The Paragon Supper Club — Restaurant in Washington Township

Just left the absolute worst service experience I’ve had at this restaurant. In 35 years I’ve had three bad experiences, 3 of the last 4. This is a pattern. From the initial contact with hostess and her suggestion that we contact the rest of the part and ask them to “hold off” on arriving because they were running behind on our reservation to the apathetic bartenders, the welcome experience was anything but welcoming. Quite the way to start!

The real disaster began to unfold once we finally were seated. The wait staff was completely disorganized, split our table in half and would only “deal with (direct quote)” their half of the party. The meal took two and half hours to complete with huge gaps between courses. As things progressed i quietly and politely brought the issues to the attention of the captain of the dining room only to be confronted table side, mid meal, by the manager regarding the issues. This was highly unprofessional and made a bad situation worse. No resolution was offered, but rather solicited, at which point I asked that they rally their team and finish strong. Apparently that was read as bring wrong meals, plates so overloaded with onion straws that you couldn’t even see the steak, one person missing a meal entirely, and myself finishing my meal with a half full glass of water as opposed to the glass of wine i ordered, twice.

Thankfully the kitchen had it together as the steak was excellent as always.

I write this review because this is the third time in four visits I’ve had really bad experiences. This place is and should be the best in Dayton, it’s trending away from that. My hope was brining it to the attention the management on duty would make an impact and lead to better results. My impression of the manager is that he is over his head, lacking in experience and training, and completely clueless as to what service, let alone exceptional service, entails.

No offer of any kind was made to try and improve the situation. No follow up from the leadership was ever made. I walked right past the manager as we left and he couldn’t even make eye contact let alone offer an apology or ask if things had improved. This is certainly one hell of way to run a railroad.

Perhaps the owners will read this, take this to heart as a wake up call from a life long Paragon disciple, and fix this. It will be a heartbreaking to read that the Paragon is closing and Dayton is loosing one of its icons again. If this is the future of service, this will be the future headline. Please wake up...

Let me start from the beginning. Came her for our anniversaty the 1st time. They did not disappoint. Waited 5 months to return before writing this in case it was a fluke last time. Happy to say it's not.

This is an old school dinner house with charm, friendly staff, and over the top delicious food. We came Thursday night on a whim. Called for a reservation and got in at 8 pm which is what we wanted. We were seated at a nice booth that was very comfortable. It was rather busy for a Thursday night. Anyway, Missy was our server. She was so sweet, (we are requesting her next time). My husband ordered the prime rib which completely stunned me, he usually gets the fish. I ordered the large bone-in filet, med. rare + with salad, blue cheese and added red onion, hash browns and sauteed mushrooms. He got the prime rib med. rare + with salad and hash browns. I need to say the whole med rare+ thing is because nobody gets it right med rare except The Paragon Club.

The salads were tasty and my blue cheese dressing very yummy.

Then the steak. I have them remove the bone for me because I need my space. All I can say is, this is by far, the best filet mignon I have ever had! My husband and I have traveled all over the world and eaten at some of the finest, world renound restaurants, and this filet beats them all. Filet is actually pretty boring and chefs will try adding rubs, marinades and sauces. I am a purist and believe if it is done correctly and good quality you don't hide it under sauce. I ate this whole steak, no problem. I'm not a big person so I'm pretty impressed I manage it all.

My husbands prime rib again, cooked perfectly. The cut is a generous thickness and the meat just melts in your mouth. He is not a big meat eater and he put this all down. He had it with horseradish. I tried it sans the horseradish and it was delectable.

In this area there are several similar style steak houses and they fall pale next to this. I have also eaten at a high end steak restaurant and it totally missed the mark.

If you truely want an experience that offers a cool, step back in time vibe, with gorgeous food, The Paragon Club is a keeper. Tell them The Peaches sent you and ask for Missy. You won't be sorry.

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Nearly everything about the Paragon is less than you'd expect for the price and reputation, with the exception of the excellent service. The appetizers were satisfactory but nothing special; we started with a decent french onion soup and a smallish shrimp cocktail. The salads that followed were pathetic, and looked like they had been pulled straight from a Kroger package. My wife had to pick some wilted greens out of hers; mine was so drowned in dressing that I didn't bother. The entree list is conservative, focused on steak cuts and century-old dishes like stroganoff and veal oscar. I ordered a ribeye and she ordered a strip steak, both of which were cooked perfectly but lacked the marbling and flavor you'd expect for a nearly $50 steak. The sides are also a disappointment, and any that don't resemble baby food come with an upcharge. The sauteed mushrooms were canned and bland, and the creamed spinach looked and tasted awful. Even the crispy onions that came with my steak lacked flavor. The exception was the great mashed potatoes, but you don't go to a $100-per-person steakhouse for mashed potatoes. The setting also left something to be desired. The restaurant has a beautiful wood interior with a cozy, dim atmosphere that calls for jazz piano but instead we were treated to what seemed like a bizarre one-man karaoke act. My takeaway is: If you are wealthy and elderly with conservative tastes, you will probably enjoy The Paragon (but you'd be better off at the Pine or Oakwood Clubs). Everyone else will find better and more interesting food for these prices in one of Dayton's many other...