Burntwood Tavern

There are three locations for Burntwood Tavern– Chagrin Falls, Rocky River, and now Solon!  The first time I tried Burntwood Tavern was at the Chagrin Falls location.  My parent’s took the family when the restaurant first opened on a Friday night.  The placed was packed!! The wait was about 2 hours, but luckily we were able to sit in the front/bar area on some couches in front of the fire place, which was perfect for the snowy and cold winter night.  There was a coffee table, so the manager allowed us to stay put and order our entrees.

My first opinion of the restaurant was that it was just OK.  I was not impressed with the food and I felt as if the menu did not have many choices-  I had ordered the Salmon Spinach fettucini and it was very bland.  The salmon was poached and did not have any seasoning.  The tomato garlic cream sauce was also tasteless.  However, I was very impressed with the decor and the atmosphere.  It was definitely the place to be on a Friday or Saturday night!

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This past winter the Rocky River location opened.  I met my friend Kara there.  This location was also just as packed as the Chagrin Falls location, but it is a bigger space!  I noticed that the menu had changed, and there were many more options to choose from.  Kara and I decided to split a few appetizers over some Great Lakes Christmas Ale!  I loved all that we tried- The Hummus Plate, Butternut Squash Ravioli, and the Artichoke Fondue.

A few weeks later my friend Erin had her Bridal Shower at the Rocky River location.  There is a room that you are able to reserve that can seat a large crowd of people!  It is secluded, away from the dining area.  I was very impressed with the menu.  There were three courses- We were able to choose from 2 different side salads, 3 different sandwiches w/ a side of fries, and dessert.  The shower was beautiful and the food was great!! If any of you in Cleveland are planning a wedding shower or any other private party, Burntwood Tavern is definitely something to consider! (I also noticed the Solon location has a room, too!)

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Finally a Solon location opened up about a month ago!  At first I questioned why the restaurant would put a location so close to another (Chagrin Falls), but after going, I love that it is so close!  I went with my parent’s a week ago.  Despite how crowded it was, we were able to grab three seats at the bar immediately.  The bar wraps around to the outside patio.  We were sitting inside, but it felt as if we were outside with no wall in front of us!  The patio is covered and therefore you are still able to be seated outside when it is raining.  Below is the view to the patio from my seat (with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc!).  There was also a live band playing out on the patio.

Burntwood Tavern- Bar/Patio

For dinner I ordered the house salad and the Margarita Flat Bread.  The Flat bread had a light and airy crust.  There was no sauce, the the tomatoes and basil provided enough flavor.  The pizza was not heavy at all.  I could have eaten the entire pizza, but I wanted to save room for dessert!

Margarita Flat Bread

Burntwood Tavern’s dessert menu consists of what they call “After Dinner Delights.”  These are small sample sizes, similar to the dessert “shooters” you would find at P.F. Changs or Applebees. I ordered the the Apple Crostada with Salted Caramel Ice Cream- YUM!!

“After Dinner Delight”- Apple Crostada w/ Salted Caramel Ice Cream

My opinion of the restaurant has definitely changed since the first time I went!  This is definitely a place to check out if you haven’t already!

CLICK HERE to view the menu!  Another favorite of mine is the Grilled Tavern Steak Salad.

Molly Jean

Danny Boys- Rocky River

Saturday night was date night with my guy.  We decided to try another restaurant to check off my list!  We went to Danny Boys in Rocky River.  I have heard from multiple people that it is some of the best pizza here in Cleveland.

Danny Boys does not take reservations.  There was about a 30-minute wait when we walked in around 7:30.  There were about 5 high top tables with checkers boards located in the waiting section of the restaurant.  Luckily there was a table open for Jordan and I to play at.  This made the waiting time go by very quickly!  We had just started a second game when we were called to be seated.  I think total wait time ended up being 20 minutes.

We each ordered a Moretti, a side salad, and split a large Clevelander pie.  When we were waiting for our food we noticed that there is a deck of cards placed at each table!  So we played a game of war- I won!  Our salads came out quickly.  The salad came with two large fresh, light, and doughy garlic rolls that were to die for.  I could have had the salad and rolls for my meal!  But I saved room for the pizza and let Jordan keep the extra roll for leftovers for the week.

Finally the pizza came!! The Clevelander pie has a “New York-style” crust and is topped “Chicago” style with toppings of cheese, pepperoni, garlic, basil, and topped with pizza sauce and parmesan cheese.

I loved this pizza.  Sauce is my favorite part of pizza and on this pizza it the main focus.  Absolutely perfect!

After dinner we were able to catch a beautiful sunset along lake Erie before meeting up for drinks with our friends Jon and Erin.

The rest of the night was filled with relaxing and catching up with Jon and Erin on Tommy’s back porch- which had excellent heat lamps!! There was also a live band performing.  It was a perfect spot to catch up with friends over a couple drinks.

Molly Jean