Buckeye Hall of Fame Grill- Grandview

I’m going to be brutally honest, when I left my house to head out for something to eat, Buckeye Hall of Fame Grill was not the planned destination. Jason’s Deli in the new Grandview Yard complex was the planned spot for dinner, but they decide to close at 4pm on Sundays, so Buckeye Hall of Fame Grill it was. I had never been and hadn’t really heard much about it either. I always thought it would just be an OSU shrine that just happened to have a kitchen. I was really in the mood for a salad on this night, so I was happy to see that there were a few good sounding salad options on the menu, all about $9. I went with the Club Salad with pulled rotisserie chicken. The mixed greens were also topped with bacon, avocado, chopped egg, blue cheese and tomatoes tossed in a garlic buttermilk dressing. Along with the salad also came a pretzel breadstick, yum. As soon as this thing hit the table I knew it was going to be good. Most salads are usually very stingy with the toppings, not this place. There was a huge mound of chicken and all of other toppings overflowing the bowl. It was a struggle to mix the salad without stuff spilling over on to the table. Once the mixing task was complete though this salad was just exactly what I was looking for, the salad was huge. This might have been the first time I’ve had a salad with rotisserie chicken on it, but it won’t be the last because everything on this salad just tasted amazing together. I couldn’t even finish all of the salad and I still left full. I snapped a shot of the oven with the chickens to prove that it was real. I was really surprised with how good my salad was and how good the other food around me looked. The wait staff was also good, but there was one thing that just drove me nuts in this place, the music. I seriously think they were purposely picking the most random tunes to annoy me. They were easy to hear because the place was quiet empty during my visit and I just kept finding myself thinking what in the world are they playing. Let me just name a few of the artists, Whitney Houston, Boy II Men, Christina Aguilera and All 4 One. I felt like I was at a High School Prom circa 1994 and that definitely doesn’t go with the sports bar feel. Other than that if you’re an OSU fan you’ll love this place as they do have some pretty cool memorabilia.

I won’t be back to check out the memorabilia or the tunes, but I will be back to explore the rest of their menu.

Until next time, remember don’t discount a restaurant’s food just because of the exterior or theme.

Cheers!

www.buckeyegrill.com

Matt the Miller’s Tavern- Grandview

I had started to hear the buzz about the new Matt the Miller’s Tavern in Grandview and when a friend recommended it for dinner one night I accepted the invite without hesitation. I had always heard good things about the location in Dublin, so I was excited to check out their new location off Grandview Ave. Let’s talk about what my expectations were first; a restaurant with ‘Tavern’ in the name, I figured would be more of a bar that served food than a restaurant that served drinks. To my surprise when walking into this new establishment it was a really nice place; very modern with dimmed lighting and was much more fancy than I expected. A Thursday night and the decently sized bar area was packed, so we had to settle for a table in the dining area instead.

Side note… there was a wait for a table in the dining area, so they handed me one of those buzzer things. First recommendation, get rid of the buzzer things, it makes me feel like I’m at Applebees or something and I do not like Applebees lol. Another point to mention is this is one of the first times I’ve actually had someone I know is a reader of the blog with me for dinner. It kind of made me nervous for them to know the magic behind these critiques, but they also got to see me interact with the wait staff, which it always fun for me. My first question to the waiter when I visit a new place is…”What is the best thing on the menu?”. My thought is if I get what they consider to be the best thing on the menu and I don’t like it then the rest of the menu is probably bad too.

Alright, off the soapbox and back to the food adventure. The waiter recommended steak, but I wasn’t in the mood for a whole steak, but the menu specifically told me if I couldn’t decide between a flatbread or a steak the Black & Blue flatbread was for me. I followed the menu’s guidance and went with the Black & Blue pizza. Let me correct myself, they don’t call it pizza, they call it flatbread. Someone please explain the difference between pizza and flatbread to me. My only hesitation with this order was I was hungry, like I always am, and I feared the flatbread wouldn’t be enough food to fill me up. When the really nice waiter delivered our meals my fear was confirmed and I knew the pizza (aka flatbread) wouldn’t be enough to fill me up, but it did look really good. The flatbread came with sliced grilled beef tenderloin, roasted red pepper pesto, red onions, provolone, blue cheese and a Guinness reduction. The Guinness reduction added a nice sweetness to the savory flavors of the steak and blue cheese. Overall, the flatbread was really good and to my surprise the steak on it was actually cooked very well. Usually when you find steak on pizzas it is about as well done as they can get it, so kudos on that.

The rest of my experience at this new location of Matt the Miller’s Tavern was good. The thing I really liked about this place is that it could serve many different occasions from a couple of drinks with friends, to some appetizers, to a semi-nice dinner with that someone special in your life (haha sorry for getting mushy for a second). I will definitely be back to visit Matt the Miller’s new location in Grandview and am excited to see what else their menu has to offer.

Until my next food adventure, remember if you eat your steak well done you might as well eat rubber.

Cheers!!!

www.mtmtavern.com