First of all, let me say this. I don't know where to start. So, let's start with the first fifteen minutes that we had to wait before we even received our drinks. Now, let me tell you about the six people behind us, yelling out loud with laughter; to a point that I had gotten a headache, and my nerves were about to explode any minute; which thankfully, they didn't. The waitress finally came to our table for our orders and we ordered our food. Unfortunately, the whole problem started when I received my blackened tuna steak and grilled vegetables. After sitting for about half an hour, having to listen to the same people laughing and yelling behind us, the waitress finally arrives with our food. I will say, though, that we had a very nice and understanding waitress, which I even tipped very well, after our horror feast ended. She did realize how loud the environment had gotten, and she knew very well how upset I was when I found out, that my tuna wasn't blackened tuna, but just two small pieces of tuna steak with NO flavoring (rub) and the vegetables were steamed and had no taste whatsoever. I asked that the whole meal be returned and cooked correctly. The waitress apologized; not that it was HER fault, and then...I sat for over twenty minutes more, waiting for my tuna steak. By the time my meal arrived, my two friends had already eaten their entire meals. The waitress places the meal before me; tuna looks good, but...the vegetables were still lying there, steamed as before. To make a long, long story short, I returned the vegetables and asked for mashed potatoes, instead. I told the waitress I wanted to speak to the manager about my dis-satisfaction with everything. I sat there for at least fifteen minutes before the manager arrived at my table. I assumed that a manager would come directly to your table if you were not happy with the service. It was his actions that indicated me, that he didn't care too much about his customers. He finally arrived and because of my "choice" words I spoke, he knew I was not a happy customer. He apologized and deducted the price from my bill. I will NEVER go back to Dukes Restaurant again; not this one, anyhow. It was the worst service I had ever received in my entire life. If you like it there, fine. I just hope you will continue receiving the good service you had always gotten.
(1)
Bill C.
Friday afternoon: no problem getting a seat inside Quick service Excellent salmon No complaints at all
(4)
Juliette Z.
Good food, nice service & ambiance. I came here with two friends and we had to wait for a table because it was very crowded. It took like 20 minutes but it was totally worth it. It's a nice place to come for drinks, dinner, for kids or large groups. We ordered the crab pretzel and shared this appetizer. I had a glass of wine and the crab cake salad as main dish. I enjoyed my food. Our waitress was nice and helpfull. She knew a lot about the menu but was not very familiar with the wines. Dukes has a very nice variety of wines (beers and cocktails). Although she couldn't answer my question about a specific kind of wine she knew how to solve this. I would definitely come back.
(4)
Angela H.
Worst service ever! The hostesses, bar tender, and server were so bad our party of 15 for my great aunt's 80th bday walked out and went next door to Dockside Willie's. 2/3 of our guests arrived and we tell them hostess we are having a surprise party for my aunt and we want to surprise her when she comes in. The hostess tells us we can't be sat until the whole party arrives which defeats the surprise and because of their "policy" they can't let us sit and order drinks and apps while we wait for her. We ask for an exception because it's a surprise and they decline. Keep in mind it's slow. How does that make any business sense? Most places would welcome up-selling their guests. Keep in mind it's 2pm on a sat and there are lots of empty tables, a whole room was empty but no we can't sit there. They say we can wait at the bar so we wait there. Not even a 1/3 of the bar is full but the majority of the people at the bar was my party. My grandma and aunt said to the bartender "when you get moment we'd like to order a drink" but they were brushed off by the bar tender. I had to flag the bar tender and she snapped "I'm really busy"! Really because no one was being served??? She disappeared and never took my drink order. We finally get our table and it takes 15 mins to place our drink orders. Then we realize we've been waiting 40 mins and no drinks, not even water. We haven't even placed our appetizer orders and my 5 year old was so hungry and I had to ask for a kids menu... The waitress said "for him??" And I was like um yeah he's only 5 and there are no other kids with us. We a total of an hour and got nothing but a bad attitude and some diatribe about a bullshit policy that makes no sense, certainly makes no money. We went next door and had a good time. Point blank they are assholes. We asked for a manager and was told there wasn't one on today. Really no manager on a Saturday? Not like any of the paces I've ever served! I will never go back.
(1)
Alan R.
Wow... I was blown away by the awesome views, great beer selection and general atmosphere. The food had its high and lows. High points: The wings were very tasty. I got the river sauce and it was freakin awesome, I could get it again for sure! The Crab Pretzel thing... very good and it is large, def could be a meal. Low points: The crab burger was super dry. The meat patties were dry, there was no sauce on the burger at all. One would think there would be. The patties looked like they were frozen in shape and only cost 4.99 for 3 dozen and where purchased at Sam's Club. The service was mediocre at best. They do not take reservations, and they couldn't tell you how long the wait would be. Not even a general idea, like 15-25 min, or and hour or so... nothing. I have never been in a restaurant who couldn't tell you that... Not even an idea. There were about 10 of us and 3 showed up early to put our name down, the rest of the group showed up about 15 min later. After about 40 min after the first group showed up their pager went off and we all thought we were going to be seated. Nope. They just wanted to confirm everyone was here so now we could be put in line for a table. About an hour later we were seated. Kinda ridiculous.
(3)
TJ B.
This place was dead tonite and I can kinda see why. Our waitress had a whole two tables to take care of and we barely even saw her. My girlfriends drink was made totally wrong and it took a long time to get a new one. Food was mediocre at best. We got the Flatbread pizza. I wouldn't give it one star jormally, but the service was severely lacking
(1)
Chris K.
Planned a birthday celebration at Dukes in Wormleysburg this past Saturday. The bar tender was too busy to provide drinks while we were awaiting the party guests. Finally we were seated and the wait staff took our drink order. 40 minutes later, we didn't have any drinks, not even a glass of water on the table. We took our party of 12 and left. On the way out, I heard the hostess explaining to another customer that there was no manager on the premises. Have no plans to return due to the rude and nonexistent service.
(2)
Erik G.
so the food here is decent. it's a well liked establishment. but the customer service in the management area of this business leads a little to be desired. we had a world renowned sideshow performer in town for the weekend. sunday night, his last night in town, we thought it might be a good idea to take him out to a scenic river spot. we had about twelve people in our party, but he was hungry now and not in a half hour, so we figured it would be no problem to get a large table and get some drinks and appetizers while we waited for the rest of our party to close up shop and come join us. now, we had a party of 12. 12 hungry tattooers who will all eat well and tip even better. it was about 9:30 on a sunday evening. the place was empty. but they refused to seat us at a large outdoor table until the whole party was there. the manager wouldn't bend on this policy. so we sat outside and explained to the waitress our predicament. she was totally cool and moved us to be a bigger table. and then a bigger table when our whole party arrived. all in all, a decent experience. alright food, although a little pricey. probably won't be back until we have another out of town guest with us and are desperate for food.
(3)
Gary R.
Love this place. Food is always good. We were here on Labor Day. The service was very good. Had 14 oz steak which was done exactly the way I asked. The server never let my drink empty or anyone else's at the table. Prices were very reasonable.
(5)
Sean O.
Tried the beer battered haddock sandwich. Huge portions with a ton of fries. The service was just OK and when they seated our party of 8 they put us at two small tables with chairs crammed together. There was a few unused tables nearby and had to ask for a table just to fit our party. Didn't make a lot of sense. Our actual server was very nice but the support staff was not nearly as friendly. Food is good but the atmosphere is so so for lunch.
(3)
Jeanine C.
I will never be coming here again. This was the second time I came to Dukes. I tried the one in Hershey, which was fantastic (only because I was starving the next morning after a night out). So the one in Wormleysburg. Ah yes, so we get seated outside on the patio. I am fully and completely aware you're in for all the insects that are near the river, so don't get me wrong when you read this. Our waitress was really nice, but very slow. We sat there for a good wait while she finally took our orders. I received a salad as an appetizer and my second bite in I find a dead fly in my salad. And this fly hadn't just died, you could tell he was in there for a long while. I tell my waitress about this and she said, "I apologize, I'll get a new one, but you must be aware that you are seated outside....." I cut her off and I began to inform her a fly wouldn't be under a whole pile of lettuce and smothered in dressing if this just happened. So she gets me a new one. As I'm waiting for my fly-free salad, I take a sip in my drink and there's another FLY IN THERE! Are you KIDDING ME???????????? Now I'm more than irritated. I get another drink. So as our food came, my friend bought a salad as a meal. She's eating through it and finds a big, long, BLACK hair in her food. Her hair is not black. So that wasn't very pleasing to her at all either. Since the waitress was never anywhere to be found we had to call a manager over. Could I say the worst service, ever?? I gave this lady no tip. Luckily, I was with a bunch of people or I would have walked out after the 2nd fly. Nothing too good to say about the food. I had gotten Chicken Parmesan with noodles. They do give you a lot, but it isn't fantastic. I'll pass!
(1)
Candice S.
Eager to enjoy the spring weather, we made a trip to Duke's to enjoy the deck. My pomegranate martini sat for quite some time, so when it arrived, I noticed a bug. I was told by a snotty waitress that my drink would not be refunded or remade because it was stated on the menu that this was the rule when eating outside. I could find nothing stated on the menu with this verbiage. Our waitress apologized and (supposedly) had a fresh one made. Even if they only picked out the bug and served it to me again, her tact in handling the situation went a long way. Then a hair was found in my husband's side salad. We didn't even have the heart or the patience to bring it to anyone's attention. Waitress Nikki was great, but we won't be eating here again.
(1)
Trajean S.
Food is great! I came to enjoy the wonderful deck and good food BUT was distracted by the NUMEROUS SPIDERS and webs all over the place. It was so bad we were literally watching them go into a ladies hair. When I asked the waiter if they clean the deck of the spiders he says "it's useless for they always come back"i think this should be addressed but until then this is my recommendation: sit in the middle of the deck away from either end to avoid the spiders.
(3)
Terri V.
This was my first time at Duke's so I went on line here to read reviews. I have to say I was concerned because what I was reading was not so nice. I was meeting a large group of about 15 people who came to enjoy the music group " The Villone's" and I wanted everyone to enjoy their evening. It was kinda raining and I wanted to sit where we could see and hear the group. All the chairs needed to be wiped and tables put together to seat our large group. Our waiter Jamell and another great guy got right to it with no problems. This large group all came at once and our waiter Jamell, saw to each and every one of our needs. totally pleasant! The food came each dish looked better then the last and tasted just as good. not one complaint from anyone, So please take this great review to heart. Enjoy the summer, enjoy the river, enjoy the food & the fantastic wait and bar staff. We will be back!
(5)
L F.
Terrible! There were 10 of us for lunch at noon on a Saturday. I called ahead to check the crowd. The girl on the phone was very rude and wouldn't tell me if they were crowded or not- just kept saying they don't do call ahead or take reservations. I should've decided then to go somewhere else. We headed over anyway... Waitress immediately took our drink order, but then it took her at least 20 min to come back to take our order. We were there for over 2 hours and they were not busy. Food is nothing special. They are lucky they have such a good location. I will not return however.
(1)
Kym D.
This place is overrated with 3 stars. The food is a 3 out of 10 and bartenders/managers attitudes are a 0 out of 10. The only thing great about this place is the deck. The bartenders and manager think they can treat people poorly just because they know people will still come to sit out on the deck. The crab pretzel which they are supposedly "known" for is not even good. The crab to pretzel ratio is way off. The alcoholic drinks are horrible. This place needs a bar rescue. Someone call Jon Taffer stat.
(1)
Francie F.
Great food, great atmosphere! The staff is very friendly and attentive! Overall great experience!
(5)
Ed M.
Portion sizes are good and deck is nice when people aren't smoking, but food is very bland, salad lettuce was old, and service is terribly slow.
(2)
Lesley M.
Pros: Great location on the Susquehanna River, lively bar scene, friendly servers, fun drink menu, and large outdoor deck. Cons: Dated decor and below average food quality. The bottom line: This is a great place to go for a fun night out, or even some casual people watching. It's always lively and inviting, with the best outdoor space in the area. If you're meeting up with some friends for drinks and quick eats, you can't go wrong. However, if you're looking for amazing food or a romantic dinner for two, this probably isn't going to cut it.
(3)
Joe A.
We went there last year and the drinks on the deck were terrible. We revisited a week ago and had the same problems with the drinks on the deck. We ordered a crab pretzel as an appetizer and it was great, but it showed up 2 minutes before my meal forcing me to pick which one I wanted to eat and which one I wanted to let go cold. The sandwich I order didn't taste too bad, but it was greasy and left me filling a bit ill about an hour later. My girlfriend ordered the crab cake and said it wasn't something she'd order there again. Overall kind of disappointing since they've got a nice deck on the water.
(2)
Melody H.
Went there last week for lunch the deck was full but we did get a table, got the Ruben which was great can't go wrong with that, they had changed their fries which I didn't care for they were a bit greasy and soggy but love the view and sitting on the deck
(3)
Dorothy B.
Such a great place to go with a crowd, right on the river. Fun time, relaxing - not rushed at all. Fantastic drinks, food and laughter!
(5)
David K.
Very disappointing. Given this place 3-4 chances, purely because of the view of the city and deck, but will not go back. The drinks are absolutely terrible. The mojito, G&T, mango margarita and normal margaritas all tasted sooo watered down. Besides that, the mint and garnishes they use are flippin disgusting. Exactly what I want in my mojito, a disgusting, entirely black stem of mint... The food is all very heavy and mostly fried. The crabby fries are really good, we get them every time. The crab pretzel was also really, really good. Its a shame, the place just has a boring menu, terrible drinks, and its like the bartenders know the drinks suck.
(2)
B S.
I want to know how a place can be known for their burgers when (to begin with) they don't even use hand-formed patties? All their gourmet burgers have two 1/4-pound patties. Looks like glorified Burger King. (This is from what I could tell. I could be wrong.) Skip the seasoned/spicy fries. They taste like jack-in-the-box curly fries. Get the regular ones instead. The burgers are big enough to share if you're not a big eater, which you should do so you can eat again somewhere else that's better. Plus for the deck with a view of the water. My friends got the Philly cheesesteak and chicken cheesesteak. Both looked gross.
(2)
Ben K.
Don't go here. The deck is the only thing keeping this dinosaur in business. The service is slow. The place is dirty (seriously, how long does it take to clean the cobwebs that cover your vents??) and the only good food is the crab pretzel. Turns into a ghost town after happy hour.
(1)
Kevin K.
Love this place, I come every year for a car show and the food and service are just fantastic even when they're slammed. Wait times can be a bit long but what do you expect with a major event near by. One of the two staples of my trip to carlise/harrisburg. The outside seating is hard to beat, looking out over the river with the lights shinning off it is fantastic.
(5)
Faith S.
The last time I was there (about a year ago), I vowed to never return because the service was so appalling, rude, and slow, and the food was disgusting. Unfortunately, I was duped into going there last night, because a friend's surprise party was moved there at the last minute. We were a large party of 12, which I understand is annoying for servers. Still, they assigned 2 to our table. The problem was that they weren't a team, one had half of us and the other had the other half. Therefore one could not be bothered to let the other know if say, I asked for another round. He actually said, "Um you have to tell HER." Ok, yeah, I'll wait till you go tell her I want something, have her come over, and then I'll tell her, and then she can order it, wait for it at the bar, and then bring it back, as opposed to you just telling her when you see her. Whatever. Anyway, I ordered nachos, because how hard can it be to assemble nachos? Apparently very hard, because it was a bowl of stale chips, a layer of chips, a blob of what tasted like canned spaghetti sauce with meat right in the middle, then another layer of chips with "cheese" sauce poured on top, but not like thick, cheesy sauce. No, the sauce was so thin it was see-through on the chips and it had no flavor whatsoever. Then the entire bowl was COVERED with salsa, and on top of that was a handful of BANANA PEPPERS. Banana peppers. On Nachos. ??? Banana peppers are for Italian sandwiches, not nachos! No black olives, no lettuce, no jalapenos, no shredded cheese, no guacamole. And the whole mess was cold. Disgusting. Oh and it was supposed to come with sour cream, but didn't. I didn't mention it to the waitress, because the nachos were so gross, I wasn't going to eat them anyway. My husband had a burger, he said it was dry, cold, and bland. And the bun wasn't toasted or grilled, and was cold and hard. I will say that the girl who waited on MY half of the table was pretty quick service-wise, and pleasant. She didn't bring us silverware or napkins though until after our food came, and we asked. Like, if people order food, you should have silverware and napkins on the table by the time it gets there. Just sayin. The drinks were awful, I think they must be pre-mixed? My friend had a long island, it came in like a little 10oz glass, had no flavor except a mild sweetness, definitely very little booze! But the worst part of the night was when the birthday girl pulled a long hair out of her quesadilla. How does that even happen??? Nevermind, I don't want to know. The inside is dark, dirty, sticky, damp, and depressing. Looks like it hasn't had a good cleaning or a makeover in 35 yrs. The deck is hot and smoky. I have my response prepared for the next time someone tries to convince me to go there: "I can't. I vowed to never return because it sucks so bad. Thanks anyway!"
(1)
Justin O.
This is one of my favorite places near Harrisburg, they have a great view of the river and within walking distance from City Island when the Harrisburg Senators and the Harrisburg City Islanders play. The restaurant has plenty of beer on draft to keep everyone satisfied, along with a great menu selection at reasonable prices. They also offer take out and a create your own 6 pack. I've gone there with my family and there good with kids and I've been there with large groups (12-14 people) and never had any issues.
(5)
William V.
Excellent boneless wings .. special every Sunday 12 boneless wings $5.00.. crab dip for an appetizer was excellent also !!!..
(5)
Kevin B.
I've been to Duke's a few times before and it's always been a great time. They have good food at very good prices and good beer as well. Their sandwiches and burgers are great and are very filling. For appetizers, I would highly suggest their Old Bay seasoned french fries with Boom Boom sauce. I have no idea what Boom Boom sauce is but it was delicious and I would definitely get it again (just make sure you split them with at least 2 others, they give you a lot of food). Overall - very good food at great prices and great service. I will definitely be coming back again.
(4)
Cody B.
Great food. You get a lot for the price you pay and it's all fantastic food. It also has an awesome deck that is out over the river so you can eat and enjoy the river. I recommend going in the summer so you can really enjoy the deck. Also has some great seafood. Best crab cakes in the city.
(5)
Randall G.
Menu is Very large ! Many options for all kinds of eaters. Friendly staff and a fun place ... HUGE PLUS: just like Dockside Willies, Dukes offers docks for us boaters. Nothing nicer than grabbing your food n drinks and heading out on the river for an evening of relaxing entertainment. Kudos to the staff ;-)
(5)
sheri e.
went to enjoy the deck recently and sat at the outside bar. ordered the bruschetta and the crab dip. the crap dip is priced at $11 and youre given a small portion, its the size of a cup of soup bowl, tasted good but very small for the price. the bruschetta tasted ok but the bread looked like a sub roll cut, with butter and garlic and the bread was soft. what i mainly didnt like was that the bartenders were not attentive, it wasnt that busy. they didnt come around to ask us if our food was good, and when we finished are appettizers they never came around to take our dishes away. they sat in front of us for a while until we said something. my friend smokes and the dirty ashtray wasnt even taken away and replaced with a clean one. the deck is nice but dukes is over rated. i dont know what managers are getting paid for
(2)
Marissa H.
For vegetarians, this place is a full 2 thumbs down. There's 1 vegetarian sandwich option, a cheese pizza, and a side salad that are "vegetarian". Granted, you can opt to have items removed from a menu item but who really wants to do that to your server when s/he is busy and you're hungry? Went in on a Senator's game night to grab a bite. It was packed. The 2 of us grabbed a seat at the outside bar, waited a good while to be acknowledged by the bartender. Beers beside us, we had to flag her down again to make our food order. Food came promptly but wasn't tasteful. I had the side salad (standard) & 1/2 a cheese pizza - 1 good comment is that the pizza (which is huge) can be made 1/2 plain & 1/2 meat. The pizza sauced tasted just like it came out of a can, the cheese wasn't melted properly, and it was overly crusty. To make it that much more unpleasant, the outside deck is smoker-friendly so I was inhaling that, too.The beer was the best part of my dining experience. For a non-smoking, vegetarian, health-conscious indvidual, Duke's will not be on my return list.
(1)
Jennifer K.
Can't comment on the food because we never got to sit down. It's Mother's day 2014 and they don't have enough servers. So 45 minute wait outside..typical and expected. 30 minute wait inside and there were only 2 tables seated. Absolutely ridiculous. The hostess was rude. The managers running around looked annoyed that people were there and the servers rolled their eyes every time people walked in. I only gave it 1 star bc you have to give a star.
(1)
Carol S.
We went to Dukes on a Saturday night and there was a wait for outside table so we sat inside near the bar. Still a nice view of the water. Lauren was our server and did a great job, she had a couple of big tables but our service level didn't suffer much. Boneless wings were good, beer ice cold and the Caesar wrap and blackened tuna were good, the apple pie in a mug was a great finish. Had a nice time and would go again.
(4)
Christopher M.
I was here once many moons ago with a medium-large group. I recall the food being decent bar/pub fare. But it took AGES for it to come out! And don't get me twisted. I'm ok with things coming out slowly when dining with a large group. But some people in our party received and finished their meals before others even received their appetizer. Maybe it has changed over the years. I hope so because Duke's had/has a lot of potential. But I wasn't impressed, have never been back, and would have to see a plethera of really good reviews before even considering giving them return business.
(2)
Michelle B.
Horrible service- we waited about 15 minutes before the waitress showed up to order our drinks. Waited another 20 minutes to get the drinks. Then after telling us 3 times that our food was "just about ready", we ended up waiting 30 minutes after the last time before it actually came out. Although, the food was tasty, but the soft drinks were flat or watered down. I do hope it was just a one time bad instance with the bad service because it is a cool place to dine.
