Johnson House Restaurant

My family has been dining here for years and we have only had great experiences. Definitely recommend it for any occasion.

Food is always excellent.  Price is very reasonable.  Atmosphere is very relaxing.  Pianist is there on weekends, very nice place for a romantic dinner.  Family owned.  Service is always great, even when it's busy. They always start with homemade 3-bean salad and bread on the table.  Worth a trip out to Churchville to check it out.

Stopped in the Johnson House for dinner last night, shortly after 7:30pm, as it was participating in the Local Restaurant Week. This was my second dinner at the Johnson House. Last night was not terribly different from my first visit four months prior.

First, the service was terribly slow. Bread was dropped off without butter and the water glasses were filled only after being seated for 10 minutes. It was at least a full 20 minutes before our server came over to ask if we could get started with a drink. I said yes, but I would like to see the wine list. Then, our server didn't come back for at another 10-15 minutes. The restaurant was less than half full, and most were close to finishing their meals.

Finally, we ordered a bottle of wine and from the price-fix menu (for Restaurant Week) which included an app, salad, entree, and dessert.

My date and I both ordered the blue cheese bacon topped mushrooms. These were great, but not spectacular, but still very good.

The salad was uninteresting, your basic salad, but it was fresh and the lettuce was crunchy.

As an entree, I ordered the beef tournedo and shrimp scampi. The shrimp was wood fired, it was good, and the beef tournedo was 4 oz, but grilled perfectly to my preference (medium rare). The accompanying wild rice was ordinary (likely from a box of Near East products).

For dessert, I had the the raspberry chocolate cake. The cake was not very good (likely mass produced by Freihofers or something), but it was topped with good looking fresh raspberries and garnished with a few lines of chocolate and raspberry syrups.

I think the food was a fair deal for the price of $20.10, the price-fix option for Local Restaurant week.  Outside of restaurant week, I believe your dollars would be better spent elsewhere.

I think this restaurant needs a total makeover, from food to the decor.

It's quite strange to be in a beautiful old building but dinning in the basement, and as I understand it, the main floor is used as a banquet hall. These should be reversed. They do cook steaks well, but all the other entrees and meats have left my acquaintances very unimpressed and often dismayed.

Unfortunately, it is the only "nice" option for miles and I'm sure I will be back, but I won't be very excited.