Shires' Rooftop — Restaurant in Cincinnati

Positives: The view is truly beautiful and outdoor space and area is a chic atmosphere. Beautiful bar and indoor area too. The food was fantastic. The staff was kind too, they just seemed under trained for the kind of service I feel they aim to offer.

Back story: I booked this reservation for my boyfriends 40th birthday 2 weeks early. When I booked I added a note that said it was for his 40th birthday, so we would love a table with a great view and I again check marked we were celebrating a special occasion and wrote it in, again. What I felt like was over kill, but figured it wouldn’t hurt. Well turns out it neither helped.

We arrived at 8:15 for our 8:30 pm reservation. For the record I booked that late, so we could be there for sunset thinking there would be a view of it, not because they didn’t have reservations available earlier. We arrive, we’re told we’re too early for our table which I reiterate is fine because I just want a good view for his birthday. I also thought that inferred they had a table in mind for us. But then they say “oh it’s your birthday? Happy Birthday!” In my head I am thinking I literally wrote it in the reservation multiple times. So we go to the bar while we wait and ordered a bottle of wine for our dinner and he got a glass of bourbon.

We are then greeted at the bar again by the hostess and she says do you want inside or outside? Which I am thinking you said our table wasn’t ready which inferred there was a specific table for us but now you’re asking if we want inside or outside…And I say again for the millionth time “whichever has the best view.” We then walked outside (me carrying the open bottle of wine and my boyfriend two glasses). But, we’re having fun still so whatever.

To my disappointment our table is about half way back the length of the building, so a beautiful view of the inside of the restaurant, a fire pit seating area with no one around it that has probably the best view of the whole space, and about 5-6 other tables that are all closer to said view. But whatever it’ll be fine, it’s just a view, and by the time we’re being sat my visions of sunset grandeur are waning, so it’ll be dark soon anyways. Plus again we’re still having fun and he just seems happy to be there. It’s fine, I am fine, it’ll be fine.

So we sit and we look at the menus and order crab cake appetizer and our entrees. Well we’re chatting and time is passing and we’re not being checked on nor waited on, his empty bourbon class is still sitting there, we’re pouring our own wine, etc. which sounds so petty I know, but if you’re charging Jeff Ruby’s prices I expect a Jeff Ruby’s experience, not an Applebees experience. Anyways, our entrees show up, no appetizer. Which we bring up. We aren’t offered any options though it’s just kind of “oh I am so sorry” and then a staring contest, so then my boyfriend being far less awkward than I am just says it’s fine we have enough food, can you just take it off the bill then? Waitress is friendly about it and agrees.

Again, food was delicious and after our food the waitress was sweet and took photos of us next to the view of the city in the empty fire pit area. Then we come back to the table and she brought us dessert “on the house,” but not because it was my boyfriends 40th birthday, but it was instead because they forgot to bring the appetizer.

Overall I guess I am just writing to let people know the food is truly delicious (idk about delicious enough to warrant a $200 meal, including the bottle of $60 wine and 1 bourbon), but if you’re looking for a fine dining experience or a place to feel celebrated or celebrate someone then this isn’t the place for you.

TL;DR: The View at Shires Garden charges and sets the expectations of a fine dining experience, but delivers a just fine, closer to meh, experience with a view from...