(2)
John L.
Wife and I went there because of the scenic view of the Susquehanna river from the deck. We both ordered the black Angus burger and home cut fries. These were without a doubt the worst burger and fries I can ever recall having. The burgers had a very odd/bad taste and were overdone. The fries were so overdone you could use them as darts. These were terrible meals even as bar food goes. I gave it one star only because the view of the river was great and our server was friendly.
(1)
Stephen W.
Came here with a large group of family. Unlike many reviews here, our table service was good, (not great, but perfectly acceptable). Portion sizes were HUGE, but the food was just okay -- not bad, not great. My wife and I ordered the baja fish tacos, which were not anything like the picture in the menu, but they tasted good. My Old Bay fries were served hot, but completely over-seasoned, almost too salty to eat. I might have given Duke's 2 or perhaps even 3 stars, if it weren't for this: When we were sat, I used the men's room, and discovered they were out of soap. I immediately notified a restaurant employee. However, when I returned to the restroom after our meal, well over an hour later, there was STILL NO SOAP. I again notified an employee, and mentioned that I had told someone OVER AN HOUR AGO that there was no soap in the restroom, and they responded "well, we've been kinda busy, but we'll change it now" This means the everyone, customer and employee, who used the restroom for over an hour, DID NOT WASH THEIR HANDS. Gross. I will not patronize an establishment that will forgo basic hygiene requirements simply because they are a little busy.
(1)
J S.
If it was possible to give them negative stars...I would. Service...F Food...D There is way too much to type in detailing how this was a horrific experience. They're not worth my time. I'll never go back. Period.
(1)
Billi Jo S.
We chose this restaurant to celebrate my daughter's birthday (she and her family are from Maryland). I must say we are a mess of a family. Our grandson is Autistic and our visits to restaurants can be somewhat of a challenge! I wanted to make my daughter's birthday special and as soon as the host staff "hooked me up" with Andrea C, I knew we were in good hands. She handled the bunch of us with a calmness that not all restaurants/servers are able. The food was amazing and Andrea made our experience one of the best I have ever experienced. We all left feeling full and very grateful for our server! It was a birthday to remember! Thanks, Andrea C! You are the best!!
(4)
MoCe C.
I guess that u have to give them 1 star??! Beyond Poor service. Short staffed as always, overworked and Little training Seems like managment not only dosnt care But also seems to not b held accountable for their poor service. They don't help the overworked waitresses. Like others said it's the views I order at the bar as the others sit at tables n we just take turns getting the tables drinks. I don't enjoy giving one stars. But it's hoping they get a point. Or perhaps no one really cares bc they know someone will always come n put up with there shit EVERY thing.
(1)
Megan C.
This was my second visit to Duke's, and I would probably give it a 3 1/2 stars if I could. The atmosphere of Duke's is why I went back. When is Harrisburg for work, I am a sucker for drinking on an outdoor patio overlooking the river! So, a win for great location & great beverages! The food is typical bar food- nothing super exceptional, but you probably won't have a bad meal either. I will say the crab dip is pretty stellar, but my salmon stew & fried shrimp were just okay. Overall, great place to grab drinks, but I'll try somewhere else for food next time!
(3)
Sterling C.
Had the mountain meatloaf. It was good, a litter under cooked but good. I would get it again. The service on the other had was VERY slow and the place was dead. The server was not that attentive either.
(3)
Tony B.
I got the chicken Chesapeake wrap and the chicken was cooked perfectly. The fries were perfect with their old bay seasoning. I also got their hot mango wings as an appetizer and I would recommend them to anyone who want great flavor with not too much hot. I will continue to come here!
(5)
Lizzie J.
With it being a beautiful day outside, I can understand it being busy at a restaurant that is known for having outside deck service. Thus being said we opted out for an inside, close-to-the-window seat. The menu had large variety and everything we saw coming out looked great - but then when I looked around and saw the many guests who sat near us, I noticed some steps of service that had been missed; Nearly every customers drink was empty... Dirty dishes littered their tables... As I sat there (yet to have been greeted) I saw a table, who's guests had just left as we sat down, that still had its dirty dishes sitting on it... At first, I chalked it up to it being busy - but as the minutes ticked by... And my boyfriend and I had still yet to have been greeted... I couldn't help but become a bit disgruntled. Being in the service industry myself, I understand a busy atmosphere but cannot begin to fathom why it was so difficult to even get a "ill be right with you", let alone a greeting. The final straw was when a group of young men, who had passed us in the parking lot and were seating shortly after us were greeted, had their drink order in, and received said drinks long before we decided to leave. We were sat at approximately 7:20pm, and left at 7:38pm... 18 minutes is far too long for any greeting, regardless of how busy it is... But that is besides the fact, because we never even saw our server. I saw our hostess on our way out and politely told her we were never greeted and therefore were going to take our business somewhere else.
(1)
John G.
We enjoy Duke's on more than one occassion! Last night was no different! We went in around 8pm and it being Saturday night it was a tad busy 30 minute was the average wait but we only waited between 15-20 minutes. The place was packed but the rotation was fast. Our waitress came and got our drink orders and brought them back quickly. Nothing like cold Beer to get the appetite stimulated. I Had the BBQ Ribs they were tender spicy and for the money to much to eat. My wife had one of the MT. Meatloaf Platters it was on special but they sure didn't specialize the size it did look like a mountain it was huge. Both meals came with 2 sides and mine also came with Baked Beans they were to sweet for my taste but my wife loved them. The service was good better than expected for how busy they were. So if you like River View the Bar atmosphere and big Portions you won't go wrong at Duke's.
(4)
Tara D.
Great food and helpful staff...expect to spend $40 for lunch/dinner
(4)
Deborah C.
Sat here for over an hour for my food to come out cold told them to take it back don't want it . Appetiz came out with food no way I will ever come back
(1)
Stephanie F.
I haven't eaten here in about 2 years, but I was here several times and never disappointed. Huge menu, friendly staff and food was always good.
(4)
E G.
I wish I found this place sooner before moving back home. Duke's has great food for the kind of place it is. The food has always been fresh the times we have been there and the atmosphere is hard to beat in around here. There is a nice mix of a social and sit-down feeling here where you can mingle but stil enjoy a nice dinner right on the river. The food has been hot and tasty, I recommend trying any of the soups. Sandwichs are fresh and good sized. Crab dip with bread is one of the best I ever had. Service was mixed, the waitresses are friendly but depending on the time and day, it can be a little slow. That doesn't matter too much because you can enjoy a drink on the river and kind of pass the time easily. We always go back here if we want something consistently good with a nice surrounding. Great find, good food and reasonably priced!
(4)
Jill M.
The restaurant overall isn't that exciting (similar to a chain restaurant like Ruby Tuesdays or Fridays), but it is on the river, with lots of large windows to let in the view, and a big outdoor patio that I'm sure is wonderful in the summer. Our food took a while to come out, but the server was great - very helpful, kept checking on us, etc. The food was pretty good, and they give you large portions for the price. I got a steak salad that was almost too big to finish. The steak was a little tough/overcooked, however I can't remember if I specified "medium" when I ordered it. I tried some of my friend's crab quesadilla and it was packed full of lots of crab meat and cheese. My friends and I shared a brownie sundae for desesrt, and it was delicious. The brownie was warm and fudgy, and there were at least 2 brownies in the bowl - it was tough to tell under all that melty ice cream and chocolate sauce.
(3)
Jennifer W.
We had dinner at Duke's for my birthday, and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised after reading some of the negative reviews. We called ahead and made reservations for our party of 12. When we arrived, the table was ready, our server promptly took our drink order, and brought our beverages. She gave me recommendations on the menu items when I asked and the food came out pretty quickly for as big as our party was. I got the 2 pound rib dinner and they were phenomenal. I wound up taking half of the meal home to have another meal. The burgers are huge and the homemade buns are great. Everyone was very satisfied with their food. The service was also very good. Our server kept up with dink and beer refills and handled the chaos that comes along with a party of 12 very well. The menu prices seemed to be a little high, but after I saw the portions of food that everyone received, I was glad to pay what they were asking. This was my first dining experience at Dukes and it will not be my last.
(5)
Leila S.
If this were England and I had the power to demote those of British nobility, Duke's would immediately be renamed Knight's, but even THAT would be too nice since nothing about my dining experience here was of royal quality. ... not the slower than a snail service. ... not the so-called chicken caesar salad. ... not the old and slightly browning lettuce in the salad. ... not the tasteless or rubbery chicken either. ... not the incredibly scarce amount of dressing. ... not the roll of indigestible "garlic bread" that hardly had any taste of garlic. ... not the fact that I was still hungry after eating the salad that I only ate because I was absolutely starving... but I did not eat the roll. It simply was not possible to eat the roll, nor did I want to find out how that roll would have felt exiting my body, ekh. So, why is it then that this place is worthy of even two stars? It was because of my fabulous dining companion, my partner-in-crime, the infamous Harrisburg Yelper, miss Mia K. She was there for me through it all... holding my hand as I digested my meal... making me laugh by making fun of the gallery of mullets around us... and even letting me nibble off her plate of coconut shrimp salad which was actually quite lovely with the sun-dried tomato vinaigrette dressing. Now that is true BFF4EVAR love! But that's beside the point. The point is that if I had the power to also promote people into British nobility, I'd make myself Grand Princess because then I could marry the absolutely beautiful and charming Prince William and we would make lots of babies or at least do a lot of baby-making and live happily ever after. The end.
(2)
Pamela B.
Approximately 9 pm, find out that the Harrisburg Comedy Club in New Cumberland no longer has a restaurant. Show starts at 10 pm. The ONLY thing close to the Comedy Club is fast food. Decided to give this a try (about 6 driving minutes away), had not been here in probably 15 years since it was the Gingerbread Man. Explained our circumstance to the host, were seated at the bar (party of six), and all had our meals (which were very good, ), bar snacks & sandwiches, drinks, bill paid, and made the show only ten minutes late. The bartender/waitress was lovely and accommodating of our craziness. They need to start promoting a dinner & comedy package!
(4)
Brian R.
3 stars because the deck at Duke's over the river is tough to beat, really nice spot. That being said, the food here is very average, and the drinks are the same. Service is hit or miss.
(3)
liz m.
Food is awesome.....Service could be a little faster though. Steaks and pasta dishes are awesome......portions are huge! i eat alot and had 2 whole meals worth of food! Prices are good too! Love the atmosphere.....it's a shame Harrisburg doesn't have a prettier river to look at! :-)
(4)
Kevin S.
Hmm...seems several Yelpers have had a less than good experience here. Bummer. I'm not one of em. Had dinner here on Friday night with about 20 friends. We prepped Duke's ahead of time even though they don't take reservations. Even had a guest arrive early and put our name on their list. Once the group arrived (around 6:30 pm), we were seated immediately. This will help all those groups out there as to how to get it done. Alert the restaurant, and then confirm with someone in person. The food? Was pretty good. Had part of a friend's crab pretzel....and while it wasn't the "best" crab anything I'd ever had, it was tasty. For dinner, I had the Buffalo Chicken sandwich, seasoned fries and some diet pepsi. A bit different on the buffalo chicken theme as the buffalo crust flavor had it throughout the crust, not just on top. Fries were tasty. Service? Very good considering we had 2 waitresses during a very busy time for the place. Outdoor patio was PACKED. Prices? Nice. Parking appears tight, but in fact is plentiful, except that it's all across the street....so you get to enjoy crossing Front St. View of the river? Excellent!
(4)
Ovi D.
The view is amazing. The service is getting worse and worse. The food quality is poor. This reminds me of a tourist trap. Just because they have a great location doesn't mean you can neglect certain factors that distinguish good restaurants from bad
(2)
Bri G.
This is one of the best decks around on a nice summer's night. Good happy hour, good food, good service, good prices. This place has been consistently good at a reasonable price. Fun atmosphere outside and inside. Has always been a hit for us.
(4)
Ray Y.
After leaving Rock Bass Grill and being ignored there for over 30 minutes (see that reveiw) - I was pleased that upon sitting at the bar I actually was waited on within a minute. As it turns out the bartender was from Woburn, MA. Turns out I should have asked her what to order because the fish and chips was too greasy and coating too thick. The Fries nothing special. Still - just for the good and friendly service I'll give this place the benefit of the doubt. I had not checked the yelper reviews prior to the visit and had I done so I'm sure the dish I would have selected would have been better.
(2)
E Y.
I used to frequent this place when it was known as Riverside G-man. Never had any complaints about the food. The crab dip and chicken quesadilla were the bomb. So I went there yesterday for an early dinner with some co-workers. I ordered the usual chicken quesadilla and it was horrible. Hardly any filling and the chicken I believe was pre-packaged. Appetizers came out and within 2 minutes so did our entrees. It's unfortunate this place has gone down hill. Also, our server advised she wasn't sick as she wiped her nose. Perhaps she just needed to eat a cheeseburger or five....
(2)
Amy K.
Since when is two paper thin burger patties stuck together a 1/2lb burger patty? Very chewy, very thin, and overcooked. I asked for it to be cooked medium. If I wanted two paper thin patties with cheese on them, I would have gone to Wendy's and gotten a double stack cheeseburger. Very disappointed. I asked a cheeseburger, cooked medium, extra cheddar cheese. They just stacked two paper thin patties on top of each other with cheese on top and in the middle. Not impressed. Spider fell onto our table as well and that would have been very lovely to have fall onto our food. Won't be back after this lunch disaster.
(1)
Tony K.
This place is like a 2.5 but they get the round down because of the audacity in the service. Met up with some friends here one night. I was a first timer, so my friends were giving me suggestions. I was a little wary (shame on me) and I decided on the burger I think. Burger was fine. The problem was the french fries. They were left out all night or from another order or something because the first and only one I had was hard, old, and stone cold. The rest of my party was still eating away and I have nothing but a heap of cold fries on my plate and the same waiter takes the plate. I jot him a look like 'wtf?' and he looked right back like 'yea, I shouldn't have served those.' Didn't even ask me if I wanted to take it home or anything because he knew he was wrong; just took the plate of fries and was probably going to serve it to someone else. What kind of poop head knowingly serves bad/old food? Won't be going back there.
(2)
Queenie S.
My husband and I and our friends always stop by Dukes every time we're in the area. The food is always good and abundant. The chili and tomato bisque are to die for! We haven't ever had a bad meal there. The views are awesome and the wait staff go out of their way to serve. Go off hours because the place is so good that they get busy real fast.
(4)
Keely B.
I'd give this place a solid B. Despite being told they were too full to take our reservation for 10, we got a table with no problem when we arrived. The service was mediocre, and our server unenthusiastic, but no one was in a hurry. They had pints on special for $2.50, which was nice, and the house wine was decent. The long island was weak, even after we sent it back, but the food was quite excellent. I got the tomato florentine soup and a panini with seasoned fries. I loved it all, though I could only eat half--the other half was taken care of by a particularly ravenous friend. A friend's 10 year class reunion was taking place upstairs, and I'm not sure if it was the fault of the organizers or Duke's, but it sucked... Cash bar and one lonely appetizer for the whole group.
(3)
Mason H.
I was pulled into this restaurant because of the view of the Susquehanna River and City Island. It has a sports bar feel and I thought it would be a good place to visit prior to going to the Harrisburg Auto show. Even though it was the dumb hours, about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, I figured what do I have to lose. Well I had the Garganzola Apple Walnut chicken salad with the raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Lettuce was mostly iceberg so that was a let down. Not bad but nothing to write home about. My buddy Jeff had the Maryland crab cakes and thought it was so bad he sent it back. He traded it in for a chicken wrap which was okay. Olivia was the wait person and did an adequate job but it was not crowded so we expected to be taken care of. She worked with what she had. Fun location but lets just say they need to examine the quality of the product here. It needs work.
(1)
Steve P.
I come here for the Tomato Florentine Soup, and their Crab Pretzel. Anything else can take a flying leap into the Susquehanna River for being a tad overpriced for what you get (yes I realize the pretzel is expensive, that's why I only get it once a decade). That, and their system of seating yourself after 8PM only causes people to be left sitting waiting for their server to take notice one of their tables now has a soul in it. Which btw doesn't always happen. Their drinks are way too expensive and are mostly ice in the glass. However since I no longer come here to get my drink on, this review is based solely on the 2 food items I now get and the experience I have while eating there. During the day/lunch hour, the staff is very attentive and knows you are there. However, try coming here for a late night drink or snack and just hope you get a server who doesn't hate their job.
(3)
Tracie M.
Not a fan of the food. I've never had a meal here that I liked. Instead I've had stale bread, luke warm soup and dry bland chicken. Still, not a bad place to grab a drink in nice weather. The deck is nice. If you want to "bar hop" a bit, grab a drink here, then walk to nearby Dockside Willie's for a nice casual meal or to Rockbass Grill for something more upscale. Give yourself time to find a parking place. The lot (shared by all three restaurants) gets full.
(2)
Jim G.
Two words: CRAB PRETZEL!!!!!!!! Again: CRAB PRETZEL!!!! prepare to be rocked by its behemoth size! I am hard to please and this thing is amazing. Flavor upon wonderful flavor cascaded down the edges. My biggest complaint about eating out is how incredibly salty food is. Luckily yet ironically (being a pretzel after all) this crab pretzel has NO such sodium-addiction. High five! Note: I've only sat/eaten at the outdoor bar part, so i can't comment on service, wait times, etc....
(4)
Allan P.
This place is a greasy spoon, and the name and ownership has changed more times than I've changed my underwear; the place has definitely went downhill since the days it used be known as the "Gingerbread Man." I seriously do not know how this place stays in business. While the waitstaff is friendly and professional, it's always dead in here. The menu choices are what you'd find at a typical diner or at a TGIF. The portions are way too large, and there are few healthy options on the menu. I DEFINATELY won't order food here again. The only redeeming quality about Dukes is the large deck that overlooks the river, though it's pretty useless in the late fall and winter. The deck is VERY big, and it's never jam packed. They also have an outdoor bar, so if you're to hang out with a large group of friends on a warm summer night, this is probably the place to go - but just stick to the beer.
(2)
Mia K.
Who would have thought that I, Mia, would give an American Restaurant/Sports Bar 4 stars? Shh... Don't tell anyone. Duke's Riverside isn't *JUST* an American Restaurant and Sports Bar. At least not according to my taste buds; it's so much more. I first encountered Duke's when it was still Gingerbread Man back in '04. After one lunch I was hooked. I ordered the Coconut Shrimp Salad, and I haven't ordered anything else since. It's amazing. I really can't say anything about any of the other food (except that my friends continue to go back with me, so it must be decent) because I've never tried anything else. Coconut Shrimp Salad with Sun dried tomato vinaigrette (yeah I can't spell that and I'm lazy so yeah) is my FAVORITE food ever. That being said, for you LUSHES - they offer a huge menu of specialty cocktails and beers. In the summer you can enjoy them on the outdoor deck overlooking the Susquehanna and the bridge with the piece missing. If you squint your eyes, spray some tropical perfume and spin around 3 times it's ALMOST like you're in a tropical paradise. So why not 5 stars? Well, I've rarely had a good server. They usually take too long and aren't very nice. So, come for the Coconut Shrimp Salad, stay because no one has brought your check.
(4)
Leon J.
I wish I could give this place zero stars, but it does get one star for having a great view. The service is terrible. The food is putrid, if not disease-ridden. The establishment if filled with West Shore trash that watches Oprah and shops at Kohls. Unfortunately, that crowd will continue to frequent this "restaurant" (and I use that term loosely). Otherwise, this place would thankfully go out of business and a new owner could take advantage of the nice setting. Ugh...
(1)
Ali R.
Ughhhh, I can't believe people are actually giving this place good reviews. I guess the only redeeming point could lie in the fact that there's a deck and you can sit and look over the water & Harrisburg skyline. The food is basically terrible, nothing but a huge menu of mostly glorified bar food. I had a chicken salad, which looked like it was made from bagged mix; iceberg lettuce, tiny shreds of carrot, etc. French onion soup was nothing special, just overly salty. My eating companions had the coconut shrimp salad (the shrimp was okay, the rest of the salad was the same colorless iceberg mix) and a prime rib sandwich. The sandwich portion was huge and looked appetizing, but I didn't try it so I can't accurately tell. The inside of the restaurant seems dark and depressing. Huge portions of boring food. Not worth your time or money.
(1)
Jeff S.
7/26/08 4:30pm Awful. Empty tables everywhere, yet we waited for 10 minutes to be seated. Then our server never came - we had to speak to the hostess to address the problem. Overall, the food at my table of 7 was ok to good, but my fish & chips was poor - overly breaded cheap fish. The coleslaw was gross and they brought me potato wedges instead of the french fries I asked for. Inasmuch as this was a non-alcoholic family function, I was not distracted from the abysmal service by my alcohol intake, I had to suffer through each agonizing moment unmedicated. An awful dining experience, one of the worst in months.
(1)
Dennis H.
Had lunch outside yesterday. Good food, good service, good prices
(4)
joshua h.
went with the girlfriend Tuesday night for dinner on the deck,arrived at 7 was told it would be about 25 minutes for deck seating, we said we would wait,..and we did ,... for 50 minutes,...after being seated we ordered drinks, a soda and a beer,..soda came out relatively quick, the beer 12 minutes later,.. then ordered a cup of french onion soup,which was good, and a Reuben for myself and a chicken and rice with side of veggies for the gf,...35 minutes later they were brought out,..my Reuben came out as a Rachel,complete with dried out sliced turkey and half stale dry bread,I would have complained but I prefer my food spit free,..the girlfriends chicken dish was ok but veggies were completely bland,the waitress checked on us once,"after we were done and waiting for the check" to see if we wanted dessert...nice place to go for a beer with friends,but this will be my last trip there for dinner. honestly,.. arby's sandwiches taste better
(1)
Kevin S.
