Waterworks Restaurant & Pub

Bar, Eatery

7 Lindsey St
Rockland, Maine, 04841-2913
United States

(207) 596-7950 | map
waterworksrockland.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.95
Reviews:
6
Ratings:
8
pDev:
8.1%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews.
Ratings by ecoboy:
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Reviewed by ecoboy from Rhode Island

3.98/5  rDev +0.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4.5
Maine is a very good place to discover an unexpected beer list in the midst of an unassuming town. Rockland is a coastal town somewhat overshadowed by its more tourist-friendly neighbor to the north, Camden. (This is where "In the Bedroom" was shot.)

The Waterworks is a must-visit in the area, though, for a BA type. Found just off Main Street, the long building is divided into a pub half and a restaurant half. The pub half is a wonderful darkened room with free popcorn, long pub tables and benches, and a fine beer list. There has been a fairly good relationship between the Rocky Bay brewing company and the pub, so hard to find Rocky Bay brews are right here.

Plus, they have their own pipes and drums corps. wander in when they're raising the roof on the pub side and realize you're not in the run-of-the-mill establishment.

The restaurant side is fairly nice looking, and the chef does a lot of good seafood, barbecue, and homey New England entrees. I may have inflated the numerical ratings a bit, but I've never had anything but a great experience here.
Jun 06, 2003
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4 by Brew_ski from Pennsylvania

Nov 08, 2019
Photo of OJT1993
Rated by OJT1993 from Maine

4.45/5  rDev +12.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.75
great wings and good burgers
Feb 03, 2015
Photo of blackkristos
Reviewed by blackkristos from Maine

3.94/5  rDev -0.3%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4
While taking a trip up the coast on the first really nice day of spring, my girlfriend and I popped in for a pint. It was mid-afternoon, so they were pretty empty. We chose to sit on the deck in the sun and have our beers. The waiter/bartender was nice enough, if not very aware of us. There were only two other tables (both eating which we were not) and the beers came a bit late. The beers on tap were about what you'd expect for Maine beers. Oddly enough, I didn't know it was a brewpub until I came to BA. He didn't try to sell us on any beers, just took our orders.

Not a bad place all in all. I imagine if I lived in Rockland, I would frequent there, but I don't see myself stopping again.
May 06, 2008
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Reviewed by BuckSpin from Maine

3.83/5  rDev -3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3.5
This is the brewpub for Rocky Bay. The decor is what I guess you would call "Contemporary Industrial Redo". Like many brewpubs, the atmosphere is open, dark, lots of exposed aspects. The bar is very nice (a restored vintage one), and they are currently in the process of redoing the attached dining area (which is seperate from the bar). Big wooden tables, lots of exposed wood, brick, etc. There is a big working fireplace (nice), a real dart board, free popcorn, a Mug Club, outside deck for the warmer months, etc.

But the reason one primarily goes to a brewpub is for the brewery's offerings.There are 8 handles working, including a nitro, plus a cask draw. The tapped offerings are Rocky Bay's various flagship brews, plus a seasonal, some B/M/C, Guiness and maybe a cask if you time it right. 2 ironic things at Waterworks is that this is the 1st brewpub where I have seen a RIVAL'S beer on tap (they had Shipyard last time I was there) which is not a bad thing at all, but yet surprising. Another thing (disappointing) is that this is the 1st brewpub that I have ever been in that did not advertise a sampler of their offerings on their menu. Big nono to me.

As for the menu, its classic pub fare. The food is good (not great). I usually get a Reuben, and theirs is pretty good. However, the prices are, on average, about 15% higher than other places. $8 or $9 sandwiches are not uncommon, and $3.75/$4.00 pints are the norm. I can go a number of other places and get $6-7 sandwiches and $3 pints of craft beer.

Ironically, you can't buy bottled versions of Rocky Bay's beer at the Waterworks. Sadly, all the bottles (beer count was about 10 unique) were B/M/Cs...too bad.

That said, it is the only show in town as far as a brewpub, so for that reason alone its worth a lunch and a few pints. Get a Reuben and ask if any version of the Viking Plunder (a Winter Warmer that gets brewed occassionaly off seaon as something else for licensing) is on tap. But it really feels like Waterworks is an afterthought, an "oh yeah, we need/have a brewpub". I've been in many that are far, far better.
Nov 07, 2006
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Reviewed by lordofthewiens from New Mexico

3.25/5  rDev -17.7%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 2.5 | food: 4
This place is just off Rockland's main street. As you enter, there is a restaurant area to the right and a bar to the left. Also a deck off the bar. The place was kind of shabby, but clean enough. As mentioned in other reviews, Waterworks serves Rocky Bay beers. Six were listed on the board as being available, but it turned out that only three of them were actually there. They had switched to the summer selection, and had a summer beer and a blueberry beer. Our server said someone would eventually get around to updating the board. Also available were two "guest taps" which were Guinness and Stella Artois. The best of the beers I sampled was Katie's Celtic Red.
The food was typical pub fare, but quite good. Generous servings. Our server was attentive and efficient.
A decent place to eat and drink. I wish the selection had been less limited, but would still give it another try.
May 08, 2006
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Reviewed by ViveLaChouffe from Georgia

4.15/5  rDev +5.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5
I haven't been here since Rocky Bay finalized a purchase of this bar late this summer so I figured it was time to give it a try. The Waterworks has always served lots of Rocky Bay beers but I was curious to see what may have changed.

My answer was not too much, save that there are about 8 RB beers on tap (also some macros in bottles) as opposed to 4 or 5 like there was in the past. Same "lumberjack" style seating in the bar with long wooden tables with benches. Lots of wood and brick with beer stuff on the walls. Two TV's for watching the game although it kind of takes away from the rustic pub image the place has otherwise.

Beer was tasty especially the seasonal Viking Plunder. (side note: The Plunder tasted different than when I had it last. Asked the woman at the brewery about it and she said it used to be an ale and now is lager (???). Odd.) The service was OK. If you are not in a hurry, having a leisurely pint or two you'll be fine. They did have some hand-pumped stout available for $2 a pint but when I enquired I was told it wasn't hooked up yet. Then why put it up for all to see? It's chalk, it can be erased...

Food is standard pub fare, burgers, onion rings and the like. Decent but not outstanding. If they still do this, I would recommend the Sunday morning brunch. Nothing like having a pint with your morning omelette and potatos. You probably will not do better than this in Rockland.

PS: Like bennybrew sez, no growlers available at the bar yet. They plan to change this at some point but the brewery store is nearby and open 9-5 M-Sat.
Nov 24, 2003
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Reviewed by bennybrew from Maine

4/5  rDev +1.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4
howdy!

got directions from thier website and had no troubles finding the place. that's always a good start.

good atmosphere. beer type stuff on the walls. a few long (10-12 person) tables with banches and a bunch of 4 tops in the bar. didn't look at the dining room, sorry.

there was only one server/bartender so service was a little slow but that's november in maine. if there was a wiater to help out the bartender the service score could come up easily.

selection was real good. about 8 rocky bay brewed (this is thier pub) beers, all unfiltered and naturally carbonated, and a selection of other stuff (mainly macro) as well as a full bar. the three pints i had were good. nothing spectacular, nothing nasty (not even remotely nasty).

had me a pulled pork sandwich that wasn't too style ;-) but the rest of my party's eats were enjoyed.

note: growlers cannot be bought here! you gotta go to the brewery which is but 5 minutes away. they are supposed to move the brewery to this location but haven't yet.
Nov 22, 2003
Waterworks Restaurant & Pub in Rockland, ME
Place rating: 3.95 out of 5 with 8 ratings