Neighborhoods value their pubs as a place to socialize, just as they value the ends of their rainbows as a place to find extra parking-meter change. Enjoy camaraderie at close proximity with today's Groupon: for $10, you get $20 worth of American pub fare and seafood at The Greene Turtle. Choose from the following locations: Edgewater, Hanover, Fredericksburg, Hampton, Salisbury, Lewes, La Plata, or F Street NW.
While watching sports on the plethora of flat-screen televisions that garnered the establishment Bleacher Report's pick for the best bar to watch Redskins games, diners wade through The Greene Turtle's menu, of classic American pub fare splashed with elements of coastal cuisine. Angus beef burgers roam the menu, grazing on grassy corners and inviting diners to sample tastes as varied as the Old Bay–spiced Chesapeake, which pinches patties with crap dip and bacon ($10.49), and The Cowboy, which lassos meaty hunks with barbecue sauce and onion straws ($9.49). The Greene Turtle makes its OC crab cake sandwich, an accumulation of jumbo lump crabmeat placed on a potato roll ($12.99), from a secret recipe stored in an Ocean City vault and available only to those who speak fluent seagull. Slaking the taste for an original sandwich, the raspberry turkey flatbread ignites poultry with jerk seasoning before piling it atop a foundation built up with melted cheddar jack, red onion, and a raspberry sauce ($8.99).
Comfort fare junkies curl up in booths, while sports fanatics survey the action on a stadiumful of flat-screen televisions. Individual screens for each booth and genies that reverse terrible calls by the refs sate appetites for athletic justice. Individual televisions can also be tuned to children's programs for family diners or to talk-show marathons for breaking news updates.
The Greene Turtle
To get a sense of The Greene Turtle's commitment to the neighborhood, one need only sit at the bar and look up. Dozens of mugs hang above the counter, emblazoned with the pub's logo and a unique number—each one belongs to a recurring patron. The Mug Club awards its members with draft-beer discounts and other specials, but more importantly, it allows loyal patrons to feel as though they own small slices of the venue without tattooing their names on the bartender's arm. This sense of shared familiarity is what fuels the entire franchise, which refrains from calling its locations "restaurants" in favor of friendlier terms: gathering places, communities, havens.
Many of the locations contribute more than mugs to their districts. Staff members who participate in the annual Tips for Tots program donate the entirety of one day's tips to a nearby Toys for Tots initiative, and Tuesday Funds for Friends events benefit local organizations. These efforts have been chronicled by press sources such as Food and Drink magazine, with features that liken The Greene Turtles' philanthropic generosity to the generous portions of comfort food that leave the kitchens.
From cheeseburger sliders and flatbread pizzas to handmade lump-crab cakes, the offerings on the menu embrace barroom traditions along with ingenuity. The steak and chicken entrees arrive with classic sides of green beans and yukon gold mashed potatoes, whereas the eastern shore mac ‘n’ cheese updates a comfort staple with chopped bacon, lump crab, scallions, and Old Bay seasoning. Diners can enjoy their meals by the glow of private flat-screen TVs—there's one in every booth—or beneath one of many larger televisions broadcasting sports games throughout the venue.