The Hatch

Good cold beer, but don’t try and alter an order on the menu. Good atmosphere & help.

Here’s the deal: Lots of good food in Paso. Lots of good wine too. But, no where makes you feel so special as this place. GREAT customer service. They remember your name with a smile. Think Cheers with amazing food & artisan cocktails.

Maggie, the fact that you responded and took the time to read my review, I am truly impressed. For you to take that time is awesome and greatly appreciated. And that you understood my review. We will be back! I mentioned we actually loved coming because of the great atmosphere and great bartenders, etc. So thank you…

Excellent meal! We stopped at Grizzly Republic across the street to buy a bottle of wine before our dinner reservation, since Hatch waves the corking fee for wines bought at 13^th street tasting rooms. We ordered the meatloaf, tri tip special, and fried green tomatoes, and bread pudding for dessert. Everything was outstanding! Will definitely return to this place!

This place is awesome. Great bartenders, friendly waiters, all around fantastic service.
Atmosphere is very much on point with a modern gastropub, with industrial and rustic cues through out. But we don’t go to restaurants to be talk to bar tenders and stare at the walls so with out any more delays– the food.
Starting the the booze. I ordered a good olé Sazerac, one of the oldest if not the oldest cocktail ever! They do justice to this timely classic, which many bars never attempt. They have 3 barrel aged cocktails, though I only tried the Sazerac and Old Fashioned, I’d be willing to be the rest are just as good.
The Artichoke is not what I expected. Rather than attacking the cactus of vegetables with your incisors, they only serve the choice potions of the artichoke, so you can literally scoop forks of it up without and chow down (arti)choking at all. Great take on artichoke– nice seasoning, really enjoyable.
The abalone… Natures delicious suction cup; life long guardian of mother of pearl; and creator of cheap Nevada casino ash trays– isn’t abalone wonderful? I mean it’s the best of steak and the best of seafood in one. Unfortunately it’s supremely easy to screw up– and all to often destroyed entirely. Failing can come in the form of turning the abalone into tire rubber by over cooking. Turning it into elephant snot slime with improperly searing. Or turning it into flavorless yucky yuck but not seasoning correctly. However at the Hatch, they navigated around all of these potential failures and created a morsel so delicious you’ll definitely want to re-​order right away.
The Boudin was the only thing that let me down at all. It just– it’s uncased. It’s mixed with the corn bread, and what you end up with is a sort of deconstructed tamale. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a damn delicious tamale, but as some one who has spent a lot of time eating in Southern Louisiana, I wouldn’t quiet deem this dish «proper» boudin. More of a boudin and tamale inspired skillet. Still worth trying, but don’t expect to pair this with saltines.
All in all– great place. Certainly one of the best modern places to eat in town. The unique infusion of cajun, criole, gastropub/​small plate, and rotisserie certainly make The Hatch a memorable dining choice. The flavors and service put it over the top to earn it a perfect 5 stars.

The absolute best. Incredible food, drinks, and service.

I am usually a 4 star rater with places like this… because that is the minimum I expect! I guess if I could give 3.5 I would.
First we started with the artichokes. Can’t go wrong with those, right? No, they were lacking. Flavor! They needed salt, lemon, something!
My husbands grilled octopus came, he loved it. He was quiet and content, so I am guessing he was happy!
I had my farro/​fava bean veggie dish. Again, lacking flavor. So sad to say this, as I had high hopes! It was so bland. Even my husband (who loved his octopus) agreed. No flavor.
I would be willing to try it again, since my husband was so happy. Hoping they experiment with the spices more! MUCH needed with what I had.

Very interesting a la cart menu. Egg seems to be on most entries. I had Wed night special which was baby back ribs with very tasty rub in a banana leaf wrap. Good but not extra special. Also we had meatloaf which was very interesting with a ketchup topping. Both entries needed a side, most were good but priced at $ 10.00 or more. Expecting 30.00 or more per person.
We have no interest in returning.

