I have frequented this bar many times on the weekends and seems to be the meeting place before going to other bars in downtown Willoughby. The ultra-lounge atmosphere of the restaurant could very well fit into the downtown scene of any major city. The bar curates a great selection of rotating draft micro-beers so there is always something new to try out. The setting is equipped with a beautiful golden illuminated bar and trendy pictures on the wall. Props to the person in charge of the music as there is always a good danceable playlist that does not have one top forty hit on it. So why the low score? The service on the weekends. The bar gets easily crowded on weekends and it appears they are always one bar tender too short to handle patrons well. And don't be fooled by the atmosphere because the bar can attract some very low-brow crowds. A night at Ballentine's could be hit or miss read more

We went late on a Tuesday night to take advantage of their website-advertised 9 to 11pm Happy Hour. We were OK with a later dinner since we had some errands to do beforehand, etc. We get seated and the waiter looks at us like we have 4 heads when we ask if it is Happy Hour (assuming that it is) at 9:02pm. The answer, "no, that only goes til 6". Bummer. Then I notify him the website says 4 to 6 AND 9 to 11. He thinks that is odd since they close at 10. We order a few beers and he takes our order. I see on the printed menu their two Happy Hour times (M-F) as 4 to 6pm and 9 to 11pm. Response? "Yeah I guess that's an error, we're only open til 10." That put a damper on the experience. We got two appetizers--a sushi order and the chicken dip-both excellent. Our entrees were both burgers--also quite good. The food and beers save this rating to 3-stars. I don't know if we'll be back--we might but Ballantine got knocked down a few notches, and it seems to be a trend from others feedback as well. Not sure if it's new management or what. Come on guys, update your website and menu. read more

$2 for a glass of ice is a little ridiculous! Had the Pat LaFrieda burger, it was good but really greasy. Wife had the Pad Thai, it was mediocre at best. The atmosphere is super trendy and makes for a great vibe. Service was great, very aware and attentive. All and all, nothing special...good bar good at best...pricey! read more

Great service. Great food. Great sushi...and very fresh. You can't go here and not try the beer flights, burgers, pasta, and hell everything on the menu is good and fresh. read more

Ballantine - Beer flights...a must! - Sushi Bars Near Me - Willoughby, Ohio

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I've been here on a number of occasions, and been consistently surprised by the quality and atmosphere at Ballentine. They describe themselves as a "gastropub", which translates as accessible American style dishes with quality ingredients and a bit of culinary panache. With everything on tap from Guiness to Frostop rootbeer (considered "the best" and produced in Ohio if you must know), and a massive selection of bottles; their drink menu is larger than the food menu! The service is good, but a little inexperienced. The dining room has a variety of seating, from bar and street side, to a more personal dining room, and a small rear patio (which really doesn't deserve mentioning). The menu changes frequently so never expect the same thing twice. Wood-oven baked pizzas with a wide variety of gourmet toppings are popular. The menu appears to be simple and understated yet Ballentine yields surprises as every dish is done to perfection with an amazing attention to detail (lobster mac & cheeze, french fries in white truffle oil with homemade ketup, mussels with shallots and herbs). Their happy hour has some of their best appetizers for $4 and is quite a bargain for those looking for an early drink and nice snack. With nearby Oliver Twist, and Lure, and the now Ballentine, downtown Willoughby has become an interesting culinary neighborhood. read more

