Ale House 1890

Super surprise for us. We met up with another couple from out of town and heard good things about Ale House 1890 but had yet to make it over - not to mention this was bookmarked in my Yelp for who knows how long. :) We heard word the line can be out the door. No reservations (I REALLY like reservations) but we were savvy enough to meet up at 3 pm for a late lunch/early dinner with our friends. Lunch menu is available until 4 pm when the dinner menu comes up and at that point, you get the option to choose from which menu you like. Huge bonus. The pretzel nuggets and bacon appetizer were incredible we ordered the bacon one twice! I had the grilled cheese with fries my husband ordered the best out of all of us - his was the steak with amazing veggies. Our wait staff was awesome. She was so helpful and paced us nicely. By the time we got out close to 6 pm the restaurant was jamming. Lots of large parties one I recall was a milestone bday with the birthday girl all decked out with a sash and tiara. Parking is on the street as it's downtown so be prepared to walk a little though not bad. Casual not super fancy which works. I think next time we'll hit the bar where we normally sit just the two of us as it looked super cute and fun. Bathroom was clean. Check it out for a fun different spot and come to find out it wasn't that far from our home in Columbus.

Fives on everything, except the food.My wife and I were visiting Lancaster and decided to try Ale House 1890.We saw that had call ahead seating so called them about 25 min before our arrival. We were greeted by very nice hostesses and were seated within a few minutes of arrival. Both the bar and main restaurant was packed, so this is clearly a popular local restaurant. The parking was either street side or in a nearby parking lot. For a downtown restaurant this is pretty normal and we were lucky to find parking on the street.We sat in a booth tucked away behind the bar which was nice. It was a quieter secluded area and it almost felt exclusive. Our waitress was extremely nice and helpful. I wanted to order bourbon and she checked on pour sizes and prices enthisastically. They have a great bourbon, beer and mixed drink menu and a very large bar area where people were eating and drinking.The restaurant is in a fully renovated space in one of the old buildings along Main street. It was very modern and open in feel. Now for the reason I rated it a three, the food. It starts with the expectationa set by the menu. They very proudly highlight their AH Signature steaks in an all black emphasized area on the menu. This sets the expectation of "they know their steaks and your in for a treat". I ordered the Kentucky Ribeye that came with a mushroom sauce on top with mashed potatoes and brussel sprouts. The first thing my wife and I both noticed was some of the sides were cold, as if there is a plate prep person that puts the sides on while it waits for the protein. For me the protein was a steak and for my wife the scallops. The proteins were warm, but what they were placed on was cold. My steak was cooked perfectly medium rare as I ordered it, so the chef did a great job; however the meat was so chewy and tough that I couldn't eat it. This is my very first occasion ever to return a food item. I simply don't do it. But I couldn't eat it. I tried both ends and the middle and it was the same everywhere. I've been a steak chef in my past and have cooked 100's of steaks and I can say the problem was the grade of meat and it's lack of marbleing, because a medium rare Ribeye with even modest marbling is one of the tenderest steaks you can get. My waitress was very apologetic and took it to the manager. I didn't specifically ask for anything as I have never returned an item before. The manager dropped half the price. If I were the manager and a steak was returned I would probably have offered to cook a new one or delete it from the bill, but as I didn't ask for anything I was now just overserving AH's decision processes. Maybe it was because I ate the sides : )My wife's scallops were cooked perfectly. The sides listed for Moroccan style were spinach and jasmine rice but there was very little spinach, and as I mentioned the rice was cold.In summary, the facilities and staff that we interacted with were fantastic. The Kentucky Ribeye and Moroccan scallops.had much to be desired.

