Reindeer Grill — Restaurant in Mansfield

Hashtag FOMO The family and I stayed at a nearby AirB&B for a weekend getaway, so we decided to “head into town” for the afternoon. We vacillated a bit on where to do lunch, so we went to the nearest restaurant and rolled the dice. Unassuming from the outside, Reindeer Grill certainly seemed like a hole-in-the-wall, but inside gave homey, farmhouse-kitsch vibes. Our server, Jamie, was lovely- very personable and attentive. It was busy when we arrived, but you never would have guessed so from how she took care of us. Now, here’s the thing… Mansfield, Ohio is a bit of a hike from the Chesapeake Bay. That said, I was skeptical of the crab cakes (I grew up in Maryland, and have yet to find anything remotely close to the real deal). In fact, the menu has quite the variety of crab-centric offerings, so we asked Jamie about them; no harm, no foul, right? She raved and mentioned that they’re made from blue crab, all lump, no filler. Well, I’ve been bamboozled by that line, before. She finally sold us when she mentioned that the cook is from Maryland. “Ok, I’ll bite.” We ordered the balls for the table, a bowl of the cream of crab, and my M-i-L got the crab cake sandwich (also ordered the stroganoff, Philly mac & cheese, and a cheese pizza- all were phenomenal). While we waited, we chatted and speculated, downed some garlic knots (chef’s kiss), and carried on until our order was ready. The plates came out, and there they were in all of their glory- broiled to perfection (essential for a good crab cake). First morsel… remember the scene at the end of Ratatouille, when the food critic takes a bite and is immediately transported back to his childhood? That didn’t happen to me, but only for reasons my therapist can attest to. I was, however, reminded of “home” for the first time since I left the state back in ‘08. While nobody can top G&M (look ‘em up, you won’t regret it), Reindeer Grill may have been the closest. The moral of the story? For that, I’ll quote my girl, Val, from Broad City… “you never know if you never try and if you never try you never know.” And we have Jamie to thank, for twisting our arms! Would definitely go back- you know, as often as one does go back to Mansfield, Ohio… (no shade- just not the bustling metropolis folks think of when they ponder a...

Wow. Let me start with great food so the rest of this doesn’t stop you from trying it. My wife and I are relatively new to Mansfield and are trying to get to all of the eateries eventually. We came to the town square today and pulled up reviews on 2 of the restaurants there, and decided on Reindeer grill. My first impression was the dated decor but I didn’t come here for that. Second impression was our waitress, Jillian. She had a frown the entire time and looked very put off by the fact she had a table. She even gave a big exhale as she was taking our order to show us she really didn’t want to be here, which in turn made me not want to be there. We ordered the lasagna and (based on another review) the Philly Mac. I’ve been a life long fan of spaghetti warehouse lasagna but the lasagna at Reindeer blew me away. Perfectly cooked and the portions are more than you’ll eat in a sitting. A previous reviewer (Madison) said the Philly Mac was life changing. Great advice Madison, I couldn’t agree more. Again the portion size was great for the money. All in all I will definitely be returning to eat here. I understand people have bad days and I won’t hold that against the restaurant (this time). My advice to Jillian: put on a smile and you’ll not only make more money, you’ll also keep more customers coming back in. We left 20% where we’d normally leave 30 to 50%. My advice to the owner(s): don’t change what you’re doing with the food, it’s already on point. An updated look couldn’t hurt but more importantly you should stress to the wait staff that they are the point of contact for your customers and they should be able to put on a smile even when they’re...

We were in the area visiting from Arizona and really found ourselves a true hidden gem with Reindeer Grill! It’s a small spot, serving up BIG flavors. EVERYTHING was amazing! 10/10 We started with the chicken quesadilla which was loaded with cheese and chicken, super good. Our entrees were the Prime Rib, Lasagna, Chicken Alfredo and also a small pepperoni and sausage pizza. The flavors in all of these dishes were super powerful and everything was steamy hot freshly made! This place deserves 5+ starts. Wish it wasn’t so far from Az or we would be here every week! No matter what you’re in the mood for, this amazing little spot has it! The pastas were better than any Italian restaurants we’ve ever been to from coast to coast! The quality of the pizza toppings and homemade crust, unexplainable. And let’s not forget the garlic knots! Baked fresh, loaded with flavor and accompanied with marinara sauce. Now for the dessert. How can every single item on the menu be so amazing?!! The carrot cake and the “cookie monster” desserts, BEST EVER! The frosting and moistness of the carrot cake was just perfection, and the freshly baked cookie in the small cast-iron dish with amazing vanilla ice cream, doesn’t get any better than this. Lastly, we would like to thank our server James!!! The world needs more amazing humans like James. He took such great care of us. He was very very nice, attentive and polite. Thank you for making our experience even...