This is a tough one... I really like the feel of this place overall, great set up. The open kitchen, large bar, and tables by the open front windows were really nice. Food: Fiancée had the Pat Burger with fries. Cooked medium rare as ordered. Very flavorful, but a bit overpriced for what you got. Only complaint on this was the bun. A little steam or quick hit on the grill would have done wonders for the bun. Clearly store bought and dry. Would have been really good had the bun not thrown it all off. I had the 14 oz grass fed strip with asparagus side and gorgonzola cream sauce. The sauce was excellent; highlight of the meal. I would liked it to have been incorporated into the dish, but it instead was served on the side. The asparagus was very bland. I think it was steamed and put on the plate. No seasoning at all. The steak was a very nice cut of meat with good quality. The inside was cooked perfectly medium rare, but it was lacking any kind of crust on the outside. The chef also neglected to render the large area of fat found on all strip steaks. What a mistake this was. This area of the steak remains inedible when you neglect to hit it with a high heat source. Not only would it have helped with the presentation and appearance of the meat, but it would have done wonders for the flavor as well. Pretty disappointed with my entree. Drinks: Good beer selection. All drafts $5 I wanted to end with a little after dinner drink. Two sippers of Grand Marnier. The bartender carefully free poured what looked like under 1 oz each. The kicker; $8.50 a piece. $17 for 2 oz of Grand Marnier? This place really has a great thought, however, there was a serious lack of execution. Maybe it was because it was a Sunday night? I will consider coming back to try happy hour, but I don't think I will be coming in to spend my money on dinner anytime soon. read more

I stopped in for a few craft beers on St. Patricks day and couldn't believe how busy this place was considering the two Irish pubs across the street. The bar was busy but i managed to grab a seat. I was quickly greeted by the guy bartender who gave me a few samples of their beers that I havent tried before. He was knowledgeable about the breweries and the beers. The girl bartender was very pleasant also. She also recommended some of the food to try. While I was there Irish Bagpipers came through and played some of their music. Was slightly loud, but understandable considering the small size of the bar and the large amount of members of the band. Food and drinks were great. The other guests were all friendly as well. Great environment! I will return to this place again. It was a great experience and will recommend to my friends and colleagues. read more

Ballentine was a great Happy Hour location until recently: now one has to ask for the beers on HH, one has to ask for the HH menu, one has to specify s/he is ordering from the HH menu...it gets to be a lot of work to save a buck, and.the food is not worth the hassle. Waitresses with attitude who are unwilling to offer a current/accurate beer list? No, we won't be going back, and we were Wednesday night regulars. Lots of other good choices on the block. The 1899 just in back (same owners) is a better choice: laid back atmosphere, good juke box, and no attitude. read more

Went to Ballantine on Friday Night with some friends, I have been here before and it was okay, I heard they had a new menu so we decided to give it a try. Sushi is one of my favorites and I like to pride myself on all the different types of sushi that I have had over the years. We got to sit at the table right in front of the kitchen and the sushi bar, As soon as we came in we got to talking with the sushi chef and he was very knowledgeable and experience so we decided to give some sushi a try. The sushi was outstanding, the tuna was so fresh and the rice was delicious, some of the best ive had! We tried a traditional rainbow roll and then some of the fusion sushi they have and both were amazing. For dinner we got surf and turf, Filet and Lobster Tail. The chef paired my filet with a lobster compound butter that really tied the whole meal together. Our lobster tail was cooked perfect and everyone was very satisfied with our meal, delicious. Throughout our meal we were able to talk with the chefs and learn more about the menu and the food we were eating, it was a really great experience all around. Our server was very attentive and helped us with their huge draft beer selection. The manager also checked in on us, which is a small detail that goes a long way with me. I think that Ballantine has finally got a outstanding menu and has a very friendly and informative staff. Later on this month I will be taking my girlfriend there for dinner and drinks for her birthday, I can't wait! read more

Great food and atmosphere. Stefanie was awesome. Great atmosphere will be back again. One of our favorite places downtown Willoughby

When I'm in DTW and don't wanna get smashed or really rage but want to enjoy a cocktail with normal people who aren't going bonkers this is the place to go! They have amazing food too! My fav is coming on a perfect weather night when the patio doors are wide open to savor beautiful historic downtown Willoughby Ohio! read more

Awesome! Amazing Food! All around great restaurant and bar. They have a good selection of beers and food. This is a great place if you are going to bring children, or go on a date. They have hamburgers, wood fire pizza, and much more. 5/5 read more

