The Ugly Oyster is definitely original. I've never been to an Irish pub with a predominately seafood restaurant where I was able to get German beer on not the best part of town. All of those things are fine with me. For an app I ordered the soft pretzel covered in cheese and crabs which was pretty good. Very filling for a pretzel probably better to share or it's about a whole meal. I also ordered the steamed seafood platter which was decent. The staff was mainly friendly and attentive. I liked the place and would return. read more

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I lived in the Berks county area for going on 21 yrs. And I pass by this place multiple times a week. So I figured I'd head in one day for lunch. Not only was the waiter SUPER nice but she suggested a beer and let me sample it (since I'm not a huge beer drinker). Well this Belgium beer was amazing. It sucks that I don't recall the name. It went well with my fried oyster sandwich n fries. So later that night I decided to bring a friend for dinner since she wanted seafood. I know they get it fresh daily. She ordered the plate of Blondy oysters on the half shell and I got the fish n chips. When I tell you the waitress all harassed me as if they knew me for years, it felt like an episode of Cheers. Oh and the fish n chips had a clean, light and crisp taste. And who doesn't like the fresh cut fries?? Thanks to the ppl for making my 2x dinning experience amazing. read more

The interior lives up to its name - it's dark, dank, and ugly ... the bathrooms in particular. But the Ugly "O" is CHARMING. Think of it in terms of the World's Ugliest Dog Contest. In both cases, "ugly" is a term of endearment. The winner is still adored and praised. We can look past its homely qualities and directly into its unabashed, genuine soul. You see, the Ugly Oyster knows its not pretty. It also knows that looks are superficial, and it's what's inside that really matters. Owner Glenn Rigg apparently attended the Guinness Irish Pub Concept Program at the Guinness Brewery in Ireland in order to obtain official training in all things Guinness from varieties to pouring/serving to culinary uses. It's as authentic as you'll find in Berks County, and it doesn't disappoint. One note, though: beware the crab cakes. The menu touts there is "barely any filler", but they were loaded with bits of shell and absolutely overcooked. That's my fault for ordering crab cakes in Reading, PA and not the shore, but I thought perhaps their boastfulness was warranted. It's NOT! If you have a hankering for seafood here, try the fried oysters or stuffed shrimp. But stay away from the crab cakes. read more

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What's not to love about the ugly o? Great food, cool bar, friendly staff, cold beer, and other tasty libations!

I love the food and the ambiance. We went for lunch around noon - not crowded at all, probably the best time to go if you would like to pick the best seats and enjoy the food, the service, and the beers. My fave: fried oyster sandwich. Prices were reasonable, IMO. read more

Haven't been here in years. This place has gotten better with time!!! Tasty pours from Desiree an inventive yummy and well prepared food Looking forward to another visit soon. read more

The food and atmosphere is a well needed positive vibe. It definitely makes you wanna go back

We showed up and the place was packed due to a concert at the nearby arena. Kudos to the staff for being able to still provide good service in the midst of that onslaught of people. The food was very good, especially the Scotch Eggs. A big Thank You to our waitress Paris who chased us down outside after we had left because my wife had left her credit card on the table. That was above and beyond. read more

Great bar , good service . This is a burger and bar food place, Don't expect great steaks. Great fries Friendly and attentive service. Neat place...loud read more

The ambiance is good, it has the feel of a real Irish pub. However, that said, the service was poor and the food was just okay. Reservations are suggested, but since we arrived before 5PM we didn't think it would be a problem. They did not want to seat us even though there were only two tables occupied. Then they offered us a tiny table between the two bathroom doors after we assured them we just wanted a bite to eat and leave. We sat down and ordered, received our drinks quickly and then the server relented and moved us to a table near the bar. We ordered the crab dip, which was served with oily bread and some crackers, which was just okay. But, what really ticked me off was that not two minutes after the crab dip arrived did our entrees arrive. The tiny table was overwhelmed with food. My fish was good, but the chips were good only for a few minutes and since we were still eating the crab dip the fries didn't stand a chance. My husband said his crab cake sandwich was good. After being rushed with food, the service ignored us for several minutes. The place is cute, but I wouldn't recommend it and we won't be going back. And the reserved tables were still empty by the time we left. read more

Love it here. Food portions are huge and the price is reasonable. The co owner Desiree is really kind and knows her stuff. I would recommend anyone to try this place at any time of the day. Ask for the fish and chips! read more

Excellent food, atmosphere and service. The oysters are always amazing Service with smiles and courtesy always.

