Most of the restaurants previously located inside Downtown’s Park Inn by Radisson were not on the dining radar of anyone not paying to sleep in the building.
Noodle Bar & Grill, located inside the hotel at the corner of Monroe and North Summit streets, hopes to change that.
The restaurant, which serves a mix of Asian-themed fare and American comfort food, opened its doors in January.
“We’re serving Asian-American cuisine and there really isn’t another restaurant in the Downtown area that offers our menu,” said Jules Eskra, food and beverage manager at the hotel.
“We thought that this would be a good fit for Downtown Toledo.”
In addition to the main entrance connected to the hotel’s front lobby, the restaurant added a second entrance on Monroe Street.
“Before, it was just a restaurant inside of a hotel,” Eskra said. “Recently, we decided we wanted to move away from that concept. That’s why we created an entrance on Monroe Street, so guests don’t feel like they have to go through the hotel.”
The entrance, marked by a red awning, sits across Monroe Street from the center field area of Fifth Third Field.
In addition to Asian favorites such as pan fried noodles, teriyaki chicken, Kung Pao shrimp and Vietnamese pho rice noodle soup, Noodle Bar & Grill features less obvious choices like Southern mac and cheese, penne pasta dishes, supreme nachos, Philly cheesesteaks and burgers, as well as Asian takes on American fare like its Banh Mi Ribeye and a Fusion Dog, a hot dog served with kimchee, cheese, cabbage, onion and cilantro mayonnaise.
Open for breakfast as well, its morning menu options include Chinese breakfast items like congee (rice porridge), Chinese pickled vegetables, stir-fried vegetables and wonton soup. The breakfast menu also includes classic diner fare including steak and eggs, sausage, bacon, hash browns, pancakes, waffles and French toast.
Eskra said the restaurant hopes to offer a breakfast buffet beginning in the spring.
She thinks the Downtown business community as well as visitors to the area will be surprised to learn that Noodle Bar & Grill isn’t just another “hotel restaurant.”
“The people in the area always assume it’s a hotel restaurant: ‘We’re not going to go there, because it’s basically for hotel guests,’” she said. “So we’re trying to change that mindset and let them know we are a restaurant inside of a hotel, but we have great food.”
The restaurant is open every day for breakfast from 6:30 a.m. to 11 a.m., with lunch and dinner options available from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The restaurant also features a full-service bar, open at 5 p.m.
For more information, call (419) 241-3000. Phone calls come in to the hotel front desk, so ask for Noodle Bar & Grill.
