I may be the luckiest O Joe's fan on the planet. I live in Watertown, home of the original…read morelocation, and travel within Torrington multiple times a week for family. First visit to the O Joe's North location - understanding I/we love the original. It exceeded every possible expectation. Food is terrific - has the same standard as Watertown, but our wings were cooked even better. Fresh, hot, crispy, juicy. Definitely the best Ordinary Joe's wings we've had (and we have a lot of them, often). The food options are clearly rooted in the original concept. However, there are some more/different options here. Everything looked and smelled fantastic. I look forward to investigating further. Our server, Vanessa, earned 25 stars on her own. She was attentive, personable, yet worked quickly and accurately - manning a full bar and dining room simultaneously - while making us feel like we were the only ones in the joint. Manager/(Owner?) Paul was terrific as well. Stepped in to ensure all tables had what they needed, were clean, and everyone happy. It was truly noticeable that customer service is a priority for the team. Building is new/redone/beautiful. Similar, iconic O Joe's feel and decorating - yes, the gridiron is painted on the ceiling. Just a great space. Great vibe. Eat-off-the-floor clean. Simply can't wait to go back. And, again, I am so lucky to have proximity to both locations. **Just one note for families who may go with children or teenage boys (like me)... The service is so great, no one at the table will have an empty glass for long... that's a really positive thing. But, fair warning, soft drink refills are NOT free (nor should they be, frankly). However, with an 18 and 16 yr old in my party...those Cokes accumulate quickly.

Ambience is very loud but if there aren't a lot of people at the bar, it's very good. Service was…read moregood. Wings were great, pulled pork and everything we hit was delicious. Reasonable prices also. We will go again.

Absolutely amazing service! Shout out Dena! Dena was our server and she was amazing!!! The inside…read moreof the restaurant was so clean! The tables were wiped down, the bathrooms are so clean too! But the main thing, the food! The food is out of this world! The cannolis are a must try! And the penne ala vodka is so good!

Great food and atmosphere!!! Prices are good menu is awesome!! They also offer live music. You…read morecan't go wrong , try it you won't regret it!

Came for the food, stayed for Karen. 10/10 worth the visit. Had the creamy sausage tortellini soup,…read morewill suck down again.

Fun local place. Food is great. Better than you'd expect for a small bar. Service is fantastic…read more You'll never have an empty drink. This is one of my favorite places.

Nice people own and manage the place. They have tasty food and different events throughout the week.read more

Fabulous and Fantastic! What a great addition to downtown Torrington. The food was excellent and…read morethe service and staff were so enjoyable and just all around good vibes. I can't wait to go back and sit at one of the tables where they have games while you wait or sit in the window spots and people watch. There are 8 TV's, music, dartboards and an on-site ATM.

My second review of Sawyer's after now trying the food. Very good, plump, crispy & piping hot…read morechicken wings available in a half dozen flavors. Excellent, properly prepared Mushroom Risotto - highly recommended. Owner Julian cooks on Mondays & Wednesdays. He visited my booth twice to inquire about both the wings appetizer and the Mushroom Risotto entree. Service is friendly and attentive. Atmosphere is laidback with a diverse but pleasant crowd. Definitely worth the trip if you're a Risotto fan but be sure to go on a Monday or Wednesday evening.

Sawyers has stayed on a side street of Torrington for years, so they're doing something right to…read moresurvive. They do have a parking lot on the side, and tables/chairs for the warm weather. We were greeted by two lion statues. The interior seating are high tops and booths. There are single restrooms, with the toilet very close to your nose. You should stand straight up. The garlic parm chicken tenders were delicious, and the breading stayed strong even after being coated. The burger was definitely warm and juicy, it went with the overall bar.

