I have been to Elwood’s several times(and I have no idea why I keep going back). The place is quite small, sometimes I find it is cold when they have the front part open, and the seating at the front is on very tiny short stools. The service is quite slow, and every time anyone has served me they have been very rude and seemed like they hated their job. The first time I went I ordered a martini that came with lipstick on the glass. I sent it back and I saw the bartender pour the entire drink into a new glass and watered it down, instead of making me a new drink. The next time I went I ordered some type of cranberry cocktail and was given a long island iced tea(or something that was brown and tasted like iced tea). I also ordered a burger and it tasted decent but a bit burnt. Third time I went I was again received poor service and I ordered a beer and steak dip sandwich. The sandwich was absolutely terrible. It had so much fat on it that I had to keep spiting it out. I also saw one of the servers eating french fries off of someone’s plate in the window to be served, and then saw her immediately serve the half-eaten food to another table. I am giving this a 3-star because it is in a good location and they sometimes have decent beer on special(otherwise it would be 2 star).
Helen B.
Tu valoración: 1 Greater Vancouver, Canada
READTHISBEFORESPENDINGYOURMONEYHERE! — If you call a good time going to a bar and being discriminated against by the bar owner and then asked to leave, Elwood’s is the place for you. Last night I stopped into Elwood’s to join a friend for a drink at the bar. Things initially were going well. The male bartender that was serving us was great. About an hour or so into our evening I had a female approach me where I was sitting at the bar. She had been sitting at another table. This female came right in my face and slurred the words, «are you a fucking cop?» I was a little taken back, seeing as I didn’t know her and I had not been talking about work at all. I asked her why she was asking me. She stated«I can’t fucking stand cops and they aren’t welcome here, you should go.» I looked over the bartender that had been serving us and he told me that this female was one of the owners of Elwood’s, but that she was very drunk. At that point someone pulled her away from where I was sitting and spoke to her. The bartender was adamant that I did not need to leave. This female owner did come over and apologize at one point and I said that I accepted her apology. Although, after she walked away she could still be heard making rude comments about me being a cop. At that point I chose to leave. I think it’s pretty important that people who are choosing to spend their money in this establishment know who they are supporting. I don’t think Elwood’s has any worries about any police officers attending their establishment again. Just makes you think… Insert another word into that sentence she said. A minority group, a religious belief, sexual orientation or skin colour. I really wonder how far her discrimination goes.
Nathan C.
Tu valoración: 5 Kitsilano, Vancouver, Canada
I’ve been going to Elwood’s for a long time. Off and on. These guys keep taking it up. I’ve had slow service but the staff are great, so it make up Food is good and great daily deals. It’s the little place that could
John V.
Tu valoración: 3 Burnaby, Canada
$ 4 craft beers all week. Awesome. Buck a shuck friday. Awesome. Food in general. Alright. Come for the cheap food and nice ambience(the neighbourhood is nice). There are specials all week long including all you can eat fish and chips $ 10 on mondays!
Carmen Tse-Makeup Artist T.
Tu valoración: 3 Coquitlam, Canada
Came here in a Sunday late afternoon. The place wasnt busy however the service was super slow(the server admitted that she gets a bit crazy??) Um okay. Steak and fries was $ 5.50? cant go wrong with that but was super salty and alot of pepper! eeeks. Also decided the quinoa berry salad. $ 11. Very filling. There wasnt anything special here I would go back, seemed very disorganized and food was lacking selection. Would go next door to the Copper Tank haha or the Fafafel place lol.
Edward L.
Tu valoración: 3 Vancouver, Canada
A nice and surprisingly affordable pub in the middle of Kitsilano. Parking is available on the side streets. The inside is a bit on the dingy side, but this is what gives it character. The place has been around for years. There’s a small patio in front as well, but large groups(5 or more) would not do too well here. The biggest thing between back then(10+ years ago) and now is the addition of daily specials. $ 10AYCE fish and chips? Sold. The tricky part about this deal, however, is that they pile on the fries, and one cannot order more food without finishing the entire previous plate. While it probably stops people from going too crazy on the fish, the downside is that piles of fries get wasted. Not sure why restaurants do this. Very wasteful. Subtract 1 star for this. With that said, the food was of decent quality. Other specials worth mentioning including $ 1 oysters(Fridays) and $ 6 ribs and fries(Saturdays). I’ll be back to try these. One last thing — this place is open late(0200 everyday). Beautiful.
