$22 for beef stew that tasted good enough but aesthetically looked to be a can of beef stew poured into a bowl. The place had a bit of an unpleasant smell I can only describe as urine. Not really understanding the high rating.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 3
Carolyn Shattuck
We chose this restaurant after seeing a Phantom Gourmet video that made this place seem great. Unfortunately the restaurant seemed like it had gone downhill significantly since the time that video was made.
When we arrived we sat at the bar. There were 4-5 employees behind the bar, but still the service managed to be extremely slow.
They were out of all of the dishes we’d been excited to try, but we found other meals we were excited to try. Unfortunately the food was not great. I ordered a grilled cheese and shrimp bisque. The grilled cheese was fine, but the bisque was atrocious. They didn’t remove the shrimp shells before blending the soup so instead of being smooth, I kept having to pick chunks of shrimp shells out of my mouth. I love soup, bisques in particular, so it was really disappointing to be served something like that.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
patrick kelly
Good food a little over priced though. Service was efficient even with only one server/ bartender on handling several guests. The building is great they haven't covered up any of the historic beauty of it and decorated it to compliment it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 4
Chibuikem Onyeneho
Asked for a straw and female bartender completely disrespected me by pouring a bunch of straws in front of me condescendingly. I just needed one. I was telling a funny story to another patron about one of my nights at the Keep. The bartender overheard and took offense. She was ear-hustling for sure, but it wasn't a big deal. She took it upon herself to be rude. What can I say? Just another night at The Keep. *Shrugs*
In response to reply...
Your defensive response to the disrespect I experienced tonight is just a sign of the times. I don't need your Modelos. This review is not retalitory. This is a legitimate concern with service. Take this opportunity to learn from patron's experiences and improve service, not engage in back and forths with paying customers.
Service: 1
Nick M.
Nice little spot, it's really close to being something extra special but it's worth checking out.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Amelia Joyce
I recently visited The Keep to celebrate my uncle's birthday, drawn in by its 4.6 rating. The atmosphere was fantastic, and the bar had a great selection of drinks, which set a promising tone for the evening. I called ahead to ensure seating and was assured there was plenty available, which turned out to be accurate.
However, the service fell short of expectations. With only two other tables occupied (three total people), we hoped for attentive service, but our server struggled, getting all but two of our six food orders wrong and missing the mark on the non-alcoholic drinks. Only bringing 4 of 5 drinks and had to approach her to ask about the whereabouts thereof.
While the bartender attempted to rectify the mistakes, he became somewhat combative during the exchange. I do appreciate that he later apologized for the issues, which showed some professionalism.
Overall, while the ambiance and drink selection were commendable, the service left much to be desired. Given our experience, we’ll likely choose a different place to dine for my next visit to this area.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Steak Frites
Mark Stern
One of our favorite spots in Lowell. Best cocktails in town hands down.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: The Keep Wings, Carrot Cake
Shaw Mahini
Food is great. Hard to get a drink or a seat. Music is always way too loud. The bar desperately needs to decide what it is. It has excellent food but who wants to eat without being able to talk to the person sitting right next to you because the music is blaring? There's no dance floor! The ambience is very fancy, and welcoming, but you can't bring a crowd unless you all just want to head bob and eat food without talking to one another. Prices are a little high as well.
Edit: owner is wild for their reply. Very rude. Not sure why he is shocked that someone said the music is loud, I went for a brunch once and could not hear people sitting directly next to me at the bar. It's not the worst bar. It could even be a great one. Not with an owner taking criticisms this way. Who TF is going to ask you to have your DJ turn down their music lmao. Wtf do you even need DJ's for in a fancy bar with fancy food that has no dance floor lmao
Lemme paste their reply here before they delete it: "……..thanks? Food is great and we are so busy you can’t find a seat? I’m confused. You could try making a reservation if you want to bring a group. We can always turn the music down but to be honest this is first review in almost seven years that has specifically mentioned music volume. In terms of the prices, we are pretty competitively priced. Maybe you should stick to drive through windows. Prices there are always low and you can easily control the volume of your own car."
