deSha’s American Tavern

I have no clue how I haven’t reviewed this place up until now. I’ve been here a few dozen times for work lunches. It’s very convenient to my Cincinnati office and usually has availability unlike Silver Spring House — which I prefer but is always too busy for my taste. deSha’s is part of a larger chain. They have decent specials and the food quality is very consistent.

deSha’s never disappoints. Sat down overlooking the pond. Menu is always unique. Pricing is fair. Kira was our server and she was wonderful. The fish and chips never fails to hit the mark!
Great for all ages. Bathrooms were clean. Staff were all friendly and attentive.
Good choice for brunch, lunch or dinner.

Thought the food was mediocre at best. I had lunch there. My sandwich was dry and not very tasteful. The atmosphere is just kind of wooden. Service was fine. You can see ducks I n the pond but who really cares about that. I should add this was some time ago so maybe things have changed as other reviewers seem to like the quality of the food better.

Stuffed banana peppers good, corn bread very tasty. Had Cuban sandwich which was outstanding. Jhere was our server, she did a great job and made the dinner experience worth the visit. Would definitely go back, hopefully soon. Thanks !

I hosted an engagement party for my son and his fiancé tonight at deSha’s. Everything was great. Staff was very helpful and food was wonderful. Great place for small parties. We had around 40 in our party and it was nice to have the private bar and patio area.

Been to deSha’s twice, both with a large group. Once with a group for lunch and also for Easter lunch. Food was delicious. I really enjoyed an open face sandwich with the meat and potatoes and onions. Yum! Staff is friendly and service was prompt. I’ve been told hit or miss but I’ve had good experiences both times. Good for groups. Nice enough for a special meal.

Been up here a couple of times for happy hour, $ 4 ‘premium’ mixed drinks, beer and wine. Problem is, premium vodka is (gulp) Smirnoff — ewww. I’m a Grey Goose or Chopin vodka girl — with 3 big olives preferable and vermouth wafting lightly over the rim. Okay, so this isn’t exactly my vibe for sure. To be fair, the apps are cheap (we like the hot and doughy pretzel bites dipped in sweet or spicy mustard although the flatbreads are mediocre). The waitstaff is incredible — personable, remembers your name (at least all five coworkers at our table) and will go out of their way to find you a special happy hour drink you actually like. For example, I picked out a pino grigio that was $ 7.50, instead of $ 7 (which is the cutoff for the happy hour $ 4 price) and she graciously fixed it. Nice! Tipped her additionally the difference which is ultimately the way to encourage and reward exemplary servers.

Great service! Our food came within 10 minutes of ordering and our server was very attentive. If you make a (good) decision to come here, request Ashley to be your waitress! You won’t be disappointed :)

The French fries taste like they just came out of an Orida bag undercooked… The prime rib taste like chipped beef on toast. with still red peppers even after they got me a new sandwich and supposedly took them out. the food is very substandard… When the starter was better than the main meal. there is a problem. And the buttermilk fried chicken was chicken strips with hardly any gravy.

We enjoyed Mother’s Day 2015 at deSha’s. The interior is a bit dated but quite cozy and laid back. We absolutely loved the view of the lake and ducks swimming around. The food was nicely portioned and filled with flavor. We were a party of 6 and tried everything from the prime rib, to jambalaya, to salmon including salads and soups and were not disappointed with any of the selections. The food selection is as expected for a tavern with a slight twist.
Customer service was mediocre, but nothing to make us not want to come back. Overall good impression

We reserved a room for a birthday party and our waiter was awful. We had to constantly get his attention to get us drinks and even our food order. It was so bad, that one person went to complain, so they sent a lady back to help, but she could not take any orders. She would just point to the waiter. When it came time to cut the cake, the lady actually cut the cake with a knife in her left hand and used her right hand to put the pieces on the plate. She had icing all over her hand. It was disgusting. I tried to hand her a fork to use, but she said, oh, I washed my hands. I said I’d never seen anything like that. I wouldn’t even do that at my house. So when I pulled out my phone to videotape it, she dropped the knife and left and then came back with a glove on her hand. No apologies. She just acted ticked off. Worst service ever! I suggest NEVER having a party there!

