Sweetwater Tavern

I recently visited Sweetwater Tavern in Merrifield, and overall, I had a great experience. As soon as I walked in, the staff greeted me warmly, making me feel welcomed. Beers & Drinks: Their in‑house brews are decent and well‑crafted. Food Quality and Taste: The food was definitely the star of the show. It was of exceptional quality and tasted amazing. Service & Wait Times The service is friendly and attentive even during the busiest times.

We went to Sweetwater Tavern and had an excellent dinner. The service was outstanding, very attentive and friendly from start to finish. One of us had the jambalaya pasta and the other a burger, and both dishes were delicious and cooked perfectly. The atmosphere was warm and welcoming, with a fun vibe that made the experience even better. Portions were generous, and everything came out fresh and flavorful. This was our first time here, but definitely not the last. We’d absolutely come back again for both the food and the great service.

Our first visit to Sweetwater Tavern - A great time. Bread was warm and delicious, our server Izzy was very nice and and attentive to our table. I also loved that other servers and staff are also paying attention and supporting each other. Our dishes were so good! Great salmon, chicken, the coleslaw like salad that accompanied the fried shrimp was fresh and DELICIOUS. The bananabread and apple pie - Excellent. We enjoyed our time so much! Only challenge for my parents was the music was very loud. Other than that, fantastic experience!

Absolutely amazing! Went on mothers day and as you can imagine had to wait a bit as they were extremely busy. However service was very good and the food was excellent. I highly recommend the drunken ribeye steak. Would definitely go back again!

Cool atmosphere. Service was spectators. Quick, responsive, and friendly (shoutout to Mackenzie! Thank you!) Coming from the West Coast, the couple IPAs I had were OK, but paled in comparison. Food was middle of the road. Good, not great. Prices were as expected from reviews.

Today I went in to have lunch, the staff was pleasant and I was seated quickly. My server was nice and recommended a meal. I ordered the crab cake meal and when my food arrived I was not able to eat because I was swatting away flies. The flies (3+) crawled around as I would swat at them. I asked my server for the check and a box because it was uncomfortable as I was not able to eat and I explained why, he just said ok and sent Connor to get me a box. I asked for a manager when Connor arrived with my box. Connor apologized, went to get the manager and the manager (Adam) came to the table he just said I am sorry, I will get someone on the and walked away. I paid my tab in cash and left. This is not sanitary as flies carry bacteria and they seem to be comfortable as they weren't not phased by my swatting. Hopefully this will get to the right person and it gets taken care of.

The hostess was friendly and seated us immediately. Waitress was excellent, friendly. The food was great, the rolls were fresh and hot. The bathroom was clean. The grilled chicken and Havarti cheese sandwich has too much arugula or it needs to be cut a little more.

Based on the food alone, Sweetwater Tavern is a great choice for a nice meal. What makes this place special, however, are the craft beers that are brewed in house. It's also a great brewery. Our party enjoyed our meals, The Grilled Salmon Salad was amazing. Our party sampled most of the beers on the menu and we couldn't go wrong with any of them. The Great American Pale Ale and the Red Tap Irish Ale were the two we really liked best. My only criticism is that our party of 5 was crammed into a booth for four with a chair out in the aisle way for the 5th seat. We saw a bigger booth that was open, but the manager explained it was for another reservation and we would have to make do in the tight space. That was unfortunate, but we do want to visit again the next time we are in the area and hopefully get uncramped seating for our party.

Casual American restaurant that is part of the "Great American Restaurants" group and has sizable portions of delicious food Plenty of seating spread out between both their outdoor patio and the both indoor table and bar seating Menu is pretty straightforward. I got a chicken sandwich with fries and I was very happy with the quality. It came out very fast as well! Server was very friendly Complimentary bread basket with honey butter and a variety of breads inside - including Ozzie rolls!

