On a very recent evening a bunch of friends and I gathered together to celebrate an upcoming birth (or as my husband says "humanhood"). Our friends made a reservation for 6pm at the Marlton Tavern, which was close to their house. We all headed out in a jovial mood, ready for good food and conversation.

Most of us had never been there before so we didn't know what to expect. There is a bar downstairs that was very crowded. We walked through the bar to a set of stairs, that resemble my stairs at home, and seated in the dining room. It felt like I was actually at someone's house eating dinner, not at a restaurant with a bar downstairs.

Our server came over to promptly take drink order but because of all of the chit-chat going on we had to ask her to come back. She pleasantly obliged and gave us a few minutes to peruse the menus. The menu is quite large and gives you a nice range from which to choose, from pasta to seafood. The prices were pretty average, from $10-$18 per entree, which includes your choice of soup or salad.

The appetizers looked really tasty but we chose not to order any so we could finish our meals. I ordered crab cakes, which came with potatoes and vegetables. I asked for no potatoes and double the veggies, which were actually quite yummy with a slight garlic taste. The crab cakes were quite large and filled with ALL crab, NO FILLER! I did finish my plate even though the portion was large.

There was a little mix-up with my friends meal, so she had to send it back (a little shrimp vs. chicken confusion), but she was brought out a new plate with apologies from the server. It didn't really matter, we were in it for the long haul, taking our time to talk and enjoy each others company.

We didn't have dessert because we had a cake back at the house.

Overall, I would rate this as a good local, go-to place. It may not be gourmet, but it will provide a choice for anyone's taste, from burgers to seafood. It's the kind of place you could easily become a regular at without being rushed out.