Chadds Ford Tavern & Restaurant

So now what’s happened??? Stopped by for a happy hour cocktail on the 17^th before seeing Star Wars and found a dark and empty building… Back by a couple times with the same results. The place seemed to be doing pretty well the times we were there so this comes a quite a surprise. Anybody got any info???

This is the second time we have been here. The first time, we were very unhappy with the service, or lack thereof. We had no expectation of ever returning.
Tonight we are here because a friend’s band is providing music. We had reservations for 7:00 & arrived about 15 minutes early. We were seated, and it’s now 7:10. We have had no one ask if we would like a drink, although they did try to move us to a different table. We’ve been soundly ignored, aside from the attempts to move us. We moved. Finally, at 7:15, the host took our drink order.
We ordered mozzarella sticks when the waiter came back. They are nice. The oil is obviously fresh. The sticks were almost cold, though. It took a long time for them to arrive.
It’s 7:55, and we just ordered dinner. I asked for a cheesesteak. They don’t have them tonight, though they are on the menu. So I ordered a burger, and said I don’t want the shore fries that come with it. The waiter said it doesn’t come with shore fries. What? That’s what the menu says!
The burger is very good. Cooked the way I asked for it to be, and the bun has a toasted flavor to it. The fries are fine, the ketchup is a good quality.
Overall, I am willing to come back. I will chalk the inattentive atmosphere up to short staff, and make a decision on service another time.

Stopped on a Sunday afternoon. If you’re not a regular, forget about service. The bartender only one working and was focused on the bar crowd. We finally got drinks but a local group came in and we were relegated to the end of the line. Walked out. Never got the chance to place food order or even hear the specials.

Excellent food– friendly atmosphere and our server was awesome! A great place to stop in for a quick bite, bar food and beers, or a nice dinner with wine– excellent all around!!!

We came here to hear a band (which was great!!) and a casual dinner. The porkette sandwich was excellent, the wings were quite tasty. The fried pizza dough was god awful — inedible. But the big issue on this Saturday night was the service — or lack thereof. Absolutely no attention to empty drink glasses needing a refill, no periodic checking with the kitchen to see if our group’s dinners were ready. Oh, well…

We stopped in one afternoon in February after a visit to the Brandywine River Museum. Their water tasted like blood, so full of iron. Since we could not drink the water we ordered sodas and a beer. The soda was awful because of the ice cubes and the beer was flat. The food was pretty good except for the calzone. Awful. The service was pretty bad too. We will not be returning.

Came here on a Friday when a band was playing. Was seated and had to leave the server never came after 20 minutes to even ask for drinks! Atleast they filled my water and then nothing! Horrible service when the band is there!

Major improvements since my last review. Kevin has done s great job of rounding off the rough edges since reopening the bar. As a result though, now there is a crowd nearly every night! The bar is full and friendly. The staff is warm and inviting. And the live music on weekends is good to very good. Thus this has become my new local favorite.

We were excited to try this place because of the country feel and atmosphere. But service here was slow, and lacked warmth. We waited and waited.
About the food:
1. The bacon burger was dry, small, overcooked and cost and cost an amazing $ 12. From presentation to taste, this was quite possibly the worst burger I’ve had in my life. I urge you to go elsewhere for a burger.
2. The menu listed shore fries. Our food came with a few standard seasoned fries… Not crispy. Limp. When questioned about it out waitress was annoyed and state fit was a misprint on the menu. She did eventually bring the shore fries… Which were nice but nothing special. Shore fries are the same limp fries with cheese on top…
3. Onion soup. The flavor was good, and the toasted bread was good. It has a jelly like consistency that I’ve never encountered before.
Overall the experience was low quality. I’d prefer a McDonald’s Big Mac for half the price ! I would not recommend this place.

This is a good option if you’re headed out to Longwood, but don’t want to stop in Kennett Square. We popped in, early afternoon. Basic bar food, don’t expect anything too fancy (although the salads looked OK). Their drink special when we were there was a Moscow Mule. «Great, I’ll have one of those please! Nope, sorry, all out.» Not much of a special then, is it? Went with an espresso martini (which was on the drink list, not a special request) and was disappointed, very watered down.

We’ve been here several times for dinner, drinks and snacks over the last few months, and enjoyed all aspects of it. It’s a relaxed, casual dining experience. You can either sit in the tavern itself, which has a fireplace and televisions, or you can sit in the dining room for more formal meals. Either way, you’ll enjoy it. The décor is very typical for the Brandywine Valley, lots of Federal-​style vintage touches and framed Wyeth prints. The service is friendly and attentive.
The menu is simple: sandwiches, pizzas and some more imaginative small plates. The specials are more formal entrees. All of the food has been excellent.
If you’re planning to visit Longwood or The Brandywine River Museum, this should be where you stop for a meal. Better pricing, more relaxed and less crowded.

Party of 4 middle aged men had lunch today. We all were very satisfied. Roast Beef and Roast Pork sandwiches, home made roasted long hots, cold beer — all good. Will return. They were doing a great business for a Saturday lunch. Will return.

