The National Hotel

New Owner of Rathskellar Basement Bar in National Hotel. Inconsistent Experiences. Visited this basement bar for the first time in December 2022 and was super impressed/surprised. Subsequent visit in the new year. Both of our visits were not the same. First visit: New owner (also owns Bamboo House) got it right: awesome cocktails with live music and an open wood burning stove in a cool rustic environment. The food coming out of the kitchen looked great, although we didn't eat and the place was so packed that people were eating standing up along the wall. Our favorite thing was the fire and corner seating. Second visit: Soooo...we return in the new year, expecting the same experience, but it wasn't 100% awesome. Same time of day/same day of week. No fire. It was so cold that people dining were wearing their coats. We had French fries to snack on and they were run of the mill frozen fries...expensive for mediocrity. The staff member walking around in a suit failed to ever come over to our table so I walked up and ordered at the bar. Left disappointed. However, the bartender is consistently awesome...I'd be as bold to say that it was the best margarita I've ever had (during both of our visits the drinks were great). If I had rated our experience solely based on our first visit it would have been 5 stars. However, due to the reasons above, an average rating seems to be warranted. Take away: a basement bar needs to be heated in January in NJ. Floor staff need to be attentive. Offer items on the limited menu that are of higher quality. Anyone can go to a diner if they want subpar French fries.

One night stay gone wrong! We were thankful to be able to find a room for the night on such short notice, but we were very disappointed when we arrived. The hotel does not look like the website! The furniture in our room was in poor shape. The carpets are stained. The bathroom was very clean (there’s that!) Hank in the bar was very welcoming but with the hotel restaurant being closed and a late arrival we were hungry and had trouble finding a place to eat. Maybe it wouldn’t have been so disappointing if it wasn’t for the price we paid!

The Hotel Website is deceptive. Felt like we were bothering them by staying there. We stayed here on Saturday night July 31 because we were in town for a family party and paid an extra fee because we were only staying one weekend night. The hotel website and confirmation email said check-in is after 3:00pm. I called two days before and asked if we could check in between noon and 1:00pm because we were driving from Boston and wanted to change clothes before the party at 1:00pm. Was told we could for $50. We decided not to. At about 4:00pm Saturday I got a phone message from the hotel asking us when we were going to check in and to give them the courtesy of a return call. My husband went to the hotel to check in and was told that check in is actually ONLY between 3 and 6 pm and after 6 we would have had to contact the owner to let us in. There is no hotel staff on site available after 6:00pm. When we got there at 8pm we let ourselves in thru the door off to the side of the main door. The lobby had only a ghost light, no one at check in desk and no signs or directions to stairs or rooms. The hotel restaurant was an attraction for us when booking since we planned to have lunch there Sunday before driving home. When we got there at 8pn Saturday there was a tersely worded sign bordered in RED saying that due to staffing problems the restaurant is closed. There was no indication of this on the hotel website. This is not a luxury hotel. It is arguably historic definitely older and perhaps quaint.Our room had some interesting decorations. Towels are thin scratchy and barely absorbent and there was no floor mat in the bathroom. There were cobwebs on the moldings around doors and windows, the rug was stained and there was a stray water bottle under the bed. Even after giving consideration for any pandemic related problems The National Hotel did not in any way live up to my expectations based on their description on the website. At this point after lock down restrictions have been lifted the management knows what their staffing issues are and should honestly disclose the situation in real time on the website and other social media. I do not recommend this hotel at all.

Lovely historic hotel We had dinner here years ago and always wanted to stay. We finally got the opportunity and it didn't disappoint! The room was huge and airy and the bed was very comfortable. The room was very clean with nice amenities and generous amounts. It was a hot weekend for June but the air conditioner felt so good after all the walking in town. The service was wonderful and the staff is fabulous. Would definitely recommend this hotel when visiting the cute villages in this area.

Convenient and comfortable Comfy bed and pillows. Dinner in the restaurant was delicious. Local recommendations from the staff were spot on. Open Mike Night was quite entertaining. Room was clean and ample towels provided. Will be back.