It’s spring folks, which means we can venture out a bit further from home without fear of being caught in a freak snowstorm.

I mean, to be fair this is only 30 minutes from us, so it’s not like we’re going across the state or anything.

Inn Cahoots is a small unassuming place, which from the outside can definitely look a lot less friendly that it is on the inside. There are no windows, but two doorways very close to each other and at least they were kind enough to label one as the “kitchen entrance only” because otherwise that could’ve been embarrassing. Although if they had to make a sign for it that means someone has most certainly walked in that way at some point.

I could see Shane’s hesitation as we walked up and memories of the sketchy place in Massillon floated into his head. You remember the one, where we were notoriously asked how the food was, and when we answered “good” we’re countered with “are you sure?”

Spoiler alert: this was a vastly different experience.

For starters, we walked in (the correct door) and were greeted with a very busy, lively atmosphere. And quite a mix of people – large families, couples, friends, and even a child celebrating a birthday at the table behind us. Which seemed odd – but Ted joined in on the song like a champ.

We ordered drinks and I was most shocked that my tequila/soda was served in a real glass while my water was in a plastic cup.

Gotta watch out for those water drinkers. 

Ted ordered a Truth on tap and then received what he thought was a yuengling. He choked his way through it after failing to get our servers attention and, well, being thirsty. 

See, champ.

And eventually was able to confirm that he did in fact order a Truth and was in fact served a Yuengling when the next round appeared and it was not the same color.

When our server came back to take our orders we of course proclaimed our virgin status and asked what’s good. To which she answered “everything.” Which is either the easiest answer just to be able to walk away from us quickly or it could also mean she hasn’t actually eaten anything here. Always a fun game.

Another fun game: not writing anything down as we gave her our food orders. Which after Ted’s beer order experience we speculated was going to go in one of a few different ways. Especially knowing that we order enough food for half the restaurant.

More on that later.

I will say that the menu is pretty extensive and the prices are good. Apps around $5-$8 each, burgers around $12 which also includes a side. Typical dive bar range.

Ted got the meatball sub with the house made Cajun chips. They also offer Cajun tots which he was surprised to see but oddly then didn’t try. No taking chances tonight it seems.

He also got six of the mango habenero wings. 

I got the mushroom Swiss burger with tots and also a side salad. Because the salad was only $4.50 so why not. 

Bonus points to those observant folks thinking to themselves “hey, that’s funny, those don’t look like tots.” Trust me, we’ll get to that in a minute.

Shane ordered 18 wings in a combination of the sweet basil citrus and garlic dry rub.

And we also got breaded mushrooms as an app. 

Hey, guess what? She had to return to clarify some of our order. Point: us for recognizing this would be an issue. Although Ted does owe Shane money because while they both agreed that she most definitely wouldn’t remember our orders the bet was whether she would come over to clarify or if she would just put in what she thought was the right answer and then deliver the wrong thing.

Also the bet was ten cents. Shane would like it paid to him in all pennies please.

But we’re happy to report that after the initial clarification, almost everything came out correctly.

My order was the one that went a bit askew, in that they brought a container of some other white desssing that definitely wasn’t balsamic for my salad (which was easily fixed when she came by shortly after) and that my tots I ordered came out as crinkle cut fries (which I didn’t bother objecting to since I like those kind of fries too and figured that was the universe’s way of telling me I should order them more often).

My burger was good. The patty itself was seasoned well and cooked the way I ordered. However, the mushroom and onion sauce that they put on it was … interesting. When I pointed it out on the menu to Shane he said it sounded kind of like a Salisbury steak situation, and after eating it I can confirm that was exactly what it was. Which I wasn’t super thrilled about and would advise them to just describe it on the menu that way to avoid future disappointment.

I mean, it was edible. But I would really prefer to not have it again.

If you cancel out the episode with his first beer, Ted loved everything about his experience here. He liked the meatball sub, in part because the cheese was easy to peel off before he ate it. The wings were just spicy enough and the chips were tasty with the Cajun seasoning.

Shane said the basil wings didn’t have as much flavor as he hoped but they were also boneless so that might’ve had something to do with it. Other than that he seemed happy with the evening.

Overall I think this one would rate high enough for an eventual revisit. While our server made some mistakes we don’t always easily forgive at other places, the quality of the food and the fun atmosphere made it easier to excuse. The website says this is a family owned establishment which also makes it easier for us to consider supporting again. It’s definitely a dive bar, so don’t go looking for anything fancy, but if nothing else it’s sure to be a good time.

Picked by: Steph