Old Angler’s Inn

Went here for Father’s Day brunch with my husband and daughter. Prix Fixe menu for child was $ 40 and adults were $ 68. The kids menu was very basic so we ordered berries with crème fraîche, chicken tenders & fries and chocolate ice cream– a meal that was so basic and about $ 8 anywhere else. Also, they didn’t put the crème fraîche on the berries and brought whipped cream when we pointed out the omission. Our food was just okay, but I expect more for that price and this area, so not going back.
Staff was nice, but a bit slow. We also sat next to the prep table with napkins and water pitchers and the wait staff seemed to like to hang there and talk, so that was a bit awkward. Clients were either blue hairs or hikers coming off the nearby trail.
I read the reviews and wish I would have listened since there are several bad ones because it would have saved me $ 250. A recommendation from a co-​worker swayed me to try it. Now you can’t say you weren’t warned!

We were pleasantly surprised on how nice the Inn is. Alfredo and his team did a great job. The food is delicious and the setting is beautiful.
Well recommended.

OAI is going into another of its down phases. Wine prices have been doubled to ridiculous levels. The cheapest and very mediocre Chardonnays is $ 64. Its Foie Gras Au Torchon is what it says it is (pâté’) but not speaking French I was expecting Foie Gras. Food is OK but over price. Service is good

Staff is much kinder to hikers, etc. They opened a beer garden in the back (the menu is not great but the ambiance rocks). Food prices went up a bit.

I came here after my graduate school graduation and was disappointed in the food. I ordered the endive, orange and roquefort salad which tasted bland. The portion was also severely lacking. I also ordered the simply grilled atlantic salmon which was dry and needing more flavor. My family members also did not think highly of their dishes. On the other hand, the outdoors sitting area is nice on a spring-​like day or night and the service is solid.

Very sorry to write a bad review but our service on Mother’s Day brunch was awful. They were completely overbooked. We took our three young kids at 11:00 hoping to get back home by 1:00 for nap time and we didn’t get home until 1:45 after scarfing our food down in under 5 minutes and asking for the check skipping dessert. My son was losing his mind because he was so tired. A 2.5 hr lunch is a little too long, I probably wouldn’t have been complaining if we didn’t bring the kids with us but they should know better, it’s Mother’s Day. The food was ok but it just took forever for the second course to get out, I can’t even imagine how long it would have taken for the third course to come. Not to mention we spend $ 75 per meal and the only thing they took off was our inexpensive bottle of wine.
It’s sad bc I really do love this restaurant.

The Mother’s Day brunch was tasty but the service was terrible. The menu was mostly meat with no substitutions. You could eliminate sausage, etc but no replacements. Fine. But the wait between courses was considerable. The waiter tripped bringing my son his orange juice and spilled it all over him, the table, and his parfait — then asked if he wanted another! While we waited for food they came by 3 times to give us bread so unfortunately my starving children ate the bread and not their food (yes, I could have told them no and did once but it was a long time to get food).
At least OAI recognized it and gave us a discount and a couple free mimosas without us even having to ask (was pretty obvious). The weather was beautiful.

Fancy, sophisticated and expensive, the menu is really diverse and classy. It is more about location though. This restaurant is located in such a prime area of Potomac where there are no other businessses for miles and there is a lot of biking and hiking traffic due to the diverging of many trails at this particular segment of MacArthur Blvd. It is Potomac so it has to be on par with The high and mighty of Washington D.C. and their choice of food and wine and other beverages.
My guess is that most people who end up there have spent a few hours sweating and they are in desperate need of a drink and The Angler’s Inn has the most perfect outdoor terrace with a lot of outdoor seating. It is also still very woodsy on that terrace so bring your mosquito repellent.

Here’s the thing– the place isn’t horrendous, but they’ve fallen off VASTLY over the past decade. It just feels dated inside of the restaurant and the menu only exacerbates that senility. No offense, but the menu wreaks of a lunch break at the local nursery home. The prices are a little too high for what the food is, but it is convenient for most of Potomac so it works as a last resort. The salads are oddly much better at lunch than they are at dinner so I wonder if the salads are dressed at the beginning of the day and then left until they are ordered? Not sure but it all comes together in a package of mediocrity.

