Ponyboys (506 E. Washington St., 440-247-8226) in Chagrin Falls just entered its second year in business, but it does so with a slightly different identity. When it debuted at the tail end of 2021, the restaurant was described by its chef-owner Ryan Scanlon as one that focused on “elevated Mexican street food.” Guests who make a return visit will observe across-the-board changes with respect to food, beverage and even décor.
“We’re veering away a little from the Mexican and to more traditional,” Scanlon explains. “To be honest, we were going to completely go away from the Mexican, but we got quite a bit of backlash from our current customer base.”
In an attempt to bolster mid-week business, Scanlon says that he decided to diversify the menu at the 75-seat eatery.
“We are trying to broaden ourselves a little bit,” he states. “We’re a small place and I cook 95 percent of the foods so we can do simple things very properly.”
The kitchen has ditched items like the ceviche, tamales and a large chunk of the tacos. They have added American items such as oysters, crabcakes, chorizo meatballs and salads, along with a roster of new mains like wagyu burgers, braised short ribs with whipped potatoes, filet with butter-poached mushrooms, crispy-skin salmon on black rice and baked-to-order chocolate chip cookies with milk.
Scanlon also has tweaked the cocktail and wine lists to complement the new dishes.
To round out the shift, the team has made some design changes in an attempt to give the space a different feel. Those changes include new wall colors, lighting, décor and even the sign out front.
“It should be a good change for us,” says the chef.
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This article appears in Jan 25 – Feb 7, 2023.
