Wise Guys Lounge and Grill — Restaurant in Akron

To call or even consider this place fine dining is a laughable notion, it would be like considering Mc Donalds as a high end burger joint. Over the past six months Ive watched this restaurant degrade into the heap its become. The service has now become beyond atrocious, the servers can barely pronounce what they are selling and their knowledge of whats on the menu is either non existent or just not cared about. I understand getting new employees is common in any business but at least make sure they are trained properly or at least have the mental capacity to pronounce words with more than two syllables. With that said lets move on to the dining part of my experience. I was seated at a table that still had napkins and pieces of silver ware under it, either from the previous patron or from the day before. More than likely due to negligence or just plain laziness. One of the things I find most important when paying close to $30 for halibut is for it to be cooked correctly and not come out rubbery and tasting as if its been microwaved. My "roated garlic mashed potatoes" came out with little to no flavor and tasted burnt and if they had been overcooked or forgotten about in the oven for far too long. At this point in the meal I looked at my wife and just shook my head. Her dining experience was no better, she had ordered a six ounce filet medium rare, when it finally reached out table it was about medium well. Which anyone and everyone knows is a far cry from medium rare. Even being the wrong temp she still attempted to eat it, and I use the word attempt quite gingerly. After cutting it once you could tell the filet was not one you would pay thirty dollars for. It was extremely tough and still had sinew on it, more that likely from improper cleaning. I dont know if it was a bad cut of meat or if it had been previously frozen but it was not a "fresh center cut filet" as the menu stated. She ordered the roasted asparagus a her side which came out of course over cooked and with burnt garlic on it. If your are not familiar with the flavor of burnt garlic it is bitter and quite awful. Either way it had saturated the asparagus as a whole. To end our evening I went to use the restroom before we left upon entering the men's room I witnessed a member of the kitchen staff leave the only stall and walk right out of the restroom without washing their hands. The cleanliness of the bathroom was also highly questionable due the the strong smell of urine emanating throughout the tiny room. While silently praying to myself that it was a dishwasher or a bus boy when I walked by the kitchen doors after leaving the restroom, I see the same young man (the one that left the restroom without washing his hands) making some poor patrons salad without any gloves on... Next time you consider eating at this establishment I highly recommend you think twice. If you want a steak go to the Diamond Grill it may be a little more pricey but at least it will be properly cooked and hopefully not prepared by a kitchen staff member that does not wash their hands after using the restroom. To sum it up its overpriced, unclean, the staff is either dirty or under trained.

I recommend you do...

First time coming to Wise Guys. First of all love the old school atmosphere. Quaint, classic and comfortable. Very regal. Secondly, the food was amazing. Best steaks we have ever had. Everything from the salads to main entree to dessert was delicious. My only complaint is when we walked in. We did not have a reservation and came in within the first hour and half of them opening. Restaurant was pretty empty with a few tables filled. I am sure they did have reservations made for others coming in soon, so not all tables ready and available. However, our server, which I apologize for not getting her name was wonderful and accommodating. She was ready to seat us, until a young bleach blonde girl came over and made us feel uncomfortable and made a spectacule. She very loudly said "no, no wait". "We have a party set up and they are coming in". "Let me see if we have anything available". Proceeds to make us feel like we are putting them out and like she was doing us a favor by seating us. She proceeded to sigh and look through her book, then says "go ahead and seat them in that booth but do not seat anyone else who doesn't have a reservation". She was loud, and off putting and made us feel like a burden. She could have easily and quietly looked for a table for us and then call her servers to the back and inform them that the tables were now reservation only. Instead she decided to make a loud unnecessary scene to seat us. Again, our actual server was fantastic. If the bleach blonde is the manager she needs to learn tact and diplomacy. Thank you for a wonderful dinner which was to...

We have always wanted to go here and it did not disappoint. Great wine selection! Something I love is a restaurant not trying to upsell you on wine. Wise guys is for sure playing the long game and they won. They update the wine list often so it’s not always accurate and that’s ok the owner came out to talk to us about our choices with in our price point that would pair well. As he helped us select a wine I mentioned I appreciated him staying within a range I was comfortable with he said “I’d rather sell you a few bottles then one over priced one” and well played sir because you will be selling me hundreds. You, your staff and the ambiance have gained customers for life. We ordered courses. My favorite thing! We started with the crab cakes, good. Then the wedge salad, decent. Then we shared the lamb, pretty darn good. The lamb was cooked perfectly with this delightful crust on the outside med rare inside. Amazing. We sat at the bar and would definitely do it again but we also could see us taking family members here for a celebration or doing a date night in the dinning room. I called before coming to ask about a dress code they said “we’re upscale dining with a casual atmosphere” and she hit the nail on the head. We wanted wise guys to be exactly what it was. Good food locals regulars and the owner hanging out with a cool...