Review Common Ground - Arlington

Modern and arranged tastefully. The view and patio right in the center of Arlington cannot be neat. Their beer and sandwich selection is great, the salads I tried a bit less lustrous. Overall a fun place to hangout during the day and in the evening.

My family brought me here for a birthday dinner. We all had delicious meals, I went for the seafood special. Pictured is the golden beet salad that two of us shared. The staff truly made us feel welcome at this comfortable neighborhood restaurant.

Manish was the bartender. He was very polite and helped im choosing the right drink

Great beer selection and food. The Bolognese was fantastic and the charcuterie board had a ton of tasty treats.

Good for a beer and some pub food. The cocktails aren't stellar with the ice ratios and flavor so I'd revoked driving to what a on tap. Other wise is a fine experience. Tasty apps, and outdoor seating make it a pleasant place for a group to gather and enjoy some or other bar event.

The food was good but nothing special. I've gone there twice and both times was happy with my meal but not blown away by anything. Overall, I think it's a fine place if you just want to get a burger and a beer. They have plenty of TVs too if you want to watch a sports game. They also have trivia on some nights. It's not the best trivia in the area, but it's something to do. During warm nights, they have outdoor seating.

Nice clean dining area. Good and friendly service. Nice beer selection. Beer and food got to our table quickly on a Friday night. However the food was horrible and too expensive for the price. Both the pork and the hamburger were dry and bland. They also seemed to be very poor qualities of meat: fatty and rubbery. Fries and finger foods were better. Go for a beer with friends not for a meal out.

Nice big bar with a good selection of beers and drinks. Brunch menu is excellent, delicious with big portions. Wing appetizer is well seasoned but a bit too sweet for my taste.

The owners of Common Ground also own its namesake in Allston. That establishment had an excellent reputation for kick-ass burgers, assorted pub foodstuff and an excellent draught collection. Be aware that these are new owners, though!. Arlington has a shortage of good weekend brunch places so we decided to gingerly test the "grounds' one Sunday afternoon. Hmm, the Huevos Rancheros sounds good, even though we're 3,500 drive from the Yucatan. The menu declares "Eggs any style", so I'll have mine poached, por favor! The immediate reply from the waitstaff: "The chef doesn't do poached.". Ok, I'll have them sunny-side up (the online brunch menu does say "non-poached"). Except for that bit of kerfuffle, the fried eggs were perfectly cooked, the pico de gallo savory, the Spanish sausage delicately spicy, and the black beans, as dark as night. We also ordered the waffle and that was excellent as well. Points off for non-fresh squeezed OJ and mediocre diner-pot coffee but those were a trifle compared to the mains. We decided to graduate to the dinner menu one weekend evening. The restaurant is not busy until around 7 or so and we arrived on the early side of 6:00. First order was to try a selection of the 20 of the draught beer selection. The best way to do this is to order a flight of 4 and the baked pretzel (which comes with honey-mustard and something known as "beer cheese". The flight passed with flying colors, i.e. pale pilsner, amber IPA, chocolatey porter and a dark stout. Now what from the main menu? Hmm, I sense this is a burger a place, but I'll try the 1/2 roasted chicken with mashed potatoes as I am in need of some comfort food. "Is it juicy?" I asked our server. "It's VERY juicy". Great! There's nothing like a nice roasted chicken to delight the senses! After what seems like 1/2 hour (now they're busy and they're probably roasting my chicken!!), a plate of what looks like a skinned rabbit is served covered with grilled asparagus and on a bed of mashed. "Err, excuse me", I asked the food delivery person, "I ordered the 1/2 roast chicken but it looks like you delivered road-kill". "I'll get your server". Now we begin kerfuffle part two. "Yes, that is the half roasted chicken", she declares. "But where is the bone?", I asked. "That's how we serve it; the menu doesn't say it comes with a bone", is the response. "Yes but it also doesn't say it is boneless!", I pleaded as she rushed away leaving me to figure out what to do. I tried what I took to be the breast, and of course it was dry and rather tasteless so I asked for the manager. I must say the manager is a delightful chap and he quickly righted the wrong and served me my back-up choice, the lamb sliders, in under 5 minutes (always have a back-up choice is my rule!!). The sliders won the game for me and hence the three stars. The bottom line is remember that the CG is first and foremost a pub, so best to order the pub-style food. The beer selection is awesome and the brunch is among the best in the area. On a subsequent occasion, after ordering a properly dressed burger, I may just have to revisit the rating!

I found the Cuban to be somewhat dry, and lacking depth of flavor. In fairness, it may have been my choice as I wish to try something different. Perhaps it just wasn't for me. Service, cleanliness, and attention to clientele was excellent. Beverage selection was bountiful. My dining companion's Bloody Mary was strong and peppery! I will patronize the CG, and recommend it.

Great ambience inside and a huge patio outside. Food is excellent with a great selection of local brews and custom cocktails. Bartenders and staff are extremely friendly. Highly recommended!

Went there for lunch. Was seated promptly but that was it. One waiter for the entire place and it was not busy. $13.00 for a hamburger and fries. Food was good but we waited 50 minutes for it to arrive. Second cheeseburger came 12 minutes later!! Def need more staff !!!

Great staff, comfy environment. Lively, great for conversations with friends. The bar has great beers and know how to make a great Manhattan.

Held my son's first communion party in the function room. Liz was great to work with to arrange everything. The service was great. everyone loved the chicken piccatta. the room was just the right size.

Threw a party for my husband's 40th in the back room for about 60 people. The manager and staff were beyond awesome and accommodated special requests for the menu and bar in the back. I got rave reviews from attendees and I looked like a super party planner. (Which I am, of course, but Common Ground made this one easy.)

the waitstaff was great. The food was great too. The wait was not great considering we were the only people in the place.

Great staff and great beer selection, the perfect local pub

Great food and service. I will be back. Thanks everyone.

Really enjoyed our visit here! Great food and love that they have live music!

Nice place, amazing sangria, great food. Bartenders were super nice. Look forward to my return

I love this local restaurant /pub. Friendly service, great food and drink selection and nice, cozy atmosphere.

Had dinner with friends,lovely night with outdoor dining. Hamburger was very good as were the fries.

Those hand cut fries are so good! Perfect place to go a show at the Regent.

Decent enough looking place (if you don't slip and kill yourself on the ridiculous flooring material) but way too noisy. The menu reads well but the food is terrible, and poorly prepared. When trying to deal with the waitstaff and manager you'll get nothing but a sob story. Emphasis on SOB because that is what the manager acted like. Went three times since they opened and finally had enough. Will not be going back.

6/24/15 edit- make sure you know that you CANNOT take an unfinished bottle of wine home from this establishment. Even though it is MA law they don't have a license, or so we were told. We lost half a bottle of wine and the manager, while happy to buy us a free dessert, would not take the cost of half our bottle off the bill. We won't be coming back but it's no great loss, the food pretty much sucks here. We came for dinner tonight - party of 4, including one toddler and one teenager. They charge for bread (boo). We were not offered the specials, but heard them thanks to the adjoining table's waiter an hour into our meal. Too bad; they sounded good. Entrees were good: pan roasted chicken, risotto and spinach, bolognese (the latter was more like a stew in my experience). They gave us a larger portion of dessert since we were sharing, a nice touch. They've been open not quite a week and it shows, but we'll be back in a month or two to see what's improved.

Great restaurant and bar! Awesome beer selection and delicious food. It's our "go to" hang out!

The inside is beautiful! I got a nice burger for take out. A great addition to the restaurants in the center! Love this place!