Hmm...seems several Yelpers have had a less than good experience here. Bummer. I'm not one of em. Had dinner here on Friday night with about 20 friends. We prepped Duke's ahead of time even though they don't take reservations. Even had a guest arrive early and put our name on their list. Once the group arrived (around 6:30 pm), we were seated immediately. This will help all those groups out there as to how to get it done. Alert the restaurant, and then confirm with someone in person. The food? Was pretty good. Had part of a friend's crab pretzel....and while it wasn't the "best" crab anything I'd ever had, it was tasty. For dinner, I had the Buffalo Chicken sandwich, seasoned fries and some diet pepsi. A bit different on the buffalo chicken theme as the buffalo crust flavor had it throughout the crust, not just on top. Fries were tasty. Service? Very good considering we had 2 waitresses during a very busy time for the place. Outdoor patio was PACKED. Prices? Nice. Parking appears tight, but in fact is plentiful, except that it's all across the street....so you get to enjoy crossing Front St. View of the river? Excellent!
(4)
Mia K.
Who would have thought that I, Mia, would give an American Restaurant/Sports Bar 4 stars? Shh... Don't tell anyone. Duke's Riverside isn't *JUST* an American Restaurant and Sports Bar. At least not according to my taste buds; it's so much more. I first encountered Duke's when it was still Gingerbread Man back in '04. After one lunch I was hooked. I ordered the Coconut Shrimp Salad, and I haven't ordered anything else since. It's amazing. I really can't say anything about any of the other food (except that my friends continue to go back with me, so it must be decent) because I've never tried anything else. Coconut Shrimp Salad with Sun dried tomato vinaigrette (yeah I can't spell that and I'm lazy so yeah) is my FAVORITE food ever. That being said, for you LUSHES - they offer a huge menu of specialty cocktails and beers. In the summer you can enjoy them on the outdoor deck overlooking the Susquehanna and the bridge with the piece missing. If you squint your eyes, spray some tropical perfume and spin around 3 times it's ALMOST like you're in a tropical paradise. So why not 5 stars? Well, I've rarely had a good server. They usually take too long and aren't very nice. So, come for the Coconut Shrimp Salad, stay because no one has brought your check.
(4)
Kevin K.
Love this place, I come every year for a car show and the food and service are just fantastic even when they're slammed. Wait times can be a bit long but what do you expect with a major event near by. One of the two staples of my trip to carlise/harrisburg. The outside seating is hard to beat, looking out over the river with the lights shinning off it is fantastic.
(5)
Cody B.
Great food. You get a lot for the price you pay and it's all fantastic food. It also has an awesome deck that is out over the river so you can eat and enjoy the river. I recommend going in the summer so you can really enjoy the deck. Also has some great seafood. Best crab cakes in the city.
(5)
Carol S.
We went to Dukes on a Saturday night and there was a wait for outside table so we sat inside near the bar. Still a nice view of the water. Lauren was our server and did a great job, she had a couple of big tables but our service level didn't suffer much. Boneless wings were good, beer ice cold and the Caesar wrap and blackened tuna were good, the apple pie in a mug was a great finish. Had a nice time and would go again.
(4)
Christopher M.
I was here once many moons ago with a medium-large group. I recall the food being decent bar/pub fare. But it took AGES for it to come out! And don't get me twisted. I'm ok with things coming out slowly when dining with a large group. But some people in our party received and finished their meals before others even received their appetizer. Maybe it has changed over the years. I hope so because Duke's had/has a lot of potential. But I wasn't impressed, have never been back, and would have to see a plethera of really good reviews before even considering giving them return business.
(2)
Michelle B.
Horrible service- we waited about 15 minutes before the waitress showed up to order our drinks. Waited another 20 minutes to get the drinks. Then after telling us 3 times that our food was "just about ready", we ended up waiting 30 minutes after the last time before it actually came out. Although, the food was tasty, but the soft drinks were flat or watered down. I do hope it was just a one time bad instance with the bad service because it is a cool place to dine.
(2)
E Y.
I used to frequent this place when it was known as Riverside G-man. Never had any complaints about the food. The crab dip and chicken quesadilla were the bomb. So I went there yesterday for an early dinner with some co-workers. I ordered the usual chicken quesadilla and it was horrible. Hardly any filling and the chicken I believe was pre-packaged. Appetizers came out and within 2 minutes so did our entrees. It's unfortunate this place has gone down hill. Also, our server advised she wasn't sick as she wiped her nose. Perhaps she just needed to eat a cheeseburger or five....
(2)
Tracie M.
Not a fan of the food. I've never had a meal here that I liked. Instead I've had stale bread, luke warm soup and dry bland chicken. Still, not a bad place to grab a drink in nice weather. The deck is nice. If you want to "bar hop" a bit, grab a drink here, then walk to nearby Dockside Willie's for a nice casual meal or to Rockbass Grill for something more upscale. Give yourself time to find a parking place. The lot (shared by all three restaurants) gets full.
(2)
Lizzie J.
With it being a beautiful day outside, I can understand it being busy at a restaurant that is known for having outside deck service. Thus being said we opted out for an inside, close-to-the-window seat. The menu had large variety and everything we saw coming out looked great - but then when I looked around and saw the many guests who sat near us, I noticed some steps of service that had been missed; Nearly every customers drink was empty... Dirty dishes littered their tables... As I sat there (yet to have been greeted) I saw a table, who's guests had just left as we sat down, that still had its dirty dishes sitting on it... At first, I chalked it up to it being busy - but as the minutes ticked by... And my boyfriend and I had still yet to have been greeted... I couldn't help but become a bit disgruntled. Being in the service industry myself, I understand a busy atmosphere but cannot begin to fathom why it was so difficult to even get a "ill be right with you", let alone a greeting. The final straw was when a group of young men, who had passed us in the parking lot and were seating shortly after us were greeted, had their drink order in, and received said drinks long before we decided to leave. We were sat at approximately 7:20pm, and left at 7:38pm... 18 minutes is far too long for any greeting, regardless of how busy it is... But that is besides the fact, because we never even saw our server. I saw our hostess on our way out and politely told her we were never greeted and therefore were going to take our business somewhere else.
(1)
Ovi D.
The view is amazing. The service is getting worse and worse. The food quality is poor. This reminds me of a tourist trap. Just because they have a great location doesn't mean you can neglect certain factors that distinguish good restaurants from bad
(2)
Bri G.
This is one of the best decks around on a nice summer's night. Good happy hour, good food, good service, good prices. This place has been consistently good at a reasonable price. Fun atmosphere outside and inside. Has always been a hit for us.
(4)
Tony K.
This place is like a 2.5 but they get the round down because of the audacity in the service. Met up with some friends here one night. I was a first timer, so my friends were giving me suggestions. I was a little wary (shame on me) and I decided on the burger I think. Burger was fine. The problem was the french fries. They were left out all night or from another order or something because the first and only one I had was hard, old, and stone cold. The rest of my party was still eating away and I have nothing but a heap of cold fries on my plate and the same waiter takes the plate. I jot him a look like 'wtf?' and he looked right back like 'yea, I shouldn't have served those.' Didn't even ask me if I wanted to take it home or anything because he knew he was wrong; just took the plate of fries and was probably going to serve it to someone else. What kind of poop head knowingly serves bad/old food? Won't be going back there.
(2)
Queenie S.
My husband and I and our friends always stop by Dukes every time we're in the area. The food is always good and abundant. The chili and tomato bisque are to die for! We haven't ever had a bad meal there. The views are awesome and the wait staff go out of their way to serve. Go off hours because the place is so good that they get busy real fast.
(4)
Keely B.
I'd give this place a solid B. Despite being told they were too full to take our reservation for 10, we got a table with no problem when we arrived. The service was mediocre, and our server unenthusiastic, but no one was in a hurry. They had pints on special for $2.50, which was nice, and the house wine was decent. The long island was weak, even after we sent it back, but the food was quite excellent. I got the tomato florentine soup and a panini with seasoned fries. I loved it all, though I could only eat half--the other half was taken care of by a particularly ravenous friend. A friend's 10 year class reunion was taking place upstairs, and I'm not sure if it was the fault of the organizers or Duke's, but it sucked... Cash bar and one lonely appetizer for the whole group.
(3)
Mason H.
I was pulled into this restaurant because of the view of the Susquehanna River and City Island. It has a sports bar feel and I thought it would be a good place to visit prior to going to the Harrisburg Auto show. Even though it was the dumb hours, about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, I figured what do I have to lose. Well I had the Garganzola Apple Walnut chicken salad with the raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Lettuce was mostly iceberg so that was a let down. Not bad but nothing to write home about. My buddy Jeff had the Maryland crab cakes and thought it was so bad he sent it back. He traded it in for a chicken wrap which was okay. Olivia was the wait person and did an adequate job but it was not crowded so we expected to be taken care of. She worked with what she had. Fun location but lets just say they need to examine the quality of the product here. It needs work.
(1)
Jim G.
Two words: CRAB PRETZEL!!!!!!!! Again: CRAB PRETZEL!!!! prepare to be rocked by its behemoth size! I am hard to please and this thing is amazing. Flavor upon wonderful flavor cascaded down the edges. My biggest complaint about eating out is how incredibly salty food is. Luckily yet ironically (being a pretzel after all) this crab pretzel has NO such sodium-addiction. High five! Note: I've only sat/eaten at the outdoor bar part, so i can't comment on service, wait times, etc....
(4)
Allan P.
This place is a greasy spoon, and the name and ownership has changed more times than I've changed my underwear; the place has definitely went downhill since the days it used be known as the "Gingerbread Man." I seriously do not know how this place stays in business. While the waitstaff is friendly and professional, it's always dead in here. The menu choices are what you'd find at a typical diner or at a TGIF. The portions are way too large, and there are few healthy options on the menu. I DEFINATELY won't order food here again. The only redeeming quality about Dukes is the large deck that overlooks the river, though it's pretty useless in the late fall and winter. The deck is VERY big, and it's never jam packed. They also have an outdoor bar, so if you're to hang out with a large group of friends on a warm summer night, this is probably the place to go - but just stick to the beer.
(2)
John G.
We enjoy Duke's on more than one occassion! Last night was no different! We went in around 8pm and it being Saturday night it was a tad busy 30 minute was the average wait but we only waited between 15-20 minutes. The place was packed but the rotation was fast. Our waitress came and got our drink orders and brought them back quickly. Nothing like cold Beer to get the appetite stimulated. I Had the BBQ Ribs they were tender spicy and for the money to much to eat. My wife had one of the MT. Meatloaf Platters it was on special but they sure didn't specialize the size it did look like a mountain it was huge. Both meals came with 2 sides and mine also came with Baked Beans they were to sweet for my taste but my wife loved them. The service was good better than expected for how busy they were. So if you like River View the Bar atmosphere and big Portions you won't go wrong at Duke's.
(4)
Tara D.
Great food and helpful staff...expect to spend $40 for lunch/dinner
(4)
Deborah C.
Sat here for over an hour for my food to come out cold told them to take it back don't want it . Appetiz came out with food no way I will ever come back
(1)
Stephanie F.
I haven't eaten here in about 2 years, but I was here several times and never disappointed. Huge menu, friendly staff and food was always good.
(4)
Jennifer W.
We had dinner at Duke's for my birthday, and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised after reading some of the negative reviews. We called ahead and made reservations for our party of 12. When we arrived, the table was ready, our server promptly took our drink order, and brought our beverages. She gave me recommendations on the menu items when I asked and the food came out pretty quickly for as big as our party was. I got the 2 pound rib dinner and they were phenomenal. I wound up taking half of the meal home to have another meal. The burgers are huge and the homemade buns are great. Everyone was very satisfied with their food. The service was also very good. Our server kept up with dink and beer refills and handled the chaos that comes along with a party of 12 very well. The menu prices seemed to be a little high, but after I saw the portions of food that everyone received, I was glad to pay what they were asking. This was my first dining experience at Dukes and it will not be my last.
(5)
Ray Y.
After leaving Rock Bass Grill and being ignored there for over 30 minutes (see that reveiw) - I was pleased that upon sitting at the bar I actually was waited on within a minute. As it turns out the bartender was from Woburn, MA. Turns out I should have asked her what to order because the fish and chips was too greasy and coating too thick. The Fries nothing special. Still - just for the good and friendly service I'll give this place the benefit of the doubt. I had not checked the yelper reviews prior to the visit and had I done so I'm sure the dish I would have selected would have been better.
(2)
E G.
I wish I found this place sooner before moving back home. Duke's has great food for the kind of place it is. The food has always been fresh the times we have been there and the atmosphere is hard to beat in around here. There is a nice mix of a social and sit-down feeling here where you can mingle but stil enjoy a nice dinner right on the river. The food has been hot and tasty, I recommend trying any of the soups. Sandwichs are fresh and good sized. Crab dip with bread is one of the best I ever had. Service was mixed, the waitresses are friendly but depending on the time and day, it can be a little slow. That doesn't matter too much because you can enjoy a drink on the river and kind of pass the time easily. We always go back here if we want something consistently good with a nice surrounding. Great find, good food and reasonably priced!
(4)
Amy K.
Since when is two paper thin burger patties stuck together a 1/2lb burger patty? Very chewy, very thin, and overcooked. I asked for it to be cooked medium. If I wanted two paper thin patties with cheese on them, I would have gone to Wendy's and gotten a double stack cheeseburger. Very disappointed. I asked a cheeseburger, cooked medium, extra cheddar cheese. They just stacked two paper thin patties on top of each other with cheese on top and in the middle. Not impressed. Spider fell onto our table as well and that would have been very lovely to have fall onto our food. Won't be back after this lunch disaster.
(1)
Steve P.
I come here for the Tomato Florentine Soup, and their Crab Pretzel. Anything else can take a flying leap into the Susquehanna River for being a tad overpriced for what you get (yes I realize the pretzel is expensive, that's why I only get it once a decade). That, and their system of seating yourself after 8PM only causes people to be left sitting waiting for their server to take notice one of their tables now has a soul in it. Which btw doesn't always happen. Their drinks are way too expensive and are mostly ice in the glass. However since I no longer come here to get my drink on, this review is based solely on the 2 food items I now get and the experience I have while eating there. During the day/lunch hour, the staff is very attentive and knows you are there. However, try coming here for a late night drink or snack and just hope you get a server who doesn't hate their job.
(3)
Jill M.
The restaurant overall isn't that exciting (similar to a chain restaurant like Ruby Tuesdays or Fridays), but it is on the river, with lots of large windows to let in the view, and a big outdoor patio that I'm sure is wonderful in the summer. Our food took a while to come out, but the server was great - very helpful, kept checking on us, etc. The food was pretty good, and they give you large portions for the price. I got a steak salad that was almost too big to finish. The steak was a little tough/overcooked, however I can't remember if I specified "medium" when I ordered it. I tried some of my friend's crab quesadilla and it was packed full of lots of crab meat and cheese. My friends and I shared a brownie sundae for desesrt, and it was delicious. The brownie was warm and fudgy, and there were at least 2 brownies in the bowl - it was tough to tell under all that melty ice cream and chocolate sauce.
(3)
Leon J.
I wish I could give this place zero stars, but it does get one star for having a great view. The service is terrible. The food is putrid, if not disease-ridden. The establishment if filled with West Shore trash that watches Oprah and shops at Kohls. Unfortunately, that crowd will continue to frequent this "restaurant" (and I use that term loosely). Otherwise, this place would thankfully go out of business and a new owner could take advantage of the nice setting. Ugh...
(1)
Ali R.
Ughhhh, I can't believe people are actually giving this place good reviews. I guess the only redeeming point could lie in the fact that there's a deck and you can sit and look over the water & Harrisburg skyline. The food is basically terrible, nothing but a huge menu of mostly glorified bar food. I had a chicken salad, which looked like it was made from bagged mix; iceberg lettuce, tiny shreds of carrot, etc. French onion soup was nothing special, just overly salty. My eating companions had the coconut shrimp salad (the shrimp was okay, the rest of the salad was the same colorless iceberg mix) and a prime rib sandwich. The sandwich portion was huge and looked appetizing, but I didn't try it so I can't accurately tell. The inside of the restaurant seems dark and depressing. Huge portions of boring food. Not worth your time or money.
(1)
Erik G.
so the food here is decent. it's a well liked establishment. but the customer service in the management area of this business leads a little to be desired. we had a world renowned sideshow performer in town for the weekend. sunday night, his last night in town, we thought it might be a good idea to take him out to a scenic river spot. we had about twelve people in our party, but he was hungry now and not in a half hour, so we figured it would be no problem to get a large table and get some drinks and appetizers while we waited for the rest of our party to close up shop and come join us. now, we had a party of 12. 12 hungry tattooers who will all eat well and tip even better. it was about 9:30 on a sunday evening. the place was empty. but they refused to seat us at a large outdoor table until the whole party was there. the manager wouldn't bend on this policy. so we sat outside and explained to the waitress our predicament. she was totally cool and moved us to be a bigger table. and then a bigger table when our whole party arrived. all in all, a decent experience. alright food, although a little pricey. probably won't be back until we have another out of town guest with us and are desperate for food.
(3)
Stephen W.
Came here with a large group of family. Unlike many reviews here, our table service was good, (not great, but perfectly acceptable). Portion sizes were HUGE, but the food was just okay -- not bad, not great. My wife and I ordered the baja fish tacos, which were not anything like the picture in the menu, but they tasted good. My Old Bay fries were served hot, but completely over-seasoned, almost too salty to eat. I might have given Duke's 2 or perhaps even 3 stars, if it weren't for this: When we were sat, I used the men's room, and discovered they were out of soap. I immediately notified a restaurant employee. However, when I returned to the restroom after our meal, well over an hour later, there was STILL NO SOAP. I again notified an employee, and mentioned that I had told someone OVER AN HOUR AGO that there was no soap in the restroom, and they responded "well, we've been kinda busy, but we'll change it now" This means the everyone, customer and employee, who used the restroom for over an hour, DID NOT WASH THEIR HANDS. Gross. I will not patronize an establishment that will forgo basic hygiene requirements simply because they are a little busy.
(1)
J S.
If it was possible to give them negative stars...I would. Service...F Food...D There is way too much to type in detailing how this was a horrific experience. They're not worth my time. I'll never go back. Period.
(1)
Gary R.
Love this place. Food is always good. We were here on Labor Day. The service was very good. Had 14 oz steak which was done exactly the way I asked. The server never let my drink empty or anyone else's at the table. Prices were very reasonable.
(5)
Sean O.
Tried the beer battered haddock sandwich. Huge portions with a ton of fries. The service was just OK and when they seated our party of 8 they put us at two small tables with chairs crammed together. There was a few unused tables nearby and had to ask for a table just to fit our party. Didn't make a lot of sense. Our actual server was very nice but the support staff was not nearly as friendly. Food is good but the atmosphere is so so for lunch.
(3)
David K.
Very disappointing. Given this place 3-4 chances, purely because of the view of the city and deck, but will not go back. The drinks are absolutely terrible. The mojito, G&T, mango margarita and normal margaritas all tasted sooo watered down. Besides that, the mint and garnishes they use are flippin disgusting. Exactly what I want in my mojito, a disgusting, entirely black stem of mint... The food is all very heavy and mostly fried. The crabby fries are really good, we get them every time. The crab pretzel was also really, really good. Its a shame, the place just has a boring menu, terrible drinks, and its like the bartenders know the drinks suck.
(2)
B S.
I want to know how a place can be known for their burgers when (to begin with) they don't even use hand-formed patties? All their gourmet burgers have two 1/4-pound patties. Looks like glorified Burger King. (This is from what I could tell. I could be wrong.) Skip the seasoned/spicy fries. They taste like jack-in-the-box curly fries. Get the regular ones instead. The burgers are big enough to share if you're not a big eater, which you should do so you can eat again somewhere else that's better. Plus for the deck with a view of the water. My friends got the Philly cheesesteak and chicken cheesesteak. Both looked gross.
(2)
Kevin B.
I've been to Duke's a few times before and it's always been a great time. They have good food at very good prices and good beer as well. Their sandwiches and burgers are great and are very filling. For appetizers, I would highly suggest their Old Bay seasoned french fries with Boom Boom sauce. I have no idea what Boom Boom sauce is but it was delicious and I would definitely get it again (just make sure you split them with at least 2 others, they give you a lot of food). Overall - very good food at great prices and great service. I will definitely be coming back again.
(4)
Melody H.
Went there last week for lunch the deck was full but we did get a table, got the Ruben which was great can't go wrong with that, they had changed their fries which I didn't care for they were a bit greasy and soggy but love the view and sitting on the deck
(3)
Dorothy B.
Such a great place to go with a crowd, right on the river. Fun time, relaxing - not rushed at all. Fantastic drinks, food and laughter!
(5)
Trajean S.
Food is great! I came to enjoy the wonderful deck and good food BUT was distracted by the NUMEROUS SPIDERS and webs all over the place. It was so bad we were literally watching them go into a ladies hair. When I asked the waiter if they clean the deck of the spiders he says "it's useless for they always come back"i think this should be addressed but until then this is my recommendation: sit in the middle of the deck away from either end to avoid the spiders.
(3)
Billi Jo S.
We chose this restaurant to celebrate my daughter's birthday (she and her family are from Maryland). I must say we are a mess of a family. Our grandson is Autistic and our visits to restaurants can be somewhat of a challenge! I wanted to make my daughter's birthday special and as soon as the host staff "hooked me up" with Andrea C, I knew we were in good hands. She handled the bunch of us with a calmness that not all restaurants/servers are able. The food was amazing and Andrea made our experience one of the best I have ever experienced. We all left feeling full and very grateful for our server! It was a birthday to remember! Thanks, Andrea C! You are the best!!
(4)
Chris K.
