It is an absolutely beautiful day here in Cleveland. Blue skies, 75 degrees, gentle breeze. Everything you could want for an impromptu outing. So we decided to go to "Merwin's Wharf" on the bend of the river downtown. We have been there before, quite a while ago. The facility and the view are wonderful. I seemed to remember the food was "Okay". Well today was different. We arrived, were seated on the patio with a great view of the river. A very nice young lady by the name of Taylor greeted us with a big smile and a trainee in tow. She took our beverage order and gave us time to check the menu. When she arrived with our drinks and took our food order my wife decided on a burger with fries. I landed on my favorite, "Lake Erie Perch" with house made chips. Our food arrived quickly and hot. I must say, there's not a lot you can do to mess up a burger and the one my wife received was perfect. My perch sandwich was excellent. Great perch, fresh toppings, nice soft bun. With chips still warm from the frier. We finished with an excellent cup of coffee that Taylor promised to brew fresh for us. So, it was a great experience down at Merwin's Wharf. We had fun, ate well, and enjoyed the view. It's gonna be a long summer. You should definitely go to Merwin's on the river. read more

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The service was wonderfully attentive. The ambiance was excellent as we watched the oar ships headed to Lake Erie. The food was so-so. I really enjoy spicy food, especially Asian food like noodle dishes. Merwin's SPICY DAN DAN NOODLES was so spicy that I couldn't eat more than half the order. I had asked our server about the degree of heat and she said "medium". Maybe medium heat for a fire eater. The salmon that I ordered as a "protein" selection was done perfectly but on the very small size for an additional $8. The side order of onion rings was tasty but barely warm. This is a nice place that needs to up their food game. read more

This is such a nice place to enjoy really great casual food in an atmosphere of urban Cleveland. Try the Vegetarian Gyozas and Panko Onion Rings to see what I mean. The staff is friendly and efficient. Lots of parking available and history galore. read more

Merwin's Wharf - New American Near Me - Cleveland, Ohio

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Horrible service. After an extremely long, wait to be seated, we waited for another very long wait and no one ever came to take our order. No idea of the foods good or bad we just left. read more

Came here for dinner with a work group as we are from out-of-town. So glad we picked Merwin's Wharf for dinner. We were able to sit outside and catch the sunset plus we got a view of the boats as they made their way in and out of the Cuyahoga River to Lake Erie. I opted for the walleye dinner. The fish was very good! I love crispy food and this dish did not disappoint! This is definitely on my list to revisit! read more

Merwin's Wharf - New American Near Me - Cleveland, Ohio

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I made awkwardly long eye contact multiple times with the manager and several servers before I finally waited over 15 minutes and had to go to the bar to ask to order. The restaurant is ice cold inside. Everyone is wearing their winter hats and jackets still. My campfire mule was delicious. Marshmallows toasted atop a sweet boozy drink! They have basically glorified bar food here- Handheld sandwiches with long forms of those as entrees, some salad and the basics- onion rings, sweet potato fries, empanadas, taco apps, a random assortment of fried stuff basically. The short rib sandwich left off the horseradish cream entirely so it was quite a dry shredded beef sandwich on sourdough toast. The sweet potato fries weren't bad at all but nothing to write home about. The onion rings were meh. Overall kinda crappy food with bad ambiance in a super dark restaurant at 5pm. Pass! read more

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Stopped at Merwin's Wharf on a day off that we took to go see the Murakami Exhibit at the Cleveland Art Museum! Merwin's is minutes from downtown and offers outdoor, riverside seating!! I had a flight of beers featuring a few new offerings from the ever popular Fathead's brewery and a bacon cheeseburger to go with them! They were quite busy for a random Tuesday at 1:00pm, but they were staffed up and our service was excellent!! Check it out!! read more

Merwin's Wharf - Bacon cheeseburger, flight of beers, view of the cuyahoga river in the background - New American Near Me - Cleveland, Ohio

My family went here on a Wednesday for lunch. We had a great experience to say the least! It was a beautiful day so we asked to sit outside when our server asked preference. The outside patio area was gorgeous and the patio umbrellas were perfect while we were eating! The view was great too. We all split the Crab Cakes and Fish & Chips as our meal. This was a fantastic meal and the crab cakes are to die for!!! I highly recommend taking a visit on a nice day & sit outside for a great lunch/dinner! read more

