Harpoon Willies: Great Spot, But Where’s the Green and Gold? I live here year-round in Williams Bay—not just for the summer sunsets or fall foliage, but through the snow, the slush, and the soul of Wisconsin. And like any true Wisconsinite, I bleed green and gold. So when I walk into Harpoon Willies on a Sunday, I expect one thing: Packers on every screen. Not Bears. Not split screens. Not a polite nod to part-time Chicago folks who pop in when the lake’s thawed. This place has the bones of a great local hangout—solid food, good drinks, and a view that makes you linger. But when it comes to football season, it feels like the TVs forgot where they are. We’re not in Lake Geneva’s tourist churn. We’re in Packers country. And if you want loyalty, look no further than the folks who shovel your sidewalks and keep the lights on in February. So here’s my plea: Harpoon Willies, honor the locals. Give us our Packers. All screens. All heart. All season. We’re not asking for much—just a little respect for the year-round crew who call this place home.
Z9902UEjohnd
We live in Fontana and have been to Harpoon Willie's hundreds of times , I always look forward to having the broasted chicken and have always enjoyed it . The last time, about 2 weeks ago, it was horrible, as though it had been sitting out for awhile and then reheated. I just chalked it up to a bad night. We went back on Saturday, again looking forward to the broasted chicken. Again , it looked as though it had been not only reheated but no dark meat and the rest , as though it was double dipped in breading while the waffle fries were saturated in oil , not crisp at all. Harpoon Willies has always been a go to place , but after my second experience , I'm not so sure. Best Regards John Dodson
Jeni W
Delicious food, excellent service, and great location. We all had the Geneva Burger and it was delicious. The waffle fries are so good, so be sure to upgrade. Love the view of the lake as well.
Z4484SFmaryk
We sat out on the porch on a beautiful fall day. Service was excellent and the burgers we ordered were very good. We’ll definitely return on another visit.
Libra_K1960
Our last evening in the US and we felt we hadn't really had a burger - Harpoon Willie's was perfect. The default accompaniment was the house chips (crisps to us Brits) and these were possibly better than the optional fries. We also enjoyed drinking Spotted Cow, the local brew. Our waiter was friendly and chatty and helped to make our last evening very enjoyable.
andyw604
Our week long stay found us tired of tourist prices and more elaborate meals. Here we discovered great food, local charm, warm service and reasonable prices. We will be visiting again.
Gwen
I’ve had two of the same order from here, first a perfect matcha latte hot with a lot of professional foam, you know the kind you pay a barista for. Second time I almost went back as my hot latte was room temp and when I opened it was white with no foam. Also the first time I ordered it it was 5.50 and the second time 6.50 so overall I’m really confused. Probably won’t risk seven dollar again :/
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 2
janetlD8418LU
Nice, casual spot with great food, service and at reasonable prices! Even though there was a large lunch crowd, we 3 were seated immediately.
marymD335CZ
The food was very good. We enjoyed the atmosphere except for the smoke from the Canadian fires. Nothing the restaurant could do about it. Service was great.
Emily B
We went for dinner for a date night and decided to leave after appetizers. We ordered two appetizers: chips and guacamole and calamari. The calamari was great, but the guac had several brown areas on it. We were not impressed that the kitchen sent that out and equally not impressed that the server brought it to us. We had very little faith that the rest of the meal would turn out good so we called it a night.
Such a fabulous restaurant and a great location - close to town and the lake. The decor is all lake related - great atmosphere. Wonderful menu! The food and the service was terrific!
duckye
Enjoyed the atmosphere. Normal pub type place with tvs, locals and visitors at the bar. Had a great salad. They share desserts and hot drinks with Cafe Calamari, run by same people. Yummy parfaits.
Phillip W
Great staff, good priced!. Bar food! Great view of the lake! Short drive back to Lake Geneva! Not sure if it’s family friendly.
196LindaC
On weekends, we like to visit towns that we've never been in before. Today we drove to Williams Bay. After enjoying the trip and seeing the sites, we stopped for lunch. It was very busy but we found a couple seats by the bar in a quiet back corner. The bartender/waitress was very attentive and I can't believe how quickly our order appeared. The food was tasty, the crowd was friendly and we would definitely go back.
Sue G
Had dinner before a concert at the Belfry. Waitress was attentive and helpful with suggestions since it was our first visit. The salad with added blacken tuna steak was super good. Husband had broasted chicken sandwich which he enjoyed. Neat place, will definitely stop again!