My boyfriend and I went here about 2 months ago, it was one of the best restaurant experiences I’ve had, i’m still raving about it to everyone! I wish i lived closer so i could go here more often!
The atmosphere was perfect for what we wanted, not too fancy. It’s a small place so make sure to call ahead of time. They first quoted us to wait an hour which was fine so we grabbed drinks somewhere else, but then they texted about 15 minutes later that our table was ready.
I wish i could remember our waiter’s name, he was amazing. Our server was extremely knowledgeable, personable, attentive, entertaining, the whole 9. The owner was around as well, not micromanaging– he had a good presence.
The food was phenomenal! My friend told me some items to get, definitely get the mushrooms appetizer, it’s seriously to die for! My boyfriend had the shrimp and grits, i had the ramen (our server described it as «not your normal college ramen», which was SO true). Both dishes were great, we had a potato side dish as well. We wanted the bread pudding but had no room… Our drinks were just as great, we had the pistachio mule and i ended up with a whiskey drink as well which is an uncommon order for me but turned out perfect!
We ended up staying here a long time since we were having such a great time. Our server invited us to join him and his co workers at a bar nearby afterwards which was nice since we were from out of town.
The Hatch is a must-​visit if in Paso!!!

The Hatch is a must stop if you’re planning a Paso Robles wine tasting trip. Our friends made the Friday night reservations, I highly recommend making reservations as they are very busy. We were a party of 7 and we were seated at the high top in front of the open kitchen where we got to watch the chefs in action. Our server explained the menu and we all decided to share a number of entrees.
Here’s what we had…
To drink:
Me: Hatch a Plan with Vodka, Pistachio Syrup, Ginger Beer and lime. Their version of the Moscow Mule.
My hubby: Barrel House Brewing Co., Templeton Ale.
To eat:
Housemade Pickle Plate
Grilled Caesar
Kale Salad
Cauliflower
Ho Cakes
Brussels Sprouts
Mushrooms
Half Rotisserie Chicken with Buttermilk & hot sauce.
Beef Cheeks
Everything was fantastic and the service was spot on from start to finish. Even with our bellies full, we all wanted the burger that was heading to another table. Next time… next time…

Stays open later than any restaurant in town. Ordered $ 15 burger rare and received medium. Not too tasty or Juicy. Served with a few potato chips on side. Grrr. Still hungry.
Wife ordered the $ 27 octopus which was shamefully undersized. Tasty but undersized. Recommend you order two (if someone else is paying)
Ambiance good 1 star
Service good 1 star
Tastes good 1 star
Prices — ripoff
Size — still hungry

Food was very good and presentation was nice. Portions are barely sufficient — and I’m a proponent of right-​sized portions. But these are small. If you are deciding whether to get an appetizer or not… just get it. The appetizer will add one or two more bites (because they are also very small) to help push you towards «full». You may need desert as well though. Did I mention the portions are quite small?!? :-) Pretty expensive for what you get. I liked the atmosphere of the two-​piece bar (each side complete with separate bartenders) and the cocktails looked pretty awesome (I was driving and couldn’t partake, but they looked great!). Waitress/​bartender was friendly and no complaints about service. For the record, wife and I disagree on this place as she felt the value for the money was just not there. She’d probably give it a 2 – 2.5. Maybe we happened to have selected the dishes (mains and appetizers alike) that were both the very smallest they had and also the most expensive as well? So YMMV but even if the value/​$ ratio wasn’t great, I still liked it.

Great little place with good food– not cheap for the quantities served but quite tasty. The mushrooms were the best item and the bread pudding for dessert. Chicken was a bit dry but the meatloaf was moist and tasty– if we got some bread to sop it up, would’ve been even better.
Nice ambience, friendly staff and easy parking downtown– would return again…

Tasty food but unbelievably small portion. $ 27 for 2 regular sized grilled octopus tentacles with 5 fingernail sized fried pork belly plus HALF of a fava bean, ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? I usually have a small appetite but this dinner does not make me even 20% full. If you are expecting to order an entrée to get kinda full, please never order octopus here. Order a burger to get 50% full, but if you order it rare, it’ll come medium. So order it raw I suggest.
Ambient is great, I’ll just get a drink next time.