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 4
Service: 2
Diane Dalessandro
So last night we went to The Keep, one of our favorite restaurants in Lowell. I was a bit chilly when I got there so I asked our server for a cup of coffee. Unfortunately, being primarily a whiskey bar, they don’t serve coffee. I was offered an espresso (they use it for espresso martinis (very good, btw). Since my plans for later were sleeping, I sorrowfully declined. After ordering dinner (smash burger for me and wings & fries for my husband - all amazing!) our server came over to our table with a teapot and a couple of small mugs. She explained that she told the bartender I was cold and it was my birthday (it was) so he made us some hot mulled wine. What a delicious surprise! I’m declining to mention the names of our server and bartender because frankly, this is the level of service we get every time we come here, no matter who is waiting on us. Not only do the folks at this amazing little restaurant know how to cook a great meal and mix amazing libations, they absolutely nail the service every time!
Kelsey Santos
Bobby and Marty are the best. Great service and drinks are fabulous. I didn’t know what I was in the mood for and they found me the perfect drink. Great first time experience because of them. Will definitely come back!
I was there for a birthday party. The service and food were amazing. The place is small and they had a leaky air conditioner.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: The Keep Wings, The Keep Burger
David Nadile
Always a vibe
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Pat Rice
Was super hungry and found this spot in downtown lowell.. its in kind of a sketch area but not horrible. The waiter was super nice and helpful until I got my food. Sat for quite a bit without anyone checking in. The menu definitely is unique with various options. Was a little surprised a side of curry sauce cost $3. I had the smash burger with bacon and it was pretty good. You could tell regulars frequented there and had a good time.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: The Keep Burger
Andrew Levine
Excellent food and very creative and delicious cocktails. Great people there!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Chris Sullivan
Stopped by during the Folk Fest. Only had drinks, but they had an interesting beer selection. It was pretty early so the place wasn't too busy yet.
$22 for beef stew that tasted good enough but aesthetically looked to be a can of beef stew poured into a bowl. The place had a bit of an unpleasant smell I can only describe as urine. Not really understanding the high rating.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 3
We chose this restaurant after seeing a Phantom Gourmet video that made this place seem great. Unfortunately the restaurant seemed like it had gone downhill significantly since the time that video was made.
When we arrived we sat at the bar. There were 4-5 employees behind the bar, but still the service managed to be extremely slow.
They were out of all of the dishes we’d been excited to try, but we found other meals we were excited to try. Unfortunately the food was not great. I ordered a grilled cheese and shrimp bisque. The grilled cheese was fine, but the bisque was atrocious. They didn’t remove the shrimp shells before blending the soup so instead of being smooth, I kept having to pick chunks of shrimp shells out of my mouth. I love soup, bisques in particular, so it was really disappointing to be served something like that.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Good food a little over priced though. Service was efficient even with only one server/ bartender on handling several guests. The building is great they haven't covered up any of the historic beauty of it and decorated it to compliment it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 4
Asked for a straw and female bartender completely disrespected me by pouring a bunch of straws in front of me condescendingly. I just needed one. I was telling a funny story to another patron about one of my nights at the Keep. The bartender overheard and took offense. She was ear-hustling for sure, but it wasn't a big deal. She took it upon herself to be rude. What can I say? Just another night at The Keep. *Shrugs*
In response to reply...
Your defensive response to the disrespect I experienced tonight is just a sign of the times. I don't need your Modelos. This review is not retalitory. This is a legitimate concern with service. Take this opportunity to learn from patron's experiences and improve service, not engage in back and forths with paying customers.