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Sat outside on waterfront. Service was decent. Prices reasonable. Ordered burger & fish sandwich. Burger was delicious w the pickles & onion jam. read more

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Location, location, location. But, that can only go so far. The service was very good. The hummus plate was good, especially the fresh veggies. The Shrimp and Grits were disappointing, with the grits sitting under a heat lamp too long and lumped together. Shrimp was good. read more

Love being on the water, we ate outside, friendly service, excellent food , would prefer more choices but overall for the price and location, & friendly staff I will be a return guest read more

Clean , great views , good food , would like more variety though . Wait staff very nice & accommodating . It's just fun to be !

Came with family last Friday afternoon beautiful sunny day for Guardians season opener. Had a great seat right in the patio, wonderful service & good food. Pretzel still amazing. The jalapeño hot dog was terrific read more

Love this place. Beautiful setting on the chairs river. The cocktails were so tasty. We had wonderful mussels, crab cakes and fish and chips( the fish was walleye). The service was perfect. Very welcoming of dogs on the patio. read more

Food was excellent ,service was great,very busy.The let me substitute the walleye and I got ocean perch.It was just as good read more

Merwin's Wharf - Walking in - New American Near Me - Cleveland, Ohio

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Beautifully decorated for Christmas - inside and out! The hostess, our server, and the bartender were all welcoming and willing and happy to answer questions. They have igloos set up outside by the water. They need to be reserved in advance- would love to check them out next time I'm in town. I have been to Merwin's Wharf before and thought the food was just ok. This time around- all of us loved everything we ordered! We started with the chorizo pierogies. Delicious! The sauce that came on them was perfect. We ordered the Cobb salad, falafel pita, and the tofu bahn mi. All so good. T There are great drink specials too! We will definitely be back. read more

Very nice atmosphere. The staff is friendly and they work quickly to get you your food/drinks. My salad and drink tasted good. The best part was the huge pretzel. read more

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I had a cousins' get-together in an igloo, which none of us had experienced before. The food was delicious, and the service was excellent. It was really fun being in the igloo, and I would definitely recommend it. The fee is only $25, and they add a 20% tip. I decided to add a little extra to the tip because our server deserved it. read more

Merwin's Igloos. Winter escape magic. Bring all your friends and enjoy food and drinks along the River Cozy comfy winter escape with furniture, fireplace, heat and fabulous service. I got the Turkey wrap. A little smoky with fresh ingredients and served with a side of BBQ chips. Crab Cake appetizer was terrific. Light and flaky seasoned like a day at the beach. Make sure you get the dessert tray with an assortment of cheesecakes, sweet pretzel bites with caramel, chocolate and cream cheese dips. A truly special experience. Great event for out of town guests, special occasion or just to pamper yourself during the long dark months. read more

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Merwin's Wharf is the perfect mixture of good food, good drinks, and good at atmosphere. The waitress was phenomenal and the service was great. read more

We dined outdoors at Merwin's Wharf last evening in gorgeous summer weather. The food was wonderful, and thank you to the Wharf for offering multiple vegan options. Our server, Ryan, was friendly and accommodating; when several of us asked for more ice for our beverages (the warm temps were melting the ice in our glasses rapidly), he surprised us by bringing a carafe full of fresh ice. The setting on the Cuyahoga was lively and resort-like, with many boats filled with revelers and tourists passing by. The setting will become even more beautiful once the under-construction Irishtown Bend park is completed across the river. This was a meal to remember. Thank you, Metroparks, for this wonderful dining venue. (Oh, and there's plenty of free, onsite parking!) read more

We had dinner there two Fridays ago, our waitress was very nice. It was unfortunate they were out of walleye so early in the evening, I settled for the perch hoagie, it really missed on flavor and freshness. I was surprised a $16.00 sandwich only came with kettle chips, so I asked for an order of onion rings, our waitress apologized again because like the walleye, they were out of them. If it weren't for the ambience and the kind waitress my husband and I would have left. read more

