Review Founders Tavern & Grille - Pasadena

My friend and out picked this place to grab lunch. We sat at the outdoor patio, it was nice outside and clean. We had a couple cocktails and I ordered their strawberry salad and candied bacon. Salad was delicious and fresh bacon was amazing as well. Customer service was great.

This was my family’s first and last trip to founders. While the server was nice, the food was bad. The crab dip was just a seasoned orange colored cheese dip, we kept wondering whether it contained crab meat. My wife had a beat salad, that was just ok. My son and I had burgers that were like salt licks. They provide supper small mason jars for drinks which was on no help to use thirsty salt victims. The French fries were the only palatable things served.

We brought our grandson here for lunch because they advertised outdoor seating. Unfortunately, it was pretty hot and their seating is very close to Ritchie Hwy so there was a lot of traffic noise. We went inside. We were the only people wearing masks but the entire bar seating area was empty so we chose a table there. The restaurant is cozy, comfortable and authentic. I had the fried green tomatoes (I’m vegetarian), my husband had the shrimp tacos and crab soup and our grandson had a burger and fries. I also had the Raspberry Lemonade Sangria, which was light, refreshing and delicious. The tomatoes, soup and burger were all superb and, while my husband said the tacos were good, he felt they weren’t worth the price ($21). Our grandson also said his fries had no seasoning. But the staff was great, constantly checking on us and immediately taking away empty plates and such. After lunch, we ordered dessert. Hubby got the Salted Caramel Cookie and our grandson and I got what is probably the greatest Apple Pie we had ever had!! Apparently both desserts are made in-house. They were more on the pricey side but most of what we had today was very much worth it!!

Last night my family had dinner here for the first time and the experience was better than I imagined! The atmosphere was welcoming! Our waitress, Monita, was energetic and fun! The food, drinks, & service were all around great! Pictured is the Strawberry Basil Gin cocktail that was absolutely delicious! We also enjoyed the fried green tomatoes, French onion soup, and shrimp tacos! We will definitely be back for more!

Always a pleasure visiting here. Wait staff is excellent and the beer is cold with a good selection of draft beers. I ordered the Bunker Hill burger. It is 2 half pound burgers with American cheese and corned beef brisket on top served on their homemade sweet roll. This burger is in my top 5 of all time list. I've traveled quite a bit and eaten many burgers, so this is saying something for what they offer here. Thanks for another great dining experience

Great service, delicious food and nice sized portions. We started off with the fried green tomatoes and they were soooooo good. I had the fried chicken with mac & cheese & roasted yukon potatoes. The mac & cheese wasn’t my favorite, but I’m picky. The gravy that comes with the fried chicken is SO GOOD, and the chicken was so hot and not dry. My husband got the Nashville Hot chicken sandwich with fries and loved it. Great flavor. Really enjoyed the environment too.

Wonderful food, awesome drinks, extensive whiskey list, all in a relaxed setting with great service! My wife and I have been here several times and the food and service have been consistently great. Our young adults have joined us several times and like it just as much as we do. Pictured are the shrimp tacos with Maryland Crab Soup, both were wonderful and I'd definitely recommend them. The drink shown is a Strawberry Basil Gin, very tasty. My wife got blackened mahi mahi, which was perfectly done with the blackening just right. The most popular item at our table though was a side order of insanely tasty brussel sprouts (with bacon & other flavors obviously), these really should be an appetizer for the table - the best savory brussel sprouts we've ever had. Finally, the service here has always been friendly and excellent. Enjoy the food and drink responsibly 😋

This place was fantastic. I was in MD visiting a friend who recently moved to the area, and we had lunch here. We got the Candied Bacon, Fried Green Tomatoes, and the Crab Dip in a Bread Bowl. Everything was outstanding. Service was fast and friendly and the interior has a great vibe. We struck up a conversation with Bobby, who wasn’t our waiter but checked on us anyway in addition to our server, and he gave my friend some amazing restaurant recommendations for her family to try since they’re new to the area. I know there are a ton of place to eat in this area, but I will definitely request we come back here when I visit her again. We highly recommend this place!

Needs work. Drinks good. Hush puppies good. Service OK. <br/>Food had good taste but was only lukewarm. Server did not stop by to check if all was well so we just ate and decided that this was not to be our local go to restaurant. maybe they need a microwave oven.

The food is always good and the drinks are amazing. Chris the waiter is awesome. My last two visits have been terrible. Today our waitress was too busy to wait on us, didn't bring bread or water when we asked. I let her know that a friend was on the way to meet us for drinks and she never checked on us...it took 15 minutes for her to come out and ask about drinks. By then we had decided to leave and go to Shuckers around the corner. Good service is imparitive when I am paying $12 for a drink. I don't know that we will continue to go back.

