The Press Gang Restaurant Review

The Press Gang is a must stop whenever we go to Halifax for oysters and atmosphere.

Great oysters. Lots of whisky to choose from. Nice ambience and wait staff. Would go back again.

Love, love, LOVE the Press Gang. Food is amazing, live music is fantastic and the historic building/decor is really cozy. A great place to celebrate a special event, a romantic meal, or just an entertaining night out.

Fun fact: Press Gang is the term for being forced to join the Navy without notice. We stopped in for a local beer and meal on our own accord and were pleasently surprised by the amazing decor, fine tunes and friendly staff. My vegan buddy got a personal visit from the chef who cooked a special meal for him as there were no options on the menu. Lots of interesting artefacts scattered around the place to check out too

The seafood platter was excellent! Great service. Lovely music. The Chef came out to greet us at our table. Wonderful place. Will definitely be back next time I m in town!

They were amazing. The shellfish was fresh, bright, scallops wrapped in smoked salmon, plated with a beet puree and carrots. The plating was gorgeous. The fish stew was very rich with cream and sherry and full of big chunks of seafood. After the scallop dish it was nearly impossible to beat.

Amazing whisky selection; great food; cool atmosphere.

Five Stars!! With a group of 6, the service was amazing and the food was a meal to remember! We went for "The Drill" which was a 5 course meal of the daily chefs creation! I would highly recommend it! From start to finish it was exceptional! Amazing all around in an astounding atmosphere! Unforgettable and awesome!

Top notch service, top notch food. There is a reason this is one of the best restaurants in the city! Went for a work function - seafood chowder was delicious and almost a bit smoky or bacon-y - amazing though! Lobster gnocchi was perfect portion size and clearly handmade pasta - delectable sauce with it by the way! Ended with date sticky toffee pudding - that is a deadly delicious dessert they've created!! Also had the boreal explorer (can't remember if that was the exact name) cocktail - highly recommend it. Overall, a fantastic experience - the chef came out to say hi at the end and asked if our meal was good - what a class act! Just shows you the pride they take in their establishment. It's pricier but entirely worth it if you want an excellent meal out:)

food was OK, but the service left a lot to be desired.

Press Gang has nice, traditional food, coupled with a neat history and appearance. The prices are on the high side from my experience, but I enjoyed my food and the atmosphere.

Excellent Food & Service. Saundra made it a lovely experience for us, and gave us some neat history on the building.

Me and my wife were visiting Halifax in April for long Easter weekend and decided to try out one of the restaurants with good reputation. First of all I would like to mention that the service was excellent, second the food was good, at least my wife liked it. The biggest surprise was right after the visit, in 3-4 hours my wife started to feel bad and spent all the night hugging the toilet, so we ended up with food intoxication. We believe it is either from Oyster or from Langoustine.

I would not recommend to visit this place, and would never visit it again.

Amazing oyster selection, great staff, and the best seafood chowder I have ever had. Heritage building - if only the walls could talk. One of the more pricier options in Halifax, but the food is well worth it.

We celebrated my son's 19th birthday with family and friends. Very pleased with their service. We all enjoyed their great food.

Oysters and Scotch. They do it right. Cozy atmosphere with occasional live music. Great for a date night.

Great Restaurant, warm, cozy romantic atmosphere! Friendly, welcoming and knowledgeable staff. Delicious tasting food!

Never thought oysters were so good. Not like I don't like florida oysters but wow these are good and the Whiskie is phenomenal with a selection of over 200 different types i could never get board here!! Why don't we have places like this back home.

Good food but not amazing. Relatively expensive. Enjoyed my elk tenderloin. Wine list needs cheaper options than $53, though did like the wine we had. Good service though mains were slow to come.

The ambience character and food in the establishment is hard to match anywhere.

Highly recommend! Cool old building, really nice ambiance, friendly staff! Oysters were delish!

Stellar cocktails, and staff is amazing. The decor and atmosphere with the live music come together perfectly! My favorite place to get away in Halifax.