Planned a birthday celebration at Dukes in Wormleysburg this past Saturday. The bar tender was too busy to provide drinks while we were awaiting the party guests. Finally we were seated and the wait staff took our drink order. 40 minutes later, we didn't have any drinks, not even a glass of water on the table. We took our party of 12 and left. On the way out, I heard the hostess explaining to another customer that there was no manager on the premises. Have no plans to return due to the rude and nonexistent service.
(2)
Sterling C.
Had the mountain meatloaf. It was good, a litter under cooked but good. I would get it again. The service on the other had was VERY slow and the place was dead. The server was not that attentive either.
(3)
Tony B.
I got the chicken Chesapeake wrap and the chicken was cooked perfectly. The fries were perfect with their old bay seasoning. I also got their hot mango wings as an appetizer and I would recommend them to anyone who want great flavor with not too much hot. I will continue to come here!
(5)
Megan C.
This was my second visit to Duke's, and I would probably give it a 3 1/2 stars if I could. The atmosphere of Duke's is why I went back. When is Harrisburg for work, I am a sucker for drinking on an outdoor patio overlooking the river! So, a win for great location & great beverages! The food is typical bar food- nothing super exceptional, but you probably won't have a bad meal either. I will say the crab dip is pretty stellar, but my salmon stew & fried shrimp were just okay. Overall, great place to grab drinks, but I'll try somewhere else for food next time!
(3)
MoCe C.
I guess that u have to give them 1 star??! Beyond Poor service. Short staffed as always, overworked and Little training Seems like managment not only dosnt care But also seems to not b held accountable for their poor service. They don't help the overworked waitresses. Like others said it's the views I order at the bar as the others sit at tables n we just take turns getting the tables drinks. I don't enjoy giving one stars. But it's hoping they get a point. Or perhaps no one really cares bc they know someone will always come n put up with there shit EVERY thing.
(1)
Jeanine C.
I will never be coming here again. This was the second time I came to Dukes. I tried the one in Hershey, which was fantastic (only because I was starving the next morning after a night out). So the one in Wormleysburg. Ah yes, so we get seated outside on the patio. I am fully and completely aware you're in for all the insects that are near the river, so don't get me wrong when you read this. Our waitress was really nice, but very slow. We sat there for a good wait while she finally took our orders. I received a salad as an appetizer and my second bite in I find a dead fly in my salad. And this fly hadn't just died, you could tell he was in there for a long while. I tell my waitress about this and she said, "I apologize, I'll get a new one, but you must be aware that you are seated outside....." I cut her off and I began to inform her a fly wouldn't be under a whole pile of lettuce and smothered in dressing if this just happened. So she gets me a new one. As I'm waiting for my fly-free salad, I take a sip in my drink and there's another FLY IN THERE! Are you KIDDING ME???????????? Now I'm more than irritated. I get another drink. So as our food came, my friend bought a salad as a meal. She's eating through it and finds a big, long, BLACK hair in her food. Her hair is not black. So that wasn't very pleasing to her at all either. Since the waitress was never anywhere to be found we had to call a manager over. Could I say the worst service, ever?? I gave this lady no tip. Luckily, I was with a bunch of people or I would have walked out after the 2nd fly. Nothing too good to say about the food. I had gotten Chicken Parmesan with noodles. They do give you a lot, but it isn't fantastic. I'll pass!
(1)
Candice S.
Eager to enjoy the spring weather, we made a trip to Duke's to enjoy the deck. My pomegranate martini sat for quite some time, so when it arrived, I noticed a bug. I was told by a snotty waitress that my drink would not be refunded or remade because it was stated on the menu that this was the rule when eating outside. I could find nothing stated on the menu with this verbiage. Our waitress apologized and (supposedly) had a fresh one made. Even if they only picked out the bug and served it to me again, her tact in handling the situation went a long way. Then a hair was found in my husband's side salad. We didn't even have the heart or the patience to bring it to anyone's attention. Waitress Nikki was great, but we won't be eating here again.
(1)
Lesley M.
Pros: Great location on the Susquehanna River, lively bar scene, friendly servers, fun drink menu, and large outdoor deck. Cons: Dated decor and below average food quality. The bottom line: This is a great place to go for a fun night out, or even some casual people watching. It's always lively and inviting, with the best outdoor space in the area. If you're meeting up with some friends for drinks and quick eats, you can't go wrong. However, if you're looking for amazing food or a romantic dinner for two, this probably isn't going to cut it.
(3)
Jim S.
First of all, let me say this. I don't know where to start. So, let's start with the first fifteen minutes that we had to wait before we even received our drinks. Now, let me tell you about the six people behind us, yelling out loud with laughter; to a point that I had gotten a headache, and my nerves were about to explode any minute; which thankfully, they didn't. The waitress finally came to our table for our orders and we ordered our food. Unfortunately, the whole problem started when I received my blackened tuna steak and grilled vegetables. After sitting for about half an hour, having to listen to the same people laughing and yelling behind us, the waitress finally arrives with our food. I will say, though, that we had a very nice and understanding waitress, which I even tipped very well, after our horror feast ended. She did realize how loud the environment had gotten, and she knew very well how upset I was when I found out, that my tuna wasn't blackened tuna, but just two small pieces of tuna steak with NO flavoring (rub) and the vegetables were steamed and had no taste whatsoever. I asked that the whole meal be returned and cooked correctly. The waitress apologized; not that it was HER fault, and then...I sat for over twenty minutes more, waiting for my tuna steak. By the time my meal arrived, my two friends had already eaten their entire meals. The waitress places the meal before me; tuna looks good, but...the vegetables were still lying there, steamed as before. To make a long, long story short, I returned the vegetables and asked for mashed potatoes, instead. I told the waitress I wanted to speak to the manager about my dis-satisfaction with everything. I sat there for at least fifteen minutes before the manager arrived at my table. I assumed that a manager would come directly to your table if you were not happy with the service. It was his actions that indicated me, that he didn't care too much about his customers. He finally arrived and because of my "choice" words I spoke, he knew I was not a happy customer. He apologized and deducted the price from my bill. I will NEVER go back to Dukes Restaurant again; not this one, anyhow. It was the worst service I had ever received in my entire life. If you like it there, fine. I just hope you will continue receiving the good service you had always gotten.
(1)
Bill C.
Friday afternoon: no problem getting a seat inside Quick service Excellent salmon No complaints at all
(4)
Juliette Z.
Good food, nice service & ambiance. I came here with two friends and we had to wait for a table because it was very crowded. It took like 20 minutes but it was totally worth it. It's a nice place to come for drinks, dinner, for kids or large groups. We ordered the crab pretzel and shared this appetizer. I had a glass of wine and the crab cake salad as main dish. I enjoyed my food. Our waitress was nice and helpfull. She knew a lot about the menu but was not very familiar with the wines. Dukes has a very nice variety of wines (beers and cocktails). Although she couldn't answer my question about a specific kind of wine she knew how to solve this. I would definitely come back.
(4)
Terri V.
This was my first time at Duke's so I went on line here to read reviews. I have to say I was concerned because what I was reading was not so nice. I was meeting a large group of about 15 people who came to enjoy the music group " The Villone's" and I wanted everyone to enjoy their evening. It was kinda raining and I wanted to sit where we could see and hear the group. All the chairs needed to be wiped and tables put together to seat our large group. Our waiter Jamell and another great guy got right to it with no problems. This large group all came at once and our waiter Jamell, saw to each and every one of our needs. totally pleasant! The food came each dish looked better then the last and tasted just as good. not one complaint from anyone, So please take this great review to heart. Enjoy the summer, enjoy the river, enjoy the food & the fantastic wait and bar staff. We will be back!
(5)
Angela H.
Worst service ever! The hostesses, bar tender, and server were so bad our party of 15 for my great aunt's 80th bday walked out and went next door to Dockside Willie's. 2/3 of our guests arrived and we tell them hostess we are having a surprise party for my aunt and we want to surprise her when she comes in. The hostess tells us we can't be sat until the whole party arrives which defeats the surprise and because of their "policy" they can't let us sit and order drinks and apps while we wait for her. We ask for an exception because it's a surprise and they decline. Keep in mind it's slow. How does that make any business sense? Most places would welcome up-selling their guests. Keep in mind it's 2pm on a sat and there are lots of empty tables, a whole room was empty but no we can't sit there. They say we can wait at the bar so we wait there. Not even a 1/3 of the bar is full but the majority of the people at the bar was my party. My grandma and aunt said to the bartender "when you get moment we'd like to order a drink" but they were brushed off by the bar tender. I had to flag the bar tender and she snapped "I'm really busy"! Really because no one was being served??? She disappeared and never took my drink order. We finally get our table and it takes 15 mins to place our drink orders. Then we realize we've been waiting 40 mins and no drinks, not even water. We haven't even placed our appetizer orders and my 5 year old was so hungry and I had to ask for a kids menu... The waitress said "for him??" And I was like um yeah he's only 5 and there are no other kids with us. We a total of an hour and got nothing but a bad attitude and some diatribe about a bullshit policy that makes no sense, certainly makes no money. We went next door and had a good time. Point blank they are assholes. We asked for a manager and was told there wasn't one on today. Really no manager on a Saturday? Not like any of the paces I've ever served! I will never go back.
(1)
Kym D.
This place is overrated with 3 stars. The food is a 3 out of 10 and bartenders/managers attitudes are a 0 out of 10. The only thing great about this place is the deck. The bartenders and manager think they can treat people poorly just because they know people will still come to sit out on the deck. The crab pretzel which they are supposedly "known" for is not even good. The crab to pretzel ratio is way off. The alcoholic drinks are horrible. This place needs a bar rescue. Someone call Jon Taffer stat.
(1)
Alan R.
Wow... I was blown away by the awesome views, great beer selection and general atmosphere. The food had its high and lows. High points: The wings were very tasty. I got the river sauce and it was freakin awesome, I could get it again for sure! The Crab Pretzel thing... very good and it is large, def could be a meal. Low points: The crab burger was super dry. The meat patties were dry, there was no sauce on the burger at all. One would think there would be. The patties looked like they were frozen in shape and only cost 4.99 for 3 dozen and where purchased at Sam's Club. The service was mediocre at best. They do not take reservations, and they couldn't tell you how long the wait would be. Not even a general idea, like 15-25 min, or and hour or so... nothing. I have never been in a restaurant who couldn't tell you that... Not even an idea. There were about 10 of us and 3 showed up early to put our name down, the rest of the group showed up about 15 min later. After about 40 min after the first group showed up their pager went off and we all thought we were going to be seated. Nope. They just wanted to confirm everyone was here so now we could be put in line for a table. About an hour later we were seated. Kinda ridiculous.
(3)
TJ B.
This place was dead tonite and I can kinda see why. Our waitress had a whole two tables to take care of and we barely even saw her. My girlfriends drink was made totally wrong and it took a long time to get a new one. Food was mediocre at best. We got the Flatbread pizza. I wouldn't give it one star jormally, but the service was severely lacking
(1)
Francie F.
Great food, great atmosphere! The staff is very friendly and attentive! Overall great experience!
(5)
Ed M.
Portion sizes are good and deck is nice when people aren't smoking, but food is very bland, salad lettuce was old, and service is terribly slow.
(2)
L F.
Terrible! There were 10 of us for lunch at noon on a Saturday. I called ahead to check the crowd. The girl on the phone was very rude and wouldn't tell me if they were crowded or not- just kept saying they don't do call ahead or take reservations. I should've decided then to go somewhere else. We headed over anyway... Waitress immediately took our drink order, but then it took her at least 20 min to come back to take our order. We were there for over 2 hours and they were not busy. Food is nothing special. They are lucky they have such a good location. I will not return however.
(1)
Joe A.
We went there last year and the drinks on the deck were terrible. We revisited a week ago and had the same problems with the drinks on the deck. We ordered a crab pretzel as an appetizer and it was great, but it showed up 2 minutes before my meal forcing me to pick which one I wanted to eat and which one I wanted to let go cold. The sandwich I order didn't taste too bad, but it was greasy and left me filling a bit ill about an hour later. My girlfriend ordered the crab cake and said it wasn't something she'd order there again. Overall kind of disappointing since they've got a nice deck on the water.
(2)
Faith S.
The last time I was there (about a year ago), I vowed to never return because the service was so appalling, rude, and slow, and the food was disgusting. Unfortunately, I was duped into going there last night, because a friend's surprise party was moved there at the last minute. We were a large party of 12, which I understand is annoying for servers. Still, they assigned 2 to our table. The problem was that they weren't a team, one had half of us and the other had the other half. Therefore one could not be bothered to let the other know if say, I asked for another round. He actually said, "Um you have to tell HER." Ok, yeah, I'll wait till you go tell her I want something, have her come over, and then I'll tell her, and then she can order it, wait for it at the bar, and then bring it back, as opposed to you just telling her when you see her. Whatever. Anyway, I ordered nachos, because how hard can it be to assemble nachos? Apparently very hard, because it was a bowl of stale chips, a layer of chips, a blob of what tasted like canned spaghetti sauce with meat right in the middle, then another layer of chips with "cheese" sauce poured on top, but not like thick, cheesy sauce. No, the sauce was so thin it was see-through on the chips and it had no flavor whatsoever. Then the entire bowl was COVERED with salsa, and on top of that was a handful of BANANA PEPPERS. Banana peppers. On Nachos. ??? Banana peppers are for Italian sandwiches, not nachos! No black olives, no lettuce, no jalapenos, no shredded cheese, no guacamole. And the whole mess was cold. Disgusting. Oh and it was supposed to come with sour cream, but didn't. I didn't mention it to the waitress, because the nachos were so gross, I wasn't going to eat them anyway. My husband had a burger, he said it was dry, cold, and bland. And the bun wasn't toasted or grilled, and was cold and hard. I will say that the girl who waited on MY half of the table was pretty quick service-wise, and pleasant. She didn't bring us silverware or napkins though until after our food came, and we asked. Like, if people order food, you should have silverware and napkins on the table by the time it gets there. Just sayin. The drinks were awful, I think they must be pre-mixed? My friend had a long island, it came in like a little 10oz glass, had no flavor except a mild sweetness, definitely very little booze! But the worst part of the night was when the birthday girl pulled a long hair out of her quesadilla. How does that even happen??? Nevermind, I don't want to know. The inside is dark, dirty, sticky, damp, and depressing. Looks like it hasn't had a good cleaning or a makeover in 35 yrs. The deck is hot and smoky. I have my response prepared for the next time someone tries to convince me to go there: "I can't. I vowed to never return because it sucks so bad. Thanks anyway!"
(1)
Justin O.
This is one of my favorite places near Harrisburg, they have a great view of the river and within walking distance from City Island when the Harrisburg Senators and the Harrisburg City Islanders play. The restaurant has plenty of beer on draft to keep everyone satisfied, along with a great menu selection at reasonable prices. They also offer take out and a create your own 6 pack. I've gone there with my family and there good with kids and I've been there with large groups (12-14 people) and never had any issues.
(5)
William V.
Excellent boneless wings .. special every Sunday 12 boneless wings $5.00.. crab dip for an appetizer was excellent also !!!..
(5)
Ben K.
Don't go here. The deck is the only thing keeping this dinosaur in business. The service is slow. The place is dirty (seriously, how long does it take to clean the cobwebs that cover your vents??) and the only good food is the crab pretzel. Turns into a ghost town after happy hour.
(1)
sheri e.
went to enjoy the deck recently and sat at the outside bar. ordered the bruschetta and the crab dip. the crap dip is priced at $11 and youre given a small portion, its the size of a cup of soup bowl, tasted good but very small for the price. the bruschetta tasted ok but the bread looked like a sub roll cut, with butter and garlic and the bread was soft. what i mainly didnt like was that the bartenders were not attentive, it wasnt that busy. they didnt come around to ask us if our food was good, and when we finished are appettizers they never came around to take our dishes away. they sat in front of us for a while until we said something. my friend smokes and the dirty ashtray wasnt even taken away and replaced with a clean one. the deck is nice but dukes is over rated. i dont know what managers are getting paid for
(2)
John L.
Wife and I went there because of the scenic view of the Susquehanna river from the deck. We both ordered the black Angus burger and home cut fries. These were without a doubt the worst burger and fries I can ever recall having. The burgers had a very odd/bad taste and were overdone. The fries were so overdone you could use them as darts. These were terrible meals even as bar food goes. I gave it one star only because the view of the river was great and our server was friendly.
(1)
Marissa H.
For vegetarians, this place is a full 2 thumbs down. There's 1 vegetarian sandwich option, a cheese pizza, and a side salad that are "vegetarian". Granted, you can opt to have items removed from a menu item but who really wants to do that to your server when s/he is busy and you're hungry? Went in on a Senator's game night to grab a bite. It was packed. The 2 of us grabbed a seat at the outside bar, waited a good while to be acknowledged by the bartender. Beers beside us, we had to flag her down again to make our food order. Food came promptly but wasn't tasteful. I had the side salad (standard) & 1/2 a cheese pizza - 1 good comment is that the pizza (which is huge) can be made 1/2 plain & 1/2 meat. The pizza sauced tasted just like it came out of a can, the cheese wasn't melted properly, and it was overly crusty. To make it that much more unpleasant, the outside deck is smoker-friendly so I was inhaling that, too.The beer was the best part of my dining experience. For a non-smoking, vegetarian, health-conscious indvidual, Duke's will not be on my return list.
(1)
Jennifer K.
Can't comment on the food because we never got to sit down. It's Mother's day 2014 and they don't have enough servers. So 45 minute wait outside..typical and expected. 30 minute wait inside and there were only 2 tables seated. Absolutely ridiculous. The hostess was rude. The managers running around looked annoyed that people were there and the servers rolled their eyes every time people walked in. I only gave it 1 star bc you have to give a star.
(1)
Randall G.
Menu is Very large ! Many options for all kinds of eaters. Friendly staff and a fun place ... HUGE PLUS: just like Dockside Willies, Dukes offers docks for us boaters. Nothing nicer than grabbing your food n drinks and heading out on the river for an evening of relaxing entertainment. Kudos to the staff ;-)
(5)
liz m.
Food is awesome.....Service could be a little faster though. Steaks and pasta dishes are awesome......portions are huge! i eat alot and had 2 whole meals worth of food! Prices are good too! Love the atmosphere.....it's a shame Harrisburg doesn't have a prettier river to look at! :-)
(4)
Jeff S.
7/26/08 4:30pm Awful. Empty tables everywhere, yet we waited for 10 minutes to be seated. Then our server never came - we had to speak to the hostess to address the problem. Overall, the food at my table of 7 was ok to good, but my fish & chips was poor - overly breaded cheap fish. The coleslaw was gross and they brought me potato wedges instead of the french fries I asked for. Inasmuch as this was a non-alcoholic family function, I was not distracted from the abysmal service by my alcohol intake, I had to suffer through each agonizing moment unmedicated. An awful dining experience, one of the worst in months.
(1)
Dennis H.
Had lunch outside yesterday. Good food, good service, good prices
(4)
Leila S.
If this were England and I had the power to demote those of British nobility, Duke's would immediately be renamed Knight's, but even THAT would be too nice since nothing about my dining experience here was of royal quality. ... not the slower than a snail service. ... not the so-called chicken caesar salad. ... not the old and slightly browning lettuce in the salad. ... not the tasteless or rubbery chicken either. ... not the incredibly scarce amount of dressing. ... not the roll of indigestible "garlic bread" that hardly had any taste of garlic. ... not the fact that I was still hungry after eating the salad that I only ate because I was absolutely starving... but I did not eat the roll. It simply was not possible to eat the roll, nor did I want to find out how that roll would have felt exiting my body, ekh. So, why is it then that this place is worthy of even two stars? It was because of my fabulous dining companion, my partner-in-crime, the infamous Harrisburg Yelper, miss Mia K. She was there for me through it all... holding my hand as I digested my meal... making me laugh by making fun of the gallery of mullets around us... and even letting me nibble off her plate of coconut shrimp salad which was actually quite lovely with the sun-dried tomato vinaigrette dressing. Now that is true BFF4EVAR love! But that's beside the point. The point is that if I had the power to also promote people into British nobility, I'd make myself Grand Princess because then I could marry the absolutely beautiful and charming Prince William and we would make lots of babies or at least do a lot of baby-making and live happily ever after. The end.
(2)
Pamela B.
Approximately 9 pm, find out that the Harrisburg Comedy Club in New Cumberland no longer has a restaurant. Show starts at 10 pm. The ONLY thing close to the Comedy Club is fast food. Decided to give this a try (about 6 driving minutes away), had not been here in probably 15 years since it was the Gingerbread Man. Explained our circumstance to the host, were seated at the bar (party of six), and all had our meals (which were very good, ), bar snacks & sandwiches, drinks, bill paid, and made the show only ten minutes late. The bartender/waitress was lovely and accommodating of our craziness. They need to start promoting a dinner & comedy package!
(4)
Brian R.
3 stars because the deck at Duke's over the river is tough to beat, really nice spot. That being said, the food here is very average, and the drinks are the same. Service is hit or miss.
(3)
joshua h.
went with the girlfriend Tuesday night for dinner on the deck,arrived at 7 was told it would be about 25 minutes for deck seating, we said we would wait,..and we did ,... for 50 minutes,...after being seated we ordered drinks, a soda and a beer,..soda came out relatively quick, the beer 12 minutes later,.. then ordered a cup of french onion soup,which was good, and a Reuben for myself and a chicken and rice with side of veggies for the gf,...35 minutes later they were brought out,..my Reuben came out as a Rachel,complete with dried out sliced turkey and half stale dry bread,I would have complained but I prefer my food spit free,..the girlfriends chicken dish was ok but veggies were completely bland,the waitress checked on us once,"after we were done and waiting for the check" to see if we wanted dessert...nice place to go for a beer with friends,but this will be my last trip there for dinner. honestly,.. arby's sandwiches taste better
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Dinner Parking : Street, Private Lot Bike Parking : No Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Loud Music : Background Good For Dancing : No Alcohol : Full Bar Happy Hour : Yes Best Nights : Thu, Fri, Sat Coat Check : No Smoking : Outdoor Area/ Patio Only Outdoor Seating : Yes Wi-Fi : Free Has TV : Yes Waiter Service : Yes Caters : No
Jim S.