Terrible service, especially for an expensive restaurant. Entrees were in the high 20s to 40s. Had to ask for bread. Butter as hard as a rock. First they brought out the appetizers — failed to notice everyone at the table had only knives, no forks. Waited for forks. Roasted pear salad would have been good, but was drenched in sweet salad dressing. Salmon tartare came without the greens. I think it was supposed to have dill and capers, too, but didn’t. When asked about the missing part of the dish, the server said: «I don’t know. It’s been coming out of the kitchen all night like this.» To his credit, he checked the menu and brought out the greens — no capers or dill. How many people got incomplete meals? Doesn’t anybody check to see the food is properly plated? The kitchen and the staff are not professional.
It was a cool night and towards the end of the meal, a waiter rolled a nearby heater away to the other side of the patio. Brrr.
And what is with the forced valet parking?
It’s a charming location, but it trades on its ancient, venerable reputation. Skip it and go to 1789 for the same money. You can’t eat outside but the food and service are stellar.

The worst place ever. We are so disappointed. One bad dish is something, but all of them, man! You gotta shut your door because you don’t know what food means. I’m actually mad. So overpriced for a food you can’t eat. For the first time in my life I’m leaving all the mussels on the plate. Can’t eat them. My husband’s pork belly was just as bad and my daughter’s burger was just ok.

Absolutely awful service. The parking lot has forced valet parking – after you’ve parked your car, a «valet» appears out of nowhere to demand your keys (there’s no sign indicating this anywhere) and will later arbitrarily move your car (he moved mine a whopping 10 feet for the lolz, I guess). The waiters are absolutely indifferent and make no effort. Don’t waste your time here, drive back into DC or Bethesda after hiking Great Falls or whatever else you were doing out here.

Stuffy joint with terrible service. Staff is pro at making guests feel unwelcome and uncomfortable. Has awkward forced valet service, even though the parking lot is literally RIGHT in front of the restaurant. If you’ve just hiked Great Falls, I’d recommend heading elsewhere.

Gonna give a 4 instead of 3 because the staff was really nice and I like the setting outside. Food is really mediocre though.

We had reservations for an early Valentine’s dinner (the evening before) and it was packed, so we were fortunate to have reservations! The host was very friendly and helpful in advising us we would have a 15 minute wait. We waited at the bar, which was rather crowded, as there we others there and the place was packed.
It was nice that they had valet parking too, as it was cold this evening and it was nice to not have to walk too far. Also, outside, they had a HUGE fire pit going with a large fire in it, to help keep you warm while you waited for the valet to bring your car back. We also prefer old settings like this one, with old «farmhouse» style buildings and grounds and this place is very much just that. Lot’s of character as well.
Upon being seated, we went upstairs, which is interesting as they have a (typically narrow) spiral staircase to get upstairs; Adds more «character» to the visit!
The floor in the dining room we were in was rather bouncy, to the point of being annoying, as each time someone walked by, you felt it in a big way.
The menu isn’t very unique nor varied, but had some nice items on it. The French Onion Soup was pretty good. Not the best I’ve ever had, but in the top 10. We also liked that they delivered fresh, warm bread one slice at a time, which kept you having warm bread.
The wine list also wasn’t too extravagant but sure was pricey, with mark-​up being triple or more. We’re used to double mark-​up (if it’s in a store for $ 20, they sell for $ 40), but they were selling $ 20 wines for $ 45 — $ 60, which is excessive. So, when this is the case, we take more time to scour the winelist to find the highest point wine for the lowest price to allow us to try something new, which we did and it was decent, for $ 45.
The entrees we ordered tasted nice. They weren’t plated very special, but the flavor was spot on. We were full and had no room for dessert, so we skipped the final course, but they appeared to have the typical dessert menu.
Overall, the service was mediocre… he was friendly, but was hardly attentive. (we let that reflect in his tip) The other staff seemed more attentive and quick to ask if we needed something (bread, water, etc).
Overall, we actually did enjoy the visit and would visit again and would hope for better service, a slightly more improved & unique menu would help too. We would never discourage anyone from trying this restaurant out, it’s worth the trip, but it’s hardly worth the 4 dollar sign price.

Overpriced, small portions ($ 5 appetizer… three pieces of asparagus wrapped in shoe leather like meat), entrée pasta with Chef Boy A Dee type sauce. Really disappointing…
Had to chase after waitress even though hardly anyone in the restaurant… very poor service. Even with Groupon I would definitely not recommend this place.

