This is the best resteraunt there is! The food is excellent, the staff is superb, and the ambiance couldn't be better. Always get the pork (when offered) and always get the ice cream for desert. read more

good food and drink, interesting selections, healthy choices small servings though and pricey read more

This place is always great! We have visited the patio when bike riding, and for brunch with our children and grandchild. The food is always different ( and frequently with a story) and excellent. Servers are friendly but not the best. We like the food adventure. read more

After all the hype and reviews. My wife and I thought we were going to have the greatest meal ever on our first visit. It was probably the worst meal we have ever had. My wife ordered the soft shell crab and barely found two bites of crab. I had the walleye (it didn't even taste like walleye, not sure what it was) and was highly disappointed. If there was salad dressing on our salads, we sure didn't taste any. I don't mind spending a few bucks to have a meal that you say " Oh my God, this is delicious" We found nothing that was to die for. We won't be back. read more

I have just returned from a girls' day out! We started in Springfield and toured the Frank Lloyd Wright Wescott House! Then we were off for Yellow Springs and The Winds Cafe! Our lunch was absolutely delightful ... service was excellent ... wine selection intriguing ... a perfect way to spend some quality time together! Would highly recommend! read more

Usually I am not fussy about service, but I was SO disappointed and angry at the service we received at this place so I feel that I must comment on that. We had a reservation for 2 at 7 o'clock on Saturday. We were there right at 7 pm, and there was a couple waiting in front of us but no one was there to greet us. While we were waiting (no one had waited on us), other people are coming in, and a line was starting to form. Soon we realized that the man who was supposed to seat us was actually bussing tables in the back. People who came after us are going straight to him to catch his attention. Apparently this is the only way to be "checked in" here. Finally we figured that we had to do that to get a table, even though we had called in to make a reservation. All this time, other servers are walking right past us, but no one pays any attention to say "someone will be with you shortly" or any of that. We ended up waiting almost 20 minutes to be seated, but there was NO acknowledgment of the long wait. This is simply unconscionable. So our dinner started on a very bad note, and I was ready for poor service throughout the dinner, but our server was actually not bad. The food was OK but not great. We both ordered "duck you can eat with a spoon," but this was one of the most flagrantly misrepresented dishes I have ever eaten. I was expecting something like a cassoulet, but it was actually a duck leg on a bone. I love any meat on a bone, but come on, you cannot eat THAT with just a spoon! This duck was tasty but certainly not falling off the bone. The accompaniment was a white bean stew, which was not bad but too one-dimentional. I would have liked maybe some fresh herb as a garnish or something to provide a vareity fo texture and flavor. In sum, I was quite diappointed at this place. There is clearly a management issue. I see that a lot of people like this place, and there are not many high-end restaurants in Yellow Springs, so I get the impression that the owners can fill this place without trying very hard to offer decent service. But they need to better train the greeter or just get someone else to do the job. I was really offended by the service we received by the greeter. read more

Really great food, I had the organic sandwich which was the best veggie sandwich I ever tasted. The bread basket was also very good. I wanted everything on the menu. I will return soon. read more

We were apprehensive about Winds Cafe but were pleasantly surprised. The place was simple and classic with upbeat staff and a good menu. The food was wonderful. read more

Haven't been to Yellow Springs in many years and of course had to return to the Winds. Bison burger was excellent and so was the pumpkin lasagna. Yellow Springs is still delightfully quirky. read more

Zero stars. I made a reservation for 8:00. When we arrived they said that it was for 8:15. We kindly said we would come back at 8:15 thinking that it was a misunderstanding. When i arrived at 8:15 i was completely ignored for 15 minutes and had to track down the host to ask what was going on. I was met with disrespect and defensiveness. I asked for a manager and unfortunately the asshole i was speaking to WAS the manager. Horrible. I never yelp. But i had to with this situation. I will never go there again. read more