First of all, let me say this. I don't know where to start. So, let's start with the first fifteen minutes that we had to wait before we even received our drinks. Now, let me tell you about the six people behind us, yelling out loud with laughter; to a point that I had gotten a headache, and my nerves were about to explode any minute; which thankfully, they didn't. The waitress finally came to our table for our orders and we ordered our food. Unfortunately, the whole problem started when I received my blackened tuna steak and grilled vegetables. After sitting for about half an hour, having to listen to the same people laughing and yelling behind us, the waitress finally arrives with our food. I will say, though, that we had a very nice and understanding waitress, which I even tipped very well, after our horror feast ended. She did realize how loud the environment had gotten, and she knew very well how upset I was when I found out, that my tuna wasn't blackened tuna, but just two small pieces of tuna steak with NO flavoring (rub) and the vegetables were steamed and had no taste whatsoever. I asked that the whole meal be returned and cooked correctly. The waitress apologized; not that it was HER fault, and then...I sat for over twenty minutes more, waiting for my tuna steak. By the time my meal arrived, my two friends had already eaten their entire meals. The waitress places the meal before me; tuna looks good, but...the vegetables were still lying there, steamed as before. To make a long, long story short, I returned the vegetables and asked for mashed potatoes, instead. I told the waitress I wanted to speak to the manager about my dis-satisfaction with everything. I sat there for at least fifteen minutes before the manager arrived at my table. I assumed that a manager would come directly to your table if you were not happy with the service. It was his actions that indicated me, that he didn't care too much about his customers. He finally arrived and because of my "choice" words I spoke, he knew I was not a happy customer. He apologized and deducted the price from my bill. I will NEVER go back to Dukes Restaurant again; not this one, anyhow. It was the worst service I had ever received in my entire life. If you like it there, fine. I just hope you will continue receiving the good service you had always gotten.
(1)Bill C.
Friday afternoon: no problem getting a seat inside Quick service Excellent salmon No complaints at all
(4)Juliette Z.
Good food, nice service & ambiance. I came here with two friends and we had to wait for a table because it was very crowded. It took like 20 minutes but it was totally worth it. It's a nice place to come for drinks, dinner, for kids or large groups. We ordered the crab pretzel and shared this appetizer. I had a glass of wine and the crab cake salad as main dish. I enjoyed my food. Our waitress was nice and helpfull. She knew a lot about the menu but was not very familiar with the wines. Dukes has a very nice variety of wines (beers and cocktails). Although she couldn't answer my question about a specific kind of wine she knew how to solve this. I would definitely come back.
(4)Angela H.
Worst service ever! The hostesses, bar tender, and server were so bad our party of 15 for my great aunt's 80th bday walked out and went next door to Dockside Willie's. 2/3 of our guests arrived and we tell them hostess we are having a surprise party for my aunt and we want to surprise her when she comes in. The hostess tells us we can't be sat until the whole party arrives which defeats the surprise and because of their "policy" they can't let us sit and order drinks and apps while we wait for her. We ask for an exception because it's a surprise and they decline. Keep in mind it's slow. How does that make any business sense? Most places would welcome up-selling their guests. Keep in mind it's 2pm on a sat and there are lots of empty tables, a whole room was empty but no we can't sit there. They say we can wait at the bar so we wait there. Not even a 1/3 of the bar is full but the majority of the people at the bar was my party. My grandma and aunt said to the bartender "when you get moment we'd like to order a drink" but they were brushed off by the bar tender. I had to flag the bar tender and she snapped "I'm really busy"! Really because no one was being served??? She disappeared and never took my drink order. We finally get our table and it takes 15 mins to place our drink orders. Then we realize we've been waiting 40 mins and no drinks, not even water. We haven't even placed our appetizer orders and my 5 year old was so hungry and I had to ask for a kids menu... The waitress said "for him??" And I was like um yeah he's only 5 and there are no other kids with us. We a total of an hour and got nothing but a bad attitude and some diatribe about a bullshit policy that makes no sense, certainly makes no money. We went next door and had a good time. Point blank they are assholes. We asked for a manager and was told there wasn't one on today. Really no manager on a Saturday? Not like any of the paces I've ever served! I will never go back.
(1)Alan R.
Wow... I was blown away by the awesome views, great beer selection and general atmosphere. The food had its high and lows. High points: The wings were very tasty. I got the river sauce and it was freakin awesome, I could get it again for sure! The Crab Pretzel thing... very good and it is large, def could be a meal. Low points: The crab burger was super dry. The meat patties were dry, there was no sauce on the burger at all. One would think there would be. The patties looked like they were frozen in shape and only cost 4.99 for 3 dozen and where purchased at Sam's Club. The service was mediocre at best. They do not take reservations, and they couldn't tell you how long the wait would be. Not even a general idea, like 15-25 min, or and hour or so... nothing. I have never been in a restaurant who couldn't tell you that... Not even an idea. There were about 10 of us and 3 showed up early to put our name down, the rest of the group showed up about 15 min later. After about 40 min after the first group showed up their pager went off and we all thought we were going to be seated. Nope. They just wanted to confirm everyone was here so now we could be put in line for a table. About an hour later we were seated. Kinda ridiculous.
(3)TJ B.
This place was dead tonite and I can kinda see why. Our waitress had a whole two tables to take care of and we barely even saw her. My girlfriends drink was made totally wrong and it took a long time to get a new one. Food was mediocre at best. We got the Flatbread pizza. I wouldn't give it one star jormally, but the service was severely lacking
(1)Chris K.
Planned a birthday celebration at Dukes in Wormleysburg this past Saturday. The bar tender was too busy to provide drinks while we were awaiting the party guests. Finally we were seated and the wait staff took our drink order. 40 minutes later, we didn't have any drinks, not even a glass of water on the table. We took our party of 12 and left. On the way out, I heard the hostess explaining to another customer that there was no manager on the premises. Have no plans to return due to the rude and nonexistent service.
(2)Erik G.
so the food here is decent. it's a well liked establishment. but the customer service in the management area of this business leads a little to be desired. we had a world renowned sideshow performer in town for the weekend. sunday night, his last night in town, we thought it might be a good idea to take him out to a scenic river spot. we had about twelve people in our party, but he was hungry now and not in a half hour, so we figured it would be no problem to get a large table and get some drinks and appetizers while we waited for the rest of our party to close up shop and come join us. now, we had a party of 12. 12 hungry tattooers who will all eat well and tip even better. it was about 9:30 on a sunday evening. the place was empty. but they refused to seat us at a large outdoor table until the whole party was there. the manager wouldn't bend on this policy. so we sat outside and explained to the waitress our predicament. she was totally cool and moved us to be a bigger table. and then a bigger table when our whole party arrived. all in all, a decent experience. alright food, although a little pricey. probably won't be back until we have another out of town guest with us and are desperate for food.
(3)Gary R.
Love this place. Food is always good. We were here on Labor Day. The service was very good. Had 14 oz steak which was done exactly the way I asked. The server never let my drink empty or anyone else's at the table. Prices were very reasonable.
(5)Sean O.
Tried the beer battered haddock sandwich. Huge portions with a ton of fries. The service was just OK and when they seated our party of 8 they put us at two small tables with chairs crammed together. There was a few unused tables nearby and had to ask for a table just to fit our party. Didn't make a lot of sense. Our actual server was very nice but the support staff was not nearly as friendly. Food is good but the atmosphere is so so for lunch.
(3)Jeanine C.
I will never be coming here again. This was the second time I came to Dukes. I tried the one in Hershey, which was fantastic (only because I was starving the next morning after a night out). So the one in Wormleysburg. Ah yes, so we get seated outside on the patio. I am fully and completely aware you're in for all the insects that are near the river, so don't get me wrong when you read this. Our waitress was really nice, but very slow. We sat there for a good wait while she finally took our orders. I received a salad as an appetizer and my second bite in I find a dead fly in my salad. And this fly hadn't just died, you could tell he was in there for a long while. I tell my waitress about this and she said, "I apologize, I'll get a new one, but you must be aware that you are seated outside....." I cut her off and I began to inform her a fly wouldn't be under a whole pile of lettuce and smothered in dressing if this just happened. So she gets me a new one. As I'm waiting for my fly-free salad, I take a sip in my drink and there's another FLY IN THERE! Are you KIDDING ME???????????? Now I'm more than irritated. I get another drink. So as our food came, my friend bought a salad as a meal. She's eating through it and finds a big, long, BLACK hair in her food. Her hair is not black. So that wasn't very pleasing to her at all either. Since the waitress was never anywhere to be found we had to call a manager over. Could I say the worst service, ever?? I gave this lady no tip. Luckily, I was with a bunch of people or I would have walked out after the 2nd fly. Nothing too good to say about the food. I had gotten Chicken Parmesan with noodles. They do give you a lot, but it isn't fantastic. I'll pass!
(1)Candice S.
Eager to enjoy the spring weather, we made a trip to Duke's to enjoy the deck. My pomegranate martini sat for quite some time, so when it arrived, I noticed a bug. I was told by a snotty waitress that my drink would not be refunded or remade because it was stated on the menu that this was the rule when eating outside. I could find nothing stated on the menu with this verbiage. Our waitress apologized and (supposedly) had a fresh one made. Even if they only picked out the bug and served it to me again, her tact in handling the situation went a long way. Then a hair was found in my husband's side salad. We didn't even have the heart or the patience to bring it to anyone's attention. Waitress Nikki was great, but we won't be eating here again.
(1)Trajean S.
Food is great! I came to enjoy the wonderful deck and good food BUT was distracted by the NUMEROUS SPIDERS and webs all over the place. It was so bad we were literally watching them go into a ladies hair. When I asked the waiter if they clean the deck of the spiders he says "it's useless for they always come back"i think this should be addressed but until then this is my recommendation: sit in the middle of the deck away from either end to avoid the spiders.
(3)Terri V.
This was my first time at Duke's so I went on line here to read reviews. I have to say I was concerned because what I was reading was not so nice. I was meeting a large group of about 15 people who came to enjoy the music group " The Villone's" and I wanted everyone to enjoy their evening. It was kinda raining and I wanted to sit where we could see and hear the group. All the chairs needed to be wiped and tables put together to seat our large group. Our waiter Jamell and another great guy got right to it with no problems. This large group all came at once and our waiter Jamell, saw to each and every one of our needs. totally pleasant! The food came each dish looked better then the last and tasted just as good. not one complaint from anyone, So please take this great review to heart. Enjoy the summer, enjoy the river, enjoy the food & the fantastic wait and bar staff. We will be back!
(5)L F.
Terrible! There were 10 of us for lunch at noon on a Saturday. I called ahead to check the crowd. The girl on the phone was very rude and wouldn't tell me if they were crowded or not- just kept saying they don't do call ahead or take reservations. I should've decided then to go somewhere else. We headed over anyway... Waitress immediately took our drink order, but then it took her at least 20 min to come back to take our order. We were there for over 2 hours and they were not busy. Food is nothing special. They are lucky they have such a good location. I will not return however.
(1)Kym D.
This place is overrated with 3 stars. The food is a 3 out of 10 and bartenders/managers attitudes are a 0 out of 10. The only thing great about this place is the deck. The bartenders and manager think they can treat people poorly just because they know people will still come to sit out on the deck. The crab pretzel which they are supposedly "known" for is not even good. The crab to pretzel ratio is way off. The alcoholic drinks are horrible. This place needs a bar rescue. Someone call Jon Taffer stat.
(1)Francie F.
Great food, great atmosphere! The staff is very friendly and attentive! Overall great experience!
(5)Ed M.
Portion sizes are good and deck is nice when people aren't smoking, but food is very bland, salad lettuce was old, and service is terribly slow.
(2)Lesley M.
Pros: Great location on the Susquehanna River, lively bar scene, friendly servers, fun drink menu, and large outdoor deck. Cons: Dated decor and below average food quality. The bottom line: This is a great place to go for a fun night out, or even some casual people watching. It's always lively and inviting, with the best outdoor space in the area. If you're meeting up with some friends for drinks and quick eats, you can't go wrong. However, if you're looking for amazing food or a romantic dinner for two, this probably isn't going to cut it.
(3)Joe A.
We went there last year and the drinks on the deck were terrible. We revisited a week ago and had the same problems with the drinks on the deck. We ordered a crab pretzel as an appetizer and it was great, but it showed up 2 minutes before my meal forcing me to pick which one I wanted to eat and which one I wanted to let go cold. The sandwich I order didn't taste too bad, but it was greasy and left me filling a bit ill about an hour later. My girlfriend ordered the crab cake and said it wasn't something she'd order there again. Overall kind of disappointing since they've got a nice deck on the water.
(2)Melody H.
Went there last week for lunch the deck was full but we did get a table, got the Ruben which was great can't go wrong with that, they had changed their fries which I didn't care for they were a bit greasy and soggy but love the view and sitting on the deck
(3)Dorothy B.
Such a great place to go with a crowd, right on the river. Fun time, relaxing - not rushed at all. Fantastic drinks, food and laughter!
(5)David K.
Very disappointing. Given this place 3-4 chances, purely because of the view of the city and deck, but will not go back. The drinks are absolutely terrible. The mojito, G&T, mango margarita and normal margaritas all tasted sooo watered down. Besides that, the mint and garnishes they use are flippin disgusting. Exactly what I want in my mojito, a disgusting, entirely black stem of mint... The food is all very heavy and mostly fried. The crabby fries are really good, we get them every time. The crab pretzel was also really, really good. Its a shame, the place just has a boring menu, terrible drinks, and its like the bartenders know the drinks suck.
(2)B S.
I want to know how a place can be known for their burgers when (to begin with) they don't even use hand-formed patties? All their gourmet burgers have two 1/4-pound patties. Looks like glorified Burger King. (This is from what I could tell. I could be wrong.) Skip the seasoned/spicy fries. They taste like jack-in-the-box curly fries. Get the regular ones instead. The burgers are big enough to share if you're not a big eater, which you should do so you can eat again somewhere else that's better. Plus for the deck with a view of the water. My friends got the Philly cheesesteak and chicken cheesesteak. Both looked gross.
(2)Ben K.
Don't go here. The deck is the only thing keeping this dinosaur in business. The service is slow. The place is dirty (seriously, how long does it take to clean the cobwebs that cover your vents??) and the only good food is the crab pretzel. Turns into a ghost town after happy hour.
(1)Kevin K.
Love this place, I come every year for a car show and the food and service are just fantastic even when they're slammed. Wait times can be a bit long but what do you expect with a major event near by. One of the two staples of my trip to carlise/harrisburg. The outside seating is hard to beat, looking out over the river with the lights shinning off it is fantastic.
(5)Faith S.
The last time I was there (about a year ago), I vowed to never return because the service was so appalling, rude, and slow, and the food was disgusting. Unfortunately, I was duped into going there last night, because a friend's surprise party was moved there at the last minute. We were a large party of 12, which I understand is annoying for servers. Still, they assigned 2 to our table. The problem was that they weren't a team, one had half of us and the other had the other half. Therefore one could not be bothered to let the other know if say, I asked for another round. He actually said, "Um you have to tell HER." Ok, yeah, I'll wait till you go tell her I want something, have her come over, and then I'll tell her, and then she can order it, wait for it at the bar, and then bring it back, as opposed to you just telling her when you see her. Whatever. Anyway, I ordered nachos, because how hard can it be to assemble nachos? Apparently very hard, because it was a bowl of stale chips, a layer of chips, a blob of what tasted like canned spaghetti sauce with meat right in the middle, then another layer of chips with "cheese" sauce poured on top, but not like thick, cheesy sauce. No, the sauce was so thin it was see-through on the chips and it had no flavor whatsoever. Then the entire bowl was COVERED with salsa, and on top of that was a handful of BANANA PEPPERS. Banana peppers. On Nachos. ??? Banana peppers are for Italian sandwiches, not nachos! No black olives, no lettuce, no jalapenos, no shredded cheese, no guacamole. And the whole mess was cold. Disgusting. Oh and it was supposed to come with sour cream, but didn't. I didn't mention it to the waitress, because the nachos were so gross, I wasn't going to eat them anyway. My husband had a burger, he said it was dry, cold, and bland. And the bun wasn't toasted or grilled, and was cold and hard. I will say that the girl who waited on MY half of the table was pretty quick service-wise, and pleasant. She didn't bring us silverware or napkins though until after our food came, and we asked. Like, if people order food, you should have silverware and napkins on the table by the time it gets there. Just sayin. The drinks were awful, I think they must be pre-mixed? My friend had a long island, it came in like a little 10oz glass, had no flavor except a mild sweetness, definitely very little booze! But the worst part of the night was when the birthday girl pulled a long hair out of her quesadilla. How does that even happen??? Nevermind, I don't want to know. The inside is dark, dirty, sticky, damp, and depressing. Looks like it hasn't had a good cleaning or a makeover in 35 yrs. The deck is hot and smoky. I have my response prepared for the next time someone tries to convince me to go there: "I can't. I vowed to never return because it sucks so bad. Thanks anyway!"
(1)Justin O.
This is one of my favorite places near Harrisburg, they have a great view of the river and within walking distance from City Island when the Harrisburg Senators and the Harrisburg City Islanders play. The restaurant has plenty of beer on draft to keep everyone satisfied, along with a great menu selection at reasonable prices. They also offer take out and a create your own 6 pack. I've gone there with my family and there good with kids and I've been there with large groups (12-14 people) and never had any issues.
(5)William V.
Excellent boneless wings .. special every Sunday 12 boneless wings $5.00.. crab dip for an appetizer was excellent also !!!..
(5)Kevin B.
I've been to Duke's a few times before and it's always been a great time. They have good food at very good prices and good beer as well. Their sandwiches and burgers are great and are very filling. For appetizers, I would highly suggest their Old Bay seasoned french fries with Boom Boom sauce. I have no idea what Boom Boom sauce is but it was delicious and I would definitely get it again (just make sure you split them with at least 2 others, they give you a lot of food). Overall - very good food at great prices and great service. I will definitely be coming back again.
(4)Cody B.
Great food. You get a lot for the price you pay and it's all fantastic food. It also has an awesome deck that is out over the river so you can eat and enjoy the river. I recommend going in the summer so you can really enjoy the deck. Also has some great seafood. Best crab cakes in the city.
(5)Randall G.
Menu is Very large ! Many options for all kinds of eaters. Friendly staff and a fun place ... HUGE PLUS: just like Dockside Willies, Dukes offers docks for us boaters. Nothing nicer than grabbing your food n drinks and heading out on the river for an evening of relaxing entertainment. Kudos to the staff ;-)
(5)sheri e.
went to enjoy the deck recently and sat at the outside bar. ordered the bruschetta and the crab dip. the crap dip is priced at $11 and youre given a small portion, its the size of a cup of soup bowl, tasted good but very small for the price. the bruschetta tasted ok but the bread looked like a sub roll cut, with butter and garlic and the bread was soft. what i mainly didnt like was that the bartenders were not attentive, it wasnt that busy. they didnt come around to ask us if our food was good, and when we finished are appettizers they never came around to take our dishes away. they sat in front of us for a while until we said something. my friend smokes and the dirty ashtray wasnt even taken away and replaced with a clean one. the deck is nice but dukes is over rated. i dont know what managers are getting paid for
(2)Marissa H.
For vegetarians, this place is a full 2 thumbs down. There's 1 vegetarian sandwich option, a cheese pizza, and a side salad that are "vegetarian". Granted, you can opt to have items removed from a menu item but who really wants to do that to your server when s/he is busy and you're hungry? Went in on a Senator's game night to grab a bite. It was packed. The 2 of us grabbed a seat at the outside bar, waited a good while to be acknowledged by the bartender. Beers beside us, we had to flag her down again to make our food order. Food came promptly but wasn't tasteful. I had the side salad (standard) & 1/2 a cheese pizza - 1 good comment is that the pizza (which is huge) can be made 1/2 plain & 1/2 meat. The pizza sauced tasted just like it came out of a can, the cheese wasn't melted properly, and it was overly crusty. To make it that much more unpleasant, the outside deck is smoker-friendly so I was inhaling that, too.The beer was the best part of my dining experience. For a non-smoking, vegetarian, health-conscious indvidual, Duke's will not be on my return list.
(1)Jennifer K.
Can't comment on the food because we never got to sit down. It's Mother's day 2014 and they don't have enough servers. So 45 minute wait outside..typical and expected. 30 minute wait inside and there were only 2 tables seated. Absolutely ridiculous. The hostess was rude. The managers running around looked annoyed that people were there and the servers rolled their eyes every time people walked in. I only gave it 1 star bc you have to give a star.
(1)Carol S.
We went to Dukes on a Saturday night and there was a wait for outside table so we sat inside near the bar. Still a nice view of the water. Lauren was our server and did a great job, she had a couple of big tables but our service level didn't suffer much. Boneless wings were good, beer ice cold and the Caesar wrap and blackened tuna were good, the apple pie in a mug was a great finish. Had a nice time and would go again.
(4)Christopher M.
I was here once many moons ago with a medium-large group. I recall the food being decent bar/pub fare. But it took AGES for it to come out! And don't get me twisted. I'm ok with things coming out slowly when dining with a large group. But some people in our party received and finished their meals before others even received their appetizer. Maybe it has changed over the years. I hope so because Duke's had/has a lot of potential. But I wasn't impressed, have never been back, and would have to see a plethera of really good reviews before even considering giving them return business.
(2)Michelle B.