We went there for lunch yesterday. Love that the interior of the restaurant area is so cozy, but it could use a little updating. The hostess was very nice and seated us by the window, because she thought my daughter would enjoy watching the ducks and fountain out the window. Sweet. :) Two of us ordered the Buttermilk Fried Chicken (I shared mine w/​my 5 year old) and the other member of our party ordered the tomato soup (don’t remember exactly what it was called. Everyone enjoyed their meal. The (boneless) chicken was served with green beans, «Gouda» mac and cheese, and a small side of chicken gravy. The chicken and green beans were delicious. Gravy was so-​so, but not even necessary. Mac and cheese was a little bland, but fine with salt and pepper. Service was adequate. I would return based solely on the chicken. I think this restaurant is more like 3 ½stars. It’s not amazing, but not terrible. I rounded up, because some of the low ratings seemed a little unfair.

I was very impressed when we arrived. The inside of the establishment is absolutely gorgeous, and the service staff was as good as it gets. Of course (as hoped) they had a large selection of local craft beers, so we ordered drinks and the Goetta Fries ($ 7.95). They were so absolutely incredble that I still often think about them and crave them. I would go again just to even smell the fries, that’s how good they were. I ended up getting the Buttermilk Fried Chicken and it came with gravy, green beans and gouda macaroni and cheese. So delicious! Also, the portions are much larger than expected, so a to-​go box was a must. I tell everyone about how great this place was, I will definitely be going back.

No suprise here the food quality has been stuck in a rut for some time now. The entrée selections are dated{ I ate in the tavern] A staple is always the burger or fish and chips the latter of which I ordered. It was like eating fishfingers at a chippy shop in England some place. They probably imported the used grease. I mean oil to fry with.
I personally wont eat there again there are simply some better alternatives in the area.
I wouldn’t hesitate to go there to have a cocktail. They have one of the best bartenders in the city, Wiley, and a fantastic scotch and bourbon selection

Well, I was talked into meeting a colleague here for dinner. I saw they had a haddock fish and chip dinner on their menu and was of course intrigued. After starting out with the buffalo shrimp appetizer and a house salad, my fish and chips arrived. Unfortunately, the fish and chips we just so so. The batter was a hard and flat tasting — almost like they may have been pre-​made and frozen until ordered and readied for the dunk in the deep fryer. I’ve had much better and fresher tasting fish and chips at the local VFWs on a Friday night during lent.
I really wanted to give this place more of a 2 star rating but our server was excellent. If I did happen to return to this place one more time, I would probably stick with something simple like the burger.
I really wanted to like this place but the food was really just so so… Even my colleague’s piece of grilled salmon that came with the smoky/​spicy barbecue sauce looked like it was just barbecue sauce with maybe some Cayanne pepper or something else mysteriously added to it. He scraped the sauce off the salmon and muscled his way through finishing it.
I’m sure the owners and others at this establishment put their heart and soul into it… and I hate leaving review like this, but if I were them I would seriously sit down and take a strong honest look at their menu and the way certain foods are prepared. This is a very warm and cozy establishment and I’ve heard it’s got quite a history. I think it’s just time to revamp the menu with some newer fresher tastier products.

I really like DeSha’s. This is a great location as it is close to work and we visit here often for business luncheons.
I would describe the menu as American pub food with comfort flare! They have everything from great salads to steak to fish to grilled cheese and tomato bisque (which is awesome by the way).
The restaurant is spread out so you can sit in the open bar area, the main restaurant or outside when the weather allows. Even in the dining room you can request a table by the small pond and watch the ducks.
The service here is wonderful and they take great care of you. They will make recommendations and you can always customize your order anyway you like without any problems.
We have always got great service here and our food has always been wonderful. Anytime you are in the area — give them a try!