Overall experience was OK and this restaurant location gets particularly busy during our Friday night visit, so you should definitely go if you want consistent fair quality and service. They have clean bathrooms and the restaurant had so much seating. Prime rib is a skip since it was cold, but it was cooked correctly. The Hickory BBQ burger was smothered in BBQ, which can be good if you love a lot of sauce, but I thought it overpowered the taste of the meat. Ozzie rolls are always pretty good and warm sweet. Calamari was squishy, but definitely good taste of the octopus!

I have consistently loved Sweetwater Tavern. One of my co-workers recommended their salads to us to-go and we ended up just stopping in to dine in. Our go-to is the salmon salad with warm goat cheese (so good!). The jambalaya pasta is also a winner. I agree with the other reviewers, I just love the consistency of this place. The food is always spot-on! It's a huge space and getting a table for 2 is not usually an issue (even during prime time hours). The whole vibe is reminiscent of Cheesecake Factory meets a New American restaurant. I haven't had a chance to sit at the bar, but I wouldn't say it'd be a great spot for game days (they only have a few small TV screens). Nonetheless, I've never been disappointed after a meal here. Sometimes the service can be slow because of how busy things are, but all the waitstaff have been friendly and welcoming. We will definitely be coming back!

It was my first time trying this location. The service was good and attentive, and the ambiance is like any other great American restaurant. I ordered the jumbo lump crab cake that was not skimping on the crab. It was flavorful and delicious with a nice sauce in the middle. I liked the skinny fries that came with. The sandwich was $27, and the 2 crab cake options were $35. I wish they gave bread for free but a basket of Ozzie rolls was about $8 for the table to split.

The salad was so delicious! I also got fries. The wait was just a few minutes during a week night. The atmosphere is vibrant and busy, a little loud but not unpleasant. My waiter was great and checked back an appropriate amount of times.

Came here for lunch on a Saturday afternoon and wasn't sure what to expect but came away impressed and enjoyed my meal. This place has a western type theme and they have a ton of beers on tap, including many of their own since they're a microbrewery. I didn't try a brew this visit but I'll try one in the future. Start with the Ozzie rolls and you won't be disappointed. Not sure if they're baked or fried or what but they're really tasty and addictive and a must try if you come here. The hickory burger was a large burger with BBQ sauce, cheddar and havarti cheeses. I was hungry and still was barely able to finish my burger. It came with a side of fries but I subbed out for tasty mashed potatoes. The sweet tea was also legit enjoyable, not instant from powder like a too many places in the area. Finally service was very friendly and efficient. I enjoyed my meal and will be back to have another meal and I'll try a beer and of course order the Ozzie rolls again.

Service is fine. Ambiance is perfect. Food is delicious but their drinks are not. Ordered an old fashioned and martini and tasted like juice. Hardly any alchol

My wife and I both like Patsy's and Randy's (both owned by the same folks) and so we decided to try this. We really liked it. I had a bacon cheeseburger with a coke, and my wife had the crispy chicken salad with a Moscow Mule. We both really liked the food, and the service was great. It bills itself as a tavern, so it is not going to be really quiet, but we found it fine. We are planning on going again.

Special place because of a special situation that brought us together. Wifey, Daughter and Son-in-law landed with appetites and much needed fellowship. We obtain seating quickly and our waiter Jason was Jason on the spot! Excellent ambiance with enough space so our conversations could be heard without shouting. As mentioned, Jason provided all answers to questions and the staff made sure our food was delivered appropriately. Whatever you do, make sure Ozzie rolls are on the table prior to ordering. This was truly an excellent dining experience with everything totally delicious. The Great American restaurant group has their ducks in order, and we are planning to visit more of their restaurants (so far Sweetwater Taver and The Carlyle located in Shirlington, VA).

This is such a reliable neighborhood restaurant that whenever I struggle to decide where to eat, I come here. Food and service have been consistently good throughout the years. My favorite things to get from the menu are the $1 ozzie rolls, the chicken tendies, and the prime rib. I also love love their salad. The dressing paired with the sweet dates and tangy goat cheese makes the salad so flavorful. They also have a good rotation of draft beer. One star deduction is due to the occasional over saltiness of my food.

