As a campus tour guide, families are always asking for local food spots. The average answers I always give out are Cortland Diner, Wild Ginger, or NY Bagel. Last weekend, I got the chance to go out with one of my friends (Amari) and experience a different restaurant.
Hairy Tony’s is an American pub cuisine located on Main St. in Cortland, NY. Their hours are 11 a.m – 8 p.m on Sundays, 11 a.m – 9 p.m on weekdays, and 11 a.m – 10 p.m on Friday and Saturday. The location itself wasn’t bad, but attempting to find parking after 7 p.m on Main Street was a struggle.
Walking into the place, it gave a vintage or medieval theme, which I enjoyed. The area was a bit small, and the space felt crowded. However, the food did make up for the feeling of being slightly overwhelmed.
Our waitress, Trisha, was amazing, very upbeat and checked up on us frequently. The service was excellent. Her knowledge on the menu, food, and restaurant itself was very impressive and showed her dedication to her job.
Going into Hairy Tony’s, I didn’t want anything too heavy so I asked Trisha what she would suggest. She said that I’d be “better off with something small”, maybe even a side.
I got the small side of mac n cheese with a side of (9) buffalo boneless chicken. I broke the chicken up and created my own little buffalo chicken Mac’ n’ Chz that melted on my tongue.
This goes to say, I am a very picky eater which is why trying new foods is challenging for me.
Amari had the barbecue pulled pork sandwich, with a side of french fries, which was a substitute for chips.
“The pork was cooked well and the fries were really good”, said Amari, “but the bread wasn’t that good and it didn’t work well with the pulled pork.”
He also mentioned that the barbecue sauce was pretty solid, but there wasn’t a lot on the sandwich compared to the large amount of pulled pork. “ The waitress was a lil too talkative, but she was nice and meant well so I didn’t have an issue with it.”
Amari said the “food was solid overall, I’d go there again but order something else. Especially considering the prices.”
We rated it an overall of 7.5 out of 10, which we calculated by categories: food, timeliness, effort, and presentation.
In my opinion, the service was superb. I will now be adding this to my suggestion list when future SUNY Cortland students, and parents ask for local food spots.