Harpoon Willies: Great Spot, But Where’s the Green and Gold? I live here year-round in Williams Bay—not just for the summer sunsets or fall foliage, but through the snow, the slush, and the soul of Wisconsin. And like any true Wisconsinite, I bleed green and gold. So when I walk into Harpoon Willies on a Sunday, I expect one thing: Packers on every screen. Not Bears. Not split screens. Not a polite nod to part-time Chicago folks who pop in when the lake’s thawed. This place has the bones of a great local hangout—solid food, good drinks, and a view that makes you linger. But when it comes to football season, it feels like the TVs forgot where they are. We’re not in Lake Geneva’s tourist churn. We’re in Packers country. And if you want loyalty, look no further than the folks who shovel your sidewalks and keep the lights on in February. So here’s my plea: Harpoon Willies, honor the locals. Give us our Packers. All screens. All heart. All season. We’re not asking for much—just a little respect for the year-round crew who call this place home.
We live in Fontana and have been to Harpoon Willie's hundreds of times , I always look forward to having the broasted chicken and have always enjoyed it . The last time, about 2 weeks ago, it was horrible, as though it had been sitting out for awhile and then reheated. I just chalked it up to a bad night. We went back on Saturday, again looking forward to the broasted chicken. Again , it looked as though it had been not only reheated but no dark meat and the rest , as though it was double dipped in breading while the waffle fries were saturated in oil , not crisp at all. Harpoon Willies has always been a go to place , but after my second experience , I'm not so sure. Best Regards John Dodson
Delicious food, excellent service, and great location. We all had the Geneva Burger and it was delicious. The waffle fries are so good, so be sure to upgrade. Love the view of the lake as well.
We sat out on the porch on a beautiful fall day. Service was excellent and the burgers we ordered were very good. We’ll definitely return on another visit.
Our last evening in the US and we felt we hadn't really had a burger - Harpoon Willie's was perfect. The default accompaniment was the house chips (crisps to us Brits) and these were possibly better than the optional fries. We also enjoyed drinking Spotted Cow, the local brew. Our waiter was friendly and chatty and helped to make our last evening very enjoyable.
Our week long stay found us tired of tourist prices and more elaborate meals. Here we discovered great food, local charm, warm service and reasonable prices. We will be visiting again.
I’ve had two of the same order from here, first a perfect matcha latte hot with a lot of professional foam, you know the kind you pay a barista for. Second time I almost went back as my hot latte was room temp and when I opened it was white with no foam. Also the first time I ordered it it was 5.50 and the second time 6.50 so overall I’m really confused. Probably won’t risk seven dollar again :/
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 2
Nice, casual spot with great food, service and at reasonable prices! Even though there was a large lunch crowd, we 3 were seated immediately.
The food was very good. We enjoyed the atmosphere except for the smoke from the Canadian fires. Nothing the restaurant could do about it. Service was great.
We went for dinner for a date night and decided to leave after appetizers. We ordered two appetizers: chips and guacamole and calamari. The calamari was great, but the guac had several brown areas on it. We were not impressed that the kitchen sent that out and equally not impressed that the server brought it to us. We had very little faith that the rest of the meal would turn out good so we called it a night.
Restaurantji Recommends
Such a fabulous restaurant and a great location - close to town and the lake. The decor is all lake related - great atmosphere. Wonderful menu! The food and the service was terrific!
Enjoyed the atmosphere. Normal pub type place with tvs, locals and visitors at the bar. Had a great salad. They share desserts and hot drinks with Cafe Calamari, run by same people. Yummy parfaits.
Great staff, good priced!. Bar food! Great view of the lake! Short drive back to Lake Geneva! Not sure if it’s family friendly.
On weekends, we like to visit towns that we've never been in before. Today we drove to Williams Bay. After enjoying the trip and seeing the sites, we stopped for lunch. It was very busy but we found a couple seats by the bar in a quiet back corner. The bartender/waitress was very attentive and I can't believe how quickly our order appeared. The food was tasty, the crowd was friendly and we would definitely go back.
Had dinner before a concert at the Belfry. Waitress was attentive and helpful with suggestions since it was our first visit. The salad with added blacken tuna steak was super good. Husband had broasted chicken sandwich which he enjoyed. Neat place, will definitely stop again!
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