VALLEY VIEW, Ohio — LockKeepers in the Cuyahoga Valley is considered by many to be a special-occasion dining spot with its upscale lounge feel and equally elevated Italian steakhouse menu.
Savour Hospitality’s flagship restaurant at 8001 Rockside Road also boasts a robust weekday happy hour, perfect for after-work hangouts or budget-friendly dinners.
LockKeepers opened in its original space in 1988 as The River Pub. The name was changed to LockKeepers Inn in 1992 before the restaurant moved to its current location in 2001. Since then, it has remained a Greater Cleveland favorite, though it recently made a few changes with your pocketbook in mind.
The restaurant launched its revamped happy hour menu last October. Created by executive chef Lydia Boker, the menu offers more sharable options to accommodate the happy hour crowd. The menu is available 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.
LockKeepers’ entire 75-seat bar and lounge area is open for happy hour seating, with plush tables and cozy booths available. The romantic and moody atmosphere still holds strong, even if you get to the bar in the early afternoon hours.
As for drinks, LockKeepers mixes it up daily by offering $7 pours of different Italian red and white wines. The restaurant has previously received several Wine Spectator Best of Awards of Excellence, meaning that wine enthusiasts likely will be pleasantly surprised with the discounted pours.
Amaro Nonino was featured in the rotating spritz during our visit.Alex Darus
The star of the drink menu is the $7 daily spritz, which often highlights different types of Italian Amari topped with Prosecco and club soda. General Manager Brian Woehrman thinks the rotating spritz is a fun way to introduce customers to new-to-them spirits that the bar team is excited about. Also part of the deal: $5 Peroni beers.
A daily rotating fresh crudo, such as hamachi with blood oranges and fennel, is available for market price during the special.
The happy hour menu features an even split of shareable appetizers and entree-sized dishes. Gnocco fritto ($10) is a fried dough dish topped with prosciutto and black pepper honey that feels like the Italian version of nachos. The crostini trio ($10) features three crispy toasts topped with various flavor bombs, including gorgonzola dolce, figs, pepperonata, speck and more.
Daily crudo and mezzi rigatoni from LockKeepers in Valley View.Alex Darus
As for the more substantial plates, two $14 flatbreads are available that aren’t skimpy in size. One is a classic topped with spicy pepperoni, while the creative goat cheese and roasted pear flatbread is an explosion of sweet, spicy and salty.
The most classic “entree” offering included in the deal is the mezzi rigatoni with creamy Bolognese ($14). The half-sized rigatoni noodles are homemade daily and make for the perfect vessel to soak up the savory sauce. The full-size dish easily could be dinner for one.
While the happy hour menu doesn’t include desserts, LockKeepers bartender Olivia Nishnic makes the bar’s own homemade limoncello for a sweet ending. It’s also available for $12 a bottle to go for folks looking to take their nightcap home, alongside an $18 bottled negroni.
Crostini trio and flatbreads from LockKeepers.Alex Darus
We tried a bit of everything on our trip, which is the way to go at LockKeepers. The happy hour menu is varied enough to order a few things to split with a friend and call it a day.
For two folks getting a drink each and splitting two plates, it’s easy to leave this happy hour with a less-than-$50 bill, including tip. LockKeepers might still be a go-to for anniversary or birthday celebrations, but its happy hour deals are affordable enough to keep it in your regular restaurant rotation.
LockKeepers, 8001 Rockside Road, Valley View
Happy Hour: 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday
Vibe: Cozy, elegant
Food: Italian steakhouse
Beverages: Two daily wine pours, one rotating spritz, Peroni beer
Budget $30-$50
This year everyone is spending more on feeding themselves at home or restaurants. Despite tight budgets, most people – especially extroverts like reporters Paris Wolfe and Alex Darus — need to get out. And, like everyone we need to support local restaurants to keep them in business. Sometimes that may be as simple as a Happy Hour dinner. So, we launched “The Happy Hour Project.” Paris and Alex will regularly visit independent restaurants in Northeast Ohio for happy hour and report back on the vibe, food and cocktails and how they’ll impact your budget.
Send your Happy Hour suggestions and reasons why to Paris Wolfe at pwolfe@cleveland.com or Alex Darus at adarus@cleveland.com.