Toledo Fine Dining

[CityGal]

I'm trying to come up with a list of fine dining places around Toledo that, to the best of my knowledge, are still open...

-Georgio's
-Fifi's
-Ciao
-Treo Sylvania
-Avenue Bistro
-Stella's
-Cousino's Navy Bistro
-Real Seafood Company
-Zia's
-Tea Tree Asian Bistro
-Beirut
-Rosie's Italian Grille
-Mancy's Bluewater Grille
-Mancy's Italian
-Mancy's Steaks
-Bistro Wasabi

I know I'm missing a few more. What other ones can you, Chowhounders, think of?

[uhockey]

I'd put Poco Piatti above all of those except maybe Mancy's and Fifi's.

The original Cousino's Steak House on Woodville road should be added.

The fact that Rosie's, Zia, Tea Tree are on a fine dining list is......wow.......I don't miss Toledo. :-)

[AMFM]

it's sad because i was there 96-01 and there was matthews and a few other places. what happened!

[nsxtasy]

I dined at and enjoyed Matthew's Creative Cuisine. I'm not sure what happened there, except that they had an out-of-the-way location buried in a strip mall with poor visibility. Diva, which opened and closed since you left, was a different story, with a downtown location, and that was a real loss. I'm not aware of which "few other places" you're referring to from that time.

Toledo's economy has had hard times recently, even before the current recession, which is hitting the automotive industry particularly hard. It's clear that higher-end places have a tough time surviving in Toledo. Even Fifi's briefly closed and then reopened, re-branding themselves as "Fifi's Reprise", and I hear they finally ditched their jackets-required policy.

[AMFM]

i still forget. maybe it was just that that was when mancy's italian first opened and all the places on the river downtown and it seemed like it wasn't such a bad place (i know it's still not). i was in school then but loved the few nights out i had. i have found memories of toledo and wish it well!

[Jim M]

I miss many things about Toledo (museums, parks), but the food isn't really among them. I have had very good light meals at Poco Piatti (the one on Monroe), however.

[uhockey]

Agreed. To be fair, I would not call a single place in Toledo truly "fine dining" except maybe Fifi's at this point. Going by the original list - I'd call those a decent date place, but not fine dining.

[CityGal]

There's been a string of closures, which is rather disappointing. Here's to the chain invasion, I s'pose.

[DaveLaf]

Good point - I live in No Calif now so it is always somewhat of an anthropological expedition to dine in Toledo.....Grew up there eating iceberg lettuce salads and mayonnaise bologna sandwiches (on wonder bread).

Of course, "wherever you go there you are", so I am not as down on my hometown as I used to be. Not that I am volunteering to move back

[DaveLaf]

Visited Toledo over the last weekend and ate at three
Places:

The Beirut: This remains the best place in Toledo.
There was a large crowd there so Toledoans are voting
with their stomachs. The appetizers are probably the
best thing on the menu. We had hummus, with a little
olive oil on it, greek olives and grape leaves. The
hummus was creamy and really superior to many
versions. I thought about just ordering several other
appetizers which all looked great, but wanted the
kefta dinner. This is ground lamb on skewers with seasonings. We had a Lebanese wine, don't remember the name, but it was the least expensive of
the several Lebanese wines. It was reminiscent of a
French Cote d' Rhone, which went great with the food.
overall the Beirut never fails.

Tony Packos is a Toledo landmark. Of course I had to
have a Hungarian hot dog, sitting beneath the
autographed hot dog buns from local celebrities like
Jamie Farr (played Klinger on MASH for those who
started watching TV in the current century...). My
companion had the cabbage rolls. very authentic
central European cuisine. The original location in
east Toledo is the one to visit, parking is right
across the street. The old St Steven church is
nearby. Tony Packos is a must visit, although it
probably isn't in the "great Cuisine" category, is
very good.

Dinner at Cousino's Navy Bistro on Main St in E Tol,
was a little disappointing. Bu then I have to readjust
my expectations from the SF Bay Area. The location
is superb, several restaurants right along
the river (Real Seafood, Zia, etc) Looks like this
would be a fun place in the hot humid (miserable)
summer, sipping a beverage on the patio. I think it is a good thing to reclaim the riverfront from haz waste site status. When I
visited in March it was snowing so we sat inside.
Service was fine, and a good wine was suggested, a
Mark West Pinot (W Sonoma) which was nice. You may
have noticed that I haven’t mentioned the food yet.
Well I was visiting my parents and as Mom always says,
if you can’t say anything nice then don't say
anything at all. Guess I'll end here.

Next visit to Toledo we'll try Poco Piati on Monroe,
and maybe the original Mancy's ON Philips.

BTW if you are looking for something to do in TOL, do
not miss the Museum of Art especially the new glass
exhibit bdlg. A great venue for glass art, which
is a big thing in the "Glass City".

Strong for Toledo, Dave

[CityGal]

I've come to realize that most of the places along the Docks are there solely for the atmosphere -- not so much the food. Real Seafood Company isn't all that great, but once again, it boasts quite the atmosphere. The same holds true for Tango's Mexican Cantina too.

I personally haven't been to Zia, but one gander at the menu, and I know it'll be a while before I go out of my way to try the dishes there.

[CityGal]

Haha, even their websites advertise their fine-diningism.

[DaveLaf]

How about Poco Piatti?

I will be back in Toledo to visit the folks, and always go to Beirut.

[CityGal]

The Poco Piatti at Levis Commons was horrid, so I'm going to assume that it's just that location, since I've heard wonderful things about the Monroe one.

[DaveLaf]

Have you tried 31hundred, looks like it is in the Hilton on Glendale

http://www.31hundred.com/

[CityGal]

31hundred was... interesting :). It's hotel food -- if that means anything.