My boyfriend works here and the food is amazing. The service is incredible, the atmosphere is absolutely cozy and I adore that about such a little hole in the wall!
I have nothing bad to say about this place, I highly recommend it to ANYONE for any occasion, as they re one of the BEST seafood restaurants (and restaurants in general) in all of HRM.

Great brick, mortar, and beamed joists showcasing a historic building that creates a close atmosphere fantastic for entertaining. Surrounding with excellent servers and kitchen staff that provide a delight to their patrons. Not to mention the lengths the bar goes to serve you, and the very fine and robust selection of beverages and oysters available. On top of that there is a piano and musician on hand. One needs to spend an evening to soak in an the qualities it offers.

I always have a great eating experience at the Press Gang. We enjoyed great appetizers, entrees and deserts. You can't beat the atmosphere and food at the Press Gang! Well done.

The Lobster gnocchi tasted like dirty water, was very disappointed.

Great knowledgeable staff and excellent whisky selection.

A classic. Great atmosphere. Great food. Great service. Price reflects that.

I'd give here a 4.5. Waited years to try it and finally got to experience it this past Saturday night as a surprise dinner from a friend who'd made 6:15 reservations. The place was about half full at that time. Love the dark atmosphere of wood, brick & stone, British touches, and especially that there are various small rooms. We were seated far in the back in a room all to ourselves for most of the first hour, and then a couple was seated by us toward the end, but due to covid and I assume more spacing between tables, it gave lots of privacy. Friendly service. We split the Cheese & Charcuterie board (23) which was excellent. A duck pate and another beef item, a blue cheese, a brie, a hard sage Derby, wrapped olives, berries, a fig compote, a grainy mustard, pickled carrots, greens and of course the crostini. I was almost full from this and a glass of Zenato pinot grigio, before my meal arrived. The Press Gang Bourbon Ribs (34) were very good, divided in advance so no cutting required, lots of flavor, a teensy on the dry side, topped with chives, but plentiful where I had to take half home. Seasonal veg included bok choy, roasted red pepper & carrots, creamy garlic mashed potato. My friend's Seafood Risotto (39) was excellent, very creamy & cheesy, the scallops cooked to perfection, a decent sized portion, he found the halibut tasted more like haddock, but that was not a concern. For dessert I had the key lime pie, which was served in a tart similar to creme brulee, topped with roasted marshmallow and fresh berries. Very tasty and tart. His Crepe Suzette did not have a dominant orange flavor but was still quite good. Overall, I was very satisfied and look forward to getting back ASAP.

Beautiful cozy restaurant, fantastic food! Can't wait to go back!

Fantastic food, fantastic atmosphere. Did the chef's drill, life is short, enjoy life's little surprises. Highly recommend!

Beautiful historic building.

Great history. Romantic inviting. The food is exemplerary as is the impeccable service. Amazing selection of oysters with freshly grated horseradish and traditional minuette. The charcuterie tray has great variety and is artfully presented. Lovely cocktail selection. Halibut and risotto....winner winner and the seafood and risotto is equally good. The French fries with the works is delicious but steeply priced at 32.00...
Folks...they are French fries with gravy peas cranberry sauce some cheese curd and stuffing...
How does that justify 32.00? Don't get me wrong now...this is a wonderful restaurant but reviews should be honest. We tried 3 desserts...all were marvelous..

The favourite was the peanut butter .

The other thing I need to mention is that this is property is not handicapped friendly and it will be difficult for anyone with mobility issues....bathrooms are not easily accessible and most certainly cannot accommodate a wheelchair....even someone using a walker would have issues....so....to sum up.

Great atmosphetic historic restaurant with accommodating professional staff - terrific food, cocktails, oysters and ambiance. Entertainment on Fridays and Saturdays.

Wonderful ambiance and a true dining experience. Highly recommended. We were here to celebrate a graduation and it was the perfect spot. I cannot say enough about what a great experience, decor, staff and good. We had venison, bison, oysters, and capped it all off with a 20 year old tawny port. Can't wait to come back!