The atmosphere was fantastic. The service was perfect from our server Katie, to the kitchen staff, all the way to the busser! The sushi was delicious as were our main courses. I would highly recommend this place to anyone! If you're looking for a great meal or a large craft beer selection this is a place you should check out! read more

Um, this is a place I will not be returning to. I went here last Friday night and was super excited to try this place out. I had heard great things about their beer selection etc. To start off, I feel like the look and feel of this place masks the true quality of it - and not in a good way. We were seated immediately but it took a few minutes for our server to get to us. I have to say, their beer list is quite impressive. I had the Breckinridge Vanilla Porter and "B" had the Arrogant Bastard Ale. Both were tasty. It took about a good 15 minutes for them to get to our table though. For food, I had the Penne Pesto with grilled chicken and "B" ordered the Delmonico steak. They were $16 and $30 respectively. Now, for a $16 plate of pasta, I don't expect it to be swimming in oil and have barely any pesto flavor and a couple pieces of rubbery chicken thrown on top. I didn't end up finishing it. "B" said his steak was great but the side was a big hunk of broccoli in a bowl with no seasoning whatsoever and soggy fries. I would also expect for a $30 plate, you would get some excellent seasoning and some damn good sides but I guess not. We did have a lot of trouble getting our server's attention while cashing out as well. After realizing that her area of tables wasn't that large, I couldn't understand why. I also feel their menu is very disjointed, small, and not diverse at all. In saying that, I mean their sandwich section consists of one burger and a chicken sandwich; their entrees consist of 2 steak dishes, about 3 chicken dishes and 2 pasta dishes, and I think they had 2 entree salads. We were hugely disappointed with Ballantine just because our expectations were so high. I definitely expected more when spending that much money. read more

Ballantine, you do not impress me. It had been about 2 years since I gave you a try.. You added more Asian items... But took away the sauce with your fries. I ordered the sticky ribs, but the plum sauce was overpowering. Your only redeeming quality was the Rosemary and garlic laden fries. Service was slow, somewhat inattentive and the wine list was subpar. You're going to have to do more to lure me back to your bar. read more

Yummy food. Swanky steakhouse feel. I got the ribeye medium rare and it was quite tastey with the mushroom sauce. Limited wine selection but the wines I had (Malbec and Cab) were very acceptable. Wide range of food options. Everything from Burgers, pastas, steaks, SUSHI!, lobster nachos.... something for everyone. A touch overpriced for overall. Slur in my opinion but I certainly enjoyed my meal and my dinning experience. read more

Good Beer Selection expect a good selection of craft beer. Food is okay and probably better than I would have expected. Had dinner tonight with a friend and we were both satisfied with our meal; our service; and the ambiance of the place. All were pretty good and I find more to like than not. We split a crab cake for an app and I must say it was very, tasty. Perhaps the most crab I ever had in a crab cake but the overall flavors were really good. My Caesar salad could have used a little more punch to it. I like a lot more anchovies flavor i mine, and in fact I would like an anchovy or tow on top. The romaine was very fresh, cold and crisp. Liked that part. I had the Prosciutto Asiago Chicken on polenta accompanied by Squash & Zucchini. My take - chicken was cooked nicely and the prosciutto and good flavor. The asiago came through nicely and really set the entree apart. The polenta had good taste but was a little dry, but the Squash & Zucchini was really outstanding. Full of flavor, fresh, moist. Just top notch. read more

