05/19/09

Below Average

by Doozer

Our night here was below average.

First, I had a reservation but could not get a seat. I was told it was 'open seating' but why then did the restaurant take my reservation?

Also, due to the overcrowding i suppose, It took almost 20 minutes to get our first drink order in. Then another 20 minutes for it to arrive. The chili pepper - cilantro mojito was excellent, but not worth the wait.

Later, we are told our entree choices were out of stock. This is surprising since there are only about 8 items on the entree menu...

During the long wait to get the food, I ordered another drink... only to be told that the Rum Bar was out of the rum needed for the recipe.

Also, I was excited to see jamaican beef patties on the menu as it was something I fell in love with on a vacation many years ago. It was another letdown. they were tiny and overdone, with a dry lifeless filling that I had to drink just to get it down. And this posed another problem as I didn't want to wait another 20-40 minutes to get another drink.

The server was very pleasant. That was the one plus for the restaurant.

Unfortunately everything else was definitely below average. I don't believe I would go back to Rum Bar.

• Pros: the Cilantro - chili mojito
• Cons: The service, The food, Out of stock items

02/13/09

One of the Best Places in Philadelphia

by xstarsx

Rittenhouse Square has planty to offer, the shopping in this area is wonderful and the best place to go after a day of shopping is Rum Bar. I have been to Rum Bar on many occasions. The best time we went there was for a friend who lived in the area's 21st Birthday party. We got plenty of food, about 2 dishes for the each of us. And plenty of drinks. The staff was extrememly nice. My friend goes to a culinary school in the area, and the Head Chef was a graduate of the same school my friend attends and she came out to talk to us and we had nothing bad to say about anything. The ceviche was amazing, and the habenero grilled cheese is the best thing you can eat. We also had the wonderful opportunity to meet the owner, who was so nice and accomodating. The mojitos and the daquiris are the best things that I have ever tasted. The carribbean and pirate theme is so much fun, and the music is fun. If you are looking for a lounge and not a place where guys are creepy and looking for a place you can sit down and enjoy an evening, this is the place. If you are looking for a club and just to meet someone, go somewhere else, this isn't the place for you. It's a relaxing atmospehere with wonderful food, drinks, and staff. I highly recomend Rum Bar for a nice evening.

• Pros: Drinks, Staff, Food, essentially Everything!
• Cons: Nothing!

12/28/08

perhaps even better than the caribbean!

by olympiapi

our experience here was delightful. the tapas are healthy portions (2 per person was enough) and so good. the west indies style mac n' cheese is perfect! the drinks are fresh, and the infused rums make the drinks extra special. and don't forget the dessert... even if your stuffed. the rum cake is tasty even if the rum flavor isn't strong. we've been to a quite a few caribbean islands, and the food here is a delightful fusion of american comfort food with a caribbean kick. i can't wait to go back!

• Pros: great food, great price
• Cons: hip hop music isn't ideal for dinner time conversation

09/27/08

Gotta Love Rum Bar!

by Daniel37

Not sure about the previous reviews of Rum Bar, but I love the place. I go there about once or twice a month. Drinks are strong, maybe a little pricy, but if you see what goes into making each one, you'd understand. Service is always good, bartenders know my drink each time I come in.

I've got nothing bad to say about Rum Bar. Vena's gotta be one of the best bartender's in the city!

• Pros: Best cocktails in the city
• Cons: Narrow bar, it'd be better if it was bigger.

09/25/08

very disappointing

by jillian3453

saw the good reviews so I checked it out. Very dissapointing

• Pros: Strong Drinks
• Cons: everything else

09/25/08

NOT a good girls night out!!!!!

by johnclubgoer

HORRIBLE GIRLS NIGHT OUT!!!!!!!!!!! We will never return. Guys are skeezy and aggressive. Bartenders are too. Waiter took 25 minutes to stop by our table and when she did, she was openly rude!!!!! No dancing. Drinks were expensive and weak. And my best friend got sick the next day to boot. (don?t get the seafood ceviche).

You can do A LOT better in Rittenhouse Square. Devon, Rouge, Alpha?s, Walnut Room........ even Loies (yes, it was that bad).