I’m told that the Old Anglers Inn (also spelled Old Angler’s Inn) has been an institution in the Bethesda-​Potomac area forever — since 1860, the restaurant claims. It does have character and old-​school waiters, both of which I appreciate.
We were here on a sunny, unseasonably warm day in late November and enjoyed eating lunch outside, just across from the Potomac River.
The restaurant certainly seems popular. We had to hunt for a parking spot, and advance reservations are recommended.
The food? Well, it’s okay. Certainly not gourmet, but fine. My cheeseburger ($ 16 with fries) I’d rate a solid B. Others in our party seemed to enjoy their meals.
One odd thing: Being from a town (Asheville, NC) where nearly every restaurant and bar has 20 or 30 local artisan craft beers on tap, it was strange eating at a restaurant that serves only bottled beers. I had to settle for a bottled Guinness.

Service was not the best. I felt like when I ordered a flying dog they had to drive to Frederick to buy a bottle for me. The waiter walked away after I placed my order and then about 5 minutes later came back to say «Can I please see your ID before we bring the beer to you?», I showed my ID and then 5 minutes later is when my beer came out. it came out maybe 3 – 5 minutes prior to our food. The food was very good I really enjoyed my salad and my friends all loved what they were having. We had a minor mishap with the checks at the end but it wasn’t that big of a deal it was just a party of 6 wanting to split checks.
I would go back after hiking the billy goat trail again

My first visit to Old Angler’s Inn was 25 years ago… let’s just say (pretend) I was very, very young at the time (ahem). It was an excellent meal then and has always been very good in subsequent visits. So I was very surprised when I saw all of the negative reviews. I thought, wow… the place must have really gone downhill. But reading further… it seems to me that many of the negative reviews had to do with the outdoor beer garden from people who stop by after a hike.
Ok Unilocalers… let’s set the record straight. Treat it like two separate things.
(1) I did stop by the beer garden two years ago after a long morning hike. The location is super convenient, but the service is slow, the menu is limited and the options are a bit pricey for what hikers want — especially when you’re covered in dirt and just coming off a free hike for hours. I get it. I get why people have downgraded it. Honestly, OAI should pay more attention to this potential revenue source… or cut it out.
(2) The sit down restaurant is still very, very good. Yes, it’s pricey. Did you folks not expect this from a Potomac address? We visited on a Monday night… and the place was nearly empty. The staff was extremely pleasant and attentive — opening up a whole section just for us because we requested a specific table. The food was excellent — lamb and duck cooked and seasoned perfectly. And it was half price wine bottle night!
Bottom line: All of the negative reviews on here had me questioning whether we should try OAI again. Don’t be scared off — the restaurant is still what it always has been — very good food, solid service, with matching prices in a great setting.

Definitely not the place to get the best bang for your buck. My boyfriend and I decided to stop by after our hike on the Billy Goat Trail in Great Falls National Park nearby. There were two kinds of people there — those who had been in the park like us and were wearing workout clothes and those who had dressed up brunch-​style. Since it was a nice day out, we were able to sit outside. It’s a cute place, especially with a little fountain in the midst of their patio. If you were just passing by, you’d think it was a charming little lunch/​dinner spot. It’s been around since 1860.
However, food was very average for the prices. They don’t have an extensive selection of appetizers and entrees to begin with, so we were quite limited to what we wanted to order. I chose the soup du jour (which was chilled asparagus soup) and the house smoked salmon. My boyfriend also chose the soup du jour and the chicken caesar salad. The chilled asparagus soup was fine. I thought my salmon wasn’t too bad. It also had some baby greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions, and cilantro as a small side salad. They gave me more salmon than I anticipated, which was a nice discovery. My boyfriend’s chicken caesar salad, however, was not good. It was clearly obvious that they had cooked it sometime before and then refrigerated it and cooked it again, leaving the chicken to be extremely, extremely dry. For $ 16, that is not what you want.
Soup du jour: $ 8
House smoked salmon: $ 14
Chicken caesar salad: $ 16
Our food also took forever to come out and we only ordered soup, an appetizer of smoked salmon, and salad. At the rate they were going, especially in regards to the salad, I thought they were pulling the veggies from a back garden they had. Our server was nice and tried to keep checking up on our food, but the timing was really, really slow for such simple, casual food. I’m glad we were just in the area coming to eat here post-​hike. If I had to drive all the way out here for this quality of food for these prices, I’d be infuriated.