Dog & The Bank — Restaurant in Plainwell

Wednesday evening, we were able to enjoy an evening out. We decided to sit as the bar. This spot was a little more private for us as we felt we would have been eating with our neighbors at a table. The bar was empty. We chose a apot near the end. We were greeted w water about 10 mins later we were asked for a drink order. We received those and ordered the Brussel Sprouts. (YUM!!) They were 1 of our highlights to our dinner. We ordered dinner and asked for everything to be sent out together. (We ordered 2 Wedge Salads (one of the best I have ever eaten) a Steak (it was horrible, sent back for proper temperature), and Scallops. (rubber hoses and not the portion I ordered) The food was beautifully prepared, but we could have skipped the steak and the scallops. The atmosphere is quaint and modern. We love the feel of this location. The owners have done an amazing job revamping one of the oldest buildings in Plainwell. (KUDOS!!!) We walked out with a $161.xx tab (before tip) for 2 people. 2 drinks from the bar, 1 app, 2 salads, and 2 sides, which I was actually charged for a dinner. The restaurant was understaffed with servers. They do not allow their servers to write anything onto note pads (I UNDERSTAND, it looks gross) this lead to some chaos. 1 particular server was constantly in the kitchen area, asking for items on the fly as well as dropping items. Overall: walk in only, so expect a wait at 545pm on. Small, but modern feel. Ordering is Ala Carte, specify what you want. Check your tab. We left it. The severs were too overwhelmed & by the middle of our meal (630pm), our requests were taking a very long time. I gave this restaurant a 4☆. We will try it again, but we are...

We had high expectations for brunch—unfortunately all 4 of us felt the same—the quality of the food, and the execution had issues. The space is quite attractive—more of a night spot than a day spot. I could see that the bar would be a pretty place to have cocktails after dark. The art work collection is intriguing. It seems money has been spent on fresh, modern art.

The server did a good job. We asked for the blaring rock + roll music to be turned down. “I can’t”, she said, “the owner will be furious if he walks in and it’s not blasting”. In an empty dining room at 11 am.

For the prices being charged, and the marketing of this place as an “upscale, fine-dining” restaurant…it is not the kind of hospitality we expected. Most groups go out for both conversation and food. A chance to catch up with each other. When the music is so loud that no one can each other…the place becomes amateur and inhospitable—especially on a quiet Saturday brunch.

The food was meh. The pork in the carnitas tacos was dry, overcooked and/or old. To her credit-the server comped this meal and commented “I can see that it overcooked”.

The breakfast plate had Au gratin potatoes—they were way too rich for breakfast, slathered in cream and butter. Classic homefries or hash browns would be better. The toast/English muffin items were under toasted.

The mushroom confit omelette was good-altho a bit oily.

Prices are rather high for all these missteps and disappointments.

I hope the management and quality can improve. I wouldn’t complain about spending $60 on a steak plate if I could trust the quality. Otherwise, it’s...

2025 Update: Came back with a bigger party. The food was good. My wife loved the vegetarian cauliflower dish. It seemed to have a sweet Asian like sauce to it. She received it very hot. I had the grouper. It was very tasty but unfortunately is was lukewarm when I ate it. That's the rub on this visit. We came in a party of four double date. But every drink and plate of food came separately. I'm sure my fish sat aside waiting to get served. I won't change the 4 stars down and may give this place one more shot.

Feb 2023 Great meals with 2 drawbacks, which prevented me from making this a 5 star rating. My wife and I had the Sliced Fillet Mignon and The Red Grouper. Both most expensive items at $36 each. Both were very good.

The drawbacks? First was excessive noise from banging of pots and plates behind the bar made it very difficult to hold a conversation. The second was dessert we decided to have because dinner was sooo good. I love bread pudding so tried it. It’s always served hot like it’s fresh from the oven. This was was warm with a really cold core. Both of these items gave our party the distinctive impression that the staff really wanted to leave early this Saturday night.

Over all a positive experience and we will return. However if they want to obtain my full 5 stars you will need address these...