Midnight on Carmel... you're hungry, they're the one place so will cater your wish. Carlos and the crew are phenomenal... Carmel Supper club rocks!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Amanda S.
Fun unpretentious bar in Carmel? Yes! We didn't eat here, but the bar menu looks great and the place smelled good. The drink menu was really ample, something for everyone. Their craft cocktails is what most ppl were here for and they were interesting and tasty. I was very happy to find blue Chimay. The service was friendly and quick. We should have stayed longer.
Christian R.
Wow, this place has really changed. Now, instead of being a unique place to go in Carmel to get away from the expensive and supposedly prestigious establishment, now Barnes is trying to become that. Instead of being a fun dive bar (rare in Carmel), they are trying to be like everyone else, focusing on a full dining experience and featuring much more expensive drinks. This is sad to see. My guess is they must be under new management. While I can appreciate that such a decision is complex and may be due to many inputs, from a customer perspective, I think this change is a mistake. I will have to remove Barmel from my local recommendations to friends and family visiting town. I hope they rediscover their original value proposition someday.
Albert Y. Kim
Great cocktails in a bar location with a lot of history.
Audrey H.
limited menu nice staff and pretty good meal! small intimate room. better for smaller groups.
M Hernandez
Good happy hour, nice vibes, live music, and cool place to get a few drinks. The lemon drop martini was delicious. We also got Belgian fries (homemade ketchup to die for!) and a salad with shrimp. It was a wonderful evening!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Meghan H.
DJ Brewbone CARRIED this bar. My boyfriend and I came here on a whim while visiting from San Francisco and heard house music playing. Came here and we're having the BEST time because DJ Brewbone was playing the best set I've ever heard. If you come here - I hope it's on a night DJ Brewbone is mixing!
Roger-Dunn-Golf-HI
This is hands down my favorite spot in Carmel. Great craft cocktails, live music and great vibe! It’s a legit bar scene in an otherwise sleepy village. It’s a must for those looking for pulse in the Carmel night life.
John S.
For context, I rarely drink, usually around once a month or so at this point and it's usually something light and at home. For some reason I wanted like an actual drink (cocktail), so I decided to come here because I like Carmel, and it was nice, little place but vibrant, I know literally nothing about drinks or bar lingo so some of it was confusing lol, I had to ask for a menu and I picked something that seemed good (can't remember but it was bourbon based) and it was really good, a little stronger than I expected I won't lie, but that's okay lol. Bill was 17$ or so and left the bartender 25$ because he was awesome. Good place!
Sam C.
Really nice atmosphere sitting outside, food & drinks were great, and the server we had was very friendly. We visited from OC but will definitely be back next time we come up. Dog friendly!
Stopped in here because the vibe was great. Our server was attentive and the drinks were awesome. A few minutes after ordering my second glass of wine, a male server we had not dealt with came up and grabbed our table, saying he needed to move it upstairs. I told him I'd just ordered my drink but we'd be heading out shortly, he told us that he needed it now and to just stand around. Around in a crowded bar? The server offered the table next to us some extra time to wrap up their full meal sitting at the table, but still rushed them. A little more communication would be bare minimum service in this situation. Optimal service would have been to let us finish the drink we ordered and paid for. Our server was great but the gentlemen who asked us to move has absolutely disrespectful and awful. Worst server I have ever dealt with, period.
Mike B.
Great drinks perfect Friday or Saturday night cocktails to be had. This is the only bar in the city of Carmel that has a great vibe and great energy. They're also open until 2 AM on weekends.
Ashlynd L.
Honestly the worst bar I've ever been to. I came to barmel with a group of friends after a wedding and were immediately told by the owner that we could only come in if we bought two bottles up front and then randomly upped it to three bottles. After refusing to buy the bottles they let us in and the owner proceeded to harass us, demanding we order drinks and shoving menus in our hands. As we were leaving, he proceeded to follow us to the exit to harass us more. I am absolutely appalled at the customer service here and would never consider returning based on the actions of the owner. Don't waste your money here.
Darien G.
Great little spot for drinks in Carmel. It's kind of tucked away off of one of the main streets downtown but definitely worth seeking out. It kind of looks like a dive bar but the sprits list is pretty extensive. They can probably make just about any kind of drink you would want. When we were there the place got pretty packed and the bartender that was working by herself never seemed to lose her smile or friendly attitude even though she was clearly in the weeds. I was looking to get an Industry Sour, (equal parts Frenet, Lime Juice, Simple Syrup and Green Chartreuse). But when I make mine I like to sub out a different Amaro as Frenet is a bit minty for my taste. When I asked the bartender what she had for Amaro she didn't really know. So I just ordered it the usual way but later on I looked at the bar and saw that they had 3 or 4 other Amari that she could have used. Oh well. But all in all we had a great time and would certainly come back here for drinks again.
W636
I was out for an evening with my wife and adult children. Initially Barmel seemed like a very nice place. However we were treated very poorly as they began to change over part of the bar seating area to a dance floor. We had only been there a short time when we were told we had to leave so they could use our table for bottle service. We were never informed that they would be turning our table into a reserved area for bottle service when we arrived. However shortly after our second round we were rudely told we needed to vacate our table. I saw another table of four that was also removed so they could expand the dance floor. I thought that was poor form as well because no one was even dancing. I really wish there was a zero star option for this establishment. I definitely do not recommend Barmel.