"And so please help (To teach your children) Them with your…read moreyouth (What you believe in) They seek the truth Teach your children well" (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young) When was the last time you ate a meal in a high school? Maybe it was at an award dinner for a high school sports team, or at a Boy or Cub Scout dinner? Or maybe it was way back in the day between your history and algebra classes? Well, we had a unique lunch at Oliver's Restaurant. Why unique? It was unique because the restaurant is located within the Oliver Wolcott Technical High School in Torrington, and it is staffed by students. You see, the school's Culinary Arts program trains their students for experience in the food service industry. It's an ambitious program that uses a public restaurant to provide 1,775 hours of learning and training in all phases of restaurant business - from the public facing front of the house to the back-of-house. If the students decide to enter the food service workforce, they leave Oliver's with a fantastic skill set. The teacher is Chef Michael McDowell, and he had a crew of 25 High School Juniors operating in two rooms preparing the salads and sandwiches, grilling the chicken and salmon and steaks, baking the meatballs, preparing the soups, slicing the complimentary bread, waiting the tables, and every possible activity they will see when the food service workforce. Chef Michael was fantastic as he oversaw the operation, offering nonstop commentary and tips to his young staff - "did you offer ketchup with those fries?", "too much oil in that pan", "check on your customers and get off your phones", "where's the dressing on the side?", "put the dressing in a takeout container for the takeout orders, and a ramekin for the diners", etc., etc. Oliver's has a real dining room with an open kitchen, so you can see and hear the entire class. There was a steady stream of takeout orders, and three parents popped in to say hi to their kids. The freshman and sophs in the Culinary Arts program start with the basics -how to sauté things, make salads, and the like. Today's class was all juniors, and that's when they actually start to operate the restaurant under the Chef's guidance. We chatted with Chef Michael, and he said that when they become Seniors, they really run Olivers by themselves. Our lunch was a $3 cup of clam chowder, a $9 turkey BLT, a $14 Salmon Caesar Salad, and a $4 Apple Crostata. The food was very good, check out the generous portion of turkey on the BLT and the half pound slab of perfectly cooked salmon on my salad. And we were amazed when Chef Michael called us at home to get our feedback on the meal and service. What a wonderful experience! We really enjoyed watching the Chef train his staff and watching them execute his instructions. I hope whoever is reading this, goes to the school and supports these young restaurant workers of the future. I know you'll enjoy this unique experience as much as we did. PRO TIP Olivers is open to the public Wednesday to Friday from 10:45 to 12:05, and they ask you to call 860-496-5369 to make a reservation.

Off the charts. The specials. The homecooked food. The only way I want to dine - hit this every…read moretime I visit Torrington. It's the best! I like that they make helpful suggestions and tell you about what they do best. I like everything here.

Always great food and friendly service - tremendous value too. Had the roast pork with beans and…read morerice - fantastic.

My husband and I ate here last night to celebrate our fourth wedding anniversary and everything was…read moregreat. They started us off with wonderful crusty bread with an out of this world seasoned olive oil. Although a garden salad comes with the meals, we chose to order a spinach salad to share and forgo the freebie garden salad and we're sure glad we did! The spinach salad with raspberry vinaigrette was soooo good. It had walnuts, dried cranberries, bacon and blue cheese. The drinks were also awesome (Manhattan & French Martini), and our water glasses were kept filled at all times. Service was spot on as well. My husband had the Surf & Turf. He likes his steak medium rare and his was cooked perfectly. I had the Veal Francese, and it melted in my mouth. Delicious! They offer a choice of baked potato, sweet potato, or rice. We each got a baked potato. On to the ambiance: HURRAY-NO TVs!!! Subtle lighting, soft music playing (Frank Sinatra, etc., really nice) and nice linen tablecloths and napkins. Do not let the unassuming exterior of this restaurant fool you--it's lovely inside. And don't worry about the attached bar--you don't hear a thing in the main dining room--it's as if it wasn't even there. In short, this is a little gem off the beaten path well worth a visit.

The food was excellent. The decor was very nice. Actually this place is a wonderful date night…read moredining. They didn't rush the food out, or make us feel we needed to eat faster, very relaxed. The coconut sauce for the shrimp was absolutely delish. I forgot to ask about the oil dip that was brought to the table with the bread. I loved it, I believe it had fresh garlic in it, and I loved it. We also had the French onion soup, very tasty. The calamari appetizer was spot on, crispy and tender. We will return for sure. Just need not to be in a hurry to eat here.

