Clay West Bar & Grill

While out in Bayer 's Lake with some friends, we dropped in to Clay West to refuel with a Burger Week burger.

This was my first time at CW, but I've heard good things about their food - a locally-owned oasis in a desert of asphalt and chain food. It's a very large space, with a mix of tables and booths, a couple large projection screens, and a small stage for bands. Being mid-afternoon, it was quiet, with just a few other Burger Week stragglers trickling in and out.

Clay West's Burger Week offering was a Cuban-inspired one, coming with smoked ham, braised pork, Swiss cheese and pickles on a half-pound patty. I ordered fries and a beer to go with it.

Unsurprisingly, the burger was noticeably large when it arrived - both the thick patty and the too-wide bun. Meat-bun ratio fail. The beef had a decent flavour that stood out against the other meats thanks to its thickness, but it was overcooked and dry. The ham didn't really register on my taste buds, but the braised pork was really good. Cutting through the richness of the other toppings, the pickles added a little balance to the hearty burger.

The fries were a deep golden brown, as most hand-cut fries are, but were crisper than most.

Our friendly server was on the ball, although that was pretty easy given the crowd/lack thereof.

Clay West would have been better off with a wider patty that was thinner and cooked more evenly than the thick ones that are prone to being dry by the time that they're cooked through. I doubt I'll have the chance to make my way to Clay West to give them another shot, so hopefully they work on their execution for everyone else.

Clay West is a nice casual place to enjoy some simple hot food and cold beer.

Being in Bayers Lake they offer plenty of parking. The atmosphere inside is pretty dark, dull and dreary, but the restaurant is spacious with comfortable booths so it's fine with me. It would be great if they offered an outdoor eating area in the summer because they have the perfect menu of food and drinks to enjoy on a patio.

They are able to accommodate large groups because of their size so it's a good option when the whole family wants to go out for a bite.

I've had their chicken and waffles, and their fish and chips in the past and both are quite good. Their burgers and hand cut fries are great, but I wish they used a softer bun, as their crusty buns can sometimes make the burger seem a little dry.

My husband and I will keep coming back as we have for years for good casual food.

Geez... We went on a promo day. Even then, not great.
Goat cheese salad was over oily . Mediterranean pasta way too oily, Ribs only borderline and even though they were free, the whole thing felt like it was not worth it.
Should just remove 'Grill' from name...
Even the lighting kinda sucked

Clay West Bar and Grill is a bar that will treat you well as long as you deal with the Owner. Female waitresses are extremely ignorant and disrespectful. I suggest if you are going out for a Drink or an Evening to go out for a few drinks, to go elsewhere. You will be Treated the very best until you have a few drinks. Then there is a great chance you will be asked to leave and not return. The main Waitress is a real Bitc% and she will stop serving you. I recommend to all, do not use this Bar as an outing for the lack of respect and questionable accusations by the Female Bar Tenders. I hope if we have a second wave of COVID-19 ( they will be shut down and unable to recover. They promote alcohol until you are so drunk, then they throw you out and ask you not to come back. It happened to me. Do Not go to Clay West Bar and Grill.

UPDATE: visited here 3 weeks ago and all was well and tasty...until we spotted a mouse running across the dining room floor. Told the waitress and there was no surprise registered on her face when she said "ok...thanks".

Been here on several occasions and have found the food to be good and the servers have been attentive. I would probably give it 3.5 stars if I could but I have been there frequently and have not had a bad meal...warrants the extra 1/2 star. Burgers are pretty good, chicken and waffles are an experience, and the fish and chips has a crispy thin batter reminiscent of country fried chicken (surprisingly good)

Was nearby so went in for brunch with my partner. Our food was not at all good even by crappy chain standards and our server was cold at best and rude at worst. The service was fairly slow but not insane. All in all...I'd likely try one if the other nearby restaurants next time.

This USED to be my favourite restaurant to go to. Unfortunately management decided to change the menu and remove a number of popular items, including items that other places did not offer. Now it is just a generic menu that you can find anywhere, with slightly higher prices than for the same items that other restaurants in the area have for less cost. The only redeeming thing is the friendly staff. Needless to say, they have lost another long time regular customer.

Great little restaurant tucked away in bayers lake. I'm here occasionally and have always had great food.

Service has been off and on but I find not many people know about this place and at 5pm all the franchise restaurants are packed, this place never!

Highly recommend the poutine and ice cream drinks.

We sat for 15 minutes without anybody coming to our table bartender saws come in and be seated and nobody came to service so we got up and left it is 6:30 on Sunday evening June 10th very poor service0o

This is going to be a long one...

Clay West is now located where Kokomo's used to be, which has gone through some renovations and menu changes... Thank you.

I gave up on Kokomo's long before I began Yelping and I think that this story should be told. On my very first visit (and second) to Kokomo's I had the Maple Baked Salmon and absolutely loved it. Then, the fish swam away and was no longer offered. My final visit I ordered one dish (and now I cannot remember what is was) and it was gross, disgusting even. I informed the server who offered to bring another item, an offer I took. My second item I believe was an enchilada, also nasty. I left hungry and pissed off, I vowed to never return again...

Two and half years later....

I also read about the opening of Clay West in the Chronicle Herald. And, as I work in the BLIP and live in Clayton Park I saw the new signs which peaked my interest. After an hour of trying to decide what to have for supper I mentioned this new restaurant to the bf and we reluctantly decided to give er a go..

The decor has changed some, the venue does not look like some cheap Hawaiian rip-off anymore. You can still find the huge overheads with a sports channel on. The place looks much more classy than it used to, but still has some of that sports bar vibe. OK, we find a booth and sit down.

Our server visits us promptly: Sheila, she is fantastic. On the ball, friendly and honest throughout our entire dining experience.

I order the Mushroom Toast for an app and the bf indulged in wings (something he has been craving for days). My mushroom toast was not what I expected, it was far better. The toast was thin and covered in mushrooms, cheese and a balsamic vinaigrette-ish type of sauce. It was scrumptious! A total wake-up for my taste buds! Bf enjoyed his wings.


I had the Chicken Club Mac n' Cheese for my main. HOLY COW, it was almost better than my Momma's, and my Momma's Mac n' Cheese is too DIE for! It was creamy, cheesy and flavored to perfection with tons of bacon and chicken. It was coated with crumbs and baked with tomato as garnish. The Bf had... you guessed it.. A burger and fries.. The Dub Burger, which in case you do not realize (we didn't) dub=2 patties. On a scale of 1-10, bf gave a 10.

Ready for desert? I had two in mind. The Orange Creamcycle Creme Brule or the NS Blueberry Grunt. Ultimately, I choose the Grunt after speaking with Sheila which I am 100% satisfied with. It was baked to order and was accompanied with French Vanilla Ice Cream. YUM YUM YUM. Bf had the Chocolate Silk Pie which he really loved. I'm not a huge chocolate lover, but from the tinsy bite I had I can say it was pretty damn tasty.


My main came with a small green salad. The greens were fresh and crisp. The dressing though was bland, this is my only complaint. I just threw some salt and pepper on there and ate it up.

So, I am truly impressed with my dining experience at Clay West! I will return as there are some other menu items I would like to try, I must say that Sheila our server made our meals even better by answering my "Would you prefer this or this?"

Fantastic!