Been here once before and had a nice time. Wanted to celebrate a graduation here and called to get an idea of what their wait time was on a Saturday early afternoon for the date. The manager, who introduced himself as Dave, was EXTREMELY rude, disrespectful, and short with me when I was nothing but polite to him and the hostess I had spoken to prior. I had initially inquired about a reservation, which I learned they do not do, and I completely understood as policy is policy (I work in the restaurant industry myself so I understand). He was so rude, unhelpful, did not provide any information and went so far as to hang up on me. Would never EVER give this place any of my business again and strongly recommend against it for anyone else considering coming here. If management is that rude completely unprovoked in the customer service industry to customers offering to bring in a significantly large party for a celebration (reservation or not), that is not an establishment I want to support. Would give zero stars if I could. read more

The Shrimp and Grits (bacon pieces on the side, per my request) was one of the best-tasting dishes I have ever had! Highly recommen. The atmosphere was great. We got to see a barge go by as we sat outside. Great service and easy parking. too. read more

Merwin's Wharf - Barge going by Merlin's Wharf. - New American Near Me - Cleveland, Ohio

This is an incredible spot to sit and watch the views from the water on a nice day. My friends were barhopping and decided to come here to end off the afternoon. It was a little bit challenging to find seating, so we ended up sitting at the bar, but that was totally fine with us. I would definitely recommend placing a reservation if you really want outdoor seating though. We were also only a party of three, so if you are going with more people, it would definitely be more challenging to accommodate. The drinks were really delicious. We had the strawberry margarita as well as the Merwin's Sunset, and honestly they both tasted like juice. We ordered one of the big pretzels and the buffalo bites to share, and while they were yummy, I don't think I'll be running back to try them anytime soon. I personally enjoyed the cheese dip with the pretzel, but found the other two underwhelming. The buffalo bites or quite good, though I do feel like they could've been crispier. Given that we were at the bar, it was a little bit more challenging to get service. However, the bartender was very friendly. He had a lot of customers to take care of, so understandably the service was a bit slow. He was very fast with getting us the drinks, but it took us a while to get the food. I would come back to enjoy a summer on the patio, but would definitely make reservations before hand. read more

Merwin's Wharf - New American Near Me - Cleveland, Ohio

Food was fantastic, service was great. Patio was nice, we had great weather and sitting by the river was nice.

A friend of mine and I went here one night before a Mike doughty concert that was actually in the other side of the city. I had been wanting to know where this place was actually located and to try their food. I would like to venture back since it's summer, and have some more walleye or yellow perch, and this place is part of the metro parks. Lots of out door seating and it's very clean. We sat at the bar were taken care of quite well, but it was early spring, and there was only one other table. The food was good, and they have wine, so I bought a bottle. read more

Lots of restaurants have suffered a decline in service and menu since covid. I am posting a 1 star in the hopes that something gets done. This is a top-down problem. Managers aren't doing their jobs and it shows. Servers are not properly trained on seeing the whole dining room and knowing that *your* 3 tables' EXPERIENCE of the meal comes from the staff being able to zoom in on details AND zoom out for big picture at the same time. The WHOLE room needs to be working for every table. Last time we went to Merwin's: server was a super nice guy, but after waiting over an hour for a table we did not want to hear "I'll go get your waters now." Servers should KNOW that tables get water. Hosts too. If you know they have been waiting, let them sit down to a table that is READY, and take their DRINK/APP order immediately. Food runners should be FAST. Bartenders should be FAST. Menu prices at Merwin's have gone up and SELECTION has gone down. They used to say that running a restaurant right is like having a license to steal. Sadly, it feels like the license is gone and I'm just being robbed of a good time. I will try one more time, and if I notice a change, I'll fix this review. read more