Horrible service- we waited about 15 minutes before the waitress showed up to order our drinks. Waited another 20 minutes to get the drinks. Then after telling us 3 times that our food was "just about ready", we ended up waiting 30 minutes after the last time before it actually came out. Although, the food was tasty, but the soft drinks were flat or watered down. I do hope it was just a one time bad instance with the bad service because it is a cool place to dine.
(2)John L.
Wife and I went there because of the scenic view of the Susquehanna river from the deck. We both ordered the black Angus burger and home cut fries. These were without a doubt the worst burger and fries I can ever recall having. The burgers had a very odd/bad taste and were overdone. The fries were so overdone you could use them as darts. These were terrible meals even as bar food goes. I gave it one star only because the view of the river was great and our server was friendly.
(1)Stephen W.
Came here with a large group of family. Unlike many reviews here, our table service was good, (not great, but perfectly acceptable). Portion sizes were HUGE, but the food was just okay -- not bad, not great. My wife and I ordered the baja fish tacos, which were not anything like the picture in the menu, but they tasted good. My Old Bay fries were served hot, but completely over-seasoned, almost too salty to eat. I might have given Duke's 2 or perhaps even 3 stars, if it weren't for this: When we were sat, I used the men's room, and discovered they were out of soap. I immediately notified a restaurant employee. However, when I returned to the restroom after our meal, well over an hour later, there was STILL NO SOAP. I again notified an employee, and mentioned that I had told someone OVER AN HOUR AGO that there was no soap in the restroom, and they responded "well, we've been kinda busy, but we'll change it now" This means the everyone, customer and employee, who used the restroom for over an hour, DID NOT WASH THEIR HANDS. Gross. I will not patronize an establishment that will forgo basic hygiene requirements simply because they are a little busy.
(1)J S.
If it was possible to give them negative stars...I would. Service...F Food...D There is way too much to type in detailing how this was a horrific experience. They're not worth my time. I'll never go back. Period.
(1)Billi Jo S.
We chose this restaurant to celebrate my daughter's birthday (she and her family are from Maryland). I must say we are a mess of a family. Our grandson is Autistic and our visits to restaurants can be somewhat of a challenge! I wanted to make my daughter's birthday special and as soon as the host staff "hooked me up" with Andrea C, I knew we were in good hands. She handled the bunch of us with a calmness that not all restaurants/servers are able. The food was amazing and Andrea made our experience one of the best I have ever experienced. We all left feeling full and very grateful for our server! It was a birthday to remember! Thanks, Andrea C! You are the best!!
(4)MoCe C.
I guess that u have to give them 1 star??! Beyond Poor service. Short staffed as always, overworked and Little training Seems like managment not only dosnt care But also seems to not b held accountable for their poor service. They don't help the overworked waitresses. Like others said it's the views I order at the bar as the others sit at tables n we just take turns getting the tables drinks. I don't enjoy giving one stars. But it's hoping they get a point. Or perhaps no one really cares bc they know someone will always come n put up with there shit EVERY thing.
(1)Megan C.
This was my second visit to Duke's, and I would probably give it a 3 1/2 stars if I could. The atmosphere of Duke's is why I went back. When is Harrisburg for work, I am a sucker for drinking on an outdoor patio overlooking the river! So, a win for great location & great beverages! The food is typical bar food- nothing super exceptional, but you probably won't have a bad meal either. I will say the crab dip is pretty stellar, but my salmon stew & fried shrimp were just okay. Overall, great place to grab drinks, but I'll try somewhere else for food next time!
(3)Sterling C.
Had the mountain meatloaf. It was good, a litter under cooked but good. I would get it again. The service on the other had was VERY slow and the place was dead. The server was not that attentive either.
(3)Tony B.
I got the chicken Chesapeake wrap and the chicken was cooked perfectly. The fries were perfect with their old bay seasoning. I also got their hot mango wings as an appetizer and I would recommend them to anyone who want great flavor with not too much hot. I will continue to come here!
(5)Lizzie J.
With it being a beautiful day outside, I can understand it being busy at a restaurant that is known for having outside deck service. Thus being said we opted out for an inside, close-to-the-window seat. The menu had large variety and everything we saw coming out looked great - but then when I looked around and saw the many guests who sat near us, I noticed some steps of service that had been missed; Nearly every customers drink was empty... Dirty dishes littered their tables... As I sat there (yet to have been greeted) I saw a table, who's guests had just left as we sat down, that still had its dirty dishes sitting on it... At first, I chalked it up to it being busy - but as the minutes ticked by... And my boyfriend and I had still yet to have been greeted... I couldn't help but become a bit disgruntled. Being in the service industry myself, I understand a busy atmosphere but cannot begin to fathom why it was so difficult to even get a "ill be right with you", let alone a greeting. The final straw was when a group of young men, who had passed us in the parking lot and were seating shortly after us were greeted, had their drink order in, and received said drinks long before we decided to leave. We were sat at approximately 7:20pm, and left at 7:38pm... 18 minutes is far too long for any greeting, regardless of how busy it is... But that is besides the fact, because we never even saw our server. I saw our hostess on our way out and politely told her we were never greeted and therefore were going to take our business somewhere else.
(1)John G.
We enjoy Duke's on more than one occassion! Last night was no different! We went in around 8pm and it being Saturday night it was a tad busy 30 minute was the average wait but we only waited between 15-20 minutes. The place was packed but the rotation was fast. Our waitress came and got our drink orders and brought them back quickly. Nothing like cold Beer to get the appetite stimulated. I Had the BBQ Ribs they were tender spicy and for the money to much to eat. My wife had one of the MT. Meatloaf Platters it was on special but they sure didn't specialize the size it did look like a mountain it was huge. Both meals came with 2 sides and mine also came with Baked Beans they were to sweet for my taste but my wife loved them. The service was good better than expected for how busy they were. So if you like River View the Bar atmosphere and big Portions you won't go wrong at Duke's.
(4)Tara D.
Great food and helpful staff...expect to spend $40 for lunch/dinner
(4)Deborah C.
Sat here for over an hour for my food to come out cold told them to take it back don't want it . Appetiz came out with food no way I will ever come back
(1)Stephanie F.
I haven't eaten here in about 2 years, but I was here several times and never disappointed. Huge menu, friendly staff and food was always good.
(4)E G.
I wish I found this place sooner before moving back home. Duke's has great food for the kind of place it is. The food has always been fresh the times we have been there and the atmosphere is hard to beat in around here. There is a nice mix of a social and sit-down feeling here where you can mingle but stil enjoy a nice dinner right on the river. The food has been hot and tasty, I recommend trying any of the soups. Sandwichs are fresh and good sized. Crab dip with bread is one of the best I ever had. Service was mixed, the waitresses are friendly but depending on the time and day, it can be a little slow. That doesn't matter too much because you can enjoy a drink on the river and kind of pass the time easily. We always go back here if we want something consistently good with a nice surrounding. Great find, good food and reasonably priced!
(4)Jill M.
The restaurant overall isn't that exciting (similar to a chain restaurant like Ruby Tuesdays or Fridays), but it is on the river, with lots of large windows to let in the view, and a big outdoor patio that I'm sure is wonderful in the summer. Our food took a while to come out, but the server was great - very helpful, kept checking on us, etc. The food was pretty good, and they give you large portions for the price. I got a steak salad that was almost too big to finish. The steak was a little tough/overcooked, however I can't remember if I specified "medium" when I ordered it. I tried some of my friend's crab quesadilla and it was packed full of lots of crab meat and cheese. My friends and I shared a brownie sundae for desesrt, and it was delicious. The brownie was warm and fudgy, and there were at least 2 brownies in the bowl - it was tough to tell under all that melty ice cream and chocolate sauce.
(3)Jennifer W.
We had dinner at Duke's for my birthday, and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised after reading some of the negative reviews. We called ahead and made reservations for our party of 12. When we arrived, the table was ready, our server promptly took our drink order, and brought our beverages. She gave me recommendations on the menu items when I asked and the food came out pretty quickly for as big as our party was. I got the 2 pound rib dinner and they were phenomenal. I wound up taking half of the meal home to have another meal. The burgers are huge and the homemade buns are great. Everyone was very satisfied with their food. The service was also very good. Our server kept up with dink and beer refills and handled the chaos that comes along with a party of 12 very well. The menu prices seemed to be a little high, but after I saw the portions of food that everyone received, I was glad to pay what they were asking. This was my first dining experience at Dukes and it will not be my last.
(5)Leila S.
If this were England and I had the power to demote those of British nobility, Duke's would immediately be renamed Knight's, but even THAT would be too nice since nothing about my dining experience here was of royal quality. ... not the slower than a snail service. ... not the so-called chicken caesar salad. ... not the old and slightly browning lettuce in the salad. ... not the tasteless or rubbery chicken either. ... not the incredibly scarce amount of dressing. ... not the roll of indigestible "garlic bread" that hardly had any taste of garlic. ... not the fact that I was still hungry after eating the salad that I only ate because I was absolutely starving... but I did not eat the roll. It simply was not possible to eat the roll, nor did I want to find out how that roll would have felt exiting my body, ekh. So, why is it then that this place is worthy of even two stars? It was because of my fabulous dining companion, my partner-in-crime, the infamous Harrisburg Yelper, miss Mia K. She was there for me through it all... holding my hand as I digested my meal... making me laugh by making fun of the gallery of mullets around us... and even letting me nibble off her plate of coconut shrimp salad which was actually quite lovely with the sun-dried tomato vinaigrette dressing. Now that is true BFF4EVAR love! But that's beside the point. The point is that if I had the power to also promote people into British nobility, I'd make myself Grand Princess because then I could marry the absolutely beautiful and charming Prince William and we would make lots of babies or at least do a lot of baby-making and live happily ever after. The end.
(2)Pamela B.
Approximately 9 pm, find out that the Harrisburg Comedy Club in New Cumberland no longer has a restaurant. Show starts at 10 pm. The ONLY thing close to the Comedy Club is fast food. Decided to give this a try (about 6 driving minutes away), had not been here in probably 15 years since it was the Gingerbread Man. Explained our circumstance to the host, were seated at the bar (party of six), and all had our meals (which were very good, ), bar snacks & sandwiches, drinks, bill paid, and made the show only ten minutes late. The bartender/waitress was lovely and accommodating of our craziness. They need to start promoting a dinner & comedy package!
(4)Brian R.
3 stars because the deck at Duke's over the river is tough to beat, really nice spot. That being said, the food here is very average, and the drinks are the same. Service is hit or miss.
(3)liz m.
Food is awesome.....Service could be a little faster though. Steaks and pasta dishes are awesome......portions are huge! i eat alot and had 2 whole meals worth of food! Prices are good too! Love the atmosphere.....it's a shame Harrisburg doesn't have a prettier river to look at! :-)
(4)Kevin S.
Hmm...seems several Yelpers have had a less than good experience here. Bummer. I'm not one of em. Had dinner here on Friday night with about 20 friends. We prepped Duke's ahead of time even though they don't take reservations. Even had a guest arrive early and put our name on their list. Once the group arrived (around 6:30 pm), we were seated immediately. This will help all those groups out there as to how to get it done. Alert the restaurant, and then confirm with someone in person. The food? Was pretty good. Had part of a friend's crab pretzel....and while it wasn't the "best" crab anything I'd ever had, it was tasty. For dinner, I had the Buffalo Chicken sandwich, seasoned fries and some diet pepsi. A bit different on the buffalo chicken theme as the buffalo crust flavor had it throughout the crust, not just on top. Fries were tasty. Service? Very good considering we had 2 waitresses during a very busy time for the place. Outdoor patio was PACKED. Prices? Nice. Parking appears tight, but in fact is plentiful, except that it's all across the street....so you get to enjoy crossing Front St. View of the river? Excellent!
(4)Ovi D.
The view is amazing. The service is getting worse and worse. The food quality is poor. This reminds me of a tourist trap. Just because they have a great location doesn't mean you can neglect certain factors that distinguish good restaurants from bad
(2)Bri G.
This is one of the best decks around on a nice summer's night. Good happy hour, good food, good service, good prices. This place has been consistently good at a reasonable price. Fun atmosphere outside and inside. Has always been a hit for us.
(4)Ray Y.
After leaving Rock Bass Grill and being ignored there for over 30 minutes (see that reveiw) - I was pleased that upon sitting at the bar I actually was waited on within a minute. As it turns out the bartender was from Woburn, MA. Turns out I should have asked her what to order because the fish and chips was too greasy and coating too thick. The Fries nothing special. Still - just for the good and friendly service I'll give this place the benefit of the doubt. I had not checked the yelper reviews prior to the visit and had I done so I'm sure the dish I would have selected would have been better.
(2)E Y.
I used to frequent this place when it was known as Riverside G-man. Never had any complaints about the food. The crab dip and chicken quesadilla were the bomb. So I went there yesterday for an early dinner with some co-workers. I ordered the usual chicken quesadilla and it was horrible. Hardly any filling and the chicken I believe was pre-packaged. Appetizers came out and within 2 minutes so did our entrees. It's unfortunate this place has gone down hill. Also, our server advised she wasn't sick as she wiped her nose. Perhaps she just needed to eat a cheeseburger or five....
(2)Amy K.
Since when is two paper thin burger patties stuck together a 1/2lb burger patty? Very chewy, very thin, and overcooked. I asked for it to be cooked medium. If I wanted two paper thin patties with cheese on them, I would have gone to Wendy's and gotten a double stack cheeseburger. Very disappointed. I asked a cheeseburger, cooked medium, extra cheddar cheese. They just stacked two paper thin patties on top of each other with cheese on top and in the middle. Not impressed. Spider fell onto our table as well and that would have been very lovely to have fall onto our food. Won't be back after this lunch disaster.
(1)Tony K.
This place is like a 2.5 but they get the round down because of the audacity in the service. Met up with some friends here one night. I was a first timer, so my friends were giving me suggestions. I was a little wary (shame on me) and I decided on the burger I think. Burger was fine. The problem was the french fries. They were left out all night or from another order or something because the first and only one I had was hard, old, and stone cold. The rest of my party was still eating away and I have nothing but a heap of cold fries on my plate and the same waiter takes the plate. I jot him a look like 'wtf?' and he looked right back like 'yea, I shouldn't have served those.' Didn't even ask me if I wanted to take it home or anything because he knew he was wrong; just took the plate of fries and was probably going to serve it to someone else. What kind of poop head knowingly serves bad/old food? Won't be going back there.
(2)Queenie S.
My husband and I and our friends always stop by Dukes every time we're in the area. The food is always good and abundant. The chili and tomato bisque are to die for! We haven't ever had a bad meal there. The views are awesome and the wait staff go out of their way to serve. Go off hours because the place is so good that they get busy real fast.
(4)Keely B.
I'd give this place a solid B. Despite being told they were too full to take our reservation for 10, we got a table with no problem when we arrived. The service was mediocre, and our server unenthusiastic, but no one was in a hurry. They had pints on special for $2.50, which was nice, and the house wine was decent. The long island was weak, even after we sent it back, but the food was quite excellent. I got the tomato florentine soup and a panini with seasoned fries. I loved it all, though I could only eat half--the other half was taken care of by a particularly ravenous friend. A friend's 10 year class reunion was taking place upstairs, and I'm not sure if it was the fault of the organizers or Duke's, but it sucked... Cash bar and one lonely appetizer for the whole group.
(3)Mason H.
I was pulled into this restaurant because of the view of the Susquehanna River and City Island. It has a sports bar feel and I thought it would be a good place to visit prior to going to the Harrisburg Auto show. Even though it was the dumb hours, about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, I figured what do I have to lose. Well I had the Garganzola Apple Walnut chicken salad with the raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Lettuce was mostly iceberg so that was a let down. Not bad but nothing to write home about. My buddy Jeff had the Maryland crab cakes and thought it was so bad he sent it back. He traded it in for a chicken wrap which was okay. Olivia was the wait person and did an adequate job but it was not crowded so we expected to be taken care of. She worked with what she had. Fun location but lets just say they need to examine the quality of the product here. It needs work.
(1)Steve P.
I come here for the Tomato Florentine Soup, and their Crab Pretzel. Anything else can take a flying leap into the Susquehanna River for being a tad overpriced for what you get (yes I realize the pretzel is expensive, that's why I only get it once a decade). That, and their system of seating yourself after 8PM only causes people to be left sitting waiting for their server to take notice one of their tables now has a soul in it. Which btw doesn't always happen. Their drinks are way too expensive and are mostly ice in the glass. However since I no longer come here to get my drink on, this review is based solely on the 2 food items I now get and the experience I have while eating there. During the day/lunch hour, the staff is very attentive and knows you are there. However, try coming here for a late night drink or snack and just hope you get a server who doesn't hate their job.
(3)Tracie M.
Not a fan of the food. I've never had a meal here that I liked. Instead I've had stale bread, luke warm soup and dry bland chicken. Still, not a bad place to grab a drink in nice weather. The deck is nice. If you want to "bar hop" a bit, grab a drink here, then walk to nearby Dockside Willie's for a nice casual meal or to Rockbass Grill for something more upscale. Give yourself time to find a parking place. The lot (shared by all three restaurants) gets full.
(2)Jim G.
Two words: CRAB PRETZEL!!!!!!!! Again: CRAB PRETZEL!!!! prepare to be rocked by its behemoth size! I am hard to please and this thing is amazing. Flavor upon wonderful flavor cascaded down the edges. My biggest complaint about eating out is how incredibly salty food is. Luckily yet ironically (being a pretzel after all) this crab pretzel has NO such sodium-addiction. High five! Note: I've only sat/eaten at the outdoor bar part, so i can't comment on service, wait times, etc....
(4)Allan P.
This place is a greasy spoon, and the name and ownership has changed more times than I've changed my underwear; the place has definitely went downhill since the days it used be known as the "Gingerbread Man." I seriously do not know how this place stays in business. While the waitstaff is friendly and professional, it's always dead in here. The menu choices are what you'd find at a typical diner or at a TGIF. The portions are way too large, and there are few healthy options on the menu. I DEFINATELY won't order food here again. The only redeeming quality about Dukes is the large deck that overlooks the river, though it's pretty useless in the late fall and winter. The deck is VERY big, and it's never jam packed. They also have an outdoor bar, so if you're to hang out with a large group of friends on a warm summer night, this is probably the place to go - but just stick to the beer.
(2)Mia K.
Who would have thought that I, Mia, would give an American Restaurant/Sports Bar 4 stars? Shh... Don't tell anyone. Duke's Riverside isn't *JUST* an American Restaurant and Sports Bar. At least not according to my taste buds; it's so much more. I first encountered Duke's when it was still Gingerbread Man back in '04. After one lunch I was hooked. I ordered the Coconut Shrimp Salad, and I haven't ordered anything else since. It's amazing. I really can't say anything about any of the other food (except that my friends continue to go back with me, so it must be decent) because I've never tried anything else. Coconut Shrimp Salad with Sun dried tomato vinaigrette (yeah I can't spell that and I'm lazy so yeah) is my FAVORITE food ever. That being said, for you LUSHES - they offer a huge menu of specialty cocktails and beers. In the summer you can enjoy them on the outdoor deck overlooking the Susquehanna and the bridge with the piece missing. If you squint your eyes, spray some tropical perfume and spin around 3 times it's ALMOST like you're in a tropical paradise. So why not 5 stars? Well, I've rarely had a good server. They usually take too long and aren't very nice. So, come for the Coconut Shrimp Salad, stay because no one has brought your check.
(4)Leon J.
I wish I could give this place zero stars, but it does get one star for having a great view. The service is terrible. The food is putrid, if not disease-ridden. The establishment if filled with West Shore trash that watches Oprah and shops at Kohls. Unfortunately, that crowd will continue to frequent this "restaurant" (and I use that term loosely). Otherwise, this place would thankfully go out of business and a new owner could take advantage of the nice setting. Ugh...
(1)Ali R.
Ughhhh, I can't believe people are actually giving this place good reviews. I guess the only redeeming point could lie in the fact that there's a deck and you can sit and look over the water & Harrisburg skyline. The food is basically terrible, nothing but a huge menu of mostly glorified bar food. I had a chicken salad, which looked like it was made from bagged mix; iceberg lettuce, tiny shreds of carrot, etc. French onion soup was nothing special, just overly salty. My eating companions had the coconut shrimp salad (the shrimp was okay, the rest of the salad was the same colorless iceberg mix) and a prime rib sandwich. The sandwich portion was huge and looked appetizing, but I didn't try it so I can't accurately tell. The inside of the restaurant seems dark and depressing. Huge portions of boring food. Not worth your time or money.
(1)Jeff S.
7/26/08 4:30pm Awful. Empty tables everywhere, yet we waited for 10 minutes to be seated. Then our server never came - we had to speak to the hostess to address the problem. Overall, the food at my table of 7 was ok to good, but my fish & chips was poor - overly breaded cheap fish. The coleslaw was gross and they brought me potato wedges instead of the french fries I asked for. Inasmuch as this was a non-alcoholic family function, I was not distracted from the abysmal service by my alcohol intake, I had to suffer through each agonizing moment unmedicated. An awful dining experience, one of the worst in months.
(1)Dennis H.
Had lunch outside yesterday. Good food, good service, good prices
(4)joshua h.
went with the girlfriend Tuesday night for dinner on the deck,arrived at 7 was told it would be about 25 minutes for deck seating, we said we would wait,..and we did ,... for 50 minutes,...after being seated we ordered drinks, a soda and a beer,..soda came out relatively quick, the beer 12 minutes later,.. then ordered a cup of french onion soup,which was good, and a Reuben for myself and a chicken and rice with side of veggies for the gf,...35 minutes later they were brought out,..my Reuben came out as a Rachel,complete with dried out sliced turkey and half stale dry bread,I would have complained but I prefer my food spit free,..the girlfriends chicken dish was ok but veggies were completely bland,the waitress checked on us once,"after we were done and waiting for the check" to see if we wanted dessert...nice place to go for a beer with friends,but this will be my last trip there for dinner. honestly,.. arby's sandwiches taste better
(1)Kevin S.