Mike M.
Tu valoración: 2 Vancouver, Canada
I really liked the large list of daily specials and, to be fair, the prices are very attractive. However, I was drawn in by the 33 cent mussels and wasn’t blown away. Although cheap, the mussels were very small and the sauce was watery; the fries and garlic bread were excellent, though. Our server didn’t really pay much attention to us, leaving our drinks unfilled, and she managed to mess up our order. It was a pretty frustrating experience, to be honest. Décor was pretty grimy — all it was missing was sawdust on the floor. I doubt I’ll be back.
Coty W.
Tu valoración: 2 Vancouver, Canada
Came in for the 33 cent mussels and that’s definitely the most I’d pay for them. Small and the broth had minimal effort put into. Also our waitresses was pretty bad. She really didnt care much about customer service. But she really perked up at the end when it came to paying the bill. Def your neighborhood dive bar you could tell by all the rips on the booth seats. The one thing I will say is they have cheap drinks. Won’t be coming back.
Melissa F.
Tu valoración: 3 Toronto, Canada
When in Kits this is the only place I don’t mind coming back to post-undergrad UBC days. Great specials, solid beer. I would indulge in the sketchy and generous buck a shuck offer on Fridays. I like it, but also cross my fingers that I won’t get sick.
Jennifer J.
Tu valoración: 3 Vancouver, Canada
Went for late lunch, early dinner today(Saturday) and sat on the very small patio which is an extension of the inside. Place was dead when we got there, about 4:30. Couldn’t hear any music or anything but the inside seemed kinda cool. Service was really slow and the food was okay. We had pulled pork tacos which were very bland and $ 15 for three small tacos. Bf had a burger and fries. Fries were tasty and burger was good. I had a salad which chicken, apples, cranberries and walnuts $ 16!!! Vodka specials $ 4. Overall I thought it was alright and the food was not too bad but overpriced food for sure.
Candy L.
Tu valoración: 2 Vancouver, Canada
Dear server: That was really kind of you to NOT mention, before my friends and I sat down, that the daily food special(33 cent wings on Wednesdays) required you to purchase a drink as well. We spent another 15 minutes looking at the menu, trying to decide if the special was still worth it. Whatever, we came for wings, we were going to get wings. Also, dear server, that was super COOL of you NOT to mention that the minimum order was 10 wings, until we went around placing our orders. Hey server, you know what was also awesome? Charging us for the wings’ dip WITHOUT informing us there is an additional $ 1 charge for dips, which is NOT stated on the menu. You know what’s a shame? How long it took for the wings to arrive, and how difficult it was to get our server’s attention. I LOVE asking for a refill of water. The wings were actually good. But 33 cents my butt if you’re going to force your customers to by a drink as well! Elwoods should indicate that on their Specials board.
Sarah B.
Tu valoración: 2 Vancouver, Canada
I’ve been there a couple times. Food is meh — the trio of fries is good, but nothing to write home about. The other food is average. The drink prices are pretty good — they always have a beer special for $ 4. However, I will not be going back there again. I called tonight to see what their beers on tap are(their website says they have rotating taps and to ask your server for the selection). Someone answered, I asked, and she listed them off really fast. So I asked if she could repeat them, going slower(so I could actually register what she said), she asked if I could hold on, I said sure. I guess she put the phone down(and not on hold) because I could hear the bar noise in the background. I waited about 3 minutes and then someone just hung up on me. Very rude. I will not be going there again. They just lost a handful of customers(as I used to go with friends). Bye Felicia.
Andrew S.
Tu valoración: 1 Vancouver, Canada
I’m giving one star because we were rudely yelled at by a waitress. After having dinner and drinks with two friends at Elwood’s we were told after three hours that we had to move to a smaller table because a larger party had come in. We let the waitress know that we had two friends coming in a few minutes but she insisted that that wasn’t her problem. The new party left while we were speaking and she became quite angry at us and actually yelled at us that we had lost the bar customers with our selfishness. I would normally feel bad about only giving one star because this place has been OK in the past but this service has really been the most subpar that I have ever experienced.
