Ye Olde Trail Tavern

Stopped at this restaurant on my recent ride from Xenia to yellow springs on the Little Miami scenic bike trail. First, yellow springs is an eclectic town. It has Antioch college which has a long history. The town is one little craft /​artisan shop beside the next, it’s quite the tourist place. The restaurant incorporates an old stage coach cabin that served as a way station for the passengers traveling between Columbus and Cincinnati/​Dayton. It is all wood inside and gives that old finished hard wood warm comfortable feeling. The bar was nice but I opted to sit in the way station area. I ordered the onion rings which were unusually good and not too greasy. The waitress let me know that the 3 varieties of toasted cheese were the specialty so naturally I opted for one The sandwich was wonderful and I could have eaten another. It was a nice place to bring the kids and I would definitely stop again. I left to cross the street for a cookie for dessert. Good visit

If you’re looking for bar/​pub food in yellow Spring, then this is your place. We had the fish sandwich with fries. The fries were delicious as they were almost corkscrew-​like, but meaty and juicy. The inside is tight, but their patio looks like a great place to sit and have a meal.

Real quaint old tavern. Originated in 1874! I had a cup of their Gumbo-​laya, and was impressed! My daughter had the Sidewinder brisket sandwich. It was very tasty! My wife had the Pesto grilled cheese and loved it.

Like it here, wish there was ore for me to eat. The staff is good at making suggestions. The blackbean burger has egg, the few vegan items I could get here were decent, wish they had more. Nice selection of beers.

Just saw a commercial for this place.
I went with some friends a few years ago to have a couple drinks at the bar. My wife had a coffee with her that we got from the shop down the street. The owner told us we couldn’t bring it in because he serves coffee. We left and have never been back.
I hope the commercial helps.

My ongoing tour of all of the oldest bars and restaurants in every state continues. I’m such a fanboy of old places, it pains me to give a low rating.
The building is pretty cool, and the décor is pretty standard. It is, of course, located in the hippie central of Yellow Springs Ohio. I’m not opposed to hipsters per se – my own pretentious might even qualify me as one – but just because a place is run by hipsters/​hippies doesn’t mean that food can be subpar or the service snarky.
First of all, I went here on a Thursday and despite having a listed closing time of 10PM, it was closed at 9:15. Fair enough, but then I went back a few days later, and while the bar was very busy, they were utterly uninterested in our custom. They would let us site at the bar despite an empty seat (one of us would have presumably stood to drink). Not to be dissuaded, I went back an third time and had an unremarkable burger that could have been a frozen patty from Walmart.
I’d give it one star but for history and a pretty good selection of craft brews.

I stopped in at the Ye Old Trail Tavern for lunch on a day trip to Yellow Springs. When I went, they were out of a lot of things. At least, I heard a list of them up front, as opposed to trying to order something and being told they were out. I ended up with a cheeseburger platter. I was asked if I wanted the cole slaw with that because they were nearly out of cabbage. I did, and it’s a good thing because that cole slaw was delicious. The rest of the food was solid pub fare. Very good for the price, and with a beer, it was a pretty good lunch. The atmosphere is the tavern is great, the service was good, and the bathrooms were clean. You can’t ask for much more than that.

I had never been to Yellow Springs! This place was such a treat! Great sandwich menu and delious chips! What I liked most was the tavern itself, it’s loaded with character!

Ye Olde Trail is one of my favorite places in Yellow Springs. I’ve been there several times and taken my husband and my parents there as well.
The atmosphere alone is worth the trip. The main room with the fire place and long table reminds you of the history and possible hauntings of the location. The glass atrium offers more spacious seating and a summery view even when its cold outside. The outdoor seating on the left of the building offers seating for drinks only. The outdoor seating to the right of the building offers seating for a great outdoor dining experience. There is also a juke box for those quiet afternoon lunches full of great music.
Also, if you go on a slower weekday afternoon and the waitresses have a bit of time to chat, ask them about the ghosts!!!
As I’ve seen in some reviews, the main menu is not the most spectacular food you’ll ever have. It’s pub food and its good pub food. My favorite is the Tavern Sidewinder. It’s their brisket sandwich and it is amazing! Hubby often has trouble deciding between the fried bologna and the fish sandwich. My parents shared a pizza once and were thrilled with it.
However, by far our best trip was when we went for the special St. Patrick’s Day menu. They had beer cheese soup, «blarney stones», and a special pizza too.
Go for the environment, but stay for the specials!
Oh, and as far as my dairy problem, what you see if what you get. If I don’t order cheese, I don’t have a problem. Cheeseless sandwiches are fine with me!