I'll never step foot in there again. It was Dayton Restaurant Week. I anticipated a delay but the service was horrendous. You can't blame the crowd...we sat there and watched other tables being seated, served, and sent off in the time we were waiting for our main course to be served. We complained to management only to have our waters filled (oh yeah, she spilled it all over me and didn't even know it). Guess complaining brings the wrong results! The waiter, Howard, appearing if he was permanently stoned, would bring a decanter of wine and forget the glasses. 10 minutes later a glass would appear. We begged the busboy to get us more bread. It was as if 8 of us were invisible. If you didn't order off the set menu the food was not up to par. The swordfish was cold, dry, and without any of the described accoutrement. At 10:30pm another waitress filled our water glasses. Gee, that was helpful. Never, ever again. It took us 3 hours to get out of that place. read more

Sadly, still not as good as it used to be. The currently featured hazel nut encrusted chicken was bland. The crust was not crispy and was too chunky and it all fell off. Really poorly executed. read more

Another one of those, "I've lived in the Dayton area for over a decade, and I just now found this place?!?" experiences. I had the duck breast, and I second another reviewer's (Kevin C.) comments. It was a magnificent piece of meat, made even better by the potent kick of the chipotles in the tomatillo sauce that accompanied it. The mashed sweet potatoes were also magnificent -- I didn't really taste the lime, but the bacon came through (and they picked up some of the heat from the duck's sauce as well, which worked.) My wife had the grilled pork chop, which had been brined first, so it was very moist and tender. It comes with a rhubarb-based sauce, which she found complemented the chop quite well, and carrot-thyme mashed potatoes, which weren't as exciting as my mashed sweet potatoes, but very good nevertheless. We also had a bottle of Pinot Noir from Sineann Winery (custom-labeled with the Winds Cafe logo) that was a perfect complement to both entrees. (Indeed, we liked the wine so much we went next door to the Winds Wine Cellar store, and bought another bottle for later!) Our waiter (James) was friendly, personable, and also quite good at doing his job. (Too often it seems you get one or the other, but not both!) All in all, a fine dining experience, and definitely worth going a little out of our way for. read more

Winds, I want so much to love you. I want to love the local fare you boast. I want to love your interpretations of culinary cuisine from around the globe. I want to love your boho upgrades of plates from kitchens hidden from my eyes. But you fail me, Winds. I salivate while reading your menu descriptions but then weep while chewing tasteless burgers, flavorless pastas, limpy lifeless salads, disappointing breakfasts, and under liquored cocktails. I hope one day we can revive our relationship, but for now I must set sail on a new current. read more

The service was excellent. Our server, Jenny, provided great wine and food recommendations for lunch. We had the burger and the croque monsieur. So glad we didn't go to Papa John's instead. read more

My friend and I had dinner at the Winds last Friday night, and were very Underwhelmed! The black bean soup was good as usual, but our two salads were the problem! These were not side salads, they were $10 and $12 salads! Mine was the Equinox salad, which sounded very good, with apple slices, cheese and candied nuts! What I got was a pile of lettuce with nuts chopped so small I could hardly see them, and tiny quarter inch by quarter inch cubes of cheese, maybe 5 or 6 of those, and some small apple slices! Very stingy! My friend's salad was a beet salad, and Ive never seen fewer beets or thinner sliced beets in my life! There were 5 of these thin slices hiding under the lettuce, and a tiny shred of beets on top! Even more stingy! We have to drive quite a way to the small town of Yellow Springs to eat there so it had better be worth it!! read more

My wife and I have been patronizing the Winds since the late 1970s, and over the years we have had many, many great meals and memorable dining experiences. During the last couple of years it has been a disappointment to see that the staff training level has slipped , while the food remains at a high level of preparation and taste. We had dinner recently, and the server brought my wife's appetizer with her salad. My appetizer didn't appear at the same time ( my salad did) and suddenly the entree appeared. My appetizer was not on the server's radar, and since I had my entree I told her to forget the appetizer. No apology, and we were avoided thereafter. This is not the only instance of a server inadequacy we've had in the last six months, and while the Winds remains a favorite place, it has suffered a decline in service. We now often order our appetizer but not the entree, so we know we won't be rushed. Not all servers transgress , but it's a consideration. The Winds should not be like The Longhorn Steakhouse, but the service is sometimes equivalently low. We hope they turn things around, and that the younger staff members emulate some of the senior staffers. read more

