I've been to this place a few times just for drinks and appetizers and was generally unimpressed but had not expected anything because I already was aware that ""Beer Garden"" was a misnomer. My most recent experience really put the icing on the cake. A group of my friends had planned a surprise get together for another friends birthday and we decided to hold the simple party at the Brighton Beer Garden. The staff was generally nice but somewhat inattentive to a group of 15 or so people. There was only one waitress serving us and getting our drinks seemed to take quite a long time. When we ordered our first round of drinks I was surprised to find that an establishment calling themselves a ""Beer Garden"" in Boston did not have Sam Adams on tap. Our waitress also asked the birthday boy if he wanted his gin and tonic ""on the rocks"". Thats simply a stupid question, or maybe she was Mormon, I didn't ask. Aside from the beer being slightly warm the drinks were fine so I ordered the mussels with white wine and garlic for an appetizer. Apparently I wasn't specific enough when I placed the order because when our food was delivered I had a plate of mussels fra diavolo in front of me. Not a big deal, I like fra diavolo- when its prepared well. Unfortunately this was the worst dish I have ever eaten that I paid someone to cook for me. The garlic bread was burnt to a crisp and inedible, there was very little pasta and tons of sauce (picture spaghetti soup). The sauce was terrible. They spiced the dish with what tasted like Frank's Red Hot so I felt as though I was eating spaghetti with buffalo sauce. The mussels were old and half were not cooked long enough for the shells to open. This was my personal experience, some of my friends were fine with their meals but overall the whole group was unimpressed. Shy away from the Beer Garden unless you solely want to sit at the bar, there are too many better choices in the area. I wish Soho was back.
Pros: Lots of flat screens, plenty of games
Cons: Bad food, expensive, not worth it
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