Rich In History
The Farnsworth Cocktail Bar resides in the old Waterville State Savings Bank. As renovations were considered, the owner was determined to maintain several of the building’s original details including the entryway and vestibule area, the main vault, the chandelier, the tall beautiful windows, and the customer withdraw/deposit slip area in the corner. The rest of the building underwent complete reconstruction including new flooring, walls, a ceiling, and mechanical systems including gas, plumbing, and electric. When shopping for paint colors for the restaurant, it took less than 30 seconds to make a decision as one of the options the owner looked at was appropriately named Oyster Bar.
The small kitchen is purposefully open for guests to watch as food is prepared on the French cooktop Viking range. The restaurant’s showstoppers are the stainless steel vent hood configured in the middle of the space; a 24-foot bar, installed where the old teller stations were formerly located; and the old vault that is the restaurant’s wine/ liquor storage. In addition, the bathrooms were renovated to meet ADA requirements, the bank’s old conference room was converted to the dish, prep, and storage areas, and a new raised patio, that seats 12 people, was built on the east side of the building.
This bank is said to have been robbed by Baby Face Nelson’s crew in the 1930s. Their crew later joined up with John Dillinger (hence many people say John Dillinger robbed this bank and we have also heard of a shootout story with Dillinger). A Tommy gun was then purchased by the bank for protection and resided in the main vault after this robbery. This Tommy gun was later donated to the Waterville Police Department by one of the building owners in the early 2000s. Here is a link for other information on the Protection for the Bank!
In the early 1950s, this bank was robbed by the “Shopping Bag Robbers.” We found a law enforcement bulletin from J. Edgar Hoover, when he was the Director of the FBI, detailing this robbery. This document is framed hanging inside the bank.
We love hearing all the local stories about this building.
Voted best Raw Bar in the Toledo, Ohio area for 2023 & 2024.
We have received over 500 5-star reviews on Tock in the first 1.5 years of our operation! Amazing!
STREET CONSTRUCTION!
Farnsworth Rd is under construction and changes daily on where they put the road closed signs etc. Please park on Third St. or take the alley off of South St. to our parking lot, you may drive though the small strip of grass to our parking lot. Thank you and apologies for the hassle.
Private Party Dates or Holidays we are not open to the public:
Nov 28th, Dec 6th, Dec 10th, Dec 12th, Dec 13th, Dec 16th
MENU TASTING
We now offer a 5 course menu tasting at our 4 seat oyster bar for $65 a person/ $95 with wine pairings at 6pm seating.
Please no alterations.
Make the reservation on Tock our reso system, link below or at the top of the website.
PRIVATE EVENTS
Contact Farnsworth Cocktail Bar for any private parties you may be thinking about!
We can tailor many options up to 40 people. Shoot us an email farnsworthcocktails@gmail.comĀ
An Impressive, Evolving Menu
We are passionate about exceeding expectations and doing food the right way.
Gallery