Review: Leather Helmet Grill in downtown Canton has good eats, cool history at old hotel

CANTON − Leather Helmet Grill in downtown Canton is a curious and fun food discovery.

Opening in July, the eatery at 621 Market Ave. S likely has gone under the radar of many local foodies and even those who frequent downtown.

Located next to Canton Palace Theatre, the restaurant and bar are on the lower floor of the 110-unit Downtowner apartment building.

Restaurant and building owner Tom Ascani has embarked on a prolonged slow opening for Leather Helmet Grill, limiting hours to Thursday, Friday and Saturday for now.

The start-up has resurrected the dining and bar space of the former Downtowner Motor Inns hotel, which thrived in the 1960s before closing the following decade when the same company built a Holiday Inn at Belden Village.

Ascani has left much of the decor untouched, opting to embrace the retro Canton charm instead of converting the spot into a sleek and modern sports bar.

Football-themed decorations are surprisingly minimal, but Ascani said he eventually plans to incorporate the city's football heritage by displaying black-and-white photos and memorabilia dating to the 1920s origins of the NFL.

Dining room furnishings are oddly eclectic, including two ancient Diebold safes. Thrift store motel-style paintings hang on the walls. An ornate wooden pulpit from a Canton church greets you near the entrance. Barrell sofas were classically reupholstered after Ascani found them on the curb destined for a garbage truck.

Strasburg sausage is a touchdown on a bun

Joining me on the restaurant adventure was retired Repository entertainment writer Dan Kane.

We both noticed the menu was simple, the choices broken into four quarters like a football game, each item with a helpful description.

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Offerings include nachos, meatball subs, burgers, quesadillas, chicken tenders, salads and grilled cheese.

We settled on the sausage sub, pulled pork, Coney dog and homemade chili.

The sausage sub ($10) tasted as good as it looked − a hefty piece of meat was stuffed inside a hoagie-style bun and colorfully topped with large pieces of grilled red and green peppers, along with onions.

This was a touchdown of a sandwich, earning immediate praise from Dan. Standing out was the quality of the pork from Strasburg Meats; it was deliciously flavorful and didn't require mustard or sauce.

Pulled pork ($10) was another score on the menu. Meat was piled generously onto a brioche bun. Homemade barbecue sauce topped and complemented the tender pork.

Both sammies were served with a heap of fries. Dan immediately rated the fries as top-notch because of the extra crispiness. I also enjoyed the fries, which were deliciously different from a traditional fresh-cut variety.

Homemade chili is loaded with beans, bacon and beef

Chili was homemade, arriving in a crock for $6. Breaking through a layer of melted cheese and onions, I stirred my spoon and found a great balance of ingredients − black and kidney beans, tomatoes, peppers, onions, beef and bacon.

Our bill totaled $31.42, a clear bargain both for quality and quantity. Especially at a time when many restaurants have jacked up prices to compensate for inflation.

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During our visit, Dan and I introduced ourselves, and we chatted with Ascani, who oozes Canton pride and love for his hometown.

He was equally enthused when talking food.

"Have I always cooked? Yes," he said during a subsequent phone interview. "Am I a chef, am I professionally trained? No and no. I know what I like to eat. I do know what tastes good and what looks good and appeals to people. I think I have a good feel for that."

Authentic, special touches are what Ascani strives for with his dishes.

Canton-area ingredients include the aforementioned Strasburg Meats. Mid's sauce is featured on the meatball sub. Muskellunge Brewing Co. beer will be on tap soon.

Ascani even talked a little food science when explaining how he cooks the French fries, using a method of blanching and deep-frying to get the starch content just right.

The proprietor said he's excited to be part of the downtown Canton dining scene.

"I don't want to be Lucca, I don't want to be Bender's," Ascani said of the upscale restaurants. "But I know what I can be, and it can be a really nice, casual place where you eat good food and have a good atmosphere."

Vintage Camelot menu is foodie time machine

The building's history is fascinating.

When Ascani was renovating the bar area and making room for an upright beer cooler, he unearthed original dinner menus from the Camelot restaurant and bar, which were part of the former Downtowner Motor Inns hotel.

Golden-yellow thread binds the pages of the artifact; the lettering and fonts harken to a lost era; and the paper is food stained.

Prices and menu selections are a foodie time machine. One section is titled, "Beef Eater's Delights from the Char-Glo Broiler." The King Arthur ($5.25) is described as "our prestige steak, more than a pound, choice New York Strip Sirloin, aged for flavor and broiled to perfection."

Downtowner shortcake, featuring fresh California berries and whipped topping, cost only 65 cents. Sanka coffee was 25 cents a cup.

"It was very cool," Ascani said of discovering the relic menu. "Now I use it as a prop. I like to show people that stuff and kind of tie it in (with the Leather Helmet Grill)."

The 59-year-old Stark County native will eagerly share more stories about the history of the Downtowner building with customers when he's not busy in the kitchen. You can usually find him at the Leather Helmet Grill during the restaurant hours of 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday and noon to 9 p.m. Saturday. The bar is open later.

For updates on hours and other information, go to https://www.facebook.com/TheLeatherHelmet.

Reach Ed at 330-580-8315 and ebalint@gannett.com. On X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram ed_balint

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Leather Helmet Grill is new downtown Canton restaurant at old hotel