Great local option in downtown Hartwell. Dimmly lit italian/greek vibe inside with a small bar tucked away on one side of the restaurant. Best pizza in town in my opinion. I always get a large Mediterranean. Greek inspired platters with pita bread are also solid options along with a wide variety of pastas and a few salads. I wouldn't come here for the subs though as you could probably find better subs and sandwiches at the brewery one street over or several other restaurants around town. Avoid their philly cheesesteak if you're craving a traditional philly, or even just expect a decent sandwich, because it's not. read more

Love their eggplant Parmesan meal! Such a great little restaurant in downtown Hartwell. I visit every time I'm in town. read more

Loved dining at Downtown Cafe! Friendly staff and their lasagna was so good! I'd definitely go back to get some more!

First time passing through from outa town. Looked it up and stopped by. Cute and cozy restaurant with great ambiance. Food was as expected. Chill laid back with a sense of old world but casual rustic bar atmosphere as well. Melinda was especially great. Genuine smile from the get go. Hope to stop by again if I travel through. read more

Absolute waste of money and time. If you like quality food don't stop here. I was here today at Thursday July 25, me and two my sisters. We walked in and waited for waitress and menu for like 10 min, it's fine we are not in a hurry. Ordered from dinner pasta that comes together with side salad and bread. We got our salads, and you can see all the lettuce are not fresh have all the yellow/brown color on it. 25 minutes later we finally got our pastas, we got two shrimp Alfredo pastas and one chicken parmesan, Shrimps are like 3stars, noodles are really bad quality, chewy and hard in same time, I don't know what they use and how it's possible but they did it ‍ oil are all over the plate. For Alfredo we got a lot of pasta, but chicken Parmesan was just a time bit of pasta with a loooot of sauce. Waitress wasn't friendly at all, dropped the salt and paper on our table spilling it all over and we didn't hear anything just "ooops" 3 pastas and 3 drinks- $50. Stupid waste of money and time. read more

One of our favorite places for pizza ! Old town charm and friendly service ! You can also get Greek or Italian dishes if you want a larger meal. You can also shop in downtown Hartwell for the unique gift. read more

Worst food ever I ordered a small salad an some lemon pepper wings the lettuce was old and wilted the tomatoes where old the chicken was not cooked it was nasty thw whole lunch was a bust ill never go back there again or the Chicago steak house its owned by the same person nasty nasty food read more

We had dinner and selected a couple of the Greek entrees. Nice cozy spot and food was pretty good!

Lunch was outstanding. Was surprised at how good the fettuccine was - I'd put it up against Olive Garden's! Husband had hamburger steak & he said it was great too. read more

Owner is always there everyday & always in happy mood! Food is amazing & I was explained some the menu items that I didn't know of lol .. now I know for sure their homemade ranch is to kill for! I could just drink it! I get extra ranch everything .. will not be a let down! :) no matter your pick read more

Only thing here worth eating is the pastas. Don't order the pizzas or any type of America food. It's not worth the price at all. Bread is always hard as a brick. Staff is NEVER friendly. Price is never the same even though our order never changes. read more

We will definitely be back! Not only was the food very good, the wait staff was very attentive and friendly. It's a plus to find something to versatile and tasty. Great job guys! read more

My husband and I go regularly. He always gets an Italian dish (calzone i think) and I always get the gyro wrap. So mouth watering. The location is in a little strip mall in Lavonia so it's not right off Hwy 17. They serve delicious pizza and we always have leftovers to bring home to eat the next day. Again I cannot emphasize enough how perfect the gyro wraps are done. You cannot find them anywhere else in Franklin County. Atmosphere is very family friendly and staff is attentive. read more

The best is the spagetti sauce. It is so sweet and just plain yummy. I like the way they do their buttered bread too. I had chicken parm. Crispy chicken breast cooked just perfect. It would have been perfect if pasta was hot. The italian salad was covered in ham, salami, pepperoni, and more. Very good. read more

Absolutely love the chicken Alfredo. The bread is the best too it's always soft buttery & warm. Customer service is good here too

Terrible attempt at Greek food. F++ rating Never would I recommend this place. Maybe the pizza would be ok,cause it's hard to screw up a pizza, but I didn't try one,only the Greek dishes. read more

The pasta primavera and chicken Alfredo are fantastic, as are the strombolis! The service is always impeccable as well.

My wife and I regulars at the Toccoa Downtown Cafe. I am 100% Italian from NYC. This place is not good...it is GREAT! The Italian menu is fantastico!...very good 'gravy'. (We Italians do not call it sauce). Actually, I like the Greek Gyro platter. Just as good as any place in Astoria, Queens. Hey TOCCOA, don't pass this place up! We have a jewel here!!!!! read more

