Hays House 1857 Restaurant & Tavern

112 W Main St, Council Grove
(620) 767-5911

Recent Reviews

Matt S

Very cool 3 level restaurant and bar. The basement tavern is very cool with very vibes and is open on the weekends.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Rebecca Longstaff

Council Grove is a beautiful small town. To say I had high expectations for Hays House would be true but my sights were dimmed the second they took me and my party to the basement. Mind you, the main floor was pretty deserted in the first place along with another side room on the main floor. I ordered the shrimp risotto with a salmon. The salmon along with the shrimp was burnt and overcooked. The salmon had no flavor and had a texture similar to plastic. The shrimp was cold and tough. Another person in my party ordered a steak which was also burnt. For the price we paid, being that of over $110, it was very much not worth it. I hope this was helpful to anyone planning on visiting.

Service: 2

Mickey Stroda

First order was tasteless but replacement was great. Fried mushrooms were best I've ever had. Wonderful

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Fried Mushrooms

Donna Baer

Wanted to try this historic spot but disappointed. Cramped uncomfortable seating, food disappointing. Best taste was peach cobbler. Worst was the tough steak promoted as 2nd only to filet in tenderness.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 2

Service: 3

Andrea Hamilton

Beautiful restaurant with a great atmosphere. Our server was incredible and the entire wait staff worked so well together. The food was fairly standard and good. I ordered the patty melt. I would like to go back sometime for dinner and try some of their entrees.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Patty Melt

Donna Rae Pearson

I was there with a large group for lunch on a Friday. So I am going to give them grace. The server was nice and did a good job. The food came out pretty slow. I was looking forward to trying the fried chicken but was there on the wrong day. I guess it is on served for dinner on Thursdays. My fried chicken sandwich was big but average. It is in a historic building, which is pretty cool. I am guessing it really gears up for a dinner crowd. Maybe plan on going then.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 3

Service: 5

Danika Rose

I love this place! Unique menu options, great food, and the history was awesome! Definitely recommend! Best mashed potatoes I've ever gotten at a restaurant and my mom said it was the best hamburger steak she has ever had!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Mashed Potatoes, Hamburger Steak, Fried Chicken

Holly Hoyt

Neat historical place to experience great food! The chicken fried chicken was amazing! The handmade lightly breaded chicken breast and mashed potatoes were perfect....the best I've had anywhere as this is my favorite meal. My husband had the pulled pork sandwich and fries which was also delicious! Friendly wait staff and inviting atmosphere!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Mashed Potatoes, Pulled Pork, Chicken Fried Chicken

Amanda Michelle

First time stopping by and we'll be back for sure. Husband got burger special and said it was one of the best he ever had.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Bison Burger

Richard Miller

This is a "must" when you're in the Flint Hills. Prime rib on the weekend.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Pulled Pork, Steak

Candi Hamit

Our food was decent. Cajun pasta was very tasty. Service was slow, but it was really starting to get busy. Like most places, they could use a hostess and/or bus boys to help the wait staff out. There was a young gentleman, and he was doing a darn good job, but like I said, it was busy.In my opinion, it was too close for my likening. Felt like the two person table next to us, might as well had been at our table.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 4

Service: 3

Journey64087046229

Hi my disabled veteran have anxiety and PTSD so the hard time being around a lot of noise and large crowds so I called the day before to talk to him to find out a good time to go so I went the following day which was a Sunday. I had there a fried chicken, dinner, mashed potatoes and gravy and it was awesome. The restaurant was very clean. Very nice. The music was just right the staff was excellent. The food was great and the fellow I talk to you the day before came and asked if I was the person that he had talk to the day before and I said the other the better and I said that was me And he said his name was Randy. He was one of the owners and thanked me for my service it was I want to thank them for one of the best dining experiences I have ever had and I would highly recommend this to all veterans and all other people. Thank you for the wonderful time .

tammys511

My husband and I stopped in for lunch after having not been since COVID. We were very disappointed that they no longer had their Sunday lunch buffet, but figured they must have had their reasons. We opted to still eat there and order off the menu. This turned out to be a mistake. My Pork T Sandwich was extremely overcooked and obviously so. If I was the cook, I never would have placed it on the plate! Our fries were just room temperature. We will not bother going back again.

Erich Glave

Good food in the oldest eating establishment west of the Mississippi. The fried chicken was great but the brisket lacked smoke and was overpowered by accompaniments.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Susan W (Wolfdog)

Never mind the great historical value of this place, the food was wonderful and there's lots of it. Pretty good price too.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

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Hays House 1857 Restaurant & Tavern

112 W Main St, Council Grove, KS 66846
(620) 767-5911