Plank Road Tavern
I’m not quite sure what to say about this place. At first glance (from the street) we were a little hesitant to even go in. Don’t get me wrong – we’ve seen our share of ‘dive bars’ but from the outside it didn’t look very inviting or for that matter, even still in business. Once we went in, however, it looked somewhat better. The bartender was the only person working the entire place at the time we arrived so she was having to juggle everyone at the bar, as well as the few tables that were occupied. It seemed (at that time) that we were the only ones actually eating though. By the time we were ready to leave, another staff member had come in. The service was adequate and our server was personable.
The menu was pretty big and looked really impressive with something to suit whatever mood you’re in. Unfortunately, as wonderful as some of the dishes may sound….the delivered product fell way short of our expectation; particularly for what they charge. We had decided we’d each order something different and split the dishes. Mr. Z ordered a simple cheeseburger which came with “plank fries” (basically long chips). She asked how he wanted it cooked and he replied medium; yet it arrived looking (and tasting) like shoe-leather. Why ask if the cook doesn’t intend to prepare it as requested (that’s always baffled me)?? While it wasn’t horrible, it was just a dry, bland, boring burger – certainly not worth $8.95. He however, did NOT send it back. I ordered the Cuban Wrap. The description sounded amazing and I was really looking forward to it. We both finished our halves of the burger before we got ready to start on the wrap. As good as it looked, it was literally INEDIBLE!!! I am seriously not exaggerating. Whatever meat was used in it was drier and tougher than the rawhide chews we used to give our dog. It was hard to tell if it even TASTED good since we couldn’t chew it. I very quickly flagged down the server and told her it was not going to work for us. She semi-apologized and asked what we’d like instead. We played it safe and ordered the barbeque chicken flatbread (the special of the day). It had very little chicken on it and way too much sauce and was just mediocre at best, but at $5.00…..I wasn’t expecting much.
Overall, this place was a big letdown and try as we might, we can’t see any reason to ever go back to Plank Road Tavern!
Plank Road Tavern is located at:
16719 Detroit Ave
Lakewood, OH 44107
(216) 221-5900
https://plankroadtavern.netwaiter.com/lakewood/about