The Local Grill

This place is located in a building but still really easy to find. The whole building smelled like a doctors office and it conjured up flashbacks from the past but the actual restaurant smells fine. I came here with my best friend and we ordered the shrimp scampi dip which was good but needed a kick of flavor — I was expecting more a garlic taste. We split the burger which had bacon and caramelized onion and smoked Gouda for our cheese of choice. I wasn’t a big fan of the bread, I would have preferred a harder roll. Then we split the chicken fried steak and that wasn’t my favorite. The steak was chewy and didn’t have much a flavor. After reading the reviews, it seemed like the place to be. I wonder if we came on an off night or ordered the wrong dishes. I just found everything to be bland tasting.

Locals secret
I came in here to try the seared ahi dish.
quite possibly the largest serving of ahi I’ve ever had!
They have a good selection of beer
The homemade ice cream is incredible. Hands down as good if not better than top creameries!
The owner, butch, is passionate about his business and sees to it that every item on the menu is there for a reason.
This is a local spot that no longer needs to be a secret.

Loved this place. Was a slow Saturday night, but the chef was still on point.
Corn Crab Cakes (appetizer): soft, moist, and delicious. Excellent garlic aioli.
Seared ahi tuna over arugula: simply amazing. Cooked to perfection and the wasabi glaze went perfect with the arugula bed of greens.
Lady had the fra davioli with spaghetti squash, and she loved every second of it. I tasted the sauce (as that’s all that was left by the time I got to it), and it was magnificent.
To top the night, we got the fresh baked cookie with chocolate gelato. Freaking to die for.
And to top it all off… all of that with a bottle of wine, with tip, under $ 100. Are you kidding me!!!
Why this place wasn’t packed, I have no idea. But the service was great, the food was great, and I can’t wait to go back. (Could be something to do with the weekend and everyone being at fairs since it’s fall and fair season)
Keep it going guys!

Bartender Michelle was friendly and the service was spot on. When I asked about cucumber vodka, she offered to muddle some — went with a hot and dirty martini instead and they hAve their own hot sauce to jazz it up ! Appetizer of chips and their own French onion dip was great –need to share though, don’t order yourself –too big ! Bar atmosphere is warm with brick and wood –will be back ! Love supporting places that are not chains and deliver quality ingredients with good service :)

What a great find on the Local Flavor app.
Chips and dips and the most incredible mushroom appetizer to start, followed by a perfectly cooked rib eye for the main.
This place is tucked out the way, but well worth a visit.
Great friendly server.
The only downside was that they were out of menage tois wine… And I love a bit of that… Lol
Well done guys.
We will be back.

Very delicious food and good service. It is really a hidden gem (hidden in an office building). We came because of the local flavor deal but will be coming back even without a deal. We had a bottle of wine that was nice and reasonably priced, although they had run out of the first bottle we tried to order.
We also ordered two appetizers, the mushrooms and the chips and dip. The mushrooms were amazing, with a creamy, cheesy sauce and fresh greens! The chips were good but the dip was disappointing because it was basically a french onion dip with bacon, which was not what the menu described. My husband enjoyed it more because he had not read the menu. For an entrée, we got the ribeye, which was amazing and perfectly cooked – even for my husband, who is very picky about steaks. The bread pudding that came with it was also delicious.
Overall, very good meal!

Three stars because the food was just ok and the service was very good. We got the dry rubbed wings to start which was probably the best thing we had all night. The skin was hot and crispy and the meat was tender and had good flavor. Not messy at all which was a nice change of pace.
For my entrée, I ordered the seared ahi tuna w/​arugula salad which was good for the first few smaller bites of the filet. However, the longer middle cuts of the filet were impossible to eat as they were riddled with unchewable layers of tendon. It was poorly cut and should have been scrutinized more closely before being served. The arugula salad was completely overdressed with balsamic which made it tough to bear more than just the smallest bite. Other orders included the meatloaf Benedict which was consumed by a friend with no complaints, and a steak salad which was on special. I tried the steak salad which was a basic salad underneath a bad 7oz cut of rib eye comprised mainly of fat. I had a bite and nearly spit it out.
Overall, the experience was good due to the company, service and cold drinks. But the food on the other hand was not nearly good enough to make me ever want to return. We went on a Saturday night at 8pm and it was dead.

