Clearman's North Woods Inn of Covina — Restaurant in Covina

I have been visiting this restaurant off and on for 30 years. First as a child with my mom and now as an adult. As a kid this place felt magical (in the early 90s) and I would hope that would be true for the current generation.

Building and Accommodations: The atmosphere is unique almost western saloon but nicer with great low lighting that allows for privacy and isn't an accessibility problem. They have tables with chairs and booths. I am a bigger girl and the chairs are fine for those plus size visitors but a booth will provide more back support if that's needed. They have a waiting area inside and a big courtyard area outside with speakers to call names. It is most ADA friendly though I don't think any of the doors are automatic. The bathrooms are remodeled and newer with a men's, women's, and family restroom. The family restroom has a changing table and shows all genders. One the reasons my mother liked this place as she aged and before she passed was she felt comfortable enough to eat here with dentures. The lighting was that intimate that she had that type of privacy. I know that tip won't matter to most people but just in case you are wanting low lighting. There is a ton of parking so you shouldn't have to worry. The music is light usually on theme with the decor but usually the conversations are the noise inside. If they are sensory concerns head phones or try coming right when they open on a weekday.

I have only really visited during the week due to the massive lines and crowds that exist on the weekend. They are just that popular!

Food Options: The food. So everyone has their own favorite dish for me it is the cheese bread, the salads and the blackberry sundae. These are rich and hearty and will fill out your gluttonous little heart. I will be honest I usually do some dinner entre to get the unlimited bread and cheese and that entree is okay. The rice is okay. The baked potato is okay. The protein is okay. You come here for bread, salad, atmosphere and if you have found an entree you enjoy. In 30 years, I have really found one or rather my love for the cheese bread and salad is at a 100 that nothing compares in the menu. There is a trick to get your cheese bread and salad refilled before you are ready to leave so you have more for tomorrow! And of course I can't forget the peanuts. Each table gets at least 1 bowl of peanuts to eat and you can throw the shells on the floor. I hate peanuts but others have enjoyed this feature or in case of allergies. The blackberry sundae comes in a famous dish that the table can share or get your own. Sharing was fun as a kid.

Service: The service is always 100% here. They take care of the tables ensuring you are topped off and happy. If it is a crowded night communication can be more infrequent and they always apologize but it is still top tier. I leave my biggest tips here due to great service.

Other: They have to go options but I have never used them. They have bread you can buy and take home near the check in desk. I think you can ask for some peanuts too if you are in the waiting area and have been waiting a while.

I actually don't know if they have WiFi because there is something about the place that makes you want to be present and not...

What started out as a night of celebration and family, turned into a night of travesty and horrors. We came in, got seated, and proceeded to have a great start to our dinner. No problems with waiting, finding our table or anything related to ordering. Upon receiving our food is when things went off the rails. First things were being delivered incorrectly and I was thinking oh perhaps there was a simple mix up at the pick up counter or something. No biggie. But literally having food pulled from the table and replaced, was quite irregular. Usually food that is wrong is never delivered. So, the waiter didn't recognize the food was wrong before handing it off. I can understand not seeing this in the rush to pickup in the kitchen, but upon arrival, and going person to person, you should know what each and every food on the menu looks like and be able to differentiate and not even set it down. Next, one of our parties food took a lot longer to arrive. Upon arrival, it wasn't cooked right. So, the meat was refired. Upon the food coming back and we began eating, all of us noticed their food was cold. All the mains and the sides. Since I don't like to send my food back, and was starving, I didn't allow my food to leave my sight as I'm well aware of what can happen with people's food when they complain too much. I decided at this point to talk to our waiter. Couldn't find the guy. Waited forever. No drink refills, and ate our food coldly. Finally, had to flag another waiter to find the manager because I didn't want to talk to our waiter any longer as it was over for him. I informed the manager that we not only all had cold food, but one person had their food redone and it was still wrong. Then, we never got our sauces that we requested, and finally we were dying of thirst to satiate our palates from all the cold food we were trying to choke down. I told him to think about what was going on and to please try and make it right. After they brought out drinks, the bomb dropped. Literally, the waiter comes out and drops barbecue sauce on the ground and it proceeds to spatter all over everyone's legs at the table. This ruined one person's shoes and stained another's pants. So, the manager finally came back and told me he would take care of the bill by giving me $50 off and taking off one of the entree. I got the bill and saw the $50 had been removed, but I didn't really pay attention to the removed entree and upon returning home and in better light, saw I had been lied to and was ripped off. Good thing the waiter only got $5 in a tip on a $200+ bill. He's lucky he got that. I wish there was a way to negatively tip. Well, here it is. The worst review I've ever had to post. This post will be replicated on other review sites as well. I didn't want to have to tell this story, but sometimes things are so bad, it...

It doesn't get better than this San Gabriel Valley staple. It's a popular restaurant for birthdays and other special occasions. Carnivores also love it. However, as herbivores (vegetarians), this is our family's go-to for a special, quality, no-frils meal with all the thrills.

We went to celebrate my birthday. On a Friday night, the wait was 40 minutes for a party of two. Fortunately, the full-service bar had plenty of space and a good selection at reasonable prices. Within minutes after sitting at a table, not at the bar, a waiter approached us and told us he'd be right with us. He delivered quickly and with a bowl of the tasty, complimentary roasted peanuts. Our server was new, under training by Rick who excelled at customer service and training. He was knowledgeable in terms of the menu and provided excellent instruction to the server without being condescending. While the server brought our drinks and put them in the table, Rick politely instructed him something along the lines of, "Make sure they give them their drinks" and he placed them in front of us.

After about a 20-minute wait, our table was ready. They don't seat parties unless everyone is there. We ordered fairly quickly since we get our usual: the Veggie Dinner (baked potato, rice pilaf ad veggies), served with the classic red and green cabbage salad, plus cheese bread. Our server, Austin, was friendly, knowledgeable and professional. It's not uncommon to get a face of disappointment at a steakhouse when we order veggie meals. However, we didn't get that from Austin. He was pleasant from beginning to end. It was $23 for a Tito's Vodka + soda and one Knob Creek, neat.

The food was cooked to perfection, perfectly seasoned and tasty. If cabbage salad doesn't sound appetizing, you have to try this salad. It's simple: cabbage with the restaurant's house-made blue cheese. It's crunchy, the right amount of tang and salty. It's perfect! Now the cheese bread levels up live no other. Unlike most cheese breads, this isn't. It's got a slight crunch without being salty with the ideal amount of cheese.

Our total was $53 (two veggie meals, plus one beer). Given that we ate half of our meals, we had enough leftovers to have another meal at home. We had enough of the extras, including salad and cheese bread. After we packed up the leftovers, I asked Austin for a paper bag for the peanuts. Not only did he bring a bag, but it was half full of peanuts. What a nice touch! We were sure to tip well above the 20% mark to show our gratitude.

I can't comment on the steaks, but the carnivores in the extended family praise them as much as we love our...