Free House

Too many American restaurants rely on familiar menus to succeed without really trying. This place actually puts in the work. The food may be traditional American fare, but it's executed with excellence.

The food was very yummy. I had a Blue & Gold burger which was tasty and filling. She had a Cobb salad, which she enjoyed. The service was friendly, competent and prompt enough. We were impressed to hear the music from the band that we were about to go see at the Hearst Greek Theatre playing in the background! Kudos!

Food and drinks were good, the old fashioned was nice, nothing extra special. The Brussels sprouts were the best I have tasted. The ambulance is more of a rustic old style. Dimly lit. But if that's what you like then you'll like it. Very close to Berkeley University, so lot of young crowd around. Difficult to get parking, so plan ahead.

First time trying this place. Great burger. Ordered it Medium, got it Medium. The Blue and Gold has a great balance of Blue Cheese and Balsamic Onions which does not overpower the flavorful beef. Also.... Just one waitress servicing easily 15 tables and she was doing it like a champ! Will definitely try this place again... And just a 5 minute walk from my office.

Kyle Pointer

Too many American restaurants rely on familiar menus to succeed without really trying. This place actually puts in the work. The food may be traditional American fare, but it's executed with excellence.

Randy Gordon

The food was very yummy. I had a Blue & Gold burger which was tasty and filling. She had a Cobb salad, which she enjoyed. The service was friendly, competent and prompt enough. We were impressed to hear the music from the band that we were about to go see at the Hearst Greek Theatre playing in the background! Kudos!

Sarosh Patel

Food and drinks were good, the old fashioned was nice, nothing extra special. The Brussels sprouts were the best I have tasted. The ambulance is more of a rustic old style. Dimly lit. But if that's what you like then you'll like it. Very close to Berkeley University, so lot of young crowd around. Difficult to get parking, so plan ahead.

Megan McElroy

10/10 would recommend. Sat on the courtyard patio, lots of umbrellas and lively vibe. Chicken sandwich, kale salad, and sweet potato fries were all tasty. Good beer selection and our waiter was so so pleasant.

David Leimsieder

First time trying this place. Great burger. Ordered it Medium, got it Medium. The Blue and Gold has a great balance of Blue Cheese and Balsamic Onions which does not overpower the flavorful beef. Also.... Just one waitress servicing easily 15 tables and she was doing it like a champ! Will definitely try this place again... And just a 5 minute walk from my office.

Mark Mueller

Can I say this about the fried chicken sandwich? ***WOW*** It may be the best one I've had this decade. The fries were to die for. Plus did I mention the extensive beer menu and full bar? And it's right across the street from campus?

Tres Williams

Nice bar, especially for law students since it is across the street. Like you could maybe squeeze in a bev between classes. Enjoyed the vibe inside as well as the large outdoor area. Good local and craft brew and the food looked good (we were just drinking). It is exactly what you would think a law student hang spot should be.

kullen Manley

Great staff and wait staff. Good range of beers, not cheap but not unreasonable. Cool atmosphere with a wooden high roof University style inside and two good outdoor areas to choose from. Interesting tasty small eats on the menu such as grilled chilli brussel sprouts

As others have mentioned, it’s still a good spot, but there’s definitely room for improvement. We ordered two cheeseburgers and Brussels sprouts. The food arrived quickly, and the server was really friendly and attentive. The food was "good" but not exceptional. We didn’t mind since we were looking for a quick bite and really enjoyed the service and ambiance, but we probably wouldn’t return specifically for the food.

Great range of beers and cocktails, good food, the staff are really friendly and helpful, there's plenty of outdoor seating in the quad behind the main bar. But it is LOUD.

This place was solid. It's just really far out there to get to for me so I had never visited before. The wings were good but a little overpriced. The alcohol selection was good and the food had a lot of variety. The bar set up seemed awkward and a nuisance for the 1 bartender that had to go from one spot to the other to get different kinds of beer from the tap.

Hanna Kang

As others have mentioned, it’s still a good spot, but there’s definitely room for improvement. We ordered two cheeseburgers and Brussels sprouts. The food arrived quickly, and the server was really friendly and attentive. The food was "good" but not exceptional. We didn’t mind since we were looking for a quick bite and really enjoyed the service and ambiance, but we probably wouldn’t return specifically for the food.

Sean Corfield

Great range of beers and cocktails, good food, the staff are really friendly and helpful, there's plenty of outdoor seating in the quad behind the main bar. But it is LOUD.

Courtney Dawn

This place was solid. It's just really far out there to get to for me so I had never visited before. The wings were good but a little overpriced. The alcohol selection was good and the food had a lot of variety. The bar set up seemed awkward and a nuisance for the 1 bartender that had to go from one spot to the other to get different kinds of beer from the tap.

