Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant — Restaurant in Centerville

This was my first time at Cooper's Hawk, and it didn't disappoint! Upon entering, there's a wine tasting bar area (separate from the actual bar), which gave an instant feeling of "come on in, all are welcome." I was concerned about a dress code, but I saw as casual as jeans with a hoodie & as dressy as button-up shirt with tie or cocktail dress. Bottom line: as long as you don't look like Pig-Pen from Peanuts, you're golden!!

We had a party of 5 (arrived at 7:00ish, I think) and were seated around 7:30. Our server was friendly, knowledgeable, and very attentive to our needs.

Drinks at the table: the American mule, citrus gin sangria, and a red sangria. The mule certainly earned it's name because it packed a punch of flavor. It was good, but not my beverage of choice. The red sangria was dangerously light and definitely a drink that could get you drunk if you weren't paying attention. But the star of the show was the citrus gin sangria. If I had to drink one thing for the rest of my life (that wasn't water), I'd choose this. The citrus balances the gin so perfectly that you don't notice that there's alcohol until you're halfway through when you feel the alcohol warm glow on your face. I could spend more time about it, but I sound too obsessive about a drink.

Appetizer: Brussel sprouts. While roasted brussel sprouts with cashews, mint, sweet Thai chili, and Sriracha aioli may not appeal to everyone, it is amazing! First off, It isn't spicy. The roast from the brussel sprouts plus the crunch of the cashews & the tang of the aioli make you want to change this order to be your entree. 10/10 recommend (if you like brussel sprouts).

My entree: Churrasco steak with chimichurri sauce and Parmesan fries. I requested my steak be cooked to medium rare, and they achieved it perfectly. If you've ever had a churrasco (a skirt steak), you know that achieving a medium rare can be tricky since it's on the thinner side, so I was pleased. Another thing about this cut of meat is that it can be really tough. Cooper's Hawk did a great job of packing flavor and minimizing the toughness. The roasted veggies were tasty as well, but I have to admit, what I enjoyed the most were the chimichurri sauce and the fries. It was all incredibly delicious. 9.5/10.

Other entrees at the table: Prime burger with side salad, blackened ahí tuna, pretzel crusted pork chops, and jambalaya. I tasted all of them (except the jambalaya) and all were great. The main thing I can say is that all dishes were empty by the end of the meal.

Dessert: Birthday truffle and salted caramel creme brulee. Again with the honesty, I'm allergic to chocolate, and didn't mention this to our server before she brought out my birthday truffle. It was so pretty that I couldn't turn it away. My family enjoyed the truffles and said that they were fantasticp (individual truffles can be purchased just before exiting). The salted caramel creme brulee was made impeccably.

My ONLY "complaint" (and I'm not sure how it can be fixed/managed) is that it is very loud in the dining area. We were sitting in a semi-circular booth and the middle person had to be the literal "middle man" for all conversations. She had to repeat everything said at one side of the table to the other side. I know all restaurants are loud, so this isn't a big deal, but if you're looking for quiet romantic ambiance, this may not be the best place.

I didn't see the check, but knew it was going to be pricey. Was the meal worth it? Overall, YES! If my bank account could afford it, I'd be here once a week just for the brussel sprouts and gin sangria. I've already recommended this restaurant to all my coworkers. Thank you for a...

Cooper's Hawk was highly recommended to me by fellow co-workers. When I finally ate there this weekend I was baffled why they would tell me go there. We made a reservation the day before and arrived on time. The tasting room was pretty busy and the dining room looked to be partially full. We were told they needed to get our table ready and waited for about 5 min before being seated. It was our server Eric's second day on the job. Eric as far as we know did a good job. The whole experience fell short when it came to the food.

The Good: I ordered Dana's Pineappletini and it was absolutely delicious. I asked to have it made with Grey Goose instead of Tito's. The cocktail was nice and strong but really well blended with the pineapple juice. I would definitely get this again.

The Not So Good: After ordering our food, it took a while before my wife's soup and my side salad were delivered to the table. A food runner at one point while we were waiting came out with a salad and an appetizer. The salad could have been correct, but the appetizer was destined for someone else's table. When the food did finally come out to our table, roughly 35 min later the momentary happiness of finally quenching our hunger was squashed. Both of the meals were incorrectly prepared for the couple we were with. Our server acknowledged that he entered it in for the kitchen correct, so we can only assume that the kitchen made a mistake. One of the meals that was incorrect was the Crispy Buttermilk Chicken Sandwich. It was ordered without any vegetables on the sandwich and came out with maybe roasted red peppers on it. The other meal was ordered from the Gluten Free menu. She had chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans. All of the sauces were supposed to be on the side and were not. The green beans were raw and the mashed potatoes were cold. The server had the kitchen prepare her food over again, however it was still inedible and was promptly given back to the server to be removed from the table. My wife and I did not have the same problems as our friends when it came to the food. However, for this price point I think they could have done better. There were absolutely no complaints when my wife ate the Crab and Lobster Bisque. She did not really have a lot to say while the bowl still had soup in it...I think she really liked the soup. My side salad was average. My wife had the Braised Short Rib Risotto. The plating of this meal was by far the best looking. The flavors were good and the meat was tender. Here's what I think could have been better: There was standing liquid in the bowl with the risotto (looked like beef stock) and the risotto was not creamy at all. I had the Prime Churrasco Steak for dinner. The steak was cooked as I asked - medium rare, and had ok flavor. The Cilantro-Lime Aioli that came with it was not good at all. The vegetables that came with the meal were hard still and not cooked through. Interestingly some of the vegetables were charred and still not cooked through. I also got French fries with the meal and forgot to ask to have them substituted, I do not usually eat fries, I tried these and was not a convert but that is just my preference.

Final Thoughts: While our first experience at Cooper's Hawk was not as relaxing as I thought it would be. With some coaxing, I might be able to give them a second chance. There are several items on the appetizer menu that I wanted to try. I would definitely explore some more cocktails. Most likely I will never order from the entrée...

Update 12-30-2023

How do I love this place? Let me count the ways. Man, Ben was amazing. Again. This makes another year of enjoying this amazing food and fantastic service. Thanks Ben. See you next year!

Update 12-30-2022

Stop. Like, stop right this minute and reserve a table and request Ben. This guy…man, he knows his stuff. From wine to food to a variety of other health foods outside of Coopers Hawk. My wife and I ordered the same entree, the Filet Medallions with Drunken Shrimp (the shrimp is aaaaamazing!) and he suggested we try the filet and lobster tail special so I changed my order. Oh…my gosh. It was aaaaaamazing. A…maxing!

Service was the best ever too. Will we return? Hell yeah we will.

Thanks Ben. See ya next time!

Update 10-08-2022

Ben, absolutely fantastic service. You totally turned around our previous experience. Great personality, outstanding service, excellent recommendations. The management addressed our previous experience and today was awesome. Thank you to Ben and the entire CH team today. We appreciate you making our day special.

Aaaaaaaamazing food (5-stars!), disappointing service (2-stars!)

Aaron W., we had to ask you multiple times for things, including refills and the tastings my wife ordered. You never even asked my Brother in Law what he wanted to drink. 4 times you mentioned the wine club. Focus on the job at hand!

You stated that you have been in food service for 25 years and worked under a Master Sommelier, but it didn’t show tonight with your knowledge (or lack thereof), and overall service.

The Lobster/Crab bisque was amazing, as was the drunken shrimp (I could eat those all day!). We ordered the surf and turf, the filet medallions and salmon. I would definitely order that again. The cake and ice cream was amazing as was the flourless cake.

Again, yay to the absolute delicious food. I hope Aaron has a better day or you have a...