Sample Room

Recommends

lukefinsaas

Joined 2 years ago

What a Happy Hour. First of all, I love The Sample Room.

Good vibe, good drinks, good staff. Especially excellent for a quiet evening out in NE (when you compare it to 331, Psycho Suzi's, or Gasthof's). For me, quiet nights out are always a toss up between the NE Social, The Sample Room, and The Peacock Lounge.

Unless it's happy hour - then it's Sample Room, hands down.

Reasons:

1) $1.50 Grainbelt Nordeasts

2) $3.00 1/4 Pound Delicious Burgers

3) Great Staff

So, you can walk away, having had 2 beers and a good sized burger, for less than $7 bucks. That's a McDonald combo. And it's not just cost: these burgers are fantastic and the beer is cold, and the servers are fast and really efficient. Only gripe is the lack of fries... I've gone in at 5:30 and gotten the 2 beer/burger deal simply because the server is that fast and responsive.

Beyond Happy Hour, they have good drinks and good bartenders and a great patio. After two visits, the bartender remembered my name and the drink I'd gotten both times. And it's still the drink I get today (Maxmillian), even though it's not on the menu - they'll mix it up for me no problem. The patio is great in the summer as well.

So, in short, visit The Sample Room.

Doesn't Recommend

rdegroff

Joined 3 years ago

Horrrible Experience. My husband took me here to surprise me for my birthday- unfortunately it flopped. The tables were uncomfortably close one another and it was so incredibly noisy from of all the people talking. So we order and right away receive one cheese plate- with crackers- (the bread was still in the oven they said) and we waited and waited- 45min after arrival we finally caught the waitress- asked her if we're getting bread(we were starving) -which she then brought. An HOUR after arrival we received our 'plates' and yes they are tiny- so tiny AND overpriced because of that- you do need to order 2-3 per person- Scallops were good-but you only get two, the salads were good- not too complicated when all you do is throw greens on a plate and squirt your ready made vinaigrette on it- the pork ribs :HORRIBLE -tough, size of the palm of your hand -but ALL bone-I got 2 bites of meat off the whole thing!! My husband complained- no manager on site -will be calling back to speak to him/her. We unfortunately and regretfully still paid with no tip, but WON'T ever go back.

Doesn't Recommend

tuanTUAN

Joined 5 years ago

Great atmosphere, mediocre food, overpriced but friendly. After visiting the Sample Room yesterday for the umpteenth time, my best friend and I agreed that

we're pretty much over it. It's a great place to stop for an afternoon glass of wine (or two!) but the food

is REALLY on the wrong side of average and was extremely slow in gettin' to us to boot. Add to that

the ridiculous prices, really? They charged us $1.25 for a second basket of bread...now I'm not cheap,

but we spent over $40 on wine and $30 on food. Wouldn't common sense say "Hey, give those people

all the bread they want!" Everything on the menu, and I've had most of it, is definitely overpriced.

Try them for a chat over a cocktail or wine during the day, but skip the food!

Recommends

lalicious

Joined 9 years ago

Great experience. Went with some friends last night around 10:30 p.m. Had a great dinner-spot-on service. Their wine list is always fantastic and where else can you get wine, scotch, and tequila flights? Only complaint was that the bratwurst seemed a little over priced- $6.50 for one brat with a little spicy brown mustard. Everything else was amazing and well worth it- the tuna, stickney hill goat cheese, and the ratatuille.

Recommends

sky35sky

Joined 5 years ago

IF YOU DON'T LOVE THIS JOINT YOU'RE NUTS!. I was told about this place by my hairstylists (Boji Hairstudio, they're the best, also NE:) and have

been here 3 or 4 times. Okay, it's a perfect late after noon, early evening spot. I've always had great

service and the food is 99% bullet-proof. NO restaurant get every dish perfect every time, but overall

the food is scrumptious and reasonably priced. This whole area is very cool and friendly.

Recommends

Amyeatsburgers

Joined 5 years ago

good bar, great food, loud and cozy. i've eaten at the sample room many times, and i never get tired of the food. the menu changes give enough variety for the restaurant to accommodate frequent diners. they have the best burgers, homemade sausages and desserts. perfect for dinner and drinks for groups of 3 or 4 people.

Recommends

mplshomegrown

Joined 5 years ago

Continuation of the artistic experience found at the local bi-annual art crawl. Following a long day at the art crawl in the nearby eclectic artistic neighborhood/haven, my fiance and I strolled along the pathway of the adjacent park while waiting for our outside table to become available. As the door swung open and the smells wafted through the air, our mouths began to water. The crisp iced tea was a perfect beginning to four courses of flavorful ingredients amalgamated as one in an artistic format that rivaled many of the thousand dollar plus pieces of work witnessed a few moments prior to our arrival. The food is nothing less than a phenomenal expression only available from the hands of a well-trained, seasoned veteran. We will definitely be returning for another taste.

Recommends

Gavinlovesfood

Joined 5 years ago

Best food in North, Northeast. I have eaten at the sample room many times. The last being about a year and a half ago. The food was always sort of blah, but decent. I had my favorites but nothing was that great. The wine list was good and the ambience was great. However, I just returned about a month ago, the food was great. Seriously like a 180 degree turn around. The food was vibrant and flavorful, not so drab. Honestly looking back if I had this to compare it to, I would have been disappointed. I am unsure if they have a new chef or they just made some changes on the menu but what a difference a year makes. All of my food was fresh and cooked perfectly. Try the veg torte, and the bratwurst. The wine list was much improved, and my wine, I ordered a bottle, was half off on monday nights. The service was casual and friendly as usual. Again I have to say amazing food, Try it you will not be disappointed.

Recommends

Tomander

Joined 5 years ago

Wonderful Evening. My wife and I went to the sample room on a saturday night. The wait was about 20 minutes, but we were told we could sit at the bar. we were sat promptly, and the server was very friendly he suggested a few items and we ordered the wine flight (it was great and priced well also). I ordered the salmon entree and my wife ordered the corned beef, bratwurst, vegetable torte, and shrimp. It was wonderful, the salmon was cooked perfectly and the lemon sauce was just great. My wife has been craving the corned beef since we ate there. With the feel, the vibe the great drinks and the good food this place has it all. You can bet we will be back. I highly recommend this place.

Doesn't Recommend

dontspitinmyfood

Joined 5 years ago

Just close the doors. if you own a restaurant and don;t care about the food or the service just close the place and go open a footlocker or something. i've been here quite a few times and had some good experiences, but one horrible experience is all it takes to swear off a place forever. mine was last week. my date and I went in around 9 pm. the waitress was outside smoking with some pals and took forever just to take our drink order. the bread came with the food, and when the food did finally come the corned beef was more like corned beef jerky, and the seared salmon was still frozen in the center. FROZEN! Something tells me whatever talent originally conceived this place left a long time ago. Stay away. Stay far away. Or just go to Elsie's and get some mini corn dogs. The service is better and they're not frozen in the center.