We drove to Winds Cafe from Dayton the Friday after Christmas for lunch. It was well worth the drive and the best meal out we had in Ohio. We had the Bistro Steak with garlicky flavored butter sauce, which came with a delicious greens salad, potato fries/chip strips, and the Provencal Omelette made with trout and boursin that also came with a nice salad. We had the Locations red wine (delicious) and the Handley Chardonnay to accompany, and took the delicious, light, almost fluffy lemon cheesecake and coffee on the way out. It was a really delicious meal and only $52 total, which is a steal by northern california standards for this quality of food. The only suggestion I would make would be to make the potatoes actual frites (shoe-string fries) - I prefer that to the longer, flat crispy fries. Service was excellent. The decor inside is wonderful: cozy, warm, private and you can have a quiet conversation. Part of the appeal of this place is that it's an entire experience to come here. This restaurant has been around for decades and it's great to see that they've kept up their standards in order to have this kind of longevity, something quite rare with restaurants. Many best wishes to restaurant owners, chefs and staff - keep up the good work! read more

Atmosphere was very nice (bring a change of clothes if you're planning on coming right from hiking) and food was delicious. However, my friend and I were visiting from out of state and we each decided to order a drink. Both of our licenses (IL and MI) were taken back to the bar by our waitress and then brought out by the manager... She told us that she "can't accept these because they are not real". We are both 24 yr. old young professionals who do look fairly young. I was so offended and it was frustrating pulling out all my credit cards, my Costco card, expired college ID, library card etc.... just to prove that I was of legal drinking age! The manager finally accepted an old ID with a birthdate and delivered our drinks, but there was no apology or offer to comp. our drinks. It would have been a nice gesture after all of the hassle and accusations of false identification. So... If you are from out of state bring multiple forms of identification! It was a great place and the food was great, but left me feeling very frustrated and unsatisfied with the service. read more

great food, great service. our reservation was for 2:00 and, though very crowded, we were seated immediately. this is the second time we've visited Winds Cafe and is definitely a destination trip from columbus. read more

We had dinner at this establishment last evening and while they were busy there was no one waiting to be seated. We have been loyal patrons for 20 plus years but I'm done Winds Cafe. They seem to have a "too good for you attitude" . The service was downright awful. We dined with one other person for a total of 3 people and spent over 175.00 dollars with terrible service. Coffee cold and not once offered to refill or offer to serve another. We waited 30 minutes for a piece of chocolate cake that I must tell you could not have been tasted by the kitchen staff as it was horrible,dry and flavorless. A Hostess Cupcake would honestly have been a huge improvement. We ordered an appetizer that was summer tomato based but came with literally 2 of the smallest cherry tomatoes I have ever seen. Really? Something is really wrong with this business all around. It is either the owner or she has no idea how her employees are doing her in or it is time she turn the business over to someone that still appreciates her customers. Pay attention other Yellow Springs Restaurants here is your chance to come into the lead. Don't waste your money here. They don't appreciate your business. read more

Baaad experience. Called to make a reservation last week by phone for a birthday dinner. It was a Tuesday evening. Drove from Dayton and got there and they didn't have my reservation. Embarrassing! Okay, not a problem since there were tables available, except in the bar area, from a busted water pipe with water all over the floor. Waited at the bar 30 minutes (bartender was pleasant and competent) for an outside table (beautiful evening!). Host then directed us outside to a table that had not been bussed and left us standing among the other diners for another 15 minutes. We ended up sitting at another table 15 minutes more while the host disappeared, then returned to bus the table. For another 20 minutes we sat there while two servers ignored us and avoided even eye contact. Finally left over an hour later, making sure to explain the situation to the host/manager. He didn't seem to care. What difference does it make how good the food is, if the service stinks from the moment you walk in the door! read more

very slow service. took 20 min at least to get a beverage after we sat down.. not that busy. waiter seemed more concerned w socializing w the other tables.. food was good but slow coming out and very limited menu. had only one special for a sat nite. read more