I had the opportunity to meet a friend for lunch in
Lancaster, Ohio, a few weeks ago—and it was my job to choose the
restaurant. While there are a lot of
chain restaurants in the area, I wanted to try something a little different. Table 1 opened earlier in summer on Lancaster’s
Main Street—and since a quick visit to the Old Shoe Factory for antique
shopping was on or list of things to do—Table 1 was my choice. What was our review of Table 1 in Lancaster,
Ohio?
Table 1 is nestled into an older building on Main
Street. Table 1 has a nice location in
Lancaster’s downtown, historical district.
There is plenty of on-street parking as well as parking lots within an
easy walk to Table 1. Visitors can
easily venture to the historic courthouse, the Ohio Glass Museum or the Old Shoe
Factory Antique Mall—or wander through some of the small shops dotting the downtown.
Table 1 combines the old and the new. While the restaurant moved into the space of
a long-time Lancaster dining establish, Table 1 made some changes. The sign and glass front are in keeping with
the building’s old brick exterior and neighboring businesses—but, the building’s
interior is a casual mixture of the old and new. Each of the tables has a wall-mounted number
sign with a modern feel. The open,
galley style kitchen keeps the atmosphere casual (and little loud and “clangy”
every now and then).
Table 1 was small—but quite busy. We arrived around 10:45 for an early lunch. As the
11 o’clock hour neared—the restaurant filled quickly. Lots of diners seemed to be on lunch breaks
from downtown businesses. The dining
area is pretty small, so we were pretty fortunate to have arrived early and
skipped the wait. While there aren’t
many tables in the restaurant—there were plenty of servers and staff keeping
things moving. When the restaurant was
at its busiest, our server brought us a decanter of iced water so that we weren’t
waiting for her to return for refills—but, she was always checking in on us
anyway.
How was the food at Table 1?
I had a tough time choosing my lunch.
I really wanted to try a flatbread—but, the chicken Bruschetta and the
fish tail and the burgers were all vying for my attention as well.
In the end, I chose the Bruschetta with kettle chips..
I loved the sandwich.
It was a grilled chicken breast with field greens, diced tomato, basil,
melted mozzarella cheese, and a balsamic vinaigrette drizzle. Generally, I am not a huge fan of kettle
chips—but, these were thin and barely seasoned and fried to a flat crisp.
My friend chose the Fish Tail and fries
She ordered the fish plain—with no sauces or any
toppings. Since the servers became very
busy, the chef actually came out to verify her order rather than risking an
error—and he even came out with the food to ensure again that it was prepared
correctly. It was a HUGE fish tail! The server brought a cup of the chipotle tartar sauce that is usually served on the fish--and I am pretty sure I'll have to try the fish with the sauce at some point!
Is Table 1 suitable for kids? Although I didn’t have the girls with me, there is a
children’s menu at Table 1 with items such as wafflewiches and cheeseburger
roll ups to offer a break from the usual chicken nugget or mac & cheese
fare. Table 1 has a very casual atmosphere making it relaxed and family friendly.
What were our final thoughts on Table 1? I would definitely visit Table 1 again for
lunch with friends or with my family.
The prices were reasonable for the portion size and quality (my
bruschetta and chips cost around $7), the service was wonderful during our
visit, and the food was served hot and to order. I really like the variety on the menu—they serve
everything from Cajun themed flatbreads to Cuban sandwiches and pub-like
fishtails. I could visit several times
and still have items on the menu left that I would like to try! The restaurant is a little small—so expect a
bit of a wait during lunch rush. It does
get a little loud when seated near the kitchen—but, it’s a nice, casual spot
for a quick breakfast or lunch.
We were not compensated for this review--all opinions are our own. We just found something new and wanted to share!
For More Information:
Table 1
157 W. Main Street
Lancaster, Ohio 43130
740-785-4495
Lancaster, Ohio 43130
740-785-4495
We have a lot of travel planned over the next several months. If you know of a restaurant that we should visit in the Midwest, Southern or Eastern U.S.---Email us! We love to discover new places!
1 Comments
I had the displeasure of working at table 1 for a couple of months. While most workers are very pleasant the owner is anything but. In my first couple weeks I watch's as JM (the owner) trashed the openly gay cook (which happened very frequently) and on more then one occasion threatened to punch him in his cock sucker (his words not mine). He constantly put me (and the vast majority of his other workers) down as well saying how I was overweight and dull and a waste of a pay check (I didn't like talking to him because of how I had seen him treat some of the other workers so I opted to keep my head down trying to avoid his attention) Their menu boast how everything is made with fresh ingredients but most of the menu comes from GFS and all they have to do is heat it up and the couple things that are actually made fresh sit in the open all day waiting to be served to customers. He will take any short cut to ensure saving every penny that he can and that includes replating food that was sent back and sending it back to the customer (after talking trash about them to the staff of course) as well as trimming off any bad meat. Then there's the issue with the roaches!!! Now don't get me wrong it's not like any restaurant is without them but table 1 has a pretty big problem with them. It would be all to common to open one of the many freezers and see them come pouring out like some kind of polluted water fall, I would often see them crawling over all of the clean dish's in the back and at the kitchen station and It was common practice to just brush them off and plate and serve anyway. There has been many times when a customer would come in and sit just to be greeted by a couple running across their table (and it has happened to a lot of the workers family's as well) and when it was reported to JM (the owner) he would hide in the back and refuse to come out until the customer had left the store. He would routinely make workers work long hours every week and then short them on their paycheck. He would also require some of us to do extra work outside of the restaurant (ie: at his house) which he said he would pay us for on our paycheck and never would and when confronted he would become volatile threatening to fire us on the spot. Most workers walk on egg shells around him to avoid any kind of confrontation and on the days he decided not to come into the restaurant everything operated a lot smother. He would also take short cuts when it came to fixing the restaurant often just patching things that needed to be replaced such as water lines that would flood the floors on a daily basis. All he really seems to care about is squeezing every penny that he can out of the place charging high dollar for his mediocre food and service. So next time you find yourself dining at Table 1 you might want to take some extra precautions such as bringing in your own sanitation wipes so you can wipe down your table and god forbid if you actually have to the toilet
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