Crystal L.
Tu valoración: 5 Vancouver, Canada
Awesome specials! Yeah, it’s kinda«divey» but that’s what I like about it! If I wanted to go to Cactus Club… I would go to Cactus Club! Good drinks, good food, good prices. ‘Nuff said.
Allison Y.
Tu valoración: 4 Vancouver, Canada
The daily specials are what’s going to keep me coming back. 33 cent wings on Tuesdays, $ 6 ribs and fries on Fridays, $ 5.50 steak and fries on Sundays. Each day of the week has 3 or 4 special deals that make coming to Elwood’s SO worth it. We were seated promptly, and our waitress managed not to look too astonished when 6 girls ordered 110 wings right off the bat. We finished all of them within 20 minutes, and had the people around us applauding. What an experience.
Paige R.
Tu valoración: 5 Victoria, Canada
Such an awesome spot on Broadway if you’re looking for that dive bar fix(and who isn’t?). Super cheap deals, tvs everywhere, cozy and dark. It’s a great unpretentious spot in a really saturated market. Our server Jillian was really fast and friendly, didn’t look stressed at all considering she was on her own. Clearly a place hiring pretty faces who can also kill it behind the bar! We will be back!
James H.
Tu valoración: 5 Yaletown, Vancouver, Canada
If you’re looking for a bar, and I mean a bar, as in a neighbourhood bar and not an Earls, then this place is fantastic! First class bar environment, excellent atmosphere, and a decent craft beer selection. The staff are also fantastic. Whilst reading the chalk-board-beer-menu the barman approached me to ask of my personal beer taste. Before I knew it I was offered multiple tasters before deciding on one to buy. That’s attention to detail. This was my first visit to Elwood’s(is it named after Elwood Blues?) and it happened to be on $ 1.25 taco night. Quite simply these were the best cheap tacos I’ve ever had. Hell, I’ve paid $ 6 for worse tacos than these. All in all this is a fantastic REAL bar!
Nelson C.
Tu valoración: 3 Burnaby, Canada
It’s a dive bar. The daily deals are really cheap. The place smells kind of like stale old beer though. To be honest, the smell reminded me of being in some old dive bars in Gastown like Funky Winker Beans or somewhere like that. Today, I had the all you can eat fish and chips for $ 10 and $ 2 beer. The $ 2 beer was Original 16 and not bad! Reminded me of the $ 2 beer at the Met on Tuesdays or Wednesday’s at Joe’s apartment. I can’t complain about Original 16 because for a cheap beer it’s pretty decent! The Fish and chips though… seemed like the oil was not hot enough because the fish and chips came out too oily. Like when you fry with too cold of an oil temperature it takes longer for the food to cook. But then, because of the length of cooking time, the food starts to absorb the oil. The fish were ok, but the fries were not. They have the opposite problem of another business nearby. Overcooked oily fries vs. undercooked oily fries. I’m sure that if the oil was at the right temperature, the fried food would have tasted better. All in all, I would go back to try it again. I’ll report on it then.
Ashley S.
Tu valoración: 4 Vancouver, Canada
After sitting at another bar two doors down and not being offered a beer or a menu for a good 15 minutes, it made me smile to walk into Elwood’s and be greeted and given menus within 10 seconds. Great job guys!
Mark H.
Tu valoración: 4 Vancouver, Canada
Dive bar done right. With leading edge interior design features like randomly strung Christmas lights to shoemaker wooden stools to a ‘Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups’ sign above the entrance, this place has taken all measures to repel the douche crowd. The always eclectic crowd of football players to PHD scientists makes for fun cross table word exchanges. They have wicked food specials like 25c mussels, 39c wings and $ 10AYCE fish and chips. Their Bacon Bayou(sp) is damn good. Heck even the presentation surprises. I guess I’d call Elwood’s ‘refined dive’, for the food anyways. Dives always win.