Terrible. Period. The staff were rude and outright nasty on the phone and in person. They act as if the customer is an inconvenience the second they open the door. 0/10 do not recommend. If I could give this 0 stars I would but it's not an option. read more

Had lunch with a customer this week and I was not impressed. Ordered chicken salad and while A gigantic portion the chicken was very tough and I did not care for the honey mustard dressing. My customer who is from the area and visits The Ugly Oyster every other week ordered crab cakes, to my way of thinking living in Baltimore for 12 years that's not the way it's done. Our waitress on the other hand was very attentive and earned a 30%+ tip! I think this is a hit or miss spot. I must admit living in New Jersey has spoiled me! read more

So sorry it was supposed to be 5. My previous post had a major mistake. Wrong number. I thought I selected 5 stars. read more

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Hadn't been here since the ownership change a few years ago because I don't live in the area anymore. Everything was just as great as before. The wings with the classic Ugly O sauce are awesome and the chicken cheesesteak is delicious. read more

We have no cozy restaurants in our area so we decided to check out Reading area dining. It was date night and hubby and I were in the mood for a nice little place with atmosphere and good food - we were not disappointed! We found a nice little cozy corner for ourselves at the back of the bar and were soon attended by a friendly server. I ordered a guiness as I'd never had it before. When in an irish drafthaus, well, you drink what Jason Mamoa is drinking! My husband had the wings for an appetizer, they were HOT just like the manu said, but he loved them because they had a barbeque flavor as well. The blue Cheese that came with was topped with blue cheese crumbles that I devoured! All I could say was mmmm the entire time! My husband got the crab legs and fries, I got the steamed seafood sampler and OMG it was amazing how much you get for $19.99! We ordered some extra french fries as well, they were wonderfully seasoned. It was our first time there and we will be back with friends! Wonderful atmosphere, Irish music playing and the decor was rustic and beautiful! We left there satisfied with both food and service full as ticks! (As my grandma would say) and our bill was only $60!!! If you are looking for a great place for a cozy spot for a date or to hang out with friends, this place is a must! Thank you to the talented cook in the back and our lovely server for a nice evening out for my husband and I! read more

I have to admit I have not eaten or had drinks here which is the reason for my bad rating. Was going to go here before a show but was treated horribly when we got there. Didn't realize we needed reservations. The bartender told us they had no tables even though at 4pm there was only one table with people at the entire restaurant. Weird. we then asked if we could sit at the bar. No! She said was short staffed. We had no other plans and asked if we could just sit and have a drink while we figured out what we were going to do. No. She said we could stand by the wait station if we wanted. She was a horrible person. I will never go back and never recommend. A absolute disgrace to my Irish heritage!! read more

Visiting Reading as a bike tourist, so I was super hungry and thirsty from my ride. Maine Beer on the menu!!! And delicious filet + boardwalk fries!!The salad that comes with is impressive: dark leafy greens, lots of carrots, big yummy tomatoes. Service and friendliness is exceptional and the warm atmosphere is exactly what you'd hope from an Irish pub. Outstanding. read more

The Ugly Oyster - Beer! - Irish Near Me - Reading, Pennsylvania

The building is neat from a historic stand point. As for food and price, you are paying for the building not food quality. read more

The Ugly Oyster - Irish Near Me - Reading, Pennsylvania

Great pub atmosphere Best grilled chicken sandwich, the marinade is perfectly flavored and keeps the chicken very moist and tasty Expertly drawn draft of Guinness Great service and an invested owner who supervises the entire operation Go there today! read more

Went to the Miller Arts Center to see the Brubeck Brothers Quartet tonight. Had a delicious dinner at the Ugly Oyster. 1/2 dozen Raw Blue Points and Broiled Salmon. First rate. If I go to another concert at the Miller Arts Center I know exactly where I'm going to dinner next time! read more

This is one of my favorite restaurants in reading. I ordered the pulled pork sandwich which was filled with smokiness and bbq sauce with a nice tang. Also ordered the crab dip ! The dip was out of this world ! It was like a dance party in my mouth filled with flavor and creamy you must order this! Thanks again ! read more

The Ugly Oyster - Crab dip - Irish Near Me - Reading, Pennsylvania

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We would have given them a 5 star review except our first impression would have been a no star review. When we first came in the waitress told us they couldn't seat us because they were too full. She basically told us to leave. We decided to wait since there were plenty of open tables and even a perfect area right up front that could accommodate our family away from every one else. (In case it was a covid concern). Another associate came to clean the area and I let him know we were just looking to get drinks and maybe some appetizers. (Seeing they were short staffed). He was very accommodating and we ended up having a great visit. The food and drinks were great. The employee that serviced us was amazing. I believe the original issue stemmed from being short staffed. I'm very glad that the second employee took it upon himself to accommodate us. We are in town for a funeral and just wanted some time together away from the hotel. They had live music that was great. The restaurant was beautiful and the service was amazing except for the original waitress. We will definitely come back the next time we come to Readimg. read more

