The Lobby Bar

The bar looks very nice! I arrived for a gathering for alumni, and I was pretty early. It wasn't crowded yet, but it still took quite a while to get attended to. I didn't order a drink yet, but I just wanted water. I didn't realize until later that there was a water machine on the other side of the bar, so I could've just been chilling. Fast forward to later when it got crowded (really REALLY crowded), I waited with a friend who was trying to order for someone else, and I was going to order too. It was literally 30 minutes before it even happened, and by then I was ready to go because the crowd kept increasing. Needless to say, I think they might've been understaffed for the capacity, but it looks like this isn't the first time. I'll have to come during happy hour (if that exists still, I didn't see anything for it) on an off-peak day for a better experience. I do appreciate that the staff are nice, though!

Conveniently located inside of the lobby at the Hotel at the University of Maryland.A very spacious cocktail bar and lounge. I can see it getting much more crowded during Alumni events or around major events/sports at the university.Our bartender was friendly enough and poured a pretty stiff drink. Even made a couple of mocktails for the kids. Oddly the kids were told that they could not sit at the bar. Just more legal lunacy, I suppose. Kids can sit at a dinner table in a restaurant alongside beer, wine, cocktails, etc, however to do so at a bar is illegal and unthinkable...Prices are a touch high, but not unexpected given that it's in the middle of a hotel.You'd think they'd have more food options given they are right next to a steakhouse, but they have very limited options including wings and pizza.They did provide a bowl of trailmix--m&ms, peanuts and raisins.A nice place to grab a drink for those staying at the hotel, but by no means a destination for any other purpose.

***This review is for the lobby bar! Located inside "The Hotel" in College Park. This hotel has become popular for events, including conferences and weddings. Nice ambience, but horrible service! Three years in row, one of my UMD alumni organizations has hosted a happy hour here during homecoming weekend. Every time, the service has been horrendous, but I think it's gotten worse. This past weekend it was so bad that several folks left to go other places to get drinks, including myself. There were several bartenders yet patrons were waiting up to 30 minutes (or longer) to place drink orders. It's not like these drinks are cheap anyway. Overpriced and from what I heard from others, not even good! The attitudes of the employees - also horrible :( In the service industry, a smile would help! I really hate leaving a bad review, but I have to be honest and I think it has to be brought to their attention. Please train your staff or hire qualified, friendly bartenders. I can't recommend coming here for happy hour or anything really.

I was impressed with this place. It's located in the lobby of "The Hotel" (yes, that's the name of the hotel).Not only do they have half price drafts during NFL games on Thursday, Sunday, and Monday, but they also have $5 glasses of wine. The regular prices for their glasses of wine are between $11 and $20, so this is a steal! They have 12 craft beers on tap that range from $7 to $10 for a pint. So during the NFL game specials, this is also quite a bargain. Especially for a hotel bar.I had the Coddies and Saltines appetizer that came with hot mustard for $8. They were like little crab cakes but instead of crab, they consisted of cod (and filler of course). The saltines weren't the typical saltine crackers like Nabisco produces, these were light and crisp, almost like a chip (in fact, the menu describes them as potato flakes."The bartender on staff on my first visit was one of the most knowledgeable bartenders I've experienced. He knew about all the wines, all the scotches, beers, and everything in between. He was able to answer every question that was thrown his way.Now let's talk service: I saw him check with someone drinking a glass of champagne to make sure it had enough carbonation. Then a customer stopped in to order a glass of wine to bring up to her room. He asked her to taste it first to make sure it was fresh because the bottle had been opened a couple of hours earlier. This is five-star service if you ask me.Believe it or not, even after all of this build up, I can't give them 5 stars - and here's why:My next visit was around 10:45PM on a Friday evening. I ordered some food but was told that their food comes from Old Maryland Grill next door and and that they were closed, so "no food for you!" (she really didn't say it that way, that was my Seinfeld Soup Nazi impersonation) So yeah, that was a let down that no food was available.Then I asked her what time the bar closed, and she said, "usually at 12, but since it wasn't busy they would be closing soon, but I was more than welcome to bring my beer up to my room." What kind of hotel bar closes early if they aren't busy??? Don't they usually have posted hours??? WTH?

The atmosphere is nice. The drinks are average but overpriced. Ordered a vodka and tonic with a twist of lime. Heavy on the tonic, limited on the Grey Goose Vodka. The bar does not have food service so our large party had to order pizza and chicken wings. This was the best option they had for the party.

Sat at the bar while I waited for a server/bartender to acknowledge me. After two minutes of being passed up, I walked away. It wasn't even busy when I got there (tail end of happy hour). Horrible first impression for an out-of-town guest.

Visited the lobby bar last night, Michael and Jill provided amazing drinks and great conversation.