Got a prime rib and was kinda a let down unfortunately the ststeak had a cool center. I would have complained but i didn't feel like conflicts so i just ate it... they were pretty slammed when i was there so....

Part of the Great American Restaurants chain. The food was delicious and the service was very catering! We made a reservation for our large party and requested for outside seating to enjoy the nice weather. The ambiance was perfect for a group social setting. The food arrived promptly and freshly prepared. Parking was within a shared lot with the surrounding businesses. Will definitely be back. Enjoy!

Sweet Water is the perfect goto for a casual or fancy dinner date. [[Food: 4.5 of 5]] apps// -Firecracker Shrimp: super good, crispy and hot -Ozzie Rolls: super fluffy, nice and hot out of the oven, butter is sweet and delicious. entrees// -Berkshire Porkchop: my friend got medium cooked porkchop- nicely cooked, had a nice chew, and the brocollini was soo good -Roasted Young Chicken: tasty juicy and moist chicken, mashed potatoes were nice and smooth, accompanied greatly with corn salsa desserts// -Key Lime Pie: not my cup of tea, looked like cheesecake instead of keylime -Apple Pie: has walnuts - super hot out of the oven with a serving of ice cream ! [[Drinks: 5 of 5]] Mango Martini: super sweet and not too strong, the drink comes unpoured to you and then the servers shake shake shake it up by your side and pour into cup right in front of your eyes! Out of all of the "Great American Restaurants" - I personally will always choose Sweetwater!

We called on the way and made reservations for ahead of time. They were accepted and we received a text confirmation of the reservation. Stepping inside the door we noticed it was packed with waiting guests and we were so glad that we had called ahead. We were promptly seated. Service was great and the salads were delivered fast, hot and delicious. My ice tea fresh and Barry's margarita was made to his liking. Ambiance was as expected nice atmosphere, not too loud, just a nice place to be on a Sunday evening. We both said that maybe Sweetwater will replace Ozzie's which used to be to be our Sunday restaurant, but the ambiance has changed there. We needed some place new.

This place came highly recommended by a few coworkers of mine. This place did not disappoint. Great food!! Great service!!

We've moved here in less than a month and we've been to this restaurant 4 times already. I love all the draft beer selections!!! The service has been top notch!! This last visit, however, the mahi mahi I got was a bit over cooked. When fish is over cooked, the meat becomes a bit hard and less fresh and enjoyable to eat. Other than that, we love this restaurant and would highly recommend it!!

I was in town on a business trip and had dinner here on 10JUL2024. I sat at the bar and the bartenders Erica and Martha treated me well. I had the Short Smoked Salmon Filet with mashed potatoes, broccolini, and a Field Greens salad. All my food was awesome and, especially the salmon! My food and service were so good that I came back on July 11 to have a good meal before heading to DCA airport. Thanks for two enjoyable dinners!

This place was really good! The food was good! You must try the rolls! I mean wow they're out of this world. The Tex mex egg rolls were super yummy as well as the calamari! For my main meal I had the Warm Goat Cheese and spiced pecan salad with a crab cake it was delicious! I also paired my meal with their sangria which was delicious. It was unfortunate because they served us a dirty plate which was really gross. I didn't take a point since the service was really great and so was the food. Also, the ambiance is super cute and and fun! They also have an outdoor area which is awesome. I would come back for sure

A simple but comfortable restaurant. Plenty of seating. It's great for a family dinner or after work get together. Service was great. Everyone was very attentive. Any one of the servers passing by grabbed our empty plates or glasses or asked if they could refill our drinks. Food came out in a timely manner and hot. Everything was cooked to our liking. I loved the homemade apple pie. Made fresh daily.

