Ken Stewart's Grille — Restaurant in Akron

Here are some highlights from their most recent food inspection, information can be found online in the Akron-Beacon journal.

BLACK MOLD IN ICE MACHINE BAR BEVERAGE DISPENSER CLOGGED WITH BLACK GUNK ICE MACHINE HELD TOGETHER WITH DUCT TAPE READY TO EAT FOODS NOT DATE MARKED CHIPPED PAINT FALLING INTO COOLER WHERE FOOD IS STORED

Yum, that Spring Cocktail menu is really leaving off the best part of any cocktail: BLACK MOLD! I love my "Hotel Georgia Sour" with a hint of unidentifiable black gunk and the zip of duct tape adhesive.

You can read the complete inspection below:

"Standard/Critical Control Point Inspection Priority Violations: 3

3717-1-03.1(L) / Package integrity - specifications for receiving Critical Corrected During Inspection Food package(s) received in poor condition. Observed a damaged (badly dented) can of Apricots from Smuckers. *Corrective action: PIC removed apricots from facility at time of inspection.

3717-1-04.5(A)(1) / Cleanliness of equipment food-contact surfaces and utensils. Critical Repeat Equipment food contact surfaces or utensils are unclean. Observed the following:1) Ice machine with black specs on inside that could contaminate the ice *Corrective action: Immediately and more frequently clean and sanitize the ice machine.2) Beverage dispenser: Observed beverage dispenser at the bar with excess dark material buildup. Spoke with PIC and this may have been extra syrup from blend. *Corrective action: Immediately and more frequently clean beverage dispenser heads. 3) Ice machine with duct tape (peeling and degrading) hanging above ice that could fall into ice. *Corrective action: This was existing item from last inspection. *Corrective action: PIC stated a new ice machine bin is on order and will arrive TODAY at 1:00pm.

3717-1-03.4(G) / Ready-to-eat, time/temperature controlled for safety food - date marking. Critical Refrigerated, ready-to-eat, TCS foods not properly date marked. Observed no date marking on following items (strawberries, cut cucumbers, spinach) in reach-in cooler in kitchen. *Corrective action: Implement a date marking system per the regulation.

Non-priority Violations: 1

3717-1-06.4(A) / Repairing. Repeat Physical facilities not maintained in good repair. Observed the following equipment, areas or items in dis-repair:1) Outer doorway from kitchen to rear of facility has a trap door insert and is loosely fitting with occasional light shining in. *Corrective action: Repair or replace door so it is tightly fitted and prevents pests from entering facility.2) Ceiling tile wet and there is a white, crusty material on food shelf. Spoke with PIC and it appears to be a water leak from hand washing sink in kitchen. *Corrective action: Repair/ replace leak and replace ceiling tile.3) Ceilings of walk-in cooler(s): Paint is chipping and pealing from ceiling above walk-in coolers fish cooler, etc. *Corrective action: Buff / sand painted area or replace so that paint is no longer falling from cooling into cooler(s) where food is stored."

There are many better places to go eat that don't use racist dog whistles like "dress codes." Don't be fooled by the lies they offer - if they are truly responding to the requests of guests, then their guests are as racist as management. The food isn't great and the lack of marketing acumen of this company made me question their ability to operate such a business to such a degree that I decided to look up their history of restaurant inspections. Needless to say, I will not be dining...

The food never disappoints. The negative way we are consistently treated makes us wonder why we keep returning. We have chosen to dine at Ken Stewart’s Lodge, Tres Belle and Ken Stewart’s Gille at least 5 times in the last two months. Each and every time we have thoroughly enjoyed our appetizers, drinks, including martinis, pasta dishes, champagne, beer and wine, the fresh bread, house and wedge salads, ribeyes, hamburgers, fries, side dishes and dessert, including ice cream and cheesecake. We enjoyed a celebratory “50th” birthday with friends and family this summer at Tres Belle, where the bill was well over $2000. We celebrated our daughter’s 12th birthday in early November and my husband’s 44th on 11/16. Last night we were so excited to bring our family from NY to the Grille so they could enjoy the delicious food and cozy vibe. Again, my frustrations with Ken Stewart’s are due to the way we were treated by management. We were seated in a high traffic location next to 2 other parties, although every other table in the bar area was open. The bus boy station was right behind our table, which was frequently used and quite busy. The staircase up to the seating area was constantly busy and every single person or waitstaff had to pass our table. The music was loud, the temperature was chilly and the tables that were empty were the priority, as they rearranged them no less than 3 times and at one point heavy chairs were lifted and dropped behind us, which was rude, distracting and loud. When I went to the check in desk and brought up my concerns, I felt as though I was a bother to the manager on duty and the girls working at the check in desk. I was told the other empty tables had been reserved, yet we had a reservation as well. I was told we could be moved to the main dining room, but we had already been served our drinks and shrimp cocktail, and it would have been inappropriate to move my in-laws in the middle of their dinner. Fortunately, the music was changed to a holiday medley and the volume turned down. My mother in law and I eventually could remove our winter coats since the temperature finally warmed up. The manager didn’t come by to check in on us but the girl who initially sat us at our table did, well, sort of. In a most passive aggressive tone, she butted into our dinner to inform us of the accommodations she had made, although I made it very clear I wanted to keep our earlier conversation discrete. I do not feel it was necessary to state the obvious and her demeanor was snarky and unprofessional and rude. I can’t fathom why a restaurant where we spent over $1500 at in the last 2 months would not value our patronage and be willing to accommodate our reasonable requests? Isn’t that why you dine at a place like this? For the food but also great service? Too many times, we have been treated like we aren’t good enough or deserve the common courtesy you’d expect from a restaurant(s) that we have supported for years. We just want to feel valued in exchange for the price we pay...

My husband and I visited Ken Stewart’s on 2/15/25 for a post Valentine’s Day lunch. Our reservation was at 2:00 pm and we arrived at around 1:50 pm, we traveled all the way from Twinsburg to patronize this restaurant. The hostess, I did not get her name, was INCREDIBLY sarcastic said “I have you reserved for the patio, is that where you want to be?”, mind you, it’s February in OHIO. I jokingly said “no”. She then proceeded to say that she could seat us in the bar area, we were fine with that. Once we got to the table she said “we have a reservation at 4:30, so we need you to get up by then”. Appalled, I looked at my husband and she just walked away. I looked around and there were approximately 5 tables out of like 10ish total, aside from the bar, that were occupied. She then proceeded to walk by twice with seemingly bad energy. I was instantly TURNED OFF. Then I dropped my scarf and purse on the floor so I got up to get it off of the floor and she just so happened to be seating a party right behind our table. She then got uncomfortably close to me as I was gathering my things. I was, again, put off by this. It was so bad that my husband, who is an Akron native and oblivious to things like this, even noticed. The manager, Christy(i), happened to bring the appetizer to our table and I informed her of the unpleasant interactions and she apologized immensely and offered to accommodate us further to rectify the negative experience. We truly appreciate her hospitality and understanding during this experience. Our server, Jenny, was also very nice and gave great service. She was prompt and checked on us frequently.

Overall, we had a pleasant experience, but the hostess needs addition training or potentially a different job in an effort to learn how to treat guests. When people come in and are celebrating an occasion or just simply paying those premium prices, lunch or dinner, I think better treatment is warranted. The owner, management, and potential guests need to know this too because that behavior was unacceptable and...