I ordered a cocktail and a couple small plates of seafood. They were amazing. The shellfish was fresh, bright, scallops wrapped in smoked salmon, plated with a beet puree and carrots. The plating was gorgeous. The fish stew was very rich with cream and sherry and full of big chunks of seafood. After the scallop dish it was nearly impossible to beat.

Amazing spot, food and service. One of our favorite places. We go each time we visit Halifax.
Edit: 1 year later from this original review...still amazing. Service is always amazing. The food never disappoints. Cant wait till next time

We come here every year for our wedding anniversary and it is always amazing. Great food, great service, incredible atmosphere. Best seafood chowder !! Oh, the eggnog martini was to die for!

Had an amazing time. I've wanted good lobster since I arrived in Nova Scotia, and the Press Gang delivered. Absolutely impeccable dinner, our server, Brad, was wonderful and had some amazing tips and inside information on their beers and whiskies, which my husband appreciated. My husband had the breast of chicken which he devoured. Can't say enough good about the place, the food, and about Brad. Thanks for the experience!!

This place knows what they are doing. Great drinks, great vibe. Intimate place for a date night.

We had the BEST SERVER, Robyn. She was funny, attentive, and supremely helpful. Our food was fresh and divine! The atmosphere was great and making reservations was easy. Hope to make it back to Halifax just to eat here again!

Good food and great service; would be a 5 star if they served everyone at our table at the same time.

5-star dining experience. We sat in the lower area, enjoying the historical ambience and incredible food / drink. Awesome service made for a fancy night out! Loved it!

My first visit was great, the second was adequate. We knew it was extraordinarily busy, that wasn't the problem. Finding my order of Elk undercooked and beyond "game-y" was extremely disappointing, in view of the price. I've grown to maturity on a diet that has often included Elk, both wild and domestic. More recently, The Chef's Tasting Menu offered at Eden, in The Rimrock Hotel in Banff, was the absolute end! Perhaps, Sunday night at the Press Gang, the Rack of Lamb would have been a better choice. Regrettably, with my main was an accompaniment of (borderline) crunchy barley and (tough) mushroom risotto, which I had been looking forward to almost as much as the Elk. Did the crush of 'unexpected' guests, on this Victoria Day weekend, cause some panic in the kitchen? I can't really speculate as to that. The drinks were great, the martini icy cold, the scotch quickly served. The atmosphere and history truly can not be beat! Regardless, and somewhat sadly, our dessert was not the highlight that we'd hoped would save the evening. Although a fixture on the Halifax food scene, we may have to reconsider recommending this place as a special venue for a fantastic meal and relaxing night out.

Always enjoy the experience here. Great food and atmosphere.

Good atmosphere. It's in a very historic building and there are several dining areas as well as bar seating. Only been there a couple of times but the dishes are good and their oyster selection is nice.

Very good oyster were amazing. Great atmosphere seafood risotto was amazing.

Was surprised at how nice it was. Very welcoming and extremely delicious!

fine dining.. good food , long wait in between course, great service from staff.

Great spot for seafood,with live music one of my favorites when in Halifax.

Went for dinner with some friends on a whim while in town on business. First time in Halifax and I had no idea what to expect.
Both the atmosphere and appearance were impeccable. Lighting, noise level, and temperature were just right. Very cozy. Service was very friendly, very pforessional; some of the best service I've had in a restaurant in some time to be honest. The food was excellent, especially the oysters of course! The experience overall was magnificent and I totally recommend a visit.

Fabulous ambiance, well prepared food and great music!

