The Village Idiot

Bar, Eatery

309 Conant St
Maumee, Ohio, 43537-3357
United States

(419) 893-7281 | map
villageidiotmaumee.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.87
Reviews:
8
Ratings:
10
pDev:
6.98%
View: Place Reviews
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Ratings by movingtrain:
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Reviewed by movingtrain from Ohio

4.1/5  rDev +5.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
Okay...over the years, I have watched this place transform. It has become one of my favorite places to hit up when I'm home. From its meager beginnings to present, The Village Idiot has become a great place to catch live music every night of the week, and to be certain that there is at least one (maybe more) really good beer(s) on tap.

I'll start with the atmosphere. It is unique to say the least. The walls are adorned with old film posters, classic album covers, and some original artwork. The Jukebox is filled with some excellent tunes, and the floorspace is spaced out with tables, chairs, a pool table, a tiny stage in the front corner, and a nice sized bar. The bartenders are friendly, and are usually open to talking about the beers they have on tap, and anything special they have in bottles. One of my favorite spots in the place is downstairs. yeah, it's where the bathrooms are, but late at night people congregate down when the upstairs gets too crazy...which it tends to do, especially on the weekend nights.

I used to frequent the Idiot when my folks still lived in Maumee, but now I usually only stop by when A) I'm picking up some cigars that the Cigar Affiar or B) when I'm home for the holidays.

A few years back I went for their New Year's celebration...they place was decked out, packed, and, at midnight, tons of confetti and balloons fell from the high vaulted ceiling. Wonderful. Not to mention I was drinking Bells' Two-Hearted all night.

Okay, on to the beer. They have about 4 or 5 taps, most of which rotate depending on what is new and what is available. Last summer I stopped in and they were featuring Bluegrass Brewing Company's Bourbon Barrel Stout...which I gladly had several glasses of. There is almost certainly some Bells on tap, a few run-of-the-mill beers (Bud, etc.), and something that is rotating...either seasonally or for a promotion. The bottle selection is decent, as well...featuring most of the Bells selection (which is what I usually fall back on if the good stuff on tap runs out), and some various other good micros

Another sweet spot of the Idiot is their pizza. They started making pizza a few years back, and it has gotten better and better...not that it wasn't amazing when they started doing it.

If you are in the Maumee area, check this place out. Get what they have special on tap, grab a pizza, and listen to some sweet local music.
Jul 28, 2009
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.91 by leprechaunandfatman from Ohio

Oct 29, 2015
 
Rated: 4.25 by Extrajoker00 from Ohio

Oct 27, 2013
Photo of Brenden
Reviewed by Brenden from Ohio

3.59/5  rDev -7.2%
vibe: 3.25 | quality: 4.25 | service: 3.25 | selection: 3 | food: 4.25
I was surprised upon entering to see it has kind of a dive feel. The bar is to the right of the door and extends all the way to the end of the room. There is a lot of open space and enough room for the stage in the corner not to overcrowd the place. It's got some cool decorative stuff around, some brick on the wall behind the bar, and the ceiling shows off the industrial thing so many places in the area seem to like. They're known for their pizza as much as the beer or more, and it delivers. Other menu items are tasty, but the pizza is one to be sure of on any visit. The service is geared toward regulars. In fact, one of the people working there was drinking with customers, one was watching TV, and another was tending bar. It took me a minute or two to be noticed, but it wasn't that long. When I was greeted, it was friendly. I was surprised after all the hype to discover 10-12 taps; people make it seem like they have 50. The bottle selection isn't bad because most of it's good but, again, maybe 20 bottles of craft. That's good for the area, but it's increasing even here and I feel it won't be seen by Tolkedoans or other locals as impressive anymore soon. As for quality, there are a few BMCs and the rest is craft. It's a good place in downtown Maumee for beer and a pretty good hang-out, and I understand it's lively in the evenings and there's always live music come nightfall. Prices are excellent, some of the best I've seen anywhere.
Aug 13, 2013
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Reviewed by alebird from Ohio

3.85/5  rDev -0.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 4.5
CHEATER PINTS. This place has a great environment, great pizza, good live music and fairly decent beer selection, but they serve their beer in CHEATER PINTS. They use the standard straight pint glass, except there is an inch of "bottom" to the glass, effectively making it a 14 ounce glass. Combined with a frothy pour, or a pour that is even a quarter inch from the rim, and you're paying a pint price for what works out to be roughly 12 ounces of beer. At first when a friend pointed the CHEATER PINTS out to me, I was skeptical, but to test it I order a 12 ounce bottle and poured it into the "pint" glass they gave me, and sure enough the 12 ounce beer nearly filled the glass to the rim. It's a shame, because this is the best place in all of northwest ohio to hang out and drink some beers, hear some music and eat great zza, but CHEATER PINTS SUCK. I haven't been back since I discovered the CHEATER PINTS.
Jan 24, 2011
Photo of markmilliren
Reviewed by markmilliren from Ohio

4.28/5  rDev +10.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
The Village Idiot is the type of bar that I can really see myself growing to love. My girlfriend and I stumbled upon this place shortly after she moved to Toledo. Thanks to the positive reviews found here on BA-dot-com we decided that we would give it a try. The beer selection isn't overly expansive and the food menu is one dimensional(pizza only). That is the only negative thing I can say about this place, and it really isn't even negative. The beer that they do offer is high quality and constantly rotating(usually about 5 good craft taps and a fridge of good bottles). They don't offer any macros on tap which is an amazing thing because when I sit down and ask what they have on tap they can cut right to the chase without going through the mundane, "Bud, Bud Light, Miller Lite, Coors"

Even though pizza is the only thing they offer for food, they certainly know how to make it tasty, and it goes perfectly with a few good beers.