Been wanting to check out Ale House 1890 for awhile, but I don't love near it, so after a day of hiking in the area we were excited to arrive at 5:30 on Saturday and be able to have a table. Really great choices on the menu, and good beer list. Three of us started with a smoked Manhattan, which Winter arrived, didn't have anything to set it apart from a normal Manhattan and it also didn't taste like it was smoked. It was a fine Manhattan, but we didn't understand the smoked part of it, which is why we all ordered it. We started with the spinach and artichoke dip which came and had way more dip to chip ratio, and when we asked for more chips, we were charged for them- not the biggest deal but a little bit annoying. The chips were good, but definitely oily and the dip was more creamy than spinach and artichoke, but not awful. There were several things on the menu I was tempted by, but I went with the scallops with the signature presentation, which came with risotto and green beans. The dish was really great, but the portion size was a little bit small for the price. Didn't have very many green beans on it at all and I was able to finish my whole meal. I just think the price was a little bit high for that. My boyfriend got the Lancaster favorite chicken and he said it was fine. Just not anything super special. Our friends got the swordfish special and the pierogies and everyone was pretty happy with their meal. We also shared the cobbler dessert which was good just not anything super special. Service was good. The atmosphere was nice and the place got crowded later in the evening. Definitely a nice meal and if I was in Lancaster, I would eat here again.

Disappointing. I hate to leave subpar reviews, but I owe it to Yelpers like myself to be accurate. I'll keep this to the point. Food- 1 starService- 5 starAmbiance- 4 starService was great, awesome server, great attitude and very attentive. Awesome old industrial decor that pays homage to the life of yesteryear. Food was where I lost it. Bland, bland, bland. I had to salt and pepper the spinach artichoke dip to get any flavor other than cream cheese/sour cream. Chips were dripping with oil. Main dish was flavorless as well. Chicken was overcooked, breading was so crisp that it actually caused my mouth to be sore after eating. Bread was so tough I could hardly chew it.

Stopped in here for dinner Saturday. Used the call ahead feature to be added to the waitlist which was nice! The waitress was attentive and service was good. We started with the spinach and artichoke dip. The chips were crispy and fresh but the dip lacked flavor. I ordered the pecan crusted chicken with mashed potatoes and green bean. The green beans were the best item on the plate. They were seasoned nicely. The chicken lacked flavor and was bland. The pecan butter did help! It did have a nice crispy crust. The red skin mashed potatoes were decent but could have had more flavor.

Drinks are always spot on and the bar service is always fantastic. We wish the portion size was better but this is the best spot in Lancaster.

This is such a beautiful restaurant! I'm from out of town and didn't completely understand the call ahead function but we were seated after about 20 minutes, which wasn't too bad for a busy Friday night. I was excited to see a few gluten-free options and I settled on the Mahi Mahi cooked in the ale house style with a bourbon glaze. The flavor of the glaze was good but couldn't carry the fish the whole way. Also there was a delicious risotto under the fish but the two flavors didn't really go together. My Beau ordered a steak with an optional butter to enhance the flavor but he said it offered no additional flavor. Service was great, my elderflower Gin and tonic was lovely but the food just wasn't where I wanted it to be for the price.

Fun place to meet up with friends. Good food and a nice variety on the menu, comfortable seating and good temperatures in the place. Easy to hear the folks you are catching up with.

Fantastic. We ate here while in town for one night based on the recommendation of another hotel guest. The atmosphere was great, with the location combining some modern additions to a beautiful old brick and wood structure. We ordered an appetizer that combined bacon with crispy deep fried onions, sweet potato, and a maple sauce... wonderful! For dinner I chose the Mahi Mahi prepared Asian style over rice and veggies. Even though it was cooked more than the medium rare I ordered, it was SO good I can't dock any points. For dessert I had a brownie covered in ice cream, and my friend had crème brule. Our waitress Taylor was a fantastic conversationalist too. Not a cheap dinner, but well worth the price

Most recommended restaurant passes the test! Since arriving in Lancaster & asking around, Ale House 1890 has been the most recommended. Upon entering the hostess was very welcoming & nice. She promptly sat us and wished us a great evening. I found it extremely endearing & not what I'm use to. A welcomed change! The menu isn't large, but they have some good choices. We opted for the 7 pepper burger and the A.H. Chopped salad. oh... my... the chopped salad is large and SO so SO good. All incredibly fresh ingredients. The chicken was cooked to perfection. It knocked my expectations out of the park. I wish I had snapped a photo, but to be honest I scarfed that down without talking until I was far too full. The 7 Pepper burger was also delicious; cooked perfectly, seasoned perfectly & all the ingredients meshed together bringing out bold flavors to complement the juicy burger. I will 100% eat here again (and again).Thank you Ale House!