Service: 1
Nice little spot, it's really close to being something extra special but it's worth checking out.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
I recently visited The Keep to celebrate my uncle's birthday, drawn in by its 4.6 rating. The atmosphere was fantastic, and the bar had a great selection of drinks, which set a promising tone for the evening. I called ahead to ensure seating and was assured there was plenty available, which turned out to be accurate.
However, the service fell short of expectations. With only two other tables occupied (three total people), we hoped for attentive service, but our server struggled, getting all but two of our six food orders wrong and missing the mark on the non-alcoholic drinks. Only bringing 4 of 5 drinks and had to approach her to ask about the whereabouts thereof.
While the bartender attempted to rectify the mistakes, he became somewhat combative during the exchange. I do appreciate that he later apologized for the issues, which showed some professionalism.
Overall, while the ambiance and drink selection were commendable, the service left much to be desired. Given our experience, we’ll likely choose a different place to dine for my next visit to this area.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Steak Frites
One of our favorite spots in Lowell. Best cocktails in town hands down.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: The Keep Wings, Carrot Cake
Food is great. Hard to get a drink or a seat. Music is always way too loud. The bar desperately needs to decide what it is. It has excellent food but who wants to eat without being able to talk to the person sitting right next to you because the music is blaring? There's no dance floor! The ambience is very fancy, and welcoming, but you can't bring a crowd unless you all just want to head bob and eat food without talking to one another. Prices are a little high as well.
Edit: owner is wild for their reply. Very rude. Not sure why he is shocked that someone said the music is loud, I went for a brunch once and could not hear people sitting directly next to me at the bar. It's not the worst bar. It could even be a great one. Not with an owner taking criticisms this way. Who TF is going to ask you to have your DJ turn down their music lmao. Wtf do you even need DJ's for in a fancy bar with fancy food that has no dance floor lmao
Lemme paste their reply here before they delete it:
"……..thanks? Food is great and we are so busy you can’t find a seat? I’m confused. You could try making a reservation if you want to bring a group. We can always turn the music down but to be honest this is first review in almost seven years that has specifically mentioned music volume. In terms of the prices, we are pretty competitively priced. Maybe you should stick to drive through windows. Prices there are always low and you can easily control the volume of your own car."
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 4
Service: 2
So last night we went to The Keep, one of our favorite restaurants in Lowell. I was a bit chilly when I got there so I asked our server for a cup of coffee. Unfortunately, being primarily a whiskey bar, they don’t serve coffee. I was offered an espresso (they use it for espresso martinis (very good, btw). Since my plans for later were sleeping, I sorrowfully declined. After ordering dinner (smash burger for me and wings & fries for my husband - all amazing!) our server came over to our table with a teapot and a couple of small mugs. She explained that she told the bartender I was cold and it was my birthday (it was) so he made us some hot mulled wine. What a delicious surprise! I’m declining to mention the names of our server and bartender because frankly, this is the level of service we get every time we come here, no matter who is waiting on us. Not only do the folks at this amazing little restaurant know how to cook a great meal and mix amazing libations, they absolutely nail the service every time!
Bobby and Marty are the best. Great service and drinks are fabulous. I didn’t know what I was in the mood for and they found me the perfect drink. Great first time experience because of them. Will definitely come back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
I was there for a birthday party. The service and food were amazing. The place is small and they had a leaky air conditioner.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: The Keep Wings, The Keep Burger
Always a vibe
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Was super hungry and found this spot in downtown lowell.. its in kind of a sketch area but not horrible. The waiter was super nice and helpful until I got my food. Sat for quite a bit without anyone checking in. The menu definitely is unique with various options. Was a little surprised a side of curry sauce cost $3. I had the smash burger with bacon and it was pretty good. You could tell regulars frequented there and had a good time.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: The Keep Burger
Excellent food and very creative and delicious cocktails. Great people there!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Stopped by during the Folk Fest. Only had drinks, but they had an interesting beer selection. It was pretty early so the place wasn't too busy yet.
Atmosphere: 4
Service: 4
Loading...