The Firkin Tavern

Bottom Line: Good local bar with decent food.
Have gone here a couple of times now when I am on layovers in NJ. It’s close to my hotel and the van will drive us there. So that’s why I went the first time.
Went back because, it’s a good local bar, with lots of locals there each time I’ve gone, and the food is decent.
We have sat in the bar area each time. Once at the bar and 2 times at tables right around the bar. What is weird is that if you sit at the tables around the bar, you have to go to the bar for service. Any service.
We got menus and then had to go up to the bar and order. Our food came out to the bar and the bartender called us over to grab our plates. A waitress did the bartender «a favor» and brought one dish out. Someone asked about ketchup and she told him he had to talk to the bartender. Awkward, but not a reason not to go back.
The music was a little too loud for our table of 5 to talk, but it was the bar so again, nothing to really discourage me from going back.
Each time I’ve gone I’ve had a different burger and it’s a good bar burger. I’m also a sucker for wings and theirs hit the spot. Nice and juicy and crispy at the same time. I also like their selection of beer on tap. They had a Bourbon Beer recently — it was good — a little overpriced for me budget but there are plenty of options.
Bottom Line: When the group doesn’t want to do take out and we want to go out together — we’ll def head back.

I came home to visit family and figured I’d stop in and eat at a place I used to frequent. Bad idea!!!
I got there at about 12 am to watch Kobe Bryant play his last game and have a drink. The guy behind the bar ignored me for 5 minutes. The female walked over and took my order. I got me drink $ 8, tipped $ 3 and went back to watching the game. 5 minutes later the guy that ignored me said last called and immediately turned the TV’S off. As I was the only one watching the game, I asked why he turned the TV’S off. He said they go off at last call and everybody has to leave. He saw that I was kinda upset and just chose to not make eye contact. I downed my drink and left. I stayed in the parking lot on my phone 30 min and saw that no one left after me. So all the regulars and off duty cops stayed in drinking after me. I guess if your not a local, your not somebody. Way to make me feel back at home

My girlfriend and I come here often seeing as it is very close to The College of New Jersey, each time the food has been decent and service good. My review is one star because I believe my fish was undercooked, I took one bite and it was rather funky so I didn’t take another bite. Flash forward to now, food poisoning! I would have rated this place 3 or 4 stars but after this I will not be returning. Stay away from the fish!

We ordered takeout — Philly Cheesesteak Wrap and Garlic Herb Chicken (on the menu, this has replaced Balsamic Chicken Platter) with rice. Everything was delicious, but we did have a slight wait for our food, even though we called 20 minutes in advance and were told then that the food would be ready in 10 – 15. Not a big deal to us, but it might be to other people.
All I got to see was the bar area, where I waited and paid for our food. It seemed like a standard sports bar. I would return here again if I happened to be in Ewing because the food we had was very good.

I love this place!
Went here for trivia on Thursday and had a great time. The place is much bigger than it looks from the outside. There’s a wrap around bar with friendly bartenders, and a nice selection of beers on tap. I tried a new vanilla porter which ended up being awesome, an amaretto sour, also awesome, and a baked jalapeño mac and cheese entrée which was also great. As someone else mentioned, the crowd seemed to be a mix between Rutgers alumni, college students from TCNJ, and colorful locals so it was quite an eclectic mix that worked really well.
Their back room is really big and has pool tables and a giant jenga game, so you’ll never get bored.

Great selevtion of beers, you are not forced into selecting inbev or miller brewing swill. The food is competent, no suprises but all professionally done. I like the outside in nice weather. Great place to shed the stress of a work week.

Came back with some friends for some bar food and I LOVE THIS PLACE. They have a set menu but their menu specials that change monthly are amazing! We got the filet tips which were amazing and the wings are always great. I recommend this place for anyone in the area for some delicious bar food and great vibes

This place often has fancy beers on tap, so there’s an amusing mix of locals drinking Bud Light and beer snobs drinking sours, Stone, Goose Island Bourbon County, Strongbow Cider on tap, etc. Also a great place to catch première league football!

Didnt want to miss the women’s world cup on a long road trip so found this soccer bar. Stopped in for some beers and food. The place is decent enough with some interesting games and lots of tv.
The menu is extremely weird and a mash up of traditional bar fare with a stoners late night dream. Only it doesn’t work. Crab in guacamole? (Not to mention it’s 50% store bought guac.) Mussels in blue cheese and bacon. And cranberry mustard? Umm no.
The «ridiculous» burger was indeed ridic. But impossible to eat. Nor did any of those 12 things in it make for a good flavor combo. To add insult to injury, my medium rare patty came well done and so dry it tasted like it had been sitting there all day.
When I asked for another patty, it came out raw.
I’m sure this place has some nice other options but we struck out with the 2 out of 4 dishes we ordered.
But the worst part of the entire experience was the bartenders. They looked like they hated life. We ordered $ 100 worth of food and drinks and didn’t get a single smile the entire time.
I can imagine a different night or service changing my mind about this place but this Sunday night deserved 2 stars at best. People giving this place 5 stars for the service or the food are obviously from south jersey and have never left.

Trivia was a blast, decent beer selection, food was tasty, and the service was friendly. My bf & I went there twice while I was on a business trip and would definitely return.

Place is busy and not much parking. Parking lot had huge potholes more like craters. Food is ok. Chicken wings were dry but sauce was good. Don’t think it’s my type of place.