We visited to celebrate my wife s birthday while in Halifax for a work conference. Absolutely incredible historic building from the 1700 s. Service was top notch. Had the oyster Rockerfeller to start, followed by Lobster gnocchi and Elk tenderloin as mains. All the food was served promptly, piping hot and tasted amazing. Our water glasses were constantly attended to and finished plates cleared immediately. We were too full to partake in the great looking dessert menu. Our only complaint, if you can even call it that, was that we were seated in the lower section by the kitchen which was fairly loud with a busy kitchen cranking out great food. I think if we were to return we would request to be in a quieter spot, but the experience was still great. The meal wasn t cheap, but the atmosphere, quality of food and top notch service definitely made for a great experience for a special occasion.

Fantatsic meal! Love that it was seasoned well and no salt and pepper on the tables. That's how you know it's a good restaurant. Staff are friendly and attentive. I'll be back!

Rather expensive. Like many restaurants of its kind the menu is small but all excellent. A very pleasant experience

Very good food. Chef came out and personally asked how people were enjoying their meals.

Press Gang was one of the best dinners I had during my stay in Nova Scotia. Service was good and the food was exceptional. It made for a really enjoyable fancy-ish dinner feast.

I've been to this restaurant couple of times before.
I recently took my boyfriend there for his birthday.
The food and the service is great.
I definitely recommend this restaurant

The best seafood risotto I have ever tasted. The atmosphere feels like you are going back in time which makes the experience amazing.

Fun place with a ton of delicious choices to eat and lots of cool drinks

Gnocchi was not tender, lessons are needed on how to make gnocchi. The desserts were also disappointing, sticky date pudding was very dry, tasteless, chocolate cake was not 'silky' it was quite hard in fact. A mediocre meal at best.

Oh my apple pie drink and tenderloin has me smiling ear to ear. The environment was amazing not to mention the live music. Ps i wish we had ipads for sheets of music when i competed. Xo you will see me again for sure. Ps amazing spot for proposal in the private seating

It was one of the most amazing fine dining experiences I've had in a while. Our server made the experience that much worthwhile. Do "The Drill". Let the chef give you an unforgettable experience. 6/5 stars all the way!

Very nice oyster bar. Impeccable service. Tasty oysters.

Amazing meal! Service was exceptional from the moment we walked in the door. Started out with some special drinks (ice wine mojito, yum yum) and set the mood for a great dinner out. We ordered the cod and the butter poached lobster and More

Staff were very attentive and knowledgeable. The oysters were fantastic, and the selection of whiskey is unparalleled. I highly recommend this place! (Note that it is pricey though)

Great ambiance, sat at the bar for a casual feel. Bartender was nice even offered to charge our phone.

Restaurant has great ambiance. Located in what had been the servants quarters and stable of a large building. Service is fabulous. Food is the best! Great choices on the menu. Wine and beer list is extensive and they have several hundred types of Scotch whiskey to choose from. Pricey!

This was a fantastic experience that I would highly recommend to anyone willing to reach out and try something new. The meal choice called " The Drill " is a four course original created by the Chef that is comprised of a random sampling from the menu with an added touch of creativity. I would / will go again and I'm happy to have a place like this represent Halifax to all of our tourists and visitors.

This place totally rocks. Lovely atmosphere, excellent bar and man are the oysters great! The amazing lady who served me was the most knowledgeable person I ve met, explaining all the little details about each type of oyster she served me. And they put a mean charcuterie board together. If you re into oysters this is the place but the rest of the menu looked delicious as well!

Unbelievable service. Jazz singer, and the Food was incredible. If your in Halifax it's a must.

An excellent restaurant for any occasion. The food is always great accompanying with tentative service.

Starting to slip the last few months. Food not the same excellent quality I'm used to. Especially for the prices $$$$$

The food here was excellent, drinks are amazing and service was exceptional.

Oysters were amazing and charcuterie was delicious, great atmosphere and date spot.

really awesome play slow this establishment I highly recommend it to anybody looking to have a great time can't wait to come back and get my friends real soon we had such a great time last time you were there hope you guys are doing good like I said I highly recommend it to anybody the price is good to stop for awesome and such a great bunch to be around see you guys soon.

Excellent anniversary dinner. Great place for a special event or an evening meal.