We made same day reservations & the place was poppin! Food options are good. We tried the assorted bread but ended up just wanting the ozzie bread. It is warm and very delicious with that magical butter to the point where my husband was fighting for the bread basket not to get taken away from our server Victoria. It was hilarious! Server was also very lovely & nice. Food was super delightful even though it's a full house, I tasted the worth of it! Ended up w the warm white chocolate bread pudding yummmm! We will definitely come back!

We are regulars at their sister restaurant Silverado but, we decided to drive a little further for a birthday celebration last night. It was my first time eating here. The food was great. All dietary restrictions were met. They even have a separate gluten free menu. I'd like to talk about how wonderful the service was. The waitstaff checked back several times and they were just the "right amount" of attentive. They recognized that we were celebrating a birthday and brought the desert that we ordered with "Happy Birthday" written in chocolate and a candle. Two managers made their way to the table to extend birthday wishes to our friend. The staff was well trained, professional and attentive. Thank you for an exceptional evening!

I ordered the firecracker shrimp appetizer and the pulled pork sandwich. The shrimp was flavorful and I loved the ginger sauce it came with. The pulled pork sandwich was stacked so high with meat and was very filling. The food came out quick and the service was excellent.

I came with a group of 8 people and they accommodated us really well! They were able to find a booth where we fit all in! The service was also really fast given that we came with a group of 8 people! The ambiance of this place is a casual restaurant, you do not have to dress up for it necessarily! They start you off the meal with complimentary warm bread with butter which was really good (but also dangerous for calorie/health purposes if you come in hungry lol!) I got the chop house salad with chicken which was very good, however, a bit pricey!

Honestly the service and food wasn't good at all, waited about 15-20 mins for our drinks that we ordered which was water and cokes....took a long time to get our appetizers as well which was spinach dip and tortilla chips if not mistaken which that was pretty decent no complaints there. But then we waited almost 45 minutes for our main courses mind you it wasn't even busy the day we went and considering how many workers were present, food comes around and there was just no flavor the bacon cheese burger had no flavor, and the fries were cut julienne style which you couldn't even taste the flavor just tasted like something fried and not at all as a potato my girlfriend had the ribs those were alright same with no flavor but it was drenched in bbq sauce so that somewhat helped and my mother and grandma had had the salmon and just dry and no flavor again way to over cooked there weren't even salt or pepper shakers at the table I had to get up and get them from an empty table...just a bad experience considering my mom works at general dynamics as a head chef and myself as a chef at private event so I'm pretty sure we know flavors and aromatics but there just wasn't any that day very disappointing considering how nice and lovely the place looked

Second time here. Big space. OK service this time. Ribs were ok. Not fall off the bone. Decor is fun. Good local spot, but I wouldn't come across town for it.

If I could, I would probably give Sweetwater a 3.5/5 stars, but I rounded up because the service was excellent. We were seated very quickly, and food was served promptly. Overall, the food was pretty solid, but some of it was just average. We ordered 2 baskets of the Ozzie rolls because they were so good (I forgot to take a picture of the bread, but our empty bread basket should be testament enough to how much we liked them...). They were definitely the highlight of our meal. We then ordered the calamari as an appetizer. It tasted like it was freshly fried, but it was almost too salty, and it needed a lot more sauce. Also, the sauce itself was just average. For entrees, I got the fish tacos, and the people I came with got the Jambalaya pasta. They seemed to enjoy the pasta. But the fish tacos were just average, in my opinion. The fish wasn't crispy enough, probably because of the slaw. The slaw was quite tasty-- it was super fresh and vibrant, and the side of fries was quite nice (And I liked how they let me substitute the sweet potato fries for regular fries). While the fish tacos tasted good, I have had plenty of other fish tacos that are much better.

The food here is always pretty good. This was my first time trying the fish tacos and they did not disappoint!! My friend ordered the salmon filet salad and asked for it to be cooked medium but parts of it were raw. She ate around it though, and i'm sure our waiter would have been more than happy to take it back to the kitchen but my friend was pretty full by the end anyway. And everyone else in our party was super satisfied with their food. We came on a busy night and was able to get our food within 20 minutes.

