Let’s, for the time being, ignore the larger sociological issues surrounding Ohio City and its rapid transformation from diverse, urban community to white-collar funzone complete with bridge-and-tunnel tourists and curbside valet, and focus strictly on Town Hall, a restaurant that epitomizes that evolution, and perhaps accelerated it, but is in no way solely responsible for it—a restaurant that, like the very district around it, changes from laid-back locale to clamorous nightlife destination over the course of a single day.
Town Hall is the Cinderella of restaurants; get there too late and enchantment gives way to discontent. I can’t recall having such contrasting experiences at the very same restaurant. During the day, Town Hall can be downright magical, with its beachy vibe—complete with lake breezes!—South Beach build-out and tropical soundtrack providing a taste of vacation in our own backyard. Come too late and the music gets louder, the service gets ruder, and the food starts to play second (or third) fiddle to the fun.
There’s no denying that Town Hall is an attractive restaurant—almost jarringly so. Walking out of the timeworn West Side Market and into the highly polished Town Hall is nearly enough to give a person vertigo. Plush sidewalk seating gives way to limitless views thanks to a dining room that’s open end to end. Bookended garage doors provide a patio-like experience even when dining under cover. Raised banquettes along the wall offer great people watching, while the mile-long bar always seems to have an open spot for singles and deuces. Out back, a secluded courtyard with a variety of seating looks as if it was transplanted from a more temperate climate.
At lunch on Saturday, our server could not have been more attentive. She suggested great items off the weekend brunch menu and always seemed to be around when we needed her. We started with fresh-squeezed fruit and vegetable juices: the Green Thumb ($4.50), a kale-based drink, and the ABC ($4.50), named not for the bar across the street but for its apple, beet and carrot ingredients. Draft beers, regardless the style or ABV, cost $5 per glass.
Had we skipped the dry and tough buttermilk biscuits ($3.50), we really would have had a near-perfect meal. The Ohio City salad ($9) was garden fresh and loaded with spring greens, ripe, creamy avocado, sweet dates and crumbled goat cheese. It’s large enough to share or to eat as a light entrée.
Town Hall pairs a crispy-gooey grilled cheese and roasted tomato sandwich ($10) with a cup of tomato bisque on a single plate, going so far as slicing the sandwich into fingers for easy dipping. Great quality, thin-sliced smoked turkey is at the heart of a wonderful club sandwich ($11) that also includes crisp bacon, roasted peppers, fontina cheese, and a rosemary-scented aioli—all tucked neatly into a soft, square ciabatta bun. Crisp, slender salty truffle-scented shoestrings come along for the ride.
Also on the weekend menu are breakfast dishes like egg sandwiches, pancakes and build-your-own crepes from the manned crepe station.
The difference between that brunch and a separate dinner visit was—literally and figuratively—night and day. From the start, it was clear that our young server had more interesting things to do than attend to our needs. When I asked her to make a recommendation for a local IPA, she simply said, “I don’t know.” I picked one and ordered it by name, but all she wanted to know was “What number?”
She dropped a BBQ chicken flatbread ($11) with no plates, and when we asked if the restaurant had red pepper flakes, she said, “Oh, no,” and walked off, leaving us flabbergasted. Had she bothered to check back after she delivered our mains (which arrived roughly five minutes after our starters), she would have seen that my wife had barely made a dent in her curry chicken noodles ($9). The mushy noodles had absorbed all the broth, leaving a big doughy mess. And rather than the rice vermicelli described on the menu, the noodles are in fact brown spaghetti.
The pizza wasn’t much better, with a thick, pale crust doing little to lighten a pie that was overloaded with cheddar, dry chicken and unroasted peanuts. A trio of “Street Truck” tacos ($9.50) would have been much better (hotter) had they not been loaded down with so many cold toppings like slaw, guacamole, salsa and crème fraiche.
The later it gets at Town Hall, the less it feels like a restaurant and the more it feels like a club. I walked into a messy restroom, where the soap dispenser hung precariously from the wall. Bartenders flip their ball caps backwards and servers redirect their attentions to younger, prettier customers. Being neither, I’ll just make an effort to come earlier instead.
