The Local Tavern Bar & Grill — Restaurant in Canton Township

Having been here now at least 3 times I felt it was time to write a review. My wife and I have been here for lunch as well as dinner and ordered different items off the menu.

While service and food during lunch is good, dinner, we found, was lacking. While I do like this place and wish it to succeed, sadly, this place feels ripe for an appearance on Kitchen Nightmares. Why?

This primarily focuses on our experiences with dinner. Having had good experiences at lunch, we thought we'd go for dinner. Once with just my wife, daughter and I, and the second also including my in-laws.

On the first dinner service, our waitress was pleasant but extremely slow. We overheard a conversation she had at another, nearby table, where she said English was her second language. While she could speak English well enough - it was clear there were a few more specific words that were unknown to her. For example, when I asked for a Coke with grenadine, although she feigned that she knew what this was - she ultimately came back with Coke without grenadine. When I mentioned that the Coke had no grenadine, the exchange became awkward. Ultimately, she took the drink back, only to bring another - again - without the grenadine.

The second dinner service was a comedy of errors. First, my father-in-law tried to order a Negra Modelo (dark beer). We were told they were out of that option. When he tried to order something similar - they further explained they were out of nearly every dark beer. My mother-in-law ordered a burger with a gluten-free bun only to be told that they were out of gluten-free buns. For my meal, among the things I had ordered was a french onion soup. When I began to eat it - I found what appeared to be a broken pen cap inside it. The waitress graciously took it back and offered a salad instead, which I took. Finally, we tried to change my daughter's pullup using the family restroom. Although they have a men's and women's restroom - only the family restroom has a changing station. However, this bathroom was locked. When I asked the staff - they said someone must be in it. But after several minutes - no one had come out and we never saw anyone enter it during our time there (we were seated closest to it so we would've noticed). Eventually, several staff tried in vain to open the door but it seems they either misplaced the key or it went missing. I wound up changing her pullup in the car. If any one of these things happened during a visit - one might chalk it up to coincidence. But all of this happened on a single visit. This paints an image of ownership/management being highly disorganized and a lack of awareness of inventory - often core elements of the usual episode of Kitchen Nightmares.

I do want this place to succeed as even during dinner the food is good and the menu is eclectic with some fairly unique options (like a lobster grilled cheese) but they seem short on good leadership and organization which affects every aspect of how the restaurant is run and whether or not...

I’m not much of a reviewer, but after seeing a recent negative comment about The Local Tavern, I felt the need to share our experience—because it’s been nothing but wonderful, thanks to Kennedy.

She’s waited on us multiple times—both at the bar and at a table—and every single time, she’s gone above and beyond. Kennedy is one of those rare people who actually listens and makes things right, even with the tiniest details. Whether it’s remembering how we like our drinks, making sure my husband’s burger is cooked just right (which only happens when she’s our server!), or just checking in with a genuine smile—she truly cares.

That negative review? Honestly, I don’t know how that person had such a bad experience. They must’ve either caught Kennedy on one of her worst days (and we all have them!) or came in with a bad attitude themselves—because I’ve talked to many people who’ve had her as their server, and not one of them has had a bad word to say. Everyone we know has had an amazing experience with her.

One time we sat at the bar on a slow morning while she was bartending. The only thing we had to ask for was silverware when the food came out. But honestly, we already knew Kennedy was a great server who usually catches every little thing, so it made total sense—she explained she’s used to silverware already being on the tables. We appreciated her honesty so much that it wasn’t even a thing. It actually turned into a funny moment and a great conversation. That’s just who she is—real, down-to-earth, and easy to connect with.

She also seems close with almost every coworker there. You can just tell she brings good energy to the whole team, not just her own tables.

We started coming in around July 2024 and quickly became regulars because of her. When she left in October, we honestly stopped going. The vibe and the service just weren’t the same without her. But recently, with family in town, we decided to give it another shot—and to our surprise, there she was again! The second she came over, we were all smiling, and my husband even hugged her.

She’s not just a great waitress—she feels like family now. If you want someone who’s real, kind, and actually cares, Kennedy is your girl. She’s the reason The Local Tavern feels...

We had been wanting to try this place since it opened and we were happy we did! The service was fantastic! Our server was on top of things, made good suggestions and was so nice. The atmosphere was nice, open and airy. I hate when restaurants try to pack as many seats in the place and you have to scoot past people or ask them to move their chairs. It’s almost as if the people who designed the place wanted patrons to be comfortable and not worry about squeezing a million people in there. It felt good in there. I was on the fence about which mocktail to try. Let me just say, as a non-drinker by choice, it was so nice and refreshing to see a mocktail menu, for people who don’t drink. I will go back for that alone! I tried a drink the server suggested called an Island Sunrise and it was very good. We ordered the cheese curds which have no business being as good as they are. I could have single handedly eaten the entire order myself! I mean, you’ll be sorry if you don’t order these. For my meal it was hard to chose something, everything sounded so good. But I ended up choosing the Chicken Fajita Wrap, but I subbed out chicken for steak. And got fries instead of chips and salsa. It was huge! A little more guacamole than I probably would have liked, but still very good. My husband got the Philly cheesesteak with a side salad and it was also huge! He enjoyed it. The fries weren’t what I thought they were going to be and I didn’t really care for them, but next time, I’ll try something different. All in all,...