Wouldn't tell you not to eat food from Downtown Café. However I would suggest that you choose the option of placing a pick-up order (verifying that it's ready prior to making the trip), rather than opting for an in-restaurant dining experience. My visit was a mixed bag. Food was fine, portion size and taste consistent with what one might expect with an independently owned neighborhood grill. I ordered their "best evening seller," a gyro platter with greek salad and fries. I made no substitutions. It was actually pretty good food. If you only want the good news, please stop reading now. From the time I placed my order till nearly an hour later, the server never once came to my table again. For nearly 60 full minutes she either ignored or forgot about me. When she did finally come over, she said "hey, it will be a couple more minutes, everyone is working tonight but well...." then she just stopped in mid-sentence and walked off like she'd forgotten I was there. Around 15 minutes later, my food finally came out, via her. This was an hour and 15 minutes after my order. The server arrived at my table, cell phone to her ear and I hear her say "Hold on, baby, okay?" She turns to me. Server: "You want some ketchup with those fries?" Me: "Yes, please." Server: (speaking into cell phone now) "Hey, I'm back honey...." She walks away, without another word to me. Twenty minutes later I finish my meal (without any ketchup) and it was another twenty minutes before the server came back. Server: "Want your check?" Me: "Yes..." Server: "Hey, let me get it for you. Mind if someone else checks you out tonight, my boyfriend is outside and I need to talk to him." Summary: Downtown Cafe's food is alright -- thus 2 stars on that basis alone -- but darned if I'd ever go in their door again. There were 3 parties dining that night (8 total customers) and 3 servers, counting a bored bartender to take care of 3 parties. Not once did any of the other 2 servers check on me, despite seeing I'd been waiting for my food an eternity. p.s. When I finally left, after paying my check I got outside and 2 of the 3 servers were outside taking a smoke break. Draw your own conclusions about whether you want to go there read more

I was told that my son should try the 10 inch pizza, because the kids pizza was on a pita. He did try it, and liked it much better. The crust is yeasty and good. I tried the cannaloni (sp?) and it was wonderful. Of course the garlic bread dipped in marinara beats just about anything. Service was once again spot on. read more

I love the Zorba Chicken sub with Greek fries! YUM! The bread is so soft and it's always warm and toasty. The Greek fries are GREAT! I'm not a huge french fry fan but I do love these! read more

Happy to have a good alternative for our weekends at the lake! Zorba chicken was a tasty treat with a unique Greek flavor. Chicken primavera with marinara (instead of Alfredo sauce) was delicious. The wine list looked good but we refrained this time... We will be back! read more

Food was ok, our server acted as if she wanted to be anywhere but there!!! Other people gave much better service and attitude than her so I hate to judge the whole place on 1 employee. I would eat there again. read more

Though Hartwell is a small town and we don't have many choices, Downtown café is my absolute favorite. The staff is always accommodating and friendly. The salads are amazing. I always bring my out-of-town guests to this restaurant because there's something for everyone . Try my favorite.. "Greek Zorba salad" you will love it! read more

Went to Downtown Care for dinner and My chicken alfredo tasted spoiled tonight, spoke to the owner and he says he sells thousands and no one has an issue and just not to come back. I will not ever be back and will definitely not recommend to people on the daily like I did previously. Y'all enjoy Chicago and Downtown Cafe, but I hope you never have an issue with food tasting literally SPOILED. read more

Food was so so. Service was very cold and dry. Waitress seemed and smelled intoxicated. Arguing and harsh words between the waitresses . Watched blonde waitress go behind bar and drink from the Jager machine multiple times. Will not return and will tell others about the staff. read more

We went to the Downtown Cafe for dinner on Saturday night. The food was delicious and everyone there was so friendly, especially our waitress. Went back Tuesday night and ordered 5 pizzas to go. One was better than the next. This was our favorite restaurant in Hartwell while on vacation. It is such a pleasure to go somewhere to eat where everyone working there is friendly and ready to go out of the way to make sure you have a pleasant experience. Thank you all. I'm sure we'll be back. read more

Great place to enjoy reasonably priced Greek and Italian food. Service is always dependable with friendly, personable servers. We are frequent diners here- highly recommend the Downtown Cafe. read more

When I try a new place that looks to be established for a while, there is usually something on the menu that the server will tell you is popular. Since Italian and Greek restaurants usually have family recipes handed down, I asked our server and she replied that the ranch dressing was the only thing homemade on the menu. Ha, okay, let me try again after she brings our drinks. While she is gone, I noticed the menu says that the marinara is homemade and show it to her, and she says yes, it is. She then redeems by telling us what dishes are popular. I go with lasagna, hubby the chicken carbonara and my daughter the manicotti. Everything was delicious. Garlic bread, salad and a decent wine list. Band playing in another room. Great old exposed brick with lots of atmosphere. We will be regulars! read more

First let me say that out waitress Elizabeth was awesome and very helpful. The cook Kevin was very helpful too in trying to create a great pizza. These two indivuals are the reason we stayed and would consider going back. Down the downfall of this restraunt.....there is a waitress Melissa would was rude, ugly and disrespectful. She walked around with her head held high and snapping gum throughout the restraunt while customers were trying to enjoy their dinner. Melissa also talked loudly about a Co worker in a ugly way, she was complaining and being rude. She also said that the people before her shift should have ALL her work prepped and ready to go NO matter what....cause she should not have to do anything. When you have an issue with a Co worker Melissa take it to the back where paying customers are NOT subjected to your ugly attitude. If it wasn't for us paying customers you would NOT have a JOB!! read more