If you're looking to book a party of more then 10+ people, don't do it.
JP, the owners son, and manager said he would do chafing dishes. I called for a week to tell him which ones, I was told for six days he would call me back. I eventually showed up on Saturday and was told he was too busy planning and setting up a toy story pinball for his tournament the next day. I spent a half hour with the bartender talking about beer suggestions for towers the next day and tipped 50% on our bill to thank him. Sunday I call and am told he's busy dealing with a Halloween party and he'll call me later, eight hours later, we call and a day before the party at 8pm says he's no longer doing the chafing dishes for 40 people. We tried to call everyone and rearrange it for the SBC brewery or hatchet factory, but because we couldn't get everyone else we had about 25-30 people come.
We wanted the chafing dishes for the ease of being able to get food without 10-15 plates shareable crowded on a table, with peoples dinner plates, and towers, the tables were so crowded servers didn't know where to put food. You know what solves that issue? Chafing dishes. Instead of making people walk up and down to three separate tables to find different food.
The wings were horrible. We ordered 8 plates maybe? And six plates were left mostly uneaten. The moment you see them you know there burnt and overbreaded. Two of our guest said they bit into one and the breading was burnt, but the chicken was either undercooked or too soaked in grease so they physically got ill. The cupcakes came out on a dirty pizza tray, no sheet underneath, wtf?
A party of 25-30 people show up and the manager avoids our table at all costs. He stared at the pinball tournament for hours at a table and avoided eye contact with us. Not once does he come to apologize for not following through with the chafing dishes. Not once does he come to check to make sure everything was okay on a table that ordered $800 worth of food and drinks.
JP clearly demonstrated what his concerns are: money and his machines. If you're not a cabinet or pinball machine, he doesn't care. If you're spending money, he doesn't care about your experience, or the quality of his food.
Bartari is still open because it has pinballs and cabinets, unique drafts, and an interesting/varying drink list. If there was any competition in the area it would be closed. The customer service of the JP is close to 0.
The food ranges from subpar to inedible. It's equivalent of eating at Chuckee Cheese, all the wings were burnt and overcooked. The pizza is cheese and sauce on a half loaf of bread, it's the first thing your kids learn to cook when they're old enough to use the oven. This is not a place you go if you want good food, it's where you go for some cool games and drinks. Their tacos taste burnt, the ramen soup is sour. If you enjoy McDonald's and Burger King then you won't mind this food, but it's more likely McDonald's and Burger King won't burn it, or over bread it.
Staff wise, Heather is a phenomenal server, one of the best in North East PA. She has a friendly personality, extraordinary customer service skills, she goes out of her way to make patrons feel welcome, and is the example of how the owners should treat their customers. read more