Went her from my Grandmothers birthday. The one good part was the service was very good. Also, the bill for our large group was much lower than expected.
Down sides:
When making the reservations we asked if it would be quite as it is my grandmother’s birthday. They assured us they would put us in a quite area of the restaurant. For about 20 minutes it was just slightly louder than normal then the band started playing in the other room. Most bars I have been to don’t play music this loud. My grandmother could not enjoy conversation with anyone at all which was the point of the whole dinner.
It was one of those restaurants where being veg means eating side salads and fries. This is probably one of the reasons our bill was so low. I actually left early and just went to visit her the next day.
Not somewhere I plan on going to again.

After being told deSha’s was known for their ‘Kentucky Hot Brown,’ three out of our party of nine ordered this dish. Unfortunately for us, while deSha’s might be known for their ‘Kentucky Hot Brown’ they most certainly don’t know how to make one at this location. Additionally, when I requested steak fries with my hot brown, the waitress informed me only traditional French fries (not my favorite style) were available. So, I ordered a baked potato with… Before I could finish, the waitress said: «We don’t serve baked potatoes here.» So, I settled for a house salad. This last part I found out after-​the-​fact: This deSha’s serves the same portion size ‘Kentucky Hot Brown’ at lunch as they do for a dinner entre; with no sides included.
Suggestions:
1. As a dinner entre, increase the portion to at least fill the plate it’s served on.
2. Lose the overly salty bacon bits and replace them with two strips of real bacon.
3. For the price ($ 13.50) serve this dish with one side as a part of the meal. Even if the side is just a small serving of French fries, it would be an improvement.
By the way, all three diners who ordered the ‘Kentucky Hot Brown’ at this table were not satisfied with the dish. However, as we were never asked, we did not offer our opinions on the short comings of our dinner.
On a positive note, the other six in our party of nine enjoyed their dinners. So, with a score of 66.666%, deSha’s earned a «Gentlemen’s D» final grade for this evening.

This place is legit. On our way to the Brewers /​Reds game we wanted to eat beforehand away from the city because the traffic was bad.
We decided to go for this place despite the mediocre reviews.
It wasn’t warm enough but they have a cool gas fireplace with lounge style seating around it oustide.
Inside they have a restaurant/​dining section, a bar with only drinks and bar food, and the new «polo» bar that serves drinks and the full menu. We decided to sit there.
The polo bar area was cool, it was in a little room with high tables and a small bar with TVs and sports decorations around the walls. The area was small, but didn’t seem that way.
The beer tap menu was impressive along with the bottle selection. I went with both local IPAs that I’ve never had before — almost a no brainer when you’re from out of town. They were delicious. The happy hour allows you have to have a 16oz Yuengling for $ 3, which seems almost like theft. The craft beers were only $ 4.
On the food menu everything looked good. A lot of different/​unique American style dishes to choose from. My friend had some sort of beef sandwich on a pretzel roll. I had a chicken club style sandwich. Both were great.
If I’m ever in Cincinnati again, I’ll have this place on my list. For all you local Cincy people, check this place out.

Love, love, love deSha’s. They have come a long way from a couple of years ago. I used to not be a big fan– but things have changed a lot for the better (mainly in the way of food) and I now love coming here. They have a small bar off the entry way called the Polo Bar if you want a more intimate bar experience, there is a big bar in the back if you want to watch the game or socialize a bit, many different dining rooms and a patio for the spring/​summer– something for everyone!
The food is really great. Have not ordered anything in the past 1.5 years that I haven’t really enjoyed. Menu is varied and has something for everyone– my go-​to fave is the quesadilla (any of them are great), but really love the shrimp and grits or the prime rib sandwich if I’m there for dinner. Also a solid draft beer selection– rotating taps with seasonal craft brews.
Service is way above par at deSha’s. Whether you are at the bar or seated in a dining area, you will have a great service experience. Have had many different servers and have never been disappointed. I also hosted my company Christmas party here this year, and everything went very smoothly. Tina coordinated the event with me and Jamie was our server, everyone had a great time and I got a lot of good feedback on the event!
Overall– this is an outstanding neighborhood restaurant and bar.