Ideal Tavern — Restaurant in Southington

Thought we would try Ideal since I heard they accommodate vegans. We get there at about 1:45 and the hostess says "Hold on", should have been a warning right there. I know everywhere has staff shortages but not the best way to start. She comes back after going in and outside three or four times and says do you want brunch or lunch, I asked if we can have both menus to look over so she hands us1 of each and leaves again. Now we are here about 10 minutes, still not seated and not sure why this is happening. Finally say to her, can we sit down and look at the menu? She says sure, hold on and leaves again. She comes back and says where do you want to sit? Did you decide on brunch or lunch? Umm no, we haven't. Ok not the best for a new place . We sit and she tells us Brunch is over at 2, if she just handed us a lunch menu and sat us down, it would have been so much easier. Now we are sitting, the waitress comes over and pours water, ok...a bit better. She asks if we want a drink, we order a drink and some nachos for the table. The nachos come out and are brought to the table by another employee, we hear there is a party of 16 coming in so we hope they take our order before they get here due to the lack of help and organization. No luck, the waitress goes in and out for tables outside and others inside but doesn't come over to us. The party of 16 shows up and she walks over and asks them for their drink and food order to which they say they aren't even ready to order so she stands there while they decide. After 45 plus minutes, she still has not taken our order but has taken the other tables order, you know, the 16 that weren't ready and came in 25 minutes after us. Not going back. Horrible service, unorganized and lacking. Can't rate the food, we didn't get any. To that, we asked for the check. Paid the $17 for the nachos and left. Went somewhere else and enjoyed our service and food. Ps they have one vegan option on the menu for $22 and I asked, the fries are made in common oil so they are not technically vegan.

Follow up to this review:. Got a public message for me to contact them to resolve issue. I replied and still waiting for some kind of response. Apparently they are not interested in keeping customers.

Bottom line, don't waste your...

This is the best kept secret in Southington, CT. I highly recommend this restaurant to everyone. My BF and I took a hike and on the way back to the car, he found this restaurant online. He saw that they had decent menu options and the beer list looked good. I was expecting a bar type atmosphere, but I was so wrong. This place was nice. Simple, nice decor, a rustic feel with a tres chic appeal. Looking around I felt under dressed, having just finishing a hike. Yet, the hostess sat us in the dining area with a warm, friendly personality. Donnie was our waiter and he was so good! Donnie knew how to take care of his customers. Right down to seeing the entrees had come out a little too early. Not a big deal for us. We were hungry after the hike we did. Donnie was meticulous and checked on us often. Great customer service. You don't see that too often anymore. The food was AMAZING!!! We started with the Corned Beef Poutine. So worth it. I could have eaten one of those just as a meal. That is how good it was. The entrees we ordered were the Ideal Rueben and the Ideal Burger. Great choices. The burger was cooked exactly the way I asked for. The bun tasted like it had been toasted with truffle oil or something. So, flipping good!!! The BF loved his Reuben. He was mad that he forgot his pills because he would have liked to have had the Sriracha aioli on it, but had to ask for them to hold it. The beer list was actually really decent. They are heavier on the IPA's, but they had alot of other beers too. So, they don't leave anyone out. No matter if you like Lagers, Ales or Stouts, they will have something for you. The awesome thing is that they seem to be promoting CT breweries by having only CT beers on the beer list. I love that. I tried a nice DIPA, Citrabation by Still Hill in Rocky Hill. The BF had Happy Treez by Stubborn Beauty in Middletown. The BF and I stayed for dessert and another beer. We loved this restaurant so much, we're planning on taking his mom later this week. If you haven't tried this restaurant, you are missing out. This gem should be part of your plans when going...

One of the best in Southington I truly love this restaurant, with it’s rotating menu and beautiful building it’s my go to for dinner in Southington.

ATMOSPHERE The building is set in downtown Southington among numerous other bars and restaurants and even a brewery (WitchDoctor Brewing Company). The outside is well labeled from the street and parking is available around back. The inside has an industrial/rustic feel which makes sense as it takes its name from an old forging company in the area. I consider the dress to be smart casual, but nobody is going to be turned away for their outfit.

SERVICE I have never had a single issue with the service at Ideal Tavern, the wait staff is always very attentive and friendly. I have not interacted very much with the bar staff, but I have never gotten an incorrect drink, so they must be good!

FOOD Now for the important part, the food! Ideal runs a rotating menu that changes with the season, they try to source ingredients locally, so the rotating menu is a necessity. The ingredients always taste fresh and the chefs know how to put it all together. The one complaint I would have is that some nights the dishes can be a little saltier than normal. Since the menu is rotating it’s hard to recommend items but if they have them the Crispy Brussel Sprouts and “Ideal” Nachos are excellent appetizers, the Ideal Burger is delicious and unique with it’s egg and truffle aioli, and the Braised Short Ribs are extremely rich, almost to the point of hard to finish in one sitting.

DRINKS Ideal has a great rotating tap list that always seems to have a good selection of every type of beer. Although I have not tried any of their cocktails they have a massive selection of classics and...