In March of 2014, Sweet Melissa, the popular Rocky River restaurant, opened a new east side location across town. The new restaurant (20630 John Carroll Blvd.), located in University Heights near the campus of John Carroll University, closed its doors for good this week after nearly a four-year run.

A message on the restaurant’s website and Facebook page posted the identical message, which follows:

“we are sorry to inform you that this sweet melissa location is now permanently closed. please visit us at sweet melissa rocky river or cafe melissa in avon lake!”

In addition to the 10-year-old spot in River, the owners also operate Cafe Melissa in Avon Lake, which opened five years ago.

Attempts to reach the owners have been unsuccessful.

This article appears in Dec 27, 2017 – Jan 2, 2018.

For 25 years, Douglas Trattner has worked as a full-time freelance writer, editor and author. His work as co-author on Michael Symon's cookbooks have earned him four New York Times Best-Selling Author honors, while his longstanding role as Scene dining editor has garnered awards of its own.

5 replies on “Sweet Melissa in the Heights Has Closed”

  1. I would have been a regular at this place but the service was consistently awful (and I’m really not one to complain). Staff would ignore you when you were waiting at host stand for a table, and once you finally got a table they would continue to ignore you. One time we waited nearly 20 minutes to receive menus, and then we left. It’s too bad because it was such a cute concept and badly needed in a residential family area like this.

  2. Dont lie Lynn, Im sure you ALWAYS complained! I have never worked at a restaurant with people who were so nasty before. People in that town need to get off their high horse! Its quite the feeling to go up to a table and talk and have noone even look at you, but then yell at you for not jumping high enough. Strangest people!! You need to realize the owner, MATT, set the staff up for FAILURE! We begged him multiple times for more menus. Parents would allow their children to color all over the menus, and they looked horrible – yet MATT would never give us new ones. I worked at this location, and never heard of a server just ignoring a table. We are working for tips you know! But this doesnt change the fact the owner was a complete jerk and did nothing to help this place flourish. He also closed without letting staff know. Fun showing up to work and being told its your last night. Matt is a joke. He would let the staff go unpaid all the time. Checks bouncing left and right. It was horrible working for this man! The only reason I stayed was because he tech. wasnt paying me, the customers were. I let everyone know DO NOT WORK FOR HIM. YOU WONT GET PAID… I PROMISE! The checks BOUNCE at EVERY location!

  3. OMG LOL I SEE AN EX EMPLOYEE GOING TO TOWN HERE! The fact of the menus is true. We would have a dinner rush come in and not have enough menus for everyone who came in. We would literally stalk tables for their menus. We had dessert made at a different location. Matt would send us over cakes we felt we’re old. How is a fresh cake hard already? I would tell guests I’m sorry I can’t in good conscience sell you this it’s so hard. I mean if I did let them buy it they would demand a refund. Rightfully so! The checks do in fact bounce almost every week. We had a list of names in the back of employees he had to pay still. And yes it does happen at every location! They would also mess up checks and pay people at lower pay rates hoping they wouldn’t notice. A host would get paid at a busser level and they would be like oh gee i dont know how this happened?! They we’re honestly hoping we we’re too dumb to know. He did nothing to market this place.. no advertisement nothing! But then you have Lynn saying you need this in the area.. then come eat!! If you only come once in awhile it won’t last! And if you felt a host wasn’t there your probably right. Matt wouldn’t have hosts schedule and expected the servers to be able to provide good service, make bar drinks, run their food, and seat tables – all on their own. So if someone feels they were ignored it was another thing that Matt did to make us fail. You really can’t afford a host? Well.. nevermind the place closed! But it did have great food and a bunch of amazing ppl foh/boh! The staff did not deserve to not be informed. You could have said hey were closing in two weeks find a job. But Matt didn’t.. he’s a jerk. You don’t have a decent bone in your body. You’re heartless.

  4. As a customer I loved this place…loved the food. My wait staff always seemed competent and we always got a menu so from a customer point of view I didn’t see the above issues. I’m sorry to see the place go as it was one of my favorite places to eat. I never had a bad meal there.

  5. I went to have lunch there today and saw the news! Didnsome research found this article. As a customer I can say I had a good relationship with the waitresses and the comments above don’t seem far fetched. I once asked why the check presenters we’re in such poor condition, because my card fell out of it. Luckily we found my card, but the waitress explained they begged for more and never got them. These things were ratty! I never had one that wasn’t busted. The owner really did not put in the effort. It’s in the small details, and when your customers notice but you don’t care is why this place bombed.

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