Wine Dine and Play: Samantha’s Restaurant

Canton, Ohio

Freudy's Bar & Grille

Dined in May 2014

“Okay your confusing me here” – Said the reader of the blog.

“Why is the title to this review Samantha’s, but the review itself about Freudy’s?”

Simple answer as confusing as it may be. The Restaurant is called Samantha’s, there are three in the Canton, Ohio area, but at this particular location I ate at, attached to the Samantha’s Restaurant is Freudy’s Bar and Grill, and its owned by the same person, so if you’re still confused, then just call it Samantha’s. Either way it’s a good atmosphere with some really good food.

Scroll down to read the main review

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Star ratings chart:

5 stars	Extraordinary
4 stars	Outstanding
3 stars	Exceeded expectations
2 stars	Above average
1 star	Average
No star rating	Basic, poor, or appalling

Review basics:

Overall Star rating by Wine, Dine, & Play:	2 of 5
Quality of food:	7 of 10
Presentation:	6 of 10
Wine selections by region: *Scroll below the main review section to see the tasting notes of the wines chosen.*	4 of 10
Customer service:	7 of 10
Ambiance:	5 of 10
Corkage fee’s:	The fee was $15.00 for the bottle I brought in of Eagles Nest Shiraz
Restaurant style:	Casual
Dress code:	Casual, or Conservative attire
Reservations:	Not Required Make reservation by contacting the restaurant directly. See contact info below the review section
Walk-ins:	Accepted
Child policy:	The Restaurants reviewed on this site may have a child’s menu or cater to them; however for full enjoyment of food and wine, it is recommended for children not to be in attendance. Hire a Babysitter. See Alinea Baby Gate, god I love Alinea.
Cuisine style:	Contemporary, Lounge, Steakhouse, Seafood, American, & Vegetarian
Music styles:	Band, Karaoke
Experiences:	Lounge, Business parties, Hot spot, Great bar, Trendsetting, Tourist grabber, and a Neighborhood gem.
Gratuities:	Industry standard is 18-20% added to parties of 6 or more
	Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, Diner’s,
Parking:	Public lot
Transport options:	Bus, taxi, limousine, personal vehicle, and walking
	The restaurants reviewed on this site may have Wi-Fi, but do not require you to go online, because the excitement of the food and wine alone will keep you too entertained instead of checking your social media and emails.
Noise level:	Medium, to Loud
Smoking:	Nonsmoking restaurant
Patio:	no

Chef:

Gary Russo

Food price per person

(Excluding tax & gratuity)

Price chart:

$£€¥ - Under 50.00

$£€¥ x 2 - Under 75.00

$£€¥ x 3 - Over 100.00

$£€¥ x 4 - Over 200.00

$£€¥ x 5 - Over 400.00

Currencies chosen reflect the world’s major travelers and restaurant connoisseur's

My food bill:	Currency:	Country :	Price chart:
$ 35.00	United States Dollar (USD)		$
£ 20.83	Great Britain Pound Sterling (GBP)		£
€ 26.14	European Union (EUR)		€
$ 38.44	Canadian Dollar (CAN)		$
$ 37.85	Australian Dollar (AUS)		$
¥ 215.47	Chinese Yuan (CNY)		¥¥¥¥

Visit these sites to get up to date currency rates:

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From restaurants home page:

Inspired by the everyday family cooking that we grew up with, you’ll feel at home while savoring a great meal in our casual and relaxed dining room. Experience our inventive cuisine, attentive service, and a friendly atmosphere; come see what makes us one of the most popular restaurants in town.

Bon Appetit!

Main review:

Samantha’s was recommended to me by a friend of my Sister-in-Law. As I mentioned above for someone new to the area it can get confusing when you’re looking for this place because its listed as Samantha’s but is called Freudy’s Bar and Grill. Since this was basically a bar, I knew that the only wine selection they would have would be basic house style wines, so I brought in a bottle of Eagles Nest Shiraz from the Constantia region.

The appetizer menu was your typical bar style starter course which had calamari, crab stuffed mushrooms, and shrimp cocktail. I skipped over the appetizers and went for a half order of their signature salad before diving into the entrée. The salad selection was called the Samantha Salad, consisting of chopped romaine with tomatoes, feta, shredded parmesan, dried cranberries and sunflower seeds all tossed with a house made honey lemon vinaigrette dressing, it was really tasty. For the entrée I had the New York Strip Steak with onions and a pasta aglio style which is a sauce that originated in Napoli, consisting of lightly sautéing minced or pressed garlic in olive oil, sometimes with the addition of dried red chili flakes, and tossing with spaghetti. Finely chopped parsley can also be added as a garnish, along with grated parmesan or pecorino cheese. In the United States, we have gone a little overboard by adding white wine and lemon or butter instead of olive oil, as I have seen in a few restaurants from time to time.

Next to me at the bar I saw this couple and one of them was enjoying the French Pork chop, thick cut, off the bone, served with broccoli topped with asparagus. I liked the look of it, so I took the picture below.

For dessert I had some coffee to wash away the bottle of red wine, and the cheesecake as it was recommended as well. It did have good flavor but a little tart as well from what I was expecting. One thing for sure is that it beat the cheesecake selection at 91 Wood Fire Oven, their cheesecake is boxed, purchased from some place or another, this one was home made, which makes all the difference in the world.

This Restaurant reminds me of:

I had a really good time, enjoying friendly conversation with folks at the bar and good food. The bar was crowded and a little loud, but what bar isn’t. I would compare my experience at Freudy’s/Samantha’s to the Harvest Moon Cafe in Sonoma, California where there chef like Gary Russo here put pride in their entrée’s with creativity, and Terroir in Stellenbosch, South Africa where the chef uses the same styles and creativity in his meats while catering to diverse group of people.

Other Akron / Canton favorites:

Fleming’s Steakhouse, Akron

Visit other Canton Restaurants at OpenTable.com