Dine at the Historic Ye Old Trail Tavern in Yellow Springs

While dining at Ye Olde Trail Tavern, thou best watch thy footing; set near the tavern’s center is a lofty step dating to the mid-19th-century. When Franz Hafner purchased the original 1827 structure, he hauled his nearby home onto the lot, cut through a wall and joined the two buildings, resulting in the discrepancies in flooring.

It’s one of many quirks that tell the tale of the 199-year-old tavern, from its days at the heart of  Forest Village, the former name of the town where it resides, Yellow Springs. The Hafner family owned the property until the 1960s. Since then, the restaurant has changed hands, but the hand-hewn walls of the rear dining room remain, harkening back to a time when visitors traveled many miles to sip the purported healing waters of the village’s namesake springs.

“Glen Forest Water Cure, Yellow Springs, Ohio,” an advertisement in The Jeffersonian Democrat on Aug. 10, 1860, reads. “With accommodations for 100 patients.”

The menu at Ye Olde Trail Tavern features a variety of German-inspired fare, from schnitzel to brats. The Reuben and turkey Reuben (named The Hafner and Mrs. Hafner, respectively) are longstanding favorites.

“The menu tilts German because I researched Franz Hafner and determined his family is from Baden, Germany,” says owner Christine Monroe-Beard. 

After a hike through nearby Glen Helen Nature Preserve, there’s no better reward than a Hofbräu German pilsner and an order of sauerkraut balls at this spot tucked along Xenia Avenue. 

“My 79-year-old mother makes the sauerkraut balls twice a week,” Monroe-Beard says. “People literally travel from other states to eat them.” 228 Xenia Ave., Yellow Springs 45387, 937/767-7448, oldetrailtavern.com

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