Midnight on Carmel... you're hungry, they're the one place so will cater your wish. Carlos and the crew are phenomenal... Carmel Supper club rocks!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Fun unpretentious bar in Carmel? Yes! We didn't eat here, but the bar menu looks great and the place smelled good. The drink menu was really ample, something for everyone. Their craft cocktails is what most ppl were here for and they were interesting and tasty. I was very happy to find blue Chimay. The service was friendly and quick. We should have stayed longer.
Wow, this place has really changed. Now, instead of being a unique place to go in Carmel to get away from the expensive and supposedly prestigious establishment, now Barnes is trying to become that. Instead of being a fun dive bar (rare in Carmel), they are trying to be like everyone else, focusing on a full dining experience and featuring much more expensive drinks. This is sad to see. My guess is they must be under new management. While I can appreciate that such a decision is complex and may be due to many inputs, from a customer perspective, I think this change is a mistake. I will have to remove Barmel from my local recommendations to friends and family visiting town. I hope they rediscover their original value proposition someday.
Great cocktails in a bar location with a lot of history.
limited menu nice staff and pretty good meal! small intimate room. better for smaller groups.
Good happy hour, nice vibes, live music, and cool place to get a few drinks. The lemon drop martini was delicious. We also got Belgian fries (homemade ketchup to die for!) and a salad with shrimp. It was a wonderful evening!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
DJ Brewbone CARRIED this bar. My boyfriend and I came here on a whim while visiting from San Francisco and heard house music playing. Came here and we're having the BEST time because DJ Brewbone was playing the best set I've ever heard. If you come here - I hope it's on a night DJ Brewbone is mixing!
This is hands down my favorite spot in Carmel. Great craft cocktails, live music and great vibe! It’s a legit bar scene in an otherwise sleepy village. It’s a must for those looking for pulse in the Carmel night life.
For context, I rarely drink, usually around once a month or so at this point and it's usually something light and at home. For some reason I wanted like an actual drink (cocktail), so I decided to come here because I like Carmel, and it was nice, little place but vibrant, I know literally nothing about drinks or bar lingo so some of it was confusing lol, I had to ask for a menu and I picked something that seemed good (can't remember but it was bourbon based) and it was really good, a little stronger than I expected I won't lie, but that's okay lol. Bill was 17$ or so and left the bartender 25$ because he was awesome. Good place!
Really nice atmosphere sitting outside, food & drinks were great, and the server we had was very friendly. We visited from OC but will definitely be back next time we come up. Dog friendly!
Restaurantji Recommends
Stopped in here because the vibe was great. Our server was attentive and the drinks were awesome. A few minutes after ordering my second glass of wine, a male server we had not dealt with came up and grabbed our table, saying he needed to move it upstairs. I told him I'd just ordered my drink but we'd be heading out shortly, he told us that he needed it now and to just stand around. Around in a crowded bar? The server offered the table next to us some extra time to wrap up their full meal sitting at the table, but still rushed them. A little more communication would be bare minimum service in this situation. Optimal service would have been to let us finish the drink we ordered and paid for. Our server was great but the gentlemen who asked us to move has absolutely disrespectful and awful. Worst server I have ever dealt with, period.
Great drinks perfect Friday or Saturday night cocktails to be had. This is the only bar in the city of Carmel that has a great vibe and great energy. They're also open until 2 AM on weekends.
Honestly the worst bar I've ever been to. I came to barmel with a group of friends after a wedding and were immediately told by the owner that we could only come in if we bought two bottles up front and then randomly upped it to three bottles. After refusing to buy the bottles they let us in and the owner proceeded to harass us, demanding we order drinks and shoving menus in our hands. As we were leaving, he proceeded to follow us to the exit to harass us more. I am absolutely appalled at the customer service here and would never consider returning based on the actions of the owner. Don't waste your money here.
Great little spot for drinks in Carmel. It's kind of tucked away off of one of the main streets downtown but definitely worth seeking out. It kind of looks like a dive bar but the sprits list is pretty extensive. They can probably make just about any kind of drink you would want. When we were there the place got pretty packed and the bartender that was working by herself never seemed to lose her smile or friendly attitude even though she was clearly in the weeds. I was looking to get an Industry Sour, (equal parts Frenet, Lime Juice, Simple Syrup and Green Chartreuse). But when I make mine I like to sub out a different Amaro as Frenet is a bit minty for my taste. When I asked the bartender what she had for Amaro she didn't really know. So I just ordered it the usual way but later on I looked at the bar and saw that they had 3 or 4 other Amari that she could have used. Oh well. But all in all we had a great time and would certainly come back here for drinks again.
I was out for an evening with my wife and adult children. Initially Barmel seemed like a very nice place. However we were treated very poorly as they began to change over part of the bar seating area to a dance floor. We had only been there a short time when we were told we had to leave so they could use our table for bottle service. We were never informed that they would be turning our table into a reserved area for bottle service when we arrived. However shortly after our second round we were rudely told we needed to vacate our table. I saw another table of four that was also removed so they could expand the dance floor. I thought that was poor form as well because no one was even dancing. I really wish there was a zero star option for this establishment. I definitely do not recommend Barmel.