The Winchester Woodfire Grill

Beautiful location, exposed wood ceilings, lush carpet, perfect hunting lodge theme without being over done. Fine dining in Canton that’s truly fine dining didn’t exist for us until we tried the Winchester. I ordered the airline chicken with cherries and it was very well done. The night we went we were the only guests in house, it was a Tuesday, so we had a very peaceful meal with great service. Definitely the place to go for a 4^th or 5^th date or an anniversary meal.

What a major fail! The place was half full on a Thursday night. There was one waitress for the 4 tables that had customers. First she forgot to put our full order in. After watching tables get served that came in after us we inquired and she confessed she hadn’t entered our full order in. When the order came out my steak was shoe Leather when I ordered med rare. My plate went back and my husband ate alone. My husbands meal was mediocre, scallops very sandy, wrapped in raw bacon. He was done before my plate came out again. This time the steak was uncooked. The person serving saw this and took it away again. 3^rd time out it was finally fine. We were not offered anything for the poor service, poor food prep or experience. A glass of wine or desert offer goes a long way when there have been repeated mistakes on a $ 100 dinner that we did not even get to enjoy together. We won’t return.

While all the other restaurants around Canton closed early due to weather we called Winchester and they said they were still open. We stopped in and had an amazing dinner while sitting in front of their wood burning fireplace! My father-​in-​law had the beer battered fish with chips while I had the chicken and waffle skewers. Both meals were delicious. Loved it and we will be sure to come back.

A decent brunch, breakfast items mostly and those were cooked well. Would’ve enjoyed more fresh items.

Went there for a beer tasting event… The chef made 5 micro dishes to go with each brew that were all AMAZING! Will definitely be going back.

Based on a recommendation from a neighbor we decided to take my in-​laws here while they were visiting from Ohio. Upon pulling up we wondered if they were even open because the parking lot was a ghost town. We thought we may have gotten there early or something. Well after our meal we know why the place was dead. 3 out of the 4 of us were not pleased with our meal. No seasoning what-​so-​ever, my MIL had to literally saw through her steak. I thought she may have just been bluffing, so I tried and sure enough for being pinkish in the middle it was not tender. My salmon was dry. We are very laid back and hate leaving not the best reviews, but we were just not impressed with this place. The ambiance and view from the back is on point, but the food… well I think they need to re-​look at their cook staff/​chef. We won’t be back.

My sister-​in-​law lives near by in Woodstock. After a long day of sightseeing we called ahead and made a reservation and were told they were hosting a wedding party but would be glad to have us… and we were glad they did!
The service was excellent and the ribeye I had was one of the best ever… melt in your mouth! My sister-​in-​laws boyfriend ordered the shrimp with grits which he insisted we all taste because it was so delicious… he’s a southern raised boy and knows his grits… they were crispy and so flavorful! We arrived after dark so couldn’t enjoy the beautiful mountain view but the restaurant is nestled in a little valley and you would pass by if you didn’t know they were there. So glad we did! Very reasonably priced for the quality. Under $ 100 for four with a round of drinks!

OMG!!! The burger is beyond awesome. I don’t want a burger from anywhere else as long as I live.

This place has some great steaks, the filets pretty much melt in your mouth. The house cocktails (I’ve tried most, approve of all.) are inventive and tasty, while also classic and simple. The staff is super friendly and the owners are incredibly kind people.
Short wait times to be seated and get your food…
I think the only flaw to this place is the slight difficultly of finding it. A little off the beaten path, but certainly worth the few extra minutes.
Try dining out on the patio on a nice evening, the view is spectacular!

Our dinner experience couldn’t have been better. Serene, rustic, mountain view atmosphere. Awesome twist on the standards, steaks, chicken and seafood. We ordered a chopped salad with salmon and the special of the day, Brazilian orange roughy. Attentive, friendly staff, food served hot and perfect in every way. Well worth the drive from Rome. We’ll be back. P

OMG!!! I cant believe that We haven’t found this place sooner. It just seems to be hidden behind the hills of Canton. Amazing view of the «mountains». Had Sunday brunch after church. The buffet was great! Such a variety and really enjoyed the Omelet station.
Wasnt overly busy, so the waitress was very attentive!

Mother’s Day is a day you have to exhaust patience when you eat out. But the hostesses really dropped the ball today. I don’t think they know how to effectively seat people when business is heavy. We were denied reservations because they would only take reservations for a party of 8 or more. we had 7. Then told us 30 – 40 minutes… it was an hour and 15 minutes. They just looked like they didn’t have a clue. Then another 10 waiting in line for the buffet. And 30 minutes eating we probably would have stayed a little while longer but our waitress would not bring us refills. She literally had one job for our table… keep our refills coming, because we all got the buffet! So we got our own food and she couldn’t even bring one round of refills so after about 2 hours at this play we were itching to go. Buffet food was nothing impressive cupcakes were clearly from Costco little Debbie cinnamon buns and danishes… it just wasn’t worth the 2 hour stay.

First, let me preface that I REALLY wanted to love this place. I think for its location and symbol to the county, I already gave it 1 star.
My wife and I came on a Friday night around 7 pm. My wife commented on how empty the parking lot was when we pulled in and I assured her it might just be the time of year. The atmosphere was great! We were sat by the roaring fire in their main dining room but it was a little cold.
We started with the artichoke dip. The bagel chips that came with the dip was the best part. The dip seemed frozen and wasn’t that great.
I had the ribeye and wife had the sirloin with sides of mashed potatoes and cheese grits. Wife enjoyed the sirloin and said the potatoes were way too salty and garlic overload. My grits were really good! My ribeye had zero flavor. I Almost asked for some steak sauce but didn’t even finish it.
I tried to salvage dinner with some cheesecake but we didn’t finish that either. We both had 2 bites because it was frozen and tasted like wax.
They need a chef who has some vision or will take risks. Because of how dead it was, I don’t see why the food was so bland.
2 stars for the atmosphere and service.