I've been to the Idiot 3 times now, and I plan to return very soon!
Dec 11, 2009
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Reviewed by Freiberger14 from Ohio

3.65/5  rDev -5.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | food: 4.5
This place was pretty cool indeed. 5 taps or so and all were micro brews (Great Lakes, Goose, SN, Bells). It would be great if it had a few more. Staff not very knowledgable but nice and laid back. If you decide to go, go hungry because the pizza is outstanding! Not the greatest place in the world or anything, but for Northwest Ohio it is pretty damn good. Any place that doesnt have any mass beers on tap is a good place. If you want something other than an import on draft head there. I hope I can make it back for some music.
Jul 13, 2008
Photo of olacub
Reviewed by olacub from Ohio

3.93/5  rDev +1.6%
vibe: 3 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 3
I used to go to the "Idiot" on a semi-regular basis back when they first opened (around '98 or '99), before I had three kids and a mortgage. So, I stopped in the other day for the first time in at least 4 years, and it looks like not much has changed. The co-owner chick (can't remember her name) was as friendly as ever, and the beer selection, while not great, is still better than anything in the immediate area. I had a couple of Oberons - they were fresh and tasty.

The clientele is also as eclectic as ever - an interesting blend of hipster-wannabes, quasi professionals and white trash. The same things that I wasn't fond of were still there, too: Two tank-tops at the bar were yelling so loud at each other that I was surprised they didn't throw down - which underscores how loud this place can get, and usually is. Also, it is VERY smoky. I think my two friends and I were the only ones not smoking in there, and the ventilation wasn't great. Oh, and the basement (where the bathrooms are) is still as scary (and smelly) as I remember.

But despite its shortcomings, I like this place. It's original (look no further than the autographed and framed Colonel Sanders poster, among other fun stuff that adorns the walls), and these days that has to count for something....
Jul 16, 2005
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Reviewed by frazbri from Ohio

3.66/5  rDev -5.4%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3
Stopped in to the Village Idiot Wednesday at about 6:00pm with brotherfraz2. This bar had to be a bank somewhere in its history. The ceilings are quite high, and the room is a little boxy. This isn't a huge place, but it seems fairly open. They have a pool table to the left of the entrance, and a stage sits on the left as well. The jukebox volume was higher than background noise, but still not distracting. Even with the high ceiling, the bar was quite smoky. The crowd was mostly 30ish, suburban exgrunge professional people singing along to the Clash(at least after work on a Wed.).

We were served by the bartender almost before we sat down. The tap lineup was Bell's Two Hearted Ale, Michelob Amberbock, Flying Dog Tire Bitter, Avery IPA, and one beer from Otter Creek. Bottles selections included Anchor, Bell's Best Brown, Bell's Amber, Red Stripe, and cans of Black Label.

I don't think any food was available. In NWOhio, it's rare to find a bar with more than one good choice. This is a nice find. Its a little too smoky for my liking, but I'll be back.
Mar 05, 2005
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Reviewed by AtLagerHeads from Ohio

3.44/5  rDev -11.1%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5
Tripped across this little place when I visiting the Toledo area for a conference. The look outside drew me in and I was glad I visited. From the outside it was obvious that this place was formerly a financial institution, bank or thrift. It is in the downtown business district of Maumee, a delightful little town on the north bank of the Maumee River across from Ft. Meigs. Lovely and upscale homes nearby indicate a populace with spendable income.

At first look the Village Idiot looks much like that. Hand drawn court jesters grace the walls. There's obviously raucaus entertainment on the appropriate nights. A second level is on the mezzanine level and not obvious on nights it's not needed. Even the first look at the taps is a yawn. But wait! Whats that logo on the 4th tap? Bell's? Oh, Double Cream Stout. Things are looking up.

Another glance around shows a corner located cooler behind the bar that might hold promise. Sure does. Loads of Samuel Smith and like imports along with craft beers from such local favorites as Great Lakes.

The prices are right, the smoke rises mostly to the high ceiling, and the service is prompt if not conversational. OK, I can live with a nice stout on tap for $2.50 even if served in a Bud Light pint glass. I'll even look up and down the street 'til I find a nice parking spot, settle in, and enjoy the village idiots at The Village Idiot.
Oct 02, 2003
The Village Idiot in Maumee, OH
Place rating: 3.87 out of 5 with 10 ratings