My husband and I were doing some errands and decided to go out for dinner in Willoughby, knowing there were lots of options ... But, having no reservations at 8:00 on a Saturday night, those options narrowed down - fast! We avoided the line up waiting for valet in the WBC lot and finally found a space in one of the free public lots. We decided to check out Ballentines - it looked like a more upscale pub with happy people in the seats near the windows. We were told it would be 25 - 30 min for a table, so we put our name in and grabbed a spot standing at the bar. The bartender was the best part of the evening - quick, friendly and helpful - it was too loud to hear her name (and I asked), but she was great. After about 20 minutes, we were able to get seats at the bar, and no more than 5 minutes later, one of the hosts came to suggest that we eat at the bar since it would be at least another 30 minutes for a table ... since we were getting great service and enjoying his WBC Gutterpup and my Lambic, we decided to stay put. He offered nothing - no thanks, no free app - nothing - just ambled away to scratch one future customer off his list. Our heroine bartender apologized, ran the specials list and gave us a fee round. Again, perfect service. By now, the evening bar crowd was starting to fill in and patrons were reaching - and yelling - over us to get drink service. So we passed on apps and definitely ruled out the 30 dollar steaks - so we tried the wood fired pizza. We could see the oven and everything looked primed for a great crispy 'za ... Not even close! The margharita pizza came wallowing in gooey, oily standard pizza mozzarella cheese with pale pink Roma tomato slices and 9 shreds (I counted) of basil ... not the beautiful mounds of meltingly wonderful fresh mozzarella that should have been there, no piquant tomato taste ... It was DULL and the dough was average. And it cost more than the marvels they serve at Bar Cento! Baaad. Same for my husband's pepperoni with red peppers - what looked like jarred roasted red peppers dominated the dough. We both needed fresh pepper and salt to generate any recognizable flavor. Really disappointing. Go for the beers - the look of the place and the prices demand better food. read more

Everything I had here food wise was great. Staff was great as well. Its just a bit of a drive for me being in Cleveland. I wish either I was closer or the place was closer itself. Seems like they have a lot of beers for all you drunk bozos. read more

It's an okay place - it is hard to get any service or move around when they are even slightly busy. There is always a varied crowd in Ballantine at night- it is either really sophisticated young(ish) adults, Snookie/Paulie D's or young people covered in tattoos and piercings (for Tuesday's indie rock night). I can go with either crowd, generally, but this place just seems so... cold? The vegetarian pizza and burgers are pretty good, but I wouldn't go out of my way to have them again. The back patio (shared with 1899) is a good place to meet new people and smoke a cigarette in a nice environment (as opposed to the front sidewalk on the corner). read more

OK, the parking in the region isn't great, but the food here is amazing. I HIGHLY suggest you try the sushi nacho's. They are truly awesome. The drink menu is solid and almost all of the other food offerings appear to be pretty amazing as well. Do yourself a favor and try this place. read more

I've been here a few times and always wonder why I bother. The food wavers between average and poor and the cocktails are weak and generally uninteresting. More of a hangout for the trendy crowd than a real food experience. read more

2 or 3 stars ... Four of us ate ... a little higher priced than what is usual for downtown Willoughby and from my standpoint a poor meal (warm Caesar salad with chicken) was trying very hard to be cuisine, but with extremely tough chicken missed the mark. My friends had the ribs, chicken and a small scallop plates, respectively and enjoyed them. Staff was attentive, but on a Saturday night, the place was only half full, so that should tell you something. read more