Had dinner at the Winchester Woodfire Grill for the 1^st time last night. The service was absolutely terrific and the food even better. I would highly recommend this eatery.
DA Cumming, GA

Was very pleasantly surprised by Brunch at Winchesters. Buffet selection and quality were very good. Atmosphere best in Canton area as regards Brunch or breakfast. Had the same experience months ago. Committed to being a regular on Sundays from now on.

The Sunday Brunch was TERRIFIC and incredible for $ 10. All of us enjoyed it and really fresh!

This place deserves 0 stars. This was the worst food I have ever had (I have been to 3^rd world countries) the breakfast/​brunch was disgusting. I have thrown up in my mouth and it has tasted far better. In fact I have been trying to throw up so it will kill the taste of this horrendous food. If you are lucky the only thing you will get is food poisoning, which I promise will be a better experience than this buffet. STAY AWAY NEVER GO HERE YOU WILL BE SORRY. This is Horrifically bad.

Visited here after its new management took over and on Valentine’s evening. I loved the former place. Now I’m afraid this incarnation won’t survive.
The shrimp bisque arrived with three tiny chunks of an obviously formerly frozen shellfish and watered-​down, under-​seasoned soup. The server didn’t bother to ask how I wanted my prime rib. It arrived well done and a bit dry.
My dining partner had the Chilean sea bass, which arrived slightly over-​cooked for such a delightful steak cut; the pan sear lacked flavor and citrus needed adding to give the fish a little oomph. The jalapeño cheese grits lacked bite and salt but were creamy.
Service proved lacking as we weren’t provided the normal tasting of wine for the bottle we purchased. For a meal costing more than a Benjamin, I would expect better service and food.

This is one of the more under-​appreciated restaurants in Canton. It often goes unnoticed because it is a little out of the way. But, in that atmosphere it finds its charm. A quiet and serene atmosphere compliments the view of the foothills to the Appalachian Mountains sprawling out before you as you dine on wonderfully thought out and prepared meals. Unfortunately, that beautiful patio view is slowly being encroached upon by the ever expanding suburban sprawl that is the sub-​division. Still enjoyable though.
I do have to make a point of mentioning their Mother’s Day brunch special. It was a phenomenal buffet style meal with food catered to every taste imaginable. I highly recommend you take your Mother there next year. But be sure to make reservations, as they will go fast.

Took Philip here for his birthday dinner, along with his dad. Unlike last year’s debacle at a sad and sagging formerly great place, Winchester Woodfire Grill lived up to all expectation. Thanks, Unilocalers! Your reviews saved my reputation as being able to pick decent restaurants. :)
Dinner for the three of us was $ 112 and we didn’t eat light. Though I was the only one engaging in a cocktail, we ordered two appetizers, three entrees, three desserts and three beverages along with coffees. Everything was quite tasty and our server Kim was as nice as she could be.
Fried Green Tomatoes with Fennel Slaw — yummy, the slaw was unexpectedly refreshing and the remoulade with the tomatoes was spicy but not overly so.
Pretzels with cheese and bacon dip — wow, you could eat that dip with a spoon, awesome! The pretzels were fine, better than you usually get (this was Philip’s especial birthday treat, he would drive twenty miles for a good pretzel).
Filet mignon (medium rare): they actually cooked it MEDIUM RARE! Good cut of meat, slight char, warm and deep deep pink, well-​rested, very happy with this. I had it with the garlic whipped potatoes (just a tad heavy on the salt but I am a little salt-​sensitive) and grilled asparagus. Grilled just right, not mushy but not crunchy either. Again, very happy.
Chicken and Waffles: Philip decided to give this a try. He reports the chicken was top notch and the waffles delicious. I admit to sneaking a bite of a waffle which was rich and quite yum. He ate every bite (and there were quite a few bites in this portion). A big thumbs-​up from Birthday Boy. He passed on the accompanying onion straws and had garlic whipped potatoes (he disagrees about the salt and says they were fine) AND french fries. Vegetable-​phobic persons well-​represented.
Father-​in-​law had a sirloin cooked medium, baked potato and succotash. As Captain of the «No Veg EVER» team he only picked at the corn in the succotash but loved the steak and the potato.
For dessert we had Frangelica bread pudding (made in house, an individual portion in a ramekin with a drizzle of caramel, warm gooey wonderfulness), chocolate-​chocolate cake (bakery but quite good, Philip tells me) and plain cheesecake (F-I-L’s favorite, liked it fine but it also came from outside the kitchen).
We made reservations for 5:30 (kitchen opens at 5, I recall) but those weren’t needed; the restaurant began to fill up as we were eating our desserts though. I’d recommend reservations if you plan on arriving 6:30 or later.
Nice ambience — real wood fire in the fireplace, XM’s «Frank» station playing Sinatra, comfortable chairs, decent amount of space between tables. It has a sort of «Dixie Ski Lodge» feel to it, not formal but not overly casual either. It felt very comfy and made for a relaxing place for dinner.
I ordered a champagne cocktail and the bartender made it to my specifications (I take it with Southern Comfort, an old habit). Strong, sweet and good. Also no full-​split surcharge for the champagne, which was nice.
It’s a bit of a haul for us to go there often but for a date-​night type of dinner it’s worth the drive. This is at the top of our «go to» list.