The food here was good, it was standard bar/​pub food, which is what we expected. Our server, Todd, was great and very friendly. However, the beginning of our experience here ruined our moods and was unacceptable. The host, long haired with glasses, was frazzled, unorganized, and rude. We asked for a table for 4 for drinks, and then added that we may order food. He then replied «it would be nice to get ONE answer», snapped at us, and then just walked away! He returned and continued to be rude, to not only us, but everyone who was putting their names down for a table. I dine out a lot — this may be the rudest restaurant encounter I have experienced.

Great food, great patio, great beer! What more do you want? Order the cheeseburger and try a new beer. They do not have liquor here, so move along if you’re looking for a mixed drink.

it was good… enough.

This place gets an extra star because it’s THE OLDEST TAVERN IN OHIO! Yeah, how cool is that? The inside is worth checking out, because you wouldn’t be surprised to learn it’s the oldest tavern in the state by looking at it. Lots of exposed wood beams, a giant hearth, and small doorways. Apparently, it’s haunted. There is also a patio, but it’s for drinks only.
Aside from the history, the restaurant itself if just okay. While the seating of tiny benches and tables is cool because they look like they’ve been there since 1847, they aren’t very accommodating, and there is no way that this place is handicap accessible. We ordered pizzas, and one of the two came out with incorrect toppings. The woman who brought the pizza seemed completely indifferent to the fact that it was wrong, and after some awkward silence, the server offered to make a new/​correct pizza to take home. We didn’t want to have to wait another 30 – 45 minutes for them to make it right then. So, that wasn’t handled very professionally, and they didn’t seem too excited to make things right. I did enjoy the pizza though, as they had a really good thin crust and a tangy sauce. I also saw several burgers go by that others had ordered, and they looked ENORMOUS. They have also recently started carrying Ohio drafts, so that’s a plus.
Worth checking out for the history, but the food and service isn’t anything special.

I came in with the family the night after Xmas. We had a large group and sat in the «dining room». I must say the ambiance was amazing! The room had a roaring fireplace and Xmas decorations festively strung about. It felt like a page out of The Christmas Carol and I loved it. The food was decent bar food with nothing extraordinary. They had a good seasonal beer list and it seems that is what they are primarily known for. Still, I would recommend this place (the oldest tavern in OH).

Great place to come with the family. We just happened upon this place, and had a great time. The service was incredible, and the ambiance was from another era. Built in 1847, it is the 2^nd oldest tavern in Ohio. We sat at long benches and there was food to please 4 adults, an 8 year old and a 2 year old. Very cool experience.

Dining with the past. This place is haunted as all get out. Awesome. Get a bite and do some ghost hunting.
Good food, not fussy. Good for those of us that aren’t vegans, and like meat and grease. Not it’s not fine dining, so who ever said go to winds was off their gourd. You can of course go there, but it will cost you.

When visiting Yellow Springs, Ye Old Tavern is a must stop. They have tasty fried pickles and great service.
Weekday lunch is usually much was crowded during the weekends but the food is just as good.
If you can stop in during the warmer months to eat out on the patio.
They also have a bar if you’d just like to stop in for a beer.
Either way make sure to visit the oldest tavern around!

Pros: Awesome historic atmosphere, fried cheese balls were delicious, beautiful patio dining on the side and rear of building, attentive waitstaff, caramel cream soda was great!
Cons: My meal was brought to the table incorrect and my friend’s was too. She scraped off all the undesired toppings and made it work, I sent mine back and waited 10 minutes for a replacement while the rest of the table enjoyed their meals. No offer was made to compensate us beyond a sincere apology. Also, my daughter’s pizza was not tasty at all. So that was a 75% fail rate on the entrees…
Summary: Come relax on the patio with drinks and appetizers, but the entrees are forgettable. A lot of untapped potential re: improving the menu!

Billed as the 2^nd oldest restaurant in Ohio, it fit the bill for what we wanted in a dining establishment after hiking at John Bryan State Park. We wanted comfort food — nothing fancy, nothing too froo-​froo, definitely nothing all vegetarian. No, we wanted something hearty that would stick to the ribs.
This worked just fine. A nice juicy bacon cheeseburger with mushrooms, tomato, and lettuce, tasty fries and a litle bitty (ketchup cup size) coleslaw. I would have liked more slaw and less fries, personally. And a better choice of cheese for my burger — maybe some cheddar instead of American cheese would have been a nice touch.
Anyway, it filled me up and left me satisfied.
P. S. My friend was a teeny bit unhappy that they wouldn’t allow him to order his burger medium rare; they have a rule that it must be at least medium. I did notice he ate every bite; however.

This tavern/​pub has alot of character. You walk in and you feel like you are in a dark old basement. Definately what I love in a bar! Very cozy and small. We ordered a couple of beers and just your basic deli turkey sandwich.
Whenever we are in the Yellow Springs area, this will be a go to bar.
Service is fast and staff is friendly.