Honestly, I didn't know this place existed until just a few hours ago. Typically, Harwinton is too…read morefar out of my way to go to because I tend not to go north of where I live unless I take a bus towards Hartford or I am going to Watertown. However, my mom had taken me to a renaissance fair in the area and as we left this was the first barbecue option I could find on Yelp. It helped that it was less than 10 minutes from the Ren, so it was a very quick drive. We opted for outdoor seating just because it was visible from where we parked in its plaza. I do like the Thomas Edison theme this restaurant has going on. The decor and the pictures help drive that theme home here which is a nice touch. I did overhear that this restaurant tends to pull people from Bristol and Thomaston which I can understand. They're both fairly close to Harwinton, especially Thomaston who borders this town to the south. The service here is on top of things as well. We had Chrissy who was very friendly, and always willing to answers we had about what we had (I did ask a few questions about the food brought out). While only one other outdoor table was in use upon arrival, about half of them were being served by the end of the meal. So let's start off with the drinks. Mom had the Mango Loco while I had the Campfire Old Fashioned. You also get refills of iced water from a glass jug. I did get to try mom's drink. At its best, it has a very fruity, sweet, refreshing flavor. However, as that drink went on, mom commented that the finish exposed how uneven the Mango Loco was. I took another sip of it at that and it confirmed her thoughts. That sweet mango taste was largely missing in its finish. A good stir after serving would probably help things along, but the taste should always be even if possible. As for my drink, this is where my first question was asked: what bourbon did they use? Turns out, it's made locally in Litchfield. It uses Litchfield Distillery Double Barrel, a 90-proof bourbon. A lot was definitely put on because I noticed a very strong flavor with this one even though I've cooked with much stronger bourbons. It wasn't subtle at all, but the overall drink was still a good drink. The toasted marshmallow was toasted to perfection. For the appetizer, 6-piece grilled chicken wings with their Blackberry BBQ Sauce. The sauce was very tangy, but like the bourbon it was not subtle. Mom did say the chicken was overcooked, but I didn't think so. It was able to come off the bone okay enough. These were good wings, but I think having the blue cheese dip was the star of the dish. The blue cheese dip went along with these wings perfectly, and they even included some celery here as well. For the entrees, mom had the fish and chips while I had the brisket with sides of coleslaw and Mac and cheese. I actually got to try everything here except for the tartar sauce. While mom like her fish, I'm glad she was the one that got it and not me. It was greasy on the bottom, and the bite I tried had some of the breading I couldn't chew from the rest. Like, does breading have bones or something? That's what it felt like from the bite I took. But it was still a juicy fish and the breading had a light crisp to it. Likewise, the fries were also a light crisp upon arrival. Were they the best fries I had ever had from a restaurant? No! But they were competent. Onto my brisket, it had some more of that BBQ sauce from earlier, but this time it complimented the food a fair bit better than it did with the chicken. The brisket was honestly the best food item of this bunch here. It was very tender, and soft. They did a great job with the presentation here I must say. It was as if they were truly locking in when making the brisket. Cole slaw was good, but could use a bit more mayo. The Mac and cheese was also good, the shells professionally cooked, and the cheese was good. If there was one criticism for the Mac and cheese, the cheese pull could be improved. When I went to another restaurant with a friend of mine a few months back, I was able to see an epic cheese pull from their bite. There wasn't much of a cheese pull here. Still the Mac and cheese was a great side dish and I'm glad I went with what I did. Overall, I would say that after averaging the food, the ambiance, and the service, I think a 4 is the appropriate rating for this restaurant. The food had some moments of greatness and was overall a good meal, but I did find with almost everything we were served that there are some improvements that could be made. The service and theming make up for those shortcomings. I wouldn't mind coming back to try other things though. It's a good place all-in-all.

This small town grill is perfect for a coffee flight, dinner or cocktails. The dining area is cozy…read morewith about 8 seats at the bar. We stopped by before our annual Christmas Lights drive for dinner and a holiday cocktail. Katie, our bartender made me a fantastic gin spritz. We started with the giant pretzel which was fantastic! I had the cauliflower risotto which was actually quite lovely.

Absolutely great food and excellent service!!! Highly recommend!!…read moreNothing frozen and microwaved. French dip was amazing homemade au jus!! Turkey dinner was also beyond delicious!!!

We were a few bikers on a long ride and one of us suggested this nice, old style diner…read more The staff were very nice and we got the food on time. The egg on my cheeseburger was a nice addition. Good spot for those of who like diner like experience.