I went to Ballantine for the first time in years. Most of the reviews here seem to be incredibly positive and fairly formulaic... I am not sure if they genuine as they seem too similar in tone and wording. I got off work early and wanted to try happy hour food before I went home. I got to Ballantine at about 4:30 p.m. and sat at the bar. There were a few people in the restaurant but the staff was clearly getting geared up for the night because no one ever greeted me even though about 5 workers walked by me on both sides of the bar many times. After about 10 minutes, the bartender asked if I needed a menu, which I did. I heard the happy hour food was good and reasonably priced, so i decided to have the 'Plain Burger' ($5.00) cooked medium-well and a soft drink ($2.75). I don't drink very often and was not in the mood for beer even though they have quite a selection on tap. The bartender asked if I wanted fries or a salad for $2 more. I opted for the fries. It took them quite a while to get the food out as they were mostly bustling around to continue getting the bar and kitchen ready for an apparently busy night to come. The burger was cooked perfectly and tasted fine (about 5 out of 10....nothing special). The fries were very hot and fine too. My only real problem was that the service was close to non-existent. No one ever asked me if the meal was ok or if I wanted anything else. The busy bartender walked back and forth many times and ignored my empty glass. I tried to get her attention but she was always in the middle of talking or doing something without looking at the customers at the bar. I did not really feel in the mood to demand basic attention and just wanted to get out of there. Finally, I asked for the check and the bartender asked if I wanted a refill or anything else to eat. I declined, paid, and left. SUMMARY: 1. The happy hour food is ok, not great. I saw entrees from the main menu and they did look amazing. 2. Service during happy hour is terrible. 3. Although there were many WIFI connections, none of them worked. The bartender said only one of them works, and that one connection was "resetting". I was there for an hour and there was no WIFI. 4. With so many other options for food in Willoughby and Mentor, I will not be back. read more

Don't Bother making a reservation and making any special requests because they won't read it. Made a reservation for a booth and showed up and it was not available. Asked them to call me if a booth was not available and they did not call, but upon arriving they tried to put us at a regular table, so we didn't stay. Have eaten here a number of times and the food was always good but a little pricey. We had not been back in a while due to the changes to the menu that we weren't very happy with. We gave it another shot tonight, but with the lack of attention to detail we will not be back again. read more

Excellent meal and excellent service. We had several different things from the menu, including the sushi special and lamb burger. They were perfect! We will definitely be back! read more

Nice interior. Some of the tables were pushed back so people could dance because there was a DJ. The DJ was fairly good and almost everyone there was dancing. Got drinks right away because they weren't very busy. Bartender was friendly and drinks were good. read more

Lots of sushi options and discount night was Monday! I had a burger too that was good but nothing too extra special tasting, though I beleive they offer grass fed beef (I had a turkey burger). Appetizer menu is what I would've liked to try. Kinda a dark feel to the place good for a date probably not to celebrate a family birthday. Lots of drink options. read more

I was surprized with a trip here for fathers day. Although it is not anavoid at all cost, it also was not i cant wait to go again. First the good: Abby our server was absolutely FANTASTIC! She was attentive and talented at her craft. Nice seating and quickly greeted and seated. Good atmosphere. Now on to the not so good stuff. One order had mashed that were just awful. Abby took care of them. I chose to be safe and order steak at an advertised steak house. My medium steak after two cuts was found to be rare. Another call to Abby. It was obvious that my steak had not the time to rest, as when it returned to my table it was in a small pool of red. That as it may, my steak was now medium. The other issue was that while my steak was being attended to, my garnish was not. So I got my steak back on the old plate with dying garnish, minus my fork and the ketchup for my steak fries which was there when it left. I did not have the heart to call Abby again, so I just ate the steak with the help of an extra fork from our table. Out of the 6 people in our party, 4 meals were perfect, so I attribute the two plates to falling under the quality control line. I will try them once more and hope that my plate will be as good as those around my table. read more

Went to ballentine for dinner the other night, I've been reading the reviews and i feel with reading some of these and seeing you need to go to other restaurants is false. The staff is great the food is great and the manager couldn't have been more helpful. I would definitely recommend it and go back. They seem to have a positive vibe going on in the restaurant. I will be returning read more

"Great craft brew selection. Wood fired pizza. Nice facility and awesome service. I go out of my way to visit here. 5 stars aren't really enough!!" read more

The wings are stellar, but they ran out last time we were there! No matter. The onion rings are light and crispy like tempura. Try them with a side of wing sauce and some Tabasco. The BBQ burger was not bad, but you can't expect much buying pulled pork in the north country. Go with the pizza and some craft beers. The crowd? Real good. read more

