Vern's Bayside Restaurant and Lounge

This place was recommended by the family who owned the property we stayed at. We went the first night we were on the island in search of good seafood at reasonable prices. We were seated promptly and a bizarre waitress came over and rattled off some specials very quickly and without mention of prices. Some time later another waitress came over with our drinks. No one came by to take our order so I summoned over the first waitress because I wanted her to repeat the specials. When I asked her to do so, she sort of sighed and said she couldn't repeat them becuase she had to get orders out to another table. (What?!) Finally, the drink waitress came over and took our order after repeating about half the list of specials the first waitress mentioned. This waitress wasn't quirky like the first one, she was just rude and abrupt.

When our food arrived it was mediocre. I had to ask twice for bread with my clams (steamed) and was made to feel as though I was inconveniencing the waitress. Oh, and they charged me for it too.

The next morning, against my better judgement, we went back for breakfast. The thought was that there would be different waitstaff in the morning. Wrong. The same spacey waitress from the night before was there. It was almost noon when we arrived, everyone ordered breakfast except for me. (I ordered a Ruben) All the orders came out after about 25 minutes except for mine. When she delivered everyone's food, she looked at me and said, "What did you order?". I repeated my order and she said, "I'll be right back." Clearly, she had forgotten to place my order. Fifteen minutes went by and she flitted over to the table to say that my order was coming off the grill. Five minutes later she delivered my sandwich as everyone else was finishing their breakfast. The Ruben was soggy -- the kraut hadn't been rinsed or drained properly and overall was just gross. The fries that came with the sanwich tasted as though they had been fried in grease that was very old. I figured the waitress would take my sandwich off the bill due to making me wait so long after forgetting my order, but no. Charged full price for a sandwich I only ate half of and maybe three fries on the plate. As I said, this waitress is totally incompetent and strange. (Total bill for three breakfasts and my sandwich -- $63!) I was so disgusted, I paid the bill and left without tipping. (Which I NEVER do)

I would never eat here again, never would I recommend it and quite frankly they tainted my Orcas experience.

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I wish I had read some reviews of this place ahead of time. The cup of clam chowder that the waitress said was so great tasted like it was from a can. When the bill came it was $6.95. Stay away from this place.

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My kids are amongst the 'gawking children' that you might find lining the windows. They love eating there! The food is good and the staff are friendly and helpful. Definitely worth recommending.

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I have eaten at the Bayside every summer for the past 8 or 9 years. I have always found the food well prepared, and nicely portioned. The staff is normally very friendly and courteous, even when they have a large number of patrons. The prices are in line with most seasonal restaurants and have never had a bad meal. I have always enjoyed the decor, and the beautiful view of the bay from the dining room.

I understand the place is a family business, and considering the recent economy, I think the place is excellent, well priced, and has a great environment.

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ABSOLUTELY PHENOMINAL PLACE. FOOD! PEOPLE! SERVICE! PRICES! AND A VERY HANDSOME, CHARMING, SWEET BARTENDER! LOVELY RESTAURANT/BAR...WISH IT WAS IN BOSTON!

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Me and my family spent a week on beautiful Orcas Island. We drove in from a neighboring state and arrived in Eastsound around 7:30 pm. We were very hungry and decided to give Vern's a try. I ordered the "angus" rib-eye steak for $20.00. It was one of the worst steaks I have ever had...it was dry and incredibly average. I've had better steaks for 7.99 at Denny's. This wasn't the worst part...I had the clam chowder which was so scalding hot, I had to put ice-cubes in it to cool it down. Once I did taste it, it wasn't very good. But that wasn't the worst part. My mother also had a bowl of clam-chowder and (this is the gospel truth) she spooned up a fly in the soup!! Fortunatley she caught it in time before she put it in her mouth. This obviously ruined the dinner for everyone. The best the waiter could do was not charge her for her chowder...no discount, no meals on the house...nothing. In fact, when the bill came, they highlighted the 18 gratuity and included it in the total price. This little epsiode really got our Orcas experience off on a really bad note. I would avoid Vern's like the plague. NOT GOOD!

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We had our rehearsal dinner at Vern's where they overcharged us by over $600. We had negotiated price including kids and when the bill came it was way off. Since we couldn't resolve the dispute at that time because the owner (Belinda) wasn't available, we signed the check intending to take up the issue with Belinda who we negotiated with. When we attempted to talk to her about it, she hung up on us and has since refused to talk to us about it. I will never do business or recommend anybody eat there ever again. The food for the rehearsal dinner was cafeteria quality and certainly not worth what we paid let alone what we should've paid.

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I used to go to the Bayside knowing the atmosphere in the bar was going to be kinda nasty, but the food really good.

We went this weekend - prices are way up, and we had a terrible meal. The BBQ beef sandwich, on the menu as "piled high with juicy roast beef" was hilarious. Literally one and a half paper thin slices of beef on a soggy ciabata roll. The fish and chips my friend got were way below par for a place on the ocean.

Dunno what happened (new owners maybe?) but this place has bitten the dust. We would have complained, but they lost our order once, took 20 more minutes to bring it... just not worth the hassle.

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