South Park Pizza Tavern — Restaurant in Dayton

My wife read about this place on the internet. We're always looking to try new places, so we went to try their pizza. These guys couldn't be bothered to shovel the sidewalks. They are on a corner and we tried both sidewalks. This was a week after the snow fell and both of their walks were dangerously iced over. This tells me they don't care one bit about there customers. We left, there are to many good pizza places around to risk injury on a place that doesn't care.

Sir, I'm sorry if my opinion offended you, in hindsight, I was rather blunt.

When I see an entrance, to a customer service business in that condition, that is exactly the first thought I have.

I moved to Dayton in 1978 when my wife and I purchased a small business from the person that started it in 1954. It wasn't in the food service industry, but it also depended on its customers being able to get in to do business. Also, like food service, there were always other businesses close by that offered the same or similar products and services. We must have done something right, because over the thirty-four years we owned and operated that business, we were able to grow it from a single four employee location to a three-location company with twenty-seven full time employees, twenty-nine if you count the two of us.

When we decided to retire, we were able to sell our business to a competitor based in Cincinnati with stores in Columbus too. While they were also a family-owned business, the addition of our stores made them a ten-location regional operation.

Yes, you are correct, the city does own those sidewalks. However, we were always told it is the responsibility of the resident to keep them clear and safe. I did see that your parking lots were very nicely cleared of snow. We always kept a shovel and broom handy for quick clean ups, but we included the sidewalks and entrance in the snow removal contract. For a few dollars more, we were able to let them do the heavy lifting while keeping our people focused on the business at hand.

Again, I don’t know about the food service industry, but the trade organizations we belonged to always stressed the importance of safety. One year, while attending a seminar at the national convention, we learned that lawsuits by injured customers and employees was the number one reason independent owners lost their businesses, even if they had proper insurance coverage. The attorney and insurance underwriter that was giving this seminar made it clear that “Slip & Fall” injuries were far and away the most common of these lawsuits. He also stressed that once a business was found negligent, insurance premiums would skyrocket and coverage would be limited, if the business was even able to get that type of insurance coverage again. The big box and chain operations could absorb this kind of loss, little Mom & Pops couldn’t.

While we did see the privacy fence that enclosed the back (side?) of your location, we didn’t see any signage that would lead us to think there was a public entrance there. Did we miss it?

Lastly, we will try again. Pizza and craft beer are two of our major food groups and being able to enjoy them outside is always a plus. See you...

True Score- 4.08/5 Stars

South Park Tavern is probably my favorite restaurant right now. Is it my highest rated? Food, yeah, overall, no. However, this is a PERFECT weeknight pizza and wings joint to enjoy some company and smash some E X C E L L E N T food.

Food: This is the first 1/1 I have ever given. The pizza is genuinely probably the best pizza I have ever had. The selection of creative flavors is large, and the freshness is impeccable. It is abundantly clear the pizzas are made with fine ingredients, and that the wings are made with home-made sauces of the highest quality. The wings are average sized, and pretty meaty with little fat. The pizzas, however, are to die for. I have had the Italian, the Hawaiian, and most recently, the Gyro Pizza. The Gyro pizza is without a doubt the best I have ever had, with the other 2 up there in that same conversation. Also, a good selection of quality craft beers and sodas.

Price: Pricing is fine. The wings are a tad pricy at 9 bucks per 6 wings, but the quality makes that alright. Pizza is also pretty average priced, I believe around 22 bucks for a Large. However, Mondays are the day to go, with pizzas being half priced! I do find the price of beer here a bit high.

Service: Service is probably the worst aspect. The waitstaff is super chill and personable, however, I can just tell that a busy night here would result in bad service. On slow nights, the food can take a while, and so can visits from the waiter, but its okay. Its never bad. It just isnt great.

Facilities: First and foremost, this is a tavern. This is not a fine dining restaurant style establishment. Theres some booths, a patio, and a few tables and a bar. Very informal tavern style restaurant. No problem there. And, for what it is, they keep it very clean!

Satisfied?: Overall, very satisfied with this place. Best pizza I have ever had, and the wings are personally in my top 3 due to the sauce alone. In my opinion, Monday night is the only night to come, but really, I could probably eat here multiple times a week. I STRONGLY suggest everybody eats here.

NOTE: Star rating based on my own formula consisting of flavor, cost, facilities, service, and overall satisfaction. Reviews are subject to change based on...

I ordered two pizzas online. The confirmation email said my order would be ready in an hour. I get there exactly an hour later to pick up, and the server/hostess addresses the folks that came in before me and the folks that came in after me to find out if they were dining in or carrying out. It's not until about 15 minutes later that she FINALLY comes to me and asks if I'm picking something up. I give her my name and she goes to the back to supposedly check on my order, and then doesn't follow up with me after she comes back out. She has walked by several times, and it starts to feel like she's actively ignoring me. 20 minutes later, I ask her if I can pick up my order so I can leave. She goes in the back to "check on my order" and another guy comes out to let everyone who is waiting to pick up their orders how much longer the wait is going to be. He tells me mine will be up in about 10 minutes. At this point, I try to see if I can just do a refund online and walk out, but the vendor that they use for online orders doesn't process refunds. I finally got my order and a weak apology for the wait. It's a shame because the pizza was decent, but the service and the almost 2 hour wait from the time I ordered to the time I got to pick up my order completely overshadowed the visit. I like supporting local businesses, and I really wanted to like this place, but I highly doubt I'll be coming back unless they can get their...