Don’t judge it by its outside! It looked grimy to me when I first passed it, but this year finally visited the inside, and surprisingly it’s a nice, chill atmosphere where you can grab a bite and drink after a long day with friends. Food has a wide range– def recommend the french fries which has a bite to it. Tried one of their special seasonal drinks made with Angry Orchard and it was amazing.

Go here if you didn’t know there’s a world outside of Ewing

Great drinks, Great food! Firkin Signature Wings are one of the best wings in the area.

This is really nice and relaxing place! It’s got darts and pool tables! The bartenders are pretty chill and people there are pretty chill as well.
Definitely a nice place to relax after a long day of work!

All I remember is that my burger had bacon, pork roll, potato chips, and a fried egg. Good enough for 4 stars in my book.

I’ve been to Firkin several times over the last few years. Both the food and the service is pretty consistent — a good thing! It’s usually quite crowded from 5 p.m. on, so we opted for a quiet lunch.
Today’s visit was following a tour of the River Horse Brewing Company. We decided to stop in for something to eat, and more cold, refreshing River Horse beers to drink. After parking ourselves at the bar, and meeting our bartender Laura S, we ordered a few tall Summer Blonde Ales. Sadly, while she was able to pour us only one each before they ran out of Blonde Ale.
For lunch, Arlene and I both decided on the fish tacos. My dish came with over sized onion rings, and Arlene had sweet potato fries with jalapeño ketchup on the side. The dish included two tacos –which consisted of beer-​battered cod fried to a golden brown on a warm tortilla with pico de gallo, green onions, mixed cheeses, cabbage and a spicy avocado cream sauce. The upside was that these tortilla’s were so packed that they were overflowing onto the plate. The downside was that we couldn’t pick them up to eat them with all of the goodness packed into each taco. We chose, instead, to use a knife and fork.
After a few more beers we were on our way. We’ll stop back one day soon to have another delicious lunch at Firkin Tavern.

The reviews for The Firkin Tavern are like a blind man touching an elephant. Depending on what you touch you have a different impression. Is it a dive bar? A sports bar? A college bar? An old man’s bar? A beer bar? A good happy hour bar? A foodie bar? The answers are simple. Yes.
Any really good hangout bar is all things to all people. That’s what makes them fun and special. Whoever you are; whatever you do; whatever you want; regardless of time; The Firkin delivers. It allows you to feel at home, and make it your own. I’ve only been here a couple of times, once for lunch and another for happy hour after work, and although the experience of each visit was different, the constant was an upbeat vibe with friendly attractive staff, and drinks, menu and activities that were entertaining, tasty and fairly priced. Most important — the crowd mixes well together. Labels are unnecessary and soon forgotten. Just have fun.
The space is surprisingly large, and well placed mirrors make it seem even bigger. The dark tones make it seem older than it is and adds to the atmospherics. The bar is big enough for bellyups, and the bar menu is sufficiently diverse to make a few hours on a stool pass quickly. Decent beer choices for the craft people, and those who are happy with their Buds. The kitchen turns out interesting plates of nachos, flatbreads, sammys, burgers, soups, salads, and more. Your tastebuds will be satisfied.
I have sampled several of the above while sitting at the bar at happy hour, and been pleasantly surprised. Cheesesteak Nachos?! Are you kidding me? Fun comfort food at its best. Stuffed Chicken Sammy on a fresh roll with a load of mushrooms, cheese and honey mustard sauce — very good. Burgers; thick and way above average.
Yeah! The Firkin Tavern is a sleeper and a keeper, regardless of what part of the elephant you touch.

I was very happy with my stay at Firkin. I stopped in for a drink before going to the Trenton Airport, and when my flight was delayed stayed for a few drinks. You can go from the bar to your gate in about 20 minutes.
There is a surprisingly good craft beer selection here, but they also charge big city prices for the beers. The menu is filled with regular bar food, that tastes fine. There seems to be a friendly crew of locals here.
It’s a good place to watch sports; there’s more than enough TVs for everyone in the bar. There’s also darts, table-​top shuffleboard, pool, and giant Jenga.
Bottom Line: Not worth going out of your way, but a good place to kill some time and have a few good drinks.

I’d never thought I’d give a dive bar 5 stars, but since I’m knocking on 30 now… dive bars have a special place in my heart. Especially because there is a bar back home that I loved going to and felt at home every time I went… not because people knew my name… just because I could roll in and have a drink or get on the bar and dance all while wearing flip flops.
Thankfully after a horrible experience at Rho, we came here, put a few dollars in the jukebox (which has salsa, bachata AND Robin Thicke) and ordered some drinks. The place has a side room to play all sorts of games like an over-​sized jenga, pool tables, darts, etc. They also have trivia nights, ladies nights and best of all a nice LONG happy hour with a LATE NIGHT happy hour too!
Their happy hour lasts until 7 pm, with $ 2 beers, half priced appetizers, $ 5 pizzas and drinks must end up being like $ 3 because one night I seriously had like 5 and paid $ 17.
Food Favorites:
1. Pulled pork nachos are my favorite.
2. Firkin wings are amazing mix of spicy & sweet
Everything else is good and greasey… just like bar food should be.
I will warn you, Firkin must have a bad rep in the area, because people looked at me like I was crazy for suggesting this place for happy hour. Maybe it needs a better name like «Molly’s» so it’s more inviting. Needless to say, I return frequently… come to the jukebox to dance with me some bachata.