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I have been here several times since this place opened over 20 years ago most recently 2 weeks ago for lunch. The neighborhood has gone downhill even further but there is a parking lot right next door & you never have to worry about a huge crowd unless there is some event at the Santander Center. As for the food, it is decent but not great. They do pour a proper pint of Guinness but the overall beer selection isn't great. Pretty much standard sandwich pub food including burgers, sandwiches, lots of fried-food, salads, and a few other select entrees. The fried oyster sandwich or the mussels are my usual go-to items. They are usually pretty good although I have had old mussels here along with the mussels being overcooked once or twice. The most inconsistent thing is the service especially if you aren't sitting at the bar. I have been in here at times and had really poor waitress service were the only times she comes to your table are to take your order, bring your food, and bring a check. There are a few other options near Penn St on this side of Reading but not many decent sitdown places. read more

We should have run when we asked what they had for wheat beers and the waitress answered "I don't really know anything about alcohol or beer" (with a smile). - Fresh cut fries - probably fresh cut at 3pm and then got cold and stale - Shrimp bisque was cold and filled with potatoes as well? - Reuben tasted like it was "buttered" with PAM - salad was full of soggy and wet veggies - Chicken Chesapeake was served with cold mealy crab on top - Beer was good! read more

Not as good as it used to be. Quality has slipped. Although the Guiness is still great!

Well the oyster lived up to its reviews. We could not even get into the place because it was packed. More than a 2 hour wait with reservations and walk in ahead of us. Wish we could have stayed. Definitely on our list for the next trip out to Reading read more

The service was great and the food was delicious! The only negative was the size of the bathrooms and the fact that there was not a handicap bathroom. read more

Heather is great. The atmosphere is great. The drinks are great, and the food is mostly great. Irish Pub in the heart of Reading PA - cozy and comfortable our group of five enjoyed the nook by the front door, the Irish music, and the portion size. Great starter salad - they are famous for the blue cheese dressing and it's very blue. Excellent. Fried oyster platter (follow the name I always say) with great fries that are wonderful with a splash of malt vinegar. The oysters were good too. The rest of the table saw a giant pice of salmon with lemon-dill sauce, a mammoth veggie sandwich , and a crab cake platter that promised and delivered "virtually no filler." The only disappointments in the evening - the stuffed portobellos sandwich was not finished. The crab dip starter for the table came with a generous portion of assorted dipping breads and a ton of melted cheese on the crock, but ultimately lacked flavor and seasoning and was over-creamy. Souvenir glasses only $2.50! read more

Who would expect to discover an "authentic" Irish Pub, on an obscure street corner, in Reading, PA? We just returned to our hotel from a delicious lunch consisting of the freshest steamed mussels francaise we have had, in years; and a scrumptious Jerk Salmon over mixed greens. This little pub is a hidden gem, and they are extremely customer friendly. Desiree, (the Manager/Bartender & Server) took special care of us, while she entertained us with the "behind the scenes" history of The Ugly Oyster, which dates to the 18th Century. We highly recommend that you check it out! read more

We regularly have tasty food and friendly efficient service at the Ugly. A Reading institution.

I've eaten here several times - once more than I had intended. But such is life! There is nothing really wrong with this bar. And the food is bar food. Plus, they have oysters! So why can't I like this place? I guess the service has never been very good (and I sit at the bar). The food is nothing to write home about (that's OK; I know it's a bar). And the place definitely doesn't seem too clean; like makes me concerned about eating raw oysters... I think 3 stars is generous; but 2 isn't fair. So, 2.5 star and I'll round up. read more

I SO want to like this place. It has SO many cool aspects to it - but I was wholly underwhelmed by my experience. That being said - I am waffling between 2 & 3 stars. Cool story - bar was built in England, taken apart, shipped over, & reconstructed by the original designer. I've been to many, many Irish pubs (both in the states & in the Old Country) and so many aspects are spot on. The beer taps, the lighting (low, on the bar, no overhead lighting), the correctly poured Guinness, the wrap-around bar, the walls & ceilings, & the authentic Irish music being played in the background. The first thing that went wrong was something Kate S. said below. There were approximately 7 or 8 employees hanging out at the end of the bar gossiping, LOUDLY. I heard one loudly proclaiming that she was happy that her license photo looked silly, so that when she was pulled over after drinking it would look like her. Loud, personal stories continued the whole time we were there. This was around 5:30-6:30pm. It truly ruined my experience. They seemed totally uninterested in their tables, or the rest of the people at the bar. This seems to go along with the experiences of some other reviews in regards to the service here. The second problem was the food. Ordered a crab pretzel to hold me over until dinner, & this was something the bartender recommended. It was not good. It seemed like one of those frozen pretzels, slathered with cheese & crab dip, and microwaved for far too long. The pretzel was soggy - the whole thing was. It was half stuck to the skillet it came out on, it was by far the worst crab pretzel I've had. And lastly - bras on the ceiling?? Come on. There's a time & place for that - & in those situations I can totally appreciate it. It doesn't belong in a nice, beautiful, wooden Irish pub. So disappointed. If the staff had been more well-mannered & polite but the food was still bad, I still would have rated it more highly. I say these things not to bash on the place - I'd love for it to succeed. Reading needs something like this. I mention these things with the hope that an owner or manager sees them & maybe takes some steps to rectify the problems. read more

