The Lockview
 Akron, Ohio        Date of Visit  01/25/13       http://thelockview.com/ 

We tried to eat here once and found the place didn’t open until hours later and ended up somewhere else. We’ve been trying to plan some outings with our long lost dining companions and probably wouldn’t have made it through the snow today if it weren’t for meeting one of them. It’s pretty quiet inside where they feature a sort of raw but comfortable ambiance. Nearly everyone but us is passing their time at the bar a couple with sandwiches but most choosing between the varied beer options while the customers and the staff all seemed to be transfixed by the closed captioned dialogue from an episode of Mystery Diners. Interesting.
 

Earthy & Tasty Mushroom Cream Cheese Dip With Tortilla Chips
 

Our server was friendly and started off well but as our stay lingered on she seemed to lose focus on the most simple of things…maybe they are worried there are mystery diners at another table. We started with their Mushroom and Cream Cheese Dip and a Cup of Chili with the works. The dip is a hot cream cheese mix with sautéed mushrooms, roasted garlic and caramelized onions , served with a basket of tortilla chips. The chips are made in house and have a deep corn flavor but could really use a dose of some other seasoning to draw it out. I would have shaken salt on them but there isn’t any on the table. The dip is rich and earthy and does a great deal to elevate the chips.

The chili could have used a bit more kick for my taste but was actually very nice over all. Sharp tomato based broth with loads of carne and fresh veggies were well balanced and tasty. The cups of onion, sour cream and shredded cheese allow you to add as much of whatever you want. I would happily order it again. We also tried the homemade tomato soup which was fine but failed to be really memorable in any way.
 

Three sandwiches were to follow, the Panko Crusted Chicken, The New York Sunrise special and a Number Six. The chicken sandwich was good enough with the chicken being fried to a healthy brown crunchiness without sacrificing a juicy interior. There just wasn’t much to it past that. The arugula didn’t add much for pepper, the sun-dried tomato aioli seemed absent, actually, most of the character from the sandwich came from the Tuscan Herb Bread which essentially danced alone. With the exception of particular sandwiches the breads are made by Breadsmith of Lakewood which is really what sets The Lockview apart from other grilled cheese joints.

There were two specials on the board, a chicken salad and the NY Sunrise. The sunrise featured toasted rye with warm pastrami, a fried egg, pickled onions and mustard. Better than the chicken, it’s hard to go wrong with pastrami, mustard and an egg on rye. The pickled onions really added something significant to the sandwich easily setting it ahead of the chicken. It would have been better with a bit more pastrami and more run from the egg yolk but overall it was a nice bite for lunch.
 

Steph’s Number Six was two slices of Country Buttertop Bread filled with cheddar cheese, grilled apples and apple wood smoked bacon, plus she had them add goat cheese. Easily the best bread combination we had at lunch. A little sweet from the apple, smoke and more crunch from the bacon is all held in place by tangy clumps of goat cheese and two blanket of aged cheddar. This was just hitting the mark on multiple levels, there are some other combos I am looking forward to trying. Most sandwiches are served with goldfish and coleslaw. Goldfish are goldfish and the slaw is a mediocre pairing of cabbage and mayo based dressing. The special and the chicken sandwiches came with fries which were done well but were crying out for salt which again wasn’t available. Folks at the bar had condiments offered to them but we weren’t as fortunate but we didn’t want to tax our server as she had trouble filling two glasses at the same time, details details. The Lockview was better than expected with a few other interesting combinations to be tried.