St. Burch Tavern, Iowa City IA

Incredible food; truly some of the best tasting food I have ever had! Staff gave us our space to talk and enjoy the ambiance but were still quick to notice when we'd need our next drink. We did come in knowing that it would be an expensive meal, but the food was absolutely worth the price (the petite filet was a once-in-a-lifetime good!) They have some great talent in the kitchen! Wonderful experience, I can't wait to come back.

Nice patio seating. Lunch menu okay. Food okay. Service okay but seemed understaffed. One caution: Bathrooms in basement so if you don't like stairs, think twice. They do have one common bathroom on main floor.

The food here is excellent. The service is great! We did not have reservations so we sat at the bar. I strongly recommend reservations. There is outdoor seating
Prices are toward the upper end but the food is worth it!

The drink specials on happy hour are excellent value but I would have to say that the seafood tower ($33 on happy hour, 67 normally) is shocking value even at half price. They charge if you want extra crackers (mean!) and provide measly portions of the seafood. 6 shrimp, 6 anchovies, 6 small crab legs and 6 oysters ($2.50 each!) is not worth $33, never mind $67! We mentioned it to the server who just laughed.

The food was sooo good! My boyfriend and I got the Voodoo shrimp and the cheese dip, both were unreal. The shrimp was so flavorful and I could eat it every day. The drinks were good and the staff was really nice. I love the style here. A very different menu, but had good options. Would definitely recommend!

Great atmosphere but completely overpriced. The food is average at best, but with obnoxious prices. This is one of those places that crafts a posh atmosphere and thinks that alone justifies exorbitant prices.

As I said, the atmosphere and feel of the restaurant is excellent but the food quality does not match it. The cooking is average at best, it's forgettable and doesn't leave a strong impression. I've visited twice, once for lunch and once for dinner. Both times I left disappointed.

To give a specific example, a 16oz porterhouse steak cost 50 bucks and is forgettable, compared to a 23oz steak at texas roadhouse which is 30 something bucks and stands out from their peers. If you're going to charge these crazy prices then you need to be putting out high quality food, not something I can cook myself or get elsewhere for a fraction of the cost.

The service at the bar is excellent their staff know how to provide quality bar service. The waitstaff on the other hand are impersonal and forgettable. While polite, they didn't make me feel welcome or valued as a customer. Again, if you want to be a high class restaurant this kind of thing matters. Why would I drop 30-50 bucks at a place like this when I can go 3 doors down to Pullmans and have excellent food and service for cheaper?

All and all the place could be great but falls short in these key areas.

Maddie, Leah, Paige, Abigail, and Ashlyn are some of the best bar and waitstaff I've encountered in the Iowa City. The barelywine they recommended was off the charts delicious. Katie's leadership skills are unparalleled and she really knows how to scrub a deck.

I ate lunch here yesterday and was unimpressed, particularly by the fact that there was a long black hair in my food I found about halfway through eating. When I told the server he just said “Oh, sorry about that” but I wasn't offered any replacement and still had to pay the $12 for the hairy, mediocre biscuit.

Delicious food! The best burger I've ever had, plus a wonderful salad with homemade Caesar dressing. The chocolate torte with coconut ice cream was perfect. The flaky salt sprinkled on top kept it from being cloying. Really great meal!

Very glad this place caught my eye while visiting with my sister and she was showing me around downtown! Great food, fantastic cocktails, and the servers were extremely friendly. We sat out on the patio on a beautiful day and I can’t think of anything better!

Have only ever heard good things about this place. So, we decide to try it out. It did not disappoint! Food and drinks were great. Atmosphere was great. Oysters were perfect. Service was phenomenal… 11/10 would recommend. Ask for Katy (with a Y) best waitress we’ve had in a long time!

Thus was my first visit. It definitely won't be my last. From start to finish, the food and drinks were on point. The dimmly lit place was buzzing with patrons on both floors at 6: 45p on a comfortable 60 degree Friday evening. We waited downstairs for less than the 30 minutes projected. Wanting seafood, we started with the Voodoo shrimp on suggestion of the waitress. It did not disappoint. The shrimp were plump and the sauce a perfect blend of twang and seasoning with warm crusty bread. We added drinks. I got the Sophisticated Honeybee. Delicious. Not too strong or sweet. Again, a perfect blend of both. He a Stella. We moved to entrées, ordering the Shrimp Cobb Salad with all the trims and tossed in the perfect amount of vinaigrette and an oversized tenderloin basket with chips. It was meaty, not just thin and crusty. Then the dessert finale! The coconut cheesecake rivals Cheesecake Factory! The pineapple-lime sauce and passion fruit take it a whole other level!
Apparently they're known for their raw oysters on the half shell. I (and many others) suggested they try other ways of preparing the oysters.charbroiled, baked, grilled, or fried.

I'll be back regardless

Went to The Den at St. Burch a couple weeks ago and was excited to finally try their food. Back when this was Atlas, I always got the Mac and cheese so I was excited that was an item that translated over to this menu. Our table split the pimento dip and truffle fries and I also got the green goddess salad which was really good! My partner got the buffalo chicken wrap which was delicious. Overall the food was great. I do think that it’s expensive, especially the drinks considering the size of their cocktails. I thought the same when we went to their bar as well last time. Our service felt a little rushed as well. We will go back to try more food here but will probably skip drinks.

In town for an appointment and had the afternoon to walk around downtown Iowa City. Stopped in St Burch and ended up staying a few hours. Happy hour was great. Food was outstanding; had the blackened Mahi Mahi sandwich, which was one of the best I've ever had. The service from our server Maddie and bartender Sonny was awesome. Definitely recommend!

This is really nice place, great atmosphere great food. Service could have been a little better, food came hot and fresh, we had to ask for silverware and napkins, had to remind them several times that we needed refills and togo boxes. They seemed well staffed. Definitely worth a shot we'll come back and give them another try.

Raw bar, Friday fish fries, impossible burgers, this place has it all. And the Buffalo Chicken Wrap is still on the menu from Atlas days (at the time of this writing, anyway.) Lobster Pot Pie is excellent!

Coming back after a few years away (darn COVID) and this restaurant continues to be a force majeure in downtown Iowa City. Of note with my recent visit: ordering oysters is a lot easier with their new paper scratch menu. The entrees seem updated with new surprises and the cocktail and wine menu is still top notch. Believe the hype, an oyster bar of quality in the Midwest!

On vacation from the south on a 6 state tour, Iowa City was our next to last stop. A passer by told us to try this place. Nice little set up they have but they need some fly strips. We swatted about 10 flies not including about 5 the lady next to us killed. Anyway the cheese biscuit bites are really good. I had a NY strip but I dont recommend it especially for $29. It was ok but tasted bland as did my wifes chicken salad. She said the chicken was bland also. It was a pretty good place but they need to add some seasoning to their food and also get pest control over to pay them a visit.

This was the second time I have been to St. Burch Tavern this year. The first time I visited I enjoyed the food, and the wait staff was good. Today the wait staff and hostess were great and attentive, however the burger i ordered was a great disappointment. I ordered it medium rare. When it arrived I was surprised at the small size of it. It looked like a small food chain burger or something off the child's menu. Then I cut it in half and it was totally well done. In my opinion, you should either take it off the menu or serve a $15 burger worthy of your establishment's reputation. The salad and fries were great.