We went here with friends on a Saturday night and the bar was full. We sat in the dining room which was fine with us. It wasn’t packed but we were there around 8 so maybe we missed the crowd. The ahi tuna over arugula was cooked just right and seasoned very well. Overall it was a good experience and I think we’ll go again

What an amazing find, a true hidden gem. Wonderful meal tonight at the Local Grill, the Meatloaf Benedict was an amazing dish.
Went for a late dinner with some friends and we all left full happy and wanting to go back for more.
Lots of other options on the menu sounded great and will need to be eaten soon.
We also found a coupon on one of the discount sites which saved us $ 15 as an added bonus.
Give Local Grill a try and you won’t be disappointed.

I was looking to try something new in the area and I thought I knew all the restaurants. but I googled ‘Best Avon Restaurants’ and The Local Grill came up… I’d never heard of it, but the reviews looked good, so we decided to give it a try.
So glad we did! Was a beautiful nite and most people, including us, decided to sit outside. really nice serene atmosphere… a great water fountain, hanging plants, and the lawn right there.
The menu was creative – short rib ravioli, an interesting trout dish. vegetarian pillow appetizer… I got the Mediterranean shrimp over spaghetti squash. my friend got crab cakes with corn (I’d never seen corn added to crab cakes before)…both were sooo delicious! Big complements to the chef… Prices were reasonable. I had a delicious panna cotta desert with sautéed cinnamon apples and granola – again, a unique spin on something traditional.
Was such delicious and reasonably priced food, the restaurant wasn’t as crowded as I expected – no wait. could be, like me, people haven’t discovered this wonderful restaurant just yet.
I highly recommend The Local Grill and will be back… the bar area was comfortable and expansive – I may also go back for just a drink sometime.

Had a wonderful meal at sunset, outside dining by their fountain. Very comfortable. Ordered their «Employees Only» Manhattan which was wonderful and an incredible Cosmo. Pork Shanks, Crab Cakes and Seared Ahi. All were much better than expected! This is one place you don’t want to miss.

Great place! Food was really good. I had the chicken wings and pork shank. Great service and price point is very reasonable. Have a chat with the owner, Bruce. Nice guy and great atmosphere. Two thumbs up, I’ll definitely be back next time I’m in the area!

Definitely a hidden gem — the food and the service were both superb! The pecan crusted chicken salad was the perfect amount of sweet and crunchy, and the brownie sundae was the perfect ending to a wonderful meal. The prices were definitely reasonable for the quality of the food. I highly recommend!

I said I’d be back and every time it’s as good or better than the last. The sherried mushrooms are a must have as is the ribeye. Good atmosphere and excellent food. This is the
you will find that combo consistently in the Valley.

Very surprising! We drive by this restaurant every time we take our dog for a walk, and we have never stopped because the restaurant that used to be there was too pricey for the food. But the other night we both had a feeling, and we stopped in to try it. I am SO glad that we did. The menu was just different enough to really interest us, and the food was fantastic, as well as VERY reasonably priced.
I had the caesar salad (pretty good) and the smoked trout quesadillas – excellent! My husband had some terrific sliders and another caeasar. The service was good, the atmosphere was nice – we will definitely go back.

Bacon wrapped jalapeño appetizer to start, are amazing. The ahi tuna, super fresh with an wasabi aoli dressing and huge like a double portion. Mine was a 14 oz rib eye. Great beer and everything on the menu us under $ 20.

Great food! Very friendly service. Nice outdoor seating. Visiting from California for an event in Hartford staying near to this restaurant. Picked it randomly, glad I did.
We had three appetizers, Moroccan shrimp, smoked trout quesadilla, and veggie pillows. We also had their corn chowder which was amazing. My ahi tuna wrap also had a wonderful flavor.
Good portion sizes for the price. Not over-​serving you and not ripping you off for what you get.

