Mansfield, OH Saturday Night

[johnmart11]

Anyone have any recs for downtown Mansfield for Saturday Night. Is Brant's Bistro still open (and worth a trip)? I also ran across a couple others - Athens Greek Restaurant and Buckeye Tony's Restaurant (which DID look a bit scary). Any help would be appreciated.

[rockandroller1]

JMO but I would not recommend the Greek place, it's a very small diner and not very good IMO.

If you're willing to drive just a little and don't want something formal, I highly recommend Porky's drive-in, it's out on Route 42. It is very old and I grew up going there very frequently. It's a tiny, 50s style diner. They make their own root beer (very good) and grind the hamburgers fresh every day - the burgers are very unique - thin but very tasty and nicely sloppy - get the double burger. The fries are fresh cut and thin style like you get at a fair and service is very quick and the food is quite cheap.

www.porkysdrivein.com/

[heidikay]

I have eaten at The Cabin and it is a good recommendation. I have eaten at Athens (it's been a few years), good gyros but more like a diner type atmosphere.

Another option Rocky's Pub is downtown on the square. I haven't eaten there so can't comment on it but it is close if you want to consider it.
http://www.rockyspub.com

There is a great sandwich shop near the hospital. Wonderful sandwiches made to order and delicious soup.

http://www.docsdelimansfield.com

Good luck and report back.

[nsxtasy]

I've eaten at Rocky's a couple of times. The food is pretty good - better than you would guess based on the "pub" moniker. The owner, Rick Nesta, was in a "one hit wonder" rock band in the 1960s, the Music Explosion (their hit was "Little Bit o' Soul").

[nsxtasy]

I ate at Brant's during my last visit to town in late May. However, I see that their website www.brantsbistro.com is gone, apparently for non-payment. I just tried phoning their number [phone] and got a recording that their message mailbox is full. So it sounds like they may no longer be in business. That wouldn't surprise me - not that it wasn't good (it was decent), but downtown Mansfield is really not the place for an upscale restaurant. Not that it's scary, but most of the more upscale places are on the west side of town or stretched out along Lexington Ave (US42) southwest of town.

If you have a car and you don't mind driving a bit, there's one absolutely top-notch restaurant in the area:

The Cabin Restaurant
2106 SR 603
Ashland, OH 44805
419/368-4457

It's only about five minutes or so from the intersection of I-71 and US-30 northeast of town (although it will take you about ten minutes from downtown Mansfield to get to that intersection). From there, take US-30 1.8 miles east to OH 603, turn right, follow OH 603 south 0.9 miles to the small town of Mifflin, turn right to stay on OH 603, and in another 1.5 miles, where the road curves to the left, the Cabin is on your right.

I visit the Mansfield area several times of year, and have tried most of the nicer places in town, and the Cabin is by far the very best, with great steaks and fresh seafood. I keep trying (and usually getting disappointed by) other places when I'm in town, but I always make sure to have at least one dinner at the Cabin while I'm there. It's always been excellent.

I'm on their e-mail mailing list, and this month's e-mail shows the following weekend chef's specials:

Roasted Prime Rib of Beef, creamy horseradish, au jus
Pan Seared Halibut, topped with sweet lobster and lump crab in a creamy sauce, risotto
Herb Crusted Lamb Chops, butternut squash mashed potatoes, cranberry apple relish
Seafood Collage, Lobster tail, shrimp, and scallops, chef's potato