The Ugly Oyster - Crab Pretzel - Irish Near Me - Reading, Pennsylvania

I should have walked right back out of the door when I went to use the bathroom and the toilet fell forward and almost had me on the ground. The service was terrible. The entire time we were eating, the staff (I counted 8 at one point) were crowded around a corner of the bar holding very inappropriate conversations (I don't need to know how drunk you were at your job the night before). Our server was always sparse, apparently too worried he might miss an important part of the bar conversation. The food: Mediocre. I had the fish and chips and the chips...horrible. So hard, listless, and devoid of flavour. The fish was okay but waaay too much on the plate. How in the world do they keep food costs down? My boyfriend had the mussels which he said were not memorable and definitely not worth having again. By the end of our meal we were deeply disappointed and didn't want to pay the bill in front of us because we felt like we had been cheated. But apparently the place wasn't through with the...disappointments? Our server brought a basket of tootsie pops to our table with our bill. I'm sorry, but I obviously had mistakenly walked into a child's place. Between the actions of the employees, the toilet ride, and the lollipops The Ugly Oyster's owner might want to think about opening a Chuckie Cheese franchise. read more

The Ugly Oyster - Irish Near Me - Reading, Pennsylvania

The only thing stopping me from giving 5 stars was that our server disappeared after we ordered and it took forever to get our food. That said, that is my *only* complaint with the Ugly Oyster. First of all, the place looks amazing inside and out. When you step through the doors, it's like walking back in time. It's very dim but warm with pattered tin walls painted red and shiny shiny wood everywhere. Even the tables are fabulous little inlaid rounds with wrought iron bases. To start, we had the Crab Dip for 2. It was a hot dish of cheesy crabby goodness. It came with some multigrain crackers, garlic bread and Pennsy style broken pretzels. Incredibly tasty once it cooled a little. It's going to be a few days before the napalm-like cheesy burns on the roof of my mouth heal. Consider yourself forewarned! I also tried a couple of the special Blue Point Oysters on the half shell from their raw bar. They were exceptionally fresh, sweet and clean. Pretty impressive for a place so far inland and that was our experience with all of the seafood at The Ugly Oyster. My boyfriend and I also shared the Steamed Seafood Platter that came with a snow crab cluster, some steamed shrimp, mussels and clams. The clams and mussels were impeccably clean. I hate eating clams that have grit in them. These were fabulous and perfectly cooked to doneness without getting rubbery. Same for the mussels-- if you try them here and don't like them, don't eat them anywhere else because seriously, they don't get any better. Next time I go, I am ordering the giant bowl of mussels. We also both had a sandwich (what can I say, we were hungry!). He had the cheese steak which had this interesting sweet, spicy sauce on it. He loved it. I had a fried oyster sandwich that I loved and I upgraded to the fresh cut french fries, which had been sprinkled in Old Bay. Super, super yummy. I just cannot get over how great the seafood is at this little hole-in-the-wall bar in Reading, PA! So, all of the food listed above, plus a Guinness and a Yuengling Lager and our check was $50. Yes, you read that correctly. Incredibly cheap for a seafood dinner if you ask me. If you are in, near, around or can get to The Ugly Oyster-- GO!!! read more

Great service, very friendly Steamed Shrimp and Boardwalk fries were good. Great Irish bar.

The place has a lot of character, but was ruined (at least for me) since our bartender had a lot of attitude. Plus she was extremely hard to get ahold of to order drinks or ask questions; she also wasn't very knowledgeable (my friend asked for suggestions and a bar menu and the bartender was uninterested/un-knowledgeable in helping her out). I had a Guinness(they had a $3 special) and my friend had a Smirnoff Ice ($3.75) and a Coors Light ($3.75) Despite that, the list of beers they carry is extensive, especially compared with other places in the area. Also, there is free parking in the church lot across the street after 6PM! To sum up- Pros: Very traditional type bar Mixed crowd (although tilting toward older) Extensive beer list Free parking across the street (at the church after 6PM) Cons: unknowledgeable/standoffish bartender (Dani?) Couldn't get the bar menu since the kitchen was closing in 15 min I may be back to try the food since I've heard such great things about it! read more

Cheese Steak is the best!!! Atmosphere is fantastic. Everyone is friendly and helpful. Highly recommend the place... read more

Good beer selection and of course, excellent oysters! Good vibe of an authentic Irish pub