Here is why I am giving the CLEVELAND METROPARKS MERWIN WHARF - A "3". What a gem of a location it is. I frequent the location monthly- I know the staff and all of the managers. Today, I came down with my girl friend after work. I come with family and friends - for every kind of event and every day quick bite. Today, it was cool out, especially off the river. However, the view did not disappoint! Average at best- Is the food anything special- my goodness, NO! Just standard comfort food and a quick bite. In fact, I would say, the food was better a few years ago. Even post pandemic, it was better. I do not come for the food and expecting amazing. Below average- Here is what is different. People are different- you cannot find help and people willing to work or people willing to be patient. With this said, I have been down here several times in the last few months. I had to wait a long time to be seated and in fact, just a few weeks ago, I had to seat myself. There is a definite staffing issue at the Wharf. Hosts not at the stand. Limited servers- in fact, a few are completely new and just cannot juggle in this pace. If you come down, please expect long wait times. Expect food to take a little longer. Expect that it that it is not the same. It is plain and simple - not the same. On a recent visit, several cars were broken into while I was here. Just have an awareness. The parking lot is dark at night- just be safe. Better part- I watched as the manager rushed around tonight. He was juggling everything and still managed to stop over to check on us and make sure we had our drinks. He was very courteous, chatted with us- even smiled and frankly, it is very hard when you are very busy! I have worked with him on larger events- always the same. About the guests and experience! Best part- The Metroparks' Wharf view- just perfect, even on a cool April 30 evening. I am ready for Cleveland's summer and really appreciate that we have an incredible space like the Metroparks. It is a great space in the summer and even during the holidays. It is a gem... just needs a little tweaking! Cleveland Metroparks- if you read this... it is a "3." Room for improvement... and this becomes the best kept secret! read more

We stopped here after going on a cruise of Lake Erie. One of the better choices we made on our road trip. I waiter was phenomenal and very friendly. The place is located right on the banks of Lake Erie with outdoor seating available. My wife and I started with a pretzel that is one and a half pounds on the menu comes with three dipping sauces, mustard, queso, and buffalo sauce. This was very good. My wife had the crabcake which she thought was great with the side salad paired with it. She thought the Caprese salad was one of the better options we've had on this road trip. We've been on the fish and chips pretty good good. I recommend anybody go here. Service is great and food is excellent. read more

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Nice restraunt, went in on a busy Saturday evening and was seated quite quickly for the amount of people in the restraunt. Food came out rather quickly and was pretty good for a packed restraunt on a Saturday. Our waitress was very sweet and had no trouble delivering refills and being very diligent. Nice music and nice environment. Gorgeous spot right on the river Would recommend stopping and checking this place out read more

Went here for the first time this week. Beautiful views, very good food from the Cleveland Metropark. Would definitely go back. 1.5 lb pretzel, peppers, burger and turkey wrap were all great. read more

Ordered an Old Fashioned paired with Buffalo Cauliflower to begin. Melts in your mouth and even though i'm not a fan of blu cheese, the combination felt right. Followed up with Shrimp tacos which were amazing. Shrimp was crispy, the tortilla was nice and warm. NOW THE REAL STAR OF THE SHOW WAS THE FISH AND CHIPS!!! Fish is the localy caught Walleye. Flavorful and crispy throughout, the slaw was spicy but freshing and the tartar sauce paired well with the fish. not sure if its homemade. Service is fast and attentive, ambiance is welcoming with a lake view accompanied by rowing teams. read more

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Food was nothing special today especially when you consider my walleye sandwich with chips had a much smaller than usual filet that was hidden under a huge bun. Way overpriced at $15.00 considering the walleye meal comes with a massive fillet with fries and slaw for $7.00 more. Service was okay and the place is always pleasantly active with great scenery.the only redeeming aspect was the happy hour prices of the beer and pretzel. Pictures below of my fish sandwich and other ones I took off the website. read more

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The view of the water was nice, but the food was not so great. We got the burger and upgraded from chips to fries. That was a mistake. The fries were the lowest grade money can buy. I picked at about half before giving up. The burger lacked any taste. I only ate half of my meal when I decided to stop. The real kicker was they supplied me with one small cup of ketchup. That's it. One. We won't be coming back. read more

Merwin's Wharf - This is the burger and fries. Notice the small plastic cup of ketchup. - New American Near Me - Cleveland, Ohio

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Beautiful place to toss back a beer or two along the Cuyahoga River. Dog friendly with outdoor seating for watching the boats go up and down the river. Haven't tried the food, but everyone around me seemed to be enjoying their meals. Wait staff is attentive and friendly. If you visit Cleveland, this place is a must visit in the Flats. read more

Food was okai , I expected more . outdoor seating was nice with nice music. service was quick and nice too. read more

This was the best seafood dinner I've had in a while. Everything was delicious. Great atmosphere no

The customer service was rude and discourteous. The food was average but the drinks were decent. I didn't find the service anything to recommend. The ambiance was okay. Not the best experience, not the worst. read more

Everything great - great food great setting great service (Louise) but one exception - hard rock choice of music competed with the construction sounds on the river, which was a bit too much to bear on the patio. read more