Hmm...seems several Yelpers have had a less than good experience here. Bummer. I'm not one of em. Had dinner here on Friday night with about 20 friends. We prepped Duke's ahead of time even though they don't take reservations. Even had a guest arrive early and put our name on their list. Once the group arrived (around 6:30 pm), we were seated immediately. This will help all those groups out there as to how to get it done. Alert the restaurant, and then confirm with someone in person. The food? Was pretty good. Had part of a friend's crab pretzel....and while it wasn't the "best" crab anything I'd ever had, it was tasty. For dinner, I had the Buffalo Chicken sandwich, seasoned fries and some diet pepsi. A bit different on the buffalo chicken theme as the buffalo crust flavor had it throughout the crust, not just on top. Fries were tasty. Service? Very good considering we had 2 waitresses during a very busy time for the place. Outdoor patio was PACKED. Prices? Nice. Parking appears tight, but in fact is plentiful, except that it's all across the street....so you get to enjoy crossing Front St. View of the river? Excellent!
(4)Mia K.
Who would have thought that I, Mia, would give an American Restaurant/Sports Bar 4 stars? Shh... Don't tell anyone. Duke's Riverside isn't *JUST* an American Restaurant and Sports Bar. At least not according to my taste buds; it's so much more. I first encountered Duke's when it was still Gingerbread Man back in '04. After one lunch I was hooked. I ordered the Coconut Shrimp Salad, and I haven't ordered anything else since. It's amazing. I really can't say anything about any of the other food (except that my friends continue to go back with me, so it must be decent) because I've never tried anything else. Coconut Shrimp Salad with Sun dried tomato vinaigrette (yeah I can't spell that and I'm lazy so yeah) is my FAVORITE food ever. That being said, for you LUSHES - they offer a huge menu of specialty cocktails and beers. In the summer you can enjoy them on the outdoor deck overlooking the Susquehanna and the bridge with the piece missing. If you squint your eyes, spray some tropical perfume and spin around 3 times it's ALMOST like you're in a tropical paradise. So why not 5 stars? Well, I've rarely had a good server. They usually take too long and aren't very nice. So, come for the Coconut Shrimp Salad, stay because no one has brought your check.
(4)Kevin K.
Love this place, I come every year for a car show and the food and service are just fantastic even when they're slammed. Wait times can be a bit long but what do you expect with a major event near by. One of the two staples of my trip to carlise/harrisburg. The outside seating is hard to beat, looking out over the river with the lights shinning off it is fantastic.
(5)Cody B.
Great food. You get a lot for the price you pay and it's all fantastic food. It also has an awesome deck that is out over the river so you can eat and enjoy the river. I recommend going in the summer so you can really enjoy the deck. Also has some great seafood. Best crab cakes in the city.
(5)Carol S.
We went to Dukes on a Saturday night and there was a wait for outside table so we sat inside near the bar. Still a nice view of the water. Lauren was our server and did a great job, she had a couple of big tables but our service level didn't suffer much. Boneless wings were good, beer ice cold and the Caesar wrap and blackened tuna were good, the apple pie in a mug was a great finish. Had a nice time and would go again.
(4)Christopher M.
I was here once many moons ago with a medium-large group. I recall the food being decent bar/pub fare. But it took AGES for it to come out! And don't get me twisted. I'm ok with things coming out slowly when dining with a large group. But some people in our party received and finished their meals before others even received their appetizer. Maybe it has changed over the years. I hope so because Duke's had/has a lot of potential. But I wasn't impressed, have never been back, and would have to see a plethera of really good reviews before even considering giving them return business.
(2)Michelle B.
Horrible service- we waited about 15 minutes before the waitress showed up to order our drinks. Waited another 20 minutes to get the drinks. Then after telling us 3 times that our food was "just about ready", we ended up waiting 30 minutes after the last time before it actually came out. Although, the food was tasty, but the soft drinks were flat or watered down. I do hope it was just a one time bad instance with the bad service because it is a cool place to dine.
(2)E Y.
I used to frequent this place when it was known as Riverside G-man. Never had any complaints about the food. The crab dip and chicken quesadilla were the bomb. So I went there yesterday for an early dinner with some co-workers. I ordered the usual chicken quesadilla and it was horrible. Hardly any filling and the chicken I believe was pre-packaged. Appetizers came out and within 2 minutes so did our entrees. It's unfortunate this place has gone down hill. Also, our server advised she wasn't sick as she wiped her nose. Perhaps she just needed to eat a cheeseburger or five....
(2)Tracie M.
Not a fan of the food. I've never had a meal here that I liked. Instead I've had stale bread, luke warm soup and dry bland chicken. Still, not a bad place to grab a drink in nice weather. The deck is nice. If you want to "bar hop" a bit, grab a drink here, then walk to nearby Dockside Willie's for a nice casual meal or to Rockbass Grill for something more upscale. Give yourself time to find a parking place. The lot (shared by all three restaurants) gets full.
(2)Lizzie J.
With it being a beautiful day outside, I can understand it being busy at a restaurant that is known for having outside deck service. Thus being said we opted out for an inside, close-to-the-window seat. The menu had large variety and everything we saw coming out looked great - but then when I looked around and saw the many guests who sat near us, I noticed some steps of service that had been missed; Nearly every customers drink was empty... Dirty dishes littered their tables... As I sat there (yet to have been greeted) I saw a table, who's guests had just left as we sat down, that still had its dirty dishes sitting on it... At first, I chalked it up to it being busy - but as the minutes ticked by... And my boyfriend and I had still yet to have been greeted... I couldn't help but become a bit disgruntled. Being in the service industry myself, I understand a busy atmosphere but cannot begin to fathom why it was so difficult to even get a "ill be right with you", let alone a greeting. The final straw was when a group of young men, who had passed us in the parking lot and were seating shortly after us were greeted, had their drink order in, and received said drinks long before we decided to leave. We were sat at approximately 7:20pm, and left at 7:38pm... 18 minutes is far too long for any greeting, regardless of how busy it is... But that is besides the fact, because we never even saw our server. I saw our hostess on our way out and politely told her we were never greeted and therefore were going to take our business somewhere else.
(1)Ovi D.
The view is amazing. The service is getting worse and worse. The food quality is poor. This reminds me of a tourist trap. Just because they have a great location doesn't mean you can neglect certain factors that distinguish good restaurants from bad
(2)Bri G.
This is one of the best decks around on a nice summer's night. Good happy hour, good food, good service, good prices. This place has been consistently good at a reasonable price. Fun atmosphere outside and inside. Has always been a hit for us.
(4)Tony K.
This place is like a 2.5 but they get the round down because of the audacity in the service. Met up with some friends here one night. I was a first timer, so my friends were giving me suggestions. I was a little wary (shame on me) and I decided on the burger I think. Burger was fine. The problem was the french fries. They were left out all night or from another order or something because the first and only one I had was hard, old, and stone cold. The rest of my party was still eating away and I have nothing but a heap of cold fries on my plate and the same waiter takes the plate. I jot him a look like 'wtf?' and he looked right back like 'yea, I shouldn't have served those.' Didn't even ask me if I wanted to take it home or anything because he knew he was wrong; just took the plate of fries and was probably going to serve it to someone else. What kind of poop head knowingly serves bad/old food? Won't be going back there.
(2)Queenie S.
My husband and I and our friends always stop by Dukes every time we're in the area. The food is always good and abundant. The chili and tomato bisque are to die for! We haven't ever had a bad meal there. The views are awesome and the wait staff go out of their way to serve. Go off hours because the place is so good that they get busy real fast.
(4)Keely B.
I'd give this place a solid B. Despite being told they were too full to take our reservation for 10, we got a table with no problem when we arrived. The service was mediocre, and our server unenthusiastic, but no one was in a hurry. They had pints on special for $2.50, which was nice, and the house wine was decent. The long island was weak, even after we sent it back, but the food was quite excellent. I got the tomato florentine soup and a panini with seasoned fries. I loved it all, though I could only eat half--the other half was taken care of by a particularly ravenous friend. A friend's 10 year class reunion was taking place upstairs, and I'm not sure if it was the fault of the organizers or Duke's, but it sucked... Cash bar and one lonely appetizer for the whole group.
(3)Mason H.
I was pulled into this restaurant because of the view of the Susquehanna River and City Island. It has a sports bar feel and I thought it would be a good place to visit prior to going to the Harrisburg Auto show. Even though it was the dumb hours, about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, I figured what do I have to lose. Well I had the Garganzola Apple Walnut chicken salad with the raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Lettuce was mostly iceberg so that was a let down. Not bad but nothing to write home about. My buddy Jeff had the Maryland crab cakes and thought it was so bad he sent it back. He traded it in for a chicken wrap which was okay. Olivia was the wait person and did an adequate job but it was not crowded so we expected to be taken care of. She worked with what she had. Fun location but lets just say they need to examine the quality of the product here. It needs work.
(1)Jim G.
Two words: CRAB PRETZEL!!!!!!!! Again: CRAB PRETZEL!!!! prepare to be rocked by its behemoth size! I am hard to please and this thing is amazing. Flavor upon wonderful flavor cascaded down the edges. My biggest complaint about eating out is how incredibly salty food is. Luckily yet ironically (being a pretzel after all) this crab pretzel has NO such sodium-addiction. High five! Note: I've only sat/eaten at the outdoor bar part, so i can't comment on service, wait times, etc....
(4)Allan P.
This place is a greasy spoon, and the name and ownership has changed more times than I've changed my underwear; the place has definitely went downhill since the days it used be known as the "Gingerbread Man." I seriously do not know how this place stays in business. While the waitstaff is friendly and professional, it's always dead in here. The menu choices are what you'd find at a typical diner or at a TGIF. The portions are way too large, and there are few healthy options on the menu. I DEFINATELY won't order food here again. The only redeeming quality about Dukes is the large deck that overlooks the river, though it's pretty useless in the late fall and winter. The deck is VERY big, and it's never jam packed. They also have an outdoor bar, so if you're to hang out with a large group of friends on a warm summer night, this is probably the place to go - but just stick to the beer.
(2)John G.
We enjoy Duke's on more than one occassion! Last night was no different! We went in around 8pm and it being Saturday night it was a tad busy 30 minute was the average wait but we only waited between 15-20 minutes. The place was packed but the rotation was fast. Our waitress came and got our drink orders and brought them back quickly. Nothing like cold Beer to get the appetite stimulated. I Had the BBQ Ribs they were tender spicy and for the money to much to eat. My wife had one of the MT. Meatloaf Platters it was on special but they sure didn't specialize the size it did look like a mountain it was huge. Both meals came with 2 sides and mine also came with Baked Beans they were to sweet for my taste but my wife loved them. The service was good better than expected for how busy they were. So if you like River View the Bar atmosphere and big Portions you won't go wrong at Duke's.
(4)Tara D.
Great food and helpful staff...expect to spend $40 for lunch/dinner
(4)Deborah C.
Sat here for over an hour for my food to come out cold told them to take it back don't want it . Appetiz came out with food no way I will ever come back
(1)Stephanie F.
I haven't eaten here in about 2 years, but I was here several times and never disappointed. Huge menu, friendly staff and food was always good.
(4)Jennifer W.
We had dinner at Duke's for my birthday, and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised after reading some of the negative reviews. We called ahead and made reservations for our party of 12. When we arrived, the table was ready, our server promptly took our drink order, and brought our beverages. She gave me recommendations on the menu items when I asked and the food came out pretty quickly for as big as our party was. I got the 2 pound rib dinner and they were phenomenal. I wound up taking half of the meal home to have another meal. The burgers are huge and the homemade buns are great. Everyone was very satisfied with their food. The service was also very good. Our server kept up with dink and beer refills and handled the chaos that comes along with a party of 12 very well. The menu prices seemed to be a little high, but after I saw the portions of food that everyone received, I was glad to pay what they were asking. This was my first dining experience at Dukes and it will not be my last.
(5)Ray Y.
After leaving Rock Bass Grill and being ignored there for over 30 minutes (see that reveiw) - I was pleased that upon sitting at the bar I actually was waited on within a minute. As it turns out the bartender was from Woburn, MA. Turns out I should have asked her what to order because the fish and chips was too greasy and coating too thick. The Fries nothing special. Still - just for the good and friendly service I'll give this place the benefit of the doubt. I had not checked the yelper reviews prior to the visit and had I done so I'm sure the dish I would have selected would have been better.
(2)E G.
I wish I found this place sooner before moving back home. Duke's has great food for the kind of place it is. The food has always been fresh the times we have been there and the atmosphere is hard to beat in around here. There is a nice mix of a social and sit-down feeling here where you can mingle but stil enjoy a nice dinner right on the river. The food has been hot and tasty, I recommend trying any of the soups. Sandwichs are fresh and good sized. Crab dip with bread is one of the best I ever had. Service was mixed, the waitresses are friendly but depending on the time and day, it can be a little slow. That doesn't matter too much because you can enjoy a drink on the river and kind of pass the time easily. We always go back here if we want something consistently good with a nice surrounding. Great find, good food and reasonably priced!
(4)Amy K.
Since when is two paper thin burger patties stuck together a 1/2lb burger patty? Very chewy, very thin, and overcooked. I asked for it to be cooked medium. If I wanted two paper thin patties with cheese on them, I would have gone to Wendy's and gotten a double stack cheeseburger. Very disappointed. I asked a cheeseburger, cooked medium, extra cheddar cheese. They just stacked two paper thin patties on top of each other with cheese on top and in the middle. Not impressed. Spider fell onto our table as well and that would have been very lovely to have fall onto our food. Won't be back after this lunch disaster.
(1)Steve P.
I come here for the Tomato Florentine Soup, and their Crab Pretzel. Anything else can take a flying leap into the Susquehanna River for being a tad overpriced for what you get (yes I realize the pretzel is expensive, that's why I only get it once a decade). That, and their system of seating yourself after 8PM only causes people to be left sitting waiting for their server to take notice one of their tables now has a soul in it. Which btw doesn't always happen. Their drinks are way too expensive and are mostly ice in the glass. However since I no longer come here to get my drink on, this review is based solely on the 2 food items I now get and the experience I have while eating there. During the day/lunch hour, the staff is very attentive and knows you are there. However, try coming here for a late night drink or snack and just hope you get a server who doesn't hate their job.
(3)Jill M.
The restaurant overall isn't that exciting (similar to a chain restaurant like Ruby Tuesdays or Fridays), but it is on the river, with lots of large windows to let in the view, and a big outdoor patio that I'm sure is wonderful in the summer. Our food took a while to come out, but the server was great - very helpful, kept checking on us, etc. The food was pretty good, and they give you large portions for the price. I got a steak salad that was almost too big to finish. The steak was a little tough/overcooked, however I can't remember if I specified "medium" when I ordered it. I tried some of my friend's crab quesadilla and it was packed full of lots of crab meat and cheese. My friends and I shared a brownie sundae for desesrt, and it was delicious. The brownie was warm and fudgy, and there were at least 2 brownies in the bowl - it was tough to tell under all that melty ice cream and chocolate sauce.
(3)Leon J.
I wish I could give this place zero stars, but it does get one star for having a great view. The service is terrible. The food is putrid, if not disease-ridden. The establishment if filled with West Shore trash that watches Oprah and shops at Kohls. Unfortunately, that crowd will continue to frequent this "restaurant" (and I use that term loosely). Otherwise, this place would thankfully go out of business and a new owner could take advantage of the nice setting. Ugh...
(1)Ali R.
Ughhhh, I can't believe people are actually giving this place good reviews. I guess the only redeeming point could lie in the fact that there's a deck and you can sit and look over the water & Harrisburg skyline. The food is basically terrible, nothing but a huge menu of mostly glorified bar food. I had a chicken salad, which looked like it was made from bagged mix; iceberg lettuce, tiny shreds of carrot, etc. French onion soup was nothing special, just overly salty. My eating companions had the coconut shrimp salad (the shrimp was okay, the rest of the salad was the same colorless iceberg mix) and a prime rib sandwich. The sandwich portion was huge and looked appetizing, but I didn't try it so I can't accurately tell. The inside of the restaurant seems dark and depressing. Huge portions of boring food. Not worth your time or money.
(1)Erik G.
so the food here is decent. it's a well liked establishment. but the customer service in the management area of this business leads a little to be desired. we had a world renowned sideshow performer in town for the weekend. sunday night, his last night in town, we thought it might be a good idea to take him out to a scenic river spot. we had about twelve people in our party, but he was hungry now and not in a half hour, so we figured it would be no problem to get a large table and get some drinks and appetizers while we waited for the rest of our party to close up shop and come join us. now, we had a party of 12. 12 hungry tattooers who will all eat well and tip even better. it was about 9:30 on a sunday evening. the place was empty. but they refused to seat us at a large outdoor table until the whole party was there. the manager wouldn't bend on this policy. so we sat outside and explained to the waitress our predicament. she was totally cool and moved us to be a bigger table. and then a bigger table when our whole party arrived. all in all, a decent experience. alright food, although a little pricey. probably won't be back until we have another out of town guest with us and are desperate for food.
(3)Stephen W.
Came here with a large group of family. Unlike many reviews here, our table service was good, (not great, but perfectly acceptable). Portion sizes were HUGE, but the food was just okay -- not bad, not great. My wife and I ordered the baja fish tacos, which were not anything like the picture in the menu, but they tasted good. My Old Bay fries were served hot, but completely over-seasoned, almost too salty to eat. I might have given Duke's 2 or perhaps even 3 stars, if it weren't for this: When we were sat, I used the men's room, and discovered they were out of soap. I immediately notified a restaurant employee. However, when I returned to the restroom after our meal, well over an hour later, there was STILL NO SOAP. I again notified an employee, and mentioned that I had told someone OVER AN HOUR AGO that there was no soap in the restroom, and they responded "well, we've been kinda busy, but we'll change it now" This means the everyone, customer and employee, who used the restroom for over an hour, DID NOT WASH THEIR HANDS. Gross. I will not patronize an establishment that will forgo basic hygiene requirements simply because they are a little busy.
(1)J S.
If it was possible to give them negative stars...I would. Service...F Food...D There is way too much to type in detailing how this was a horrific experience. They're not worth my time. I'll never go back. Period.
(1)Gary R.
Love this place. Food is always good. We were here on Labor Day. The service was very good. Had 14 oz steak which was done exactly the way I asked. The server never let my drink empty or anyone else's at the table. Prices were very reasonable.
(5)Sean O.
Tried the beer battered haddock sandwich. Huge portions with a ton of fries. The service was just OK and when they seated our party of 8 they put us at two small tables with chairs crammed together. There was a few unused tables nearby and had to ask for a table just to fit our party. Didn't make a lot of sense. Our actual server was very nice but the support staff was not nearly as friendly. Food is good but the atmosphere is so so for lunch.
(3)David K.
Very disappointing. Given this place 3-4 chances, purely because of the view of the city and deck, but will not go back. The drinks are absolutely terrible. The mojito, G&T, mango margarita and normal margaritas all tasted sooo watered down. Besides that, the mint and garnishes they use are flippin disgusting. Exactly what I want in my mojito, a disgusting, entirely black stem of mint... The food is all very heavy and mostly fried. The crabby fries are really good, we get them every time. The crab pretzel was also really, really good. Its a shame, the place just has a boring menu, terrible drinks, and its like the bartenders know the drinks suck.
(2)B S.
I want to know how a place can be known for their burgers when (to begin with) they don't even use hand-formed patties? All their gourmet burgers have two 1/4-pound patties. Looks like glorified Burger King. (This is from what I could tell. I could be wrong.) Skip the seasoned/spicy fries. They taste like jack-in-the-box curly fries. Get the regular ones instead. The burgers are big enough to share if you're not a big eater, which you should do so you can eat again somewhere else that's better. Plus for the deck with a view of the water. My friends got the Philly cheesesteak and chicken cheesesteak. Both looked gross.
(2)Kevin B.
I've been to Duke's a few times before and it's always been a great time. They have good food at very good prices and good beer as well. Their sandwiches and burgers are great and are very filling. For appetizers, I would highly suggest their Old Bay seasoned french fries with Boom Boom sauce. I have no idea what Boom Boom sauce is but it was delicious and I would definitely get it again (just make sure you split them with at least 2 others, they give you a lot of food). Overall - very good food at great prices and great service. I will definitely be coming back again.
(4)Melody H.
Went there last week for lunch the deck was full but we did get a table, got the Ruben which was great can't go wrong with that, they had changed their fries which I didn't care for they were a bit greasy and soggy but love the view and sitting on the deck
(3)Dorothy B.
Such a great place to go with a crowd, right on the river. Fun time, relaxing - not rushed at all. Fantastic drinks, food and laughter!
(5)Trajean S.
Food is great! I came to enjoy the wonderful deck and good food BUT was distracted by the NUMEROUS SPIDERS and webs all over the place. It was so bad we were literally watching them go into a ladies hair. When I asked the waiter if they clean the deck of the spiders he says "it's useless for they always come back"i think this should be addressed but until then this is my recommendation: sit in the middle of the deck away from either end to avoid the spiders.
(3)Billi Jo S.
We chose this restaurant to celebrate my daughter's birthday (she and her family are from Maryland). I must say we are a mess of a family. Our grandson is Autistic and our visits to restaurants can be somewhat of a challenge! I wanted to make my daughter's birthday special and as soon as the host staff "hooked me up" with Andrea C, I knew we were in good hands. She handled the bunch of us with a calmness that not all restaurants/servers are able. The food was amazing and Andrea made our experience one of the best I have ever experienced. We all left feeling full and very grateful for our server! It was a birthday to remember! Thanks, Andrea C! You are the best!!
