Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens — Attraction in Akron

My daughter and I attended the Nutcracker Dinner event. We were very much looking forward to the evening and the event, as it was one we had wanted to attend for quite some time.

We arrived to the dinner location at 5 pm as stated on the itinerary. We sat at our assigned table and noticed that our table was one of the only tables that did not have salads yet. After waiting a while, I asked the server if our table could have our salads. After waiting approximately 20 minutes, salads were brought to our tables. The salads we were served consisted only of lettuce, dried cranberries, and raisins. Not only was that an odd salad to be served, I knew it was incorrect as I was familiar with the menu that was advertised for the event. The menu for the event said the salad was "mixed greens w/ poached pear, candied walnuts, goat cheese, dried cranberries w/ champagne vinaigrette." Needless to say, we did not eat our salads.

After a long wait, our plated dinners arrived to our tables at 5:40 pm not leaving very much time to eat as the ballet was scheduled to begin at 6pm. Again, I was taken aback by the dinner we were served. A mishmosh of breaded chicken with apples and what appeared to be a cream sauce of some sort, very soggy and overcooked mix of vegetables, cold mashed potatoes, and pork with onions. As I already stated, I was familiar with the menu that was advertised for the event ("Entree: Stuffed chicken breast w/ boursin cheese, spinach & sundried tomatoes w/ white wine cream sauce, green beans w/ lemon butter, and bourbon & brown sugar sweet potatoes"). A very obvious difference from the meal given to us.

I heard the other four people seated at our table (who we did not know) comment in surprise at how the meal was not what they were expecting, as they also remembered the meal that was advertised for the event. One woman at our table said that she went to an event at Stan Hywet this past summer where food was served and that the meal was very gourmet, and that the food we were served tonight was far from her last experience at Stan Hywet.

With our salads served to us as left over scraps and our dinner being less than appetizing and barely eaten, we were very much looking forward to the dessert (the menu said "chocolate mouse with raspberries and whipped cream"). Once again, something different was brought out. Instead, we were given pumpkin pie which neither of us like.

At this point, I was very hungry and even more disappointed. After spending $125 per ticket for a lousy meal that was not what was advertised and tasted like hospital food, I decided I had every right to make a complaint. I went over to a woman with a clipboard to voice my frustration. She wrote down notes regarding my complaint about the food, and simply said she was sorry. She offered me a different dessert, which ended up being cold apple crisp, but said that I would need to contact to the director of the event to make anything of it. I emailed the person the woman specifically said I should contact explaining to him the situation and my disappointment. It has been 3 weeks and I have yet to get any response from him.

I definitely expected a lot more from the esteemed Stan Hywet...

Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens (70 acres) is a notable country estate, with gardens, located at 714 North Portage Path in Akron, Ohio. It is one of the largest homes in the United States. A National Historic Landmark, it is nationally significant as the home of F. A. Seiberling, co-founder of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.

The estate was built between 1912 and 1915 for F. A. Seiberling, co-founder of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, and his wife, Gertrude Penfield Seiberling. They named their "American Country Estate" Stan Hywet, loosely translated from Old English meaning "stone quarry" or "stone hewn," to reflect the site's earlier use and the abandoned stone quarries located on the grounds of the Aveill Dairy estate.

F.A. and Gertrude hired three professionals to shape the outcome of this home building project: Boston landscape designer Warren Manning, New York City interior designer Hugo Huber and Cleveland architect Charles Schneider. Schneider originally pitched his design as an employee of George Post & Sons, a New York City architectural firm. Schneider left the company in 1913, but retained creative control and oversight of the building project.

In April 1912, the Seiberlings, with oldest daughter Irene and architect Schneider, traveled to England to tour approximately 20 manor homes to gather inspiration for the home's design. Three English country homes served as the inspiration for Stan Hywet: Compton Wynyates, Ockwells Manor, and Haddon Hall.

The long, sprawling Manor House encompasses 64,500 square feet (5,990 m2) and includes four floors and a lower level (basement). In conceiving their dream home, the Seiberlings asked each family member what he or she desired. Gertrude requested a large music room, the boys requested an indoor swimming pool, and a private office for F.A. The house included a formal dining room that would seat up to 40 people, five guest bedrooms with adjoining full bathrooms and walk-in closets, and eight live-in...

On Saturday May 11th, the day of my college graduation my girlfriend and I decided to take time away from our busy day at kent state to come tour the mansion and gardens to look at potential WEDDING VENUES....... Never again.......we were offered ticket options and decided to purchase the self guided tour one....big mistake. IF you PURCHASE this option you are TREATED significantly DIFFERENT from the groups that purchased the guided tour. I am 33 years only, I served my country HONORABLE for 6 years in the US Army and the level of disrespect that was shown to both my girlfriend and I was beyond offensive. Please and thank you go a long way and absolutely no staff member has those words in their vocabulary. Also when you offer self guided tours, don't treat your customers like cattle. Ask them to please come this way. The older gentleman working the top of the stairs with the glasses made multiple rude and snarky comments for example "well I guess they will just do what they want".....last time I checked it was a self guided tour so my girlfriend and I were trying to avoid the guided tours. Every room we went in we were told to hurry up and get out because a guided tour was coming. How about a please? Maybe just 1? I even donated my last dollar to your foundation. I REALLY WISH I DIDN'T BECAUSE YOU'RE STAFF IS EXTREMELY RUDE AND OFFENSIVE. I highly recommend young adults and people with families stay away seeing that this fine estate clearly is to rich for our pesant life. How terrible, as a history buff to myself, I'm glad I have the western reserve historical society in Cleveland. They are so pleasant there. So that being said if you want to be treated kindly and enjoy a lovely piece of history stay FAR AWAY from this place....I still have an extremely unpleasant taste in my mouth. Shame...