It’s a very happening place right in front of Berkeley Law School. Went for a group gathering. Very specious. The ambience is so great. Loved it! Although I felt the quantity of appetizers was comparatively less. I had piña colada mocktail- pretty decent. And pop tates- which was good.

A really nice experience, not too busy. Our waitress rocked. We had non-alcoholic beer. We were pleased they had 3 options #FreemontBrewery- I did the wheat which was Blue Moon like and my husband did the IPA. Great food, great beer options and a kick ass waitress.

SHRUTI GANDHI

It’s a very happening place right in front of Berkeley Law School. Went for a group gathering. Very specious. The ambience is so great. Loved it! Although I felt the quantity of appetizers was comparatively less. I had piña colada mocktail- pretty decent. And pop tates- which was good.

Deborah Simonova

A really nice experience, not too busy. Our waitress rocked. We had non-alcoholic beer. We were pleased they had 3 options #FreemontBrewery- I did the wheat which was Blue Moon like and my husband did the IPA. Great food, great beer options and a kick ass waitress.

I visited last Friday for dinner, and I had a good experience, although there are things I would suggest. The service was excellent, and almost immediately after I sat myself down a server came to take my order, and was very friendly yet professional. For dinner, I ordered the Fried Chicken sandwich with garlic fries, as well as the BBQ wings. The wings were excellent, and really nice and moist, and a great BBQ sauce. However, while the actual chicken patty in the sandwich was light and crispy, it was a bit bland, as well as the fries, which I thought were badly balanced and a little too soft, with all the garlic sort of concentrated near the center of the actual basket. For a dish that is definitely on the more expensive side, I have to say I was a little disappointed.

Great spot to meet up after a long day on campus. Many grad students and profs. Usually excellent service, but one bartender is incredibly, unnecessarily rude. It's really unfortunate because the other servers are wonderful. Food's a little overpriced for what you get but still good. Great outdoor patio but is often booked for events.

MementoMorty

I'm not sure what happened here. It's kinda like seeing a movie with great actors and a great story but, it still doesn't work and you're not sure why. There's a few obvious things that weren't quite right but there's an over-arching malfunction that ruined the whole experience. There's potential but, someone needs to come in and fix what's wrong.

Abz Lee

Great spot to meet up after a long day on campus. Many grad students and profs. Usually excellent service, but one bartender is incredibly, unnecessarily rude. It's really unfortunate because the other servers are wonderful. Food's a little overpriced for what you get but still good. Great outdoor patio but is often booked for events.

Aadi Milind Rane

I visited last Friday for dinner, and I had a good experience, although there are things I would suggest. The service was excellent, and almost immediately after I sat myself down a server came to take my order, and was very friendly yet professional. For dinner, I ordered the Fried Chicken sandwich with garlic fries, as well as the BBQ wings. The wings were excellent, and really nice and moist, and a great BBQ sauce. However, while the actual chicken patty in the sandwich was light and crispy, it was a bit bland, as well as the fries, which I thought were badly balanced and a little too soft, with all the garlic sort of concentrated near the center of the actual basket. For a dish that is definitely on the more expensive side, I have to say I was a little disappointed.

Great location, plenty of outdoor seating, decent beer selection and good food (though a little pricey). However, the service is terrible. I've been here a couple times in the last two months with groups. Both times we were seated promptly, they came around and took drink orders ... and then completely forgot about us. Last time it took 45 minutes to get a beer and over an hour to get food. Food service was chaotic: some people in the group were served long before others, and they lost my neighbor's burger (probably gave it to someone else) and the server had to put the order in again.

Paul Anderson

Great location, plenty of outdoor seating, decent beer selection and good food (though a little pricey). However, the service is terrible. I've been here a couple times in the last two months with groups. Both times we were seated promptly, they came around and took drink orders ... and then completely forgot about us. Last time it took 45 minutes to get a beer and over an hour to get food. Food service was chaotic: some people in the group were served long before others, and they lost my neighbor's burger (probably gave it to someone else) and the server had to put the order in again.

I rarely leave negative reviews, but this experience was too uncomfortable to ignore. My friend and I (two young women) were at a table with a pitcher of beer and I went to the bar to ask for a glass. The bartender, Joey, stared at me like I was crazy before asking for my ID — which is completely fine — but his demeanor was immediately hostile. Because of how rude the interaction was, my friend calmly asked if we had done something to upset the staff. His became more aggressive and told my friend “I won’t serve you!” For the rest of the night, he made faces at us, smiling and waving sarcastically from behind the bar. At the end of the night, when we tried to speak to another bartender about what happened, Joey aggressively yelled across the bar, “Do you have something to say to me?” It was intimidating and completely inappropriate. As we were leaving, he continued glaring and making hostile faces. The other bartenders were kind and professional, and encouraged us to leave a review. Unfortunately, the manager was dismissive. This was openly aggressive behavior that bordered on harassment. We did nothing to warrant it, and it made us uncomfortable for the rest of the night. Completely unacceptable.