preference. My husband loved the steak. The salad dressing was awesome. I actually took the rest home with me. Martini I ordered was perfectly made. Overall, Monkey Farm was a great experience and we will definitely be back! read more

Tried to place an order to go this evening (July 3rd) for a large family birthday dinner. The phone line was busy for SIX HOURS. When we started at 6 to originally place the order, the line was busy. Waited a bit... busy. Ended up ordering elsewhere, and while picking that order up we did see this place of business was far from closed. We called a couple hours later and the line was still busy. Not sure if something happened with the storms in the area but, atleast put something on your website if you're having phone trouble, but to just have a dead phone line on a weekend like this... super bad look. I am local, and my family and I used to speak highly of this place. Will be bringing business elsewhere. read more

I love this place so much. I recommend trying their bam bam shrimp. It definitely bam all the way in your mouth. Very good.

Once bitten, twice shy? We must be gluttons for punishment then...as Laura said in her reply, perhaps the server we had the first time around was having a bad day, so we thought we'd give it another shot. Different server, same attitude. This time we were sure to get the server's name - Blythe (she was anything but). We will definitely not return. A shame, because the food was actually good. read more

Food took forever! Was not great! Poor service! I was disappointed by the chips! They stunk!

One of the best dive bars around. Great drinks, and even better food. I've yet to find a bar on the shoreline with better food. Their menu is diverse and nothing lacks in flavor. read more

The Monkey Farm - Monkey farm chicken nachos are phenomenal - American Near Me - Old Saybrook, Connecticut

Interesting, old, and quirky place in Old Saybrook town. Stopped there for lunch driving through on I-95. Very dive bar like, with a local regular clientele. Prices very reasonable. We each had a burger and fries. Burger was actually very good, tasty and perfectly cooked. The fries were nothing special, most certainly frozen. Drinks were cold. Bartender/server was a nice friendly guy who was attentive and efficient. The place was completely packed on a Tuesday at 1:00p. Fun interesting stop. Would definitely return. Don't miss the awesome Led Zeppelin pinball machine! read more

The Monkey Farm is great for a late night dinner. Ordered a hot lobster roll with sweet potato fries. Hit the spot, after a long difficult day. Thank you MF for being there! And thank you Connecticut for not putting mayonnaise in your lobster rolls read more

I never leave a review but I felt compelled to download the app and leave one. The worst place I have ever been to. Food is nasty. Not only was there a hair in my food but a fly as well. The drinks are over priced and the old man tending the bar was nasty and rude to the customers. He made multiple racists comments and was angry when you didn't agree. Will never be coming here again and I recommend you stay far far away. read more

worst service i've ever had... appetizers took 30 mins to come out and its now been over an hour and they haven't brought out my burger. waitress claims food takes about 45 mins to come out on a busy day but there's maybe half of the tables filled, not busy at all. And the crazy thing is, it's the second time this has happened to me. never coming back read more

My bad experience started bad and then worse, however the blonde woman serving me was outstanding. I walk up and tie up my dog, got gruntly greeted by a very hungover gentleman working here that said dogs are not allowed on their gravel patio. The seafood bisque was great! Me walking into the bathroom and having a fly buzz into my mouth was not great. The bathroom had more than a dozen flies in there. I order a shot at the bar for well whiskey and get charged $5. I go outside to order a shot to kill the bacteria from the fly and get charged $4.25. 75¢ isn't going to change my world but get your _____ together and stop monkeying around with your business. SOME "Deadhead bar". I will never be coming back and/or advising anyone to ever come here. -1 star And the stuffed clams were gooey and gross, didn't taste right. read more

Had a great time at the bar, met a charming local couple and had the French dip and loaded tots. Love the history of this place. Sit at the bar and engage, you won't be disappointed. read more

Took 30min to bring out 5 burgers on a Saturday afternoon where they were at about half capacity. They didn't apologize about the extra long wait time we had. Food was extremely average. Why ever go here? read more

I love the monkey farm, as has everyone else I have brought here. It's a local dive bar so don't kid yourself if you're looking for something fancy. The food is amazing though. I've never liked a corned beef Reuben in my life...and I salivate thinking about this sandwich. I've come here on numerous occasions for it. Their burgers are HUGE and delicious as are other sandwiches and wraps on their menu. They have a larger lunch menu than dinner menu as after 5 it's mostly drinks and light appetizers that people tend to order. Their wings are pretty delicious too. Drinks come from bartenders who know the locals (or are locals) and they're friendly and helpful. No beer on tap but plentiful beer in bottles/cans. Darts, arcade games, pool, football pools during the season etc. and of course a juke box which is most commonly playing some rock or country music. read more

For what it is - a classic, homey, comfy town bar - it's perfect. The service is friendly and familiar; the chef comes out to greet people by first name; people bring out of town guests to see what the fuss is about; and the value of food & drink is in perfect alignment. On a chilly Saturday around 2 o'clock we arrived to an packed parking lot but were happy to see a few open tables to choose from. You seat yourself here and the most impressive part about that is the servers can spot you through the crowd and deliver menus and drinks within a few minutes. We went with a cup of French Onion soup which I ordered well done. To mean that means that the cheese is broiled and bubbly versus all gooey. Nailed it. We also got the roast beef melt and BLT. The BLT was on rye which is a favorite of mine and the only bad thing I can even think to say is the lettuce could use more crunch. But who cares about that when you have all that bacon staring you in the face?! And please, for the love of food, get a roast beef melt. Get it as an appetizer to share with the table if you don't want the whole thing. Just get it. I also ordered a Bloody Mary and, if you like a thin bloody then you'll like this one. Good spice too. For all of that food and drink we spent less than $35 including the tip. I will be back. I'm not sure when. But I will be back. read more

I spent all last week in Old Saybrook and always ended up here at the Monkey Farm at some point in the day. Staff was really nice. Bill the bartender will take really good care of you and even lend you his huge coffee mug so you can enjoy a coffee with Baileys on a cold night. Thanks for that. 1. Strong and reasonable drinks 2. Pretty good food 3. Great service every time. 4. Eclectic crowds and laid back atmosphere Thanks guys for the hospitality read more

Bad day at the Monkey Farm. Waited extremely long time for our food (said the dishwasher was broken?). Once the food did arrive some issues: wrong dressing for the Cobb salad, burger cooked wrong (ordered medium well came out medium rare) and the fries not hot. Sure it was an off day with a packed house but not sure. The fish sandwich and fish and chips were stellar! Would give them another chance based on word on the street. read more

Honestly one of my favorite Old Saybrook restaurants. Their Lobster Roll is seriously one of the best around. It's also really cool how they have this dive/motorcycle bar right in the middle of Old Saybrook - such an excellent change of scenery! read more