First time at Sweetwater and it was well worth it! Started off with the Tex Mex Eggrolls as an appetizer which was a great choice. For entrees, I had the crab cakes while my friend had the salmon sampler. Dessert was a delicious bread pudding! Food was delicious and service was excellent. My 4 stars is because I had a different thought of what my "jumbo" crab cakes would have been but between how good they tasted and the delicious cole slaw that came with it, it made up for the "not jumbo" haha. Great drinks too! All their beers are brewed on their premises and unique brews. A great place for a casual night out and to have a drink or two.

I've been to the other Sweetwater, but this is the first time I went to the Falls Church location. The server was phenomenal. Her name was Brianna and she was so bright and so cheerful and brought out food out quickly. She also had really good conversation. The look of the restaurant is also quite nice. I am really into the dark decor with pops of color. The ambience was pleasant. We ordered the spinach artichoke dip and the calamari was amazing so so yummy. Also can't go wrong with some Ozzie rolls. Definitely coming back to this place.

Made the mistake of sitting in the bar area. It is the first bar I have been to in ages where the bartender did not come out for table service. We waited at the bar for drinks and to order and to pay.... Really just not a very customer centric policy. We both had margaritas. Most shockingly, they did not use margarita salt on the rim, they used standard table salt. Yuck! My dinner companion had the crab cakes and I had the roast chicken salad. It was delicious with corn kernels, pear, goat cheese, baby greens and a champagne vinaigrette. The food was good for the type of establishment it was and portions were large. The restaurant was crowded and loud and since the weather was nice there was a full hour wait for the patio. I don't think I will return. Too many other places to try!

This is an old standby for me. Every time I'm back in VA, I head to Sweetwater for dinner. The Ozzie rolls are not to be missed. The salmon salad is my absolute favorite. In fact, I think they have the best salmon I've ever had - they know how to do "rare" correctly but it's still buttery and delicious. Pretty much everything on the menu is amazing. Pro tip: add goat cheese to the salmon salad. Sweetwater gets very busy so call ahead on Friday and Saturday nights. Also, it gets pretty loud as the acoustics are not very good.

Awesome food! The service was great, we were sat fast and it was easy for us to choose from the menus. Everything we had was very good. And we left full Water was fantastic

6/5/23 Today we were given the surprise  of celebrating my wife's birthday  several days early. We were assigned to the left side of the eating area and were introduced to a new member restaurant Sarah.   I suspect Sarah doesn't have a H in here name, but I guess I will find out at a later date.  I was thinking about Chicken Quesadillas and my wife was thinking about Chicken Fajitas, but sadly, Sarah had to let us down gentle...water under the bridge.   It is a pitty the Chicken Fajitas went bye bye bye, because Sarah liked the Chicken Fajitas too.  The Food: By not being able to order the Fajitas, my wife ordered The Chicken with Brussel sprouts.  My Dad and Step-mom ordered the Jambalaya to share. I ordered The Bacon Cheese Burger without the buns and blue cheese sauce instead of The Wicked Sauce.  Everyone's food arrived in timely manner.  However, my order came with Wicked Sauce and no cheese. I couldn't eat the burger with The Wicked Sauce on it.   Sarah did not fail to notice thia problem. Sarah quickly fixed the problem.   Things do not always go as planned and some time passed before my food arrived.  Sarah apologized repeatedly for the error. I have been on both sides of the fence and so I understand how she could be feeling at the time.  Nevertheless; Sarah's smile shines bright; as well, as set the mood for the service she provided. On a personal note, I loved the up/down hair style Sarah was wearing.  It is one of my favorite styles so it is one reason why Sarah stood out of the crowd for me.  This quote also popped into my head       "I am a wolf and will not be afraid." Whoever said it, Sarah certainly did great work for our table. Dessert time came for my family members while I was still eating my dinner.  The burger I ate was outstanding, superb...EXCELLENT:). The Keylime Pie was delicious. My step-mom finished it off before my dad got his third bite. Because of this, my dad ordered Bread pudding. My wife saw the Bread pudding and ordered one for herself.  Since Bread Pudding would make me sick, I ordered The  Pecan Apple Crisp with carmel.    The Pecan Apple Crisp was delicious, but it was missing the carmel. Still, maybe it was for the better. The carmel would have added more sugar to the fire of diabetes.  Just before we left, we got a chance to talk to Sarah.  We learned she was fairly new to Sweet Water Tavern.   She did everything the way a seasoned professionals would.  I think Sarah will go far at this job. I highly recommend requesting her as your waiter. We will most certainly be back.