The Hatch has become one of my go-​to places in Paso. I love the vibe there and Maggie and Eric are super nice. As of late, it has turned into a great cocktail bar with some dynamite custom drinks. I love many of their menu items and they just added some new ones on for the season so I’m stoked to try some new stuff. (I get bored easily…)
Last night they hand stuffed some blue cheese olives for my hubby’s martini that were amazing. (and very accommodating…) I tried out their new Burrata starter served with grilled strawberries — yum! Add to that some chicken fat toast and wow, nothing says love like a little chicken fat! Next we tried their local Grilled Abalone with pearl onions, pickled mushrooms and kelp and it was extremely delightful. I hadn’t yet done their daily rotisserie special of Leg of Lamb so we had that to finish the meal. It was really interesting and tasty with a bit of spice (love it).
Some of my long time fav’s there are their Fire-​roasted Hen of the Woods Mushrooms with soy, aioli and parmesan. You’ll think you are eating steak! Also love their Meatloaf and of course, their signature Rotisserie Chicken with buttermilk dip. Other items are off the menu now, but will revisit them when they reappear next year… or whatever new things they develop.
It’s lively, fun and just what downtown Paso needed. Come by; you may see me at the bar enjoying one of their cool cocktails!

We stopped in here thanks to the great reviews and I have to say it did not disappoint! The rustic chic ambiance was very nice, and even on a Wednesday night it had a lively, local crowd. I got the baby back ribs, which were probably the best I’ve ever had, and my girlfriend had the rotisserie chicken, which was also amazing. I highly recommend this restaurant for anyone, local or tourist!

Not my cup of tea, found the food and service to be just okay. The reviews I read had my expectations very high, and we left feeling rather disappointed. Menu is extremely limited. I hear the cocktails are good, and maybe that is where I went wrong, ordering off the menu and having a beer instead of a cocktail. Oh, well.

Been coming to Paso Robles for several years now for business. I have tried just about every restaurant downtown that there is. They have some great places to eat but I’ve been to them all.
Someone suggested trying the hatch so I did and wow, this place is amazing. The vibe is hip, great music, the drinks are outstanding and the food is to die for.
The rotisserie chicken is some of the best chicken I have ever had. Cooked perfectly, not over seasoned and juicy as it comes. The potatoes are unlike anything I have had. The grits are wonderful, I have never had grits like this in my life. Reminds me of My Cousin Vinny when they talk about how the grits are cooked, I hope they all taste like these.
The staff is friendly and make you feel at home.
The only problem with this place is now its the only place I want to eat at. Damn my problems:)
If you are in Paso you have to try this place.
I see reviews like Bec A below and I call BS on her review. If you look at her reviews she has 3, one is 5 stars and 2 are 1 star yet she’s been a member since 2011. When reading these reviews keep look at the previous reviews that people post to get a better idea of what kind of person they are. 130 plus reviews at 4.5 stars and she rates The Hatch at 1? She’s lame, ignore her and go with me. I’m always right when it comes to food.

This place was great. Took the waiters advice and ordered the southern items and were not disappointed.
Shrimp and grits were PERFECT, and liked the chicken and waffles as well. Their Manhattan was terrific and I ordered two. Also really enjoyed the mushroom appetizer.
Service was great. Bought a round of drinks for the kitchen, and the price point was right on.
Nice job!

After our 2^nd visit, I’m bumping up my rating to 5 stars (which I’d intended to give the first time, really). Again, I’d ordered the Shrimp & Grits ($ 20), but added the Smoked Sausage ($ 4) — so tasty!
The food was, again, delicious; however, the amazingly energetic, friendly, and positive crew really adds to the dining experience; one can’t help feed off of their positive energy — all wonderful ambassadors for their restaurant! The Hatch will definitely be among our regular stops when in Paso Robles!