Let me begin by saying that the staff is very friendly and the view (outside) is beautiful. The decor overall is nice and there are some really cool old pics of Cincinnati. Unfortunately though....that is where the positives end. First thing to note is that there is only one single car elevator to and from the restaurant which made for a wait to get upstairs and a literal LINE to get back down. When we did arrive at the hosting stand we were greated by a delightful young woman who inquired about our reservation (9:30 pm) Though our reservation was specifically listed for an outdoor table with a view she encouraged us to sit inside because the kitchen would be closing soon and she didn't know if we'd be able to eat if we were outside. There was quite a bit of confusion regarding table selection and frankly it all seemed very disorganized, though the hostess did explain she was new. We were seated at a center table near the hallway to the restrooms. My husband asked to at least be moved to a table by the window(remember we'd requested a view) and she kindly obliged. When our waiter came we ordered a bottle of wine and by the time it came we were worried we may not get to order due to the time (9:50). Yet still we were....we placed our entire order at once (as we typically do) including starters, mains, and dessert. After a bit the waiter returned and advised that one of the items we ordered was unavailable. We adjusted our order and waited a bit longer after which another employee came and asked if we would like to be moved to a table outside. She helped us gather our wine etc. and we were seated outside (now our 3rd table). Once outside we waited again for our food while random patrons loomed near our table (talking to persons at a table near ours loudly for quite awhile) Our food finally came (around 10:45). I had ordered the strip steak with the seasonal veggies( described as Zucchini mushrooms, onions, and sweet peppers)and truffle mac, my husband the brisket with the sprouts slaw and empanada. My husband's food was unusually bland except for an odd bitterness to the slaw and the brisket was a bit dry. As for my food...the truffle mac was dry and had no salt at all and could hardly be called mac and cheese since there was little cheese to be found. The veggies had great flavor but they were absolute mush, not to mention it was not the veg described but rather broccoli!, peppers, onions, and carrots. The most disappointing however was the steak...I'd ordered it medium rare and it came medium well in some spots and well done in others. Note about me...I HATE wasting food but overcooked meat is a chore to eat and my husband and I were celebrating our first date night as a married couple and I really wanted to enjoy my meal. Our waiter took it back and when a new one was brought out it was RARE, literally barely past black and blue. I ended up asking the waiter to box it and I would cook it at home, essentially resulting in us paying over $30+ for me to cook for myself when I got home just so as not to waste ANOTHER steak. The waiter advised they would be comping our $8 dessert as an apology. The dessert sampler we ordered...tasted like one of those frozen samplers you can get at the Costco and was ok but nothing to write home about. The waiter never even refilled our water. Regarding COVID-19 precautions...the servers and hosts were wearing masks though MAJORITY of them were not wearing them properly (covering mouth but not nose) and the bar tenders ( at least while we were still sitting near the bar) had them hanging off an ear or on their chin if not off completely. Patrons were loitering about ( without masks) and no effort was made to enforce. It was the worst restaurant we've been to in a long time and we will NOT...

had seen a post on Instagram about the opening of this new rooftop bar and restaurant. Even though it was a very warm evening my friends and I decided to check it out. It is located on the 10th floor of an apartment building. The entry through the lobby is filled with gorgeous details and architecture. The elevator to the top was very quick and as we got off a huge group was leaving so they were apparently very busy for this opening weekend. The interior was decorated with antique style furniture and comfy sofas and chairs. We headed to the outdoor rooftop and found an empty table to sit at. The table appeared to have been recently vacated by diners and was still covered with dirty dishes and glasses. It was a bit before a server showed up and asked us if we were planning on sitting there. I said yes unless she was expecting a dinner crowd because I did not want to take away a big check from her. She acted cold and indifferent as opposed to excited for the new opening. She and another server cleared the plates but never came back to wipe the table spills until we asked her as she was making her rounds. Since she didn't show up for a while my husband went inside to order cocktails. When she finally appeared she did ask if we wanted anything to eat which we declined. The rooftop view is nothing short of spectacular. Better than any other rooftop in Cincinnati in my opinion. There was live music outside that was a nice touch. The cocktails were good but the bartenders, while friendly, appear to be learning on the job. We ordered another round of drinks but asked them to be brought inside because it was so hot last evening. The same server brought me my cocktail and said that she had opened a new tab for my drink. My husband already had a tab opened at a back bar and asked for it to be put on that tab and she was extremely put out by this suggestion. Then he offered just to pay for my cocktail to make things easier for her and she just walked away. She never returned with the other cocktails ordered and never returned to check on us for new orders. The highlight of the evening was an employee by the name of Yodit. While waiting in line for the ladies room she came out and stated that they were out of toilet paper and ran to get some. As she was replacing it, I commented how nice it was for her to do that and she told me that she worked there. We saw her again a few minutes later when she came around and noticed the empty glasses on the table and cleared it for us. She is a definite asset to the Shires. She was friendly, cheerful and always had a beautiful smile on her face. I did speak with the manager about our issues and he asked if there was anything to do but as we were nearing the end of our visit I told him no thank you. We finished the evening watching fireworks after the Cincinnati reds game from the rooftop. We will return in the future after the few kinks have been worked out to have dinner and drinks again. With a gorgeous rooftop view and $5 drinks you...