Downtown Dempsey's — Restaurant in Adrian

This pizza place in the increasingly attractive center of Adrian has evolved into our favorite option in town for Italian pie. The specialty pizzas here are terrific. The Best-o-Pesto might be my wife's favorite as it features a pesto base with spinach, feta cheese and tomato. My favorite is the BBQ Chicken, which is certainly not unique to them, but they do it very well. But one that is growing on us is the Sieler Special, which has a white sauce base with goat cheese and honey. This is a unique option which provides a nice change of pace. We've also tried the Greek Pizza with white onion and gyro meat topped with lettuce, tomato, feta cheese, black olives and a side of tzatziki sauce. It tastes great but it does not warm up very well with the lettuce on top. So for me, it's not the best choice if you don't have enough people to eat it all at the first sitting.

Dempsey's is also great for sweet treats. Check the front case when you walk in to see what's available that particular day. The cake balls are a favorite as are the roll-ups.

We usually do take-out these days when getting food from Dempsey's but that's just by circumstance. We've eaten in also. Their dining area is small but the tables by the big storefront window are particularly nice for eating in, as are the three or four tables on their sidewalk patio in nice weather.

My experience is that the service at Dempsey's has always been reasonably good as the people working there are polite and pleasant. The prices are well in line with expectations for the type of fare, making it a very good value in my estimation. The downtown location could, at times, present a small problem with regard to street parking, particularly on theater nights. But there is also a large-ish lot in back of their building off Church St. It is not quite as convenient but it is still very usable.

Dempsey's will continue to be our primary go-to place for pizza. It's a great option, we enjoy the fare we get from there and we are happy to support a...

I really hate to give only 3 stars as I had high hopes for this restaurant. There was much anticipation for the opening. I realize this is only the second week of opening and I will adjust my review when I've tried more items on the menu. I however will not order the taco pizza again though.

I've had taco pizza from every pizza place in Lenawee County so I was looking forward to trying the raving Demspey's version. I knew immediately upon picking up the box that it felt far too light for a $17 pizza. I was correct in finding that there were not a ton of toppings. In fact, it barely had any cheese. Who puts pizza sauce on a TACO pizza? The crust tasted much like that of a frozen dough. Bland and chewy. When I placed my phone order they asked if I wanted everything with my pizza. With that I replied, "yes"; expecting taco sauce or salsa and sour cream, yet nothing else was included in my box.

Lastly, I suggest a separate register for take out orders. I called ahead to save time with waiting in line. Yet, I had to wait for the 6 people in line to make their lunch selections and pay for their orders while I watched my pizza sit atop the cooler getting cold.

2nd visit: As promised, I did return. I ordered the Torpedo sub. Pics posted below for your viewing pleasure.

The good: several layers of meat and cheese, soft sesame bun, Italian sauce, lettuce and tomato. It was delicious and very flavorful. I would order again.

The bad: The original Dempsey's Torpedo sub had banana peppers, you must pay extra for banana peppers. At 12.99 plus tax I'd think they aren't going to go broke throwing some banana peppers on. Again, 12.99 and the sub was only about 8 inches. The portion was large enough for me, but this is half a serving for a man. As I said previously I would order again, but this will not be a frequent lunch place for me because...

I love the food and love the atmosphere. I was a little disappointed with the staff. Was excited to take my daughter there so we went in and ordered our food and drinks. Girl behind counter said that it’s unlimited refills and to just let them know when we wanted another. I didn’t even ask, she just said it. Sat down near the window with our beverages and waited 20 minutes for our food with another table full behind us. When the food arrived, it was boxed up and the girl said that they’re closing. She didn’t mention anything when we ordered. Why give us dine in cups then to go cups? Just sort of kicked us and the table behind us out after giving us a to go cup to transfer our drinks. $2.75 for a drink that’s the size of a can of soda at the most once you add ice. That’s a bit ridiculous. I understand for dine in, but to go that’s silly. But, the pickle pockets with jalapeño ranch were delicious and so worth it! Just ordered a double set, and they’re now NOT worth it. Ordering online was rejected, and had to resend it after waiting for 5 minutes for it to be denied. Literally the girl diced up a pickle and put two small slivers of one into each pocket. Hardly any pickle in one to taste it. Essentially was sold bread pockets? Like one pickle makes the entire set of 5? They were made with more pickles the previous visit, and I loved them enough to come back for more just to get let down with consistency on the product. :(

Delicious food, beautiful building, love the atmosphere. Bad experiences both times so far...