Yevi is an amazing, knowledgeable, attentive, friendly, and yet very intelligent. My wife and I definitely recommend her. Come see Yevi. Tavern itself is very clean and plenty of parking. Thx Sweetwater Tavern staff.

I'm amazed I've never seen or heard of this restaurant before, so of course we had to try it. On a Tuesday night it was a bit busy, but we were able to be seated immediately. Nice American restaurant menu and the white sangria was almost a favorite of mine. We opted for all the bread varieties as an appetizer but I wish our waitress would've mentioned specifically the Ozzie rolls speciality bread because that was the real show! It was hot and paired perfectly with the butter while the other bread wasn't even warm. I ordered a Caesar salad with a baked potato and the food was pretty good. I would visit again for the food, but the customer service was lacking on top of the fact we had about 2-3 servicing our table. No one ever stopped by to check in, and we always had to flag someone down to get something to the point we started to feel bad for asking for basic stuff like refills. Also did a poor job of clearing our table; with it being a table for two, the table was already small enough. I even held the bread refill so she could grab the previous one and she just walked away. Dirty plates just hanging with us til the end until the check came then every was cleared. 3.5 rounded down for now. I hope I can visit with better service provided.

The service here is always excellent. This is the second time we went here and their service never fails. Our sever Yevi was our server and she is great! Food here is always good i love their jambalaya seafood and most specially the tex mex eggrolls oh my lanta!! Really mouthwatering i feel like i can eat like 10 of em lolll! Also got the fish tacos it was good too. Place is nice just make sure u get a reservation it gets pack sometimes.

I've been here a few times but came tonight to celebrate my mother's birthday, and we enjoyed our entire experience. Online reservations were easy to make, and the time was honored. All of our food was delicious! We shared everything (not pictured: burger with sweet potato fries). The mango martinis were so good, and the hospitality was top tier. The atmosphere is lively and a little loud but it didn't bother us at all. We were too busy enjoying our meals. If you haven't been, go!

Sweetwater Tavern is an ok experience for a weekday evening around 7 pm. It's an open floor design so it's noisy. The table seating is booths which are comfortable. There's limited seating for groups more than 4 people. The bar has ample seating with a few two top tables on the side in the bar area. Service is good. Wait staff was attentive and were helpful. I had a mixed drink which was flavorful and had a glass of red wine. I had their ribeye which was just ok. Good size cut, but not great texture and drowned in sauce took away from the thickness and cooked to order that was good. Too much connective and white tissue for me. The potato was large and undercooked. The condiments for it was very sparse. I was given more when I asked, but it came out underwhelming. The wine I had I left half the glass. Not a good selection even though they had something for everyone. My impression is Sweetwater is about quantity. Large room, large cuts, large sizes with nominal quality. I wouldn't retry the ribeye again if I ever go back. I'd order something more basic like a burger and I probably only go back if it was a work group function.

Service was pretty slow, but the food and drinks were good. They have a spacious outdoor area, and I was surprised by how big the restaurant and bar were. We got the spinach dip, southwest salad, and the pasta.

Always a great option for a quick family dinner. Their beer options are great! The little Ozzie rolls are a must! I've never had a bad meal here! Their desserts are absolutely incredible! Service is always on top and it's a great casual local restaurant.