(4)Chris K.
Planned a birthday celebration at Dukes in Wormleysburg this past Saturday. The bar tender was too busy to provide drinks while we were awaiting the party guests. Finally we were seated and the wait staff took our drink order. 40 minutes later, we didn't have any drinks, not even a glass of water on the table. We took our party of 12 and left. On the way out, I heard the hostess explaining to another customer that there was no manager on the premises. Have no plans to return due to the rude and nonexistent service.
(2)Sterling C.
Had the mountain meatloaf. It was good, a litter under cooked but good. I would get it again. The service on the other had was VERY slow and the place was dead. The server was not that attentive either.
(3)Tony B.
I got the chicken Chesapeake wrap and the chicken was cooked perfectly. The fries were perfect with their old bay seasoning. I also got their hot mango wings as an appetizer and I would recommend them to anyone who want great flavor with not too much hot. I will continue to come here!
(5)Megan C.
This was my second visit to Duke's, and I would probably give it a 3 1/2 stars if I could. The atmosphere of Duke's is why I went back. When is Harrisburg for work, I am a sucker for drinking on an outdoor patio overlooking the river! So, a win for great location & great beverages! The food is typical bar food- nothing super exceptional, but you probably won't have a bad meal either. I will say the crab dip is pretty stellar, but my salmon stew & fried shrimp were just okay. Overall, great place to grab drinks, but I'll try somewhere else for food next time!
(3)MoCe C.
I guess that u have to give them 1 star??! Beyond Poor service. Short staffed as always, overworked and Little training Seems like managment not only dosnt care But also seems to not b held accountable for their poor service. They don't help the overworked waitresses. Like others said it's the views I order at the bar as the others sit at tables n we just take turns getting the tables drinks. I don't enjoy giving one stars. But it's hoping they get a point. Or perhaps no one really cares bc they know someone will always come n put up with there shit EVERY thing.
(1)Jeanine C.
I will never be coming here again. This was the second time I came to Dukes. I tried the one in Hershey, which was fantastic (only because I was starving the next morning after a night out). So the one in Wormleysburg. Ah yes, so we get seated outside on the patio. I am fully and completely aware you're in for all the insects that are near the river, so don't get me wrong when you read this. Our waitress was really nice, but very slow. We sat there for a good wait while she finally took our orders. I received a salad as an appetizer and my second bite in I find a dead fly in my salad. And this fly hadn't just died, you could tell he was in there for a long while. I tell my waitress about this and she said, "I apologize, I'll get a new one, but you must be aware that you are seated outside....." I cut her off and I began to inform her a fly wouldn't be under a whole pile of lettuce and smothered in dressing if this just happened. So she gets me a new one. As I'm waiting for my fly-free salad, I take a sip in my drink and there's another FLY IN THERE! Are you KIDDING ME???????????? Now I'm more than irritated. I get another drink. So as our food came, my friend bought a salad as a meal. She's eating through it and finds a big, long, BLACK hair in her food. Her hair is not black. So that wasn't very pleasing to her at all either. Since the waitress was never anywhere to be found we had to call a manager over. Could I say the worst service, ever?? I gave this lady no tip. Luckily, I was with a bunch of people or I would have walked out after the 2nd fly. Nothing too good to say about the food. I had gotten Chicken Parmesan with noodles. They do give you a lot, but it isn't fantastic. I'll pass!
(1)Candice S.
Eager to enjoy the spring weather, we made a trip to Duke's to enjoy the deck. My pomegranate martini sat for quite some time, so when it arrived, I noticed a bug. I was told by a snotty waitress that my drink would not be refunded or remade because it was stated on the menu that this was the rule when eating outside. I could find nothing stated on the menu with this verbiage. Our waitress apologized and (supposedly) had a fresh one made. Even if they only picked out the bug and served it to me again, her tact in handling the situation went a long way. Then a hair was found in my husband's side salad. We didn't even have the heart or the patience to bring it to anyone's attention. Waitress Nikki was great, but we won't be eating here again.
(1)Lesley M.
Pros: Great location on the Susquehanna River, lively bar scene, friendly servers, fun drink menu, and large outdoor deck. Cons: Dated decor and below average food quality. The bottom line: This is a great place to go for a fun night out, or even some casual people watching. It's always lively and inviting, with the best outdoor space in the area. If you're meeting up with some friends for drinks and quick eats, you can't go wrong. However, if you're looking for amazing food or a romantic dinner for two, this probably isn't going to cut it.
(3)Jim S.
First of all, let me say this. I don't know where to start. So, let's start with the first fifteen minutes that we had to wait before we even received our drinks. Now, let me tell you about the six people behind us, yelling out loud with laughter; to a point that I had gotten a headache, and my nerves were about to explode any minute; which thankfully, they didn't. The waitress finally came to our table for our orders and we ordered our food. Unfortunately, the whole problem started when I received my blackened tuna steak and grilled vegetables. After sitting for about half an hour, having to listen to the same people laughing and yelling behind us, the waitress finally arrives with our food. I will say, though, that we had a very nice and understanding waitress, which I even tipped very well, after our horror feast ended. She did realize how loud the environment had gotten, and she knew very well how upset I was when I found out, that my tuna wasn't blackened tuna, but just two small pieces of tuna steak with NO flavoring (rub) and the vegetables were steamed and had no taste whatsoever. I asked that the whole meal be returned and cooked correctly. The waitress apologized; not that it was HER fault, and then...I sat for over twenty minutes more, waiting for my tuna steak. By the time my meal arrived, my two friends had already eaten their entire meals. The waitress places the meal before me; tuna looks good, but...the vegetables were still lying there, steamed as before. To make a long, long story short, I returned the vegetables and asked for mashed potatoes, instead. I told the waitress I wanted to speak to the manager about my dis-satisfaction with everything. I sat there for at least fifteen minutes before the manager arrived at my table. I assumed that a manager would come directly to your table if you were not happy with the service. It was his actions that indicated me, that he didn't care too much about his customers. He finally arrived and because of my "choice" words I spoke, he knew I was not a happy customer. He apologized and deducted the price from my bill. I will NEVER go back to Dukes Restaurant again; not this one, anyhow. It was the worst service I had ever received in my entire life. If you like it there, fine. I just hope you will continue receiving the good service you had always gotten.
(1)Bill C.
Friday afternoon: no problem getting a seat inside Quick service Excellent salmon No complaints at all
(4)Juliette Z.
Good food, nice service & ambiance. I came here with two friends and we had to wait for a table because it was very crowded. It took like 20 minutes but it was totally worth it. It's a nice place to come for drinks, dinner, for kids or large groups. We ordered the crab pretzel and shared this appetizer. I had a glass of wine and the crab cake salad as main dish. I enjoyed my food. Our waitress was nice and helpfull. She knew a lot about the menu but was not very familiar with the wines. Dukes has a very nice variety of wines (beers and cocktails). Although she couldn't answer my question about a specific kind of wine she knew how to solve this. I would definitely come back.
(4)Terri V.
This was my first time at Duke's so I went on line here to read reviews. I have to say I was concerned because what I was reading was not so nice. I was meeting a large group of about 15 people who came to enjoy the music group " The Villone's" and I wanted everyone to enjoy their evening. It was kinda raining and I wanted to sit where we could see and hear the group. All the chairs needed to be wiped and tables put together to seat our large group. Our waiter Jamell and another great guy got right to it with no problems. This large group all came at once and our waiter Jamell, saw to each and every one of our needs. totally pleasant! The food came each dish looked better then the last and tasted just as good. not one complaint from anyone, So please take this great review to heart. Enjoy the summer, enjoy the river, enjoy the food & the fantastic wait and bar staff. We will be back!
(5)Angela H.
Worst service ever! The hostesses, bar tender, and server were so bad our party of 15 for my great aunt's 80th bday walked out and went next door to Dockside Willie's. 2/3 of our guests arrived and we tell them hostess we are having a surprise party for my aunt and we want to surprise her when she comes in. The hostess tells us we can't be sat until the whole party arrives which defeats the surprise and because of their "policy" they can't let us sit and order drinks and apps while we wait for her. We ask for an exception because it's a surprise and they decline. Keep in mind it's slow. How does that make any business sense? Most places would welcome up-selling their guests. Keep in mind it's 2pm on a sat and there are lots of empty tables, a whole room was empty but no we can't sit there. They say we can wait at the bar so we wait there. Not even a 1/3 of the bar is full but the majority of the people at the bar was my party. My grandma and aunt said to the bartender "when you get moment we'd like to order a drink" but they were brushed off by the bar tender. I had to flag the bar tender and she snapped "I'm really busy"! Really because no one was being served??? She disappeared and never took my drink order. We finally get our table and it takes 15 mins to place our drink orders. Then we realize we've been waiting 40 mins and no drinks, not even water. We haven't even placed our appetizer orders and my 5 year old was so hungry and I had to ask for a kids menu... The waitress said "for him??" And I was like um yeah he's only 5 and there are no other kids with us. We a total of an hour and got nothing but a bad attitude and some diatribe about a bullshit policy that makes no sense, certainly makes no money. We went next door and had a good time. Point blank they are assholes. We asked for a manager and was told there wasn't one on today. Really no manager on a Saturday? Not like any of the paces I've ever served! I will never go back.
(1)Kym D.
This place is overrated with 3 stars. The food is a 3 out of 10 and bartenders/managers attitudes are a 0 out of 10. The only thing great about this place is the deck. The bartenders and manager think they can treat people poorly just because they know people will still come to sit out on the deck. The crab pretzel which they are supposedly "known" for is not even good. The crab to pretzel ratio is way off. The alcoholic drinks are horrible. This place needs a bar rescue. Someone call Jon Taffer stat.
(1)Alan R.
Wow... I was blown away by the awesome views, great beer selection and general atmosphere. The food had its high and lows. High points: The wings were very tasty. I got the river sauce and it was freakin awesome, I could get it again for sure! The Crab Pretzel thing... very good and it is large, def could be a meal. Low points: The crab burger was super dry. The meat patties were dry, there was no sauce on the burger at all. One would think there would be. The patties looked like they were frozen in shape and only cost 4.99 for 3 dozen and where purchased at Sam's Club. The service was mediocre at best. They do not take reservations, and they couldn't tell you how long the wait would be. Not even a general idea, like 15-25 min, or and hour or so... nothing. I have never been in a restaurant who couldn't tell you that... Not even an idea. There were about 10 of us and 3 showed up early to put our name down, the rest of the group showed up about 15 min later. After about 40 min after the first group showed up their pager went off and we all thought we were going to be seated. Nope. They just wanted to confirm everyone was here so now we could be put in line for a table. About an hour later we were seated. Kinda ridiculous.
(3)TJ B.
This place was dead tonite and I can kinda see why. Our waitress had a whole two tables to take care of and we barely even saw her. My girlfriends drink was made totally wrong and it took a long time to get a new one. Food was mediocre at best. We got the Flatbread pizza. I wouldn't give it one star jormally, but the service was severely lacking
(1)Francie F.
Great food, great atmosphere! The staff is very friendly and attentive! Overall great experience!
(5)Ed M.
Portion sizes are good and deck is nice when people aren't smoking, but food is very bland, salad lettuce was old, and service is terribly slow.
(2)L F.
Terrible! There were 10 of us for lunch at noon on a Saturday. I called ahead to check the crowd. The girl on the phone was very rude and wouldn't tell me if they were crowded or not- just kept saying they don't do call ahead or take reservations. I should've decided then to go somewhere else. We headed over anyway... Waitress immediately took our drink order, but then it took her at least 20 min to come back to take our order. We were there for over 2 hours and they were not busy. Food is nothing special. They are lucky they have such a good location. I will not return however.
(1)Joe A.
We went there last year and the drinks on the deck were terrible. We revisited a week ago and had the same problems with the drinks on the deck. We ordered a crab pretzel as an appetizer and it was great, but it showed up 2 minutes before my meal forcing me to pick which one I wanted to eat and which one I wanted to let go cold. The sandwich I order didn't taste too bad, but it was greasy and left me filling a bit ill about an hour later. My girlfriend ordered the crab cake and said it wasn't something she'd order there again. Overall kind of disappointing since they've got a nice deck on the water.
(2)Faith S.
The last time I was there (about a year ago), I vowed to never return because the service was so appalling, rude, and slow, and the food was disgusting. Unfortunately, I was duped into going there last night, because a friend's surprise party was moved there at the last minute. We were a large party of 12, which I understand is annoying for servers. Still, they assigned 2 to our table. The problem was that they weren't a team, one had half of us and the other had the other half. Therefore one could not be bothered to let the other know if say, I asked for another round. He actually said, "Um you have to tell HER." Ok, yeah, I'll wait till you go tell her I want something, have her come over, and then I'll tell her, and then she can order it, wait for it at the bar, and then bring it back, as opposed to you just telling her when you see her. Whatever. Anyway, I ordered nachos, because how hard can it be to assemble nachos? Apparently very hard, because it was a bowl of stale chips, a layer of chips, a blob of what tasted like canned spaghetti sauce with meat right in the middle, then another layer of chips with "cheese" sauce poured on top, but not like thick, cheesy sauce. No, the sauce was so thin it was see-through on the chips and it had no flavor whatsoever. Then the entire bowl was COVERED with salsa, and on top of that was a handful of BANANA PEPPERS. Banana peppers. On Nachos. ??? Banana peppers are for Italian sandwiches, not nachos! No black olives, no lettuce, no jalapenos, no shredded cheese, no guacamole. And the whole mess was cold. Disgusting. Oh and it was supposed to come with sour cream, but didn't. I didn't mention it to the waitress, because the nachos were so gross, I wasn't going to eat them anyway. My husband had a burger, he said it was dry, cold, and bland. And the bun wasn't toasted or grilled, and was cold and hard. I will say that the girl who waited on MY half of the table was pretty quick service-wise, and pleasant. She didn't bring us silverware or napkins though until after our food came, and we asked. Like, if people order food, you should have silverware and napkins on the table by the time it gets there. Just sayin. The drinks were awful, I think they must be pre-mixed? My friend had a long island, it came in like a little 10oz glass, had no flavor except a mild sweetness, definitely very little booze! But the worst part of the night was when the birthday girl pulled a long hair out of her quesadilla. How does that even happen??? Nevermind, I don't want to know. The inside is dark, dirty, sticky, damp, and depressing. Looks like it hasn't had a good cleaning or a makeover in 35 yrs. The deck is hot and smoky. I have my response prepared for the next time someone tries to convince me to go there: "I can't. I vowed to never return because it sucks so bad. Thanks anyway!"
(1)Justin O.
This is one of my favorite places near Harrisburg, they have a great view of the river and within walking distance from City Island when the Harrisburg Senators and the Harrisburg City Islanders play. The restaurant has plenty of beer on draft to keep everyone satisfied, along with a great menu selection at reasonable prices. They also offer take out and a create your own 6 pack. I've gone there with my family and there good with kids and I've been there with large groups (12-14 people) and never had any issues.
(5)William V.
Excellent boneless wings .. special every Sunday 12 boneless wings $5.00.. crab dip for an appetizer was excellent also !!!..
(5)Ben K.
Don't go here. The deck is the only thing keeping this dinosaur in business. The service is slow. The place is dirty (seriously, how long does it take to clean the cobwebs that cover your vents??) and the only good food is the crab pretzel. Turns into a ghost town after happy hour.
(1)sheri e.
went to enjoy the deck recently and sat at the outside bar. ordered the bruschetta and the crab dip. the crap dip is priced at $11 and youre given a small portion, its the size of a cup of soup bowl, tasted good but very small for the price. the bruschetta tasted ok but the bread looked like a sub roll cut, with butter and garlic and the bread was soft. what i mainly didnt like was that the bartenders were not attentive, it wasnt that busy. they didnt come around to ask us if our food was good, and when we finished are appettizers they never came around to take our dishes away. they sat in front of us for a while until we said something. my friend smokes and the dirty ashtray wasnt even taken away and replaced with a clean one. the deck is nice but dukes is over rated. i dont know what managers are getting paid for
(2)John L.
Wife and I went there because of the scenic view of the Susquehanna river from the deck. We both ordered the black Angus burger and home cut fries. These were without a doubt the worst burger and fries I can ever recall having. The burgers had a very odd/bad taste and were overdone. The fries were so overdone you could use them as darts. These were terrible meals even as bar food goes. I gave it one star only because the view of the river was great and our server was friendly.
(1)Marissa H.
For vegetarians, this place is a full 2 thumbs down. There's 1 vegetarian sandwich option, a cheese pizza, and a side salad that are "vegetarian". Granted, you can opt to have items removed from a menu item but who really wants to do that to your server when s/he is busy and you're hungry? Went in on a Senator's game night to grab a bite. It was packed. The 2 of us grabbed a seat at the outside bar, waited a good while to be acknowledged by the bartender. Beers beside us, we had to flag her down again to make our food order. Food came promptly but wasn't tasteful. I had the side salad (standard) & 1/2 a cheese pizza - 1 good comment is that the pizza (which is huge) can be made 1/2 plain & 1/2 meat. The pizza sauced tasted just like it came out of a can, the cheese wasn't melted properly, and it was overly crusty. To make it that much more unpleasant, the outside deck is smoker-friendly so I was inhaling that, too.The beer was the best part of my dining experience. For a non-smoking, vegetarian, health-conscious indvidual, Duke's will not be on my return list.
(1)Jennifer K.
Can't comment on the food because we never got to sit down. It's Mother's day 2014 and they don't have enough servers. So 45 minute wait outside..typical and expected. 30 minute wait inside and there were only 2 tables seated. Absolutely ridiculous. The hostess was rude. The managers running around looked annoyed that people were there and the servers rolled their eyes every time people walked in. I only gave it 1 star bc you have to give a star.
(1)Randall G.
Menu is Very large ! Many options for all kinds of eaters. Friendly staff and a fun place ... HUGE PLUS: just like Dockside Willies, Dukes offers docks for us boaters. Nothing nicer than grabbing your food n drinks and heading out on the river for an evening of relaxing entertainment. Kudos to the staff ;-)
(5)liz m.
Food is awesome.....Service could be a little faster though. Steaks and pasta dishes are awesome......portions are huge! i eat alot and had 2 whole meals worth of food! Prices are good too! Love the atmosphere.....it's a shame Harrisburg doesn't have a prettier river to look at! :-)
(4)Jeff S.
7/26/08 4:30pm Awful. Empty tables everywhere, yet we waited for 10 minutes to be seated. Then our server never came - we had to speak to the hostess to address the problem. Overall, the food at my table of 7 was ok to good, but my fish & chips was poor - overly breaded cheap fish. The coleslaw was gross and they brought me potato wedges instead of the french fries I asked for. Inasmuch as this was a non-alcoholic family function, I was not distracted from the abysmal service by my alcohol intake, I had to suffer through each agonizing moment unmedicated. An awful dining experience, one of the worst in months.
(1)Dennis H.
Had lunch outside yesterday. Good food, good service, good prices
(4)Leila S.
If this were England and I had the power to demote those of British nobility, Duke's would immediately be renamed Knight's, but even THAT would be too nice since nothing about my dining experience here was of royal quality. ... not the slower than a snail service. ... not the so-called chicken caesar salad. ... not the old and slightly browning lettuce in the salad. ... not the tasteless or rubbery chicken either. ... not the incredibly scarce amount of dressing. ... not the roll of indigestible "garlic bread" that hardly had any taste of garlic. ... not the fact that I was still hungry after eating the salad that I only ate because I was absolutely starving... but I did not eat the roll. It simply was not possible to eat the roll, nor did I want to find out how that roll would have felt exiting my body, ekh. So, why is it then that this place is worthy of even two stars? It was because of my fabulous dining companion, my partner-in-crime, the infamous Harrisburg Yelper, miss Mia K. She was there for me through it all... holding my hand as I digested my meal... making me laugh by making fun of the gallery of mullets around us... and even letting me nibble off her plate of coconut shrimp salad which was actually quite lovely with the sun-dried tomato vinaigrette dressing. Now that is true BFF4EVAR love! But that's beside the point. The point is that if I had the power to also promote people into British nobility, I'd make myself Grand Princess because then I could marry the absolutely beautiful and charming Prince William and we would make lots of babies or at least do a lot of baby-making and live happily ever after. The end.
(2)Pamela B.
Approximately 9 pm, find out that the Harrisburg Comedy Club in New Cumberland no longer has a restaurant. Show starts at 10 pm. The ONLY thing close to the Comedy Club is fast food. Decided to give this a try (about 6 driving minutes away), had not been here in probably 15 years since it was the Gingerbread Man. Explained our circumstance to the host, were seated at the bar (party of six), and all had our meals (which were very good, ), bar snacks & sandwiches, drinks, bill paid, and made the show only ten minutes late. The bartender/waitress was lovely and accommodating of our craziness. They need to start promoting a dinner & comedy package!
(4)Brian R.
3 stars because the deck at Duke's over the river is tough to beat, really nice spot. That being said, the food here is very average, and the drinks are the same. Service is hit or miss.
(3)joshua h.
went with the girlfriend Tuesday night for dinner on the deck,arrived at 7 was told it would be about 25 minutes for deck seating, we said we would wait,..and we did ,... for 50 minutes,...after being seated we ordered drinks, a soda and a beer,..soda came out relatively quick, the beer 12 minutes later,.. then ordered a cup of french onion soup,which was good, and a Reuben for myself and a chicken and rice with side of veggies for the gf,...35 minutes later they were brought out,..my Reuben came out as a Rachel,complete with dried out sliced turkey and half stale dry bread,I would have complained but I prefer my food spit free,..the girlfriends chicken dish was ok but veggies were completely bland,the waitress checked on us once,"after we were done and waiting for the check" to see if we wanted dessert...nice place to go for a beer with friends,but this will be my last trip there for dinner. honestly,.. arby's sandwiches taste better
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