Never again. Don't waste your time.

PS: We ended up throwing my friend another bachelorette party. We had a great time :-)

• Pros: you get to leave
• Cons: looks nice inside

04/12/08

Girls Night Out, this is your spot!

by svillager

Great place to go with a group. We were celebrating a bachelorette party. Cool vibes... no dancing unfortunately, but tasty drinks, good noshes, and very cool staff. Flaming bartender lips!

• Pros: Drinks and Service
• Cons: No DJ or Dancing

04/11/08

Super Savory Small Plates

by shawnk83

My friends took me to Rum Bar for dinner. Ive been there before, but never knew they had food! The server let us know that it was a small plate menu and encouraged order 2-4 dishes per person based on our appetitie. I'm a big eater and felt compelled to order a lot. Between the three of us, we ordered about 10 dishes. The food came out scattered, as the server said it would. The only downside to this was that the seabass I was really craving didnt come out until the end. I had a Painkiller #3, which was served in an ovesized cappucino mug. I get this every time I come in for drinks. Its made with rum, coconut, and pineapple with a touch of nutmeg. Great drink! The first food that came out was the scallop ceviche and the guacamole. The guac was so fresh and brightly green. The ceviche had the perfect acidity to bring out the flavors of the scallops. We had mini burgers which blew away the ones I had at Alfa and Barclay. There was an amazing sweetness to it, and the perfectly toasted rolls were dynamite. I couldnt stop talking about the burgers! Other dishes we had were fried calamari, jamaican beef patties (DAMN good!), and that Seabass. Best seabass Ive ever had! My friend Pete had talked it up, and it lived up to the hype! After my Painkiller, I tried a sipping rum. The server suggested a rum called Zaya. I ordered it, and it was great! I didnt know rum could taste so smooth.

All in all, what a great night. Great food, great drinks, great service, great ambience. Im definitely gonna take dates here now for dinner.

• Pros: The food, the drinks, the service, the ambience
• Cons: parking was tough

04/05/08

Worst food Ive had in a long long time

by mattinthecity

I will say that the drinks werent bad but that had nothing to do with the kitchen... The menu is tapas style and we ordered quite a few dishes.... We started off with the chorizo which was tasted old and cheap and very unflavorful. The scallops were over cooked the risotto it came with was gummy and pasty which meant it had wither been cooked for a long time or sat out for a long time. Sea bass is one of my favorite choices but this was the worst ive had, it didnt even taste like sea bass and once more like the scallops was over cooked. The flank steak was cold, and was in a bed of refried beans that HAD to be out of a can an tasted just like something from taco bell. The conch fritters werent horrible but I really think that they were baught frozen they had a 'refreshed fish' consistency and taste. AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST!!!!!!!! the Tuna ceveche was something we couldnt even eat.. I was so excited to see it on the menu as its one of my favorite dishes but it was GREY!!! which means its was definitely quite old -- at least over one day. There wasnt any beautiful red tuna color in sight . We actually complained about it and the waitress said alot of people complain about it and she took it off are bill!!!! Ive never heard anything like it before !!!!!!! I understand that Rum bar is mostly a rum bar but if youre going to have a kitchen then cook half way decent food. I wasnt expecting culinary gold but what I did get was the worst meal in a long time. Our friend that picked the restaurant actually apologized for picking it. Not to mention that the decor looked like a hideous DIY do over and reminded me of a bad Trading Spaces episode. There are so many good Restaurants in Philly so please please make a better choice. Ive never been compelled to write a review before but I had to vent my frustrations about the horrible food.

• Pros: location, drinks
• Cons: FOOD, loud dance hits were playing, oh yeah the FOOD!!!

04/03/08

great drink menu

by jossfan23

The chili coriander mojito was spicy & awesome! I will have to go back just to try all the specialty drinks. The small plates were enough to eat *with the drinks*. All the food was overcooked but had great flavors. Late-night bartender was slow, but worth it.

• Pros: Great mojitos. Creative flavors in food and drink.
• Cons: Ambience, food overcooked.