The food was very good and my cocktail. Server was attentive and friendly. The ambiance was pretty and comfortable but the noise level was very loud making conversation very difficult.

Food is always good at Sweetwater Tavern. Like every other business I believe they are short staffed and the staff they have is not very attentive. The one is Fallschurch gets pretty loud since the bar is in the middle of the restaurant.

I love Sweetwater. Go there often but probably not anymore. Just too pricey. Had dinner there last night. Ordered beer, calamari as an appetizer, salmon salad and an iced tea. Everything great except for price. Calamari $16.00, salmon salad $29.00, iced tea $4.00. Come on guys, you're pricing yourself out of the market. I may well never return simply because of price.

If you get ANYTHING, get the Ozzie rolls. The perfect starter that you'll definitely fill up on but is so worth it! The Monterey salad is amazing. Their lightly fried chicken is great in it as well as the spiced pecans!

Pricey, but seriously good food. My group all had burgers, and they were great. Even better though were those fries: shoestring fries, perfectly crisp. They handled our party's dietary restrictions easily. The ambience is like any casual dining place, with a bar in the middle showing sports on TVs. For real, though, it is pricey.

I was in the area at a doctors appointment and was starving, so I decided to come to one of my favorite restaurants! I am SO glad I did!!! I had the ABSOLUTE PLEASURE of having Miss Emily to serve our table!!! Emily greeted me immediately after sitting down, with a big welcoming smile!! She eagerly told us about the specials of the day and took our drink orders. We ordered spinach dip (yummy!!! - not pictured because it was completely devoured within seconds!) and ozzie rolls for the table - YUM! We also ordered the chicken with harverti cheese sandwich and a burger. Both items were fresh and YUMMY!! Seriously, what made this review a full 5 stars was our awesome service from Emily! She was on it!! Super attentive and just so kind and pleasant with every interaction!!!! What a breath of fresh air!!! Emily REALLY made our dining experience PHENOMENAL! Awesome service and food !!

Always the same consistant menu. Good service. Would be good to see some more variation in menu choices instead of just the daily seafood choices.

This is the only place my elderly parents will eat at, especially during the pandemic. We have been going here since the 90s and have many fond memories - they used to have a shop with merch with cheesy cowboy-related sayings and I made my dad buy me a glass that said "Life ain't fair and neither is cards" when I was around 9 years old. Since then, Sweetwater has scaled back a bit, and they no longer have a merch store or a robust on-site brewery, but the food and drinks are always great, as are all the restaurants in this group (Great American Restaurants) - I've tried nearly all of then. Ozzies is my current favorite, but Sweetwater will always have my heart. My recs: - Always get the bread basket, Ozzie rolls are legit unreal. It costs a dollar now but I believe they give unlimited refills with that. They have these are all, or nearly all Great American locations. -The beer sampler is a great deal. My dad gets it every meal and has for over 20 years. Has he sampled all of the beers by now? Maybe. -I always get the Wood Grilled Chicken Breast, which is served on a bed of pasta with brown butter sauce. Fresh and not overly filling while still being super satisfying. -Desert is a must here. The key lime pie and flourless chocolate cake are highlights. My complaints: -Bring back the merch store! -Bring back the fajitas! They disappeared after Covid, but I don't think the virus spreads through sizzling. I prefer this location over Chantilly and have never been to the Sterling location. Service is usually on point. Be prepared to spend more than a diner or casual sit-down but less than fine dining. 4.5/5 stars

This was my first time experiencing this restaurant/tavern and being from Los Angeles, CA I can say it was a blast here. The bar tenders and servers were very courteous cordial and welcoming. I arrived today and will be coming back before I leave on May 25, 2024. I had the Aces IPA beer and it was amazing! The ambience was amazing and it was just a welcoming place to be to have a great meal. I met the Manager Adam before I Left and informed him of our experiences, which included my Dad as well, and he was delighted and happy to hear of our great experience here. I would recommend everyone to try out this restaurant.