Pricey and Lackluster. We were sort of stuck with eating out as we were taking our car to BJ's and there was a terrible accident that had traffic stalled in every direction. Once we got to the parking lot of BJ's, there were three choices.....Founders Tavern and Grill, Arby's and East West Bistro. We had eaten at East West Bistro on Friday night and not being a fan of fast food, we passed on Arby's. That left Founders.<br/><br/>Let me begin with the positives....the staff we had contact with were very nice. I'm sure the young lady that served us was probably a hostess and she was just lovely. She said some of their staff was stuck in the mess and we certainly could understand as a normal 20 minute ride took us two hours. I will give them the benefit of the doubt on the wait times with food because of this. Also if we do go there again, the crabcake looked good! (we engaged in conversation with the couple next to us and they had it for their dinner and it was a dish that I had considered and should have went with!) The price of $15 seemed fair for the size. It didn't appear to be the crab that restaurants are getting from the Far East and trying to tell us Marylanders is blue crab. Restaurant owners....this is for you....we can TELL! Founder's gets this right....it's blue crab. <br/><br/>The young lady taking our order suggested the drinks they had on the table. While I would have liked to have tried one, $12 bucks for a drink is a bit stiff for my budget! A few more dollars and I can just buy the whiskey and take it home! I realize alcohol is expensive when you dine out, but $12 is a little steep. I was planning to order one of the ciders they had, but apparently that was not in. There was nothing that fit the bill in the beers as I usually drink hefeweizen types, so I settled for a diet soda. Hubby got a Angry Orchard. <br/><br/>We selected the ciabatta bread with gorgonzola, prosciutto and fig. It was just ok and probably the best thing I had. I ordered the pork belly BLT and hubby got the shrimp and grits. My honest amatuer chef opinion is that they should go to an applewood smoked bacon or talk to some of the local farmers on the Eastern Shore about their bacon OR liven the sandwich up with some sort of seasoned mayonnaise. I found the sandwich rather lackluster. I have had pork belly at Moro Restaurant among other places and it was flavorful....if I didn't know better, I would have said it was boiled and then broiled. The bread was a nice size and a whole grain style. The tomatoes thankfully had some flavor, however that's about all I tasted and I just gotta say I'm a huge fan of little pig parts. I also ordered sweet potato fries....these could use some sort of side dipping sauce. They were just sort of limp and laying on the dish. I ate a few....they just didn't do it. This didn't do it for me and I wouldn't order this again.<br/><br/>Hubby got the shrimp and grits. I tasted his grits and they were done and had a nice flavor....definitely a little more than my dish. I think he was just ok with his meal as well....there wasn't a whole lot of discussion about how good the food was which means he may or may not suggest going there again.<br/><br/>The price? One hard cider, one diet soda, shrimp and grits, one sandwich and appetizer were $46 bucks plus tip. I probably would be ok with that had I felt the food was outstanding. With the name *Tavern* in their name, I certainly expected more of a beer, ale, cider selection. As for the whiskeys and drinks offered, add $24 bucks to the price above. Sorry, but that's a little high for a restaurant of this caliber. <br/><br/>Will we go there again? I'm really not too sure. I can say we will not order any mixed type drinks for those prices. I am intrigued by their crabcake, but I'm not sure enough to warrant a trip back.

SALTY PIZZA. Why would a restaurant put sea salt, really tasted like rock salt on a pizza? After two bites my mouth was burning. Shame it was carry out else I would have sent back. My wife's french-fries were limp, second time this has happened, her hamburger was good. Second time here will be the last.

Outstanding. Definitely a unique and pleasant restaurant! The food was fresh and had a "home made" taste, not like the usual processed offerings at most restaurants. Loved the warm feel and family friendly atmosphere. We will be back, worth the trip!

Not impressed. Décor is very nice / different for the area<br/>Pork chop & applesauce was excellent! The rest of the food...not so much!<br/>Waitress was adequate but couldn't remember things.<br/>Kitchen & wait staff need to get the timing down a little better...we barely had eaten 2 spoonfuls of our soups when they delivered our main course. Needless to say our side dishes were stone cold & had to be sent back. While we were waiting for them they delivered the dessert menu & had to be reminded of the mashed potatoes & broccoli....only to find out they don't have a microwave and had to put them in the oven to re-heat which they came back barely warm. Not worth eating at that point. They do not have the ability to make iced tea...don't have the machine we were told...WHAT??? It was expensive considering the timing of the food and the barely adequate waitress, I get better food, better priced & better service at the Quraterfield Grille. And she forgot to deliver my HOT tea! I know it's a new place but it really needs work & is overpriced. I eat out a lot and I don't mind paying for a good meal but again, the experience was so-so.