The Local Grill is a great addition to the SImsbury-​Avon area, so I hope it’s found the right formula to make the Riverdale Farms space successful. I really liked Papacelle, which preceded The Local Grill, and Ristorante Italia before that. Unfortunately, it seems to be a tough location for a nice restaurant.
The Local Grill is a gastropub that serves upscale comfort food. Every entrée is priced under $ 20. It was the perfect cuisine for a rainy December night. Our entrees included meatloaf benedict (which, like the name suggests, is meatloaf topped with a poached egg); pork chops; steak-​stuffed portabello mushroom; whole grain grilled cheese with bacon, apple slices, and pepper jelly; and – my favorite selection – the night’s special: three-​cheese and chorizo macaroni and cheese. Every dish was flavorful and filling. The butternut squash crab bisque had nice chunks of crab in it and I particularly liked the teriyaki dressing on the spinach salad. If we hadn’t been so full, we would have tried the dessert – particularly something served with locally made J. Foster’s ice cream.
We were greeted by the owner, who also stopped by after the meal to say «hello.» There seemed to be a fairly decent crowd at the bar for a Sunday night in the Farmington Valley. Hopefully The Local Grill’s more laid-​back atmosphere (combined with good food) will prove to be what the neighborhood has been looking for.

Ignore the early (and, at times, fake) reviews. This place is a winner and deserves to succeed.
We came here with a group of five early one evening. We were greeted by the owner who showed us to a big table and thanked us for coming.
Service was prompt and, in one small instance, a little too prompt (never offer the dessert menu before they’re done with the main course).
The space has freshened up from the previous unsuccessful Italian restaurants. The owner is cognizant of the history and, as he said, there are no main dishes over $ 20. That’s a conscious decision on his part.
We were recommended to the fish — and rightfully so. The mahimahi and trout both come with couscous. The trout was pan fried with grapes — not sure if it was going to work, but it did. Also tried the flatbread (the pancetta and spinach is a surprisingly very tasty option). The kid tried the chicken fingers which, for $ 4.95 also came with fresh potato chips in a paper bag. I almost ate his dish. The food came out hot.
The appetizers were also quite good with the eggplant pillows being the stand out. The chips and dips had superb fresh chips; the dip was surprisingly spicy. But I loved it.
The owner even threw in a taste of a dessert as a thank you for coming in. Nice touch.
The place had a good crowd going.
We’ll definitely be back.

This space seems to swallow up new restaurants. This location in Riverdale Farms must be jinxed. I’ve lived up here since 1987 and this has to be the 7^th restaurant to occupy that space.
We paid our first visit to the Local Grill last night. At 7:00 on a Saturday it was pretty crowded and the bar was packed.
Beers were reasonably priced at $ 5.25, we had a Two Roads White IPA, a Lagunitas IPA, and a Back East. Angry Orchard hard cider was also $ 5.25.
We shared two appetizers, Tuna Carpaccio on endive leaves was $ 9.95 for five delectable morsels. Super fresh creamy thin slices of raw tuna on crisp endive with a balsamic and wasabi reduction. Our second appetizer was Jerk Chicken Spring Roll for $ 9.50. If you like spicy –you will LOVE this (I sure did). It’s grilled chicken in a wrap with garlic mayo and jerk seasoning. It was great.
Our entrees were Mussels and Leeks ($ 13.95), a Foccacia Sandwich (prosciutto, tomatoes, and mozzarella) for $ 10.95, and a Grilled chicken (with mango couscous and avocado raspberry chutney for 14.95.
The Sandwich was great, and the homemade potato chips were stellar. My mussels were not the best I ever had, I didn’t particularly care for the flavor of the vermouth and garlic broth. It was served with no bowl or dish for the shells. The mussels dish I had at Vitos in Newington last week swam laps around this dish.
Now for the chicken — it was so small that it looked like a parakeet breast instead of a chicken breast. The high quality of the accompanying couscous and chutney did not offset the tiny portion.
Our service was average– nice and polite but not very attentive once the meal came out. Really can’t argue over the cost of a nice dinner for three for $ 85. But it could have been better.
We’ll see if it is next time.