Nothing extremely special about the tavern. I feel a bit overpriced for good bar food. The flatbread was very good, as were the Brussels sprouts (except too much drizzled sauce), the wings were breaded and same quality as hooters, the French onion soup was typical, and the burger was overlooked and gave us indigestion. Nothing on the menu smacks out at you to eat here. Nice people.
Oh, the tap water tastes horribly! Ordered sprite (ran out of syrup), diet coke (too much syrup /​no carbonation) and unsweetened iced tea (thank god for the lemon to kill any bad tastes). Nothing spectacular about the beer selection either. Just a regular slightly overpriced tavern.
(2.5 stars but the waitress was very nice)

Let me begin by saying that this is my first review of a restaurant on Unilocal.I also understand from other reviewers that the tavern is reopened with new ownership. And this was my first visit to the tavern.
Atmosphere was excellent, very nicely decorated and comfortable. The tavern fries and flatbread and short ribs were excellent. The quality of the food made up for a lot of other things as stated below. But I do not know that we will be returning immediately, maybe in a few months if they get things straightened out.
First and foremost thing that we noticed was that the water being served tasted as if straight from the well, it had a very strong mineral taste. when asked the waitress stated «yes it’s horrible isn’t it.” — please get a filter for the water.
If someone is not using a wineglass and where there are empty glasses on the table please remove them. our collection of glasses turned into about 15 as they weren’t taken away once emptied.
If you are going to serve a charcuterie board please at least either have the wait staff describe which cheeses they or once it is brought out or have them labeled. Please.
If someone needs a refill of a drink and you take the glass off of the table please do not return with the same glass filled. the rule is if you take the glass off the table a new glass comes onto the table. That was just gross.
It was nice that there was no pressure to hurry up and finish your meal but it would have been nice if someone also came to check on us on a regular basis to see if our drinks needed to be refilled. There were only five tables seated in the dining room.
What place in the world runs out of Riesling on a Friday night? Or for the Charcuterie tray crackers came out instead of the mentioned Crostini. Once we asked we were informed, «oh yeah we’re out of them».
It was stated on the menu that the sausage sandwich came with shore fries which according to the menu was crab and old bay seasoned fries. When plain fries came out, and the waitress was asked, the reply was «oh yeah the manager named him the wrong thing and that’s not what they are».
Overall like I said we would go back again because the food was good but service definitely needs to improve and they most definitely need to purify the water.

Personally, I disagree with most of the reviews below. Been a west Chester native for a while & the food here is the best within a 10 mile radius. Maryland crab soup is incredible. I highly recommend the butcher board, it runs for $ 29 but is well worth it. Very friendly staff– the head chef/​owner comes out to greet his customers. From what I hear it is a pretty happening place on a Friday or Saturday night for live music as well. Two thumbs up.

Whilst wandering around the area I began to feel a bit hungry. There isn’t a ton of obvious food choices so when I saw ‘tavern’ on their sign I made the stop.
Our bartender Mike was top notch, very friendly and accommodating. Their menu is a bit small, and ultimately we went for two small plates, meatballs and mozzarella sticks. The mozzarella was typical, but also served in a pretty large portion. The meatballs were good and loaded with garlic, not thinly minced garlic either, just chunks. I still liked it, but I can see others being offended by garlic overkill.
I’m docking most of the points due to beer selection. For being a tavern they had very little on tap so I was forced to go with a lager. I regret I didn’t get a Moscow mule because that seems to be their signature drink, which I didn’t learn until later. I guess this place is best for cocktails? Oh well.
A decent little place, nothing amazing but not bad either.

Mediocre. Went there with my wife tonight to try out the new place under new owners and I wasn’t impressed. Started off with the calamari and marina sauce. The calamari had a heavy dark breaking that was nothing more than Mrs. Paul’s and the marina was more like a canned spaghetti sauce, not a marina sauce.
We then shared a lobster bisque. The soup was very thin with finely chopped pieces of «lobster».
My wife had the antica pizza which wasn’t bad. Crust was homemade and tasty. Sauce was just ok, nothing special. Plenty of mozzarella but shy on the basil.
I had the bacon burger. They grind the beef and the bacon together and form it into a patty. I found it to be very salty and could not eat more than half of it. The «shore» fries as the called them were nothing more than the regular coated fries that are served in many other restaurants.
We sat at a table in the bar which was very crowded. Waitress was great and very pleasant. It’s a shame that the food she was serving wasn’t very good. We probably will not be back which is a shame.

As long as you focus on the word «tavern» and ignore the word «restuarant» you can enjoy this place. I’m an old regular of two versions, aka owners, ago, when you could get a full menu, a good steak, great dinner salads, chicken and even pasta dishes. Not so now. Sandwiches, salads, maybe a crab cake, but don’t plan on taking a hot date out for a fine evening. Also, with the expanded bar crowd, it was quite loud when we were there.

Great new spot, was staying a mile away at the Wyndham hotel. Curious to try out this recently open pub/​restaurant found really good comfort food and great service, nice bar to grab a cold one and watch some sports. Kevin at the bar pretty cool guy.