The ambiance was fantastic, the food not so much. I ordered sushi, and it just didn't wow me or taste especially fresh. Granted, I have been spoiled the past few months with California sushi fresh from the ocean, so I may be a bit of a snob. The service was fine, drinks were appropriately alcoholic, and I had a nice time. But to pay so much money on food ($80ish), I expected to really like it! read more

First visit on 12/05/2015.....I couldn't resist hearing the music so I decided to check it out....nice spot to bring your friends and have a good time, dance, and of course drink! Will definitely be back! read more

Went there for the 1st time a few months back. Their prices are a little high but the food presentation was nice and the taste was even better! The chocolate martini was decadent! seating was close to your neighbor. If you are over 250 pounds you will feel squished as my company had expressed that evening. They have a really cool feature in that bar.....The front windows come out or slide open!! So, if you sit by the windows near the sidewalk you have this bistro outdoor zzz feel. Unique! I would choose to eat there if I was going to be bar hopping in Willoughby that night. read more

This place has a nice atmosphere and good beer list, but the food is not up to par. As I said, the beer list is good, but it has also been better. I enjoyed it more when they had more of a belgian influence. In my recent visit, it was mostly american craft beer focused with only a few imports. I've been there a number of times in the past, but rarely eaten dinner. I mostly get appetizers and drinks. They used to have a solid happy hour menu with the mussels and fries being my favorite. Those are now gone. In my recent visit, I choose to order a full dinner. It's an eclectic menu with items that are all over the place. They have sushi, wood fired pizza, noodle dishes, burgers and high end steaks. At first glance, it looks like they are trying too hard to be trendy. I enjoy fusion, but this menu went too far. Surf and turf sushi? No thanks. I decided to stick to something a little more classic. I ordered the pad thai. The description was that of a typical pad thai, the result was not. It was supposed to have peanuts, fresh chilies, egg, chicken, shrimp, etc. What came out was overcooked noodles, soupy sauce, runny egg, red peppers? and no peanuts. I will say that the shrimp was tasty and cooked to perfection. I've had pad thai out of a box from the grocery store, off of a food truck and from many thai restaurants. It's always been a pretty safe dish for me. I don't know what this was, but it was not pad thai. I sent it back. I ended up splitting the pizza my wife ordered. The crust was great, but the sauce, cheese and toppings were just okay. The service wasn't bad, although I will say that the manager never bothered to stop by after I sent back my food. I will be back for drinks and maybe appetizers, but not dinner. Based on the quality of the food, I'll probably avoid their sushi. Why shouldn't I? There are two solid sushi restaurants in walking distance. If I owned this place, I'd refocus on what I'm good at and stop trying so hard to have trendy food. read more

Food is good, and the beer selection is large (for this area) but limited; the management has a very obvious raging boner for IPAs...branch out a bit. read more

The Atmosphere is very pleasant, went for dinner with girlfriends and they never seem to disappoint. My salmon and snap peas were incredible. Our server Nicole was great! read more

Ballantine has wood fired pizza and a gluten free option. I ordered a great-looking pizza - gluten free - and another in our party ordered a regular pizza. The pizzas arrived and my crust looked suspicious - awfully fluffy for gluten free. Fortunately I'm gluten sensitive and don't have celiac disease. We asked the waitress to check. She came back and told us they were out of the gluten free crust and that the kitchen must have told her but she didn't hear them. We were charged for the pizza. I was asked if I'd like something else and I ordered a vegetable side, which I wasn't charged for. I've waitressed a lot and our waitress looked distracted and she was apologetic but we shouldn't have been charged for the pizza. It was a pretty significant mistake. Unimpressive service. read more

I love Ballantine. Here's why; I can get some amazing sushi, and a lovely (affordable) glass of wine. My husband can get a fantastic burger, and an interesting beer on draught. This is my go-to, local pub. I gave it 4 stars because the typical Willoughby crowd is usually there. read more