Sparta Steak House & Lounge

Back in college, many things happened to me and around me.  One of those things was living above a tv shop with quirky, loving people.  Those quirky, loving people took me to Sparta one night for dinner.  I as a college student, broke as I was, wouldn't refuse.

So we head down to what would seemingly be a little "interesting" neighborhood and pull up to this understated looking place.  Going inside you see the old charm of an Italian steakhouse.

There is ample seating and also an actual bar, with the wooden bar cabinets.  I immediately dart my attention to the drink menu.  The drink specials are hilarious and crude.  Ex) Sex on the Dryer, etc.  

I order a liquor drink and pasta with a steak.  The steak is lovely and tastes great.  The pasta, definitely up to my standards.  Full to the brim, I believe that all cost me 20 bucks if I would have had to pay.

All in all, a great experience.

I went here with my boyfriend about 2 weeks ago, and I have to admit, I was not amt on going here, especially after viewing the outside. But after actually going in and eating, I had a much different perspective. They say that the best restaurants are those hole-in-the-wall, local places, right?

As far as the outside of the building goes, it looks run-down, lifeless, and it's hard to even tell that there is a restaurant inside. But the inside is somewhat classier, outdated, but classy. It wasn't busy, but it definitely wasn't empty. There were about 5-6 tables full of people there, and our server was outstanding the entire duration of our meal. She went ahead to tell us what she recommended, and joked around with us a bit.

To start, we both ordered the shrimp cocktail as an appetizer. NOT WORTH IT. It was $8.00 and we only received FOUR shrimp. If I go back, I am definitely not ordering that again.

For our meals, I ordered the small filet, and my bf ordered the porterhouse. My steak was delicious, and it even came with a side salad, rice pilaf, and rolls. I'm usually not one to order steak in a restaurant either, so this was a big deal to me. The rice pilaf was good, but I was not a fan of the side salad...it was only cucumbers and lettuce. No cheese, no croutons, no nothing. I was kind of disappointed by that.

I  wouldn't say that this is my favorite place to go, but it's definitely worth giving a shot.

Bland is the word.  Was extremely disappointed since this is considered a Canton institution.  The porterhouse, though tender, was lifeless with no flavor at all.  The Sparta fries were average at best.  The salad was drowned in dressing (and I actually like a lot of dressing).  Long lapses in service didn't help.  I hate to say it, but I even prefer the chains to this.