This article appears in Jul 31 – Aug 6, 2013.
I guess I get where your going with the pumpkin reference, but some how you made one of the best places to hit Cleveland in a long time still look bad in the end somehow, even with complimenting it to a degree. Way better than other places in OHC. with the exception of SOHO. I like it there. Food in this place is consistently very good. Noodle bowl is one of my favorites. Never had the BBq pizza but the ones I have had are awesome. I agree with the fact that the grilled cheese is off the hook & service is no doubt spotty at best. Food comes out to fast sometimes. Bartenders need serious work when they are busy but are better than most in OHC. It doesn’t matter still a cool spot that I will keep going to. Tratt is sounding like a grumpy old man. Lighten up. This place just upped the bar!
I’m shocked even the brunch review was so positive. This place amounts to the hipster-ized version of the Barley House – with service to match. I was so excited to patronize Town Hall, especially when I caught wind of its menu. Too bad the execution is utterly amateur and the service is possibly the worst I have ever had in my life. The patio has no shade and the interior is dark and suffocating. On balance, the only positive attribute of Town Hall is its signage. Disgusting.
I couldn’t agree more with OC Resident… I’m shocked the brunch review was even as good as it was in this write up. I, too, was very excited to try out the newest, hip spot in Ohio City. However, the service my three friends and I received while at Town Hall on a Saturday morning was mediocre at best. The server got my friend’s order wrong twice and was very bothered when asked to take notice and fix it. The staff was unfamiliar with their restaurant and the food that they serve. The food was just ok. I will not be wasting my time or my money at this restaurant again.
I wasn’t impressed. Several of the restaurants along W. 25th offer mediocre food at best, downright terrible food (Market Garden) at worst. I had high hopes for Town Hall, but my experience was similar to other posters: disinterested service and so-so food.
What?!
Town Hall is like the new pretty girl in town and it seem like this reviewer just wants to pick on her for being better received and more popular than the other newbies to ohio city. I’ve been their at least a half a dozen times and I have not one service complaint, and I work in the industry!
Also I’m sure it pisses of the local establishments who have to close during the week, because all their business is going to TH…( ahem SOHo)
We all know a bad review reaches more ears than a good one, but this it too blatant an attempt by a stereotypical OC/tremont neighborhood snob, who think they are better than all the suburbanites who take over their streets on the weekend.
Ignore the review, and see for yourself.
Tremont Resident
Why did you take down my post? I clearly disagree with this article.
All if you cowardly phonies posting under fake names, wtf? I’m Alan Glazen, and I think Town Hall is a beautiful place as are many others on the street. Suburbanites, welcome! We are all in it together, and I’d say we’re doing a great job. No place is for everyone, but everyone will find a favorite place in Ohio City.
I am so disappointed in a local magazines support and commentary! Townhall is the most exciting place to open in Cleveland since Shooters in the 80’s. They are the new guy on the block and everyone is picking on them. Where in the article did you thank them for supporting the city and building here, where in the article does it thank them for using local companies and local ingredients? I guess the article was shallow and so was the author! I have eaten there 15 times already and the food and service are consistently great! Maybe the author should cut them a break, and thank them for taking a chance on ohio city and Cleveland!
Alan – I’m glad to post under my real name (Julia Schnell), but I was still unimpressed by the service I received when I went there. I’ve gone a few times now; while sitting at the bar I had a hard time getting service. I won’t make the claim that I wasn’t sufficiently young-and-beautiful to get service (because that seems unfair to the bartender), but they weren’t attentive to the whole bar. On another occasion our server dropped off the bill halfway through our meal and wouldn’t come back to the table for the rest of the evening. She also forgot several items on our order after we reminded her of them. Maybe servers just need better training!
Give Mr. Trattner a break. He provided an unbiased look at the restaurant after having dined at every meal. Several of the OC establishments serve subpar food and have crappy service. Call it like it is.